Review - Defiance by C.J. Redwine (Defiance #1)

16 year old Rachel Adams lives in a time after dragon like creatures erupted from the ground 50 years ago and devastated the world. She lives in a compound called Baalboden where women have no rights at all. They are “protected” by their male counterparts and are not allowed to go anywhere unescorted. Women are also expected to go into a claiming ceremony on their 17th birthday where they will soon marry the person who chooses her.

Rachel’s father, Jared Adams is a courier and one of the best trackers in the city of Baalboden. When he disappears after a mission to the nearby town of Rowansmark and is declared dead after 60 days by Commander Jason Chase, Rachel is forced into an unlikely protectorship with Logan McIntire her father’s apprentice. Logan is also the person who Rachel put her heart out to only to be rebuked. Rachel isn’t like other Baalboden females in that she has learned how to use weapons with skill and precision thanks to her father’s insistence. She also refuses to accept that her father is dead and therefore searches for ways to track him down in the badlands. She also refuses to play the Commanders game and plots against him at every angle.

Nineteen year-old Logan hasn’t exactly had the best life. His mother was flogged in the streets by the Commander after a public display of refusing to abide by the rules of Baalboden by having a male escort at all times. He later became the apprentice to Jared Adams, the man who pretty much saved his life from being left alone to die on the mean streets. To say he is shocked to find out he’s been assigned as Protector over Rachel, would be a misnomer. Logan is also a very talented inventor whose gadgets help him and Rachel survive in the Badlands.

I have to say, without hesitation, or reservation, that I was absolutely surprised at how much I actually liked this book after seeing so many negative reviews. I didn't even mind the alternating POV's between Rachel and Logan since their stories were so familiar in many ways. Rachel is a character that is admirable, courageous, and passionate about what she believes in while Logan is just trying to remain alive and out of the clutches of the Commander who took away so much from him. But, don’t push Logan’s story behind believing that this is all about Rachel. Logan is just as brave as Rachel.

As for Commander Chase, there are still a few questions that need to be answered. I’m hoping that Redwine does so in the next installment titled Deception. Chase seems to have a few secrets like how he is able to control and keep the dragon like creatures from becoming a nuisance. There is also the relationship/romance between Logan and Rachel that hopefully won’t turn into a 3-way triangle which I loathe with my very fiber.

Title - Defiance (Defiance # 1)
Author - C.J. Redwine
Publisher -Balzer & Bray
Released - August 28, 2012
Genre - YA Dystopian