The Blurb:
In the depths of Crestpoint, there is unrest. In 2019, the nation became independent, leaving behind the confines of the United States--creating its own government. Five years later, a plan is underway to make it stronger. The leaders are only getting more secretive--wanting more control. Frightened by the sudden changes, seventeen-year-old Natalie Matthews decides to join the government to protect herself and her family from her deepest fears. She is given the opportunity she needs to succeed, but when she falls in love with Sean Davis, she is forced into the center of a plot much thicker than she imagined. Entangled in an effort to win a treacherous competition, she becomes the target of attacks. As she exposes the leaders' corruption, she thinks the danger is over, but instead finds herself caught between the watchful eyes of the world and the lingering secrets of the person she wanted to trust the most.
ARC generously provided by author in exchange for my honest review:
The main character is Natalie, a teenager in Crestpoint--a country which is newly separated from the U.S. as of 5 years ago. Natalie seems to be pretty well-educated for a teen: she’s very introspective about the intrusiveness of the government, the Council’s bid to increase its military capabilities, and she even goes so far as to analyze the reasoning for recruiting young adults ages 17-26 (because they’re so emotionally malleable). I feel like my U.S. education shortchanged me. The only critical thinking I did at that age was debating whether or not Taco Bell’s meat was real.
Next, we meet Sean Davis. Sean is a 20 year old FIRST-IN-COMMAND. For the Crestpoint military. No big deal. This guy must be all the smartness. He’s in charge of recruiting, and for reasons totally unrelated to him or aforementioned smartness/hotness, Natalie immediately decides to join the ranks after hearing him speak (but not like, for a guy...pfft).
I mean…I’d join...What? Nothing. I didn’t say anything.
“Fear isn’t going to go away. You have to look past that. I can’t convince your parents for you. I can tell you my experiences and that joining has been a huge part of who I am, but I can’t make it important to your life and I can’t make it any less scary.” That’s pretty insightful for a 20 year old. I’ve had boyfriends in their 30’s that couldn’t think their way out of a ball pit, let alone dissect the intricacies of managing fear and confronting something larger than yourself, with your life and the well-being of your entire family on the line. See above, re: sign me up.
The biggest hurdle I had with the story was mostly the initial setup/how Natalie and Sean even cross paths:
First of all, Natalie’s dad immediately assumes Sean will make it the focus of his job to protect his baby girl. “She may join, but you will be fully responsible for her safety.” WHAT? He’s First-In-Command, doesn’t he have literally all the things to do? I’m sure all fathers would love such a promise! Fortunately for them, Natalie is immediately important to Sean for reasons.
What’s more, Sean actually responds to this demand with: “Of course I am,” he answers without hesitation. “If you want to join, then I’ll take accountability for your safety to the best that I can.” Seems legit. I get that he has underlying motivations, but for a character like Natalie, who was introduced as being constantly wary of the intentions of those around her, this seemed pretty trusting of her.
SO we learn that Sean wants Natalie to be in the leadership management program.
Like, management, management? Sign me up, I'm emotionally malleable.
A 17 year old military noob. Wow, it must really bother all those other people who have already dedicated years of their life to...oh, wait. Yeah. They aren’t happy about it. Natalie will now be competing with a group of 15, all vying for one spot to be in charge. No pressure. Just don’t mess up. And don’t fall for your hot First-in-Command.
Sean obviously has a thing for Natalie right from the start, but his motivations aren’t made completely clear for quite some time. As the sexual tension begins to escalate, there were also a few times where I was getting super irked with these two. “If anyone asks why we kissed, you can let them know that you were just upset about your peer getting hurt and weren’t thinking.” This man is a First-in-Command. In charge of things.
BUT overall? That slow build-up was sweet, sweet torture. Fair warning, angsty story is angsty.
No, seriously. I may have reached a point where I was yelling at my phone. “I’m going to give you one more kiss and if you don’t answer honestly and in detail,” he threatens, hooking his fingers on either side of my t-shirt. “I’m going to lift this up and we’ll be playing in a new area.”
The main character is Natalie, a teenager in Crestpoint--a country which is newly separated from the U.S. as of 5 years ago. Natalie seems to be pretty well-educated for a teen: she’s very introspective about the intrusiveness of the government, the Council’s bid to increase its military capabilities, and she even goes so far as to analyze the reasoning for recruiting young adults ages 17-26 (because they’re so emotionally malleable). I feel like my U.S. education shortchanged me. The only critical thinking I did at that age was debating whether or not Taco Bell’s meat was real.
Next, we meet Sean Davis. Sean is a 20 year old FIRST-IN-COMMAND. For the Crestpoint military. No big deal. This guy must be all the smartness. He’s in charge of recruiting, and for reasons totally unrelated to him or aforementioned smartness/hotness, Natalie immediately decides to join the ranks after hearing him speak (but not like, for a guy...pfft).
I mean…I’d join...What? Nothing. I didn’t say anything.
“Fear isn’t going to go away. You have to look past that. I can’t convince your parents for you. I can tell you my experiences and that joining has been a huge part of who I am, but I can’t make it important to your life and I can’t make it any less scary.” That’s pretty insightful for a 20 year old. I’ve had boyfriends in their 30’s that couldn’t think their way out of a ball pit, let alone dissect the intricacies of managing fear and confronting something larger than yourself, with your life and the well-being of your entire family on the line. See above, re: sign me up.
The biggest hurdle I had with the story was mostly the initial setup/how Natalie and Sean even cross paths:
First of all, Natalie’s dad immediately assumes Sean will make it the focus of his job to protect his baby girl. “She may join, but you will be fully responsible for her safety.” WHAT? He’s First-In-Command, doesn’t he have literally all the things to do? I’m sure all fathers would love such a promise! Fortunately for them, Natalie is immediately important to Sean for reasons.
What’s more, Sean actually responds to this demand with: “Of course I am,” he answers without hesitation. “If you want to join, then I’ll take accountability for your safety to the best that I can.” Seems legit. I get that he has underlying motivations, but for a character like Natalie, who was introduced as being constantly wary of the intentions of those around her, this seemed pretty trusting of her.
SO we learn that Sean wants Natalie to be in the leadership management program.
Like, management, management? Sign me up, I'm emotionally malleable.
A 17 year old military noob. Wow, it must really bother all those other people who have already dedicated years of their life to...oh, wait. Yeah. They aren’t happy about it. Natalie will now be competing with a group of 15, all vying for one spot to be in charge. No pressure. Just don’t mess up. And don’t fall for your hot First-in-Command.
Sean obviously has a thing for Natalie right from the start, but his motivations aren’t made completely clear for quite some time. As the sexual tension begins to escalate, there were also a few times where I was getting super irked with these two. “If anyone asks why we kissed, you can let them know that you were just upset about your peer getting hurt and weren’t thinking.” This man is a First-in-Command. In charge of things.
BUT overall? That slow build-up was sweet, sweet torture. Fair warning, angsty story is angsty.
No, seriously. I may have reached a point where I was yelling at my phone. “I’m going to give you one more kiss and if you don’t answer honestly and in detail,” he threatens, hooking his fingers on either side of my t-shirt. “I’m going to lift this up and we’ll be playing in a new area.”
Me: GIRL, COME ON YOU HAVE ALL THE TOOLS YOU NEED TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN.
Stylistically, this story is well-edited and had no spelling/grammar issues. The plot flows well, pacing is steady throughout. At times, paragraphs can get pretty long. Some of the dialogue focuses quite a bit on the minutia of the moment (perhaps to show the conversations in their entirety). But this is more of a stylistic preference than a criticism.
I presume from the ending that there will be more installments in the future, which is good because we need to talk about Natalie and Sean!!! 4 Brave New World stars!!!
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