Never Fade (The Darkest Minds #2) by Alexandra Bracken - Restarting February 21st 2021

[Tessa]

Description: "Ruby never asked for the abilities that almost cost her her life. Now she must call upon them on a daily basis, leading dangerous missions to bring down a corrupt government and breaking into the minds of her enemies. Other kids in the Children’s League call Ruby “Leader”, but she knows what she really is: a monster.

When Ruby is entrusted with an explosive secret, she must embark on her most dangerous mission yet: leaving the Children’s League behind. Crucial information about the disease that killed most of America’s children—and turned Ruby and the others who lived into feared and hated outcasts—has survived every attempt to destroy it. But the truth is only saved in one place: a flashdrive in the hands of Liam Stewart, the boy Ruby once believed was her future—and who now wouldn’t recognize her.

As Ruby sets out across a desperate, lawless country to find Liam—and answers about the catastrophe that has ripped both her life and America apart—she is torn between old friends and the promise she made to serve the League. Ruby will do anything to protect the people she loves. But what if winning the war means losing herself?"

*This is the second book in the series: The darkest minds.

I'm reading this together with Tara. Everyone is welcomed to join us! :)

[Tessa]

I started reading this, actually, I've just finished chapter 10. I couldn't stop myself, this book is so interesting and the world building and character development is just amazing.
I'm happy to see Chubs back in the picture and I also like the new characters added to the story. :)

[Tara]

I read 5 chapters, but I can understand why you could not stop reading. I had to stop but it was hard. :)
(view spoiler)[ There is something that is definitely shady about what is going on at the Children's league. Rob and Javin are horrible people and I hope that Cate and the higher ups see that before he kills more of the kids. I think Cate could be someone that she could trust with the information, but then I don't know whether Cate would feel the need to tell her bosses and they are the ones that I don't trust.
My heart stopped when she saw Liam. I am glad that she lied about what she saw and protected Cole and Liam. I wonder if Liam knows the whole story of what happened with Liam and Ruby. I am so curious how Liam is connected with his brother and what he was doing there. Oh, and I can't wait to keep reading and see Chubs back in the picture again!!
(hide spoiler)]

[Tessa]

Ruby is much more mature in this book. I really liked her evolution throughout the series. This author really does know how to develop her characters. Well, at least Ruby and Chubs, Liam is kinda brain-dead from what I heard :( . I think that all that messing whit his brain didn't do him a lot of good.

I also like the new added characters: Vaida and Jude sure give a new flavor to this book ^^. I have a feeling I won't get to see Zu in this book. I really liked her in the first book and in the short novel.

[Tara]

Ruby does seem like she has become much more mature.
I love Chubs too!! So far Vida is interesting as a character, and I think that she will grow on me. Of the new characters I think I like Jude the best. I love his innocence.

I got through chapter 10 last night.

(view spoiler)[ Rob is so awful, but I hope her little stunt will get him kicked out of the league. So far they have not caught up to Liam yet. I am a little bummed to think that he lost some of that winning personality. Cole seems like he has some of those characteristics that Liam does/did, but I can't decide if I trust him yet. (hide spoiler)]

[Tessa]

Oh, Jude is lovely! He's a nice substitute for Zu. He's just so freaking adorable! ^^

(view spoiler)[Yeah, Rob is out of the league. That thing Ruby did made him afraid to return. Yeah, Liam was not the same in this book. They will meet him a little further in the book, but he's going to be a very confused kid. Maybe he's attitude will be back in the last book, but in this one he seemed sort of disconnected. Again, fitting, considering what Ruby did to his brain at the last of book 1. I know she wanted to help him, but messing with someone's brain is not ok. Also, she didn't give him a choice...
About Cole, donno, I've finished the book and I still can't decide if he has his own agenda or not. One thing I do know: he does love Liam, but I don't think he always knows how to love him. (hide spoiler)]

[Tara]

So, I got to chapter 22 last night.
(view spoiler)[ The fake Slip Kid was so horrible. I know what she did to him was wrong, but I think it will save him from himself and others.
When they found those vaccines... do you think that the vaccines were to prevent future kids from being affected? If so, I wonder if they had been stored there for a reason and for how long. It certainly is shady that there was a bunker full of food rations from other countries and it was just left there untouched. Thinking that President Gray is looking even more shady by the day.
Poor Liam~ I do think that even though she messed with his brain I think his love for her has enabled him to keep some of his memories of her, which gives me a little hope.
Finally, I left off right when found her after the crash. I like that she knows her power can be used for really bad things and she is very mindful of what she can do to other people. She definitely feels bad for what she did to Liam and really all of the people that she had to do it to, even Rob. I felt so bad for her after the crash because I think she is beginning to think she is the same type of monster that Clancy was. I think that this is the "losing herself" that the blurb in the first comment refers to. I hope that she can see the difference between herself and Clancy in time. (hide spoiler)]

[Tessa]

I can totally relate to you Tara.
(view spoiler)[While she was in the camp I keep hoping for her to just kill him already. Him and all the other bastards that supported him. I wanted her to turn their brain into mush and just be over it. But now comes in the subject of having a conscience. And Ruby has one [the only thing that keeps her from letting her powers transform her into a monster].
When we see a good character letting a bad character escape we're all mad and frustrated because we know that certain bad character will hurt someone again. But, if we were in the good character's place would we be able to kill the bad one? No, we probably won't be able to and the second we could do it, we would probably stop being good [in a whole sense]. Not to mention she's just a child. so much responsibility on her shoulders. Poor kid.

That car drive with Rob was very confusing. Why torment him when what she actually needed was to persuade him into letting her go. Did she wanted to kill herself as well? That part is unclear to me. Also, the fact that Vaida found her was a little too much of a coincidence, one of the reasons I gave this book only 4 stars. (hide spoiler)]

[Bette]

I have just finished this book... like 5 minutes ago. OhMyFudge! Jude... Jude! But.. but.. grrr Clancy. And I know you're supposed to like Liam... but the girl in me who likes bad boys kinda likes Cole more. If you could combine Cole and Liam to make one whole character... my god it would be perfect! Oh and I am so team Chubs and Vida. I mean c'mon, so so great as a partnership. That scene though in the gas station and that moment!!! Ach my aching heart!!

Oh and... Hi :)

[Tessa]

Yeah, Jude, I loved him so much! >.<

As a favorite male character, I think I like Chubs. Cole is sexy and Liam is confused, but in this book the best developed character is Chubs.... and Vaida. Yeah, I do think they would make a weird/hot couple XD.

[Tara]

Tessa wrote: "I can totally relate to you Tara.
"

I like how you summed that up!

(view spoiler)[ I think she wanted him to own up to what he has done... I was thinking it was her way of getting justice for the kids that he hurt. I am not sure why she did not just persuade him to just let her go, but I think that is why she is being so hard on herself as well. She wanted him to feel their pain and be haunted by what he did. She wanted to torture him and I think that is why she kind of felt good while doing it, but also why she fears the worst about herself too! (hide spoiler)]

[Tara]

I finished this one up last night.

I think Vida and Chubs have a love/hate relationship going on there. I would not be surprised if they ended up together in the next book.

(view spoiler)[ I could not believe that Clancy came back. He is such a good person to hate. What that boy has done astounds me. Really, he had to attack his own mother to be able to erase her memory. In some ways, I wonder if he still is in contact with his father... Some things his father does are so strange that I think he had to have messed with him and made him believe something else. It also seemed like he knew a bit of what his father was going to do. I get the feeling that Clancy may be the ultimate mastermind behind his father's actions and decision making... which is scary.
BTW, I am so mad about Jude dying! Why could it not have been someone else!
I feel like Liam is starting to act more like himself at the end of the book. I love how caring and how devoted he is to Ruby and Chubs. Cole on the other hand I feel just wants Ruby for what she can do. I hated how he kind of threw it in Liam's face that Ruby would likely choose to stay with the league. I think it will be interesting to see what direction the story will go in the next book.
(hide spoiler)]

[Tessa]

Yes, Liam does get better by the end of the book, but I didn't want to spoiler you before. I hoped you would enjoy it more like this. :)
I also don't trust Cole, but, I still don't think he's really, really bad, just thinks in a more drastic way.

About Clancy, I like him as the bad character. He's flawed in so many ways, but didn't lost his humanity completely, or if he did, that happened gradually. That makes him look more real to me.

Like I said, best point this author has is for creating real complex characters and developing them along the way.

About Jude... I'm still sobbing.

[Abi]

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Restarting July 28th 2014.

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[Tayla]

Can a mod change this to may 3rd?

[Nicole - Too Weird To Live, Too Rare To Die-]

I can't wait to read this I read the first book and that cliff-hanger though

[Tayla]

I know

[Abi]

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Restarting May 3rd AND May 11th 2015.

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[Tayla]

Soo my partner for may 3rd never replied so I found someone to do this may 29th

so can a mod change this :)

[Rachel]

I'm going to have to drop out of this one, overbooked my self for buddy reads this month! I'm sorry!

[Twila]

I'd like to join in on this one. Any time after this Friday is good for me.

[Rachmi]

Mods, can you set the date for June 1st too? Jordan, Twila and I will read it next month. Thank you!

[Sarah Elizabeth]

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Date changed. Restarting June 1st 2015 Happy Reading ☺

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[Jordan]

So excited to continue this series!

[Twila]

Same here! Have you guys read the novella yet?

[Jordan]

Nope. Have you read it?

Do you guys want a schedule or do it at our own pace?

[Tayla]

I'm a little behind so own pace works xD just tag spoilers. And I'll read the novella with you guys if you haven't

[Twila]

I've read it. It's pretty good and a lot of important stuff happens to Zu that will probably affect book 2.

[Tayla]

anyone still interested in reading this?

[Twila]

I'm still going to read this

[Tayla]

Okay cool just checking

[Jordan]

I'm still reading it

[Twila]

Chapter 5 (view spoiler)[ This is very different than Darkest Minds so far. And I want Chubs! (hide spoiler)]

[Rachmi]

Chapter 6 (view spoiler)[I think it's a good move exposing what Rob did to those kids to Alban but I don't think it's a smart thing to do to go to the protesters, even if they can cover Ruby and Jude. Because obviously Jude slows her down and it can be a problem. (hide spoiler)]

[Rachmi]

Twila wrote: "Chapter 5 [spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[Me too! I miss him and also Zu. I'm not sure whether we'll meet Zu again, though. It's like she has her own story now. But I'm sure we'll have Chubs in this book. (hide spoiler)]

[Rachmi]

Chapter 8 (view spoiler)[for one minute, I thought it'll be Liam instead of Chubs. But I'm not complaining since I'm really curious of what happens to him after he got shot in book 1. (hide spoiler)]

[Twila]

Rachmi wrote: "Chapter 8 [spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[ I thought it was Liam too. Isn't it interesting how he's handling Vida's personality? His mean side comes out. (hide spoiler)]

[Tayla]

Starting tonight

[Rachmi]

Chapter 10 (view spoiler)[When Chubs tells Ruby what happens to him after being shot, there are paragraphs that are told by Ruby. It's like she retells it to the readers after Chubs tells her. Why did the author do it? I mean it's better if readers (me, at least) get the whole story from Chubs, instead of alternating between Chubs and Ruby telling his story. (hide spoiler)]

[Twila]

Chapter 12 (view spoiler)[ Ruby keeps being rude to poor Jude. He's such a sweet kid. (hide spoiler)]

[Rachmi]

Twila wrote: "Rachmi wrote: "Chapter 8 [spoilers removed]"

[spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[yes, he's braver now which is good, I think. (hide spoiler)]

[Tayla]

Chapter five: (view spoiler)[ I'm a little confused with everything right now but it's keeping my attention (hide spoiler)]

[Jordan]

Just got to chapter 7 but will write my thoughts later tonight when I get home so I can spoiler tag.

[Twila]

Chapter 20 (view spoiler)[ So far the book feels really long. Turning the pages is a chore. And I don't really like Ruby this time around. She's like a mummy. Overly rational and uncaring. (hide spoiler)]

[Rachmi]

Twila wrote: "Chapter 20 [spoilers removed]"

So agree with you! (view spoiler)[It mostly boring me and I have to force myself to finish it. (hide spoiler)]

[Tayla]

Twila wrote: "Rachmi wrote: "Chapter 8 [spoilers removed]"

[spoilers removed]"

I feel like she could make anyone angry (view spoiler)[ plus he seems to have changed and grown up more. He's so lucky to have had help (hide spoiler)]

[Tayla]

Rachmi wrote: "Chapter 10 [spoilers removed]"

Yeah I agree I hate when authors do that

[Rachmi]

Tayla wrote: "Twila wrote: "Rachmi wrote: "Chapter 8 [spoilers removed]"

[spoilers removed]"

I feel like she could make anyone angry [spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[She, along with Chubs, is like completely different character here, which I didn't quite like. I like that she's braver and all but since I didn't see how she can be braver, I didn't buy her change personalities. (hide spoiler)]

[Tayla]

Twila wrote: "Chapter 20 [spoilers removed]"

Wow I feel totally different I have t been able to put the book down

[Tayla]

Chapter 25: (view spoiler)[ wow okay. I had to force myself to put the book down and update. I can't believe he remembers now!!! It was so hard seeing him like that. And this whole Colorado thing is sketchy to me. I understand she's afraid of what she can do but she also did it to deserving people. Knox and rob needed that (hide spoiler)]