Written by Chris Bonnello, Underdogs follows The Underdogs, a group that started out as 30 folk fighting to take back England from the Clones, and is now down to 12. A routine mission to get supplies turned into a rescue convoy after finding a girl who promptly killed the assassin after her.
One of the unique this about this novel is the fact that a good chunk of the soldiers are considered “special needs” or on the spectrum. And how they are portrayed is really important and a good step forward. The fact that they deal with things that people who aren’t involved in that don’t realize is a big plus for this novel. The approach. The writing style. The characters.
The post-take over style of this novel was also really refreshing in this over saturated market and how they took a different approach by making it, in some ways, far more simple.
I think the weak point in this is the non-soldier characters. The older characters. The come off as very flat, which is something that can be seen from a younger perspective, but is annoying in a character.4.
Overall, it was a really enjoyable book.
BUT, this is a book that is definitely aimed at a certain age (teenagers) and has a message – that even if you think differently, view the world differently, you will accomplish so much. And, when you realize that is what is happening, its a bit preaching. Currently, though, I would say that is one of the things that is actually very popular in the Teen literary world right now.
If you know of a teenager looking for a book like this, this is a great choice. Action, adventure, difference. It was decent.
I did receive a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
