Logan Kent lives in a perfect utopian society. There is no hunger, disease, or war thanks to nanobots implanted in everyone as newborns. But, at seventeen, Logan is tried and accepted into a secret part of the government called The Circle. Because both of his parents are high-ranking Circle members, Logan has no reason to distrust his parents or The Circle until he meets Reina. Reina is a medicine thief in an exiled faction called Anyone. Anyone was exiled because they refused to give up their free will and get nanobots. The more he gets to know Reina, the more Logan questions everything he has ever been told. Can he trust Reina? Or does Logan put his trust in The Circle?
I had been in the mood for an excellent dystopian young adult book for a while. So, when the author emailed me and asked if I could review this series, I said yes. I had enjoyed her North Oak series and was excited to read this one. I am glad that I did because this book was a good read.
Dream Shatter is the first book in the Dream Runners series. What I usually put in this paragraph (read the previous books, and you can/cannot read as a stand-alone book) won’t work here. You can pick this book up and enjoy reading it without wondering if you are missing anything.
The storyline of Dream Shatter centers around Logan, Reina, The Capitol, The Circle, and Anyone. Dream Shatter is a fast-paced book that I genuinely enjoyed reading. There was some slight lag in the middle (when Logan started to full out rebel and Anyone started mobilizing), but it didn’t affect my enjoyment of the book.
The storyline with Logan, The Capitol, and The Circle was hard to read at times. Of course, since I am the reader, I knew that The Circle was terrible news and they did awful things to people who didn’t follow their rules (i.e., get the nanobots). I felt horrible for Logan because he had zero clue about this until he was thrust into it against his will. I did like that the author gave us a good look into what Logan’s dad did (taking nightmares from people). But at the same time, I got a sinister vibe from it, and I have a feeling that what his dad was doing would return later in the series.
The storyline with Logan, Reina, and Anyone was just as interesting as the storyline mentioned above. I liked how the author laid out Reina’s backstory and Anyone’s backstory. I thought it was horrible how The Circle portrayed Anyone (they were described as terrorists in propaganda shown to Logan’s high school class). I also liked how the author laid the foundation for Logan and Reina’s romance.
I liked Logan. He had a good head on his shoulders. I was curious about the voice in his head. It was much more than an internal thought. He acts like a teenager throughout the book (he is only seventeen), and like teens, he does stupid/reckless things without thinking about what will happen after. I was as bored with his job as he was, but at the same time, I did find it fascinating. He did fixate on Reina rather quickly, which led to a couple of amusing scenes between them.
I also liked Reina. She was a spitfire wrapped in independence. I don’t know why she kept interacting with Logan after the first time, but I am glad that she did. Reina was also passionate about Anyone. I can’t get more into her character because of what happens in the last half of the book. It would be a massive spoiler if I talked about her family, friends, and what The Circle does.
The end of Dream Shatter was a cliffhanger. I’m not too fond of cliffhangers (and yes, I am saying it like a bratty kid). But it did its job and made me want to read book 2.
I would recommend Dream Shatter to anyone over 16. There are no sex, sexual situations, or language. There is violence.
Many thanks to Ann Hunter for allowing me to read and review Dream Shatter. All opinions stated in this review are mine.