Scan barcode
brittanica_bold's review
5.0
Genre: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Teens & YA
Publication Date: November 8, 2022
Format/Length: Kindle, 352 pages
Rating: 5 infectious stars!
Favorite Quote: “Maisie, let me give you a tip. You will never be old enough for them. You will always be too young, or too inexperienced, or too much of a woman. You can either let them keep pushing you aside, or you can take this opportunity and tell them all to deal with it.”
What I liked about the book:
1. I loved the realistic worldbuilding and how the events of this book could really happen!
Here's the deal:
The virus, much like the pandemic we have experienced for the last 2 years, was bad...It started in Austin, Texas and quickly began to spread, having a 40% mortality rate. As a result of this, the US Government built a wall around Austin, where they put all the sick people and labeled it "The Q", or "The Quarantine Zone". Unfortunately, like in most great government schemes, there were a lot of people who weren't sick, but just couldn't get out of Austin before the wall was erected (read that as people of limited means, because isn't that always what happens???).
One small problem: the virus did not provide long-term immunity to people who got infected with it. So basically, all these people in the quarantine zone kept repetitively getting sick. And of course, no vaccine could be effective because the virus kept mutating. Feeling eerie about this yet?
When people started seeing the light and trying to escape from the zone, the non-infected on the outside said, "Nope" and built another wall containing the life of sickness for these unfortunate souls. What the f*ck is it with these walls? Why is that always the "solution"?
Anyways, I digress.
Of course, everyone on the inside became jaded AF. Laws went to the wayside, cops and military gave up, no one could be controlled. Eventually the zone seceded from the US and built their own rules, being governed by two gang families: the Spencer family in the north and the Lopez family in the south. Obviously, these fools hated each other to the point of there was even a "neutral zone" between the north and south.
Further to the political drama, the north was split between 4 siblings in the Spencer family, with very different ideas on how to run factions. Oh, and did I mention that the only way food, medical supplies, etc. came into the zone was through a small gate in the north? So, you know, that's great for the south, especially when products stopped showing up at the beginning of the story.
That's a lot of set up and political intrigue that definitely kept me hooked on their journey from one end of the zone to the other!
2. I loved the grungy feel of the settings and the high-action sequences. I would love to see this spun off into a graphic novel!
I also really loved the sarcastic and witty writing style. This coupled with the short chapters really made the book fly by so fast, I was legitimately a little bummed when it ended.
3. I loved all the strong female characters. Especially Val, (basically Queen of the North!). She had a badass gang of female warriors and she was a BOSS. The fact that she was only willing to help if Maisie was allowed, and willing, to take over the South was such a great instance of women helping women.
Speaking of that, Maisie had such incredible support not just from Val and her ladies, but from her friends Hadley and Elise. They were willing to break so many rules and were prepared to respect any decisions that Maisie made without judgment or guilt. The female comradery in this book definitely reminded me of one of my favorite quotes:
"Behind every successful woman is a tribe of other successful women, who have her back." LOVE IT!
4. Speaking of characters, our MCs were fun to follow. They were so different, yet such a good team that I loved watching them interact and get through so many troublesome situations.
Lennon was hilarious! He had great internal monologue, was always thinking strategically from many angles, and was definitely ok letting Maisie save him. I especially loved every time Lennon proved all the stereotypes of being a stuffy, Congressman's son wrong and when we found out about his street racing tendencies.
Maisie was fantastic to watch because she had so much character development! She went from just wanting to prove herself scary enough to be in charge to legitimately being a great leader because she was able to make alliances and help people instead of rule with an iron fist like leaders of the past. She genuinely cared about her people, so once she got through her "I need to be the biggest badass in the room" complex, she was able to initiate real change. I really hope we get to see more of this in the future!
4. I loved the mystery around the beloved Queso and I really hope there is a second book to follow him and Hadley!!! It would just be so damn perfect!
5. As a former college radio DJ, I appreciated all of the broadcasts, especially the "You can't say that on air" moments. Too damn accurate!
What didn’t do it for me:
1. The ONLY thing I can say, and I'm really grasping for straws here, is I wish we had more interaction with Ethan once we "met" him. I have this intense need for us to see him and Hadley interact and have the Romeo + Juliet love affair (with a less disastrous ending) we deserve!
I received a copy of this ARC from NetGalley, Random House Children's, Crown Books for Young Readers, and Amy Tintera. I am leaving my honest review voluntarily. Check it out later this year!
Publication Date: November 8, 2022
Format/Length: Kindle, 352 pages
Rating: 5 infectious stars!
Favorite Quote: “Maisie, let me give you a tip. You will never be old enough for them. You will always be too young, or too inexperienced, or too much of a woman. You can either let them keep pushing you aside, or you can take this opportunity and tell them all to deal with it.”
What I liked about the book:
1. I loved the realistic worldbuilding and how the events of this book could really happen!
Here's the deal:
The virus, much like the pandemic we have experienced for the last 2 years, was bad...It started in Austin, Texas and quickly began to spread, having a 40% mortality rate. As a result of this, the US Government built a wall around Austin, where they put all the sick people and labeled it "The Q", or "The Quarantine Zone". Unfortunately, like in most great government schemes, there were a lot of people who weren't sick, but just couldn't get out of Austin before the wall was erected (read that as people of limited means, because isn't that always what happens???).
One small problem: the virus did not provide long-term immunity to people who got infected with it. So basically, all these people in the quarantine zone kept repetitively getting sick. And of course, no vaccine could be effective because the virus kept mutating. Feeling eerie about this yet?
When people started seeing the light and trying to escape from the zone, the non-infected on the outside said, "Nope" and built another wall containing the life of sickness for these unfortunate souls. What the f*ck is it with these walls? Why is that always the "solution"?
Anyways, I digress.
Of course, everyone on the inside became jaded AF. Laws went to the wayside, cops and military gave up, no one could be controlled. Eventually the zone seceded from the US and built their own rules, being governed by two gang families: the Spencer family in the north and the Lopez family in the south. Obviously, these fools hated each other to the point of there was even a "neutral zone" between the north and south.
Further to the political drama, the north was split between 4 siblings in the Spencer family, with very different ideas on how to run factions. Oh, and did I mention that the only way food, medical supplies, etc. came into the zone was through a small gate in the north? So, you know, that's great for the south, especially when products stopped showing up at the beginning of the story.
That's a lot of set up and political intrigue that definitely kept me hooked on their journey from one end of the zone to the other!
2. I loved the grungy feel of the settings and the high-action sequences. I would love to see this spun off into a graphic novel!
I also really loved the sarcastic and witty writing style. This coupled with the short chapters really made the book fly by so fast, I was legitimately a little bummed when it ended.
3. I loved all the strong female characters. Especially Val, (basically Queen of the North!). She had a badass gang of female warriors and she was a BOSS. The fact that she was only willing to help if Maisie was allowed, and willing, to take over the South was such a great instance of women helping women.
Speaking of that, Maisie had such incredible support not just from Val and her ladies, but from her friends Hadley and Elise. They were willing to break so many rules and were prepared to respect any decisions that Maisie made without judgment or guilt. The female comradery in this book definitely reminded me of one of my favorite quotes:
"Behind every successful woman is a tribe of other successful women, who have her back." LOVE IT!
4. Speaking of characters, our MCs were fun to follow. They were so different, yet such a good team that I loved watching them interact and get through so many troublesome situations.
Lennon was hilarious! He had great internal monologue, was always thinking strategically from many angles, and was definitely ok letting Maisie save him. I especially loved every time Lennon proved all the stereotypes of being a stuffy, Congressman's son wrong and when we found out about his street racing tendencies.
Maisie was fantastic to watch because she had so much character development! She went from just wanting to prove herself scary enough to be in charge to legitimately being a great leader because she was able to make alliances and help people instead of rule with an iron fist like leaders of the past. She genuinely cared about her people, so once she got through her "I need to be the biggest badass in the room" complex, she was able to initiate real change. I really hope we get to see more of this in the future!
4. I loved the mystery around the beloved Queso and I really hope there is a second book to follow him and Hadley!!! It would just be so damn perfect!
5. As a former college radio DJ, I appreciated all of the broadcasts, especially the "You can't say that on air" moments. Too damn accurate!
What didn’t do it for me:
1. The ONLY thing I can say, and I'm really grasping for straws here, is I wish we had more interaction with Ethan once we "met" him. I have this intense need for us to see him and Hadley interact and have the Romeo + Juliet love affair (with a less disastrous ending) we deserve!
I received a copy of this ARC from NetGalley, Random House Children's, Crown Books for Young Readers, and Amy Tintera. I am leaving my honest review voluntarily. Check it out later this year!
freadomlibrary's review
3.0
I received a finished copy of this book from Crown Books for Young Readers, through TBR and Beyond Tours in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!
Trigger warnings: disease, pandemic, artificial organs, violence, murder, betrayal
THE Q follows Maisie Rojas, a trusted lieutenant of the Lopez family, one of two groups controlling the post-pandemic quarantine zone formerly known as Austin, Texas. In her role, she is asked to protect Lennon Pierce, son of a US presidential candidate that has been kidnapped and dropped in the middle of the Q with nothing but a parachute. They have forty-eight hours to get him out of the zone or he’ll be forced to remain there forever. But that’s not the only mess this duo encounters and definitely not the only trouble in their horizon.
I really love Amy Tintera; her Ruined trilogy is one of my favorite fantasy series so I was looking forward to reading this new standalone. This book was a super fast paced read, basically finished it in one sitting, and I really enjoyed the characters. Tintera does romance, friendship and family really well and I adored every single relationship in this story. However, I’ve realized dystopian isn’t really my genre anymore so I didn’t fall in love with the story completely. I also don’t think I’m ready for pandemic-centric stories; still too close to home! Haha. But the writing style stands out and I will definitely pick up anything from this author. Would recommend for lovers of dystopia and star-crossed-like lovers!
Trigger warnings: disease, pandemic, artificial organs, violence, murder, betrayal
THE Q follows Maisie Rojas, a trusted lieutenant of the Lopez family, one of two groups controlling the post-pandemic quarantine zone formerly known as Austin, Texas. In her role, she is asked to protect Lennon Pierce, son of a US presidential candidate that has been kidnapped and dropped in the middle of the Q with nothing but a parachute. They have forty-eight hours to get him out of the zone or he’ll be forced to remain there forever. But that’s not the only mess this duo encounters and definitely not the only trouble in their horizon.
I really love Amy Tintera; her Ruined trilogy is one of my favorite fantasy series so I was looking forward to reading this new standalone. This book was a super fast paced read, basically finished it in one sitting, and I really enjoyed the characters. Tintera does romance, friendship and family really well and I adored every single relationship in this story. However, I’ve realized dystopian isn’t really my genre anymore so I didn’t fall in love with the story completely. I also don’t think I’m ready for pandemic-centric stories; still too close to home! Haha. But the writing style stands out and I will definitely pick up anything from this author. Would recommend for lovers of dystopia and star-crossed-like lovers!
mariahtexidor's review
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
izzys_internet_bookshelf's review
3.0
3/5
Ok I really enjoyed this book, but I felt like it was hard to follow at some points. I loved the characters though and I really hope this isn't a standalone
Ok I really enjoyed this book, but I felt like it was hard to follow at some points. I loved the characters though and I really hope this isn't a standalone
thewordlesspoet's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
mireyadiaz's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
nssutton's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.0
First book of spring break was a pure adrenaline rush. Picked it up in my quest for figuring out what a middle school book is, hoping it would be good for my Hunger Games/Maze Runner readers. I can’t believe I - a person who has to hear so much about Fortnite on a regular basis - am about to say this, but the cursing felt too gratuitous and the gun violence maybe at the higher end of YA. Still a quick zippy read, but feels like another Thieve’s Gambit.
ebeubanks8's review
4.0
Way too soon for a book about a pandemic so I was very skeptical. But it was very action packed and way more intense than I was expecting.
makeshiftstar's review
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
audiobookingwithleah's review
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Read this if you like…
- ya dystopian
- viral quarantine zone
- stand-alone
- Texas setting
- light romance
Themes at play…
- family loyalty
- warring factions
This was a decent YA viral-induced dystopian where the world is not much different than what it is now….except a section of Texas was quarantined due to a viral outbreak 20 years ago and it was never lifted. They were walled off and left to fend for themselves except for the occasional food & medicine drop by airplane. It's an interesting concept that was executed well with plenty of witty banter. Everything about it is kept strictly in the YA genre…maybe a little too much…but overall, it was a worthwhile listen.
- The narration by Kyla Garcia and Robbie Daymond was performed very well.
- ratings score = 7.01/10
- ya dystopian
- viral quarantine zone
- stand-alone
- Texas setting
- light romance
Themes at play…
- family loyalty
- warring factions
This was a decent YA viral-induced dystopian where the world is not much different than what it is now….except a section of Texas was quarantined due to a viral outbreak 20 years ago and it was never lifted. They were walled off and left to fend for themselves except for the occasional food & medicine drop by airplane. It's an interesting concept that was executed well with plenty of witty banter. Everything about it is kept strictly in the YA genre…maybe a little too much…but overall, it was a worthwhile listen.
- The narration by Kyla Garcia and Robbie Daymond was performed very well.
- ratings score = 7.01/10