The Apostates

The Apostates (The Apostates, #1) by Lars Teeney
New Megiddo has been born out of the ashes of America, an America that has sacrificed liberty for security. Ravaged by environmental disaster and shuttered off from the rest of the world by border fortress walls, and the strict dogma of spiritual leader, The Reverend Wilhelm Wainwright, the people take small comfort from the sermons the Reverend delivers straight to the people's minds via the [Virtue-Net]. However, the President John W. Schrubb Administration has been losing its grip on power. Murmurs and rumors of a resistance group of Apostates emanate from "Database" dens in the slums, financed by a mysterious source, are said to be scheming to free the people. Will the Apostates strike in time before the Born Again Gathering ushers in a state-induced Armageddon?

My Review:

The Apostates series caught my interest because of my love of all things science fiction. The Apostates series is very much a series that falls into the science fiction genre though they also have many elements of dystopian and post-apocalyptic. One of the science fiction elements that I found to be really cool was the Virtue Net; the populace are all fitted with internal Virtue Net devices. The Virtue Net allows each person to be tracked which in turn limits personal freedoms. Now while the Virtue Net is a completely evil concept it is still a very cool one that the author develops throughout the novel. 

The Apostates (The Apostates, #1) by Lars Teeney is a six hundred page book that is filled with many new and futuristic devices and technology like the Virtue Net. The author truly did an outstanding job with making this dystopian future seem not only realistic, but also understandable. The author went into great detail about everything, which really helped me to understand all of the technology.

Besides the technology and science fiction element the author truly created a whole world with how he delves into politics, religion, and rebellion. The rebellion part reminded me a little of the rebels in Star Wars which I though was awesome.

I won't spoil the plot for you by telling you all about the story line, but I will say that if you enjoy science fiction then you will enjoy this book.

The Apostates Book Two: Remnants by Lars Teeney

After the fall of the ruling Regime of New Megiddo, the John W. Schrubb Administration, the remnants of the country are fought over by the Republic of China Army, the Societatum Pentagram, ‘Database’ cartels, and independent city-states. Greta Sanchez, a former Apostate resistance commander who had sought refuge in West Europa is haunted by the nuclear annihilation of the old capital, New Megiddo City. In order to atone for her complicity in the destruction, she resolves to return to America to stop a new war. Greta sets out to track down her old comrades to reform the Apostates to meet new threats.

My Review:

The Apostates series caught my interest because of my love of all things science fiction. The Apostates series is very much a series that falls into the science fiction genre though they also have many elements of dystopian and post-apocalyptic. This is the second book in the series and takes place where book one left off. The Apostates managed to tear down the Regime, but that is all that they did. They left everything somewhat unfinished by not rebuilding and now the land is left vulnerable to new takeovers and invasions. This book is very much a post-apocalyptic book as the apocalyptic event has passed and is over and now it is time to try and putting everything back together. I found Greta to be my favorite character I liked how she realized that things needed to still be fixed and her initiative in tracking down the Apostates to reform them again to fix everything once more.

If you enjoyed The Apostates (The Apostates, #1) by Lars Teeney then you will absolutely love The Apostates Book Two: Remnants by Lars Teeney. The author stays true to his science fiction genre and yet he continues to move the story line forward. Often times sequels are not nearly as good as the originals, but I am happy to tell you that book two was just as good as book one. In fact I actually enjoyed book two more than book one. For me it was the fact that the rebellion succeeded, but they still need to fix everything. The author not only focused on the Apostates needed to fix everything again, but also on the threats that they faced from new enemies.

Biography

After going to an art school in San Francisco, racking up insane student loans and working for years as a freelance designer for the start-up culture, I became burnt out. I abandoned the Bay Area for the Pacific North-west, where I could hike and bike to my heart's content.

Although the idea for the book had been swimming around in my head and on random notebooks for 10 years, it wasn't until my mother got sick that I received a memento mori that put I fire under my sack to write The Apostates.