In the Afterlight

Alexandra Bracken

Book 3 of Darkest Minds

Language: English

Publisher: Disney Press

Published: Nov 1, 2015

Description:

Ruby can't look back. Fractured by an unbearable loss, she and the kids who survived the government's attack on Los Angeles travel north to regroup. Only Ruby can keep their highly dangerous prisoner in check. But with Clancy Gray, there's no guarantee you're fully in control, and everything comes with a price.

When the Children's League disbands, Ruby rises up as a leader and forms an unlikely allegiance with Liam's brother, Cole, who has a volatile secret of his own. There are still thousands of other Psi kids suffering in government "rehabilitation camps" all over the country. Freeing them--revealing the governments unspeakable abuses in the process--is the mission Ruby has claimed since her own escape from Thurmond, the worst camp in the country.

But not everyone is supportive of the plan Ruby and Cole craft to free the camps. As tensions rise, competing ideals threaten the mission to uncover the cause of IANN, the disease that killed most of America's children and left Ruby and others with powers the government will kill to keep contained. With the fate of a generation in their hands, there is no room for error. One wrong move could be the spark that sets the world on fire.

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From School Library Journal

Gr 9 Up—The dust is starting to settle after the government's attack on the Psi kids, or kids with unique superhuman abilities, of Los Angeles. Ruby, the reluctant leader of the group, along with brothers Cole and Liam, escort some of the surviving Psi kids, and their dangerous prisoner, Clancy Gray, to an undisclosed location. Here, Ruby and Cole begin to plan a counter attack to liberate other captive children at "rehabilitation" camps across the country. The other survivors begin to hear whispers that the government has created a cure for their disease, and some question whether the camps are all that bad. Having firsthand experience with the abuse in the camps, Ruby makes it her mission to publicly expose them in any way she can. Even with the book's slow start, narrator Amy McFadden breathes life into Ruby as she guides listeners through the planning, betrayal, and climatic conclusion of her story. A few sexual situations and mild language make this appropriate for slightly older teens. Listeners should have prior knowledge of the events in the first two titles, as it is unclear exactly how the kids got to their situation. VERDICT Purchase where the series has a following.—Amanda Schiavulli Finger Lakes Library System, NY

Review

The conclusion to the Darkest Minds series is as tense, emotional, and brutal as one would expect. When the book begins, Ruby and the survivors of the attack on Los Angeles are on the move again, with a very important prisoner in tow: President Gray's son, Clancy. Ruby and Clancy share a mind meld that affects much of the book's almost nonstop action, but it is her relationships with brothers Cole and Liam that will most intrigue readers. The plotline has plenty of twists, up until the last page, but without divulging too much, it's safe to say fans will appreciate the well-thought-out conclusion. "Booklist Online""