Shattered (Slated Trilogy) by Teri Terry

Shattered (Slated Trilogy) by Teri Terry
Buy Shattered (Slated Trilogy) by Teri Terry at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: Teens
Reviewer: Jill Murphy
Summary: Satisfying conclusion to this stellar dystopian series, in which teenaged criminals have their memories wiped. Will Kyla/Rain/Lucy/Riley find a way to escape - and defeat - the Lorders?
Buy? Yes	Borrow? Yes
Pages: 416	Date: March 2013
Publisher: Orchard
External links: Author's website
ISBN: 1408319500
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Kyla - or is she Lucy? or Rain? or Riley? - was slated as a teen criminal in Lorder-run Britain. All memory of her past life was erased and she was sent to live with a new foster family, controlled by a wrist bracelet that could kill her if she stepped out of line. But that was some time ago. Since then, some of Kyla's memories have resurfaced and she has discovered that she isn't a run-of-the-mill Slated. Used as a weapon by an anti-Lorder terrorist group, Kyla's brain has been messed with in more than one way.

We pick up the story as Kyla - now given a new identity as Riley - leaves for Cumbria to be reunited with her real mother in secret. As she searches for the truth about her past and tries to evade the authorities, Kyla will find that the truth is more shocking than she could ever have imagined. Can Kyla and the MIA defeat the Lorders? And will she ever find love with Ben?

Oh, I've loved this sequence. It offers everything fans of action thrillers could want but underneath the main plot are all sorts of tricky and existential questions. Terry has continued this right to the end. The denouement ties up the action plot nicely and includes the obligatory big reveal but there is also a clever little subversion in terms of one of the choices Kyla makes. I have loved this aspect of the Slated series throughout - it will appeal to readers of dystopian fiction who want to see all the familiar tropes and motifs but also to readers like me, who thirst for the unexpected.

In this last instalment, things get worse before they get better. And Kyla, who is both the most relatable and admirable of central characters, pays the price of continuing to keep secrets. And in the end, it's only the truth which could possibly set her free. I was rooting for her all the way through.

The talking points are important ones, too - this series is set in the near-future and so much of it is close to reality that it really is quite chilling. How far should government by surveillance go? What should we do with teenaged criminals? Is civil unrest a hallmark of a functioning democracy or should it be stamped out? What makes us human if not the sum of our experiences?

In an overheated dystopian genre, Shattered - and the Slated sequence as a whole - stands out as something you shouldn't miss.

Clearly, you should read the first book in this series. And the second! Anything by Gemma Malley is also exciting and thought-provoking, especially The Declaration.

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You can read more book reviews or buy Shattered (Slated Trilogy) by Teri Terry at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy Shattered (Slated Trilogy) by Teri Terry at Amazon.com.

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