State of Refuge

State of Refuge #1

by David Korson

In a post-American world, where an oppressive global government blankets all of humanity, the entire prison system has been dismissed in favor of an ungoverned region of forced exile. Caustically, it is named the State of Refuge. Amidst violence and anarchy, the convicts within must fend for themselves if they hope to survive. When seventeen-year-old Derek Vaskez is wrongly sentenced there, he finds himself caught up in a conspiracy much larger than he could ever imagine. He alone possesses something that many ruthless people are searching for and would kill to obtain—something so valuable that it could change the entire world as he knows it.

Genres: Young Adult, Dystopia

284 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 25, 2012

About the author

I enjoy reading books that are fun, exciting, and relatively clean. So I try to incorporate those qualities into the stories I write. If you like to read teen, young adult, new adult, dystopian, time travel, science fiction, humor, light romance, or action/adventure books with interesting characters and intriguing plots, check out my books!

Reviews

[Robert Vaughn · Rating 5 out of 5]

**please note did not not purchase this book. I was given an electronic copy from the author, David Korson in exchange for a honest review**

State of Refuge is a great dystopian work of art written by David Korson. Derek Vaskez life is ripped away from him at the drop of a dime when he sentenced for a crime he didn’t commit. His punishment, being sent to The State of Refuge. The State of Refuge (the location not the book.) Is an extensive region of land cut off the rest of civilization where the guilty now go. To get the answers he needs, Derek must first escape hell on earth. The State of Refuge is home to murders, rapists, and evil itself.
​

What I enjoyed.

​The first thing that I noticed about the story is that it is extremely well written. A prime example of this is that throughout the book Derek has flashbacks to his time before being in the State of Refuge. The flashbacks flowed seamlessly into the overall story. This story, with all its action, drama, suspense and even a bit of romance, all flows together. The characters are very well flushed out. Each character has meaning and purpose. Korsons writing is very descriptive and rich with detail. His writing makes it very easy to paint this harsh and unforgiving world in your head.

​What I didn’t enjoy.

​I honestly have no complaints.

​Overall

​States of Refuge is a great dystopian work of art. To me it puts me in the mind of a darker and more gruesome Hunger Games with a splash of Escape from L.A. This a great read for anyone. Even if you not a big fan of this genre I still recommend you pick this one up. This story is very well put together and has a little bit of everything for everyone, all of which is rich in details to get lost in. This is the first of a three-book series. If the rest of series is like this, then I foresee the other two being well written page turners that I look forward to getting my hands on.

[Ellie Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

After the final war, an oppressive global government dominates the planet, erasing our history, altering our language, and deciding what jobs we do, and where we go. There is no freedom!

{As a warning: there are some references to brutal sexual assault at times, though only near the start, when some prisoners in the State of Refuge attack some female prisoners, resulting in the women's deaths.}



~Summary~

When seventeen-year-old Derek Vasuez is accused of murdering his own parents, his simple life with his peers and loving girlfriend is turned on its head. Now, he's doomed to live the rest of his life in The State of Refuge with murderers, rapists, and all manner of criminals.



~Setting~

The story is set mainly in Kanadia (Canada, I'm guessing.) The new global government have changed many words and country names while imposing their ridiculous policies on the general population.


A Final War (likely World War 3) is often mentioned, having completely transformed modern ways of living. You can't choose your job or where you live, and forget disagreeing with the government as it could lead to imprisonment, or worse, death.


To view my full review, please see my blog post:
https://bookishbeyond.blogspot.com/20...

[N Flowers · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an easy read...sometimes a page turner! Although a 'dystopian society', it's not impossible to imagine. Give it a try...it's definitely a good read.

[Dave Seaman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It is well-written, generally well paced and has strong characters that you can identify and sympathise with easily. The ending was a little vague but such is the way with book one in a trilogy! Flashbacks are used effectively to detail formative sections of the main protagonist's life, but I did feel that they were rather over-used in the early chapters and disrupted the narrative flow of the story. The story becomes noticeably more compelling once the frequency of the flashbacks diminishes.

I have to admit that first person present tense is not my favourite narrative form, but it works very well here and I never found it detracted from my enjoyment of the book. I will certainly be seeking out books 2 and 3 in this trilogy!

[Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I couldn't put it down. I'm speechless. Really interested to read the next one.