Review-Gated

Today I'm bringing you the second stop on the Gated blog tour hosted by Random House.  Below is a little about the book, the author, a review, and a giveaway of one hardcover copy!  

The Blurb;

She thought the evil lived outside the walls.

She was wrong.

In the Community, life seems perfect. The members of this isolated suburban development have thrived under Pioneer, the charismatic leader who saved them from their sad, damaged lives.

Lyla Hamilton and her parents moved here following the 9/11 terrorist attacks, looking to escape the evil in the world. Now seventeen, Lyla knows certain facts are not to be questioned:

Pioneer is her leader.

Will is her Intended.

The end of the world is near.

Like Noah before him, Pioneer has been told of the imminent destruction of humanity. He says his chosen must arm themselves and prepare to fight off the unchosen people, who will surely seek refuge in the compound's underground fortress--the Silo.

Lyla loves her family and friends, but given the choice, she prefers painting to target practice. And lately she'd rather think about a certain boy outside the development than plan for married life in the Silo with Will. But as the end of days draws near, she will have to pick up a gun, take a side, and let everyone know where she stands.

Woo, creepy right?

The Author;

Amy was born in Pennsylvania and spent most of her early years there. Many of her best memories are of hiding out in her room where she made up elaborate pretend play scenarios most often involving orphaned baby dolls and Barbies dressed in fashions made out of Kleenex. 

Amy was always attracted to writing, but she tried a lot of other jobs on for size first before settling into writing full time. At some point or another, she has been a collectible doll-maker, a fondue waitress, an inner city school teacher, and a stay at home mom. Currently she is writing full time and lives in a suburb of Tampa, Florida with her very supportive husband, their two creative and energetic daughters, one absurdly fat orange cat. 

Check out her blog HERE.

My Review;

First, I want to say that this book, it's about a girl who is part of, from the outside, what we would consider a cult.  I myself am not religious, honestly I think that religion is the cause of so many problems in the world it's not even funny, but I won't get into that here.  Basically what I'm saying is that to read this book you have to push everything out of your mind, all of your prejudices about religions and cults and everything else.  I'm not entirely sure what I was expecting when I started this book, but it's on several shelves as a dystopian novel.  It's NOT a dystopian novel.  If anything it's a contemporary novel, although the group in the novel thinks that the apocalypse is coming and that they need to prepare for it.  I myself have always been slightly fascinated with cults, mainly their leaders, but also the people who decided that they want to follow said leader.  Due to my point of view I couldn't really connect with the main character in the ways that I can with others, but I enjoyed seeing Lyla grow throughout the book.  Obviously I've never been in a cult before, but the reactions that all of the people in the group had, and just the Pioneer's overall personality really felt true to me.  I've not sure if Parker based this Community on any of the other famous cults out there, but it seemed like it could be a real group.  Sure, there were times when I really wanted to shake the main character because, really, how can you not see some of these things, but that's how it is in real life.  You don't see the monster in front of you until it's too late to do anything about it.  There was action in this book as well, and I enjoyed that as well, the thrill was there just like it would be with any other book.  I think fans of Lauren DeStefano's Chemical Garden series will like this book, although I do have to warn you that this book is not at all sunshine and butterflies.  It's dark, it's gritty, and it's real.  I commend the author for writing the book that she did, and I'll be interested to see what she comes up with next.

Out August , 2013

4/5 dust spirits

The Giveaway;

Random House has provided me with ONE hardcover copy of Gated to give away.  The contest is open for all residents of the US/Canada, and if you don't live in the US/Canada you can enter as long as you have an address that is within the country.  Just enter the rafflecopter giveaway below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Want to follow thee rest of the tour for interviews, guest posts, and more?  Check out the schedule HERE!

*Thank you to Random House for providing me with an e-ARC of this book in return for an honest review