Fire Country (Country Saga #1) - David Estes

Review: Fire Country
Series: The Country Saga
Author: David Estes
Rating: 5/5
Genre: Dystopia
Recommend To: fans of Birthmarked

I was given a copy of this book from Mr. Estes in exchange for an honest review.

OK WOW. I liked this even better than the Dwellers series. Quite honestly, it was really, really amazing. Fire Country takes place in a harsh world, ravaged by the sun. The same world the Dwellers live underground in, far from the troubles of the Heaters.

It follows the tale of Siena, a fifteen year old "pre-bearer." When she turns 16, she will be handed off to a random man, chosen for her, and forced to bear children every three years. It is the Law. What a horrifying prospect! Yet, Estes manages to convey the awful situation of the women, without being repulsive. In fact, it nearly made me want to jump in and start a revolution. Siena is a wonderful main character, full of uncertainty and doubt, yet filled with all the wonderful qualities that make her so interesting. Courageous, intelligent, fiery (hehe see what I did there?), loyal, and determined; her life shackled to the rules fills her with a desire to break free of her chains, and to help the others around her. 

The other characters were also fascinating. Siena I already talked about, but then there were Circ, Skye, her mother and father, Wilde, Brione, Crya, Feve, Hawk, etc. They were all so engaging, and intense. Siena and Circ were especially adorable, and I hope we get to see more of them! They had such a real relationship, their connection was almost tangible. Her mother was so strong and brave, and her relationship with her fierce sister was amazing. Roan, her father, was pretty terrifying. I hope we learn more about their pasts. 

It is definitely a very mature book, much more so than the Dwellers series, but I liked the increased intensity a lot more. It was very engrossing, and forced the reader to contemplate different gender roles in a society. It really was scorchin' wonderful! The one thing I felt confusing was the different groups that were suspected or involvement. The Glassies, the Killers, the Wild Ones, the Icers, the Marked? It was a little perplexing, but Siena eventually clears it up by drawing a mental map out. I am still confused by some of the motives (of both some of the groups and of certain people), and I hope we get to learn more about the different peoples living out on the surface.

The writing was wonderful, and descriptive; I liked the above world even more than the underground. The description of the heat was nearly making me sweat. The burning hot sun, the bloody crimson sky, the constant sand storms and the beat down tent village were so easy to visualize. The slang was so funny, but understandable. It was easy to read, and works perfectly as a unique aspect of their language. Overall, Fire Country is a grim, unforgiving place but it has new hope rising with Siena.

The Sun Dwellers (Dwellers #3) - David Estes

Review: The Sun Dwellers

Author: David Estes

Rating: 5/5

Genre: Dystopia

Recommend To: All those dystopia fans out there...you know who you are. 

No, nonononono…..it can’t possibly be OVER can it? Where is the rest of the book?? My heart has just been chopped in two by the pure unbelievable amazingness (is that even a word?) of this book. Calling it just a book is an understatement. This is no ordinary book….this is a Dwellers book. To find out what that means, READ IT. 

The Plot: 

Yeah, okay, wow, stop the world from spinning, this is way more important. As stated in the previous Dwellers books, Adele and Tristan live deep within the earth after the aboveground became uninhabitable. Eventually, the Nailin family assumed control, and became an entire race of crazy, evil, dictators who I wanted to punch in the face. This is the final piece in the story of an epic revolution. Seriously. My god, the pace of this book, the everything of this book just wouldn’t let me put it down. I tried to unstick my eyes from it and I couldn’t. At that moment in time, I was living Tristan and Adele. I was there, I was them. Adele and Tristan ended at the second book given an impossible, suicidal task….to kill the President. Along the way, people die, people live, people love, and readers learn. Oh yes, there are some crazy things Tristan has been keeping secret. To learn them….READ THE BOOK.

The Characters: 

Oh my gods. Seriously I will never be able to get enough of these characters. Adele, so strong, brave, intelligent, and kick-butt. Tristan, also those things yet also highly sexy. Roc, funny, adorable, and protective. And Tawni, beautiful, fierce, and loyal to a fault. All of them against such impossible odds. The only way they could possibly succeed was with each other. Each brings something. Adele is of course the daughter of the two leaders to the rebellion, obviously she has mad awesome fighting skills. Tristan, as the president’s son has experienced so much loss at the hands of his father, he is so ready to bring him down and begin a new Nailin era, of peace. Tristan, the comedian brings advice to calm each member of the group down, and to keep them all focused on the task at hand, also focused on getting revenge on the man who happens to be his biological father. And Tawni keep everyone sane and fills them with moral support. It’s amazing how well-crafted each character is with so much depth. They fill the holes in each other. Another reason to READ THIS BOOK. And how on earth could I forget “President” Nailin. It’s amazing how much the word is twisted in this novel. He is just so villainous. So dirty, and evil. Malicious and immoral. Especially the way he treats women. It made me want to hurt him almost as much as Tristan and Adele. He was amazing fun to hate and want dead. 

The Romance: 

Yes. YES. YEEEEEEEEEES. No love triangles. I will repeat NO LOVE TRIANGLES. Just awesome, pure love and getting to know each other. It is so cute. Roc and Tawni plus Adele and Tristan line up so beautifully. I love Tawni and Roc so much (the end, OMG the end, with Roc, and I almost died b/c I thought…. and……). And of course Adele and Tristan struggling with their feelings for each other because of the strange electric pull toward each other. They, of course, are trying to understand whether what they feel for each other is real or not. (It’s definitely real). Uh huh. 

The Style: 

I loved this entire book. The dual perspective from both Adele and Tristan allowed for twice as much fun, and I loved it. If only I could see into the heads of the boys from other books to understand why the heck they do the weirdo things they do. And forget about real life. Anyway, there was so much detail into each of the characters. I bet I could read it a billion times and not ever get bored because there was so much happening yet it just drew me in even more. It didn’t overwhelm me.

Overall: 

I own this book. And I am so happy I do. I don’t think I could ever part ways with it. And it is also not the end!! What kind of ending was that? And I have to wait a year for this cliff-hanger to be solved?? THE EARTH DWELLERS HERE I COME (why can’t I find this book on Goodreads? And how do I fix this massive problem?). Anyway, every aspect of this book just serves to make it better. And better. And the best. So basically a Dwellers book means it has one of the most amazing dystopian plots ever, added with one of the fiercest troop of characters ever, added in with a pinch of perfect romance, all stirred together by an amazing author. This will forever be one of my favorite books ever, not to mention I NEED MORE.