'48 States' has an intriguing and original premise, a strong female lead and a powerful opening with short, crisp chapters, like well-done establishing shots plus some character-building close-ups. The world-building is low-key but threatening. I liked that there was a little bit of violence in the first chapter to get first blood out of the way and to establish the lawless nature of the Energy Territory and the toughness of River, our heroine.

For me, the book worked best when River was at the centre of the storytelling, which was about the first sixty per cent of the book. She felt real to me and I enjoyed seeing the world and the people in it through her eyes. She has the ex-army background, practical competence and solitary but tough personality that is de rigeur for any action hero about to take on impossible odds but she's far from a cliché. She's a mother and a widow and she's had her life derailed more than once. She's multilingual and escapes from the world into books. She's a survivor, not a crusader and she has limited expectations of personal happiness.

I was convinced by the premise of the book. I could see a swing towards totalitarianism in the face of two large-scale terrorist attacks, one of which beheaded the government. Converting sparsely populated States into Territories to enable oil and gas extraction that would secure the USA's energy needs is something I can easily imagine the fossil fuel lobby pushing hard for.

Where the book started to work less well for me was when the focus switched from River to the President of the United States. She was also a strong, well-drawn character who felt real to me but I struggled to believe that her principled, 'I will defend the constitution of this great nation and restore and protect the democratic rights of its citizens' stance would have stood much of a chance when confronted by a well-funded and well-organised kleptofascist movement led by a charismatic megalomaniac. Maybe that's my problem rather than the book's problem. Either way, I found the ending at best anticlimactic and at worst unbelievably optimistic.

The part that worked least well for me was the President's big speech. Personally, I've never heard a speech by a President that I've found inspiring. I'm deeply suspicious of their intention and largely immune to their techniques, so the big speech was never going to be a highlight for me. I could see that the plot needed it and that it needed to be powerful, so I'd have let it pass if it hadn't gone on so long and hadn't included a poem and long quotations from Kennedy and Lincoln.

The final part of the book didn't work for me. The action scenes were well done. The various reconciliations and happy-ever-afters went on too long, felt too neat and were accompanied by what felt like sermons on the nature of good government and healthy relationships.

Perhaps I'm just allergic to optimism. More positive readers, especially those with a patriotic bent, may find the ending deeply satisfying.

For the most part, I enjoyed '48 States' and I admired Evette Davis' writing so, I've picked up her next book, 'Woman King' which kicks off a fantasy trilogy. ( )

River is an oil worker in Energy Territory No. 1, which used to be known as North Dakota. She's a veteran, a widow and the mother of a toddler, working in a violent and harsh environment to save up money, when she meets an injured man late at night. She takes him to her apartment, patches him up and intends to send him on his way. But in their few hours together, they are enraptured by each other and so she rescues him again a few hours after he leaves. It turns out that while he is a scientist looking into environmental issues in the territory, he is also the son of the President, a woman who was Secretary of State and who took office after everyone above her was assassinated. She now governs in a state of emergency, Congress has been dissolved and she is making the decisions. But the man who owns the corporation that got the contract to be the sole owner of the two energy territories is on a mission to take charge of all of it and his first target is the President.

This is a novel with a promising premise, but which quickly becomes bogged down with things that don't seem fully thought out. Despite governing during a national emergency, the POTUS spends her days secretly visiting a refugee camp to help a single family, secretly watching a focus group discussion and looking up quotes by Abraham Lincoln to use in an important speech. This is a version of the world where there are no sources of energy except oil and where a mass shooting at a mall become a catalyst to move the populations of two states into refugee camps in the name of energy independence. No one judges a thriller on how well the details hang together, it's all about pacing and suspense. And by that metric, this novel does fine, although a number of pages are spent on the two protagonists examining their feelings for each other and tense moments are often undercut by segues into how each person feels.

This was marketed as being ideal for fans of literary novels like Station Eleven, California and Gold Fame Citrus, and had it been blurbed more honestly, I would not have picked it up as I'm not a reader of YA thrillers. ( )

3.5 stars

I used to think I didn't like the dystopian genre, but it's books like this one that prove me wrong.

River is a single mom fresh out of the military and working in a newly formed American government territory doing dangerous transporting work. Between the dangerous job and having to fight off men with bad intentions everywhere she goes, River plans to do one more transport, then retire back home with her mom and daughter.

One night when River is driving home she comes across an injured man in the road. Against protocol in the territory, River ends up helping the stranger and bringing him home to hide in her room. They spend a nice night talking to each other and River finds that he is quite enjoyable to spend time with, after enduring such loneliness for so long. So, when the police come to her room looking for him, she finds it hard to give him up.

The stranger turns out to be an important person to the country as well as to River and she fights for both their lives to be saved.

I really enjoyed the story and the writing was wonderful. This is a well-conceived and well-written book.

I won this through LibraryThing. ( )

I do not normally read dystopian novels because the genre is not usually my cup of tea. However, I received this thriller (thank you for autographing it, Evette Davis!) in exchange for an honest review, and I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it!

The book is set in a future where the U.S. has been reduced to 48 states, with 2 of the states redrawn as Energy Territories in response to a national crisis. Jennifer "River" Petersen, a military vet and single mother, works as a truck driver in one of the Territories to make ends meet. One night she comes across an injured man standing in the middle of the highway. From that point, River's life is upended, as the man does not reveal who he is, and that one detail draws both of them into a conspiracy that could very well destroy the country.

It took me a little bit to get into the book because, as I mentioned earlier, I don't normally like dystopian novels. However, Davis's writing style really appealed to me, and before long I found myself engrossed and unable to put the book down. The plot was tightly constructed, and I really appreciated that - no dangling unaddressed issues or superfluous unnecessary bits. I also liked the gradual revelations of each character's past, how the character development stretched throughout the entire book. I feel that this engaged me more, as it made me care more about EVERY character, and they felt wonderfully human. The bad guy was a little over-the-top, almost in a Hollywood movie fashion, but I didn't mind that too much. There was plenty of entertaining action, but it didn't get in the way of plot and character development. It was just a very well-written book.

Thanks to the author for making my first foray into dystopian fiction an enjoyable one! ( )

In 48 States, Evette Davis brings us into a (hopeful) alternate-reality/dystopian future for the United States. In the not too distant future, 2040, the U.S. government, after violent attempts of radical takeover, decide to restructure the country. Part of this restructuring is the redesignation of two states into territories specifically used to mine for resources needed for energy production and other materials needed to ensure the U.S. is fully self-sufficient.
The story follows Jennifer 'River' Peterson, a truck driver in the territory which was once North Dakota, and an environmental assessor, Finn Cunningham, as they navigate through the territory to reach the President (who happens to be Finn's mother). Finn has accumulated data proving the extent of the pollution being created by the workings within the territory which he is sure his mother has not been apprised of. The CEO of the territories has nearly complete autonomy in running his operation as long as he provides the U.S. with needed resources. He has developed a personal army with which he guards the areas, keeps undesired people out, such as environmentalists, and keeps order within his territories.
As River and Finn move through the territory, followed by territory personnel who are attempting to stop them from getting out, they come across refugee camps populated by the former residents of North Dakota. This was only one of the human issues which occurred due to the development of the territories.
Evette Davis's writing is every descriptive without excess. She is able to describe not only what an area looks like but what it feels like. I was pulled into a dreary, grey, overworked landscape when River was driving through the territory. I felt the heavy resignation and anger of the people in the refugee camp. I can see this story as a graphic novel in the ilk of Sin City - black, white, grey, with an occasional blotch of color to emphasize a feeling or incident.
There are no zombies, no plague decimating the populace. There is just normal people in high places doing what they think is best. Normal people turning a blind eye to situations. Normal people in power who are driven for more power. Normal people who try to reverse the negative before it is too late. Normal people are pretty terrifying. Who needs zombies when normal people can terrorize a nation into allowing a few to take over for their personal gain. ( )