Author(s): Melvin Burgess

Teen Fiction

The Bloods are in control and they're desperate to turn Britain into the world they want to see: right, white, Christian supremist. Anyone who they call abnormal is a target. Amidst the chaos of civil war the country is on the move as small militia groups fight each other and a sea of refugees escapes the cities and the pursuing Bloods. When her home is destroyed in a bombing raid, Marti must strike out on a mission of her own - to save her father and get his vital software into the right hands. But Marti is mixed race and trans and has her three-year-old brother in tow. Crossing into enemy territory could prove suicidal. Yet Marti's enemies haven't reckoned with her indomitable will to survive - and the gun she carries, which has three bullets...

Kathleen's review - What a great opening! My name is Martina. You won't like me, not many people do. And the tone is maintained throughout, while the reader actually does get to like her in spite of her selfishness and lip, because there's a lot more to her than just that.

This is a punchy story set in a believable and brutal future.