Arbitrate

Daynight #2

by Megan Thomason

Available on Amazon now.

It's one year later. Everything has changed.

Remember The Second Chance Institute (SCI). Earth's benevolent non-profit by day, Thera's totalitarian regime by night. They’ve stepped up their game on Earth and on Thera—infiltrating political parties, preying on the downtrodden, and planning offensive maneuvers. And they’re handing out more “second chances” than ever before. The SCI’s abuse of their charter leads to Arbiter oversight and bitter consequences.

Remember Kira Donovan. Broken, burdened, and evading those who wish her harm, Kira enlists the Arbiters’ help when forced to return to the clutches of the SCI and her angry, estranged love.

Remember Blake Sundry. Exiled, determined, and packing an agenda, Blake seeks assistance on Earth and Thera to use his newfound knowledge to bring down the SCI.

Remember Ethan Darcton. Overworked, emotional, and holding a grudge, Ethan hunts down his stolen property, but finds himself in awkward territory, stuck between the Arbiters and the SCI.

Full of action, competing agendas, romantic entanglements, humor, twists and turns, arbitrate is book #2 in the award-winning, bestselling daynight series.

Note that there is final resolution to Kira's romantic dilemma in arbitrate.

Praise for daynight

2012 Book of the Year Award Finalist-Young Adult Fiction, ForeWord Reviews

"Sure to win over YA readers looking for a dangerous, dystopian adventure story" —Kirkus Reviews

"Gripping young adult dystopian novel; compelling conflicts; high stakes; powerful narrative; surprises keep coming; strong writing; page-turner; engaging characters; Readers will be hungry for the sequels.”—BlueInk Review (starred review)

"Thomason's description of Thera's totalitarianism will make fans of Brave New World shiver... SCI, her fantasy corporation, has disturbing parallels to actual companies and regimes that claim to do good while harming people... The author deftly appeals to both romance-loving teens as well as those intrigued by young adults fighting the establishment.”—ForeWord Clarion Review, 4 stars 

Genres: Dystopia, Young Adult, Science Fiction, Fiction, Fantasy, Suspense, Romance

336 pages, Paperback

First published October 27, 2013

About the author

Bestselling, award-winning author Megan Thomason lives in paradise aka San Diego, CA with her husband and five children. A former software manager, Megan vastly prefers writing twisted tales to business, product, and marketing plans. When she isn't typing away on her laptop, she's reading books on her phone--over 600 in the last year--or attending to the needs of her family. Megan's fluent in sarcasm, could potentially benefit from a 12-step program for road rage, struggles with a Hot Tamales addiction, loves world travel & fast cars and hates paperwork & being an insomniac.

Reviews

[Veronica · Rating 1 out of 5]

Spoilers

So I'm thoroughly flabbergasted at the reviews for this book. Did we read the same book or.....



To be completely fair I started off reading Arbitrate knowing that I wasn't going to like it. I was not the biggest fan of the first book and decided to continue the series because my sister and I like to poke fun at the inconsistent characters and absurd plot twists. Yeah, I know, we're evil bitches but it's fun to read 'meh' books every once in a while for that exact same reason (sister bonding time ya know?).

OOOOOOKKKAY,

The biggest problem for me in this book, like last book, was how absurd some of these characters are. They are very very inconsistent and I feel like Kira is a Mary Sue. Like no joke. Forget about a love triangle, this girl has three love interests! To top it off, they all happen to be gorgeous.... -_____-

Blake: Auburn hair, green eyes, described as a scruffy good looking skater-y looking kid

Ethan: Black unruly hair, blue eyes, described as an 'Abercrombie model'.... no joke.

Jax: Blonde hair, gold eyes (umm... yeah), tan... typical ken except with a british accent because lord knows we can't have a YA book without a panty-dropping british accent love interest.

and of course Kira happens to be gorgeous as well (even after having three babies).

I just....



can't.

So the story continues with Kira who has given birth to her babies and guess what, she didn't just have two babies... She had three. One of them is Blake's, another's is Ethan's and of course the other one is Jax's.

Blake is pretty much out of the love square with Kira (which brings us back to a love triangle... le sigh). He spent more than half of the book trying to rescue one of the babies that was stolen (which turned out to be his) and not at all trying to win Kira's affection. And then in the last portion of the book he blew up. No, literally. He blew up. A bomb blew him up while he was trying to protect the horde of babies chilling out in a field (...yeah, long story). So there goes Blake's storyline which I admit to completely skipping over for the majority of the book (I mean he was just so irrelevant to the plot!)

Ethan did a complete 180 on his personality. He turned into a jealous 'cleave' who acted like Kira was 'his' by right. Caveman Ethan was a huge hindrance to me because I obviously preferred Jax, I mean come on, he has the accent. That totally one ups him.

I mean Jax turned into the Ethan who was in book one. Especially in Kira's eyes. It also helps that Jax was Kira's constant companion while she was coping with all the shit going on in her life. Did I mention he has an accent?

So anyway, the book brought a whole new twist. There are what are called Genitors and of course our protagonist happens to be one because duh, Mary Sue. Anyway they have more power that Arbiters (which is what Jax is remember?) and can pretty much stop time and communicate telepathically.. Oh hey, that kind of sounds like Professor X. She might be a mutant!

Anyhow she meets a kid who is a genitor and guess what... He's hers and Jax's future son who came back to the past for god knows why.



The fact that we know her baby girl is Jax's let's us know that she and Jax are going to have another kid (willingly or not... with this book who knows!)

Anyways... I pretty much skimmed the majority of this book. I was over it by the second page really, so don't trust my review...

[Sydney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yay!

[Michael Long · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second book in the Daynight series is really amazing. It went in a completely different direction than I thought it would, and that was a nice surprise. I won't say I was always happy about where it went, but in the end, I completely agree with the journey.

This book is much more about action than about the romance. There is still lots of romance, but I'm not going to discuss that because I don't want to give anything away. What I will talk about is the fact that the SCI continues in their evil ways, but finally someone is standing up to them. The book is on a global scale...even more since the events of this book directly affect every person on Earth and Thera. And we learn more about these mysterious Arbiters, who are finally getting involved in the conflict. We have some amazing character development on Kira, Ethan, Jax, Blake, and we get some major involvement from the Clean Slate Complex characters Alexa and Joshua. This book jumps all around in time with flashbacks and the like so it covers a huge amount of ground. There are also a number of mysteries interwoven into the story and quite a few bits of mythology and meaning behind the world of Thera.

If you read Daynight, will you like this one? I think it depends on what you read Daynight for, and what you got out of it. I will say for myself, I love this book. It is Daynight amplified. It is action, romance, and mystery. It challenges the reader constantly, and it is anything but boring.

NOTE: I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. Covered at http://www.michaelscifan.us

[Kendra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was given an ARC of Arbitrate by the author in exchange for an honest review.
Again, I absolutely love love this series! I love everything about them! I love that we're given different points of view throughout the books, as well as flashbacks into things that happened months ago, things that lead to the decisions the characters are making now.
Kira has been cleaved to Ethan, and implanted with embryos, but their cleaving hasn't been consummated yet. Ethan is whisked away to school and Kira is sent off on other duties, and eventually into hiding with Jax, Ethan's cousin, as people keep trying to kill her, and her unborn babies.
There's not much more I can say without giving things away, so I'll just repeat how much I really enjoyed these books, and can't wait for the next one! New relationships are formed, others are strained, they're all forced to live with decisions and mistakes they've made, whether by choice or a force of hand. New identities are discovered, hate is spread, and life as they all know it is in trouble from one thing or another. Again, another fast paced book, with so much to learn about each of the characters, and why they make the decisions they do.

[Emmy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished this book (I was given an ARC copy for my honest review) and I am still on the awesome book buzz! There are a lot of books I finish and feel happy, this one I finished and my head is swirling, in a totally awesome way! This is the sequel to Daynight and does a great job picking up where the previous book left off. You will definitely want/need to read the Daynight first.

The series is based on what happens after death, what if people are given a second chance (with the Second-Chance Institute) but what if that second chance turns out to be much different than what it seems on the surface.

The book begins further in the future with Kira now being a mother. The book then works it's way back through flashbacks to show where it came to the point it is. It also continues forward with the story at the same time. The book jumps between the three main characters as to who's point of view it is from. The author did this very well though and each jump is labeled and identified so it is not confusing or hard to keep up. It is also fun to hear the thought process of different characters of the same event. There is also just enough little reminders of events in the first book that helped jog my memory as to what all exactly happened in the first book as it has been a while since I read it.

The story flows quickly and I found myself not wanting to put it down as I had to find out what happens next. As the characters struggle to decide what side is the right side to fight for and how to help the people they love most you can't help but begin to root for the characters and want them to succeed. There are twists and turns that you don't always expect.

The things I love most about this book, is not only does it have a great story with characters that you like (and some you just hate as they are the enemy) but the book also gets you thinking, thinking about the implication of effects of different actions and courses in life. There are an underlying political and social lessons too but done in such a way that it does not shove anything down your throat.

This story has action, fighting, plots and plans, romance, love triangles, family, betrayal - has it all. It is also what I classify as a clean book, while the content and story line are at a PG-13 level it is clean of bad language or graphic sexual content, so appropriate for teens on up.

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like the first book, be prepared for lots of twists and turns. This book is also told from three different perspectives: Kira, Blake and Ethan and alternates between them. It skips around a lot to fill in the blanks from the past year. It's marked really well so you know which time period you're reading about so that part isn't confusing. For me, though, some of the stories didn't sit as well with me learning about them in the past instead of experiencing it in the present.

I won't give away spoilers but will say that, first of all, don't read this until you've read daynight and clean slate complex or you'll be lost. Also, pay attention to the line "And everything has changed," because it has. I was actually disgusted halfway through the book because nobody was with the right person and none of them were even likable to me so I expected a train wreck at the end.

However, the storylines are brilliant and Megan Thomason is amazing! The ending isn't what I originally had in mind and I'm not necessarily happy with it but I'm coming to terms with it. And I'm happy to say that it's far from the train wreck I was originally anticipating. I do think I'm in the minority, so you may have an entirely different opinion of what happens than I do. The ending gives me hope that I will be completely happy at the end of book 3. If you like out-of-the-box dystopia which deviates from the "formula," pushes the limits and leaves you breathless, this is the series for you! As for me, I am now anxiously awaiting generate (book 3)!

Mel's Shelves

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Note: My review is based off a review copy, not the final version.

This was a very hard review to write. As much as I wanted to, I didn't love Arbitrate as much as I loved daynight.

The last 50 or so pages of daynight was a huge info dump of the Ten's plans for Kira, Ethan, Blake, and all of their children. You also got a glimpse of how much Thera influences American politics. Arbitrate begins a year after daynight ends but except for a short recap of previous events, the reader is thrown right in. I went back and re-read the end of daynight so I could remember everything.

One of the things that I loved about daynight was the multiple perspectives and narrators Arbitrate does this again (which I again liked since the characters were rarely together) but Thomason added flashbacks to the year between books. Arbitrate covers over a year on two planets from three characters' point of view. Making the time line wibbly-wobbly was an added confusion to everything you're trying to keep straight as you read.

My favorite part of Arbitrate was Kira's development. Since her arrival to Thera she's grown and matured and she doesn't seem so impulsive. I also love that she sees a therapist. It's a minor addition but there's no way someone goes through half of what Kira lived through without some emotional issues. Kira really becomes an adult in arbitrate.

I wouldn't dream of spoiling the ending, but Arbitrate closes with a lot of open questions and I can't wait until book 3 to get the answers.

[Jacinda Owen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow...I simply cannot give this book enough praise! I was given an ARC of this book in exchange for my fair and honest review. I couldn't have been more excited about getting my hands on "arbitrate" since I am such a big fan of both "daynight" and "clean slate complex." I recommend reading both of these prior to reading "arbitrate."

The book was one of those hit-the-ground-running story lines, and I love that. The author wasted no time in revealing some key answers that "daynight" left us pondering. However, arbitrate does leave us with a ton of new questions! Arbitrate, like daynight, is written from three different character perspectives which makes reading them so much more entertaining than focusing on one view. We really dive into the characters so much more, and one can't help but love them even more than before.

A lot of tough and life-changing decisions are made and I must admit that most of them were not at all what I was expecting. Funny thing is though...I loved them all in the end. The book moves at a very fast pace and it is super-tough to put down. The ending...well, I didn't see that coming and man Thomason really knows how to leave us hanging! :)

As I said I earlier I simply cannot say enough wonderful things about this book; certainly not anything that wouldn't spoil it for you! It is a MUST read! Overall my only disappointment is that I have to wait until 2014 for "generate."

[Rosie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Just finished Arbitrate and I really don't think 'absolutely loved it' does it justice.

Like daynight it's told from three characters points of view but it is also told from past and present points of view which helps us fill in the gaps and helps develop the characters. I enjoyed the odd few chapters where you saw the same event from two characters points of view, it was interesting to see the same thing from two perspectives. It isn't confusing to switch perspectives and past and present as it's clearly labelled.

The characters were well developed in daynight but they get even better in Arbitrate and a smaller character from daynight becomes almost a main character in Arbitrate and their character develops really well. (I won't say who as I don't want to spoil it.)

I really didn't want to put the book down and Megan Thomason kept me guessing right until the end, it wasn't predictable at all.

The ending throws up a lot of questions so I can't wait for book three, Generate, which comes out some time next year.

If you've read daynight this really ought to make it's way to the top of your 'to read' list pretty quickly. If you enjoy Young Adult / Romance / Sci-fi books I can't recommend the daynight series enough.

[LoraLynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Preface: I was provided with an ARC by the author in exchange for an honest review

This book was most definitely worth the wait! So many of my questions were answered, and so many new ones were added to my list, but the wrap up? Let me just say WOW! I know it's impossible to write an ending that pleases everyone, but for me, it was worth waiting and reading every word.

The story throughout is very dynamic, and kept me glued the whole way through. I started reading during a night shift, and a (big) part of me didn't want my shift to end, just so I could keep reading!

This story, like Daynight, is told from the different view points of the main characters, which give so much depth to the story, and also explores the world Thomason has created through their eyes, which based on each character's previous experiences in Thera as described in book #1 gives unique perspective to the Daynight world.

The timeline is a little hard to follow at very first as the narratives jump between the past and present as well as between the different character POVs, but those jumps between are very clearly labelled, and get easier to follow as you get farther into the story.

I would highly recommend this book for anyone who loves a book with an even mix of romance, adventure, conspiracy, and even a little bit of hilarity!

Can't wait for book #3!

[Maya · Rating 1 out of 5]

Can't wait for the book to end. Painful to read..... finally finished. I just found the characters annoying. Especially Kira. The whole love triangle thing was stupid, Ethan wasn't likeable, Blake wasn't likeable and Jax was arrogant and patronising. Kira's need for Jax made her so pathetic at times i wanted to scream. The constant reference to babies that aren't hers, calling them labies, as a mother it infuriated me. The boy called "b" genitor plot twist (not)was laughable and so obviously to me where that plot was heading. And it made no sense that she liked this scary boy who did horribly evil things. The past/present writing was annoying to follow. I often forgot which character's past/present I was reading and had to flip back (hard to do on a kindle) to make sure I was still on Ethan or Blake etc - it wasn't always obvious to me (or maybe its because my care factor for the characters and the book was low, my brain didn't feel like remembering). Bailey being so blaze about blowing up dozens of little babies seemed ridiculous - come on, she wasn't that much of a bitch! She was never portrayed as anything more than jealous and vain - being so quick to jump to mass murder of BABIES is a little extreme. Didn't buy it. so I disliked this book, I wont be reading the next and I think I found a challenger to my dislike of Twilight.

[Claire Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Megan Thomason
Arbitrate
Daynight #2

Daynight was one of those books that stayed with me, and I kept an eye out, as I couldn't wait to continue reading the story. I soon found myself completely immersed back in the ways of the SCI with Arbitrate, and it was as if I had never stopped reading the story. There were so many things I loved about this book, from it being written in different persons perspectives, to the back and forth in time to ensure the reader missed nothing. The opposites references have now become second nature, the book flowed so smoothly and with its descriptive nature it was almost impossible to put down. Kira, Ethan and Blake - quite the love triangle, but I can't say anything about it without a major spoiler - all I will say is she makes the right choice! Fast paced, full of action and although it didn't go in the direction I expected, that made it even better. After finishing this book it's still one of the best series I've read and I can't wait to see what's next in store for them all.

I was provided an e-ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.

[Candy Cassin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A spataculer book , even better than daynight book 1!!!

Megan Thomason went far beyond my expectations for Arbitrate. There are many twists and turns with surprises that rock their world. I loved daynight book 1 but if anyone had problems with the subject matter I believe this book more than makes up for it. The main characters have life changing decisions to make throughout the book, each with their own consequences.   I was laughing and crying but in the end I had a huge smile on my face. I got the ending that I didn’t even realize I wanted. Megan Thomason is a talented writer and I can’t wait to see more from her. She hit this one out of the park.  I would recommend this book to all ages who love YA books.


Disclaimer: The author provided me with an ARC (advance review copy) in exchange for and honest review spoiler free review.

[Chantel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Arbitrate!

I thought Daynight was pretty good, and I didn't really care for Clean Slate Complex, so I wasn't sure exactly what to expect, but I was really impressed and finished the book in one sitting

Sometimes I find flash backs annoying, so I was surprised when I ended up liking them. Most of all, I looked forward to Kira's POV. I was happy that Ethan's POV was included too, although I never did like Blake's. I ended up rushing through his sections.

I am curious to see what will come out next!

[Alyssa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am blown away with this piece of astonishing work! Megan Thomason (the author) has done it again, making a wonderful second daynight novel. Every single moment I spent reading this book, I was either laughing, crying, or smiling. And that's exactly what I look for in books. Thank you! Love Kira!!!!!! I was given an ARC of Arbitrate for an honest review.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I began this series early on and have been eagerly awaiting this installment. I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest and spoiler free review. Whether you love Blake, adore Ethan, or are as torn as our heroine, you will not be disappointed. I suggest reading Clean Slate Complex before diving it to this book for more background. (It is also a good read.)

[PreePree · Rating 3 out of 5]

I gave the book 3.5 stars. I wrestled with giving it a 4 but decided to deduct some points. I still enjoyed it but there were some parts of the book that just irked me; such as the whole Maddison ordeal, pathetic Ethan, and Kira being so needy and weak for so long. Overall, good read and will finish out the series soon.

[Joy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very annoyed with this book. I adored Ethan and he pulled a 180. Started dating after 2 weeks of finding out Kira was dead. Are you kidding me? The love of my life, yeah right. Thankfully, Jax more than made up for it.

[KitCat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Of the series, book two was my favorite. We discover more about the world scape and the different levels of power and it brings together some great concepts about free will.

[Rebekah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm going to start off with the disclaimer that I skipped quite a few sections of this book because I frankly didn't care and I wanted the meatier stuff.

Arbitrate was a total bipolar book for me. And what I mean by that is there were things I absolutely loved and things I absolutely hated. I'll start from the bottom and build up.

Things I absolutely hated

1. POV ADHD
The switching back and forth between POV's and time periods and everything was like being on a roller coaster that only does barrel rolls. I am all for alternating POV's, especially in a book that is so intricate like this one, but COME ON. You have to do it right or not at all. It was as if each character had the same exact voice. There was no difference in their frame of mind sometimes.
And what was really upsetting was that sometimes Thomason would do this odd thing where a scene would occur from, say Kira's POV, and then she would do the next chapter as the same scene in Ethan's POV a few minutes before and after, but everything was the exact same.
As an example (This is not a direct quote)

Kira's POV: Ethan looked like he wanted to kill Jax. I, however, just wanted to escape this awkward situation.
Ethan's POV: I want to kill him! And then I glance at Kira and feel bad. It looks like she just wants to escape.

Like EXACT wording and everything.
So very frustrating.

2. Ethan
Our friend Ethan has a very rocky road in this book and he just gets plain annoying. His actions are inexcusable and no one hesitates to point it out to him, however he never seems to care. I feel like there was a little bit of character destruction here just for the purpose of making it easier for the readers to accept that he doesn't need to be with Kira. Thomason went a little Mafi on me (Ignite Me--Adam).

3. Love pentagon? Hexagon? We are past triangles
There was a massive mess of who loves who and who belongs with who in this book and I was a tad peeved at times that no one seemed able to get their act together until like 75% through the book. Too many girls, too many boys, too many babies.


And now I'm going to build the book up.

Things I absolutely loved
1. Kira
Kira was a wonderful leading female in this book. She had major breakdowns and needed a lot of help, but understandably so. And near the end she reached a point where she said "You know what? I'm going to force myself to get better. I'm going to learn to survive on my own and heal from my past." And she did beautifully so. I thought she was a fantastic mommy and kept reiterating how she needed to put her babies first.

2. The romantic aspect
There were A LOT of really sweet moments in this book that made me feel things and were very clean. Even though the whole love pentagon aspect was confusing and annoying, in the end, when Kira made her choice I was very pleased

3. The entire idea behind the story
I think Thomason had a wonderful idea when she wrote her first book and I continue to enjoy reading about the world she has created and the character's she's brought to life. Thomason does really well with making the reader emotional while reading her books. I felt extremely angry in the beginning, and lost and hopeless just like Kira at times, and very happy at the end. I didn't see the plot twists coming, and everything was very clean.


Maturity warning
There was some mature, graphic content in this book that is not appropriate for younger readers. I would not advise for anyone under the age of 16

[Bree · Rating 2 out of 5]

Though I enjoyed both Daynight and Clean Slate Complex, I unfortunately had a really hard time with Arbitrate. I really wanted to like it, but it wasn’t what I had hoped for in the delivery.

My biggest problem was that the book bounced around way too much for my taste. First, it was written from three different point-of-views: Ethan’s, Blake’s and Kira’s. On top of that, though, it also jumped back and forth between the present and a few months previous. Neither of these things are bad on their own, but together, it was confusing. I’d often forget who was narrating, and then a flashback would happen and I was lost. The flashbacks were always marked with how many months, but it was done SO often that I started getting everything jumbled up inside my head.

None of the characters were particularly likeable, save for Kira and Jax. Kira started to wear on my nerves after a while, though, with the way she talked about the babies. I’m a mom so I understand, believe me…kids are a lot of work and she had 3! But she was concerned about them one moment, and the next would run off and leave them behind to do something else. If she had just focused on one thing it would have been fine – she’d be out doing her thing and all of a sudden be worried about the babies. Jax seemed like the only decent, stable character in the whole book.

Be warned, there were love triangles upon love triangles here. Kira had babies with Ethan, Blake and Jax. Ethan thought Kira was dead, so started dating Alexa, who likes Joshua and Adam too. Blake was with Bailey (he doesn’t really like her, but she’s the crazy ex-girlfriend), but started going out with another girl, and Bailey is going out with Adam. Joshua likes Alexa back, so has a beef with Ethan. Ethan and Jax are jealous of eachother. Bailey is jealous of Kira and Blake’s new love interest and goes nuts. Seriously? One love triangle is enough, but there are like 10 different ones going on at any given time in this book.

So then there was the confusion about all the different groups in the book. There were SO many. The Ten, Arbiters, Genitors, Exilers, Second Chancers, Daynighters…after a while it was just a bit much. So, Second Chancers are the ones that died on Earth and went to Thera, the Daynighters are those with enough DNT in their system to move back and forth between worlds, while Exilers are Second Chancers that got kicked out of their respective cities and live in the harsh conditions outside. The Ten are the council, Arbiters are above them (and move Second Chancers to Thera, can teleport, and stay neutral until necessary), and Genitors are basically gods. Confused? Me too, and it wasn’t spelled out for me, I had to try to sort through all the terms to figure it out.

It seemed that the author bit off more than she could chew with this story. If some of the plot points were left out, maybe explored in other books, it would have been so much better. Sadly, it was too much all the time and it made my head spin. Assassinations, threats, conspiracies, bloodlines…after a while it was just overkill and I couldn’t enjoy it anymore.

So, while this book just wasn’t for me, other reviews are positive and enjoyed all the twists and turns that this book had to offer. If you’ve read the first book in the series, give it a try – perhaps you’ll like it better than I did. You’ll need to read Clean Slate Complex, the novella that comes between Daynight and Arbitrate, though…I wasn’t sure at the time I read it, but I know now that you’ll understand a little more if you read it.

[Veronica of V's Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second I finished daynight I one-clicked both Clean Slate Complex and arbitrate. Then I tucked in for a long weekend of neglected household duties and insomnia. I had thought Ethan and Kira would be a strong couple, facing down Ethan's formidable mother and building a life together--particularly after Kira's forced impregnation. Not happening.

No, a year later the babies are born, Kira's in hiding after having survived something like 17 assassination attempts. Meanwhile, Ethan's the lapdog of the daynighters. His half-brother, Blake, is on a mission to rescue one of Kira's babies from a kidnapper. Oh, and Blake's leading the new resistance on Thera to secure legal status and housing for exiled Therans and Second Chancers.

Ethan's shattered when he hears that Kira died in childbirth--she hadn't thanks to Jax, Ethan's other half-brother--but Ethan seeks solace from Alexa, an Earthling daynighter who works for his uncle's Clean Slate Complex. To Kira, Ethan seeking any companionship is a huge betrayal--even if Ethan thought Kira had died.

So, yeah. Theran politics is a total mess. And, they aren't content to screw up their own planet. No, Ethan's other uncle is a US Senator, campaigning for the presidency.

Jax, an arbiter, has a lot of powerful abilities, skills that half-arbiter Ethan is trying to hone. It was Jax's teleportation that saved Kira time and again, and his blood transfusion that brought her back from the brink of death. In seclusion, Kira bonds with her babies, surviving tormenting daymares of her many close calls. Ethan learns that she's still alive and wishes to "claim" her, but Kira won't have him. In fact she arranges, with the help of the arbiters, to command the first ever Theran divorce.

Free of any suitors, Kira is able to focus on motherhood and her recovery--all the while Ethan, Jax and Blake drift in and out of her life.

The machinations run ultra deep in this book. The Genitors, those who create life on both Thera and Earth, are not happy with the manner in which Second Chancers are being "harvested" for Thera, nor are they best pleased with the new militaristic changes on Thera. They give Ethan the chance to fix things--before they step in, and wow, do they make a huge impression.

Joshua Black and Blake become conspirators to bring down the Theran power structure, but in completely different ways. Truly, I can't even sum up 75% of the book in a single blog post, but I will tell you I adored the book. Kira does find a happily ever after--discovering the power within herself to protect her beloved children, and accept a cleave (husband) who loves her absolutely and unconditionally. Blake has some serious issue that he works through, and I'm glad we'll see more of him.

Ethan started out the story with such a bright path and ended up in pretty dire straights--but we can tell he's going to bounce back in the third book. Plot twists and turns will keep you turning pages well into the night. For all the "Love Square" this is a completely clean book--barely kissing, folks--so it's safe for upper YA readers.

[Nikki the Sapphired Book Dragon AKA NixieNut · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having read and enjoyed both of Ms thomason's earlier stories in this series: daynight and Clean Slate Complex, when I was asked to be in this blog tour I jumped at the chance to be involved as I couldn't wait to read arbitrate and find out what happened next to the characters from both of the above mentioned stories. And in fact, just knowing that arbitrate was going to bring together characters from both stories made me even more excited to read it.

I was not to be disappointed. If anything I think arbitrate might be better than daynight. There is so much going on in this story and Ms Thomason's expertly weaves all the different threads so that they entwine just where they need to in order to keep you in the story and moving forward to a conclusion which leaves you breathless and wanting more.

I loved that we got to see the story from the perspective of the three main daynight characters Kira, Blake and Ethan. This added more dimension to the story and gave us much more insight into these characters as a whole. It was interesting that from the beginning of this story to the end, I found my opinion and perspective on all three characters ( as well as some other characters) changed immensely and this was a good thing. These characters came across as a lot more human in this story as they fall victim to both circumstance as well as their own flaws and make their journey through the story.

As mentioned before, there was a lot going on in this story. We jumped from past to present, and one point of view to another as well as the sheer number of story lines that were running throughout this book. There is so much information that we get given through out this novel that in any less capable hands, it would have been easy to get lost. However Ms Thomason handles this comfortably, presenting the information we need when we need it so that instead of getting lost, we get immersed inside the world that Ms Thomason has built and caught in the current which speeds up and builds momentum all the way to the end.

While this is predominantly a sequel to daynight, I found having read Clean Slate Complex definitely helped as it rounded out the characters of Alexa and Joshua a lot more which affected the way I viewed certain events in the book.

I am so glad I got to read this story as I think this series is quite different to a lot of other stories out there at the moment. I also took a couple of hours to think about the book before starting to write this review and I have found that even though this particular instalment is over, my brain is still their in the world eagerly wait ting to see what comes next for these characters, a sure sign that I loved this book and cannot wait to read Generate!

I give this 4 stars


Sapphired Dragon xx

[Sher A. Hart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Arbitrate gets an A for awesome! Although it has most of the same characters as daynight, the books are as different as day and night—both in characters changing and in new ideas. Even with the summary, at first I couldn’t remember some of the details. So I felt like I was missing something until I found out about and read clean slate complex. It gave me a much better grip on the characters Alexa and Joshua along with his parents who play important roles in arbitrate. Their motivations made a big difference to my feelings about their roles and their decisions, emphasis on the consequences.

In arbitrate, it’s a year later than daynight. Kira’s babies have been born, Jax has been her protector during numerous close calls, and both Blake and Ethan are facing consequences of Kira's and their own decisions, all prodded by the SCI’s plotting for power. Arbitrate is all about decisions and consequences, mostly bad. Things are not going well except for evil. Foreshadowing the coming sacrifices, the religious symbolism is great. My favorite is the blood-red office of Dr. Christo at the Cross.

Bonus for me, arbitrate focuses more on the action and mystery than on the romance. The latter certainly drives the plot, but there is less sensuality than in daynight, and I appreciate the shift. Still, these books are not for young teens due to the subject matter and violence, including rape and torture. The author’s new ideas take arbitrate and some characters to a higher level while others sink to new lows, and some fluctuate like people I know in real life, unable to make up their minds until almost too late. Then when the moment comes—boom! They decide. And everything changes.

The clean slate complexes and the government’s evil machinations prove again that Megan Thomason has an excellent feel for dirty politics and intrigue patterned after the real world as well as great creativity throughout the SF/fantasy aspects of Earth and Theran society. There’s a lot of interaction between the two worlds in arbitrate, but almost any other details I could give would spoil the surprises. There are lots of those, lots of excitement, and a few things you’ll expect due to an obvious buildup. Before it’s over, you’ll want to cry and/or cheer regarding multiple characters’ choices and the deadly or life-giving consequences—sometimes both for the same person. I think I’d better I leave it at that—awesome!

[Lillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

arbitrate by Megan Thomason is book two of the daynight series and one year has passed since the massive cliffhanger ending of book one. The SCI has overstepped their bounds and the Arbiters step-in to remind them of their original charter. The Exilers, under Blake, are preparing to bring down the SCI and established a new government. Kira's babies are in danger because of their heritage, and not just the ones that were implanted by force but the ones her friends carried as well.

I absolutely loved this installment!!!! There is tremendous character growth for the three main characters and lots of plot lines that literally come crashing together. Kira is broken at the beginning of this book. She's a new mother who gave birth under traumatic conditions (to say the least), her Cleave has been absent a whole year, and she's terrified about what will happen to what little family she has left.

After witnessing a man gut Kira to deliver his baby and kidnap him, Blake is on the hunt. He feels guilt for choosing exile over Kira, for not saving her (as he believes she's dead), and is determined to rescue his son even if he doesn't plan to be a father.

Ethan after hearing about Kira's death from Blake, spirals quickly out of control. Over the year apart he's been training with his real father as an Arbiter, but he's missed Kira. He's beyond angry with her when after three months he learns she's alive (no spoilers this all occurs in chapter one) and he's hurt. He goes from being Prince Charming in book one to this hideously unrecognizable jealous Cleave.

The action in this book is nonstop, along with the suspense. Told from the perspectives of Kira, Blake, and Ethan you get a full picture of what is going on, along with what's happened to each character over the last year through flashbacks. I have to admit that I read this book in one sitting, staying up til 4 in the morning to finish it. I just could not sit it down! And then the explosive ending where the different plots come together left me reeling. And I'll admit to a little crying as well.

If you enjoy dystopians with a lot of action and surprise twists, I highly recommend you check out this series. It is well worth the read (and the loss of sleep)!

[Christine Wheeler · Rating 3 out of 5]

One year ago, (at the end of Daynight) Kira agreed to comply with the Second Chance Institute and be Cleaved to either Ethan Darcton or Blake Sundry, both boys that she loved for different reasons, both pure-blooded Darks that the SCI wanted to use to create future heirs of Thera, Earth’s sister planet. Because Blake chose to work with the Exilers and to fight against the SCI, Kira and Ethan were cleaved. But before they had a chance to consummate their Cleaving, Ethan was whisked off to finish law school on Earth, and Kira was impregnated with both Blake and Ethan’s offspring. A year later, Kira is in hiding with Jax, an Arbiter and Ethan’s childhood best friend, after several attempts on the lives of Kira and her three children.

While I enjoyed this book overall, I did struggle with a few elements. For one thing, the character development seemed very shallow, and the characters themselves actually really annoyed me. Kira was whiny and held grudges. She expected all three of her baby daddies to have paternal feelings after simply being forced to be what Blake aptly put as “sperm donors.” I also felt that she was too hard on Ethan when he attempted to move on after she faked her death. Ethan was possessive, shallow, and immature and he treated Kira like an object. But after reflecting, she didn’t treat him right. While I didn’t like Ethan as a character in this book, he’s a victim of circumstance.

I can’t say I loved this book, but I definitely liked it. I struggled a bit with some of the characters, but I do like the world that Thomason has created. I give this book three out of stars, and I recommend this book for avid readers of dystopian and science fiction.

Read the full review at http://eatbooksforbreakfast.com/2014/....

[Elizabeth Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall-- I was truly blown away by this book, the 2nd in the daynight series. What I absolutely love about this author, she realized its been a while since her readers read the last book so she provided an short overview of book 1 at the beginning of book 2. I wish all authors did this!!! As for the actual book, I couldnt put it down. Seriously, I think I skipped meals and avoided the phone all day. It was so gripping, intense, gritty and beautiful! So much happened in this book, but it never felt ridiculous or overwhelming. Once I finished the book, I had a lot of thinking to do. I wasnt sure how I felt about the book. I had ideas and plans for my characters, and the author did not follow my desires!! I must say though, I am so happy she didnt!! She made everything work out better than I could have ever dreamed!!! Nothing about this book was predictable. And while I was initially unhappy Kira didnt end up with the person I wanted....I liked what Ms. Thomason did even better. She really recaptured my heart and mind in the end because I was completely mesmerized by what she wrote, the way the characters turn out and the plot ended. I look forward to the next book, and seeing what the next adventure is for this group. This is a MUST READ for anyone interested in a great dystopian adventure with a final ending and romantic entanglements that ends perfectly! (But you do have to read the first one, though it is WELL worth it! I promise!!!)

Cover- Interesting
Rating: PG 13
Overall - Dystopian Romance and Adventure/Mystery
Characters: Jax, Ethan, Blake, Kira
Page Turner: Yes
Series Cont.? Yes
Book Boyfriend: Jax
Genre: Young Adult Dystopian
Sex Scenes: No
Setting Thera and California
Recommend if you liked- Divergent

See my full review at:

http://beautysinbreakdown.blogspot.co...

[Aimee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was excited to sign on for this blog tour. I read daynight when it came out and I enjoyed the story. It left off in a place that had me anxious to read the next book.

I actually liked arbitrate better than daynight. It was less sexually oriented which I really appreciated.

I have sort of a love/not-so-love thing going for the layout of this book. I love the different perspectives from the different characters. I have loved the characters from the beginning and this book just solidified that. The author does an awesome job of creating characters and a world that I can believe. Getting separate points of view was awesome.

The book goes back and forth in time though. It will be months earlier and then present and then days earlier and then present. It took me awhile to find the rhythm to that. At first I was confused at the jumping around but then I expected it and it was easier to wrap my brain around. I'm still not convinced it was my favorite way to read the book but oh well. It was still an awesome book with so many twists and turns. It kept me completely engaged from beginning to end. The pacing was fast and never really let up. I could feel the emotion from the characters which is always a huge deliver factor. :)

Kira's journey is a good one. Her growth and maturing is evident. I loved how the Arbiters became a bigger part of the plot in this book. Good stuff, that.

I'm so happy with where the story went romantically. SO, so happy. There were moments that just broke my heart too. Such a roller coaster of great stuff. I cannot wait to see where the next book takes me.

Content: Some sexual references, mention of rape and attempted rape, mild swearing

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I enjoyed this book for the most part, I did develop a strong loathing for pretty much all of the main characters. Let's take Kira, for example. Why the hell would she agree to let her Cleave think she was dead? What would it have hurt for him to know she was alive? No wonder he was pissed. Jax most definitely did it on purpose and in the end it definitely paid off.

Speaking of Jax, I instantly disliked him as well! I found almost nothing likeable about him except maybe his apparently good childcare abilities (which the arbitrating abilities he has probably helped with). He was very smooth in wheedling his way into Kira's life and nudging out Ethan.

Ah, Ethan. I liked him a whole lot in the last book, but what kind of ass moves on so quickly when his spouse is dead? I thought he went on and on about how "Kira is the only woman for me" in the last book. Apparently not!

Blake was a bit different. Anyone who would get blown up for a bunch of babies he apparently doesn't care much about is okay in my book. Its a shame we can't see how his relationship with Madison will develop.

The time jumping off this book also threw me off. Somehow the author pulled it off, but it was greatly annoying. The last book was so much easier to just read from point A to point B, not leaping around all over the past year (and even past few minutes in some instances). It was also never made clear why Kira was the target of so many assassinations...will that be addressed in the third installment?

I am looking forward to the third book but I will continue to strongly dislike Jax and Kira for the crap they pulled in this book. Ethan may still be redeemable in my eyes, but we shall see.

[Emily Garren · Rating 5 out of 5]

**Spoilers**
So when I started this book, I was upset. Really upset. What I thought was going to happen did not happen and I couldn't believe that the characters were making the choices they made. But now that I've finished the book I am just totally in love and everything makes perfect sense. I loved everything about Daynight, the love triangle, the warped society and the idea that there is an inverse world. Obviously in Daynight everyone roots for Ethan, and in Arbitrate I found myself trying desperately to hold onto the perfect image of him. I was so angry when he turned into a different person. I felt that is was very inconsistent with the character portrayed in Daynight...but then I had to remind myself. These are teenagers. I'm 22 and I don't pretend to have anything in my life figured out. Kira is around 17, Blake is around that age too, Ethan and Jax are both around 20-21. These are just young people that were put through some seriously messed up things. I think it would be more unrealistic to have them come out Daynight completely unscathed. At first I felt annoyed with Kira in this book. But then I started to think about how I would handle all the things she was put through. I would have a mental breakdown too! And having been separated from Ethan for a year, it makes sense that they would grow apart. I read too many novels where the first guy they meet is "the one" and they automatically would risk their lives for each other in the name of "true love". I think this book has a major underlying meaning and message: "True love isn't always immediate. It takes time. You have to build trust and break down walls". That is really why I loved this book. The characters are so much more real than in other books!