Saturday, April 4, 2015

A to Z Challenge 2015: D - The Drowned Cities

Happy Saturday! Here we are in the first weekend of the 2015 April A to Z Blogging Challenge, with tomorrow being our first day off! Did you survive the first week? Have you been having lots of fun? I have.

Today we have the fourth letter, the letter D. This is the fourth story in my theme, and it's another novel. This novel is the second in the series that started with Ship Breaker, which was the 2011 Michael L. Printz award winner for the best YA novel.

The Drowned Cities is a dark but brilliantly written tale, which follows a different protagonist than Nailer from Ship Breaker, albeit in the same post-apocalyptic world, and with a similar companion.

Today's 2015 April A to Z Blogging Challenge story for the letter D:

The Drowned Cities

Here is the summary from Goodreads:

Soldier boys emerged from the darkness. Guns gleamed dully. Bullet bandoliers and scars draped their bare chests. Ugly brands scored their faces. She knew why these soldier boys had come. She knew what they sought, and she knew, too, that if they found it, her best friend would surely die.

In a dark future America where violence, terror, and grief touch everyone, young refugees Mahlia and Mouse have managed to leave behind the war-torn lands of the Drowned Cities by escaping into the jungle outskirts. But when they discover a wounded half-man--a bioengineered war beast named Tool--who is being hunted by a vengeful band of soldiers, their fragile existence quickly collapses. One is taken prisoner by merciless soldier boys, and the other is faced with an impossible decision: Risk everything to save a friend, or flee to a place where freedom might finally be possible.

This thrilling companion to Paolo Bacigalupi's highly acclaimed Ship Breaker is a haunting and powerful story of loyalty, survival, and heart-pounding adventure.


Author: Paolo Bacigalupi

Apparently the publisher doesn't consider it a sequel, but rather a companion book. I suppose I can agree with that.

That's it! Be sure to visit my A to Z Challenge 2015 Assistants: Sylvie from Life from An Optimist's Point of View, and Carrie-Anne Brownian/Ursula Hartlein from Welcome to My Magick Theatre, and enjoy your day off tomorrow!

20 comments:

Anything and Everything Paranormal Blog said...

Seems interesting.

mshatch said...

I read The Drowned Cities and liked it a lot but I think I liked Ship Breaker better.

J.L. Campbell said...

Haven't read this one. New author to me too.

Michele at Angels Bark said...

Thanks for introducing me to a new author. Always looking for new good reads. Especially in YA because I'm toying with the idea of writing YA. I tend to swear a lot in my writing though -- not excessively, just conversationally -- so I'd have to curb that part of my voice. :)
Michele at Angels Bark

Michael G-G said...

Sounds terrifying!

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Quite the decision.
And ready for a day off tomorrow.

Cherdo said...

This is up my alley - I love sci-fi and fantasy.

Cherdo
www.cherdoontheflipside.com

cleemckenzie said...

New book to me. Thanks for posting about it. I love finding books to add to my list.

Lisa said...

This sounds like a good read! Thanks Matt for sharing it, and for dropping by my blog and commenting. Lisa, fellow co-host AtoZ 2015, @ http://www.lisabuiecollard.com

Chrys Fey said...

This sounds like a good story. I love thrilling stories and apocplyptic worlds. :)

Unknown said...

Sounds an interesting story. I'm keen to read this, thanks :)

http://www.tdharveyauthor.com

Unknown said...

Sounds an interesting story. I'm keen to read this, thanks :)

http://www.tdharveyauthor.com

AJ Lauer said...

That does look dark! I think I need to read more YA. There's so much good stuff out there..

Susan Oloier said...

I've never heard of this one. It's nice to get recommendations from others.

Shell Flower said...

I loved Paolo Bacigalupi's The Windup Girl and really need to read more of his work. He is an amazing writer. I'm using this "day off" to catch up on my commenting. I'm having fun, but already falling behind in the rounds.

kjmckendry said...

I haven't heard of this book but it sounds great! Thanks for sharing it.

XmasDolly said...

I haven't heard of this book, but I'm not much of a reader either. This is my first time doing the A to Z and it's really quite fun and I'm meeting a lot of new people. Very nice to meet you and I am following you now. Hope you can do the same if you stop by me. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

This book sounds really interesting! Will be adding to my TBR list!

Heather M. Gardner said...

This doesn't sound too bad.

Heather

Bevimus said...

Another tale I've never read. Certainly sounds intriguing.