Title: Revolutionary
Author: Krista McGee
Publisher/Year: Nelson Thomas, Inc. 7/15/14
Length: 336 Pages
Series: Anomaly #3

Overview

Back in the hands of the State after months aboveground, Thalli, Berk, Alex, and Kristie find themselves caught in a horrible game of power . . . with consequences reaching farther than they ever imagined.

After months in New Hope and Athens, Thalli had almost forgotten what living in the State was like. Programmed to be without emotions or curiosity, she was always an anomaly there. Too emotional. Too curious.
Citizens of the State should behave exactly the way the Scientists designed them to behave: working in their assigned fields, maintaining productivity.

Thalli’s entire genetically engineered generation has been eradicated by a scientocracy that believes human life is expendable. Now, a pawn in a mad game of manipulation, held hostage and tortured in the name of the State, Thalli can barely summon the strength to hope that the future of humanity could be any better.

She clings to her new faith in the Designer. But when Thalli discovers that even the surviving aboveground villages are in danger of State domination, her fragile faith begins to crumble.

As Thalli, Berk, and Alex make plans to overthrow the evil
Dr. Loudin, a chilling secret explains why they have been left alive at all . .
. a personal secret that will haunt Thalli forever. And as she struggles with this new truth, she also struggles with decisions of the heart.

Can the State’s expansion be stopped? Or will humanity—above and below the surface—be irreparably damaged?
Thalli is faced with a purpose both overwhelming and undeniable: to assume the role of a Revolutionary.

My Thoughts

So….there’s so much to actually talk about in this final installment of the series.  First off, the love triangle – what a love triangle it was.  I mean, Thalli has Berk whom she’s identified her feelings as being love and she has Alex, whom shes not sure if it’s love or just that she knows that he can’t live without her.  Complex right?  all for a 17 yr old .

Aside from that, we’re in a place in the story where we really don’t know what Loudin is going to do next.  The crew of teens are trying to figure out how to get a step ahead of Loudin and it’s just not possible.  Every time they think that they are making progress, he shows up and out smarts them, knowing that by hurting the person that they love most will make them do what he wants.

So that’s what we get in this story – a lot of running around trying to determine if Loudin is going to win and how, and having the leads find if they truly believe that G-d is out there listening and if he’s going to be able to help.

What i felt was a strong lead in of religious theology in book 2 really turned into a lot more of that in book 3.  Every other conversation was around what the Designer was doing or not doing and what faith they could have left in what he was doing for them.  Honestly, I’m not really a fan of that level of the conversation, but like i said in book 2, if it gives them a reason to have hope, then i’m willing to look past.

One of the nice things here is that we see how people are evolving and adapting when they learn things that are unfavorable or they learn what they thought was the opposite of the truth.  In this installment, Loudin tries to tell the people of Athens that Alex is the bad guy, even making them think that he killed one of their own, just so that he could gain power.  From that point on, Alex was heartbroken that his people detested him, and Thalli felt that it was her job to prove the people otherwise.

At the same time, we are back at the State, plotting with James (John’s son) on how to get to safety and disarm the State, and the way that this piece of the story goes is expected – but not any less complicated.  We know that James is on their side now, but the question is whether he’s going to be a double agent in a sense to keep Loudin off their tail, and then really to understand who’s side he’s on.

While i really enjoyed this story – there’s something that has to be said.  I made it just about to the end of the book last night, with only 30 pages to go and i was certain, i mean REALLY certain that there’s no way that it could be a trilogy since we were no where near the end of the story.  And then when i picked it up just now to finish it, i find that yup…it’s a trilogy and we are finished with the journey.  I don’t know about anyone else, but when things are resolved so quickly, i tend to question the integrity.  We got an epilogue that takes us 6 months into the future to see where things are going, but i think that it was rushed a bit.  We again lose some of our favorite characters in the fall out and that makes me sad.  I don’t know that it was necessary or even the right choice for who would live and who would die…but i’m not the author so i’m sure that Ms. McGee had her reasons.

Anyhow, i really enjoyed this series and aside from the snag of the quick resolutions, it was a great way to approach what our future may look like if the world continues on it’s path.  I’d say enjoy, but that’s a bit dark.  but….try to Enjoy!