REVIEW: Rebel (Reboot #2)

Rebel (Reboot #2), by Amy Tintera
To Be Published May 13, 2014
Publisher: Harper Teen
Format: e-book, obtained from the publisher via Edelweiss
Genre:  young adult sci-fi/dystopian
To Buy: Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Rating:  4 STARS

(From Goodreads) The sequel to the action-packed Reboot is a can't-miss thrill ride, perfect for fans of James Patterson, Veronica Roth, and Marie Lu.

After coming back from death as Reboots and being trained by HARC as soldiers, Wren and Callum have finally escaped north, where they hope to find a life of freedom. But when they arrive at the Reboot Reservation, it isn't what they expected. Under the rule of a bloodthirsty leader, Micah, the Reboots are about to wage an all-out war on the humans. Although Wren's instincts are telling her to set off into the wilderness on their own and leave the battle far behind, Callum is unwilling to let his human family be murdered. When Micah commits the ultimate betrayal, the choice is made for them. But Micah has also made a fatal mistake . . . he's underestimated Wren and Callum.

The explosive finale to the Reboot duology is full of riveting action and steamy love scenes as Wren and Callum become rebels against their own kind.

Wren 178 reminds me of a little bit of Resident Evil Alice mushed together with a little bit of Vampire Slayer Buffy.

 

She's a total scary badass, but can turn into a bit of a softie for the right person. In Wren's case, that person is Callum. Rebel is their end game, and it introduces a new bad guy in addition to HARC, just to make things interesting (as if things weren't interesting enough). 

Wren, Callum and the rest of the Austin reboots have escaped to the reboot reservation to, hopefully, find some peace and quiet - for once in their lives. Er... deaths. Er... afterlives. Anyway, it soon becomes clear that the reservation may not be much better than the HARC facilities in which they were imprisoned and forced to work. Wren and Callum come to a realization that they can't ever be truly free until the reboots AND the humans are given the freedom to decide what they want to do and where they want to live for themselves, and to do that, HARC needs to be eliminated. For good. 

One thing Rebel has in spades is action. Wren and Callum seem to be fighting everyone in Rebel. They arrive at the reservation, and are introduced to Micah, the leader. Immediately, he takes charge of all the Austin reboots and forces them to bend to his will. He rules with an iron fist, and that causes a lot of friction with the Austin reboots - particularly Callum. It becomes clear very quickly that Wren, Callum and the rest of the Austin reboots have simply traded one enemy for another - the agendas are just different. Evil is evil, and where HARC may have earned its evil badge by enslaving and experimenting on reboots, Micah has certainly earned his, but for very different reasons. It seems the peace and quiet Wren and Callum wanted to find will be elusive for awhile. 

The best thing about Rebel is seeing the change in Wren. If you look back at the Wren from the beginning of Reboot, you can see how much she has grown and changed. The post-Callum Wren laughs and cries and stands up for the people she cares about. She questions her own judgement and the choices that others around her make instead of blindly following orders. She sincerely wants to help make her world a better place, at least for reboots. Callum has a hero complex and wants to save everyone, and while Wren doesn't really care that much about the humans, at least at first, she cares about Callum, and that's enough for her. 

Wren has boatloads of integrity, and I love that about her. She may be a bit cold and calculating at time, but she's inherently good. Callum is Wren's voice of reason. She's come to rely on him to help point her in the right direction as she acclimates to life without HARC. And, Callum is all too happy to fill that role. He cares about her and is so happy to see the changes in Wren. It's awesome to see them working together, even if they don't always see eye-to-eye. I love how they seek out the others' strengths when they need them. Callum looks to Wren for her physical strength and desire to protect. Wren turns to Callum when she needs her moral compass repointed. And, don't all couples do that? Lean on and count on one another when you feel yourself waffling? It's wonderfully... normal. 

Rebel is told in dual POV, so we get the advantage of both Wren's and Callum's experiences. It was especially helpful since there was a portion of the book where they are separated. The end of Rebel was incredibly fulfilling and satisfying. I'd love a third book in the series so I could find out what comes next for Wren and Callum. There's still so much going on in their world. Amy, any chance you're reading this??