still more moral dilemma exploration - worth it.

I picked the first book of this series on the recommendation of an on-line influencer, mother of middle school and high school aged boys. She claimed the boys could not put the book down and neither could she. I love me some JA dystopian sci fi (Hunger Games, anyone?) but this was not as awesome as many others in this genre. However, the book does not shy away from true moral conundrums, and in this sequel the female protagonist is less self-centered, irritating and unlikeable. Instead, her character matures a bit, likely largely due to the serious moral dilemma she uncovers in the first book. How she tries to navigate between two very compelling narratives which of course dictate contradictory decisions is admirable. Like the first book, the set up is contrived but the book's strength is getting the readers (junior adults - an impressionable age) to think about difficult issues surrounding colonialism, indigenous rights and impossibly irreversible situations.