The Raging Ones (The Raging Ones, #1) by Krista Ritchie, Becca Ritchie

Synopsis (via Goodreads): In a freezing world, where everyone knows the day they will die, three teens break all odds.

Franny Bluecastle, a tough city teen, dreams of dying in opulence, to see wealth she’s never known. Like the entire world, she believes it’s impossible to dodge a deathday.

Until the day she does.

Court Icecastle knows wealth. He also knows pain. Spending five years in Vorkter Prison, a fortress of ice and suffering, he dreams of life beyond the people that haunt him and the world that imprisoned him.

Mykal Kickfall fights for those he loves. The rugged Hinterlander shares a frustrating yet unbreakable connection with Court—which only grows more lawless and chaotic as their senses and emotions connect with Franny.

With the threat of people learning they’ve dodged their deathdays, they must flee their planet to survive. But to do so, all three will have to hide their shared bond as they vie for a highly sought after spot in the newest mission to space. Against thousands of people far smarter, who’ll live longer, and never fear death the way that they do.

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I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

First of all, the quote on the cover is inaccurate. It says, "ONE predetermined day to DIE. THREE who choose to DEFY." Franny, Court, and Mykal didn't choose to defy anything. They expected to die like everyone else on their predetermined day, but for reasons unknown to them, they did not. It wasn't like they'd found some way around their deathday. Second, and this one is completely personal, I'm not a huge fan of the cover. I don't feel like it represents the story at all. I've read the book and I'm still not sure why the R looks like a sunbeam.

Initially, The Raging Ones made me think of They Both Die at the End. However, people knowing when they die was the only similarity. In They Both Die at the End, people get a phone call on the day they're going to die. The people in The Raging Ones are tested at birth and placed into one of three categories based on how long they'll live.

There were a few inconsistencies throughout the story, things that were out of place or contradicted other facts, and a few threads slipped through the cracks. However, I was really impressed with the world Krista and Becca had created. It was easy to overlook the small holes in favor of the overall story. It's unlike anything else I've ever read, but I still felt like I endured the harsh and unforgiving environment of their world. I felt connected to the Fast Trackers, and hated that people's worth was dependent upon their lifespan. If you were going to die soon, you were less likely to make valuable contributions to society, so you were afforded less in life. 

The world isn't a pretty or comfortable one. The people are hardened and cruel, and they don't think twice about taking advantage of those less fortunate or unable to defend themselves. There is a lot of fighting and slang, so if you don't like stories steeped in humanities darkness, this might not be for you. Franny, Court, and Mykal will do whatever it takes to survive. They will do even more to protect each other, and I was sick to my stomach at some of the things they gave up to ensure their safety. Their bond -- their friendship -- felt tangible. It was a living, breathing thing that really drove the rest of the story.

I loved all three POVs. I honestly cannot choose a favorite, and it was easy to discern who's perspective I was reading from. I only confused Court and Mykal's POVs once, and that's probably because I wasn't paying close enough attention. It took me reading just a few sentences to realize I had missed something, so it didn't detract from the story. I think the authors did a wonderful job making each of the characters stand out, even the secondary ones, and I enjoyed learning about their pasts while being with them in the present. 

A lot of time passes, but the story doesn't drag. We skip ahead by weeks sometimes to get though thicker parts of their lives. Like, when Court is trying to educate Franny to be an Influential. We don't get detailed descriptions of all of her lessons with him, but we get enough to see the impact they are having. During this time the authors were able to solidify their bond and set up the second half of the book. I do wish some of the second half had been elaborated on, like their training exercises, because the brief explanations we receive made the ending look a little too easy. I'm still not entirely convinced they would have been able to do what they did with the inadequate amount of training they had.

Finally, you cannot end a book that way! Argh! It was a gnarly, ugly cliffhanger that has me jonesing for the next book which hasn't been written yet. How is that fair? Other than that, I am mostly satisfied with the rest of the book. It's a little rough to read a the start, but I quickly found myself absorbed in the story. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough, and then there was nothing left to turn. Oh, and I am all about  the relationship between Mykal and Court. It's layered and complicated, but it's also sweet and intense. I cannot wait to read more!