Title: The Last Hope (The Raging Ones #2)

Authors: Krista & Becca Ritchie

Pub. Date: August 13, 2019

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Sacrifice all you have to survive.

As Court and Mykal grow closer, their linked bond becomes harder to hide, and dynamics change when Franny begins to fall for someone new. Vulnerable and with no choice, the hunt for the baby sends the trio on a dangerous path to Saltare-1: a water world where their enemies can’t die and survival comes at a high cost.

This will be a spoiler free review. I acquired an advanced copy at ALA back in June.

Last year The Raging Ones was one of my favorite reads. You can check out my review here. I was super excited for it – as I am with just about any sci-fi in YA – and about half way through, I fell in love. I remember struggling a bit to get into it, but it didn’t take long for me to fall in love with Court, Mykal and Franny. I honestly couldn’t tell you why I took to them so strongly, but I did…still do.

I knew that The Last Hope – the second and final book in this duology – was going to wreck me and that I wouldn’t be prepared for what was going to happen. I had the opportunity to meet Krista & Becca at Apollycon this past March and they told me as much. Their statement made me nervous and excited. So, when ALA came around, I made it a point to grab a copy. I’d hoped to have read it sooner, but life kind of got in the way, and this book kept me up until 3 AM reading and sobbing.

Court, Mykal and Franny – I love you three so much. This book was everything and so much more than what I was expecting. The last 40ish pages had me in tears, utterly shocked and immensely happy. Be prepared for a roller coaster full of emotion.

It took me a little bit to get into the story, but that’s more because it’s been over a year since I read The Raging Ones and it took me a minute to remember what was happening. This book doesn’t stop. With the introduction of a new character – Stork, the three of them are thrust into a world, a future that they don’t really have a say in. So much control is beyond their reach, and some ways, Court, Mykal anad Franny are pawns in a scheme so much larger than they can possibly imagine. But they have each other.

I think that’s what I love about the three of them. I love how much they love each other, and the lengths they go to protect each other. Court and Mykal’s fierce protectiveness over Franny is endearing, but they don’t stifle her. They encourage her to be herself and to figure out who that is and what she wants. Franny wants the same for the two of them, wanting them to be happy, to be able to express their feelings without having to worry. She wants them to have the happy future they dream of.

As for Stork – I kind of loved him from the first moment he was introduced. Cocky, a smart ass, and broken, he has more in common with Court, Mykal and Franny than they realize. Promises and a mission force him to stay disconnected and apart from them. It clearly hurts him, and I just wanted to give him a hug. His life has been anything but easy, but he persevered, just like Court, Mykal and Franny.

Another thing I loved about this book and the first one, is the writing. Firstly, it’s just wonderful and so easy to picture everything and the characters. Secondly is how it goes about exploring human connections – whether it’s a romantic connection or familial, or friendship. The relationship between Court and Mykal, a deep friendship turned romance. Between them and Franny, also a deep friendship turned familial. Mykal and Stork – well, you’ll have to read the book to find out that one, because spoilers! Court and Kinden, familial even after certain truths come to light and they only strengthen the bond. Ever relationship in the book feels as natural as breathing, as if they were always just meant to exist that way. There’s a line in the book

“I’ve lived hard and fast and full.”

I think it encompasses exactly how these characters feel about each other. In a world where you know the date you’re going to die, (not a spoiler, it’s in the first book synopsis) your deathdate – whether it’s 10 years or 100 years down the road, some people live their lives to the fullest, never stopping, never pausing. All these characters come from different walks of life, but when it comes down to it, they take risks, take chances on one another, and love and trust each other.

If you’re looking for an amazing sci-fi read with a twist, I doubt you’ll see coming, you’ll want to check out The Raging Ones and The Last Hope and fall in love with Court, Mykal and Franny. Join them on their out of their world adventure, where relationships will be test, death with be thwarted, fears will be overcome and where the battle between good and evil will be fought with a price no one thought they’d be paying. Out today, August 13, 2019, make sure you pick up your copy and fall in love with these characters.