Released

by Megan Duncan

[Kim Deister]

Released is the first book in the Agents of Evil series and it is a fantastic start to it! I was pulled in from the very beginning and it was one of those books that was very hard to put down. In the midst of a nightmare, Abby, Carter and Max are survivors in a world being taken over by the literal hounds of hell. People are being slaughtered by the thousands and survival is an every day struggle. The story was exciting and full of twists and turns that kept you guessing. While the biggest danger was from the demons now roaming the land, there was no small amount of danger among the surviving humans which added even more of a twist. But there was also sweetness and romance mixed in with the action and the battles, and that rounded out the story and made the characters so believable and likeable.

The characters were so perfectly developed for the story. I loved the fact that they were completely normal kids, having suffered and seen so much more horror than anyone their age should have to have been through. They weren't developed to be anything more than an average kid, complete with flaws and all the struggles of normal teenagers. That in itself made them even better heroes as the story unfolds. I love a story that draws me in and makes me feel emotions right along with characters and this story gave that to me, especially Max and Abby.

I loved the ending, which I will say nothing about other than that it was the perfect cliffhanger for the next story. Questions were answered, but more were left unanswered which just left me wanting more. I highly suggest picking up this book and giving it a read! The second book, Chaos, will be out this summer!