*Plot spoiler if you haven't read Birthmarked! *
She grabbed the hilt of her knife and scrambled backward into the darkness, holding the baby close in her other arm.
Gaia Stone escaped from the Enclave and Wharfton with her infant sister, Maya. She has walked for days, miles in the wastelands, and now she is out of formula for Maya. The baby is dying. They are rescued and taken her to Sylum.
Life in Sylum is difficult for Gaia to get used to. There are laws that she must obey, such as men and women are not allowed to kiss or touch. Mlady Olivia is the Matrarch, the leader of Sylum.
"You'll listen to me, Mlass Gaia," the Matrarch said, and her voice had dropped to a honey-smooth alto. "There is only one leader here. One. And I speak for everyone. You will learn to obey our rules, or you will be sent back to the wasteland to die."
She also learns that she has a decision to make.
"Staying in Sylum is like coming through a one-way gate. You can enter, but anyone who tries to leave Sylum dies. We don't understand fully why this happens, but we find their bodies."
Even though she and her sister have been rescued, Gaia learns that she's committed a crime according to the laws of Sylum. The punishment is overwhelming.
"Then from now on, we will consider your sister to be a gift to Sylum. A small and precious gift. What's more, in light of your gift, and depending on your compliance during your probation, we may pardon your crime."
"My crime?"
"You knowingly, deliberately put your sister in deadly harm."
Gaia decides to stay in Sylum to be as close to Maya as possible. As she becomes more familiar with the town, she discovers an unsettling truth: there aren't many women. Only one in ten babies born in Sylum is a girl; the last girl born here was two years ago.
Two thousand people live in Sylum; 1,800 are men. Out of the male population, only 400 -500 are in the pool: those who are eligible to marry.
Gaia's skills as a midwife become invaluable, and she learns more about Sylum. If life wasn't complicated enough, two brothers attempt to capture Gaia's affection. And then she finds someone from her past.
Prized is an exciting read as you find out the secrets about Sylum, and how Gaia overcomes all of the obstacles she must face.
Rating: 10 out of 10 stars
*pregnancy issues, deliberate miscarriage
To check this book out at NOLS, click HERE!
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