Name: The Dysasters
ISBN: 9781250141040

Kristin Cast

P. C. Cast

P.C. and Kristin Cast, the #1 New York Times bestselling authors of the House of Night phenomenon, return to the scene with The Dysasters—the first action-packed novel in a new paranormal fantasy series. Adoptive daughter of a gifted scientist, Foster Stewart doesn’t live a “normal” life, (not that she’d want to). But controlling cloud formations and seeing airwaves aren’t things most eighteen year olds can do. Small town star quarterback and quintessential dreamy boy next door, Tate “Nighthawk” Taylor has never thought much about his extra abilities. Sure, his night vision comes in handy during games, but who wouldn’t want that extra edge? From the moment Foster and Tate collide, their worlds spiral and a deadly tornado forces them to work together, fully awakening their not-so-natural ability - the power to control air. As they each deal with the tragic loss of loved ones, they’re caught by another devastating blow – they are the first in a group of teens genetically manipulated before birth to bond with the elements, and worse... they’re being hunted. Now, Foster and Tate must fight to control their abilities as they learn of their past, how they came to be, who’s following them, and what tomorrow will bring... more DYSASTERS?

The Dysasters

Laura Kehoe

Ever wondered what it would be like to control wind, fire, earth, or water? Well, for these lucky (or not so lucky) teens, they know exactly what it’s like. I’ve got to say, the concept of this book is pretty awesome. It’s like X Men meets Avatar. Plus, I loved the drawings and pictures that accompanied the story! The plot and characters fell a little flat for me at times, but I still had such a fun time reading this book!

This book confused me a little. Not necessarily because of the plot, which was pretty clear, but because of how I felt about the story as a whole. Sometimes I would be reading and think “This is so cool! I want to read more.” And then other times I would be a little less impressed and cringe slightly at something the characters have done. By the end, I wasn’t sure if I could say I loved the book as a whole, or just really enjoyed parts of it. Which made rating it a little hard.

Ultimately, I decided I do like this book a lot. If you like science fiction-y, genetic manipulation, and young adult books, I’d say you should definitely check it out. I’m interested to see where the story goes from here!
 
Thank you to St. Martins Press for the chance to read and showcase this book!

Paige Green

Disclaimer: I received this book from the publishing company. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book Series: Book 1 of The Dysasters

Rating: 4/5

Publication Date: February 26, 2019

Genre: YA Fantasy

Recommended Age: 16+ (language, crushes and love, gruesome death, terrifying powers)

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Pages: 320

Amazon Link

Synopsis: Foster Stewart knows she's different. Her life has never been "normal." Talking to plants and controlling cloud formations aren't things most seventeen year olds are into. Tate "Nighthawk" Taylor is perfect. Star quarterback and all around dreamy boy next door he never thought about his "extra" abilities. What quarterback wouldn't want night vision? That's not weird, right? It's cool! 

But on the night of their first meeting a deadly tornado brings them together and awakens their true abilities - the power to control the element air. Unbeknown to Tate and Foster, they are the first in a group of teens that were genetically manipulated before birth to bond with the elements. Which truly sucks for Foster, as she has to face the fact that Dr. Rick Stewart, her beloved scientist father, betrayed her and now wants to use her and the others for his own nefarious world domination plot. 

Foster and Tate must stop Dr. Stewart and his minions before he destroys their lives and the world.

Review: I thought this book was a good start to a series. The book had really well developed characters, the writing was amazing as always and the plot was very interesting. I really like the illustrations too and I felt they added something special to the book. The super power mechanics are very well done and unique. While I do feel like they are planeteers a bit, they’re also starkly different from the planeteers as well.

However, I felt like this book was so dialogue heavy. There was hardly any action in writing, most of it was through talking. The book also had an issue with repetitive sentences. I understand that they’re teens and they lost their parents, but there are ways to convey emotions and sadness without having to repeat the same sentences over and over again in your writing. The book was a bit confusing too, especially in the beginning. I was really confused about what was going on in the book until about 100 pages in. I think if I read the synopsis before I read the book it would have helped, but I personally believe that you shouldn’t have to read the synopsis before reading the book. While I nitpick at this book a lot, I do also feel that this book was a good start to an amazing series.

Verdict: A few issues, but an amazing book overall! Definitely a summer must read.

Narah Quinn

I want the next instalment already!

Originally introduced to P.C & Kristin Cast with the House of Night series I was really pleased when I was approved for The Dysasters! I must thank the authors and publishers for this early access in exchange for an honest review. 

From the start I was left with a feeling that I was missing something - something was obviously going on - but I had no real idea what and that drew me in and made me want more from the first page! 
Things then start to happen very quickly and as you start to figure it out you find yourself already invested in Foster and Tate. 

I like the fact that they were behaving (bar obvious differences in personality and upbringing) much like you would expect teenagers to behave while dealing with what has just happened, and continues to happen through the book. 
Characters are introduced at all the right times and I really like the different perspectives, given their abilities, it gives good insight into how each character came to be and how they develop as the story progresses - I was about 50% of the way through when I became absolutely certain that this was likely to be a series (who knows of how many - I am hoping for a HoN kind of series!) 
There is a good amount of action, good character development and already the message of love winning over fear and hate is strong and consistent! 


I have reached the end for now - but this is on my pre-order list!

Megan Leprich

Thank you so much to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

P.C. Cast can never go wrong in my eyes. I became obsessed with her and her daughter after reading the Marked series and I have devoured everything they’ve wrote since.

This book is about Foster who lives with her foster mom Cora and is constantly moving around. Homeschooled and an introvert, Foster is not looking forward to attending a football game that Cora is dragging her to. It doesn’t help that the first person Foster meets is who she believes to be a typical football playing douchebag named Tate who she instantly dislikes. When a massive tornado hits the football field and people start getting hurt Foster and Tate realize there’s something special about the two of them, something they’ve both questioned and almost can’t believe. When they both lose their parents in the storm they realize there’s more to their powers and more people that are like them, but they’re not all good.

I love how P.C. Cast incorporated people that have affinities for the elects just like she did in her Marked series. Normally I’m not huge on fantasy and sci-fi novels but the way she writes them I enjoy them and never get tired of reading her intricate stories. I loved all the characters in this book and I loved the relationship between Foster and Tate. They both were from completely different backgrounds and their lives came together with their powers and they figured out how to use them together to help people.

Another thing I loved about this novel was the storyline. Like I said before I love anything P.C. Cast write and this was such a fun fast read. I love how her books are different from anything I’ve read before and I love that. The way she explains scenes in the story and the detail she goes into almost makes it seem like you’re watching a movie as the book goes on, it’s that vivid and detailed.

Thank you so much to P.C. Cast for writing such an amazing book and St. Martins Press for allowing me to read it. Definitely one of my favorite books of 2019 and I can’t wait for this new series of hers. The ending killed me but I know there’s more amazing work to come!

Dearna Mulvaney

For full review: https://wordsoftheroses.com/2019/02/2...

 “Whatever the reason, Foster didn’t care as long as she didn’t have to return to the mind-numbing day care they call public school.”⁣ 

This series is superhero teens meets Avatar the Last Airbender. There is a mad scientist who’s messing with embryos to infuses them with the different chemicals, which results in kids who are able to control the elements. 
⁣
Interspersed through the book are drawings of the characters. This really helps to give the story that comic book vibe. ⁣

The Dysasters is a great start to a new series and had me engaged from the opening line. I’m looking forward to the next book! Need to know what happens next.⁣

Jessica 

Blog | Twitter | Instagram | Review also found here at Booked J. 

Back in the midst of the YA vampire craze a decade ago, I was completely obsessed with the House of Night series by this dynamic duo. While they aren't my auto-buy authors, they are a pair that I look back on fondly and occasionally check out their new releases. The Dysasters was, of course, one of those moments--the synopsis had me hooked instantly. 

Unfortunately, the novel itself fell flat and didn't reach my personal expectations--in short? It wasn't my cup of tea. (I'm so sad. Don't look at me.) Don't get me wrong, the novel isn't bad. In fact, The Dysasters had a lot of good to it. P.C. and Kristin have that graceful and fast prose to their work that reminds us how well they work together. The worldbuilding we saw was fascinating and I loved the powers that specific characters had.

It also shows us just how much this mother-daughter duo has improved in terms of their combined efforts. Looking back on their writing in House of Night, and then looking to their more recent releases, you can definitely see how they've grown. I loved that The Dysasters, too, felt like a great change of pace to their past works. 

There was a definite and distinct science fiction feeling to The Dysasters that was a little spooky and atmospheric. (Although, I see it is categorized on Goodreads as fantasy and paranormal. I found that it had that bending the genre quality that I typically enjoy.) 

That being said, I found that I liked the premise--the ideas, the system of power, the prospect of a new brand of danger--of The Dysasters a lot more than I liked the execution of it. This doesn't make the novel an inherently bad book by any means--it merely means that it wasn't my cup of tea and, really, it is what it is.