Awakening (Tankborn Series #2)

by Karen Sandler

Overview

Once a Chadi sector GEN girl terrified of her first Assignment, Kayla is now a member of the Kinship, a secret organization of GENs, lowborns, and trueborns. Kayla travels on Kinship business, collecting information to further the cause of GEN freedom.Despite Kayla’s relative freedom, she is still a slave to the trueborn ruling class. She rarely sees trueborn Devak, and any relationship between them is still strictly forbidden. Kayla longs to be truly free, but other priorities have gotten in the way. A paradoxically deadly new virus has swept through GEN sectors—a disease only GENs catch. And GEN warrens and warehouses are being bombed, with only a scrawled clue: F.H.E. Freedom, Humanity, Equality. With the virus and the bombings decimating the GEN community, freedom and love are put on the back burner as Kayla and her friends find a way to stop the killing . . . . before it’s too late.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781600609824
Publisher:	Tu Books
Publication date:	04/28/2013
Series:	Tankborn Series , #2
Pages:	400
Product dimensions:	5.80(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.40(d)
Lexile:	HL820L (what's this?)
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

KAREN SANDLER is the author of the Tankborn trilogy as well as seventeen novels for adults and several short stories and screenplays. Before becoming a full-time writer, she worked as a software engineer, including work on the Space Shuttle program and communications satellites. She lives in northern California with her husband, Gary, and their three cats, and can often be found riding her Andalusian/Morgan mare, Belle.

Editorial Reviews

The Kinship, a group of advocates for the lower classes of humans and nearly-humans, seeks freedom from slavery for the GENs, Genetically Engineered Non-humans. A major cause of conflict for main character Kayla in this second part of a trilogy is that GENs are still considered a lower class, even by members of the Kinship. Kayla is one of these nearly-human beings who have been programmed with specialized skill sets by gene-splicers which enables GENs to perform the specialized duties needed in their Assignments. She struggles to help win freedom and equality for all Svargan citizens all while under the new threat of a deadly disease which affects GENs alone. Set in a dystopian world far from Earth, it is an exciting, complex story with interesting characters which just manages to balance the difficulty of keeping track of different religions, caste levels and confusing hyphen-rich terminology. There is the welcome addition of a glossary in the back of this second book. Science fiction fans will appreciate the intricacy of this multi-racial world. There is even a love triangle of sorts to please those who enjoy stories of romantic complication. Those who are drawn to stories which explore the dark side of political machinations will find this book to be thought-provoking. Reviewer: Debbie Kirchhoff

VOYA - Debbie Kirchhoff

Gr 8 Up—Kayla, the central character from Tankborn (Lee & Low, 2011), returns in this thought-provoking sequel. She is still a GEN, a Genetically Engineered Non-Human, even though she has had several opportunities to receive the treatment that would dissolve her circuitry and let her pass for a lowborn. She has a new assignment: to assist lowborn Risa in delivering goods while they work undercover for the Kinship. Kayla's star-crossed love interest, trueborn Devak, and his grandfather, Zul, are barely hanging onto their high status after Devak's father was imprisoned. Helping the Kinship conquer the social inequalities among the classes takes a backseat in this story to two new problems: a virus that affects only GENs and the identity of the group behind the bombings in several GEN sectors. As the food supply for GENs lessens, and more of them are infected, the appearance of GENs who can heal others by touch only confuses things more. Kayla grows stronger as an individual, and there is plenty of attention paid to her relationship with Devak. Some minor characters, like Devak's friend Junjie, are rounded out while others stay one-dimensional. A few scenes seem to drag on, but overall pacing is good. There is a helpful glossary of unfamiliar terms, but this book is best read as a sequel and not as a stand-alone. It's a solid second act with a cliff-hanger that will have readers restless for the third installment.—Kelly Jo Lasher, Middle Township High School, Cape May Court House, NJ

School Library Journal

Despite clumsy prose, the second Tankborn entry presents exciting new mysteries about genetic engineering, illness and rebellions. As a GEN (Genetically Engineered Non-human), Kayla ranks lowest in this caste-based society. The slightest insubordination on her part could prompt a trueborn to reset her--wipe away her soul and give her body a new personhood--or recycle her body for DNA. Driving around by lorry under the authority of a lowborn named Risa, Kayla uses her genetically strengthened arms to haul goods in and out of warehouses; she and Risa also carry information for the Kinship, a secret rebel network. This information travels inside Kayla's annexed brain, a section inside every GEN's brain that is accessed by hooking a datapod (painfully) to the tech-tattoo located on every GEN's face. Sandler's strength is suspense, elements of which include the medical mystery of a disease striking only GENs (Scratch is fatal and has bizarre properties), explosions in warehouses storing GEN food, wispy hints of a second revolt (even farther underground than the Kinship) and the web connecting it all. Unfortunately, the intriguing setup and plot are dulled by the telegraphing of some revelations miles in advance and the unsubtle, cumbersome prose that eschews simple pronouns. Longer than it should be, with a romance thread that's dry as toast--but fans of genetic engineering and shadowy rebellions will find much to like. (map, glossary) (Science fiction. 13 & up)

Kirkus Reviews