Book Shelf: Rogue (Hive #2) by A.J. Betts

There was no going back; there was no choice, anymore. I'd chosen out and this was it: hot-cold, dry-wet, bright-dark and lonely.

Hayley has gone rogue.

She's left everything she's ever known - her friends, her bees, her whole world - all because her curiosity was too big to fit within the walls of the underwater home she was forced to flee.

But what is this new world she's come to? Has Hayley finally found somewhere she can belong?

Or will she have to keep running?

More info on Goodreads......


Review: 

Rogue is the second novel in the Hive series and brings the duology to a close as A.J. Betts brings to life new elements of this unique Australian dystopian.

There’s no going back for Hayley now that she has left the safe confines of the only home she’s ever known. Outside is like nothing she could ever have imagined and since going rogue she finds herself discovering new wonders every day. Yet outside is far from perfect, and for every miracle Hayley finds comes a disappointment as well. Is this outside world any better than where she came from? Or did Hayley make a mistake in leaving? As she searches for a place to belong, Hayley begins to realise that home isn’t always where you thought it was….

As Rogue brings Hayley’s story to a close, I find myself satisfied by the way A.J. Betts has concluded this duology. Picking up where Hive left off, Rogue sees protagonist Hayley discovering a whole new world and as the reader, Rogue is also an eye opener as we finally begin to discover more about the place Hayley comes from and the world that exists outside it.

I personally think Bett’s wrote the history of her fictional world very well. It was exciting discovering the series was set in Australia (gotta love an Australian setting!) and I appreciated seeing how Betts wove today’s current events and pop-culture into this dystopian world set in the future. The backstory was believable as I could imagine how our world could become the place Hayley was now discovering.

Rogue sees Hayley grow in a lot of ways and I liked her strength as she fights to find her place in the world. The naiveté she possesses dissipates throughout the novel but she still retains her wonder and hope to find a home. Her voice is young but clear and she comes across as determined but sweet. Hayley makes new friends and even finds herself a new kind of family as she explores the outside world.

The Hive duology has been a unique and easy to ready dystopian series. A.J. Betts has created a world not too unlike our own and gives it a twist with the vault. I think the beauty of this is that neither world is perfect; both where Hayley originally comes from and the world she discovers once outside. Hayley is hoping to find a place to call home, but throughout Rogue it becomes clear that perhaps the place she came from may have been a kinder place to live. I quite liked the idea that not everything is greener on the other side.

Featuring a satisfying and hopeful ending, Rogue brings to a close a fun and solid duology that will appeal to those who love dystopian but are perhaps looking for something a little bit different.

Rating:
Source: Sent for review by publisher and AusYABloggers as part of tour (Thank you guys!)
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Format: Paperback
Australian RRP: $16.99
Release Date: June 25th 2019
Buy: Angus & Robertson | Booktopia | Amazon
Final Thoughts: A solid Australian novel, Rogue (and first novel Hive) are worth a read!