External Forces (The Laws of Motion #1) by Deborah Rix

A fast-paced, high-stakes adventure through a future world where evolution is the new religion and genetic deviations are not tolerated. When 16-year-old Jess begins to show signs of deviance she enlists in the Special Forces, with her best friend Jay, in a desperate bid to evade detection by the Devotees. Jess is good with data, not so good with a knife. So when the handsome and secretive Sergeant Matt Anderson selects her for his Black Ops squad, Jess is determined to figure out why.

As her deviance continues to change her, Jess is forced to decide who to trust with her deadly secret. Jess needs to know what’s really out there, in the Deviant wasteland over the border, if she has any hope of making it to her 17th birthday. Because if the enemy doesn’t kill her first, the army probably will. 
Read the full blurb here.


"TREASON. BETRAYAL. HEARTBREAK. A lot can happen to a girl between her first kiss and her first kill" ---- that sure got my attention! This single sentence was honestly the main reason I decided to read this book :P

On the whole, I really enjoyed this novel. Being someone who doesn't read much science fiction, it was a welcome change for me. The author created an intriguing version of the future where there is all kinds of new technology and evolution is seen as a religion. After completing the book, my first thought was about how great this story would be for a movie. I would love watch all the action that happens in the Special Forces and see the deviant mutations visually. Yes, books are far better than movies but I really think a movie with this plot line would be awesome. 

The thing I really liked about this storyline was that even though the world in this book was very different from what we live in today, it still felt realistic. The author did a great job of creating a dystopian world and the problems faced by the characters were very brutal, I felt myself fearing for them and silently urging them on.

I liked how the characters were all so unique with their own little quirks. The character development for the protagonist, Jess, that took place as the story continued was great and really made me empathise with her. What made the characters so real was the dialogue and the way each of them spoke. The dialogues didn't sound scripted at all and this was probably my favourite part. The conversations flowed easily, everything just felt so real and I could imagine it all playing out in my head. 

The only downer was that I felt like there was something missing at the end. It ended so abruptly and the last scene (not giving away any spoilers) really broke my heart. But luckily this is a trilogy, so I can be assured that the story will continue in the second book of the series.

I'm looking forward to reading the next two books of The Laws of Motion trilogy!