My normal problem of morally grey characters in YA not working out for me strikes again! No one was likable, and I typically enjoy that in my books, but it rarely works for me in YA. It was a cool concept and the 'what is good, what is not' theme is a fun one to explore in this particular world, but I really just couldn't get past the characters to really enjoy this one.

I appreciate the opportunity to review. Sorry for the long delay in feedback. I'm working on clearing out my Netgalley backlog. I am DNF'ing all books that just don't work within the first 50-100 pages. Trying to find the joy in reading again by going through the hundreds of abandoned books here.

I wished there was more storytelling done surrounding the background. I felt like given this was a dystopian, there was a missed opportunity of world-building and giving us the whys, hows, and whos of what happened.

What an adventure, once you get past the beginning. Sorrel's brother and sweetheart are taken and she sets otu to find them. Her belief that they are alive is what keeps her going against impossible odds.

I am attempting to go back and read some of these older books to bring up my ratio, but unfortunately I can't find a copy of this in my library system! I will not be reviewing it apologies :(

It took me a while to pick this one up and read and even then it wasn't a read i looked forward to.. Just not my cup of tea.

Sorrel has survived a raid. Her small settlement is now gone after mutants come and leave it in ruins and taking the two people that mean most to her. Her brother and boyfriend. She wants them back and will make it so.

Sorrel seems almost sheltered in a way. Where she is being told how not all mutants are bad just as not all humans are good. It kind of seems like that srt of stuff should be obvious. But this is very dystopian/post-apocolyptic style book. So as she ventures outside of what she knows, things are going to unfold. It's scary, danergous and new, but she wants her brother and boyfriend back.

Overall, the book was just okay. I didn't love it and there were points where I wanted to just stop reading just because it wasn't holding my attention. I wouldn't have the urge to read any of the other books, but if this genre is your style, I'd say give it a read for youserself.

Omg talk about a roller coaster read wow this book kept me on the edge of my seat threw out I just couldn't put it down this writer keeps you hooked and once your hooked your not letting go I found this book thrilling the characters were fantastic and well thought out and the little clues all the way threw keep you guessing until the end this book stays with you long after you close the book this book is well worth the read I promise you wont be disappointed

This book was awarded for review but the content archived before I was able to review. I would be glad to review the book if further access could be granted.

The New Dark was a well written story but it wasn't my kind of story. It's my fault for not having read it sooner, back when this sounded more like something that interested me. For anyone who loves this genre - it's probably going to be a great read!

In this dystopian future, modern things like electricity, cars, even roads are gone. People live in isolated communities. Sorrel lives in Amat, a village in the forest, until an army of mutants come and destroy her town, killing most everyone but taking the young people, including Sorrel’s toddler brother Eli and the boy she loves, David. Sorrel is able to escape and tries to track them down but ends up trapped in a cult like town full of people called the Free. In the meantime, David is sold as a slave in the big city but decides to escape when he catches wind of the fact that Sorrel might be on the run.

Overall, this book was decent. Plenty of action and intrigue. A little too much intrigue, though, because some things about this world they live in aren’t explained super well. The main characters are fine, and I’m definitely interested enough to find out what happens next. Thanks to NetGalley for the free ebook.

Did not finish after 30%. The book drags on and I personally felt no motivation to continue reading. Though the concept was interesting, the characters felt lifeless and the world felt flat. Even at 30% of the book, I could not tell what certain things were supposed to look like.

NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of The New Dark. I voluntarily chose to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

Sorrel lives a simple life, until it is all taken away by a gang of mutants. Her brother Eli and David, the boy she loves, are imprisoned by the intruders and it is up to Sorrel to find them. Will the path back to her loved ones be fraught with danger?

The world outside Sorrel's town is filled with characters readers often find in dystopian novels, the people who take advantage of others and those who profit from this. I did not find the world building to be all that inspired, as it felt too similar to novels I have read before. Too much happens in The New Dark, as Sorrel and her townspeople face many challenges. The problem with the ever changing plot is that the reader is given a quick view and then it is on to something else. The background into the mutants is never fully explored, neither are their motivations or reasonings. Overall, The New Dark followed a familiar path and I was disappointed, as a result. For these reasons, I will not continue with the series, nor would I recommend it.

The story starts out a bit slow at first the starts to pick a little. The world building needs a little work. I don’t feel to invested in the story by the end of the storyline. Maybe the next book will be better.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book and I’m happy to having gotten an e-arc by the publisher & net galley in exchange of me leaving an honest review.

I think this world was super interesting and original. There are these mutated creatures, plants and humans that are larger, stronger and overall more dangerous than ‘before’. There’s also a king of brutality present sometimes that I liked. It gave the story a bit of a dark edge to it. I think the world building on its own could’ve been a bit more developed, but seeing it’s a first in a trilogy, I hope we’ll get more of that in the next installment.

In general I think the characters still need ‘some work’ but there were definitely some enjoyable features as well like our MC isn’t your typical flawless person with awesome skills. I thought her way of reacting and coping to situations was really well done and made her more imperfectly perfect.

I truly enjoyed this story. It has an interesting storyline with some familiar elements but the author definitely gives an original take on things as well. The characters were fun to read about and I’m curious to see how much more they’ll develop in the next installment for example. Same with the world and the world building; I’m excited to read more about it! This is definitely a book I’d recommend if you’re looking for a fast paced story set in a really interesting post apocalyptic world.

This is a great book! Definitely add to a must read list! The characters are great and the story is well written!

I liked the concept, I liked that it made me think about who’s right and who’s wrong in general.This story is a dystopian story happening in a future where cars and planes are things from the past. The metal is a rarity and mutants are feared by humans.

In this dystopian YA book, we follow a girl caller Sorrel. Her village, Amat, is ransacked and destroyed by a group of marauding mutants. The mutants also kidnap her 2-year-old brother Eli, and the boy she loves, David. Sorrel is determined to find them, and thus starts her adventure as she leaves behind everything she has ever known.

This is an exciting concept and the adventure aspect drew me in. However, the dystopian genre has a lot of competition. I love reading a good dystopian YA, and this one was good but it did not stand out in the sea of other books from this genre.

The characters were interesting and some of them had depth, but I found most were stereotypical or monotonous. I didn't connect with any of them because they felt like shells of characters we had seen several times over. Sorrel does go through some character growth and she learns things throughout the book that change her perspective. David was also an interesting character but he was a little generic and he didn't have much of a unique personality.

This was a short read with a varied pace. There were times where I wanted to story to move faster than it was. The second half was not as exciting as I was expecting it to be.

There's a lot of things going on in this story, at one point there is a little bit of a cult vibe, there is an adventure, a post-apocalyptic setting. Overall, it was an interesting story. It was good, but it did not stand out amongst the rest.

The stark juxtaposition of the female protagonist swooning over her love interest while he's dismembering an animal is really not great. It doesn't bode well in terms of the tradition of toxic relationships romanticised in YA since Twilight. I don't know if this book quite has the self-awareness it needs to pull this one off...

“The New Dark” by Lorraine Thompson is a short read at just 221 pages and yet I struggled to finish it. I don’t even have a strong opinion on this little guy to be honest. It’s not a book that I not like it, but I also that I not not like it? Resigned indifference might be a better way to describe it.
The book attempts to cover a wide range of issues, including racism, sexual assault, and slavery, but it attempts to tackle so much that it just falls short of the mark. Again, the book is pretty darn short and yet we are expected to have everything wrapped up relatively neatly by the end of it? Sorry, not happening.
The plot also still has me trying to figure out what or rather why we went through it all in the first place. The book has potential but it just fell flat by attempting to take on more than it could chew.

A copy of the book was provided by the publisher in return for an honest review.