Eliza Green – Feeder (Book 1 in a new series of the same name)

Goodreads synopsis: When their hometown of Brookfield is poisoned by radiation, seventeen-year-old Anya Macklin and her older brother Jason are relocated to the safe but boring urbano of Essention.
While Jason is put to work, Anya is enrolled in the adult skills course at Arcis, a secretive and heavily monitored education facility. There she must compete with other teenage recruits and earn her place in society by reaching the top floor.
At first, Anya fears change, and is reluctant to advance. But then she meets Dom Pavesi, a brooding, evasive stranger who drives her to discover the rules of this dangerous game where there can be only one winner.
Who is Dom? Which side is he on?
And what terrible truth awaits Anya on the ninth floor of Arcis?

Eliza Green, author.

Feeder is a young adult dystopian romance which leans more towards character growth and exciting adventure and less to rippling muscles and tight t-shirts (my major problem with most YA).

It’s an interesting read which ambitiously covers a number of ‘levels’ which the protagonist and her friends must navigate in a game-like fashion. Feeder has a number of memorable visual scenes such as a room of crying babies, a maze of coloured doors, and part metal, part organic wolf creatures.

Ultimately, the book is a tale of self-discovery and growth. Anya must make difficult decisions about the way in which her life is progressing, who she chooses to trust and who to be wary of, and what is the right thing to do for the common good.

Along her journey she faces many moral dilemmas, often having to choose between self-preservation and helping others. Once these decisions have been made however, she must still deal with the regret and remorse which arises from her actions.

On a bigger scale Feeder also touches on social and political issues in the style of 1984 (which I love) or The Hunger Games (not so much). Although many YA books appeal to me even at the age of thirty, I would recommend this book to those aged 14-21 or to adults who specifically enjoy YA fiction.

If you’re the parent of a teen and you think they’re not quite ready for 1984, this is definitely the book to buy them! I thoroughly enjoyed Feeder and felt as though I was binge-watching a new TV series. At times there was far more information than I needed and I think the book could really benefit from being cut down, but the story holds it up high.