And then there’s Zachary, who has one of my favorite scenes in the entire book. When he decides to charge back to the church, chopping through hordes of zombies to save the woman he loves, I think his character finally comes into his own. Laura has been adamant in the past that she would never marry again. Not only does she hold her marriage to David sacred, she also knows that her body is falling apart. She doesn’t want to put a spouse through the same pain that she watched her mother suffer through when her father died. However, how can we not want to see the two of them get together?
Ben and Harrison: I purposefully didn’t reveal any backstory about Ben here because it’s meant to be a mystery. As this book closes, we’re left to wonder if Ben is just a clone of the kid that was caught in the facility in Georgia, or if he is the actual person. That’s all going to come into play in the next book – so no spoilers here!
In this book, we see a resolution (sort of) of Harrison’s drug problem. A drug addiction as serious as Harrison’s isn’t something that can just be written off in a few paragraphs, so expect it to come into play in the next book. However, here we saw Ben confront Harrison about the stolen drugs just before they emerge from Harrison’s own phoenix metaphor.
As we head into the final book, Ben is lost – a man literally contemplating his own existence and whether or not he has a soul. And his best friend is a wild-eyed, cursing, drug addled preacher. That’s got to be intriguing!
Celeste Dawn: Celeste only has two scenes in this whole book, but I can’t stress just how integral they are. The Rollers have settled on a war they can’t win, and Covington is poised to take over the entire world – Hero has been unwittingly poisoned with the Tempest strain, and The Department has been wiped out by an airstrike. When you finish this book, there’s absolutely no hope for the heroes of the story. They have never been at a lower, more helpless point. And yet, there’s a young girl in the belly of the beast, practicing for her chance to break free. If the heroes stand any chance in book eight, you’d better believe it resides with this girl.
Richard Covington: And then there’s the return of the series’ villain! In the original series, we didn’t meet Covington until the third book – the penultimate book of that series. Again, the same happens here. We never expected him to make a return, and suddenly here he is, right before we head into the final book of the second series.
Covington has been behind the scenes all along, plotting his revenge against The Electorate. However, his madness stretches far behind something as petty as revenge. When Hero is speaking to Beatrice about how The Electorate is playing God, little did we know how prophetic he was! I love the turn at the end when we discover that Covington has such a grand delusion. It sets the stakes of the final book incredibly high.
In Conclusion
If you’ve enjoyed the Deadlocked series, please make sure to check out my other series, 314. If you’re leery of starting a new series, just do me a favor and go read the sample of 314. If you’re not hooked by the end of the sample, then feel free to move on. However, I’m pretty sure you’ll be hooked.
Please visit the website www.arwisebooks.com for more information about all of my books.
Also, visit the AR Wise fanpage on Facebook for a chance to win all sorts of great prizes! Lately I’ve been giving away free signed covers of the Deadlocked books. Supplies are limited, so go find out how to get your free, numbered cover now!
Finally, thank you to everyone that has taken a minute to write a positive review of one of my books. You really can’t overestimate just how important those reviews are to an independent author like myself. They aren’t just what help me get the word out about the books, they are also my inspiration for continuing to write. Thank you!
Table of Contents
Copyright
PART ONE FALLING APART
Chapter One – Martyrs and Leaders
Chapter Two – Don’t Fall
Chapter Three – Last BreathThirteen
Chapter Four – Kill Them AllThirteen
Chapter Five – ParenthoodThirteen
PART TWO STAY TOGETHER
Chapter Six – Downright Nasty
Chapter Seven – Playing GodSeven
Chapter Eight – Just One That Mattered
Chapter Nine – A Hard Man To Like
PART THREE Left Behind
Chapter Eleven – Secrets
Chapter Twelve – A Fighter’s Recompense
Chapter Thirteen – Reassessments
Chapter Fourteen – Paralyzed
Chapter Fifteen – Imprisoned
PART FOUR This Is Some Rescue
Chapter Sixteen – Old Names
Chapter Seventeen – Immolated
Chapter Eighteen – Another Hopeless Rescue
Chapter Nineteen – Thought I Lost You
Chapter Twenty-One – Couldn’t Save Any of Them
Chapter Twenty-Two – See You Again
Chapter Twenty-Three – Reveals and Retreats
Chapter Twenty-Four – Plan B
Chapter Twenty-Five – Enemy Territory
Chapter Twenty-Six – Enemy’s Hands
Chapter Twenty-Seven – Seven Seconds
AUTHOR’S NOTE