Reviewed by Amber

TITLE: Bane

SERIES: Strain #2

AUTHOR: Amelia C. Gormely

PUBLISHER: Riptide

LENGTH: 279 pages

BLURB:

The weapon that nearly destroyed humanity may be their only salvation.

Rhys Cooper’s unique immunity to all three strains of the virus that nearly annihilated humanity has brought him the unwanted attention of Clean Zone scientists. They’ve summoned him for testing—ostensibly in the hopes of finding a vaccine—but Rhys’s partner, Darius Murrell, has good reason not to trust any government. He and his comrades in Delta Company were unwitting test subjects for Project Juggernaut, the military experiment that gave them superhuman abilities and unleashed the pandemic. Doubting the government’s intentions, Delta Company refuses to let Rhys go alone.

Fear of infection has kept Zach Houtman and his lover Nico Fernández apart for a decade. They meet rarely, just long enough to coordinate their spying on the head of the government’s virus research division. Secretary Littlewood is a vicious predator, and they suspect he’s trying to acquire the strain of the virus that would make him superhuman. To stop him, they need the perfect bait: Rhys.

For Rhys, helping them might cost him his relationship with Darius—or his life. For Zach and Nico, even if their plan succeeds, they still face the ultimate question: can infected and uninfected people ever live together safely?

REVIEW:

What is not to love about this scary-ass futuristic world???? If there is something not to love, I haven’t found it yet. This author has taken such hopeless, awful circumstances and turned them into something good and hopeful. Each book is filled with horror and unimaginable loss and grief, but scattered throughout the stories are these beautifully tender gut wrenching moments too.

In Bane we get to revisit Rhys and Darius. They are still happily together and as passionate as always. If anything the connection has only gotten stronger throughout the years. Answering a request from the government the trek to Colorado Springs to have Rhys checked out by scientists, everyone is wary. Everyone is on edge. They have all been deceived and lied to before and they know how easily it can happen again.

We also get a good amount of Nico and Zach and for those of you, like me who was left flailing in the wind after reading Juggernaut it’s nice to see their story continue.

Like this whole series there are a lot of factors at play in Bane. We find out the extreme lengths the government will go to populate this new world. We get to see just how strong the bond is between Delta Company and they lengths they will go to keep each other safe. There’s still pain, hurt, violence, death, and destruction but all of that just adds to the story.

I absolutely love this series. This book totally fed into my need to read more about this crazy world after the plague. It also fulfilled the need to see Darius and Rhys in a more stable, mature, loving relationship. This story was so good and an amazing addition to the already stellar series.

Without a doubt I recommend this book and this whole series to everyone. These aren’t standalones, however. You will need to start with book 1. You won’t be disappointed.

RATING: 

BUY LINKS:

Riptide Publishing

Amazon

ARe