The Outlands – Tyler Edwards

Thank you Tyler Edwards for letting me read this book. This book will be available on January 24.

Title: The Outlands (book 1)

Author: Tyler Edwards

Genre: Dystopian

Plot: Jett Lastings is an outcast. The government, called the Patriarch, has deemed him one after his parents died. He and his group of friends, Victor, Jensen, Gibbs, Spike, Telman, Olivia, and Becka live in an abandoned house, away from the Patriarchs influence. Life in the Patriarch’s caste system is difficult, especially if you’re an undesirable. Jett and his friends have taken to stealing whatever they can. Things start to change after Jett steals a data pack (a device that holds all a person’s important information) of a Patriarch official. That gains notice of the police (called Red Caps), Levites (those who deal out punishments), and Grent (a leader of the small rebellion). They chose to help Grent after Red Caps take some of their friends. They bargain with Grent for help. He helps get their friends and they give him the data pad and take control of the Market (where the stores and vendors are). Jett and the others help get control of the Market but his friends weren’t there. Grent has an idea but needs Jett and his friend’s help. But will it be enough? Can they start a true revolution? Can they find their friends? Then rumors of a mole within the rebellion. Who is it? One of Jett’s friends? Or one of Grent’s men? Can the mole be found? Or will the mole destroy everything? Can Jett find fix the mess? Or will he and his friend get caught?

Rating: 3.8 – a different take on dystopian future

Opinion: At first I thought this was going to be another standard dystopian fiction book. It took some time for the book to get set up. It had all the making of another standard young adult book. Then it slowly started to make itself different. The love interest doesn’t take over the whole plot. It stays focused on finding their friends, taking over the Market, and dealing with the consequences of their actions. I appreciated that. I’m not a big fan of young adult books where the main character finds love and it distracts them from their origins goal. While it did distract Jett, he still found a way to help his friends. I still kind of predicted the ending. Though I didn’t predict one of the character’s actions towards the end. I had my suspicions of the other characters but not that one. It made for a good ending and a cliffhanger. Though the character’s actions still brought about the ending I predicted. I’m curious to see where the series go from here. I’m hoping it doesn’t pull a Divergent. This was a nice change for a dystopian future book. There were no love triangles or love distractions. They stop and think about things logically more than in other books. They try to figure out the best plan for beating the government instead of charging ahead. They find ways to make right choices for everyone. They’re quick to be suspicious when things go too well or not well enough. They talk about the consequences of their actions and think them all the way through. But even then it’s not enough. I’m sure they’ll find a way in the next books. Overall, this was a great book. It was different and found ways to keep me reading. This is a good book for anyone who enjoys dystopian future books.