Youngbloods by Scott Westerfeld

In his conclusion to the Imposters series Westerfeld brings together Frey and Tally Youngblood from the Uglies series. Frey has spent her life as a stand-in for her sister, facing attacks from assassins, while Tally’s reputation as a rebel leader is well known. Frey is finally free to make her own choices about the family in which she was raised and her sister Rafia who killed the love of her life. Meanwhile Tally has allowed her image to grow while keeping out of the limelight but when an AI threatens to take over the world, they join forces.

The action is breathtaking as the Youngbloods, who are expert riders of their hoverboards, skim over the earth. They face risk after risk as they try and contain the danger that confronts them, and readers are in for a thrilling ride. There are challenging twists and turns, and readers will need to have read the previous books in the series for a full picture of the setting and characters.

People who have not read the Uglies series will want to immediately find those books, as Tally Youngblood is a character that you want to know, while those who are familiar with the series will be thrilled to see how she has developed as a leader. Leadership and ethical behaviour are major themes in the story and both Shay and then Frey are the ones who put the brakes onto their leaders’ behaviour.

This was a fitting end to the Imposters series and an exciting blend of that and the Uglies series. A great read for fans of dystopian adventure stories.

Themes: Dystopian fiction, Rebellions, Adventure, Resistance, Leadership.

Pat Pledger