‘Two decades of social media had prepared them well for UK2.’ The pace steps up in this penultimate book in the Project Renova series, as the survivors’ way of life comes under threat.Two years after the viral outbreak, representatives from UK Central arrive at Lindisfarne to tell the islanders about the shiny new city being created down south. UK2 governor Verlander’s plan is simple: all … simple: all independent communities are to be dissolved, their inhabitants to reside in approved colonies. Alas, those who relocate soon suspect that the promises of a bright tomorrow are nothing but smoke and mirrors, as great opportunities turn into broken dreams, and dangerous journeys provide the only hope of freedom.
Meanwhile, far away in the southern hemisphere, a new terror is gathering momentum…
‘I walked through that grey afternoon, past fields that nobody had tended for nearly three years, past broken down, rusty old vehicles, buildings with smashed windows. I was walking alone at the end of the world, but I was a happy man. I was free, at last.’
‘Legacy’, a fourth and final book, will be available in October 2018. It is set in the future, about the characters’ descendants, moving backwards in time to 2029, two years after the end of UK2. Patient Zero, a collection of short stories related to the series, is also currently available.
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A satisfying finale to the Project Renova series….
I do recommend that you read Tipping Point and Lindisfarne, the first two books in the series before reading UK2.. however for those who have read the first two books and would like a recap before reading… head to the back of UK2 for a summary.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the post-apocalyptic world created by Terry Tyler in Tipping Point but also frightened. The concept is not inconceivable, when you have leaders in the world who are less than rational, and greedy individuals who feel entitled to keep the world’s riches for themselves. In a very short space of time the world is in chaos including the UK where we are introduced to the survivors in the first two books.
UK2 begins on Lindisfarne and picks up the story of the central characters including Dex, Vicky, Lottie and Jax. The island is on alert for attacks from outsiders and concerned about dwindling supplies, but for Lottie and a handful of her closest friends, there is also a secret that will rock the community. If you want someone to really dislike as a character, then Dex is your man.
In the south the government is creating UK version two, gathering the survivors to create a new nation governed by members of the elite. They have designed a strictly regulated programme of indoctrination and compliance. And as with every master race initiative, selective breeding programmes. They send out recruiters, including the thuggish Barney and reluctant Doyle, to market UK2 as the answer to all outlying communities concerns with the promise of housing, jobs, education and security. A large number of Lindisfarne’s residents are convinced to leave by the persuasive enticements, and travel in buses to the fortified sanctuary full of hope of a better future. This includes Dex who feels that his leadership role on the Island can expand into one of even more prominence within the new administration.
The story then splits into life for those remaining on Lindisfarne with new characters introduced such as Hawk and Seren who have arrived from a failed community on a Danish island. But are they really who they claim to be? And we are introduced to life for those now living in UK 2. It is clear that not is all as promised in the marketing hype, and young Flora in particular, discovers that you should always read the small print.
It is difficult to write a review for a book in a series without giving away spoilers. However, I can promise you a reading experience that is chilling and thought provoking, and central characters so well drawn, that you connect with them on a personal level, as they share their perspective on events. You will find yourself taking sides in the various relationships that develop in both locations, and have a growing dislike…bordering anger, at those in leadership roles who manipulate and betray those they have sworn to protect.
It is a good idea to take a moment to put yourself in their shoes as the story unfolds, and question whether you would be strong and resourceful enough to survive.
And apart from the human element of this terrific series, the manufactured virus that wiped out millions, is also disdainful of those that perpetrated this atrocity, and is about to teach humans that you don’t mess with nature.
I had to crack on with reading UK2 having finished Lindisfarne as I needed to know what was going to happen next.
I was keen to find out about the new world being built, and if it was going to be the utopia being sold to the masses. As with all things that seem too good to be true I suspected not all would be as it first appeared, but, hey, some people will put up with a lot for a flushing toilet! I don’t want to give any spoilers as to what happens to who but there are some terrific character arcs throughout this series as well as some brutal storylines.
A series such as this gives you a lot of time to really get caught up in each character’s story so you fully appreciate each new development, or twist. This means you can be booing a character one minute and cheering them on the next.
As before I enjoyed the setting on Lindisfarne – loving Lottie and Mac, Vicky and Kara and Phil, among others, as well as enjoying the challenge brought to them by Seren and Hawk.
I thought Doyle in UK2 was great, his cynicism in the grand plan realistic. I enjoyed Flora’s journey – such an awakening – as well as that of the Lincoln’s.
But there has to be a special place in this review for Dex, I shall say no more but… Ha!
If you want to absorb yourself in a terrific series, you need look no further than this one – top stuff!
As the third and final book in this trilogy about the UK society’s collapse following the decimation of the population wrought by a deadly virus, the community at Lindisfarne is faced with a new threat. UK2 or Central is the ‘golden’ new future, a city of safety that grows up out of the ashes of England’s wasteland. But all is not what it seems. In this totally unputdownable novel, we follow Vicky, Lottie, Dex, Doyle and many of the other characters we met in the previous books. They are facing life with dwindling supplies and the temptation of joining many of their friends who have traded freedom for safety by heading to the clean beds, running water, creature comforts and TV promised at Central. There are increasing dangers and attacks on Lindisfarne, but at least those who remain are free, which is perhaps far better than what those who end up at Central find they have to give up in return for their so called security, except for Dex (of course). Doyle, the Lincolns and Flora soon find out what it all means and the climax of the book had me glued to my Kindle. From new world order to worker bee is not a very great step, and when crisis looms, survival takes every ounce of independent spirit they have. Who will actually survive? You’ll have to read this brilliant book to find out. Three cheers, Ms Tyler. I doubted you could do it again, but you have. An absolutely riveting read, a thought provoking and terrific end to the series! Five stars aren’t enough!