Blackout by Robison Wells

Goodreads Blurb

Laura and Alec are trained terrorists.
Jack and Aubrey are high school students.
There was no reason for them to ever meet.
But now, a mysterious virus is spreading throughout America, infecting teenagers with impossible powers. And these four are about to find their lives intertwined in a complex web of deception, loyalty, and catastrophic danger—where one wrong choice could trigger an explosion that ends it all.

Blackout was a bit disappointing, I'll admit, but it was still a good read! 

A couple of chapters into the book, all teens are being collected by the army and tested for the Erebus virus, a virus that seems to alter a teen's brain growth and give them supernatural powers, some useless, some dangerous, but each with the risk of other disease-like symptoms such as fatigue, kidney failure, brittle bones, etc. And...that's really all we learn about the virus. The basics. As a person who holds worldbuilding above pretty much anything else, I was disappointed by the fact that we don't learn much more about this virus. I suspect we'll learn more in the sequel, but this first book felt more like an introduction most of the book until the halfway point.

Because that's where things get kickass. This book made me think "Crap" way too many times and there were so many times I wanted to crush something. And I mean that in a good way. Wells definitely built the suspense, but the subplots were so quickly resolved that it got a bit annoying and there were definitely a lot of filler chapters that didn't seem to add anything, though that may just be because this book seemed to flash by in 2 seconds! It was definitely an intriguing plot, though, that neatly sets the scene for the sequel which is definitely going to be amazing. I can just feel it.

I'm not a giant fan of the 2+ switching POV kind of books, and I'm afraid this was no exception. While each character clearly had a distinct personality, but we never really got to know the characters that well because of the switching POV and the third person view. It was one of the better 2+ POV books I've read, though, and I loved to read from Aubrey's view the best! Plus? Her power was super cool.

The romance was also a bit..quick considering Aubrey had "betrayed" Jack before and the fact that they fell back into their old rhythm in only a day wasn't very...believable. 

But Blackout sounds perfect for people who've read and loved Robison Wells's Variant series! It wasn't a favorite of mine, but it was definitely an entertaining read that was a fun adventure! 

Pages: 352

Genre: Apocalyptic/Sci-fi

Series: Blackout #1

Publisher: HarperTeen

Release Date: Oct. 1, 2013

Rating: 3.5