Rage: Horsemen of the Apocalypse, #2

Rage by Jackie Kessler


My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Rage is the second book in The Horsemen of the Apocalypse series. I did not read the first book, Hunger, but I believe the beauty of this series so far, is that you do not need to read them in order.

In this series, the author takes a deep rooted struggle of many, such as anorexia or in this case, cutting, and spins a different tale. Melissa Miller is a 16 year old cutter. Life makes sense for her after she cuts. For her, it helps her release all of her feelings that make her feel like she cannot breathe. However, one day she cuts too deep. She is given a choice: either she joins Death as his Handmaiden or her life ends.

I liked how the author uses Death to offer up the flip side of the emotions leading to the behavior. All feelings have a flip side. Melissa’s was Rage and then Peace. She soon learned that she could ease other people’s rage rather than feeding on that rage and continuing to destroy not only herself but others as well.

I thought the concept was interesting but I had a hard time connecting with Melissa. I wanted to care about her plight but I just never managed to find that reader connection with her. However, I also wanted to strangle her sister and hit her parents upside the head. Why must parents continue to stick their heads in the sand when it comes to their teens and the problems they are experiencing?

Thank you NetGalley for this read.






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