The Legacy (The Declaration #3) Review

The Legacy (The Declaration #3)

Gemma Malley

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Review Copy Courtesy of Bloomsbury

When a Pincent Pharmaceutical van is ambushed by the rebel group known as the Underground, its contents come as a huge surprise – not drugs, but corpses in a horrible state. It appears that the pharmaceutical company’s top drug, Longevity – which is supposed to eradicate disease and ensure eternal life – isn’t living up to its promises. Now a virus is sweeping the country, killing hundreds in its wake, and Longevity is powerless to fight it. But when the unscrupulous head of Pincent claims that the Underground is responsible for releasing the virus, it’s up to Peter, Anna, and their friends to alert the world to the terrifying truth behind Longevity before it’s too late.

If The Declaration was Anna’s book and The Resistance was Peter’s, then The Legacy is Jude’s book. For most of the story Anna and Peter are hidden away in Scotland bringing up their children in safety with Anna completely embracing the role of Motherhood. Jude meanwhile is living with the Resistance in London and is frustrated at how Pip is keeping secrets from him.

I loved the idea of a world where children are illegal as people live forever and resources are limited. Youth and new ideas are scary and people no longer have relationships – the idea of marriage that lasts forever doesn’t appeal to most people after all. The Legacy pulls all the ideas from the first two books together and wraps it up the only way it can. As a result there was nothing startling about this book – I managed to anticipate the direction of the story, but it was an enjoyable ride. Jude was a relatable hero with doubts, hopes and dreams – I actually preferred him to Peter who seems far too Alpha male to sympathise with. I also admit to being fed up with Anna who doesn’t drive any of the action and continues to be more a victim than a heroine.

Gemma Malley’s writing again was wonderful to return too – smooth and inviting. I really enjoyed the way she would add some other characters point of view occasionally to give the story a wider scope. This was the accumulation of three books and as such had a wide cast of characters – at least one character should intrigue most people. This was a satisfying end to a brilliantly imagined ‘what-if’ scenario and would appeal to those who like dystopian fiction.

Recommended for fans of Sarah Crossan and Suzanne Collins. 7 out of 10

The Resistance Review

The Resistance (The Declaration #2)

Gemma Malley

Publisher: UK – Bloomsbury

The year is 2140. Having escaped the horrors of Grange Hall, Peter and Anna are living freely on the Outside, trying hard to lead normal lives, but unable to leave the terror of the Declaration—and their experiences as surpluses—completely behind them. Peter is determined to infiltrate Pharma Corporation, which claims to have a new drug in the works; "Longevity+" will not just stop the ravages of old age, it is rumored to reverse the aging process. But what Peter and Anna discover behind the walls of Pharma is so nightmarish it makes the prison of their childhood seem like a sanctuary...

After flying through The Declaration a couple of week ago (read review here) and loving it, I know I wasn’t going to wait a long time before I picked up the sequel. Having escaped Grange House and now Legal, Anna and Peter attempt to figure out how the outside world works and discover that you can’t always have the world in black and white.

The Declaration was mostly told from Anna’s point of view, while The Resistance has moved to Peters view. Growing up in secret among the resistance Peter is a fairly angry young man who is determined to end The Declaration and allow people to have children and die again. However, he has been asked to undercover at his Grandfather’s firm in order to find out more about the Longevity drug and not everything is as it seems…

Anna was a very naïve lead previously – understandably considering her upbringing in Grange Hall and she still takes most people on face value – it never occurs to her that people may not always be sincere. However, Peter is very much a different character – full of action and vigour. He wants to change things today. It makes him a harder character to feel for, but you know his heart is in the right place. The Resistance is a much more complex story with the story expanded from the treatment of the Surpluses to the political and society changes that living forever makes in peoples thinking and politics. Peter’s Grandfather is quite a Machiavellian character and you never quite know the why behind his actions, while Pip the leader of the resistance is almost too good. Although I suspect a dark secret in his past…

There are some elements which seem a little too simple – how quickly Peter and Anna believe what they are told; they rarely seem to question anything for themselves – or figure it out. But they are a sweet couple and you do root for them throughout. The writing sucks you in and the pages seem to turn themselves. It is a fast moving story and once again I rarely stopped once I started reading, desperate to know how it ended and if Anna and Peter would be ok. The Legacy, the latest book in the trilogy is staring at me at the moment and I know I will pick it up soon!

Recommended for fans of Veronica Rossi and Suzanne Collins. 8 out of 10

The Declaration Review

The Declaration (The Declaration #1)

Gemma Malley

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Review Copy sent courtesy of Bloomsbury & does not impact my review

Anna Covey is a ‘Surplus’. She should not have been born. In a society in which ageing is no longer feared, and death is no longer an inevitability, children are an abomination. Like all Surpluses, Anna is living in a Surplus Hall and learning how to make amends for the selfish act her parents committed in having her. She is quietly accepting of her fate until, one day, a new inmate arrives. Anna’s life is thrown into chaos. But is she brave enough to believe this mysterious boy?

Dystopian fiction for teens is the genre du jour at the moment and as such The Declaration has a lot of competition. However, the main premise here feels much scarier than a Capital imposing games on districts children’s or regulating the air you breathe. Scientists discover a drug which allows people to live forever and never having to worry about disease or old age. Unfortunately that means the planets resources are taxed to the extreme so everyone decides not to have children so as not to waste any resources on the young. Any children born are deemed Surplus with some countries deciding to put them down while others like the UK bring them up in Surplus camps training to be staff for the Legals, telling them to hate their parents for their selfish choice. The whole society hates young people and is scared by them – now if that doesn’t send a shiver down your spine, I don’t know what will.

Anna is a surplus on course to become a Valuable Asset when a new Surplus Peter comes to Grange Hall and starts to challenge all her assumptions. Anna is not a natural rebel – she believes in the rules and follows them, but still dreams of the Outside and seeing the sky and desert. However, as she starts to question what she has always been told and begins to think for herself you start to warm to her. Even if she never takes control of her own destiny completely, I wanted her to succeed and rooted for her.

It was great to have dystopian set in the UK and a scarily recognisable UK. The writing was smooth and easy to get lost in. I loved the different points of view and the insights into the adults in the story which make it seem horribly realistic how people came to support The Declaration. The first half of the book is set up, but it’s in the second half that it really comes to life with tense events and excitement. I flew through the pages in a day or so and I’m happy I have the rest of the trilogy to read soon! This was a unique dystopian which I found exciting and fun to read – one of the better dystopian’s I’ve read this year.

Recommended for fans of Veronica Roth and Sarah Alderson. 8 out of 10