THIS IS AN ADVANCE READING COPY

The world has disintegrated. Civilization has collapsed. Chaos is the new normal.

But I, Lacy Monroe, intend to survive.

My lover Jace and I can’t escape my corrupt uncle, Senator Thomas Moore. He captures and separates us, forcing us to work for him. He sends me to Mexico City to secure an army to overthrow what remains of the US government. He sends Jace on a suicide mission to conquer New Mexico, the only remaining free state in the Southwest.

I was captured. Beaten. Groomed for a sex trafficking ring. But my brother is looking for me…

Jace plays a dangerous cat-and-mouse game, pretending to help my uncle while secretly sabotaging him. But if his deception is discovered…

I want to become the Ascendant, the one who risks it all and defeats my uncle, then finds some measure of peace in this strange new world. But time is running out for us and this treacherous world we now inhabit.

Don’t miss this thrilling sequel to Susy Smith’s acclaimed debut novel, Asylum, the perfect “next-read” for fans of The Hunger Games and Divergent.