[Review: In A Handful Of Dust by Mindy McGinnis]

"In a Handful of Dust"
Author: Mindy McGinnis
Series: Not a Drop to Drink #2
Pages: 384
Genre: YA, Dystopian
Date Published: September 23rd
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Format Read: eARC provided by publisher (via Edelweiss) for honest review

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Summary:

The only thing bigger than the world is fear.

Lucy’s life by the pond has always been full. She has water and friends, laughter and the love of her adoptive mother, Lynn, who has made sure that Lucy’s childhood was very different from her own. Yet it seems Lucy’s future is settled already—a house, a man, children, and a water source—and anything beyond their life by the pond is beyond reach.

When disease burns through their community, the once life-saving water of the pond might be the source of what’s killing them now. Rumors of desalinization plants in California have lingered in Lynn’s mind, and the prospect of a “normal” life for Lucy sets the two of them on an epic journey west to face new dangers: hunger, mountains, deserts, betrayal, and the perils of a world so vast that Lucy fears she could be lost forever, only to disappear in a handful of dust.

In this companion to Not a Drop to Drink, Mindy McGinnis thrillingly combines the heart-swelling hope of a journey, the challenges of establishing your own place in the world, and the gripping physical danger of nature in a futuristic frontier.

-Goodreads

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My Thoughts:

An Open Letter To In a Handful of Dust,

It's odd that a book will pull on my heart strings and make me want to vomit, but that's what you're able to do. The characters that you house have become some of my favorites. Lynn and Lucy have this thing about them that makes you like them even though you know that they're not all that loveable. Thanks for being such a good home for them and for bringing them to life once again.

-The White Unicorn

Not a Drop to Drink was easily one of my favorite reads from last year and so when I found out that McGinnis was writing a companion novel, I was elated. McGinnis is a master story teller and I couldn't wait to dive back into the morally conflicted world that she's able to create. Let's just say that I was not disappointed by what I just read. McGinnis is back and better than ever.

This book doesn't pick up where Not a Drop left off, in fact McGinnis drops us into the future. Lucy is no longer a little kid and Lynn isn't a teenager anymore. I was so glad that we got to catch up with both characters in this book, because God knows there was a chance that Lynn could have already been dead, even though this book is only 10 years ahead of where the last one left off. Of course the happenings at the end of book one have had an emotional effect on both of the characters and McGinnis doesn't let you forget the crazy shit that's already gone down. 

It was interesting to see Lucy as a teen. She's looking for herself out in the world and trying to walk the fine line between what her mother was and what Lynn is. The beginnings of the book seem like they could go the route of a love story, but quickly that fades away. Lucy and Lynn are forced to build their bond and survive in some insanely hard situations. I love that McGinnis doesn't take it easy on her characters. It means that her characters are pig headed, little beasts, but you love them anyway. 

Lynn isn't much different from the teen we met in Drop. In fact, if anything, she's harder then that girl. She's tough in a way that could make her really unlikeable, but I still find myself connecting with her and rooting for her. It was also interesting to see her playing a mothering role this time around. We got glimpses of it in the first book, but it's one of the main things she's worried about this time around.

The book heavily features Lynn and Lucy, and though there are other characters, they don't get much page time. I think this was a great call. It was wonderful to watch them interact with each other. One is on a mission to protect and the other is searching for what it means to be yourself. Their relationship is unlike anything I've ever read. They love each other in such a unique way and their ups and downs are huge because of the world that they live in.

As always McGinnis adds in tons of blood and treachery and vomit inducing gross bits. Okay, maybe it's not that bad, but she knows where to put things in her books that make you wonder what it would be like to crawl inside her brain as she writes. This book is just as brutal as the first and I couldn't have been happier. 

So, in the end, I say that you need to read these books. McGinnis has a way with her characters and events that will leave you reeling and wanting to read, even when you should be sleeping.

Rating:

    5 Unicorns = Get your hands on this NOW!

[Review: Not A Drop To Drink by Mindy McGinnis]

"Not a Drop to Drink" 
Author: Mindy McGinnis
Series: None
Pages: 320
Genre: YA, Dystopian, Post-Apocalyptic
Date Published: September 24th, 2013
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Format Read: eARC provided by publisher (via Edelweiss) for honest review

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Summary:

Regret was for people with nothing to defend, people who had no water.

Lynn knows every threat to her pond: drought, a snowless winter, coyotes, and, most importantly, people looking for a drink. She makes sure anyone who comes near the pond leaves thirsty, or doesn't leave at all.

Confident in her own abilities, Lynn has no use for the world beyond the nearby fields and forest. Having a life means dedicating it to survival, and the constant work of gathering wood and water. Having a pond requires the fortitude to protect it, something Mother taught her well during their quiet hours on the rooftop, rifles in hand.

But wisps of smoke on the horizon mean one thing: strangers. The mysterious footprints by the pond, nighttime threats, and gunshots make it all too clear Lynn has exactly what they want, and they won’t stop until they get it….

With evocative, spare language and incredible drama, danger, and romance, debut author Mindy McGinnis depicts one girl’s journey in a barren world not so different than our own.

-Goodreads 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My Thoughts:

This book has easily snagged a spot in my top 5 books of the year.  I honestly couldn't get enough of the raw, gritty, unflinching story that McGinnis has brought to life on these thin sheets of paper.  Sure, this book is fiction, but it had a sense of realism that both terrified and enthralled me.  It's a survival story to it's core.  There are bits of fun and a romance that, even though the romance is small, it still packs a punch.  In a way Not a Drop to Drink reminded me of both The Walking Dead and Red Dawn (without the zombies and Soviets of course).  It had that intensity and that underlining thing that makes you wonder if there is any fact in the fiction.  

The descriptions that filled this book sometimes left my stomach reeling.  It's told so subtly and simply, but still McGinnis finds ways to describe Lynn and her mother's life in a way that shows the true horrors that you face when you're just trying to stay alive in a world short on the only thing that can keep you kickin and that's water.  This one is not for the faint of heart, that much is for sure.  

It's amazing to me how McGinnis is able to pull you into such a simplistic story, where in reality the scenery doesn't change much.  Three spots are featured and one is used more than the others, but still you're pulled in.  It's atmospheric story telling at its best.  Lynn, her mother and Stebbs don't know more than that the water is going dry and people will do anything to get it.  All they know is that to survive you must have water and that to keep your water you sometimes have to do things that are horrible.  

Lynn was one of those characters that will stick with you.  She grows a lot in the pages of this book.  She has her simple, survivalist life turned upside down and she has to decide if living the way her mother has taught her to (pretty much, shoot first, take their shoes later) is how she really wants to live, or if there are other ways to do it.  She's hard and though book smart (thanks to her mom), she doesn't really understand how to coexist with other people.  It's just been the two of them for so long.  She's a tough egg to crack and yet you can't help but love her and want to give her a big hug.  (Which she'd probably kick you in the shins for.)

The secondary characters were all amazing as well.  Each one of them has their place in helping Lynn along in her journey of survival and self discovery.  Stebbs is the neighbor who she's never really know.  I love the almost Santa Claus vibe he had going on.  He just seemed like that all around nice older man, even if he did have a wicked sense of humor.  Lucy, Eli and Neva all have a special place inside my heart as well.  Little Lucy was the bright light in all of the madness and tough as nails for a little girl.  Her mother Neva on the other hand, showed us the other darker side of things.

Eli, oh Eli.  He provided a much needed, but none distracting love story element.  Seriously, he was the sweetest.  I loved watching him and Lynn interact.  I ship these two.  I ship them so hard!  What they had was so perfect to the story.  It was unknown and honest and will grab onto your heartstrings, even after the book is over.

Even the ending was perfect for the story.  Lynn had to make some big decisions and everything got tied up perfectly in a big cluster bomb of chaos.  It was a messy, ugly, spot on ending to the book.  We even got a few surprises thrown at us and McGinnis has no fear in her story telling.  Anything goes and I love an author who will do whatever the story needs to get a story right!

I was blown away by Not a Drop to Drink, so much so that Mindy McGinnis goes straight to my instant buy list.  This being her first novel, I can't wait to see what other things she has up her sleeves in the future!          

Rating:

5 Unicorns = Get your hands on this one now!