the strong side
How is the plot?
I'm at 3.5 stars, a very different reaction to this book than most other reviewers.  There are some very strong points to the book, but also some weaknesses.  On the strong side, the writing is superior and the post-apocalyptic world that Cole creates is imaginative and she builds it well.  The book is reminiscent of Swan Song by Robert McCammon, which I highly enjoyed (these strong points maybe led me to set the bar a little higher than I might for other books).  On the weak side, having built this great world, she doesn't do enough with it.  This is a very slow book in places.  We have slavers, "bagmen", cannibals, militia, and others, but they make only a few brief appearances - the book is two-thirds gone before we finally have a first hand encounter with a bagman that we been hearing about for 200 pages.  So, in short, the book is long on dialogue and introspection, but a tad short on action, which may appeal to many, but may be less engaging to others.  Also, the story centers on Evie and Jackson, but they spend the entire book arguing and fighting to the point where you just want them to shut up already.  They have a painful,  dysfunctional relationship and it got very tiresome for me by the end.  Finally, the ending is . . . well, let's just say it's curious--I'm going to hold off on saying it disappoints until I see book 2.  Speaking of which, this is only book 1 and there is certainly a lot of room for book 2 to improve on things.  And while I do plan on giving book 2 a read, this trilogy is on a short leash with me. 