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A review by iam
The Second Rebel by Linden A. Lewis
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Reread April 2023: Loved this so much. Where book1 is about the loss of bodily autonomy, book2 is about sacrafice and martyrdom, and the decision to harm the one to spare the many. gut-wretching yet enchanting.
Original review: High-stakes, fast-paced, painful and yet full of hope, The Second Rebel is a stunning and worthy sequel that makes me want more.
Read this review and more on the blog!
Content warnings include: violence, mostly off-page torture and experimentation on humanoids (very plot relevant), death, off-page sexual abuse, oppression, blackmail, fade-to-black sex, corruption.
Mentions of: domestic abuse, child abuse, biological/viral warfare, suicide.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: The First Sister was one of my top if not most-favourite-of-all reads of 2020. I adored it from beginning to end, so, naturally, I was very excited for The Second Rebel, and had very high expectations.
I am more than happy to report that all of these expectations were met, and more!
The book more or less seamlessly picks up where the previous one left off (making rereading The First Sister right before starting this very rewarding). Astrid, Lito and Hiro are each following their respective goals, all of which become more and more intertwined. There is also a new addition to the protagonists, Luce, Lito’s younger sister, an idealistic artist who just started a new job at Val Akira Labs right when her brother gets into the big corporation’s crosshairs.
The stakes are very high from the beginning, and only keep rising. Old and new players affect the board and reroll the dice more than once. New connections and relationships form and are torn apart, we get to explores ones that were only previously hinted at or shown through second hand.
Hiro, who only got flashback chapters in The First Sister, now has their own present chapters and they are an absolute delight of a character to read about. I adored them in book 1 already, but book 2 only cemeted my love for them.
I particularly loved how the book expands the worldbuilding. There are more details about the Sisterhood, the Asters, and even the elusive Synthetics. The backdrops again feature both familiar and new places all across the human controlled parts of space, which was interesting to see. And there will be more to be discovered in the sequel…
Hinting at the ending, I won’t say anything other than that I pretty much spent the entirety of the last 30% sobbing my eyes out. It was glorious, is was painful, it was so, so good, and I absolutely cannot wait for the finale of the trilogy.
I received an ARC and reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
Before reading: I remember seeing The First Sister's cover for the first time and being stunned. I can't remember when I was last so mesmerized by a cover! And now book2 managed to make me feel the same way once more!
I absolutely cannot wait to read this!
Original review: High-stakes, fast-paced, painful and yet full of hope, The Second Rebel is a stunning and worthy sequel that makes me want more.
Read this review and more on the blog!
Content warnings include: violence, mostly off-page torture and experimentation on humanoids (very plot relevant), death, off-page sexual abuse, oppression, blackmail, fade-to-black sex, corruption.
Mentions of: domestic abuse, child abuse, biological/viral warfare, suicide.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: The First Sister was one of my top if not most-favourite-of-all reads of 2020. I adored it from beginning to end, so, naturally, I was very excited for The Second Rebel, and had very high expectations.
I am more than happy to report that all of these expectations were met, and more!
The book more or less seamlessly picks up where the previous one left off (making rereading The First Sister right before starting this very rewarding). Astrid, Lito and Hiro are each following their respective goals, all of which become more and more intertwined. There is also a new addition to the protagonists, Luce, Lito’s younger sister, an idealistic artist who just started a new job at Val Akira Labs right when her brother gets into the big corporation’s crosshairs.
The stakes are very high from the beginning, and only keep rising. Old and new players affect the board and reroll the dice more than once. New connections and relationships form and are torn apart, we get to explores ones that were only previously hinted at or shown through second hand.
Hiro, who only got flashback chapters in The First Sister, now has their own present chapters and they are an absolute delight of a character to read about. I adored them in book 1 already, but book 2 only cemeted my love for them.
I particularly loved how the book expands the worldbuilding. There are more details about the Sisterhood, the Asters, and even the elusive Synthetics. The backdrops again feature both familiar and new places all across the human controlled parts of space, which was interesting to see. And there will be more to be discovered in the sequel…
Hinting at the ending, I won’t say anything other than that I pretty much spent the entirety of the last 30% sobbing my eyes out. It was glorious, is was painful, it was so, so good, and I absolutely cannot wait for the finale of the trilogy.
I received an ARC and reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
Before reading: I remember seeing The First Sister's cover for the first time and being stunned. I can't remember when I was last so mesmerized by a cover! And now book2 managed to make me feel the same way once more!
I absolutely cannot wait to read this!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Torture
Minor: Child abuse and Domestic abuse