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What’s it about? In the future a war was fought over the concept of abortion. Essentially there were two sides – Pro Life and Pro Choice. Both sides wouldn’t budge on their views and stirred up a holy war that threatened to tear the country apart. To appease both sides, a deal was reached. Abortions were illegal, but between the ages of 13 and 18, a parent could retroactively “Unwind” a child who wasn’t living up to potential. “Unwinding” is essentially harvesting 100% of the body as donor materials. In this way, children never ‘die,’ but simply live on in a divided state. This is the story of three such children marked for unwinding.

Okay, obviously this is a “Modest Proposal” type of book where an argument is reductio ad absurdum. It may sound ridiculous, but the idea that two sides could not budge and so they only agreed to a solution that was as horrifying to the enemy as it was to themselves, we can kind of see where they were going. Kind of a split the baby in half kinda thing.

So let’s talk about the book. Fast-paced with a razor sharp plot, UNWIND will entertain the pickiest readers. I blasted through the book in two sittings. Neither preachy about any side of the abortion issue, nor too light with the concept of life/death/existence of a soul, Unwind reaches that perfect, non-judgey high note that makes anyone’s skin crawl. I won’t go in to too many details, but essentially you follow the adventures of three kids from very different situations, all marked one way or another to be unwound. The writing is impeccable, flawless, and gut-wrenching. During one of the final chapters I had to put the book down and do some deep breathing. When you get to Chapter 61 Roland, you’ll know what I mean.

Yes, this is a hard book to read. Yes, you should read it. You will not be disappointed. I was left with hope for the characters at the end, even amidst this horrible world where parents sign death orders for unruly kids. Truly shocking, and one of the best books I’ve read all year.

Should you read it? YES. It doesn’t matter what side you’re on for this controversial issue – you’ll enjoy the story. For fans of series like The Maze Runner, this is a good bet. Action packed, fast paced, yet still hitting some big emotional notes. I’m ordering the second book today, and I can’t wait to read it!

Buy it now!