Bow, Erin. The Scorpion Rules. Simon &
Schuster/McElderry Books 2015 384p $17.99 ISBN 978-1-4814-4271-8 hs Science fiction VG-BN
In this fascinating story of love, war, and
humanity, in
which the world is ruled by
the AI Tallis, the children of world leaders are kept hostage against their
peaceful behavior, but when war is threatened these “children of peace” must
take matters into their own hands. Coming on
the heels of “Hunger
Games fever”, this story might suffer from being mis-classified. It is almost nothing like the Hunger
Games except for the idea of child hostages. However, these young hostages are allies, hoping for peace, and when
peace seems
possible, and therefore their
lives are threatened, they act to protect each
other, bringing to light serious questions about identity, self-sacrifice, and
what -- and who -- is worth dying for. There is a romantic subplot that is both beautiful and unexpected, rather like the
solution protagonist Greta comes up with to stay her own execution and the
destruction of entire nations when Tallis becomes personally involved. Tallis, by the way, will be absolutely delightful to millennials and younger readers, who are far more
likely to enjoy this book than their parents, who may be uncomfortable with the casual approach to sexuality beyond
the heterosexual norm. This was a genuinely fun read, and the ending will leave readers
wondering what else is in store for Greta and her companions.
Summary:
In this fascinating story of
love, war, and humanity, the
children of world leaders are held hostage against
their peaceful behavior, but when war is threatened these “children of peace”
must take matters into their own hands.
Hostages-Fiction, Peace-Fiction, Artificial intelligence-Fiction
--Bethany Geleskie
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