This was the fast paced thrill ride I didn’t know I was looking for. Sometimes you just need a book that just keeps getting crazier and crazier and when you think it won’t get any more crazy, it does. This is that book. There were a couple parts I found to be a little unbelievable but for the most part I was too into the story to notice. While this is a very plot driven book I found that I still liked, and connected with, the large cast of characters. I would have probably rated this book at 4 stars but I have a rule for myself that If a book can make me both laugh and cry it automatically gets 5 stars and this book did that. I am very much looking forward to book two!

4 stars for this doomsday ya adventure!

Jinx is trying to navigate life with her mom’s new husband and her new step siblings. Most important though, she’s just trying to get her guild to defeat the newest raid. This is when I knew I loved Jinx.

The day of the raid, disaster strikes. Five of the biggest banks get blown up and her dad And stepdad are to blame. Thankfully her dad was a doomsday prepper, so she knows how to survive.

Jinx was my favorite character. Her emotions and reactions just seemed so real. Plus, she’s a female raid leader, so major points in my book. She takes care of her baby brother, who is a type 1 diabetic. It was nice to see that rep too!

All of the supporting characters were great, too. I loved the relationship between Jinx and her stepsister, MacKenna.

The action was great. I wanted to keep reading to see what would happen. I got through this book pretty quickly.

I would definitely recommend. I haven’t read a ya book like this one before! It was a unique concept that had great execution. Can’t wait for book #2!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and feelings are my own.

I received this advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review and also as part of the 2019 Fall/Winter blog tour from Harlequin Trade Publishing: YA/Inkyard press.

"Those who panic don't survive."

This book was both intriguing and incredible. It has all the things that a magnificent book should have: humor, mystery, traumatic events, and much more. I want to say that I admire the author for making this book and whoever contributed to it because this is an incredible book.

Going into it, without spoiling, I loved the main character. The name jinx also fits the book so well. I initially thought she was a boy because, in some books, I'm used to the male main character being overlooked and being the computer type nerd. I did not expect to chuckle at any parts of the book. It made my day every time I went back to read and what happened next.

Day Zero is an end of civilization. Day Zero is a young adult book that, while full of action as the world collapses around the characters, it fell flat for me as it leaves many holes that I’m guessing is the set up for part two. The “catastrophe” and the political issues the author is dealing with fall flat and do not flow for me, and the romance could have been left out.

With that said, the characters are engaging enough for those who like action and dystopia books. I also will read the next book in the series.

Jinx is 17 years old and loves video games. Her dad, a genius, is interested in anything to do with survival. Her daily life is school, family life and her wish to get to level 99 in her favourite video game. Her life is turned upside down when she is caught in a burning building with her siblings fighting for her life and they are fighting for theirs. Will the survival skills their dad taught them be enough to help them pull through?

Although there's a lot of politics in this book with two political parties vying for power and one really wants what's best for those less well-off, this was a good background to set the atmosphere of the time the novel is set. It's a futuristic novel and the politics were a bit too much of a focus for my liking but provided backstory and an element of world building as to why there were conflicts in the society in which the book is set.

Kelly deVos writes engagingly for the most part and I liked Jinx's personality and voice. The school and home life she has are depicted well and each character is well shown. I was hoping that Jinx and her siblings would come through what happens OK and was concerned for them since their mother left their father as his fascination with all things survival got too much.

Thanks to Kelly deVos and Inkwell Press for my ARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review. 4 stars. The pacing was good as were the characters but there was too much of a focus on politics. I reviewed this as part of the Harlequin/ Inkwell Press Blog Tour Winter 2019

Short Synopsis:
Set in a futuristic America, where tension between the new political parties is at an all-time high, Jinx Marshall wants nothing more than to spend her evenings with her video games and sugary colas. But when the world around her explodes into chaos, her years spent prepping for the end of the world with her family comes in hand. Jinx and her family is on the run from vigilantes and the government, in what truly feels like the end of society as she knows it. Her only focus, keep her family safe and find her paranoid father, who may have more than a clue as to what’s going on.

My Thoughts:
Amazing! At first it took me a little to warm up to learning the new political parties and the new tech in this futuristic world. But from that first explosion, this book was on a fast track to excitement. I’m not usually one for government conspiracies or super techy lingo, but Kelly deVos made it work! There was constant action and the characters were constantly on the move. The action scenes were well-written and made me feel like I was in a war zone with the characters.

There was such a sinister feel to this, not knowing until the very end who was truly all behind the nation-wide hysteria. The author had me suspecting one character but then the big reveal set my heart racing. While there were a lot of characters, there was only one POV (Jinx), so I didn’t find myself seeing a character’s name and then being like “Who are you again?”. Each character was distinct in how they talked and interacted with the others around them.

Jinx was a badass girl who is kind of my idol right now. She stayed strong, even while she wanted to break down at times through all the chaos. I liked that she never gave up no matter the odds stacked against her.

Would I Recommend:
I’m not one to give spoilers, so just believe me when I say this book is a must-read! This does leave on a cliffhanger and so I cannot wait for the next book in this series to see where Jinx goes from here.

Susan aka "Jinx" had a father who was called Mr. Doomsday. Jinx's dad wrote the book The Doomsday Guide to Ultimate Survival and they spent a lot of time, tirelessly working at the drills that her father wrote in this book. Just when Susan's mother divorces her father and she's ready to calm down with her little brother Charles, the worst happens. Doomsday approaches and the government thinks it was Jinx's father who triggered all of these events. It's apparent that it's a choice of "remember your training" or "throw everything out the window" type scenario.

This book had such a fantastic start, it had me on the edge of my seat. I read through the first 30% within an hour I believe. It wasn't something that I had read before. A doomsday prepper turned possible doomsday ...starter?! It was so intriguing to see the steps play out in Jinx's head after years and years of having them drilled into her mind with her little brother.

After I got to a certain spot, this novel began to drag for me. It was almost like I got through some of the best parts in that first 30% and then ...poof, it stopped. I kept reading because I was very curious on how this book was going to end and what was going to happen. There were points that had you wondering if this was just in her local town or was it worldwide and other doomsday thoughts that a person might have.

One of my biggest issues that I had with this novel were the characters. They seemed almost unlikable as I got further and further into it. I loved Charlie and I wanted to take him home with me. He was hilarious and had his own little spin. If book two was in Charlie's point-of-view, I would read it in a heartbeat.

Overall, this was a good young adult novel. I would read this again and I would recommend it. Keep an open mind when reading after hitting that little wall because it might be a better of a rating for you!

The story concept held a lot of promise, but, sadly, this one fell short for me. Jinx was a lackluster as a main character to me. Didn't stand for anything, and for supposedly having tons of Doomsday training and drills she made so many stupid mistakes. She didn't take charge and most of the time I wanted to shake some sense into her. I won't be reading the second book.

A copy was kindly provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

If you’re a fan of super smart and fierce females-this book is for you! Day Zero gives us a family on the run who is willing to do anything to survive told through the eyes of 17 year old Jinx Marshall. It’s an action packed tale of family, betrayal, and the dark world of politics.
When Jinx's stepfather is accused of organizing a terrorist attack, Jinx must rely on her father's doomsday prepping drills to get her siblings to safety and avoid the police. With time running out and unable to truly trust anyone, Jinx is pushed to her limits as she attempts to piece together the truth around her family's involvement in a cyberattack that has disrupted the entire American economic system.
Fast paced and full of action, Zero Day will keep you guessing until the very end.

The Quick Cut: A girl and her younger brother try desperately to survive and escape their pursuers after a terrorist level attack occurs.

A Real Review:
Thank you to Inkyard Press for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Survival can be a complicated thing for those who are homeless or barely making it by. But what happens when the world we know is attacked by those in power, just to keep their grasp? This is the reality for Jinx and her little brother Charles.

Jinx has spent her life prepping for the worst case scenario. Her dad is a bonafide doomsday prepped who wrote an infamous book on the subject. So when that situation happens and the world is ripped apart by political forces using a bank attack, she finds those she cares about on the run while searching for answers. Who is behind the attack and how is her family connected?

This book does a great job in setting the story by making it abundantly clear who the main political forces are and what their power plays are about. The action gets moving quickly with our heroine playing the lead role of keeping everyone safe and on the move. However, that's when the story falls apart.

By the halfway point, the action that keeps you on your toes turns sour. Where the frenzied pace kept you interested, the plot gets so intricate that it's hard to stay at an interested pace. The woven web is very complex, so much so it takes away from the entertainment factor.

Upside: the little brother Charles is such an entertaining character. His precociousness is unrealistic, but the rest of him feels genuine. The way Jinx has to care for him and keep him on track with his diabetes tells a story of how difficult a condition it is to live with. It's a constant job ensuring they don't let their glucose levels go so high that the damage is permanent.

With a strong start that turns complicated, this story may lose all but the most dedicated readers.

My rating: 3 out of 5

This book is a good read. I'm not into the political portion of it but that's great that 17 year-old girls (characters) have strong feelings for it. I sure enjoyed the humor in this story though. It's interesting how Jinx's mom expect her ex-husband to help out her new husband. Who in this day and age would do that especially when she's the one who left. Jinx's brother has to watch out for his blood sugar all the time so I like that Jinx is a great sister to care for him. Their dad's prep is unbelievable. The insulin medicine for example, how long has it been there? All of the high tech and survival tactics are great, an adrenaline rush reading their actions and adventures evading captures.


This book is told in the first person point of view following Susan aka Jinx, 17 who likes computer codings just like her dad. Though her dad, a computer professor who not only focus on hacking but also doomsday. He preps his family on what to do when the world ends. Her mom got fed up of the paranoia and got remarried. Jinx's stepsister is MacKenna, 17, who is opposite of prepared. The political troubles are hot on the news and attacks started to happen. All of a sudden, Jinx finds herself, her brother, stepsister, and stepbrother having to utilize her dad's end of the world rule book for survival.


Day Zero is well written and a fast paced read. In reality, when end of world happens, the last thing I expect is for the parents to run off to save themselves and expect a 17 year old daughter to take care of her 8 year old brother, constantly checking his blood sugar while on the run. But yeah, Jinx is definitely a multi talented teen who can pretty much do anything, even work with gunshot wound. I like that Charles, 8 is smart with his interest in plants. I do like those twists, especially when comes to trusting people. Pretty sucks to be in MacKenna's shoes because she has to go along with whatever Jinx says since she doesn't have prep knowledge and Jinx's mom & dad only communicate to Jinx. I like how step-family is portrayed in this book as getting along, more well than not.

xoxo,
Jasmine at www.howusefulitis.wordpress.com for more details

Although Ms. deVos’ first novel, FAT GIRL ON A PLANE, has been on my TBR since before it released, I haven’t yet had an opportunity to read it. So when I had the opportunity to join this blog tour for her second novel, DAY ZERO, I jumped at the chance to finally check out her writing. I wasn’t expecting to be absolutely blown away by this book, but I definitely was!

It has been a while since I’ve read a thriller that I wanted to race through so quickly it felt like my Kindle was on fire, but DAY ZERO was all that and more. This story is so propulsive, it’s simply a master class in writing a story that literally *forces* the reader to keep going. It’s like watching a movie where you really have to get up to get a snack or use the bathroom but can’t find a good point at which to press the pause button! There’s almost no breathing room while you’re reading, and I love that so much.

In addition to just being an incredible, fast-paced story, I have to admit that the premise is also absolutely terrifying. I don’t know if it would officially be classified like this, but I’d call this like near-future thriller, something like 20 years from now. The implications for just how quickly America can devolve into an autocratic dystopian nightmare are terrifying and, well, let’s just say especially relevant to current events. There is, in addition to a thrilling story, some biting social commentary in this book. I wrote down several quotes that felt particularly applicable to the current state of America, at least from my perspective. I’d love to chat with other readers to see if others feel the same way!

Basically, I love this book and highly recommend it to *everyone*. If you love stories about conspiracies, thrillers, dystopians, kick-butt girls, propulsive narratives, etc, PICK THIS UP! I am now on pins and needles until I can get my hands on DAY ONE to see how this story concludes.

RATING: 5 stars!

**Disclosure: I received an early e-copy of this book from the publisher for purposes of this blog tour. This review is voluntary on my part and reflects my honest rating and review of the book.

Day Zero was an action-packed read set in a not too distant future, with surprise surprise, corrupt politicians. From the start the action is pretty non-stop, there's plenty of running, hiding and people changing sides or pretending to be on one side, but really on the other. There are a lot of things to keep you mind on as you read.

Learning about how the two political parties and their leaders operate was interesting and easy to see how people could be divided on the two options.

Jinx was my favourite character because she was tough, brave and ready to do what had to be done. On the other hand, her stepsister MacKenna could be downright annoying, questioning everything and behaving like she was totally clueless at times, luckily she grows as a character and comes into her own as the story progresses.

I loved Charles Jinx's little brother, what a great character to pull everyone together and add some humour to a tense situation. He was a tough kid who everyone adored and everyone wanted to protect.

I am looking forward to seeing what happens next as this was left in a cliffhanger ending, I certainly hope the good guys win this fight.

Thanks to NetGalley and Inkyard Press for a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

The Review
The first in a duology, Day Zero is the perfect blend of YA character development and storytelling with political/action-adventure themes and drama. Whenever stories involving terrorist attacks or political conspiracies arise, it is usually within an adult setting and involves said adults. What really stood out was the point of view turning instead to the teenage daughter of a survivalist who becomes the main suspect in the attacks across the country.

The book also is highly relevant, showing a nation torn apart by politics and the affects of social classes and finances can have on the divide in our nation. Seeing a political figure rise to power and the shadow of a conspiracy rising blends with the personal struggles of new heroine Jinx, who uses her knowledge and skills not only to survive but get to the heart of the true threat and discovers secrets and hidden agendas that will rock her to her core. She is a powerful new YA hero who shows not only she has the skill and talent to take on enemies, but the emotional core to keep the reader invested and engaged with her and the story as a whole.

The Verdict
Overall a truly wonderful read, Day Zero does a great job of creating a near-future scenario that allows readers to examine the world around them, and to recognize the signs that can lead to the downfall of the world. It’s a story of survival, finding hope and love as the book’s twists and turns will keep readers hanging on the author’s every word, shocking many with future revelations and causing Jinx and the reader to ask themselves, who can they really trust? Grab your copy of Kelly deVos’s novel “Day Zero” to find out for yourselves!

In DAY ZERO, Kelly deVos brings us a political doomsday thriller jam packed with explosive action, plot twists, and unique settings.

At first, I was concerned that the story was going to sink too heavily into a political commentary, but once the action started, deVos deftly balanced out the politics with the additional plot elements. And honestly, such is the nature of a political thriller: a story involving political corruption, terrorism, and warfare while two opposing forces fight for control of the system. The tricky part here was the story is targeted at the young adult audience. So while the main character was a teenage girl, many of the decisions and resolutions in the plot line were made by adults.

The beginning of the story contained quite a bit of set-up, but around the twenty-percent mark, the story started moving at a nice clip and constant adventure and action filled the pages.

I love a story that surprises me, and DAY ZERO offered plenty of plot twists—clear up to the final pages—keeping me engaged and wondering what would happen next.

Strong writing stood out in the action scenes while shorter sentences spattered the slower scenes, such as: “I force down mouthfuls of cheese pizza. The slice is cold and clammy. The cheese tastes like plastic.”

There were many passages of writing that I absolutely loved. Some of my favorites included:

“Next to the register, a stack of plastic dancing turkey figurines shake in unison from side to side. This is going to be the last thing I see. My last moments on earth will be spent thinking Gobble till you wobble.”

“A tall, grimly thin, gray-haired man emerges from a small room at the back. His hair shoots out in every direction, and he’s dressed in overalls so dirty that I was probably a small child the last time anyone washed them.”

“Everyone has a mother.”

“There’s no upside to being the daughter of the devil.”

“She thinks if she doesn’t pick any battles, there’s no way she can lose.”

“A zero-day exploit is a piece of malware that’s been hanging around for a while. Day Zero is the moment when the user becomes aware that they’re screwed. It’s usually the start of something. Something terrible.”

Final verdict: If you enjoy action, adventure, doomsday plots, and/or political thrillers, DAY ZERO by Kelly deVos is a book for you!


[I received this book for free from the publisher via Net Galley. This did not influence my opinion.]

Jinx's father takes doomsday preparation to an unhealthy level. As she was growing up, he would take their family on prepper drills, so that they would be prepared for when as they knew it finally ended. Jinx's mother couldn't handle it any more, so she divorced Jinx's father and married a new normal awesome guy. While Jinx loves her new stepfather, she has a crush on her older stepbrother, Toby, and can't stand her stepsister, MacKenna, whose only saving grace is that she loves Jinx's little brother, Charles, to pieces. Days after a recent contentious presidential election, bombs are set off in banks across the nation. Jinx, MacKenna, and Charles find themselves caught in the middle, but thankfully Jinx's doomsday prep work is there to save them. The government believes that MacKenna's dad is responsible for the bombs. Jinx's mom tells them all to go find Jinx's missing father, so that maybe he can use his government connections to save her stepfather. All of the adult's in Jinx's life seem to know more about the situation than they are staying, but she is determined to keep her brother alive. Along the way, the crew picks up a prepper boy who was sent by Jinx's father, to stay alive and out of the hands of the government.

Even as I explain the plot, I realize that there is alot going on. There almost seems to be too much story, and maybe certain readers will feel that way. I enjoyed this book and didn't want to put it down. I had to know what would happen next and how Jinx would address the next challenge. I can't wait for the final book in this duology because I had a great time with this one.

I was provided with an ARC of this title from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This book is set in a world on the verge of economic meltdown. It is a rollercoaster of revelations. It seamlessly characterizes the political turmoil of the American landscape against the real threat of economic collapse. All seen and experienced through the eyes of a teenage girl trying to find her path and her voice.

This is a book about the complexity of blended families, sibling rivalries and petty incursions, and surviving based on sheer gut instinct. The plot twists and turns were completely unpredictable, and the identity of the villain was not even on my radar.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have a doomsday prepper as a dad? How about a technological genius? Well in Kelly DeVos’ book Day Zero we get to find out exactly what it would be like. When society begins collapsing around Jinx and her family she is left to save herself and her siblings using the knowledge instilled in her by her father.

Jinx is an introverted gamer with a serious knack for technology. Her father, Dr. Doomsday, is a prepper/technology extraordinaire, her mother a teacher, and her 8 year old brother named Charles who is a serious green thumb. We come into Jinx’s life in a time of massive change. Her mother has left her father for a man named Jay who works as a security guard at a massive bank owned by the new president. Jay has a daughter in high school, like Jinx, named MacKenna and a son in college named Toby. Their world has recently been rocked by an upset election taken by ‘The Opposition’, a seemingly shady political party opposing the people’s choice, ‘The Spark’. Well when the freshly inaugurated president Ammon Carver’s banks are blown up in a terrorist attack ‘The Opposition’ is quick to blame ‘The Spark’. In the midst of this MacKenna’s dad Jay is being framed for executing the terrorist attack. As the country descends into chaos and the two party system collapses, Jinx’s mom orders her to find her father and help them prove Jay’s innocence.

I have a lot of opinions about this book, some good and some bad. I feel like the politics in this book are very heavy handed and sometimes it ripped me out of the adventurous nature of this story. It would be borderline boring when MacKenna would argue politics with everyone and anyone. This book is definitely a commentary on the current political climate and doesn’t try and mask it in any way. Every turn we take ‘The Opposition’ is there to glare at us and the authors political stances are quite clear. She writes this early on in the book while Jinx is in class,

“I scroll to page 187 and stare at a picture of a nearly abandoned suburban neighborhood below a headline that reads “The Dangers of a Two-Party Political System.”

While I enjoy an interesting or unique political message I found this to be very heavy and made me feel anxious. I understand that many people believe that this could be the future of the U.S.A but to me it just caused anxiety and made me want to put the book down. I want to reiterate that I don’t hate a political stance in literature because some of the greatest works in history have underlying political messages, but this felt like it was being force fed down my throat. It’s already a discussion we are having, this is not the spark that will cause a forest fire of discussion.

One aspect of the ‘Hidden Message’ in this book that I do enjoy is the difference in generations. Like the modern world we see a distinct difference between who we could envision as the Baby Boomers and who we could view as the Millennials. One of the antagonists, an old motel owner, feels like a clear representation of the Boomers. He says to the kids,

Don’t you talk about things you don’t understand. You. You. Kids like you in your copper houses. Sitting in coffee shops drinking ten-dollar, almond-milk-caramel-mocha-whatevers. Talkin’ about whether monkeys have rights and how we all need self-driving cars. And we’re out here…

Does this not sound exactly like a Facebook argument between a Baby Boomer and a Millennial? I really liked that subtle detail. There is such a massive divide in this book, between political parties, families, and generations. I felt like DeVos did a good job of acknowledging this dynamic without cramming it in our faces.

This books is full of useful survival knowledge like, “Breathe. Because the calm survive” and “Trust no one”. The common sense approach to survival in this book is something I enjoyed and the use of Dr. Doomsday’s rules of survival were very reminiscent of the movie Zombieland. I hate when dystopian or apocalypse novels use overly complicated or long winded explanations for survival. Keep it simple and you’ll survive.

I have one last bone to pick and it is with the character MacKenna and Jinx’s mother. MacKenna is so unlikable and has zero sense of survival. It feels like she’s just flopping around screwing things up for Jinx and almost killing one of the other protagonists. When she goes on her eventual redemption arc, it doesn’t feel like enough. Jinx’s mother is a whole different issue. Their mother seems to have no regard for her children’s lives. She abandons them to be with her detained husband and then tells Jinx,

“Don’t get caught by the police. They’ll want to hold you. Perhaps use you as leverage to force Jay to take a plea. Find your father,”

To me, it came off as if Jay was more important than both her children and Jay’s children. I don’t know a single responsible mother who would choose being unnecessarily detained over helping her children survive the collapse of society. It seemed silly and out of character for a mom who has been previously portrayed as both intelligent and caring.

Enough of my complaining.

This book is very well written and has an interesting plot to drive through the parts I didn’t enjoy. When you read Day Zero you will find yourself in every scene and you will catch yourself holding your breath during action sequences. I felt very engaged with what was happening inside the book. I was invested in what would happen next and whether Jay would be executed or exonerated.

This book is gritty and sometimes a little bit dense to read through but it is all worth it in the end. The plot and vivid scenery really make this book a winner. It’s fast-paced for the majority and will keep you asking questions. Who will win? ‘The Opposition’ or ‘The Spark’?

A huge thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing and Inkyard Press for allowing me to take part in this book blog tour! I thoroughly enjoyed working with them and reading Day Zero. I give this book a 4/5 stars and look forward to what happens next.

Book: Day Zero
Author: Kelly DeVos
Rating: 4 Out of 5 Stars

I would like to thank the publisher, Inkyard Press, for sending me an ARC.

I went into this book knowing nothing about. The summary sounded really interesting. This book follows Jinx and her family as they struggle to survive against a very corrupt government. Her father has them all trained to survive in bad situations. They have spent their entire life drilling for this moment, but, only this time, this is not a drill. The government is really after them.

This is a more of a political book than anything. It is action packed as the characters try to survive in a world where everything is not prefect nor is it really what it seems. We have a fast paced plot with a complex world and complex characters that is bound to suck in you. Once you are in, it’s really hard to get out. As I was reading, I really was taken back to The Hunger Games, Legend, and Divergent-even though this book really isn’t like them. it’s been awhile since I’ve read a good dystopian and this is just what I needed. Plus, Kelly just has this way of sucking you in.

The way that Kelly writes it is sure to leave you on the edge of your seat. I mean, you will be pulled in and will be shocked how quickly time passes as you are reading. The action and the characters just kept me going and going. I found myself flying through this book because I just had to know what was going to happen. I just couldn’t put it done until I reached the end of the action sequence. If you decide to pick this one up, you will find out what I am talking about.

The characters were pretty well developed and great at hiding their true actions. I mean, the big reveal at the end just left me stunned. I guess if I had been expecting it to actually go down that way, there were pretty clever clues throughout the story. I just don’t know what to think. These characters will be memorable-even the side ones. I’m just throwing that out there.

Overall, a great read if you are looking for something in the science fiction genre. I know I really enjoyed it. Now, this book is out now so if you want to, go ahead and pick it up. You will not be sorry.

A Story of Survival and Political Intrigue

Seventeen-year-old Jinx is trying to settle into her new family with a step-sister, Mackenna, and Toby, a stepbrother. Jinx’s father is a computer genius and survival fanatic. He is also associated with the Opposition, a political party currently in power after ousting the Spark. The political divide leads to violence which becomes personal for Jinx, Mackenna, and Jinx’s little brother Charles.

The siblings are inside a store when explosions rock the area and fire breaks out in the store. Jinx has to use all the survival skills she learned from her father to get herself and her siblings to safety. This involves trying to get to her missing father while being pursued by an agent from the Opposition.

The characters Jinx and Mackenna are faced with a frightening task. That they tackle it with fortitude and learn how to act together makes the story more than just a chase scene. They are characters teens can identify with. Charles is an adorable character. He’s fascinated by all sorts of living things. He’s also a trial because he adores sweets although his type 1 diabetes makes it dangerous for him to eat them.

The underlying political drama makes a good background for the girls struggle to get to safety. There are plenty of twists and the action is non-stop. I recommend this for teens who enjoy adventure stories.

I received this book from Harlequin for this review.