3.5/5 stars. The prison ship is dying, many of the prisoners are dead, and Dred and her crew have an alliance with the mercenary leader to work together to get off the ship. But Silence, one of the last remaining prisoners on-board, and a longtime enemy of Dred's would rather they all die on the ship.

What was really cool about this book: the Silence backstory that's been building and that comes to a head here. It added some heft to the series.

What was not so great (but what I totally understand): was that there was so much "and they lived happily ever after" at the end. I wanted some, but it felt too long.

Here at the end of another of Ann Aguirre's SF series, I'll say I really enjoy them. This was written in the future of her Sirantha Jax universe and I'd line up to read anything else she chooses to write like this. (And, do I ever wish Jax and Dred could meet. Jael would hate that.)

[I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.] ( )

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: In the game of thrones you win or you die…well, you get the drift!

Opening Sentence: Chaos reigned in Queensland, and Dred was too tired to come down with an iron fist.

The Review:

Dred, Jael and the others are back, minus quite a few. They are down to limited numbers after losing ground and are facing losing all of her hard won territory. They are working with Vost, the mercenary commander, who lost all his men except for two. They can only hope to hold out long enough to build a ship and leave Perdition. Soon, they realize it isn’t just the Silence hunting them, things have mutated in the dark and it’s an all out game of survival.

Will Dred be able to keep what remains of her crew together long enough for them to escape? Even if they escape, will they be able to make it to another planet or be rescued? Or will hope be the most dangerous adversary of them all?

I wish I can say that I loved this series from the start, and yes, I did go and read the first two books before this one. However, either my mood or trying to keep from being overwhelmed with everything on my reading plate led me to skim them for the most part, and I feel like I lost out a bit. I enjoyed most of the other books I have read by Aguirre, and when I settled in for this one I found it no different. I had no major issues falling into the story despite not giving Perdition or Havoc the attention they probably deserved. I do think overall some things would have been a lot clearer had I paid more attention. That being said, don’t start with this book, go and read Perdition if you haven’t read any of them.

I did enjoy it and I found that I really loved Dred, she is such a bad ass and despite or in spite of being a criminal she is like the best, honestly. You could tell that her people loved her, those that made it this far. Jael as her love interest (swoon) and even though I am not entirely sure what a Bred is, he suited her to a T. They were like, ahh words fail me. He is completely indestructible and he was able to share his gift with her. So that made them literally the power couple to beat. Not only could they kick major butt, they could take huge amount of pain and trauma. The things they survived in Breakout is mind blowing.

A great finish to a good series. Ann Aguirre always delivers and with such variety! I think she covers just about every genre out there!

Notable Scene:

“Jael’s words filled Dred with a deep and incandescent joy, so out of keeping with this place.

She dropped her voice low, just in case anyone else was awake. “I’ve never said it before. But I love you, too.”

She didn’t mention how difficult the last five days had been taking care of him such basic facilities. Tam and Keelah had scrubbed sheets and helped her change the bedding, often more than once a day. At one point none of other beds had sheets or blankets because they were all stained with blood or vomit–that or hanging up to dry.

I thought I might lose you… that Silence brought you too close to death.”

FTC Advisory: Ace/Penguin provided me with a copy of Breakout. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. ( )