FTC Disclosure: I received an Advance Reader’s Copy of this book from the Amazon Vice Program in exchange for an honest review./strong>
The Hallowed Ones by Laura Bickle
Summary from the back of the book: Katie is on the verge of her Rumspringa, the time in Amish life when teenagers are free to experience non-Amish culture before officially joining the church. But before Rumspringa arrives, Katie’s safe world starts to crumble. It begins with a fiery helicopter crash in the cornfields, followed by massive unrest and the disappearance of huge numbers of people all over the world. Something is out there . . . and it is making a killing.
Unsure why they haven’t yet been attacked, the Amish Elders make a decree: No one goes outside their community, and no one is allowed in. But when Katie finds a gravely injured young man lying just outside of the boundary of their land, she can’t leave him to die. She refuses to submit to her Elders’ rule and secretly brings the stranger into her community — but what else is she bringing with him?
I’m almost at a loss for how to write this review without giving away spoilers. It is a deliciously spine chilling tale that just might make you think twice about the darkness. Ok, if I keep on with this, I’ll end up giving something away.
Bickle has written an engaging story that is not the typical teen paranormal dystopian. Oh, it does have all of those elements, but it’s not a cookie cutter teen horror story. Katie is a strong character who seems out of place in her conservative and restrictive Amish community. She does what she believes is right even if it goes against what she was taught. Readers can’t help but take her side.
Of course there is a romance, but it is more sweet than hot and heavy. It takes a back seat to the main story of the evil that is threatening the world.
This book reads like the first in a series. The ending does wrap up the story, but leaves room for speculation.
This book is scheduled for release in September 2012. If you like paranormal dystopian young adult novels, I highly recommend that you read this one. I look forward to reading more by this author.
