Article 5

Article 5: Children are considered valid citizens only when conceived by a married man and wife.
Problem: Ember is the child of a single mother.
Consequence: Ember and her mother are taken away to await trial for being Article 5 violators.
Consequence 2: Ember's boyfriend, Chase, is the one who takes them away.

The United States is recovering from war and is under martial law. The Bill of Rights has been replaced and freedom is severely hampered. Men are conscripted into government service against their will and everyone is suspicious and scared that they may be carted off to never be seen again. Ember can't believe how her Chase has changed. How could he do that to her and her mother. When she is sent to a rehab center to change her subversive ways, she is devastated to be separated from her mom and by how much Chase has seemed to change. When he shows up to escort her to trial, she is so furious with him she no longer trusts him. He, however, is there to break her out and reunite her with her mom. They form an uneasy alliance, both of them holding back from saying what they are really feeling. And one of them is keeping a dreadful secret. I couldn't put this book down. It was fantastic. It made me feel so angry and helpless that all the rights we take for granted could disappear and we would be unable to do anything about it. The characters are both believable and well developed. You just want them to be honest with each other and get on with being in love. The villains are villainous and in a time when our rights are constantly being challenged, the book resonates to current events. There is tension from the first page to the last and then in the wait for the sequel. This book has been on my desk this week and more than one student has stopped, picked it up and asked what it is about. Oh, and when would I be finished with it. I'm sad that I have to find a new book and I hope it's as good as this one was. Well done Kristen Simmons, I look forward to more with Chase and Ember. Happy reading my friends.