Renegade by J.A. Souders

Release Date: November 13th, 2012

Publisher: Tor Teen

Format: ARC

Genre: Young Adult

Since the age of three, sixteen-year-old Evelyn Winters has been trained to be Daughter of the People in the underwater utopia known as Elysium. Selected from hundreds of children for her ideal genes all her life she’s thought that everything was perfect; her world. Her people. The Law.

But when Gavin Hunter, a Surface Dweller, accidentally stumbles into their secluded little world, she’s forced to come to a startling realization: everything she knows is a lie. Her memories have been altered. Her mind and body aren’t under her own control. And the person she knows as Mother is a monster.

Together with Gavin she plans her escape, only to learn that her own mind is a ticking time bomb... and Mother has one last secret that will destroy them all.

Okay, let’s be honest, what sounds bad about a story that takes place in an underwater utopia? Especially, when said utopia promises to be anything but? Everything about this world is so well built. The descriptions of Elysium are so vivid and well-drawn, I had no problems imagining myself right there with Evie. And oh, how I love Evie. It’s pretty obvious to the reader, from the start that something is being done to her mind. When she is in her gardens one day, she is interrupted by a Surface Dweller who has managed to break into Elysium. For reasons unknown to even her, she decides to try and help him. And then things really start to get interesting.

Mother wants Evie to find out how the Surface Dweller, also known as Gavin, got into Elysium in the first place and why he came. Evie wants to figure out a way to get him out of there alive. As the stakes rise and Evie begins to realize that her memories have been altered, her and Gavin are suddenly racing against the clock to stay alive and get him back to the surface. Mother is such an excellent villain. I’m not kidding when I say this  lady is seriously evil, but at the same time I am extremely curious to find out why exactly she is the way she is.

Most of the book is spent with Evie, Mother and Gavin, but there are a few secondary characters that make quite an impact in the story. Evie’s best friend Macie is a scientist and one of the few people Evie trusts wholeheartedly. She’s got spunk, that Macie, and definitely comes through for our renegades on more than one occasion. Other secondary’s are of the not so nice variety, but definitely amp up the tension and keep things interesting for the characters.

I am literally unable to maintain a normal life until I can read the next installment of this series. I am so desperate to know what happens, but alas, J.A. assures me that book two does not come out at the same time as book one, so I will have to wait. This is a beautifully written story with a mesmerizing world and a plot that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Read this one, you won’t be sorry :0)