Viral Nation (Viral Nation #1), by Shaunta Grimes

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After a virus claimed nearly the entire global population, the world changed. The United States splintered into fifty walled cities where the surviving citizens clustered to start over. The Company, which ended the plague by bringing a life-saving vaccine back from the future, controls everything. They ration the scant food and supplies through a lottery system, mandate daily doses of virus suppressant, and even monitor future timelines to stop crimes before they can be committed.

Brilliant but autistic, sixteen-year-old Clover Donovan has always dreamed of studying at the Waverly-Stead Academy. Her brother and caretaker, West, has done everything in his power to make her dream a reality. But Clover’s refusal to part with her beloved service dog denies her entry into the school. Instead, she is drafted into the Time Mariners, a team of Company operatives who travel through time to gather news about the future.

When one of Clover’s missions reveals that West’s life is in danger, the Donovans are shattered. To change West’s fate, they’ll have to take on the mysterious Company. But as its secrets are revealed, they realize that the Company’s rule may not be as benevolent as it seems. In saving her brother, Clover will face a more powerful force than she ever imagined… and will team up with a band of fellow misfits and outsiders to incite a revolution that will change their destinies forever.




Argh!  THIS is the reason that I don't like to read series before all of the books are complete!  I WANT MORE!  Seriously.  Duets, trilogies, etc. need to come with warning labels.

I plead ignorance.  If I had known that there was a sequel, I wouldn't have requested it from NetGalley.  But honestly?  That would have been a shame.  Because I really liked this book!  

This is a great addition to the Dystopian genre: great characters; crappy living conditions for some & posh lifestyles for others; Bad Guys who control the rest of the population; puppy love; and time travel.  The best part?  The main character has Autism!  I Pink Puffy Heart LOVE unconventional protagonists.  And Clover is definitely not your typical attractive-teenager-who-invents-problems kind of girl.

 I really can't wait until the next book comes out (get writing, Shaunta Grimes!) so I can learn what happens next.





I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.