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Review: Rage by Kessler


Rage by Jackie Morse Kessler
Goodreads link
Published April 2011
Arc from Star Book Tours
Rating: 4/5 stars

Chosen to ride as War, one of the four horseman of the apocalypse, Melissa Miller must fight. She is in a war with those around her, and a war within herself.
Melissa is a cutter, which is something I am not familiar with except in fiction (and for that I am lucky), but she is not weak. In fact, Missy is kind of kick ass.
While this is the second book in a series (Hunger being the first), a reader does not have to read Hunger in order to follow Rage.
I had some concern going into this book that the author would kind of repeat the story in a way that was formulaic. But my worries were unfounded. This story is very original, interesting, and the ending was satisfying.
Without giving anything away, I can say that Missy goes through something with her classmates that no one should ever have to experience. There is a message about bullying here that may be hidden under the layers of self-mutilation and anger vs control. It is an important message, and I was super pleased with how it was portrayed.
Also, I'm trying to stay spoiler-free, but I appreciated the author gave us an epilogue that showed the aftermath of the consequences. Time really does heal all wounds.
I hope Pestilence is next! He seems like such a mysterious character.

Also, the book is short, but that is okay. The story was complete. I dislike when writers put out 300 page books that are really only 200 pages of plot and the rest just drags. That is not an issue with this series so far.
Rage is a good, thought-provoking read.

Comments

Michelle said…
I need to read Hunger. These look so good! :)
Unknown said…
They really are great. They could be horrible, like after school specials used to be, but they are done well.

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