Revolution 19 by Gregg Rosenblum {Review}

This is my new cat, Chuck Taylor.
He thinks the book is tasty.

Publisher: Harper Teen

Publish Date: January 8, 2013

Source: Publisher for honest review

Goodreads

Pages: 272

Series: ?

Rating: Near Miss

Twenty years ago, the robots designed to fight our wars abandoned the battlefields. Then they turned their weapons on us.
Only a few escaped the robot revolution of 2071. Kevin, Nick, and Cass are lucky -- they live with their parents in a secret community in the woods. Then their village is detected and wiped out. Hopeful that other survivors have been captured by bots, the teens risk everything to save the only people they have left in the world -- by infiltrating a city controlled by their greatest enemies.

Revolution 19 was pretty middle of the road for me. I enjoyed it for the most part, but there were definitely a few things that kept me from loving it.

Let's start with the good.

Creepy robots.

The idea of machines taking over the world has never really been one that held any particular interest for me, but there's certainly something about creepy about human-like robots. Most of the robots didn't do much for me. I mean, floating sphere robots are cool, but they don't particularly scare me. There were a few, however, that made me want to keep reading. If it weren't for the epilogue and the creepy I-want-to-understand-taste-so-I'll-chew-up-this-steak-and-spit-it-out robot I probably wouldn't have any intention of reading the sequel.

Post-apocalyptic world.

I always love learning about how the world works and Revolution 19 certainly isn't short on interesting details.

Length.

Revolution 19 is somewhere around 260 pages, so it's a quick read. A lot of stuff happens and it even manages to not feel rushed most of the time.

Things I didn't like:

Characters.

I always feel a little heartless for criticizing characters thrust into crazy/new/scary situations, but I had some serious issues with Cass and Nick. They've both mastered the art of jumping to conclusions. “Guys, a bot just turned the corner five blocks away! We've been caught! They're gonna burn us alive! Make a break for it!” That's not a direct quote, if you're wondering, but it sure felt like that. About every other page they thought they were going to get caught and killed and I just wanted to slap them. I mean, I get being scared, but seriously, we have to draw the line somewhere.

And then there's just Nick. “I must sacrifice myself for the good of the cause!” Okay, buddy. Wanting to take care of your brother and sister and rescue your parents is admirable. Being an idiot about it, however, is not. Maybe it's just me, but I don't really see how throwing yourself in front of every robot that passes is helpful.

Pacing.

Yes, I did say that it was generally good, but not completely. When they're traveling in the woods it pretty much goes “they traveled for the day” and then “two days later” and I couldn't help thinking a little info on those lost days would have been nice.

The twist I saw coming a mile away.

Seriously, I suspected from the moment it occurred which just happened to be in the first chapter. The twist itself isn't bad, just the fact that it wasn't a surprise to me AT ALL.

The Nutshell: I didn't hate Revolution 19, but it did leave much to be desired. I'm hoping for character growth, a twistier plotline, and more creepy robots in book two.

Edit: I don't actually see any info on a book two from Goodreads, so can anyone confirm this for me?