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the_novel_approach's review
5.0
Wowwwwww. This review is impossible to write. How can I possibly get across to you the utter brilliance of the world that S.A. McAuley has built here? Or the amazement and sometimes utter speechlessness I felt while reading? How can I possibly describe the complexity of the characters of Merq and Armise? And, by the end of the series, will I even truly understand what they have gone through in the name of political causes and country, and ultimately, for each other? I guess that last one will have to wait to be answered until I finish the final book – but, let me try to convey some of the passion and emotion rolling through me after reading the first two books of S.A. McAuley’s The Borders War series…
One of the marks of great storytelling is when the reader doesn’t know what’s coming. Throughout both One Breath, One Bullet and Dominant Predator I NEVER knew what was coming. Any understanding you think you have of the world, or politics, or even people, has to be thrown out the window, and you must completely immerse yourself in this new landscape. We begin in the year 2539, where a sixteen-year-old Merq Grayson is already deep into his training to become a Peacemaker (soldier) for the Continental States – one of only five remaining countries in the world. This is FIVE HUNDRED years beyond the world as we know it. There are five countries fighting for territory, and there is even more at stake in the political backdrop of the war – groups fighting for not just geographical boundaries, but for the right to promote and protect their very belief systems. And, at sixteen, Merq is not even the youngest soldier trainee; some begin much younger. In fact, we learn early on that Merq was literally born and groomed for his role in the war.
Told from Merq’s POV, as are all of the books in the series, One Breath, One Bullet is the beginning of the story of how Merq became a pawn in the Borders War, and in the political agenda of Continental States leader, President Wensen Kersch, and his constituents. During an assignment, Merq comes in contact with a black ops soldier from an opposing side; and from the first time he hears the man’s laugh, Merq can’t get him out of his mind. He learns that the other soldier is Armise Darcan, an assassin from Singapore who, as it turns out, is just as affected by Merq as Merq is by him. Through some very effective time jumps, and various flashes of their volatile meetings, McAuley conveys the developing relationship between Armise and Merq, and gets us to the final, explosive twenty percent of the book, where the events leading up to and at the Olympics change EVERYTHING for both men.
Dominant Predator picks up right where the heart-racing action of the first book left us. What happened at the Olympics has restarted the Borders War, and Armise has rocked Merq to the core by exposing some of his true self and feelings, adding to Merq’s confusion and stress over how he feels about his position in the revolution. The methods of fighting have changed, and Merq has been exposed to parts of the world, mainly the living conditions of the general populace, that have altered his perceptions considerably. The action in this book is still incredibly intense, but we also have a lot of time to really dig into both men’s psyches. Merq continues to question the wisdom of his relationship with Armise – he stated in the first book that he “wouldn’t allow someone else to be his fatal flaw,” and that is still a concern in his mind. I loved getting to know Merq even more, but my love for Armise absolutely exploded in this book. His growth as a character was incredible, and I found myself just sinking deeper and deeper into their story.
So much action. So much intrigue. So many heart-stopping situations and incredible characters. Neveed, Simion, Jegs, President Kersch…you’ll be fascinated by them all for different reasons. But, at the core of it all are Merq and Armise. Fighting for the cause, but perhaps even more so, for each other. I can’t describe how amazing they are – and, I can’t get enough of this story. Go grab these first two books while they are free and 99 cents respectively! Because believe me, you are going to want to read the rest of the series.
Reviewed by Jules for The Novel Approach
http://www.thenovelapproachreviews.com/release-day-reviews-one-breath-one-bullet-and-dominant-predator-by-s-a-mcauley/
One of the marks of great storytelling is when the reader doesn’t know what’s coming. Throughout both One Breath, One Bullet and Dominant Predator I NEVER knew what was coming. Any understanding you think you have of the world, or politics, or even people, has to be thrown out the window, and you must completely immerse yourself in this new landscape. We begin in the year 2539, where a sixteen-year-old Merq Grayson is already deep into his training to become a Peacemaker (soldier) for the Continental States – one of only five remaining countries in the world. This is FIVE HUNDRED years beyond the world as we know it. There are five countries fighting for territory, and there is even more at stake in the political backdrop of the war – groups fighting for not just geographical boundaries, but for the right to promote and protect their very belief systems. And, at sixteen, Merq is not even the youngest soldier trainee; some begin much younger. In fact, we learn early on that Merq was literally born and groomed for his role in the war.
Told from Merq’s POV, as are all of the books in the series, One Breath, One Bullet is the beginning of the story of how Merq became a pawn in the Borders War, and in the political agenda of Continental States leader, President Wensen Kersch, and his constituents. During an assignment, Merq comes in contact with a black ops soldier from an opposing side; and from the first time he hears the man’s laugh, Merq can’t get him out of his mind. He learns that the other soldier is Armise Darcan, an assassin from Singapore who, as it turns out, is just as affected by Merq as Merq is by him. Through some very effective time jumps, and various flashes of their volatile meetings, McAuley conveys the developing relationship between Armise and Merq, and gets us to the final, explosive twenty percent of the book, where the events leading up to and at the Olympics change EVERYTHING for both men.
Dominant Predator picks up right where the heart-racing action of the first book left us. What happened at the Olympics has restarted the Borders War, and Armise has rocked Merq to the core by exposing some of his true self and feelings, adding to Merq’s confusion and stress over how he feels about his position in the revolution. The methods of fighting have changed, and Merq has been exposed to parts of the world, mainly the living conditions of the general populace, that have altered his perceptions considerably. The action in this book is still incredibly intense, but we also have a lot of time to really dig into both men’s psyches. Merq continues to question the wisdom of his relationship with Armise – he stated in the first book that he “wouldn’t allow someone else to be his fatal flaw,” and that is still a concern in his mind. I loved getting to know Merq even more, but my love for Armise absolutely exploded in this book. His growth as a character was incredible, and I found myself just sinking deeper and deeper into their story.
So much action. So much intrigue. So many heart-stopping situations and incredible characters. Neveed, Simion, Jegs, President Kersch…you’ll be fascinated by them all for different reasons. But, at the core of it all are Merq and Armise. Fighting for the cause, but perhaps even more so, for each other. I can’t describe how amazing they are – and, I can’t get enough of this story. Go grab these first two books while they are free and 99 cents respectively! Because believe me, you are going to want to read the rest of the series.
Reviewed by Jules for The Novel Approach
http://www.thenovelapproachreviews.com/release-day-reviews-one-breath-one-bullet-and-dominant-predator-by-s-a-mcauley/
haletostilinski1's review
5.0
4.5 wow filled stars!
Damn. This book ended up being so much more than I thought it would be. It started out a little slow, especially because it had so much world building to do because it's 500 years in the future but a LOT has happened in this world, and it was confusing at times.
Like there are only 5 actual countries left (how, when, why?) and does that mean the geography is still the same as it is today in 500 years or has global warming made the land even smaller so the 5 countries makes more sense? I mean I know that's all probably part of the war, but I wonder if all these other countries were destroyed but their land is still used.
I had a hard time keeping up with which country was which, too, because there is a Continental States country, but also the American Federation....and i'm also wondering why Singapore is such a huge force in this world that it's still standing - maybe as more books go on it will get into that.
And this 300 year war - why has it gone on that long? I mean we start to get some answer, but it felt like we barely scratched the surface - and how did it take out half the world population? All these questions.
But as frustrating as that was at times, it just made this story all the more intriguing.
But the most intriguing part of the story was Merq and Armise. Like...what they have can barely be called a romance, barely be called a relationship - but in a way, that is what it is. Especially after what gets revealed in the end - which I was so not expecting! - and especially after we get a short POV chapter of Armise at the end. His motivations become so much clearer (although still what he's all about and where he came from and other stuff is still a mystery) when before it was as confusing to us as it was to Merq.
They're supposed to be enemies - and for a few years, they are - but then their crazy explosive and passionate chemistry can't be denied and they start a 12, 13 year love affair - or well, fuck affair. I mean there's 4 more books in this series so i HOPE it builds to love, but for this book it is barely romance. But they just can't stay away from each other, and Merq tries to stop several times, but he can't. He's always drawn back to Armise, he's like an addiction. But then as the years go on they both try less and less to stop - or well, Merq seems to be the only one who tries to stop it. Armise is the one who always comes to Merq, and Merq tells himself he won't give in, but of course he does anyway, and the sex is explosive.
I do love that there is a time or two after he fucks Armise senseless and then just leaves he has a feeling of emptiness or unease because - I think - he does feel more for Armise than just a fuck and he wants more and it feels wrong for him to treat it like just a fuck. But they're enemies, on opposing sides, and he shouldn't want to fuck Armise in the first place, so he tries to distance himself.
I don't want to give anything else away - just that the ending surprised me and it was NOT what I was expecting and it kind of turned the whole enemies-to-lovers trope on its head, giving it a new twist I didn't see coming but loved. Just read this, because it was SO GOOD.
Definitely will be continuing this series soon!
Damn. This book ended up being so much more than I thought it would be. It started out a little slow, especially because it had so much world building to do because it's 500 years in the future but a LOT has happened in this world, and it was confusing at times.
Like there are only 5 actual countries left (how, when, why?) and does that mean the geography is still the same as it is today in 500 years or has global warming made the land even smaller so the 5 countries makes more sense? I mean I know that's all probably part of the war, but I wonder if all these other countries were destroyed but their land is still used.
I had a hard time keeping up with which country was which, too, because there is a Continental States country, but also the American Federation....and i'm also wondering why Singapore is such a huge force in this world that it's still standing - maybe as more books go on it will get into that.
And this 300 year war - why has it gone on that long? I mean we start to get some answer, but it felt like we barely scratched the surface - and how did it take out half the world population? All these questions.
But as frustrating as that was at times, it just made this story all the more intriguing.
But the most intriguing part of the story was Merq and Armise. Like...what they have can barely be called a romance, barely be called a relationship - but in a way, that is what it is. Especially after what gets revealed in the end - which I was so not expecting! - and especially after we get a short POV chapter of Armise at the end. His motivations become so much clearer (although still what he's all about and where he came from and other stuff is still a mystery) when before it was as confusing to us as it was to Merq.
They're supposed to be enemies - and for a few years, they are - but then their crazy explosive and passionate chemistry can't be denied and they start a 12, 13 year love affair - or well, fuck affair. I mean there's 4 more books in this series so i HOPE it builds to love, but for this book it is barely romance. But they just can't stay away from each other, and Merq tries to stop several times, but he can't. He's always drawn back to Armise, he's like an addiction. But then as the years go on they both try less and less to stop - or well, Merq seems to be the only one who tries to stop it. Armise is the one who always comes to Merq, and Merq tells himself he won't give in, but of course he does anyway, and the sex is explosive.
I do love that there is a time or two after he fucks Armise senseless and then just leaves he has a feeling of emptiness or unease because - I think - he does feel more for Armise than just a fuck and he wants more and it feels wrong for him to treat it like just a fuck. But they're enemies, on opposing sides, and he shouldn't want to fuck Armise in the first place, so he tries to distance himself.
I don't want to give anything else away - just that the ending surprised me and it was NOT what I was expecting and it kind of turned the whole enemies-to-lovers trope on its head, giving it a new twist I didn't see coming but loved. Just read this, because it was SO GOOD.
Definitely will be continuing this series soon!
mindforbooks's review
4.0
4.5 Stars
So the first thing you need to know about 'The Border War' series is that according to the author, add some scars and tattoos and this is what Armise looks like:
*For those of you who care that is model Franco Noriega.
So there is that.
But there is also a pretty great dystopian happening here as well. I love new worlds and one of the things that I actually enjoy most of all is that feeling of being dropped into the middle of a world I know nothing about and figuring it out as I go. This can be confusing and sometimes you can feel a little lost but I much prefer this method of world building over pages and pages and pages of explanations. [b:One Breath One Bullet|17258549|One Breath One Bullet (The Borders War, #1)|S.A. McAuley|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1358536321s/17258549.jpg|23853178] feels very much like a prequel, setting us up for what is to come. There are times where I was confused and hadn't a clue what was going on and it actually made me like it all the more. I loved the world building and the intrigue. Nobody is what they seem and I can already tell that there is so much more to come.
"Armise and I had met through the scope of our rifles and sometimes I wondered if that was also where we'd end."
I am very excited about what is to come from Merq and Armise. These two are going to cause mayhem I can tell. I also can't bloody wait!!
Tiny, tiny little thing and the reason it doesn't get 5 stars from me. There was some discrepancy with timelines. Mainly the amount of time between the Olympic Games. It's 300 years but there is at least one place where it says that it was 200 years. I'm really anal about my timelines. It's just something that always catches my attention, it's only small and is most likely just an editing issue but timelines are important and timelines in new worlds especially so.
Update: Hmmmm it actually seems on reading [b:Dominant Predator|17402451|Dominant Predator (The Borders War, #2)|S.A. McAuley|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1377006327s/17402451.jpg|24237319] that I might of gotten the timelines wrong. I think the time since the last actual bullet being fired and the Olympic games is 200 years. Hence why both 200 and 300 would have been mentioned. I'm going to look into timelines again once I'm finished the second book and adjust my rating if I am indeed wrong.
So the first thing you need to know about 'The Border War' series is that according to the author, add some scars and tattoos and this is what Armise looks like:
*For those of you who care that is model Franco Noriega.
So there is that.
But there is also a pretty great dystopian happening here as well. I love new worlds and one of the things that I actually enjoy most of all is that feeling of being dropped into the middle of a world I know nothing about and figuring it out as I go. This can be confusing and sometimes you can feel a little lost but I much prefer this method of world building over pages and pages and pages of explanations. [b:One Breath One Bullet|17258549|One Breath One Bullet (The Borders War, #1)|S.A. McAuley|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1358536321s/17258549.jpg|23853178] feels very much like a prequel, setting us up for what is to come. There are times where I was confused and hadn't a clue what was going on and it actually made me like it all the more. I loved the world building and the intrigue. Nobody is what they seem and I can already tell that there is so much more to come.
"Armise and I had met through the scope of our rifles and sometimes I wondered if that was also where we'd end."
I am very excited about what is to come from Merq and Armise. These two are going to cause mayhem I can tell. I also can't bloody wait!!
Update: Hmmmm it actually seems on reading [b:Dominant Predator|17402451|Dominant Predator (The Borders War, #2)|S.A. McAuley|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1377006327s/17402451.jpg|24237319] that I might of gotten the timelines wrong. I think the time since the last actual bullet being fired and the Olympic games is 200 years. Hence why both 200 and 300 would have been mentioned. I'm going to look into timelines again once I'm finished the second book and adjust my rating if I am indeed wrong.
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