The Dysasters
Authors: P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast
Series: The Dysasters, book 1
Publisher: Wednesday Books (February 26, 2019)
Hardcover, 320 pages
Summary
P.C. and Kristin Cast, the #1 New York Times bestselling authors of the House of Night phenomenon, return to the scene with The Dysasters—the first action-packed novel in a new paranormal fantasy series.
Adoptive daughter of a gifted scientist, Foster Stewart doesn’t live a “normal” life, (not that she’d want to). But controlling cloud formations and seeing airwaves aren’t things most eighteen year olds can do.
Small town star quarterback and quintessential dreamy boy next door, Tate “Nighthawk” Taylor has never thought much about his extra abilities. Sure, his night vision comes in handy during games, but who wouldn’t want that extra edge?
From the moment Foster and Tate collide, their worlds spiral and a deadly tornado forces them to work together, fully awakening their not-so-natural ability - the power to control air.
As they each deal with the tragic loss of loved ones, they’re caught by another devastating blow – they are the first in a group of teens genetically manipulated before birth to bond with the elements, and worse… they’re being hunted.
Now, Foster and Tate must fight to control their abilities as they learn of their past, how they came to be, who’s following them, and what tomorrow will bring… more DYSASTERS?
Review
This got off to a really rough start for me. I'd almost say it was a slow start, except it launches into the story with multiple tornadoes tearing up a town, dozens of people dying, and an epic chase scene - so how do you really call that "slow"? And yet... There's a LOT of information dump happening in the first third to half of this book, and it sort of bogs it down. Then again, this is also the first book that sets up a greater duology/trilogy/series, so some of that is to be expected, and once the preliminaries were out of the way the rest of the book took off flying.
Foster is pretty abrasive and not the most pleasant person, so if your enjoyment of a book relies on you actually liking the main character from the get-go, The Dysasters might not be for you. I could see the vulnerable girl underneath the tough exterior, and she kind of grew on me. Then there's Tate, who has a very Clark Kent, corn-fed midwestern boy-next-door thing going on, and he's very sweet (if a little bland). They're the pair of kids associate with the air element, and the main focus of the majority of the book. Honestly, I probably wouldn't keep reading this series if it were just Foster and Tate, but in the final third (or so) of the book we're introduced to Charlotte and Bastien (the water kids), and OH, my swoon, I stan a cajun and a southern belle. *fans self* YES. I am 100% here for the next book in the series just to watch a romance blossom between Charlotte and Bastien, please and thank you. Just from the bits we've gotten from Charlotte and Bastien, I already like their characters so much more than Tate and Foster too, so I'm glad there are some main characters I can connect with (because I am one of those people who needs to like the MC's to truly enjoy a book!) I'm also interested to see where P.C. and Kristin Cast go with the fire and earth pairs, and I'm hoping for more diverse characters like Charlotte and Bastien (please please please).
A note: there is a LOT of swearing, which for a YA novel especially felt gratuitous and off-putting to me. Even if this hadn't been billed as YA, I wouldn't love the "Fucktastic Four" (which I'm assuming is a clever play on the Fantastic Four, which I get, but maybe drop it once and laugh and then move on?) Tate also called Foster a bitch a lot, which made me immediately like him a lot less, so we had some hurdles to cross. Also, while G-Pa as a character rocks... "G-Pa"? Really? Who calls their grandpa that? I question some of the linguistic choices, but okay...
This is the first book in The Dysasters ... series? quartet? trilogy? I don't see that it's been announced yet. Originally I assumed it would be a quartet with each book focusing on an element, but that doesn't seem to be the route Cast and Cast are taking (which is awesome, because if we hadn't met Charlotte and Bastien in book 1 I might not have made it to meeting them...) Some story arcs are closed within this book and you could theoretically read it as a stand alone, but it also sets the stage and larger ongoing story arc for the rest of the series. I'll be sticking around to give book 2 a change (because I need me some more Charlotte and Basten!!)
Giveaway
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Abbreviated Rules: No purchase necessary. Open only to legal residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia or Canada (excluding Quebec) who are age 13 years of age or older. Entry period begins at 12:00 a.m. (ET) on Sunday, February 24, 2019 and ends at 11:59 PM ET on Sunday, March 10, 2019. Void where prohibited. For full Official Rules, visit https://read.macmillan.com/promo/thedysastersblogtoursweepstakes. Sponsored by St. Martin's Press, 175 5th Ave 10010.
About the Authors
#1 New York Times & #1 USA Today bestselling author P.C. Cast was born in the Midwest, and, after her tour in the USAF, she taught high school for 15 years before retiring to write full time. PC is a member of the Oklahoma Writers Hall of Fame. Her novels have been awarded the prestigious: Oklahoma Book Award, YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers, Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Award, Booksellers' Best, and many, many more. Ms. Cast is an experienced teacher and talented speaker who lives in Oregon near her fabulous daughter, her adorable pack of dogs, her crazy Maine Coon, and a bunch of horses.
Kristin Cast is a #1 New York Times and #1 USA Today bestselling author who teams with her mother to write the wildly successful House of Night series. She has editorial credits, a thriving t-shirt line, and a passion for all things paranormal. When away from her writing desk, Kristin loves going on adventures with her friends, family, and significant other, playing with her dogs (Grace Kelly and Hobbs the Tiny Dragon), and is currently obsessed with her baby.
I loved the House of Night books so must give this book a chance
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