Swipe by Evan Angler

It is decades in the future. The climate disasters, the wars – all of it was so devastating that now there is the A. U., the American Union. It includes what used to be Canada and Mexico. The political system emphasizes unity. People take the Pledge and get the Mark.

Logan will be thirteen in a few months. He'll take the Pledge and get the Mark on his birthday. Then he will be free, free to shop, go to concerts, get a job, and use public transportation. But Logan is worried. When his older sister went to get her Mark, she never came back. His parents were told she had died. It happens. Some young people just don't take the procedure well. Will Logan be one of those who never returns?

Another reason Logan is worried is that he is sure someone is spying on him. He sees shadows and hears noises. Who are they and what do they want?

This is the first in a new youth fiction series. I'll be blogging a review of the third novel in a few weeks and wanted to get current with the story. This novel is a great start. There is a union between the A. U. and its European counterpart in the works. The Mark is required to function freely in society. But there are also some people in the shadows, the Markless. They have to scrounge for their existence. There is no mention of religion nor churches. Yet there are people who wear a charm, hidden under their clothing. That charm reminds them of an earlier day.

Youth will like this series, I think. There is great technology – tablets that do everything. There is a young hero who wants to stand up for what is right and true. But it is all overshadowed by DOME, the enforcing agency of this future system.

Find out more about the series, watch book trailers and get the latest information at http://www.evanangler.com/index.html

Thomas Nelson, 288 pages.