Krista Reviews: Moira Young's - "Rebel Heart" (Dustland's #2)

Nothing is certain and no one is safe in the second book in the highly praised Dust Lands trilogy.

It seemed so simple: Defeat the Tonton, rescue her kidnapped brother, Lugh, and then order would be restored to Saba’s world. Simplicity, however, has proved to be elusive. Now, Saba and her family travel west, headed for a better life and a longed-for reunion with Jack. But the fight for Lugh’s freedom has unleashed a new power in the dust lands, and a formidable new enemy is on the rise.

What is the truth about Jack? And how far will Saba go to get what she wants? In this much-anticipated follow-up to the riveting Blood Red Road, a fierce heroine finds herself at the crossroads of danger and destiny, betrayal and passion

This series is absolutely one of the most unique reads you will find in Young Adult books today. Mostly due to the dialect of the characters and the minimal writing style the author has chosen to use. The combination leads to a very unique read.

Saba gets a coded message from Jack and decides to go and find him against the advice of Hugh. The whole group follows Saba knowing that they must stick together and they want to help her. Through their travels they encounter several people in trouble. But when they reach their destination we find that maybe Saba has a destiny, something she never would have considered before and never expected.

One thing that stood out more to me in this book than the first, was the dialect. It was harder for me to get back into the story, but I found that listening to the audio-book made it a lot easier to picture the story.The audio is narrated by Heather Lind and I imagine it would have taken some practice reading through it without tripping over the words. She does an amazing job getting the story to flow and helps bring in the passion and tension the characters feel throughout their adventures.

The books have a similar rhythm to them. Something happens in the beginning to initiate their travels, they come across several different characters and trials along the way, and the books end with a bang and several revelations. I can see a pattern here with this series, and with the events in the end of this book, I cannot wait to find out where the next book takes us. I have really high hopes for what Saba can become. She’s strong, smart and has heroine written all over her.

Here’s a sample of the dialect: “Not jest wagons, lone travelers too. We found the leftover bits of one fella. Well, Nero did. Dead eaters had bin at him, jackals an vultures, so you couldn’t tell much. Jest his hair color an boot size. The boots was good an they fit Tommo. You never felt right, takin from the dead. But he wouldn’t be doin no more walkin an Tommo would. We piled rocks over what was left of him and Lugh said a few respeckful words.”