Gizmo's Reviews: #Blog Tour/Review - Helix by Mary Ting #YALIT #Dystopian #Post-Apocalyptic

Series: International Sensory Assassin Network #2
Format: Kindle, 376 pages
Release Date: September 10th 2019
Publisher: Vesuvian Books
Source: XpressoTours
Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian

Alliances are forming. The resistance is growing. Everything is about to change.

With her memory still fragmented, Ava returns to the International Sensory Assassin Network (ISAN) to find the twin sister she never knew she had.

But as Ava hunts for information, she finds herself tangled in a web of yet more lies and conspiracy. The Helix serum may not be required to access her superpowers, and the number of male assassins—previously considered too volatile to tolerate Helix—is growing in every territory.
The more Ava uncovers, the more of a threat she becomes to ISAN. Her only salvation may be to join the rebels—if she isn’t killed first.

Helix, by author Mary Ting, is the second installment in the authors International Sensory Assassin Network series. ISAN introduced readers to a world that was destroyed by meteors. 50 years of radiation and turmoil followed. The former US is now run by a so-called Remnant Council broken up into 4 regions. Scientists discovered a unique compound from the meteors that advanced technology 100x what they would have had before the storm hit. Helix is a bit different from ISAN in that Rhett opens the story, not Ava.

The story is also told by both Rhett and Ava. Rhett really needs Ava to find a way to remember her past. Rhett, along with Reyna and Ozzie, have been trying to help her along without risking her life in the process. Ava knows that Mr. Novak is onto her. He knows that she is lying about things that she has done over the course of this series. Ava is still team leader despite the fact that she's walking a dangerous path. Her team includes Justine, Brooke, and Tamara.

Could one of her teammates be working against her? Ava is also trying to find her supposed twin sister who she found out about in the previous installment. If she can find her father, the man who is responsible for Helix, she may uncover the answers to the questions that she's been dying to ask. One of those is why is she apparently a walking talking GPS? How can she see things nobody else can? Ava also has to face challenges from other antagonists who want to see Ava go down in flames.

In this story, we also discover more about Hope City which was briefly hit on in the first installment when Ava was taken by Rhett event though he knew that Ava was being scrutinized by Novak and others including her own teammates. Rhett is consumed by Ava which makes him a bit reckless, willing to take wild missions and leaps of fate in order to get Ava back to where he belongs she belongs; with him and the rebels.

Fairness in reviewing: Things seemed to be rehashed in this story when it was already covered in the previous installment. I felt that I was reading ISAN all over again, instead of moving forward in the series. The different is that Rhett takes large swaths of the story and we learn a bit more about Ava, the rebels, and the fact that Rhett is infatuated with Ava. The only real surprises were the kids that Ava and Rhett encountered, or saved, and there was a pesky little surprise towards the ending that made me want to read the next book soon. Ava and Rhett has similar goals: bring down the entire ISAN apparatus and free all those who have been injected with Helix.

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Author Bio:
International Bestselling, Award-Winning Author Mary Ting writes soulful, spellbinding stories that excite the imagination and captivate readers all over the world. Her books run a wide range of genres and her storytelling talents have won her a devoted legion of fans and garnered critical praise.

Becoming an author happened by chance. It was a way to grieve the death of her beloved grandmother, and inspired by a dream she had in high school. After realizing she wanted to become a full-time author, Mary retired from teaching after twenty years. She also had the privilege of touring with the Magic Johnson Foundation to promote literacy and her children's chapter book: No Bullies Allowed.

Mary resides in Southern California with her husband, two children, and two little dogs, Mochi and Mocha. She enjoys oil painting and making jewelry.