**I received a copy for consideration. All thoughts are my own.

About the Book

Book: Elite

Author: Kristen Young

Genre: Dystopian/Science Fiction

Release date: September 14, 2021

Where do you find safety when your world is falling apart?

Apprentice Flick thought the Elite Academy was the answer to all her problems. But the revelation of her past turned everything upside down. Now, she is caught between two worlds set on a collision course.

Will she embrace the chaotic memories that flood her every waking moment? Or will she run to the security of her Elite training?

Discovering her parents’ identities takes her to a secret underground bunker where she finds new friends, opportunities, and maybe even love. But Flick must decide where her allegiances lie soon, or the Triumph of Love festival might bring about her demise.

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About the Author

A Scottish-born Australian author, Kristen Young has worked in children’s and youth ministry for decades. She writes fiction and non-fiction for teens, and always has a notebook on hand to capture stray story ideas. In her spare time she loves hanging out with her family, watching movies with subtitles, and enjoying a little too much chocolate.

More from Kristen

“Fairy tales do not tell children the dragons exist. Children already know that dragons exist. Fairy tales tell children the dragons can be killed.” ― G.K. Chesterton.

Why do we write fiction? There are lots of reasons, really. We write because we have something
to say. Maybe we write because we just love creating stories. Perhaps we love to entertain. Or
perhaps we write because the stories want to be heard, and we’re just letting them fly.

Or perhaps we know that people want stories for a deeper reason. When life is hard, and work
is a struggle, and the world seems just a little too difficult, it’s a great time to escape into a
different place. Another world, where even though bad things happen, we know there will be a
happy ending.

The responsibility of authors is a heavy one. Our readers entrust their imaginations to us for a
short time, allowing us to draw them into a different place. We give them people to follow, and
let them see the world through other eyes. Dilemmas, threats, relationships and opportunities
— all of these things provide a journey for readers, and give them the chance to explore
alternate ways of dealing with life’s problems. We give people the thrill of knowing that even
under the heaviest challenges, there is a chance to grow and survive.

Chesterton said that children didn’t need to learn about dragons, but to know the dragons could
be overcome. Perhaps even as adults we need a little bit of that, too.

My Thoughts

Elite is the second book in Kristen Young's Collective Underground Series. With science fiction novels, it is always difficult to pick up in the middle of the series, so I would definitely recommend reading the first book before this one. Between not having read the previous book, and just not preferring science fiction reads to start with, I must admit that I struggled to get into the story. I couldn't say for certain if having that backstory would have helped, but it certainly couldn't have hurt.

That said, while this isn't my preferred type of story and certainly not one that I would have picked out for myself I can appreciate good story-telling and good writing nonetheless and this book certainly has both. There is a lot of action to keep the reader engaged, and the characters are well written as well. Those who enjoy science fiction should certainly give this one a read, as I am sure you will appreciate it greatly, but definitely check out the first book to get the full picture first!