Hi there!
Welcome back to another EXCITING day here at Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers, where we look for any reason to spread the joys of reading EVERY day of the week.
Today, we're closing out the month by circling in on a newish title that places itself in the New Adult and Dystopian Thriller categories. It's the first book in a new series that is sure to get your adrenalin going whether you're a conspiracy theorist or that person who just needs to know the WHY of most situations. I fall in the latter camp myself so at first I was a bit worried if this book would be TOO much “they're out to get us” for me. Was it? Was it not? Ah, you'll have to keep reading to find out. (What? You didn't think I'd make it THAT easy now did you? ^_^) Ladies and gents, prepare to fork over a few minutes of your day because really what I'm asking is seriously a small price to pay in comparison to the folks in this book. Today's book of choice is....
Counteract
by
Tracy Lawson
9780941523018
Buddhapuss Ink
About the book...
TWO STRANGERS – their destinies entwined – must work together to thwart a terrorist the country never suspected.
The Office of Civilian Safety and Defense has guarded the public against the rampant threat of terrorism for the last fifteen years with the full backing of the US government. Their carefully crafted list of Civilian Restrictions means no concerts or sporting events, no travel, no social media, no cash transactions, and no driver's licenses for eighteen-year-old Tommy and Careen. The OCSD has even outlawed grocery stores, all in the name of safety.
Now there's a new threat: airborne chemical weapons that could be activated at any time. But the OCSD has an antidote: just three drops a day is all it takes. It's a small price to pay.
Or is it?
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So we begin with a world in which all social gatherings are cut down in any fashion, even that meaningless yet necessary trip to the grocery is null and void. We have the government to take care of all of that for us, so who needs it? Yeah...who indeed. *-* Can you imagine? I mean I know some things have gone mostly over to the virtual world but cutting out ALL social interactions in the name of safety doesn't sound like the best plan of attack. There is a cost for everything and it's up to us to decide if it's too high too pay. In this case with the OCSD's little antidote, I do believe I would have had to say NO, as in a BIG N and BIG O. Probably would have had to tone it down so as not to suffer the same fate as the martyr.... *gulp* Then again he really didn't, I mean...*ahem*...never mind. ~whistles~ Anywho...back to where we were. The government is in charge of it all leaving mankind to ...NOT think for themselves; something that becomes clearer over the course of days we're about the experience and yet the WHY to it all we simply can't fathom.
There's murder, there's mayhem. There's running for your lives and running towards them. There's bigger pictures you can't possibly see and small details that at first glance may slip through the cracks. You'll forge connections with many while watching others whither away...GLADLY. Tommy and Careen may be at the center of the story but they are far from our only leads. The story is told through multiple viewpoints as the days and week progress giving you a more rounded look at what's occurring in many locations. I loved watching Tommy and Careen interact. It was awkward and messy, definitely not a match made in heaven or otherwise and yet, given time and circumstance, it worked, growing into something real. Trina was a firecracker and one smart cookie....even if she WAS on the wrong side of things...initially. (What?! I can't say anymore!) Wes was someone I wanted to believe in and yet his shadiness prevented it from fully happening despite some of his actions. Kevin on the other hand had equal amounts of shadow cast on him yet I found him easier to accept. Encompassing the characters was the story itself and as much as we'd like to believe it purely Fiction....I don't know. It's not too far fetched to be somewhat believable on some levels. Scary. *-*
In conclusion, a tale of things we don't want to believe in and yet might could possibly exist in some fashion some day. *ahem* Maybe. The multiple viewpoints take a few pages to get the swing of but it works in the end. I myself was glued to the page literally finishing it within a 24 hour period and considering I also worked and 11+ hour day that day, that's REALLY saying something. So, if you're looking to add a GREAT READ to your wish list and you're a fan of the genres tapped, this is definitely a series you need on your radar.
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About the author...
Tracy knew she wanted to be a writer from the time she could read. She grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio and attended Princeton High School. While in a student there, she turned her writing efforts toward journalism. She was an editor for the school newspaper, news director for the Princeton Instructional Television station, and also worked as a reporter and feature writer for the Suburban Press weekly newspaper.
She graduated summa cum laude from Ohio University in 1988, with a Bachelor of Science in Communications degree.
After working for a time in advertising and as an investigative analyst for the Florida Board of Bar Examiners, Tracy settled into a career in the performing arts, teaching dance and choreographing musicals.
Tracy has had a long-time interest in her family’s history and genealogy, and she never lost the desire to write.
In 1990, her parents gave her a special Christmas present. It was a journal written by her great-great-great grandfather, Henry Rogers. He, his wife, Maria, and her parents traveled on a horse-drawn wagon from Cincinnati to Philadelphia, then on to Trenton, New Jersey, during the summer of 1838. The purpose of this working trip was to observe working mills so they could improve the family milling business, and also visit relatives in Ohio and New Jersey. During this trip, Henry kept a journal of what he observed along the way. Tracy enjoyed reading it, and became curious about many of the places Henry and his entourage visited.
After making most of the same trip herself by automobile–along with her young daughter–during the summers of 2003 and 2004, and keeping her own journal, Tracy was inspired to compare and share information about both trips–taken over a century and a half apart–in her first published book, Fips, Bots, Doggeries, and More: Explorations of Henry Rogers’ 1838 Journal of Travel from Southwestern Ohio to New York City.
Tracy’s coming of age novel, Counteract, is slated for release on August 6, 2014–which just also happens to be her birthday! The sequel, Resist, is nearly done, and she’s starting to think about the third volume in the series.
Tracy lives in Dallas with her husband, daughter, and three spoiled cats.
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Review copy received courtesy of the great team at Buddhapuss Ink. (THANKS!) For more information on this title as well as their full catalog, be sure to catch up with them online or via social media. This title is available now, so be on the look out for it on bookstore shelf or virtual retailer of your choosing. OH! One more thing...there's a small teaser at book's end of book 2 in the series, Resist. According to my info at present day, it's slated for release in 2015. *adds to wish list*
Until next time....happy reading!
My writing is an expression of the things I love best: yoga, dogs, and murder mysteries. 
