The legacy by Gemma Malley

Bloomsbury, 2010. ISBN 978-1408800898.
The third in the series following The Declaration and The Resistance, sees a return to a dystopian future where very few children are born, as Longevity, a drug developed by the Pincent Pharma laboratories, keeps all the adults alive, promising eternal life. However blackened corpses are turning up everywhere as a virus sweeps the world and it appears that Longevity is no longer working. Richard Pincent is determined to find the original formula developed by Albert Fern but in the meantime blames the Underground movement for releasing the virus.
The Declaration is one of my favourite dystopian novels, its theme of what would happen in a world where new life no longer brings new ideas, fresh and original. The legacy brings to a satisfying conclusion the story of Peter and Anna, Jude and Sheila. Malley cleverly describes a world where the prevailing drug stops working, just as drugs today can lose their potency and fail to perform. The frightening machinations of politicians and drug company director are very realistic, as are the actions of the adults who could see their existence coming to an end.
Richard Pincent is a frightening villain, and Jude comes into his own in this volume. It was good to see how he used his computer skills to research and the slight romance with Sheila was engaging.
Malley's plot is engrossing and the ending has some unexpected twists and turns, which were a surprise, but nevertheless, very satisfying. This series is sure to please readers who like to think about issues like overpopulation, power of big drug companies and the selfishness of human nature, all themes in these books.
Pat Pledger