Sneak (Swipe #2) by Evan Angler

Title: Sneak

Author: Evan Angler

Publish Date: September 4, 2012

Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Pages: 288

Other Books in the Series: Swipe

Buy the Book: Barnes & Noble

Rating: ★★★★★

In a future United States under the power of a charismatic leader, everyone gets the Mark at age thirteen. The Mark lets citizen shop, go to school, and even get medical care--but without it, you are on your own. Few refuse to get the Mark. Those who do . . . disappear.

Logan Langly went in to get his Mark, but he backed out at the last minute. Now he's on the run from government agents who will stop at nothing to capture him. But Logan is on a mission to find and save his sister, Lily, who disappeared five years ago on her thirteenth birthday, the day she was supposed to receive her Mark.

Logan and his friends, a group of dissenters called the Dust, discover a vast network of the Unmarked, who help them travel safely to the capital city where Lily is imprisoned. Along the way, the Dust receives some startling information from the Markless community, opening their eyes to the message of Christianity and warning that humanity is now entering the End of Days.

When the Dust finally arrives in the capital, it seems that all their careful planning is useless against a government that will do anything to bend its citizens to its will. Can the gentle words Logan has found in a tattered, banned Bible really stand against the most powerful military the world has ever known? Can Logan even sacrifice his own freedom, choosing to act through faith alone?

BOO! I hate endings that make me second guess everything that I ever perceived as the truth. For some reason, though, authors seem to love them. Probably because it makes everyone eager to read the next book and the next book and so on. Yeah. So, basically I am dying for the next book.

I really liked the first book in the Swipe series, it brought to light this dystopian society based on peace through unity and just how real the society could be. It showed the fact that peace and unity comes with a price that is typically paid in blood. Who would want to live in a society like that, right? Who would support such a thing? Well, after facing destruction after destruction, war after war, would it be nice to be offered the promise of peace? I think in the beginning, no one realizes the influence their choices will make and they realize too late that their choices have been taken away. That's the type of world that Evan Angler brings to light in his Swipe series and the resounding questions brought up by the series is what makes it so addicting.

Sneak is the second book in the Swipe series and picks up a couple of months after the ending of the first book. It shows just how much of an effect Logan has had on the supposed perfect society and hints towards just how imperfect it really is. I love the beginning chapter of the story because the author has this knack for making it seem so ominous and mysterious. The way that it isn't from a main perspective also adds to the intense nature of the first chapter. If anything, this story will keep you interested until the very end.

Logan has continued to grow since the first book where he is portrayed as a boy scared of everything to a young man becoming a hero in the eyes of the Markless. He never planned on becoming a symbol, never planned on making a mark in this society that had been against him from the beginning. But by the end of the novel, it's almost impossible to find the boy that was in the first novel. I almost feel like a proud big sister or something when I see how much he's matured, grown, and learned throughout the whole story. I admire him for the fact that he remembers who he is, who he has been, and can see who he will be. One thing that he holds true to is the fact that he never purposefully pushes boundaries when he knows he shouldn't. He doesn't force his opinions on anyone, he stays true to himself, and he knows when to back off. I really love Logan, I can't stop rooting for him as the story progresses because like I said earlier, I feel like a proud sister.

I was surprised to say the least to see how much of a part Erin still played in the series just based on how it all ended in the last book. She has lost a lot of her selfish qualities from the first book and become a character who just doesn't know what is right and what is wrong. That's her main battle through the whole story. She is desperate to remain faithful to a cause that her parents say is just and yet all she sees is a cause that has destroyed her only friendship. Throughout the story, she maintains a certain amount of innocence that I was determined would disappear by the end of the story and I was right. She gives up blindly believing in anyone and instead bases her beliefs on facts which can't lead her astray. I honestly love her now that I've read this book, I adore her for all of her faults and shortcomings. If anyone deserves a happy ending, it's her.

Peck and the Dust play a huge role in this story. Which originally, I wasn't surprised. The Dust has been a major player in the whole series while Peck hid in the shadows like some mythical being. A monster that parents told their children about to convince them to get their Mark. I was excited to get to see more of who Peck was and see that he definitely has a lot of faults that hadn't been previously mentioned. I am still kind of iffy about whether I like Peck or not. As the story progressed, I was constantly considering whether or not to trust him and if he was really worthy of being a symbol. Logan is, without a doubt, but Peck? I'm not so sure. I grew more attached to all of the characters that formed the Dust and felt all of the emotions that seemed to play out in every scene they were in. The friendship they had is falling apart, their faith in the cause dwindling, and in the beginning, you wonder if they will survive the course of the novel.

There was a lot of new characters introduced (and Lily actually played a part in the story!) and most of them were what I consider the bad guys of the story. The people that everyone perceives to be the good guys but really, they are the ones with the bad intentions. I was still disappointed though to see that the main bad guy didn't play a major role, in fact I am beginning to think he is a ghost. But who knows? Perhaps the best is going to be saved for last. 

I am completely addicted to this series. It is totally worth reading. I love it. I can't wait for the next book and can I just say that waiting sucks?