Dystopian fiction as a genre seems to lend itself to series of books rather than standalone fictions. That can be extremely enjoyable. When a whole new world has been created with characters who almost start to become your friends.(I know, I need to get out more!), a dictatorial, totalitarian regime dominates that world and you long for those opposing it to win you hungrily, feverishly, turn the pages and bemoan the ending of one book but you know there’s going to be another!T Even if you have to wait a while for it. The anticipation is there.The problem arises when you come to the final book in a series. You’ve longed for it. You’ve got it, you’ve read it and then ……..that’s it. There’s that sense of loss when you’ve turned that last page.
I’ve just finished First Dawn Breaks, the fourth and final book in the Merit Hunter series. I’ve been with this series since the beginning. The honour I have bestowed upon this author is that I have read it as an online PDF. The reason that is an honour is because I LOATHE e-reading! But I just couldn’t wait to find out what happened. I have ordered a signed hardcopy of the book, but it has yet to arrive.
I have written about all three books on my blog. I’ll put the links here. Please note, though that the titles of the first two have been changed. Crown Worthy is now Sun of Endless Days. Stolen Crowns is now Storm at Dusk.
https://bookphace.blogspot.com/2021/04/crowned-worthy-lg-jenkins-blog-tour.html
https://bookphace.blogspot.com/2022/01/stolen-crowns-lgjenkins.html
https://bookphace.blogspot.com/2024/12/quiet-echoes-at-night-lgjenkins.html
So what is it about this particular series that so attracts my loyalty? All books embody, that fundamental essence of dystopian fiction - an oppressive regime that exerts an unreasonable control over the population. There's usually some sense of freedom and individuality being lost. People live in fear and anxiety. Technology often plays a large part. It does here in the form of a Watch that records each wearers merit and actions. In this series citizens must earn merit through all of their actions and they are judged on how much merit they have. The setting is the fictional city of Tulo. In the effort to be more productive citizens take drugs to skip sleep.
The two main characters are Ajay Amber's and Genni. There are a couple in the first book but whether that endures in the next three I'll leave you to read and find out! Both of them attempt to steer their way through the system uncovering anomalies along the way. They are both from different backgrounds and perspectives and as the series progresses they both begin to question the ultimate meaning of merit and worth beyond standings and accomplishments, albeit in different ways.
This final book in the series is an explosive conclusion that follows organically from the previous three books. Friendships, family bonds, civil unrest and civic responsibility all play a part as characters we've previously met all seem to come together in one crescendo of rebellion as the seemingly inviolable system collapses. Questions are answered and ends are tied up but not necessarily in a "they all live happily ever after" way. There's room for conjecture. For the most part, it was a satisfying conclusion, but I still feel a sense of loss that there will be no more in the series.
Ultimately, I think the series invites comparisons with others such as The Hunger Games or the Divergent trilogy. So if you love those worlds and you want to enter a new one, this series is for you.
For me, I also like to see how a writer progresses throughout a series. Can they maintain what they've created in the first book? Can they develop their characters in a believable and relatable way? And the answers to both those questions here or a resounding yes. I think the writing this book is the tightest and most assured of all the books. And I can't wait for my signed copy to arrive so that I can read it again! When it does, I can add my trademark photo with spectacles to this post! (Just done it today!)
My thanks to the author for an advanced PDF copy of the book.
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