A quest for the truth. A fight for survival. A love like no other.
I've lived all my life in the high-security compound built by my father. He's made sure my sister and I are protected. I've never stepped a foot past the perimeter wall and my only knowledge of what exists beyond are rumours of wild landscapes and violent people.
When someone from the outside finds a way in, my little sister is killed. I'm shocked and devastated. Skye was just fourteen, and she had her whole life ahead of her. I'm only a teenager myself, but I am my father's child - headstrong and determined. I vow to find the person responsible.
My best friend, daring and smart Luc, promises to help me and together we set off into the pitch-black night. As we follow the dirt track road into the wilderness, we realise surviving in the harsh outside world is going to be a lot harder than we thought.
With only each other to rely on, sparks begin to fly between us. As we navigate our way through dense forests and twisting hills, my feelings for Luc grow stronger. But then we're captured.
I can't bear the thought of losing Luc and I'm desperate to get home to my family. But will this new danger finally lead me to my sister's killer? Or will the answers change everything I thought I knew about my world?
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The woman swung the huge, armoured vehicle out through the iron gates and turned left onto the poor excuse for a dirt track that ran parallel to the Perimeter.- PROLOGUE
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(@SecondSkyBooks, 22 August 2023, e-book, 337 pages, ARC from the publisher via @NetGalley, #BlogTour 25 August)
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I loved Outside. I have the other two books in the series and am looking forward to seeing how events unfold and the story develops. I'm a huge fan of dystopian fiction. I've read a lot of the most common plots - zombie apocalypse and plague / illness. I like the fact the author doesn't spell out in black and white what ended the world. Oh, there are clues but enough wiggle-room for you to draw your own conclusions. I thought this was original. I also thought the overall plot was very original. Most dystopian books tend to focus on what caused the end of the world and how people survive. This book takes a plot that could happened before the world ended and it's how the characters deal with events in this hostile new world that is the driving force. I thought this was well-written and gripping from start to finish.
5/5
Click here for my review of book 2, The Clearing
Click here for my review of book 3, The Perimeter