New Review! The Diseased Ones (The Hollis Timewire Series #1) by Danielle Harrington

The Diseased Ones by Danielle Harrington
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4 Cranky Stars


On the day of Hollis Timewire's 16th birthday, she discovers that she is a Diseased One. "I am a Diseased One, and that's a death sentence." Hollis is suddenly flooded with an unbelievable power, able to stop and possibly kill anyone in her path. All of her life, she has lived as a member of the Society, without showing emotions. "The path to a perfect society is perfect obedience."


She finds herself transported against her will to an underground compound full of other Diseased Ones. This group tries to convince Hollis that the government falsified history to cover up the massacre of people with special abilities. Having lived her entire life being told that the biomarker that gives people special powers is dangerous and that the Diseased Ones are responsible for the deaths of thousands, how can she believe what they are telling her?


As Hollis gets to know the young people in the compound, she begins to feel emotions for the first time. "Keeping people neutral guarantees equality and peace. War, conflict, and strife have been eradicated because expressing yourself isn't allowed." She decides to learn to control her powers and discover as much as possible about the group while trying to deal with her new found friendships and the beginning of young love. Her mentors try to convince her that her life in the compound should be enough. "Find joy in the ability that makes you who you are, because with these people, that's what true life is about."


When she nearly kills one of the group because of her brain-altering power, she decides that she must return home to learn if there is truly a secret weapon that would remove her power and allow her to become a citizen of the world she has always known. Surely, a life without emotion and without her dangerous power must be the path she is meant to follow.


I love reading YA dystopian fiction and I am always in search of the next great story. This first book in the series ends on a definite cliffhanger, so don't expect it to be wrapped up in a pretty package. The author does a great job of world-building and character development and I could really feel the emotions that Hollis experiences as her world is torn apart. I look forward to reading the rest of this series to learn the truth of Hollis' world in the year 2647!


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