The Genesis Wars by. Akemi Dawn Bowman | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Title: The Genesis Wars (The Infinity Courts, #2)

Author: Akemi Dawn Bowman

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 432

Publication Date: 4/19/22

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Categories: Young Adult, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Dystopian

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

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Thank you to Simon Pulse for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Nami’s continuing adventures as she fights to free her friends.

It’s been ten months since Nami narrowly escaped the Four Courts and Ophelia’s wrath. Ten months since she was betrayed by someone she once considered a friend. Someone she poured her heart out to. And now her family here in the afterlife are gone, captured, and Nami is utterly alone.

On the run, only steps ahead of the AI forces pursuing her, and desperate to free her friends, Nami must take the allies she can find, even if she doesn’t fully trust them. And as she tests the limits of her own power, she must also reckon with the responsibility that entails.

Stakes are high as Nami navigates old enemies, unexpected allies, and an ever-changing landscape filled with dangers and twists at every turn. Along the way, she’ll learn powerful truths about who she can trust and the sacrifices that must be made in order to fight for a better, freer world for all.

Content Warning: Violence, Torture

In the sequel to The Infinity Courts, things get more dire for Nami. Book one left us with a big, shocking plot twist at the end and now Nami has to deal with the outcome of the events that occurred. She is in the Borderlands, trying to train hard enough to fight the Residents and trying to gather allies to help her get her friends. But she is at her wits end – everyone seems to be against her. Nami won’t give up trying to go back to the Courts to find her friends though, even if she has to infiltrate Caelan’s mind to do so.

Nami…what can I say about this girl? She is stubborn, rash, makes so many mistakes but she is fighting to save her friends because she carries guilt for trusting Caelan She blames herself for their capture and she’s heartbroken and angry because he betrayed her. Nami is hardened in book two, she is eaten up with guilt and anger. Her focus is only on saving her friends, and keeping the Borderlands alive so humans have a safe space to go to when they cross over. People like her sister Mei. Nami frustrated me because her plans took precedent over everyone else’s. But as it was reiterated many times in the story – she’s only been there for one lifetime whereas the others, have been fighting for many lifetimes. She’s a baby compared to everyone else there, she has a lot to learn and she does – the hard way.

I enjoyed meeting the characters in the Borderlands and learning about the different tribes. Kasia was a kind friend to Nami – bless her heart and Nix’s. Nami needs a friend and Kasia was gracious enough to extend that friendship to her. Caelan is back and I was wary about him as Nami was but we learn a few things about him that explains his actions in book one.

Once again this book ends in a cliffhanger. This series I will say, has some amazing plot twists and cliffhangers. The writing is wonderful, it just flows so well and the story moved fast. I like how the story tackled issues about leaders and their responsibilities to their people. Also there were questions about a person’s free will and sacrifice. It will be interesting to see what happens in the next book!

Why you should read it:

• you read The Infinity Courts and need to find out what happens next after that cliffhanger ending
• it has action, plot twists and a cliffhanger – writing flows so easily
• Nami’s character growth – she suffers through guilt and anger in this sequel, she makes mistakes but she does not stop fighting to find her friends. There is a lot of room to grow for her.

Why you might not want to read it:

• Not into sci-fi/dystopian set in the afterlife

My Thoughts:

This sequel gave us a chance to see Nami struggle with guilt, anger, making mistakes, and being rash with her decisions but sticking steadfast to her goal of finding her friends and keeping the Borderlands alive to help humans find a safe haven. She is challenged at every turn, she trusts no one and has to really keep her wits about her. Her character frustrated me a lot but I understood why she acted out the way she did. The story moves quickly and of course there is a cliffhanger that makes me eager for book three. This is a solid sequel that sets up for book three in a big way.

📚 ~ Yolanda