The Darkest Minds

Alexandra Bracken

Dec 2012 · Sold by Disney Electronic Content

About this eBook

Book one in the hit series that's soon to be a major motion picture starring Amandla Stenberg and Mandy Moore--now with a stunning new look and an exclusive bonus short story featuring Liam and his brother, Cole. When Ruby woke up on her tenth birthday, something about her had changed. Something alarming enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that got her sent to Thurmond, a brutal government "rehabilitation camp." She might have survived the mysterious disease that killed most of America's children, but she and the others emerged with something far worse: frightening abilities they cannot control. Now sixteen, Ruby is one of the dangerous ones. But when the truth about Ruby's abilities--the truth she's hidden from everyone, even the camp authorities--comes out, Ruby barely escapes Thurmond with her life. On the run, she joins a group of kids who escaped their own camp: Zu, a young girl haunted by her past; Chubs, a standoffish brainiac; and Liam, their fearless leader, who is falling hard for Ruby. But no matter how much she aches for him, Ruby can't risk getting close. Not after what happened to her parents. While they journey to find the one safe haven left for kids like them--East River--they must evade their determined pursuers, including an organization that will stop at nothing to use Ruby in their fight against the government. But as they get closer to grasping the things they've dreamed of, Ruby will be faced with a terrible choice, one that may mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living.

Ratings and reviews

While there is a ton of hype about this book, I purposefully declined to read any reviews of this book so that my expectations wouldn't skyrocket. That is a surefire way to pave the road to disappointment. I knew that I wanted to read this book before I saw the movie based on it. (That was just released!) I'm happy to say that I wasn't disappointed in the slightest! The opposite actually. I loved it! The first thing that you will notice when starting this book is how atmospheric it is. Bracken describes things so vividly that you can feel yourself in the main character's shoes. You can feel the air around her, the rain on her skin, and the turmoil inside her. What makes this book incredible is that it has the best of both worlds. It has an incredibly real world and the character development is perfect. The world building is superb. The book starts out right in the dead center of the main conflict surrounding the story. I loved the powers that the surviving kids gained and the descriptions of life inside the detention camps. The foreshadowing was written well. Bits and pieces of the world came as the story progressed. The characters really captured my heart. The main characters banded together and became a family. They relied on each other and helped each other. You couldn't help but love them. I loved their humor and sarcasm with one another. They felt very real and they were fully entertaining. Even the main villain was awesome because there was so much emotion. You really wanted to hate him for the way that he treated the other characters. The romance was exactly what I like to see in a book. The characters feelings for each other grew as they got to know one another. They supported one another when the other was feeling down or upset. They care about each other's well being. In the end, one of them makes an ultimate sacrifice for the other. It was really beautiful. While the trope of teens that get or have powers is not original or new, that did not really detract from the enjoyment of reading this. The story itself was told very well and I think that is what makes it stand out from others in this trope. The storytelling is very emotional and the reader really latches on to it. Overall, I thoroughly recommend this book! It will captivate you from the first page. This book has a bit of everything that makes a great story. It has conflict, humor, romance, action, and thought-provoking stakes for the characters' fates. If you are a dystopian fan then I can only imagine that you will love this book. I can't wait to begin the second book of this series!

This book series in general is amazing. If you like dynostopian fantasy then it's for you. The movie did an okay job portraying it, but left so so much out. Everyone saying this book isn't what they expected obviously hasn't read the whole series. 10/10 an amazing book

Before you read this there is a kinda spoiler I don't say exactly what happens but it was sad so I not going to elaborate. I absolutely loved this book it played my heart strings to perfection. I haven't read the second book so I don't know if Liam will remember Ruby but I really hope so. I know this may sound cheesy but I kinda started to cry a not like full on crying but I had tears in the corners of my eyes. If you like comedy action adventure with a pinch of drama and romance u will luv this book.

About the author

Alexandra Bracken was born in Phoenix, Arizona, on February 27th, 1987. She graduated from The College of William & Mary in Virginia in May 2009, with a degree in History and English. She began her first published novel, Brightly Woven, as a birthday present to a close friend in college. She is also the author of The Darkest Minds Series. Her title from that series, In the Afterlight, made The Young New Adult Titles List. In 2017 she made The New York Times Best Seller List with her title, Passenger.