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Num8ers #2
The Chaos
The curse of the NUM8ERS continues in Rachel Ward's CHA0T1C, earth-shattering sequel!
Adam has more than inherited his mother's When he looks in someone's eyes, he not only sees the date of their death...he feels the searing, shocking pain of it. Since Jem died, Adam has lived by the sea with his great-grandmother, Val. But when rising tides flood the coast, they return to London. The city is an alien, exciting, frightening place. Most disturbing of all, Adam can't help but clock how many people's numbers are in January 2027; how many are on New Year's Day. What chaos awaits the world? Can he and Sarah stop a catastrophe? Or are they, too, counted among the "twenty-sevens"?
Adam has more than inherited his mother's When he looks in someone's eyes, he not only sees the date of their death...he feels the searing, shocking pain of it. Since Jem died, Adam has lived by the sea with his great-grandmother, Val. But when rising tides flood the coast, they return to London. The city is an alien, exciting, frightening place. Most disturbing of all, Adam can't help but clock how many people's numbers are in January 2027; how many are on New Year's Day. What chaos awaits the world? Can he and Sarah stop a catastrophe? Or are they, too, counted among the "twenty-sevens"?
346 pages, Hardcover
First published June 7, 2010
183 people are currently reading
6194 people want to read
About the author
Rachel Ward
60 books672 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 674 reviews
August 8, 2011
I thought this was a great sequel to Numbers and I have no idea why some of the reviews said it was set at a slower pace, I'd say the opposite if anything. This book had everything I loved about the first novel but with a futuristic dystopian setting.
But don't worry, the author hasn't abandoned the close relationship with the characters in favour of high-action sci-fi. No, the characters in this were at least as interesting as Jem and Spider and this time we are introduced to a second perspective alongside Adam's of a new character called Sarah.
I at first feared that Sarah would be the less interesting half that you sometimes get in books with more than one point of view, but she quickly became a central and important figure to the plot, who's horrific background only added to my concern for her as a reader. I liked this new development after the first novel was set amongst the poorest citizens of Britain; you see, Sarah is from a wealthy family and lives in a huge house with those big iron gates out front... she is an example of how appearances can be deceiving. As she points out herself, social services are constantly on the back of poor families no matter how much the parents may appear to care for their kids, but one look at those fancy gates and they convince themselves that nothing can go wrong in the happy bubble of the rich and powerful.
I found it an interesting road for the author to take and I liked it.
As for this future world that I mentioned... the year is 2026, Britain's national currency is now the Euro, America has a female president, society is constantly being watched and newborn babies are implanted with microchips so that when they get older they can always be found. So they can never run and they can never escape.
I honestly loved everything about this novel except one thing: the ending. It wasn't even particularly bad but it was unclear to me what had actually happened until I read the description for Infinity. But it doesn't ruin the book at all, the pacing throughout is excellent, the characters are interesting (including Spider's nan who we first met in book one) and it's filled with drama and grit. I can't wait to read the third and - I believe - final book.
But don't worry, the author hasn't abandoned the close relationship with the characters in favour of high-action sci-fi. No, the characters in this were at least as interesting as Jem and Spider and this time we are introduced to a second perspective alongside Adam's of a new character called Sarah.
I at first feared that Sarah would be the less interesting half that you sometimes get in books with more than one point of view, but she quickly became a central and important figure to the plot, who's horrific background only added to my concern for her as a reader. I liked this new development after the first novel was set amongst the poorest citizens of Britain; you see, Sarah is from a wealthy family and lives in a huge house with those big iron gates out front... she is an example of how appearances can be deceiving. As she points out herself, social services are constantly on the back of poor families no matter how much the parents may appear to care for their kids, but one look at those fancy gates and they convince themselves that nothing can go wrong in the happy bubble of the rich and powerful.
I found it an interesting road for the author to take and I liked it.
As for this future world that I mentioned... the year is 2026, Britain's national currency is now the Euro, America has a female president, society is constantly being watched and newborn babies are implanted with microchips so that when they get older they can always be found. So they can never run and they can never escape.
I honestly loved everything about this novel except one thing: the ending. It wasn't even particularly bad but it was unclear to me what had actually happened until I read the description for Infinity. But it doesn't ruin the book at all, the pacing throughout is excellent, the characters are interesting (including Spider's nan who we first met in book one) and it's filled with drama and grit. I can't wait to read the third and - I believe - final book.
April 12, 2017
I enjoyed the second half a lot more than the first.
What annoyed me throughout was how unnecessarily rude Adam was to his grandma at times and how naive Sarah seemed to be (at least in the beginning, but maybe that was due to her whole situation?).
Overall a solid read, although it took me a while to get used to the writing style.
What annoyed me throughout was how unnecessarily rude Adam was to his grandma at times and how naive Sarah seemed to be (at least in the beginning, but maybe that was due to her whole situation?).
Overall a solid read, although it took me a while to get used to the writing style.
February 16, 2011
Yay! I wont this in a contest and I am so excited! I cannot wait for it to come in the mail for me to read :)
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The Chaos (Numbers, #2) by Rachel Ward was an incredible book. The story line was great, and I loved the way she actively incorporated mystery, suspicion and action all into the story equally.
Adam has been born with the same genetic gift as his mother. If he looks into your eyes he can see the day that you are going to die. This has haunted him ever since he was a child. When he starts seeing the same dates in almost every one he makes eye contact with Adam starts piecing together what is going to happen. Adam can also feel the way you are going to die and what terrifies him most is that all of these people are going to suffer horrible deaths.
Sarah has been having the same terrible nightmare every night for months now. She doesn't know what it means only that some monster is going to kill her baby. She see's the fire and the demon who takes her child into the flames to never be seen again. Then one day while she is at school she see's the demon, Adam. The only difference is that his face isn't horribly scarred.
Adam and Sarah are both pushed into a future that involves each other. Adam tries not to have romantic feelings for Sarah while she tries to work out her conflicting emotions about Adam.
This was a truly amazing story. I loved Sarah and Adam both equally and they both had such believable personalities that it allowed them to be life like. There is a huge twist at the end that I did not see coming but I have to say that it was an astonishing ending! The only thing that I did not like was how the story came to a close. I wish there was a little more about Adam and Sarah's life after every thing that happened. Overall it is a great read and I would recommend it to anyone!:)
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The Chaos (Numbers, #2) by Rachel Ward was an incredible book. The story line was great, and I loved the way she actively incorporated mystery, suspicion and action all into the story equally.
Adam has been born with the same genetic gift as his mother. If he looks into your eyes he can see the day that you are going to die. This has haunted him ever since he was a child. When he starts seeing the same dates in almost every one he makes eye contact with Adam starts piecing together what is going to happen. Adam can also feel the way you are going to die and what terrifies him most is that all of these people are going to suffer horrible deaths.
Sarah has been having the same terrible nightmare every night for months now. She doesn't know what it means only that some monster is going to kill her baby. She see's the fire and the demon who takes her child into the flames to never be seen again. Then one day while she is at school she see's the demon, Adam. The only difference is that his face isn't horribly scarred.
Adam and Sarah are both pushed into a future that involves each other. Adam tries not to have romantic feelings for Sarah while she tries to work out her conflicting emotions about Adam.
This was a truly amazing story. I loved Sarah and Adam both equally and they both had such believable personalities that it allowed them to be life like. There is a huge twist at the end that I did not see coming but I have to say that it was an astonishing ending! The only thing that I did not like was how the story came to a close. I wish there was a little more about Adam and Sarah's life after every thing that happened. Overall it is a great read and I would recommend it to anyone!:)
March 4, 2011
The Chaos is the sequel to Numbers, and is a much better book. The way the numbers work is explained better and the plot is more consistent. The Chaos also has the effect of making Numbers feel like a prequel. Jem is long dead in this installment, and her son’s story has a much larger scope.
It’s the year 2026, and things are a little different: climate change has led to many towns being flooded, and the government microchips people for identification and surveillance. Adam has been raised in a country town by his great-grandmother, Val. When their town is flooded, they move to London, despite a warning from Jem before she died — that vast numbers of Londoners are destined to die on New Year’s Day, 2027.
Adam soon sees these dire numbers too, and the nitty-gritty of his ability is explained. He can, and Jem could, only see the numbers if direct eye contact is made. It doesn’t work with photographs, TV, or mirrors. Adam has an additional dimension to his power that Jem didn’t have: Along with the person’s death date, he gets an impression of how the person will die, and so he learns that most of the New Year’s deaths will involve fire and twisted metal.
He meets Sarah, a pregnant girl with plenty of trouble of her own. She instantly recoils from Adam – she has a recurring nightmare in which he does something horrible amid a fiery cataclysm – yet life keeps throwing them back together in spite of themselves.
One of the strengths of Numbers was its realistic, gritty portrayal of how society spits out teenagers who don’t fit in. This continues in The Chaos, and Adam and Sarah face real-world obstacles as they try to warn people about the coming catastrophe and, perhaps, change a few numbers. How do you warn people, when most of them think you’re just crazy? How do the police treat you when you’re seen as a juvenile delinquent and all of your forebears had a rap sheet too?
The disaster, when it comes, is frightening and the tension nearly unbearable. Rachel Ward does a great job of keeping it personal and showing us intimate, human scenes rather than “panning out” and going for spectacle. It’s rather predictable that Sarah’s dream comes true rather differently than she thinks it will, but it works anyway.
The only disappointing aspect of The Chaos is the ending, which is abrupt and leaves many questions unanswered. I wonder if it’s the setup for a third book…
It’s the year 2026, and things are a little different: climate change has led to many towns being flooded, and the government microchips people for identification and surveillance. Adam has been raised in a country town by his great-grandmother, Val. When their town is flooded, they move to London, despite a warning from Jem before she died — that vast numbers of Londoners are destined to die on New Year’s Day, 2027.
Adam soon sees these dire numbers too, and the nitty-gritty of his ability is explained. He can, and Jem could, only see the numbers if direct eye contact is made. It doesn’t work with photographs, TV, or mirrors. Adam has an additional dimension to his power that Jem didn’t have: Along with the person’s death date, he gets an impression of how the person will die, and so he learns that most of the New Year’s deaths will involve fire and twisted metal.
He meets Sarah, a pregnant girl with plenty of trouble of her own. She instantly recoils from Adam – she has a recurring nightmare in which he does something horrible amid a fiery cataclysm – yet life keeps throwing them back together in spite of themselves.
One of the strengths of Numbers was its realistic, gritty portrayal of how society spits out teenagers who don’t fit in. This continues in The Chaos, and Adam and Sarah face real-world obstacles as they try to warn people about the coming catastrophe and, perhaps, change a few numbers. How do you warn people, when most of them think you’re just crazy? How do the police treat you when you’re seen as a juvenile delinquent and all of your forebears had a rap sheet too?
The disaster, when it comes, is frightening and the tension nearly unbearable. Rachel Ward does a great job of keeping it personal and showing us intimate, human scenes rather than “panning out” and going for spectacle. It’s rather predictable that Sarah’s dream comes true rather differently than she thinks it will, but it works anyway.
The only disappointing aspect of The Chaos is the ending, which is abrupt and leaves many questions unanswered. I wonder if it’s the setup for a third book…
February 6, 2024
Attention ce livre évoque le sujet de l'inceste donc si cela vous concerne de près ou de loin je vous déconseille ce livre. De plus, Sarah (la victime) tombe enceinte de son père. Cette enfant s'appelle Mia et elle joue un rôle important malgré son très jeune âge.
Pour l'histoire, on suit Adam, le fils de Jem. Pour rappel dans le tome 1, Jem voit des numéros au-dessus de la tête des gens et il s'agit de la date de leur mort. A la fin du tome 1, Jem tombe enceinte et voilà le tome 2 avec Adam qui a hérité du même don que sa mère.
Dans le tome 2, Jem est décédée d'un cancer et Adam vit avec sa grand-mère. Ils emménagent à Londres dans la maison de la grand-mère et Adam va au lycée fréquenté à l'époque par sa mère. Il se trouve que Adam voit la même date de mort chez un grand nombre de personne : 01012027.
Adam rencontre Sarah et il voit qu'ils vont faire leur vie ensemble. Mais Sarah semble apeurée en le voyant et pour cause : elle fait depuis longtemps un cauchemar où elle voit Adam, elle et un bébé dans un immeuble en feu. Il prend le bébé (qui n'est autre que Mia) et le jette au feu. Sarah l'évite au maximum. Sarah a pour projet de s'enfuir de chez elle pour échapper à son père et pour protéger l'enfant qu'elle porte. Elle part donc avec un sac et va direction la gare. Elle rencontre une fille qui lui propose de l'héberger. Mais en réalité il s'agit d'une maison close. Sarah révèle qu'elle est enceinte et la fille qu'elle a rencontrée appelle un ami (Vinny) et Sarah vit désormais dans son squat. Elle finit par accoucher. Elle doit se rendre malgré elle à l'hôpital car Mia est malade. Il s'avère que dans ce livre nous sommes en 2026 et qu'à cette période tous les nouveau-nés sont pucés. On leur injecte une puce traçable à l'aide d'une seringue dès leur naissance. Sarah est contre cela mais c'est obligatoire. Donc pas le choix et Mia a la puce. Du côté d'Adam, il est détesté par Junior un camarade de classe. Il voit la date de sa mort et la note dans son carnet. Junior vole le carnet et aperçoit sa date. Ils se rejoignent dans un endroit isolé et ça part en bagarre. Dans sa vision, Adam voit Junior tué par un arme blanche : ici un couteau. Il s'avère que lors de la bagarre, seul Adam possède un couteau. Un incendie se déclenche et Adam perd connaissance et à son réveil Junior est mort. Mais il ne sait pas comment cela s'est passé. Adam décide de retrouver Sarah. Il y parvient mais pendant ce temps, Sarah a décidé de dessiner, sur une fresque dehors l'intégralité de son cauchemar et dessine le visage trait pour trait d'Adam. Il voit le dessin et essaie d'avoir des explications mais Sarah y est opposée au départ. Puis, elle change d'avis et l'invite dans la maison où elle habite. Ils s'expliquent et Adam découvre Mia, et Sarah ne veut pas qu'il l'approche (à cause de son rêve). Les services sociaux débarquent là où vit Sarah et lui posent des questions. Au moment de partir, Vinnie et ses amis avaient étalés leur matériel de toxico (seringue, drogue) et cela a été vu par l'assistante sociale. Sarah prend peur et décide de s'enfuir avec Mia. Elle croise Adam et celui-ci lui propose de dormir chez sa grand-mère. Elle accepte et le lendemain matin, ils s'embrassent et au moment d'aller plus loin Sarah ne peut pas (référence aux abus faits par son père). A ce moment Adam se vexe (et c'est un comportement que j'ai trouvé très inapproprié sachant qu'il savait ce qu'elle avait vécu. J'ai eu l'impression qu'il a essayé de la culpabiliser parce qu'elle a changé d'avis au dernier moment). Elle part de la maison et sur la route, se fait arrêter en voiture par les services sociaux (ils ont trouvé sa position avec la puce de Mia). Et là le pire est arrivé : on lui prend Mia car on l'accuse de négligences. Ils disent que Mia sera placé chez une famille le temps d'arranger la situation. Adam essaie de prévenir la population de Londres de fuir lavant le jour de l'an car quelque chose de terrible va se produire. A l'aide de son camarade Nelson, ils parviennent à se faire entendre car aux infos, on dit aux gens de fuir le plus rapidement possible. De plus, Adam se fait arrêter par la police pour le meurtre de Junior. Lors de l'audience, il est prévu qu'il aille dans un foyer de jeune délinquant en attendant la sanction finale. Au même moment chez Sarah et Val (la grand-mère d'Adam), une explosion retentit et toutes les maisons s'effondrent. Au même moment Adam se faire engloutir par le fleuve à cause de l'explosion. Il s'en sort et essaie de rejoindre Sarah. Elle veut à tout prix retrouver sa fille car Adam a vu sa date de mort et cela est ce jour-là. Il se trouve que Mia est placée chez les parents de Sarah. Arrivée là-bas, une explosion retentit entraînant un incendie. Sarah s'introduit dans la maison en flamme et retrouve Mia dans un cagibi. Et là elle se retrouve nez à nez avec Adam. Il prend Mia et décide de sortir de la maison. Ils en sortent indemne, même Mia a survécu et en la regardant Adam se rend compte que son numéro à changer. Malheureusement, ils se rendent compte que Val n'a pas survécu et que son numéro à changer. Il s'avère que Val a aidé Sarah à sortir des flammes. Les parents de Sarah sont morts aussi.
J'ai hâte de savoir ce que réserve le dernier tome de la trilogie.
Pour l'histoire, on suit Adam, le fils de Jem. Pour rappel dans le tome 1, Jem voit des numéros au-dessus de la tête des gens et il s'agit de la date de leur mort. A la fin du tome 1, Jem tombe enceinte et voilà le tome 2 avec Adam qui a hérité du même don que sa mère.
Dans le tome 2, Jem est décédée d'un cancer et Adam vit avec sa grand-mère. Ils emménagent à Londres dans la maison de la grand-mère et Adam va au lycée fréquenté à l'époque par sa mère. Il se trouve que Adam voit la même date de mort chez un grand nombre de personne : 01012027.
Adam rencontre Sarah et il voit qu'ils vont faire leur vie ensemble. Mais Sarah semble apeurée en le voyant et pour cause : elle fait depuis longtemps un cauchemar où elle voit Adam, elle et un bébé dans un immeuble en feu. Il prend le bébé (qui n'est autre que Mia) et le jette au feu. Sarah l'évite au maximum. Sarah a pour projet de s'enfuir de chez elle pour échapper à son père et pour protéger l'enfant qu'elle porte. Elle part donc avec un sac et va direction la gare. Elle rencontre une fille qui lui propose de l'héberger. Mais en réalité il s'agit d'une maison close. Sarah révèle qu'elle est enceinte et la fille qu'elle a rencontrée appelle un ami (Vinny) et Sarah vit désormais dans son squat. Elle finit par accoucher. Elle doit se rendre malgré elle à l'hôpital car Mia est malade. Il s'avère que dans ce livre nous sommes en 2026 et qu'à cette période tous les nouveau-nés sont pucés. On leur injecte une puce traçable à l'aide d'une seringue dès leur naissance. Sarah est contre cela mais c'est obligatoire. Donc pas le choix et Mia a la puce. Du côté d'Adam, il est détesté par Junior un camarade de classe. Il voit la date de sa mort et la note dans son carnet. Junior vole le carnet et aperçoit sa date. Ils se rejoignent dans un endroit isolé et ça part en bagarre. Dans sa vision, Adam voit Junior tué par un arme blanche : ici un couteau. Il s'avère que lors de la bagarre, seul Adam possède un couteau. Un incendie se déclenche et Adam perd connaissance et à son réveil Junior est mort. Mais il ne sait pas comment cela s'est passé. Adam décide de retrouver Sarah. Il y parvient mais pendant ce temps, Sarah a décidé de dessiner, sur une fresque dehors l'intégralité de son cauchemar et dessine le visage trait pour trait d'Adam. Il voit le dessin et essaie d'avoir des explications mais Sarah y est opposée au départ. Puis, elle change d'avis et l'invite dans la maison où elle habite. Ils s'expliquent et Adam découvre Mia, et Sarah ne veut pas qu'il l'approche (à cause de son rêve). Les services sociaux débarquent là où vit Sarah et lui posent des questions. Au moment de partir, Vinnie et ses amis avaient étalés leur matériel de toxico (seringue, drogue) et cela a été vu par l'assistante sociale. Sarah prend peur et décide de s'enfuir avec Mia. Elle croise Adam et celui-ci lui propose de dormir chez sa grand-mère. Elle accepte et le lendemain matin, ils s'embrassent et au moment d'aller plus loin Sarah ne peut pas (référence aux abus faits par son père). A ce moment Adam se vexe (et c'est un comportement que j'ai trouvé très inapproprié sachant qu'il savait ce qu'elle avait vécu. J'ai eu l'impression qu'il a essayé de la culpabiliser parce qu'elle a changé d'avis au dernier moment). Elle part de la maison et sur la route, se fait arrêter en voiture par les services sociaux (ils ont trouvé sa position avec la puce de Mia). Et là le pire est arrivé : on lui prend Mia car on l'accuse de négligences. Ils disent que Mia sera placé chez une famille le temps d'arranger la situation. Adam essaie de prévenir la population de Londres de fuir lavant le jour de l'an car quelque chose de terrible va se produire. A l'aide de son camarade Nelson, ils parviennent à se faire entendre car aux infos, on dit aux gens de fuir le plus rapidement possible. De plus, Adam se fait arrêter par la police pour le meurtre de Junior. Lors de l'audience, il est prévu qu'il aille dans un foyer de jeune délinquant en attendant la sanction finale. Au même moment chez Sarah et Val (la grand-mère d'Adam), une explosion retentit et toutes les maisons s'effondrent. Au même moment Adam se faire engloutir par le fleuve à cause de l'explosion. Il s'en sort et essaie de rejoindre Sarah. Elle veut à tout prix retrouver sa fille car Adam a vu sa date de mort et cela est ce jour-là. Il se trouve que Mia est placée chez les parents de Sarah. Arrivée là-bas, une explosion retentit entraînant un incendie. Sarah s'introduit dans la maison en flamme et retrouve Mia dans un cagibi. Et là elle se retrouve nez à nez avec Adam. Il prend Mia et décide de sortir de la maison. Ils en sortent indemne, même Mia a survécu et en la regardant Adam se rend compte que son numéro à changer. Malheureusement, ils se rendent compte que Val n'a pas survécu et que son numéro à changer. Il s'avère que Val a aidé Sarah à sortir des flammes. Les parents de Sarah sont morts aussi.
J'ai hâte de savoir ce que réserve le dernier tome de la trilogie.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 28, 2011
Adam has inherited his mother's ability to see "numbers" -- he sees the dates people will die when he looks into their eyes. When he and his grandmother move back to London, Adam knows immediately that something's about to go very wrong, very soon. Thousands of people have death dates within days of each other, most on the same day, New Year's Day 2027. Sarah has, as she puts it, a small problem that's becoming a big problem. She is pregnant, and her father is the cause. Also, she keeps having the same nightmare, where she's trapped in a burning house, and a man takes her baby from her into the flames. When the two meet at school, Sarah realizes Adam is that man, the one she's been dreaming about. And Adam realizes that they were meant to be together. Can they somehow stop the catastrophe that will hit London before it's too late?
I was a bit afraid of reading this book -- I loved the first installment of the series, and there's nothing sadder than a disappointing sequel -- but it came through! This is an excellent sequel to the original "Numbers," but can also stand on its own. Like the first book, it has a great combination of action, appealing characters and believable but not mushy romance. Also -- a black protagonist! Yay! My one quibble -- Adam, your grandmother is awesome and we all know it. So stop with the misdirected adolescent rage, ok?
Recommended for fans of:
How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff
I was a bit afraid of reading this book -- I loved the first installment of the series, and there's nothing sadder than a disappointing sequel -- but it came through! This is an excellent sequel to the original "Numbers," but can also stand on its own. Like the first book, it has a great combination of action, appealing characters and believable but not mushy romance. Also -- a black protagonist! Yay! My one quibble -- Adam, your grandmother is awesome and we all know it. So stop with the misdirected adolescent rage, ok?
Recommended for fans of:
How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff
October 12, 2018
Adam Wilde has inherited his mother Jem's ability to see "numbers" - the dates people will die - when he looks into their eyes. Adam is very scared because many people, especially in London, have death dates in the first few days of 2027. Sarah Parker has a recurring nightmare of her baby being taken from her and carried into an inferno, and when she meets Adam in school, she is horrified to realize he is the person from her dream. Adam is smitten with her, but feels compelled to warn Londoners of the pending disaster. I found the book kind of slow and written for a younger audience, but liked the accelerating pace and how things came together in the last third of the novel.
August 4, 2019
Gostei imenso deste livro ! Mais que do primeiro volume.
A história é mais envolvente ... mas senti pena de não haver mais envolvimento entre os dois protagonistas principais 🥺
Já sei que não publicaram em Portugal o terceiro volume (irrita me imenso esta história de não editarem as séries completas) portanto vou tentar encontrar em inglês ou br 🤔
A história é mais envolvente ... mas senti pena de não haver mais envolvimento entre os dois protagonistas principais 🥺
Já sei que não publicaram em Portugal o terceiro volume (irrita me imenso esta história de não editarem as séries completas) portanto vou tentar encontrar em inglês ou br 🤔
November 18, 2012
Tyler Armstrong
D Block
November 18, 2012
Book Review of The Chaos
The book I read was The Chaos by Rachel Ward. I would recommend this book to a friend because it has a great plot line and interesting characterization.
The first reason as to why I would recommend this book is that both main characters are in bad and very serious situations with their lives. This makes the book extremely interesting and makes the reader want to read more. One of the main characters, Adam, is sixteen years old and lives with his grandmother. He is always getting into trouble. One day he was involved in a fight and the fight got really bad and then there was an explosion. Adam fled the scene with severe burns to the face. A few weeks later the police came to Adam’s door, “Son, we have a warrant for your arrest for the murder of Junior Driscoll on the sixth of December 2026.”(265) Junior was one of the kids in the fight with Adam, not knowing Adam had fled the scene and Junior had been killed. On the other hand, Sarah, the second main character has her own fair share of trouble. Sarah is the same age as Adam and is pregnant. Afraid of her parent’s thoughts, she runs away. When she has the baby she has nowhere to live so she lives with a drug dealer who brought her in off the streets. Because of these harsh conditions, the baby is taken away from her by Child Services. In her outrage, Sarah attacks the officer who took the baby away. As a result, she is taken down to the station and, “charged with assault, yay.”(252) So as you see these two may seem like delinquents and bad role models. However, I believe it allows the reader to connect with the characters better. It also enhances the book and makes for an interesting read.
The second reason as to why I would recommend this book is that it has a lot of strong and meaningful language. Throughout the whole book there is a lot of profanity used. I am not going to say any of it because let’s face it; I would be saying “expletive” a lot. Some people would say that the absurd amount of profanity makes the main characters look like bad role models therefore blaming the author for poor characterization. I say that the profanity is a good thing because it allows the reader to see the true personality of the characters and shows an example of what not to be like because of all the bad and serious situations the characters are in. The profanity allows you to feel what they’re feeling and honestly I kind of did. Overall, I think a lot of people just take profanity for a bad thing right from the start. What they don’t realize is how the language makes the book better. Besides all the profanity, there is also a lot of meaningful language. I can tell that the author has a very good sense of what it would actually feel like to be in situations like the characters in the book. As a result, I feel that readers can get a better knowledge of the novel.
The third reason as to why I would recommend this book is because there is a lot of action and there’s always something happening. In The Chaos, there are two narrators, Adam and Sarah. A lot of people would argue that the plot line is confusing because there are two narrators. Meanwhile, I say that the two narrators make this book what it is. I believe that because of the two narrators there is rarely a dull moment, and that is what young adult readers want. For instance, Adam could be breaking out of jail while Sarah is trying to save her newborn baby from disaster and they do all of this while the world is coming to an end around them. When the two characters personalities’ clash, I feel those moments are the best in the whole book. If you’re looking for an action packed thriller with a futuristic outlook, then you have it with this book.
As you have now learned, this book could be very offensive to some. However, I say that all of the critics of this book should put themselves in the shoes of a young adult reader who is looking for an exciting book that they can relate to because of age, and then tell me what you think of The Chaos.
D Block
November 18, 2012
Book Review of The Chaos
The book I read was The Chaos by Rachel Ward. I would recommend this book to a friend because it has a great plot line and interesting characterization.
The first reason as to why I would recommend this book is that both main characters are in bad and very serious situations with their lives. This makes the book extremely interesting and makes the reader want to read more. One of the main characters, Adam, is sixteen years old and lives with his grandmother. He is always getting into trouble. One day he was involved in a fight and the fight got really bad and then there was an explosion. Adam fled the scene with severe burns to the face. A few weeks later the police came to Adam’s door, “Son, we have a warrant for your arrest for the murder of Junior Driscoll on the sixth of December 2026.”(265) Junior was one of the kids in the fight with Adam, not knowing Adam had fled the scene and Junior had been killed. On the other hand, Sarah, the second main character has her own fair share of trouble. Sarah is the same age as Adam and is pregnant. Afraid of her parent’s thoughts, she runs away. When she has the baby she has nowhere to live so she lives with a drug dealer who brought her in off the streets. Because of these harsh conditions, the baby is taken away from her by Child Services. In her outrage, Sarah attacks the officer who took the baby away. As a result, she is taken down to the station and, “charged with assault, yay.”(252) So as you see these two may seem like delinquents and bad role models. However, I believe it allows the reader to connect with the characters better. It also enhances the book and makes for an interesting read.
The second reason as to why I would recommend this book is that it has a lot of strong and meaningful language. Throughout the whole book there is a lot of profanity used. I am not going to say any of it because let’s face it; I would be saying “expletive” a lot. Some people would say that the absurd amount of profanity makes the main characters look like bad role models therefore blaming the author for poor characterization. I say that the profanity is a good thing because it allows the reader to see the true personality of the characters and shows an example of what not to be like because of all the bad and serious situations the characters are in. The profanity allows you to feel what they’re feeling and honestly I kind of did. Overall, I think a lot of people just take profanity for a bad thing right from the start. What they don’t realize is how the language makes the book better. Besides all the profanity, there is also a lot of meaningful language. I can tell that the author has a very good sense of what it would actually feel like to be in situations like the characters in the book. As a result, I feel that readers can get a better knowledge of the novel.
The third reason as to why I would recommend this book is because there is a lot of action and there’s always something happening. In The Chaos, there are two narrators, Adam and Sarah. A lot of people would argue that the plot line is confusing because there are two narrators. Meanwhile, I say that the two narrators make this book what it is. I believe that because of the two narrators there is rarely a dull moment, and that is what young adult readers want. For instance, Adam could be breaking out of jail while Sarah is trying to save her newborn baby from disaster and they do all of this while the world is coming to an end around them. When the two characters personalities’ clash, I feel those moments are the best in the whole book. If you’re looking for an action packed thriller with a futuristic outlook, then you have it with this book.
As you have now learned, this book could be very offensive to some. However, I say that all of the critics of this book should put themselves in the shoes of a young adult reader who is looking for an exciting book that they can relate to because of age, and then tell me what you think of The Chaos.
March 2, 2011
In NUM8ERS we met Jem - a teen girl who by staring into a person's eyes can see their numbers. The numbers are their date of expiration or the day of their death.
Adam, is Jem's son and he was born with her same gift ,or curse, as he sees it. Adam can not only see the numbers of the person's death but he can also feel whether it'll be a painful or peaceful one. When he starts noticing that most of the people around him will perish in January 2027 and he feels that they will be horrible deaths - he has a feeling that something big will happen... something chaotic and life-changing.
The story is actually told in dual narrative. Along with Adam's story, you also meet Sarah. Sarah is a young girl who eventually crosses paths with Adam. She has been having the same dream over and over and only knows that a man will take her baby from her and run off with her in his arms into a fire. She doesn't know who this man is but she will do anything to avoid coming into contact with him. And then she meets Adam... the man in her dreams.
I actually really liked Adam's story much better than Jem's. As the imminent threat of 01012027 draws near, you can feel the tension and the anxiety grow in these characters. I really liked both Adam and Sarah and. although sometimes I felt exasperated by their situation, I kept that thread of hope that somehow it would all work out in the end. They were both likable, believable, and easy to connect with.
As with Ms. Ward's previous book in this series, she does not hedge around dark topics - rape, drugs, prostitution, runaways and even controlling governments, are all in the mix. This was a very fast-paced and exciting story. The last 100 pages had me glued to my seat. What an epic finale!
For fans of the series or those of you who have read its predecessor and are on the fence about it, I recommend you read Numbers 2: The Chaos. I personally enjoyed it much more than Numbers. For readers who haven't read the first in the series, I still recommend you read this one as it can very easily be a stand-alone novel. I look forward to Numbers 3: Infinity scheduled to release June 2011.
Adam, is Jem's son and he was born with her same gift ,or curse, as he sees it. Adam can not only see the numbers of the person's death but he can also feel whether it'll be a painful or peaceful one. When he starts noticing that most of the people around him will perish in January 2027 and he feels that they will be horrible deaths - he has a feeling that something big will happen... something chaotic and life-changing.
The story is actually told in dual narrative. Along with Adam's story, you also meet Sarah. Sarah is a young girl who eventually crosses paths with Adam. She has been having the same dream over and over and only knows that a man will take her baby from her and run off with her in his arms into a fire. She doesn't know who this man is but she will do anything to avoid coming into contact with him. And then she meets Adam... the man in her dreams.
I actually really liked Adam's story much better than Jem's. As the imminent threat of 01012027 draws near, you can feel the tension and the anxiety grow in these characters. I really liked both Adam and Sarah and. although sometimes I felt exasperated by their situation, I kept that thread of hope that somehow it would all work out in the end. They were both likable, believable, and easy to connect with.
As with Ms. Ward's previous book in this series, she does not hedge around dark topics - rape, drugs, prostitution, runaways and even controlling governments, are all in the mix. This was a very fast-paced and exciting story. The last 100 pages had me glued to my seat. What an epic finale!
For fans of the series or those of you who have read its predecessor and are on the fence about it, I recommend you read Numbers 2: The Chaos. I personally enjoyed it much more than Numbers. For readers who haven't read the first in the series, I still recommend you read this one as it can very easily be a stand-alone novel. I look forward to Numbers 3: Infinity scheduled to release June 2011.
July 30, 2011
Like Numbers, the characterization is excellent, but for me... the scenery and events lacked visual details.
It is 2026. Jem died of cancer leaving her teen son, Adam, to be raised by Nan. He has inherited his mother's gift of numbers, which she lost during pregnancy. When he looks into someone's eyes he sees the date of their death. He also experiences visual flashes and traumatic emotions. He journals the details including names, dates, places and circumstances. He hopes this exercise will relieve his anxieties, but it does little to soothe him. Similar to Jem, Adam is unable to see his own number. This is a constant stress for him, since he is continually haunted by death. His anger issues are understandable. His personality can best be described as 'defiant'.
He and his great grandmother are forced to flee their coastal home due to flooding. On the train to London he realizes many passengers have the same number, 1/1/2027.
Fifteen year old Sarah enters the story. As her father drops her off at school, he reprimands her for being a truant troublemaker. He drives off in their posh, gas guzzling car. Sarah's introduction to Adam (her classmate), who she perceives as the devil, is quite dramatic. Apparently she's had recurring nightmares about Adam, whom appears to be incinerating her baby. My first thought was 'Don't have a baby ? '.
Adam loves his Nam, but they have a strained relationship. He is angry and resentful and misses his mother. Adam learned to keep his ability secret after he unknowingly blurted out his mother's numbers as a child. He vowed not to share anyone's date and hid his gift from everyone including his great grandmother. Nan informs Adam she knows about the numbers. She gives him a letter, left by his mother, which reads “London isn't safe. 01/01/2027.” “Don't go to London”. Angry that she has brought him to London, he has a temper tantrum and takes off. Nan reports him missing. It doesn't take long for the police to find him. They microchip him and return him home
This is the future of 'Big Brother', where everyone is micro-chipped like dogs. The invasive government portrayed in this novel feels very realistic and frightening. Everyone at Adam's school is given a palm net, similar to a tablet with apps. It would be awesome if books were installed on a portable device and heavy text books no longer had to be lugged about. Unfortunately the palm devices serve the ulterior purpose of tracking everyone. There are also Mp5 players (lol). There is no mention of a reliable alternative energy source. The electricity in London powers off several hours during the evenings. There are still no flying cars...
It is soon revealed that Sarah's baby has already been conceived, and it wasn't a moment of teenage passion. She was raped by her own father. She is starting to show and plans to run away. As Sarah observes Adam from afar, she realizes he is hot ('beautiful' was the specific wording used in the book), and convinces herself he is not her hideously scarred nightmare boy. Before she begins her journey she shares a 'moment' with Adam during art class.
After meeting some seedy people, Sarah is introduced to Vinny (a nice drug addict... yes they do exist). He invites her to live at his squat. She worries he has an ulterior motive, but he is simply empathic to her situation because his own sister died from a botched abortion.
Concerned by her absence from school, Adam visits Sarah's home. He soon discovers her father is a sleazy, mental, nutcase who admits Sarah has left home.
Adam has ongoing issues with Junior, a bully from school. Junior and his pals swipe his book. He ends up in the office where school faculty demands the book. Adam grabs the book and makes a break for it. The book is protected but he is suspended for six weeks giving him an abundance of free time.
Sarah gives birth to Mia on her own in a bathroom. The delivery could have been a little more drawn out, more exciting, more realistic...
Eventually Adam gets the face of Sarah's nightmare. The details were a bit vague. He has a fight with Junior. Adam falls on a fire, and burns up half his face. Junior either falls on the knife or the guy trying to end the fight accidentally stab hims... Nevertheless a sharp object is involved and Junior dies, just as Adam predicted he would.
Nan seemed a bit selfish relocating them to London, but she soon announces she believes Adam has a purpose in London as a prophet. Adam is inspired to prevent the events of 1/1/2027. Norman, his buddy from school, shows him a website where someone has painted a mural with their depiction of what will happen on this day. Adam travels to the mural and discovers Sarah is the artist. After giving him a nice gash on his head, she reluctantly invites him inside. He reveals his gift for numbers. He meets Mia. Her date is 1/1/2027.
Sarah was forced to take Mia to the hospital when she developed an infection at the site of the umbilical cord. She was abruptly micro-chipped. Sarah used a false name at the hospital, but this does little to prevent them from locating her. Cameras tracking microchips are placed everywhere. The social worker is not impressed by their living conditions and threatens to return at a later date. After she sees Vinny and his pals geared up to do a batch of drugs, Vinny is arrested and Mia is taken away.
With nowhere left to go, Sarah ends up at Nan's house. Adam is subsequently arrested for Junior's death. He left behind too many suspicious appearing records of Junior's death date on his dad's laptop, his palm net, etc...
On 1/1/2027 Adam is enroute to a different facility. Desperate to protect Sarah and save Mia, he attempts to escape. He slugs his guard. Suddenly London is struck by the 'disaster', ripping the van off the road. The aftermath of the disaster was painted well, but I am unclear on the exact cause. As the pace of the book sped up, so did my reading, so I may have missed something... I assumed it was the shifting of tectonic plates (a possibility mentioned earlier) Earthquakes led to flooding and fires. The mention of rockets was a bit confusing, but I ascertained those were part of the New Years celebration and not bombs.
Everything is chaos. The entire city has literally been torn apart. The guards from the van are dead and there is no one to heed Adam's escape. He manages to reach Nan's house only to discover it has been flattened. A neighbor informs him Nan and Sarah left the house alive. Using deductive reasoning he figures Mia is at her grandparents so he heads there. Everything happens the way Sarah visualized it in her dreams except Mia makes it out of the burning house alive. When Adam looks into her eyes he realizes her numbers have changed to Nan's, 2/20/2054. Nan's body isn't discovered, but she is apparantly dead since her number has been 'stolen'.
There is a short preview for the next story. I am unsure about the premise. Sarah appears manically happy that Mia can have anyone's number and could potentially live 'forever'... I got a sort of Rosemary's Baby, Damien the Omen vibe lol. Is she going to age or become immortal like Dr. Who's Captain Jack or the Face of Boe ? Hopefully it will make sense. I will miss Nan's character.
It is 2026. Jem died of cancer leaving her teen son, Adam, to be raised by Nan. He has inherited his mother's gift of numbers, which she lost during pregnancy. When he looks into someone's eyes he sees the date of their death. He also experiences visual flashes and traumatic emotions. He journals the details including names, dates, places and circumstances. He hopes this exercise will relieve his anxieties, but it does little to soothe him. Similar to Jem, Adam is unable to see his own number. This is a constant stress for him, since he is continually haunted by death. His anger issues are understandable. His personality can best be described as 'defiant'.
He and his great grandmother are forced to flee their coastal home due to flooding. On the train to London he realizes many passengers have the same number, 1/1/2027.
Fifteen year old Sarah enters the story. As her father drops her off at school, he reprimands her for being a truant troublemaker. He drives off in their posh, gas guzzling car. Sarah's introduction to Adam (her classmate), who she perceives as the devil, is quite dramatic. Apparently she's had recurring nightmares about Adam, whom appears to be incinerating her baby. My first thought was 'Don't have a baby ? '.
Adam loves his Nam, but they have a strained relationship. He is angry and resentful and misses his mother. Adam learned to keep his ability secret after he unknowingly blurted out his mother's numbers as a child. He vowed not to share anyone's date and hid his gift from everyone including his great grandmother. Nan informs Adam she knows about the numbers. She gives him a letter, left by his mother, which reads “London isn't safe. 01/01/2027.” “Don't go to London”. Angry that she has brought him to London, he has a temper tantrum and takes off. Nan reports him missing. It doesn't take long for the police to find him. They microchip him and return him home
This is the future of 'Big Brother', where everyone is micro-chipped like dogs. The invasive government portrayed in this novel feels very realistic and frightening. Everyone at Adam's school is given a palm net, similar to a tablet with apps. It would be awesome if books were installed on a portable device and heavy text books no longer had to be lugged about. Unfortunately the palm devices serve the ulterior purpose of tracking everyone. There are also Mp5 players (lol). There is no mention of a reliable alternative energy source. The electricity in London powers off several hours during the evenings. There are still no flying cars...
It is soon revealed that Sarah's baby has already been conceived, and it wasn't a moment of teenage passion. She was raped by her own father. She is starting to show and plans to run away. As Sarah observes Adam from afar, she realizes he is hot ('beautiful' was the specific wording used in the book), and convinces herself he is not her hideously scarred nightmare boy. Before she begins her journey she shares a 'moment' with Adam during art class.
After meeting some seedy people, Sarah is introduced to Vinny (a nice drug addict... yes they do exist). He invites her to live at his squat. She worries he has an ulterior motive, but he is simply empathic to her situation because his own sister died from a botched abortion.
Concerned by her absence from school, Adam visits Sarah's home. He soon discovers her father is a sleazy, mental, nutcase who admits Sarah has left home.
Adam has ongoing issues with Junior, a bully from school. Junior and his pals swipe his book. He ends up in the office where school faculty demands the book. Adam grabs the book and makes a break for it. The book is protected but he is suspended for six weeks giving him an abundance of free time.
Sarah gives birth to Mia on her own in a bathroom. The delivery could have been a little more drawn out, more exciting, more realistic...
Eventually Adam gets the face of Sarah's nightmare. The details were a bit vague. He has a fight with Junior. Adam falls on a fire, and burns up half his face. Junior either falls on the knife or the guy trying to end the fight accidentally stab hims... Nevertheless a sharp object is involved and Junior dies, just as Adam predicted he would.
Nan seemed a bit selfish relocating them to London, but she soon announces she believes Adam has a purpose in London as a prophet. Adam is inspired to prevent the events of 1/1/2027. Norman, his buddy from school, shows him a website where someone has painted a mural with their depiction of what will happen on this day. Adam travels to the mural and discovers Sarah is the artist. After giving him a nice gash on his head, she reluctantly invites him inside. He reveals his gift for numbers. He meets Mia. Her date is 1/1/2027.
Sarah was forced to take Mia to the hospital when she developed an infection at the site of the umbilical cord. She was abruptly micro-chipped. Sarah used a false name at the hospital, but this does little to prevent them from locating her. Cameras tracking microchips are placed everywhere. The social worker is not impressed by their living conditions and threatens to return at a later date. After she sees Vinny and his pals geared up to do a batch of drugs, Vinny is arrested and Mia is taken away.
With nowhere left to go, Sarah ends up at Nan's house. Adam is subsequently arrested for Junior's death. He left behind too many suspicious appearing records of Junior's death date on his dad's laptop, his palm net, etc...
On 1/1/2027 Adam is enroute to a different facility. Desperate to protect Sarah and save Mia, he attempts to escape. He slugs his guard. Suddenly London is struck by the 'disaster', ripping the van off the road. The aftermath of the disaster was painted well, but I am unclear on the exact cause. As the pace of the book sped up, so did my reading, so I may have missed something... I assumed it was the shifting of tectonic plates (a possibility mentioned earlier) Earthquakes led to flooding and fires. The mention of rockets was a bit confusing, but I ascertained those were part of the New Years celebration and not bombs.
Everything is chaos. The entire city has literally been torn apart. The guards from the van are dead and there is no one to heed Adam's escape. He manages to reach Nan's house only to discover it has been flattened. A neighbor informs him Nan and Sarah left the house alive. Using deductive reasoning he figures Mia is at her grandparents so he heads there. Everything happens the way Sarah visualized it in her dreams except Mia makes it out of the burning house alive. When Adam looks into her eyes he realizes her numbers have changed to Nan's, 2/20/2054. Nan's body isn't discovered, but she is apparantly dead since her number has been 'stolen'.
There is a short preview for the next story. I am unsure about the premise. Sarah appears manically happy that Mia can have anyone's number and could potentially live 'forever'... I got a sort of Rosemary's Baby, Damien the Omen vibe lol. Is she going to age or become immortal like Dr. Who's Captain Jack or the Face of Boe ? Hopefully it will make sense. I will miss Nan's character.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 16, 2025
It’s not very often that a sequel is better than the first book, but this is one of them. Every single little detail about this book is practically perfect. There’s so much backstory to every single character and a plot twist like every 30 pages. Absolutely mind blowing…
August 31, 2025
Lepsza niż pierwszy tom, było więcej akcji, ale strasznie chaotyczna. Za dużo wykrzykników.
Read
October 9, 2024Ik vond djt boek vandaag in de kringloop, na 12 jaar deel 1 & 3 zonder hun tussenstuk in de kast te hebben staan. Ze staan niet op mijn Goodreads, wat betekent dat ik ze in 2012 / 2013 heb gelezen. De serie had wel indruk op me gemaakt! Bewezen door het feit dat ik het missende deel kocht. Omdat hij eindelijk goedkoop was. Wel met telefoontje naar huis of ik de andere boeken nog in mijn kast had staan of toch inmiddels weg had gedaan, hahaha. Oeps, maar beetje grappig wel
March 14, 2011
In my review of Rachel Ward's first book, Numbers, I talked about how impressed I was with the story that she had crafted, and the raw, unflinching feel of it. Book 2, The ChaØs, continues in this same thread, but with a few twists. The ChaØs alternates POVs this time around, following Adam, Jem's son, and Sarah. Adam is similarly gifted as his mother was -- he can see the Numbers, people's death dates -- when he looks into their eyes. But he also sees more than that. He actually feels their death for a brief moment, experiences it along with them. A lot of these Numbers and death dates seem to revolve around 1 specific day: New Years day, 2027.
Sarah, who has led a much more cushiony life than Adam, has problems of her own to say the least -- as well as an ability of her own: she has a vision of a horrific event -- one in which Adam plays a part . The date of her horrific vision? New Years Day, 2027. These two stories play off of each other and slowly weave together in a very skillful way.
Rachel Ward upped the stakes in The ChaØs in some really interesting ways. In Numbers, Jem and Spider were on the run, and that really provided all the tension you'd need (not that that was all the tension their was, but it provided plenty). In The ChaØs, tension is built through a number of things. Adam, like his mother, cannot see his own death date, and with a huge cataclysmic event coming, he's worried he'll be one of the "twenty-sevens" -- and there are things to support the idea that he just might be. This, coupled with Sarahs' nightmare vision, provides a strong baseline for the tension and unease of the novel, and creates a sense of immediacy. But other things -- the idea of the cataclysmic event, the increase in "Big Brother" style governement, tensions between Adam and Sarah, and tensions of a wholly different sort with a boy who targets Adam -- all of these work together to keep the reader feeling anxious, knowing that any minute, the other shoe is going to drop. It just has to.
I loved this. Rachel Ward can keep you on the edge of your seat for sure. (Side note: This was a read-in-one-sitting type of book for me. No matter how many times I told myself that I needed to go to bed, I simply couldn't stop until I knew.)
There were a few drawbacks for me. There were times, especially in the beginning of the book, where things mirrored book 1 to the extent that I wondered if it was just going to be a rehashing of the same story. Adam has anger issues, as Jem did, and the way it sometimes came out of nowhere and he just had to act out and break something or freak out (and then later, when Sarah had to do the exact same), just started to feel a littel hollow to me. Like Ward couldn't find another way to show her characters angst. But it was something that was either righted at some point, or I got so caught up that I failed to notice it, because at some point in the book, I was completey invested and not aware of any "hollowness" or repetition. It also could have just been a symptom of me reading the two books back to back, come to think of it... It certainly wasn't enough to keep me from recommending these books, or to keep me from adding the final book, Infinity, to my wishlist.
All told, this a strong and complex continuation of the Numbers story, made more interesting by the addition of a 2nd point of view -- something that's normally tricky and can weaken a story, rather than improve it. The dystopian/post-apocalyptic element was much stronger in this one, so readers of Numbers who were disappointed with that aspect in book 1 will be pleased with book 2, I think. With The ChaØs, Rachel Ward has cemented herself as an author to watch for me, and I'm eager to see how the story turns out.
Sarah, who has led a much more cushiony life than Adam, has problems of her own to say the least -- as well as an ability of her own: she has a vision of a horrific event -- one in which Adam plays a part . The date of her horrific vision? New Years Day, 2027. These two stories play off of each other and slowly weave together in a very skillful way.
Rachel Ward upped the stakes in The ChaØs in some really interesting ways. In Numbers, Jem and Spider were on the run, and that really provided all the tension you'd need (not that that was all the tension their was, but it provided plenty). In The ChaØs, tension is built through a number of things. Adam, like his mother, cannot see his own death date, and with a huge cataclysmic event coming, he's worried he'll be one of the "twenty-sevens" -- and there are things to support the idea that he just might be. This, coupled with Sarahs' nightmare vision, provides a strong baseline for the tension and unease of the novel, and creates a sense of immediacy. But other things -- the idea of the cataclysmic event, the increase in "Big Brother" style governement, tensions between Adam and Sarah, and tensions of a wholly different sort with a boy who targets Adam -- all of these work together to keep the reader feeling anxious, knowing that any minute, the other shoe is going to drop. It just has to.
I loved this. Rachel Ward can keep you on the edge of your seat for sure. (Side note: This was a read-in-one-sitting type of book for me. No matter how many times I told myself that I needed to go to bed, I simply couldn't stop until I knew.)
There were a few drawbacks for me. There were times, especially in the beginning of the book, where things mirrored book 1 to the extent that I wondered if it was just going to be a rehashing of the same story. Adam has anger issues, as Jem did, and the way it sometimes came out of nowhere and he just had to act out and break something or freak out (and then later, when Sarah had to do the exact same), just started to feel a littel hollow to me. Like Ward couldn't find another way to show her characters angst. But it was something that was either righted at some point, or I got so caught up that I failed to notice it, because at some point in the book, I was completey invested and not aware of any "hollowness" or repetition. It also could have just been a symptom of me reading the two books back to back, come to think of it... It certainly wasn't enough to keep me from recommending these books, or to keep me from adding the final book, Infinity, to my wishlist.
All told, this a strong and complex continuation of the Numbers story, made more interesting by the addition of a 2nd point of view -- something that's normally tricky and can weaken a story, rather than improve it. The dystopian/post-apocalyptic element was much stronger in this one, so readers of Numbers who were disappointed with that aspect in book 1 will be pleased with book 2, I think. With The ChaØs, Rachel Ward has cemented herself as an author to watch for me, and I'm eager to see how the story turns out.
November 18, 2012
Rebecca Cummings
Block C
November 14, 2012
TH3 CHA0S
I would recommend the book TH3 CHA0S by Rachel Ward to a friend because the novel is suspenseful, the conflict becomes bigger, and throughout the story the main characters change.
I believe that throughout the story the main characters feelings change toward one another. In the beginning of the book one of the protagonist’s Sarah hated a boy named Adam. She would say mean things to him like “I don’t want to see you again, bastard.”(164) As Sarah starts to learn more about Adam she starts to like him. She tries to help him. For example, when something happened to Adam, Sarah tried to help him. She kept telling Adam he needed to see a doctor but instead, “He says it doesn’t hurt, but it hurts to look at him.”(334) These two quotes show how the characters change drastically. In the beginning of the book when Sarah first meets Adam, she becomes terrified of him. This is because Sarah’s afraid that Adam will take away her daughter Mia. Once Sarah realized this she decided to run away from Adam. The only problem was Adam wouldn’t stop looking for her unless he found Sarah. When he did Sarah would yell at him, or even hurt him. Adam cared too much about her to give up, and Sarah’s feelings about Adam started to change. Sarah went from being terrified of Adam to feeling a lot different. The first quote is also an example of why people might want to ban this book. This is because there are many curse words, and people might be afraid kids will repeat the bad language. If the kids are mature enough, they will know better. They won’t repeat the bad language, and instead they will focus on the important parts in the book like the conflict.
Other than characters changing, there are multiple twists with the conflict in the story. There are some twists that aren’t very important, but some are very important, and the suspense grows. For example, Adam faces a challenge in the story when he found Sarah out in the cold, and she wasn’t responding to him. Adam thought, “She can’t be dead. Her number is 07252075.Numbers don’t change. Or do they? Is she the proof they can?”(247) This quote connects to my claim because this part in the book was very suspenseful. I couldn’t put the book down until I figured out what happened. When I did read what happened to a character, it made a big difference in the book, and changed my perspective on the protagonist’s feelings. Another reason someone might want to ban this book is because people could not like the twists in the story. They might think it’s confusing and pointless. The twists make the book more suspenseful. The book wouldn’t be as interesting if there weren’t any twists put into this book.
The last reason that supports my claim is, as I got closer to the end, I couldn’t stop reading. I could not stop reading when I started to read, “HAPPY NEW YEAR! Outside fireworks are going off like all of London is a battlefield…And then with a pop! the TV switches off, and the house is plunged into darkness.”(282) since the beginning of the book, I couldn’t wait to figure out what happened on 01012027. Right when the clock turned to 12:01 in the book “chaos” started to happen. There were so many things going on I couldn’t stop reading. There was just too much going on for me to stop in the middle of it. That made the book ten times better. I understand that some people would think that people shouldn’t read this book because of some of the language, and some of the things the author put in the book. I believe that the novel TH3 Cha0S by Rachel Ward is a suspenseful book that has changing characters, and a continuous conflict. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend.
Block C
November 14, 2012
TH3 CHA0S
I would recommend the book TH3 CHA0S by Rachel Ward to a friend because the novel is suspenseful, the conflict becomes bigger, and throughout the story the main characters change.
I believe that throughout the story the main characters feelings change toward one another. In the beginning of the book one of the protagonist’s Sarah hated a boy named Adam. She would say mean things to him like “I don’t want to see you again, bastard.”(164) As Sarah starts to learn more about Adam she starts to like him. She tries to help him. For example, when something happened to Adam, Sarah tried to help him. She kept telling Adam he needed to see a doctor but instead, “He says it doesn’t hurt, but it hurts to look at him.”(334) These two quotes show how the characters change drastically. In the beginning of the book when Sarah first meets Adam, she becomes terrified of him. This is because Sarah’s afraid that Adam will take away her daughter Mia. Once Sarah realized this she decided to run away from Adam. The only problem was Adam wouldn’t stop looking for her unless he found Sarah. When he did Sarah would yell at him, or even hurt him. Adam cared too much about her to give up, and Sarah’s feelings about Adam started to change. Sarah went from being terrified of Adam to feeling a lot different. The first quote is also an example of why people might want to ban this book. This is because there are many curse words, and people might be afraid kids will repeat the bad language. If the kids are mature enough, they will know better. They won’t repeat the bad language, and instead they will focus on the important parts in the book like the conflict.
Other than characters changing, there are multiple twists with the conflict in the story. There are some twists that aren’t very important, but some are very important, and the suspense grows. For example, Adam faces a challenge in the story when he found Sarah out in the cold, and she wasn’t responding to him. Adam thought, “She can’t be dead. Her number is 07252075.Numbers don’t change. Or do they? Is she the proof they can?”(247) This quote connects to my claim because this part in the book was very suspenseful. I couldn’t put the book down until I figured out what happened. When I did read what happened to a character, it made a big difference in the book, and changed my perspective on the protagonist’s feelings. Another reason someone might want to ban this book is because people could not like the twists in the story. They might think it’s confusing and pointless. The twists make the book more suspenseful. The book wouldn’t be as interesting if there weren’t any twists put into this book.
The last reason that supports my claim is, as I got closer to the end, I couldn’t stop reading. I could not stop reading when I started to read, “HAPPY NEW YEAR! Outside fireworks are going off like all of London is a battlefield…And then with a pop! the TV switches off, and the house is plunged into darkness.”(282) since the beginning of the book, I couldn’t wait to figure out what happened on 01012027. Right when the clock turned to 12:01 in the book “chaos” started to happen. There were so many things going on I couldn’t stop reading. There was just too much going on for me to stop in the middle of it. That made the book ten times better. I understand that some people would think that people shouldn’t read this book because of some of the language, and some of the things the author put in the book. I believe that the novel TH3 Cha0S by Rachel Ward is a suspenseful book that has changing characters, and a continuous conflict. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend.
March 14, 2011
Review courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy
THE CHAOS picks up more than a decade after NUMBERS ended. Both Jem and Spider are dead and their son, Adam, is being raised by Spider’s grandmother. The heartbreaking ending of NUMBERS confirmed that Adam had indeed inherited his mothers morbid ability of seeing the date of a person’s death in their eyes and the burden of that ‘gift’ has taken its toll.
But Adam is not just his mother’s son. He’s every bit as angry at the world as his father was. More so. I could feel his rage boiling under his skin constantly, even the slightest provocation would set him off. It’s no surprise that he makes a nasty enemy his first day at a new school, but it is surprising when he meets Sarah. She is the other protagonist in THE CHAOS and gets half the chapters. Her story is every bit as tragic as Adam’s and his parents, if more insidious. Like Adam, she’s special, but in a different way. When she meets Adam for the first time, it’s literally her nightmare come to life.
The depiction of London is every bit as vivid as before, both the posh and seedy locations described with equal clarity. The characters are likewise portrayed with complete transparency. Ward doesn’t shy away from the ugly truth, but neither does she gratuitously exploit her characters. They are all hard, brash and belligerent, angry at the world and themselves, Adam more so than Sarah. But I found them both so compelling and realistic that I wasn’t put off by the volatile aspects of their personalities, quite the opposite. I cared about them desperately.
THE CHAOS is a story that demands your complete attention until its over. I was held captive by this story, these young lovers, the injustice of their lives, and the impossible task set before them. There is love and hatred, desire and depravity, hope and despair. All told in beautiful prose by the talented Rachel Ward. The third Numbers book, INFINITY, will be released on June 6, 2011. I can only pray that my number is not up before then.
Sexual Content:
Kissing. A scene of sensuality. References to rape and incest. References to prostitution.
THE CHAOS picks up more than a decade after NUMBERS ended. Both Jem and Spider are dead and their son, Adam, is being raised by Spider’s grandmother. The heartbreaking ending of NUMBERS confirmed that Adam had indeed inherited his mothers morbid ability of seeing the date of a person’s death in their eyes and the burden of that ‘gift’ has taken its toll.
But Adam is not just his mother’s son. He’s every bit as angry at the world as his father was. More so. I could feel his rage boiling under his skin constantly, even the slightest provocation would set him off. It’s no surprise that he makes a nasty enemy his first day at a new school, but it is surprising when he meets Sarah. She is the other protagonist in THE CHAOS and gets half the chapters. Her story is every bit as tragic as Adam’s and his parents, if more insidious. Like Adam, she’s special, but in a different way. When she meets Adam for the first time, it’s literally her nightmare come to life.
The depiction of London is every bit as vivid as before, both the posh and seedy locations described with equal clarity. The characters are likewise portrayed with complete transparency. Ward doesn’t shy away from the ugly truth, but neither does she gratuitously exploit her characters. They are all hard, brash and belligerent, angry at the world and themselves, Adam more so than Sarah. But I found them both so compelling and realistic that I wasn’t put off by the volatile aspects of their personalities, quite the opposite. I cared about them desperately.
THE CHAOS is a story that demands your complete attention until its over. I was held captive by this story, these young lovers, the injustice of their lives, and the impossible task set before them. There is love and hatred, desire and depravity, hope and despair. All told in beautiful prose by the talented Rachel Ward. The third Numbers book, INFINITY, will be released on June 6, 2011. I can only pray that my number is not up before then.
Sexual Content:
Kissing. A scene of sensuality. References to rape and incest. References to prostitution.
September 20, 2015
Okay, so I think I actually enjoyed this one more than the first book. Whilst the first was an almost four star book (I rounded it up as it was so close) this one was a full four star book.
For me, the pace was so much better than in the first one. With so much having been explained in the first book this one was able to flow at a much better pace, rather than things needing to be explained and the pace dipping somewhat.
Plus, with new characters we have a whole new storyline to fall in love with. I admit the character of Sarah was a bit of a cliché with her storyline, yet such a thing played into the overall story and I was soon able to overlook it.
As a whole, a much stronger second book.
For me, the pace was so much better than in the first one. With so much having been explained in the first book this one was able to flow at a much better pace, rather than things needing to be explained and the pace dipping somewhat.
Plus, with new characters we have a whole new storyline to fall in love with. I admit the character of Sarah was a bit of a cliché with her storyline, yet such a thing played into the overall story and I was soon able to overlook it.
As a whole, a much stronger second book.
April 16, 2015
Review to come :)
January 9, 2016
Really enjoyed reading this. Quite fast paced. Straight onto Numbers 3 it is :) xx
February 3, 2017
i liked it a whole lot more than the first installment, but dang it girl, the law ALWAYS SIDES WITH THE CHILD FIRST. she should've gone to the police.
other than that it was great.
other than that it was great.
February 13, 2018
I really enjoyed this and found it so gripping it was almost impossible to put down. Better than the first in the trilogy and enough to persuade me to read the last in the series.
September 18, 2022
After having read NUM8ERS, I couldn't get the story out of my head. When I found out that it was a trilogy, I was excited to pick up the second and third book from the library.
The protagonist in this story is a different character than in the book NUM8ERS. Adam, who is Jem's son, can see the numbers just like she could. Except he has an ever harder time coping than she did, especially after her death.
Adam is 17 years old now and is faced with a very difficult realization - hundreds of thousands of people are going to die in London. Something horrible is coming, but he knows the numbers are fated and you can't do anything to change them. So why is he so torn about what he should be doing?
The secondary protagonist is Sarah, as the narration alternates between her and Adam throughout the story. Sarah has a gift of her own, but she doesn't understand it. All that she knows is that she has a horrible recurring nightmare about death and destruction, featuring a boy - a boy she soon realizes is Adam.
As the date looms closer, each of them attempts to warn people, to try to make a difference. But when the government controls most of the media and won't believe a word they say, they are not very hopeful in their attempts...
The protagonist in this story is a different character than in the book NUM8ERS. Adam, who is Jem's son, can see the numbers just like she could. Except he has an ever harder time coping than she did, especially after her death.
Adam is 17 years old now and is faced with a very difficult realization - hundreds of thousands of people are going to die in London. Something horrible is coming, but he knows the numbers are fated and you can't do anything to change them. So why is he so torn about what he should be doing?
The secondary protagonist is Sarah, as the narration alternates between her and Adam throughout the story. Sarah has a gift of her own, but she doesn't understand it. All that she knows is that she has a horrible recurring nightmare about death and destruction, featuring a boy - a boy she soon realizes is Adam.
As the date looms closer, each of them attempts to warn people, to try to make a difference. But when the government controls most of the media and won't believe a word they say, they are not very hopeful in their attempts...
March 12, 2022
Mit zwei Sternen bin ich irgendwie noch ziemlich großzügig unterwegs.
Das Buch ist leider wider Erwarten ziemlich schlecht ...
Die Idee ist super cool, aber die Umsetzung ... nicht mein Ding.
Die Charaktere sind flacher als flach und Sarah hat mich regelrecht aggressiv gemacht. Sie gehört für mich zu den schlechtesten Charakteren, die ich kenne.
Es gibt einfach so viele Dinge, die mir unlogisch erscheinen und die ich einfach nicht verstehen oder nachvollziehen kann 😩
Den dritten Band werd ich mir auch nicht mehr geben. Die Reihe wird aus meinem Regal sortiert.
Das Buch ist leider wider Erwarten ziemlich schlecht ...
Die Idee ist super cool, aber die Umsetzung ... nicht mein Ding.
Die Charaktere sind flacher als flach und Sarah hat mich regelrecht aggressiv gemacht. Sie gehört für mich zu den schlechtesten Charakteren, die ich kenne.
Es gibt einfach so viele Dinge, die mir unlogisch erscheinen und die ich einfach nicht verstehen oder nachvollziehen kann 😩
Den dritten Band werd ich mir auch nicht mehr geben. Die Reihe wird aus meinem Regal sortiert.
December 29, 2024
5⭐/5
Pojęcia nie mam, dlaczego tej książce wystawiłam taką samą notę jak części pierwszej, ale cóż, tak musi być. Być może podobał mi się wątek Adama, choć wydaje mi się, że zdenerwowała mnie autorka pozbywając się głównej bohaterki pierwszego tomu w tak słaby sposób. No ale całą historia była zacna, choć pamiętam gorzej, niżeli część pierwszą. Mimo wszystko, świetna seria ♥
(aktualizuję gr i dodaję książki od samego początku zapisywania)
Pojęcia nie mam, dlaczego tej książce wystawiłam taką samą notę jak części pierwszej, ale cóż, tak musi być. Być może podobał mi się wątek Adama, choć wydaje mi się, że zdenerwowała mnie autorka pozbywając się głównej bohaterki pierwszego tomu w tak słaby sposób. No ale całą historia była zacna, choć pamiętam gorzej, niżeli część pierwszą. Mimo wszystko, świetna seria ♥
(aktualizuję gr i dodaję książki od samego początku zapisywania)
July 17, 2022
Lite dåligt slut
September 21, 2022
Loved the book, in honesty I forgot to read the first one (didn't know it existed), but it was easy to pick up and catch on and was super consistent throughout the story.
May 31, 2023
Fantastisk bog #2!
August 28, 2024
Leuker dan deel 1, genoten!
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