Deception (Defiance #2) by C.J. Redwine

Author: C.J. Redwine
Publication: August 27, 2013
By: Balzar + Bray
4.75 Stars!

Gorgeous cover!

Baalboden has been ravaged. The brutal Commander's whereabouts are unknown. And Rachel, grief stricken over her father's death, needs Logan more than ever. With their ragged group of survivors struggling to forge a future, it's up to Logan to become the leader they need—with Rachel by his side. Under constant threat from rival Carrington's army, who is after the device that controls the Cursed One, the group decides to abandon the ruins of their home and take their chances in the Wasteland.



But soon their problems intensify tenfold: someone—possibly inside their ranks—is sabotaging the survivors, picking them off one by one. The chaos and uncertainty of each day puts unbearable strain on Rachel and Logan, and it isn't long before they feel their love splintering. Even worse, as it becomes clear that the Commander will stop at nothing to destroy them, the band of survivors begins to question whether the price of freedom may be too great—and whether, hunted by their enemies and the murderous traitor in their midst, they can make it out of the Wasteland alive.


In this daring sequel to Defiance, with the world they once loved forever destroyed, Rachel and Logan must decide between a life on the run and standing their ground to fight.

Thank you YABC for this ARC and thank you C.J. Redwine for the near heart attack. Seriously, it was awesome.

Three things you should know before reading DECEPTION:
1) People die.
2) It's an excellent sequel!
3) More people die.  
  
Best Case Scenario: You will love this! DECEPTION is the intense follow up to DEFIANCE, offering near non-stop action, suspense and romance as it delivers one swift blow to the feels after the other. Cinematic world-building sucks you right back into the story told from both Rachel and Logan's POV as they fight to survive another trek through the Wasteland. This time they aren't alone and not only are they fighting an invisible enemy who strikes under the shadow of darkness, Rachel and Logan are also fighting internal battles, ones with the potential to do more damage than the Cursed One and the Commander combined. 

If Logan is Captain Scenario, Rachel is Queen of Denial because girlfriend does a fantastic job of pretending certain things do not bother her. But I get that, I do. Grief is a major buzzkill and really, where is the fun in dealing with stuff that makes you hurt worse than a switch to the face or threatens to leave you a hollowed out shell? (Been there. Done that. Don't care to go for a visit.)  But while Rachel's busy not feeling all her feelings, Logan's trying to take care of her and lead a group of misfit refugees more concerned about who grew up on the wrong side of the trees instead of you know, SURVIVING. (I think Moses had an easier time leading the Israelites out of Egypt.) 
 
Like most bad guys, the things we try so.very.hard to push away eventually catch up to us and when they do, we're faced with a choice.  We can either allow them to destroy us or restore us making us stronger than we used to be.  The same holds true for Rachel and Logan as their circumstances demand that they face their fears.  Does that mean everything is all rainbows and unicorns? Of course not. In fact, if you're C.J. Redwine, it's a great opportunity to make more people pay, with.their.lives. O.O

I can't wait to see what happens next!
   
Worst Case Scenario: You won't like this. OR the ending will gut you like a fish Willow catches with her bare hands, the tree lover that you are will balk at the insufficient amount of Quinn-time. This is just an educated guess though, based on the primary factors of...okay, I think you get my point.


Final Verdict: Action-packed and emotionally charged, DECEPTION is an excellent sequel. DEFIANCE fans will not be disappointed!


Favorite Quote(s): "Maybe that's what love is. Giving others the power to hurt you and trusting that they'll use it to heal you instead." 

Review also posted at YABC.