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Obsolete
In a dystopian future, an epic battle between the sexes will determine who will rule the world.
After the Blue Pox pandemic wipes out 99.99 percent of males and 99.95 percent of females, the majority under the age of 50,18-year-old Madison wanders the countryside, lost and alone. She joins forces with Katherine, a former anthropologist, in search of a safe place to live, and the two find a group of women gathered on the campus of a small college in East Tennessee. Katherine quickly establishes herself as leader and under the influence of Callie, a former prison guard, begins to imprison men, whom they refer to as the “others”, for what Madison perceives can only be nefarious reasons. When older and weaker prisoners start mysteriously disappearing, Madison suspects Callie and her band of deputies are killing them. After a pregnant woman joins their commune, Callie and Katherine, aware that females outnumber males and hoping to create a new world ruled by women, make plans to build their community and attain power. They devise a procreation policy, mating the younger women with the healthy male prisoners, and Madison must make a decision to either stay and become puppet to their plans or make her way alone in a desolate, violent world. But before she can do so, she meets Jonah, a young man captured by Callie, and Madison finds herself caught between her love and loyalty to Katherine and her attraction to Jonah. Madison is forced to make a harder decision: to stay and condone what Callie and Katherine are doing or risk her life and escape with Jonah.
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After the Blue Pox pandemic wipes out 99.99 percent of males and 99.95 percent of females, the majority under the age of 50,18-year-old Madison wanders the countryside, lost and alone. She joins forces with Katherine, a former anthropologist, in search of a safe place to live, and the two find a group of women gathered on the campus of a small college in East Tennessee. Katherine quickly establishes herself as leader and under the influence of Callie, a former prison guard, begins to imprison men, whom they refer to as the “others”, for what Madison perceives can only be nefarious reasons. When older and weaker prisoners start mysteriously disappearing, Madison suspects Callie and her band of deputies are killing them. After a pregnant woman joins their commune, Callie and Katherine, aware that females outnumber males and hoping to create a new world ruled by women, make plans to build their community and attain power. They devise a procreation policy, mating the younger women with the healthy male prisoners, and Madison must make a decision to either stay and become puppet to their plans or make her way alone in a desolate, violent world. But before she can do so, she meets Jonah, a young man captured by Callie, and Madison finds herself caught between her love and loyalty to Katherine and her attraction to Jonah. Madison is forced to make a harder decision: to stay and condone what Callie and Katherine are doing or risk her life and escape with Jonah.
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204 pages, Unknown Binding
First published February 19, 2013
1 person is currently reading
32 people want to read
About the author
Christy Tillery French
27 books64 followersChristy Tillery French aka CC Tillery is co-author with her sister Cyndi Tillery Hodges of the award-winning, best-selling, internationally published Appalachian Journey series (Whistling Woman, Moonfixer, Beloved Woman, Wise Woman, Granny Woman) and the Brown Mountain Lights series (Through the Brown Mountain Lights, Seeking the Brown Mountain Lights, Into the Brown Lights, Chasing the Brown Lights, Chancing the Brown Mountain Lights, Leaving the Brown Mountain Lights, Traversing the Brown Mountain Lights).
Under her own name, Christy's books cross several genres, including psychological suspense, romantic suspense, and romantic comedy/chick lit. Her short story Investigator Incarnate was published in Cats in a Dreamspell and she contributed 5 recipes to Killer Recipes. Proceeds from that book are donated to the American Cancer Society.
Christy's books have been chosen by numerous book clubs across America and received numerous awards. In addition, all of her books have been placed with the McClung Historical Collection of the East Tennessee Historical Center as part of the local and genealogical history of East Tennessee.
The translation rights for Wayne's Dead were sold to Yacom Publishers of Seoul, South Korea and the translation rights for Chasing Demons were sold to Futami Shobo Publishers of Tokyo, Japan. Whistling Woman is internationally published in Germany and France.
French’s award-winning poetry has been published in America and England. She has been recognized in Who's Who in U.S. Writers, Editors & Poets (American Biographical Institute, 2002-present), Who's Who in America (Marquis Who's Who, 2003-present), Who's Who of American Women (Marquis Who's Who 2004-present, Who's Who in Finance and Business (Marquis Who's Who, 2004-present), and Manchester Who's Who, 2006-present.
French formerly served on the Board of Directors of Tennessee Mountain Writers. She formerly served on the Board of the Southeast Mystery Writers of America (SEMWA) Skill Build Committee, representing East Tennessee. In August, 2005, she organized and hosted a skill build in Knoxville, Tennessee, sponsored by SEMWA.
In August, 2006, French was interviewed for the Norwegian magazine, "Magasinet", published by "Dagbladet" in an article by Kjersti Flaa about beauty scams and women's constant search for the right products.. Her article on Genre Fiction vs. Literary Fiction was utilized by the University of Florida in Spring, 2006 as part of the coursework for Crime and Detective Fiction. Her essay on The History of Makeup has been published in the book Exploring Beauty by Joanne Strobert.
French worked as a paralegal until she decided she preferred to be her own boss. In the past, she owned and operated a medical transcription service for psychiatrists and psychologists, a transcription service for court reporters, and freelanced as a paralegal. With her husband, she has co-owned a cartage company, industrial tire service, and most recently, an industrial equipment service and industrial battery service.
Under her own name, Christy's books cross several genres, including psychological suspense, romantic suspense, and romantic comedy/chick lit. Her short story Investigator Incarnate was published in Cats in a Dreamspell and she contributed 5 recipes to Killer Recipes. Proceeds from that book are donated to the American Cancer Society.
Christy's books have been chosen by numerous book clubs across America and received numerous awards. In addition, all of her books have been placed with the McClung Historical Collection of the East Tennessee Historical Center as part of the local and genealogical history of East Tennessee.
The translation rights for Wayne's Dead were sold to Yacom Publishers of Seoul, South Korea and the translation rights for Chasing Demons were sold to Futami Shobo Publishers of Tokyo, Japan. Whistling Woman is internationally published in Germany and France.
French’s award-winning poetry has been published in America and England. She has been recognized in Who's Who in U.S. Writers, Editors & Poets (American Biographical Institute, 2002-present), Who's Who in America (Marquis Who's Who, 2003-present), Who's Who of American Women (Marquis Who's Who 2004-present, Who's Who in Finance and Business (Marquis Who's Who, 2004-present), and Manchester Who's Who, 2006-present.
French formerly served on the Board of Directors of Tennessee Mountain Writers. She formerly served on the Board of the Southeast Mystery Writers of America (SEMWA) Skill Build Committee, representing East Tennessee. In August, 2005, she organized and hosted a skill build in Knoxville, Tennessee, sponsored by SEMWA.
In August, 2006, French was interviewed for the Norwegian magazine, "Magasinet", published by "Dagbladet" in an article by Kjersti Flaa about beauty scams and women's constant search for the right products.. Her article on Genre Fiction vs. Literary Fiction was utilized by the University of Florida in Spring, 2006 as part of the coursework for Crime and Detective Fiction. Her essay on The History of Makeup has been published in the book Exploring Beauty by Joanne Strobert.
French worked as a paralegal until she decided she preferred to be her own boss. In the past, she owned and operated a medical transcription service for psychiatrists and psychologists, a transcription service for court reporters, and freelanced as a paralegal. With her husband, she has co-owned a cartage company, industrial tire service, and most recently, an industrial equipment service and industrial battery service.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 22, 2013
Obsolete by CT French
I have been a fan of Christy Tillery French’s books for many years now and with each book she brings something new to the table. In the past it’s been suspense, thrillers, mysteries, and even romantic comedy. I’ve enjoyed them all but with her newest, Obsolete, she tops them all. Obsolete, a futuristic, dystopian nail-biter, is a cross between Stephen King’s The Stand and Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games. It is Ms. French’s best yet and one I’m sure I’ll read over and over again (I’ve already read it three times!), just as I have the aforementioned novels.
After a Blue Pox pandemic nearly wipes out the human race, including 18-year-old Madison’s family, she goes looking for other people. She soon finds a horse walking down the middle of the interstate, names him Boomer, and takes him along as she continues her search. In time, she finds Katherine, a former anthropologist. The two team up and eventually arrive at a small college campus in East Tennessee where a group of women are living.
Katherine becomes the leader of the group and Callie, a former prison guard is made head of security. Callie hates men and before long convinces Katherine that the community would be better off with only women. They decide to imprison any men, or “others” as they call them, and use them for slave labor. The younger men will not only be forced to work, they will also be used in their procreation plan; mating young women of childbearing age with the men in order to increase the population of the community.
Madison doesn’t agree with their plans but can’t bring herself to question the woman who saved her life. She loves Katherine and considers her family, and she doesn’t want to go against her, but she’s reluctant to accept Katherine’s and Callie’s plans for the all-women community they’ve named Androk. And she especially doesn’t want to be a part of their procreation plan, until Sarah, heavily pregnant, and Seth arrive.
Seth, of course, is taken into custody while Sarah is taken to the infirmary to await the imminent birth of her child. When the baby, a boy, is born, Katherine and Callie threaten to take him away. Maddie and a nurse convince Katherine that the baby needs to stay with Sarah since her breast milk give him the nutrients he needs to fight off the blue pox. Maddie and Sarah both know it’s only a temporary retrieve and Sarah asks Maddie to help her and Seth escape.
Maddie agrees and she tells Katherine she’ll be a part of the procreation plan as long as she can pick the man she’s to mate with. She chooses Seth. Katherine agrees and Maddie and Seth spend their time together plotting an escape plan for him, Sarah, and the baby. The escape is successful and thanks to the help of some other women in the commune, Maddie’s part in the plan isn’t discovered.
Soon after, Jonah enters the camp and is taken into custody. Maddie sees him and is immediately drawn to him so when Katherine insists that she once again participate in the procreation plan, Maddie agrees with the same condition as before.
This time she chooses Jonah...and the rest, you might say, is yet to be written history. Well, actually, Ms. French has already written it but I don’t want to include any spoilers in this review so I’ll leave it to you to find out for yourself what happens.
Ms. French has an adept hand at writing characters the reader will become emotionally attached to. They are believable, likable, except of course, when they’re not—another thing she excels at is creepy villains!—and with her realistic dialogue, the reader often feels as if they could join right in the conversation happening on the page. Ms. French deftly interweaves several sub-plots which keep the reader turning the pages, and as always, her secondary characters, especially Micah in this book, are the absolute best and relatable enough that you feel as if they’re personal friends by the end of the book. Villain, heroine, hero, Ms. French creates characters who never fail to draw some sort of response from her readers.
The real story in Obsolete is, of course, the survival of the human race, with Maddie and Jonah’s romance playing out in the background. Will the human race survive and will men and women be able to exist in peace or will they turn on each other, therefore, almost guaranteeing the extinction of the species? Can Maddie and Jonah get past what he sees as her betrayal? Will they realize before it’s too late that there’s another of Katherine’s security women who wants them dead?
In Obsolete, CT French (aka Christy Tillery French) gives us a thrilling—or should I say chilling?—glimpse into a dystopian future where women—some of them, anyway—are mad as hell and they’re not going to take it anymore! This is one for my keeper shelf—er, my keeper file on my Kindle, it’s not available in print yet but I hope it soon will be!—and it comes highly recommended. If you liked The Hunger Games or The Stand, give Obsolete a try. I promise you won’t be disappointed!
I have been a fan of Christy Tillery French’s books for many years now and with each book she brings something new to the table. In the past it’s been suspense, thrillers, mysteries, and even romantic comedy. I’ve enjoyed them all but with her newest, Obsolete, she tops them all. Obsolete, a futuristic, dystopian nail-biter, is a cross between Stephen King’s The Stand and Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games. It is Ms. French’s best yet and one I’m sure I’ll read over and over again (I’ve already read it three times!), just as I have the aforementioned novels.
After a Blue Pox pandemic nearly wipes out the human race, including 18-year-old Madison’s family, she goes looking for other people. She soon finds a horse walking down the middle of the interstate, names him Boomer, and takes him along as she continues her search. In time, she finds Katherine, a former anthropologist. The two team up and eventually arrive at a small college campus in East Tennessee where a group of women are living.
Katherine becomes the leader of the group and Callie, a former prison guard is made head of security. Callie hates men and before long convinces Katherine that the community would be better off with only women. They decide to imprison any men, or “others” as they call them, and use them for slave labor. The younger men will not only be forced to work, they will also be used in their procreation plan; mating young women of childbearing age with the men in order to increase the population of the community.
Madison doesn’t agree with their plans but can’t bring herself to question the woman who saved her life. She loves Katherine and considers her family, and she doesn’t want to go against her, but she’s reluctant to accept Katherine’s and Callie’s plans for the all-women community they’ve named Androk. And she especially doesn’t want to be a part of their procreation plan, until Sarah, heavily pregnant, and Seth arrive.
Seth, of course, is taken into custody while Sarah is taken to the infirmary to await the imminent birth of her child. When the baby, a boy, is born, Katherine and Callie threaten to take him away. Maddie and a nurse convince Katherine that the baby needs to stay with Sarah since her breast milk give him the nutrients he needs to fight off the blue pox. Maddie and Sarah both know it’s only a temporary retrieve and Sarah asks Maddie to help her and Seth escape.
Maddie agrees and she tells Katherine she’ll be a part of the procreation plan as long as she can pick the man she’s to mate with. She chooses Seth. Katherine agrees and Maddie and Seth spend their time together plotting an escape plan for him, Sarah, and the baby. The escape is successful and thanks to the help of some other women in the commune, Maddie’s part in the plan isn’t discovered.
Soon after, Jonah enters the camp and is taken into custody. Maddie sees him and is immediately drawn to him so when Katherine insists that she once again participate in the procreation plan, Maddie agrees with the same condition as before.
This time she chooses Jonah...and the rest, you might say, is yet to be written history. Well, actually, Ms. French has already written it but I don’t want to include any spoilers in this review so I’ll leave it to you to find out for yourself what happens.
Ms. French has an adept hand at writing characters the reader will become emotionally attached to. They are believable, likable, except of course, when they’re not—another thing she excels at is creepy villains!—and with her realistic dialogue, the reader often feels as if they could join right in the conversation happening on the page. Ms. French deftly interweaves several sub-plots which keep the reader turning the pages, and as always, her secondary characters, especially Micah in this book, are the absolute best and relatable enough that you feel as if they’re personal friends by the end of the book. Villain, heroine, hero, Ms. French creates characters who never fail to draw some sort of response from her readers.
The real story in Obsolete is, of course, the survival of the human race, with Maddie and Jonah’s romance playing out in the background. Will the human race survive and will men and women be able to exist in peace or will they turn on each other, therefore, almost guaranteeing the extinction of the species? Can Maddie and Jonah get past what he sees as her betrayal? Will they realize before it’s too late that there’s another of Katherine’s security women who wants them dead?
In Obsolete, CT French (aka Christy Tillery French) gives us a thrilling—or should I say chilling?—glimpse into a dystopian future where women—some of them, anyway—are mad as hell and they’re not going to take it anymore! This is one for my keeper shelf—er, my keeper file on my Kindle, it’s not available in print yet but I hope it soon will be!—and it comes highly recommended. If you liked The Hunger Games or The Stand, give Obsolete a try. I promise you won’t be disappointed!
June 29, 2013
After a virulent strain called blue pox kills a large portion of the population, leaving only a core of older people and very few young ones, a band of strong women form a commune on a Tennessee college campus, determined to rebuild their lives and rely on one another.
Narrated in first person voice by eighteen-year-old Madison, "Obsolete" is all about what can happen in a world ravaged by disease, especially when the power structure is recreated in such a way that one gender is in control of the other. In this commune of women, ruled by Katherine, a kindly but strong woman, and her harsh sidekick Callie, it soon becomes apparent that the thirst for power has created a new kind of evil in this community that was supposed to be a strong but kinder world.
What happens to change Madison's feelings about the commune? How does a new ruling about "using" men for the purposes dictated by those in charge shift the loyalties within the community and create a kind of civil war?
I very quickly engaged with Madison and Jonah, who has been "chosen" by Callie for nefarious purposes, rooting for their happiness, even as they struggled to find a way out of their situation.
In the end, I was happily settling into an idyllic oasis with them, but the enemies hover nearby, reminding us of the constant danger. Since this is the first in a series, I am eager to follow Madison, Jonah, and their friends as they continue striving for the freedom to make their own choices. Five stars.
Narrated in first person voice by eighteen-year-old Madison, "Obsolete" is all about what can happen in a world ravaged by disease, especially when the power structure is recreated in such a way that one gender is in control of the other. In this commune of women, ruled by Katherine, a kindly but strong woman, and her harsh sidekick Callie, it soon becomes apparent that the thirst for power has created a new kind of evil in this community that was supposed to be a strong but kinder world.
What happens to change Madison's feelings about the commune? How does a new ruling about "using" men for the purposes dictated by those in charge shift the loyalties within the community and create a kind of civil war?
I very quickly engaged with Madison and Jonah, who has been "chosen" by Callie for nefarious purposes, rooting for their happiness, even as they struggled to find a way out of their situation.
In the end, I was happily settling into an idyllic oasis with them, but the enemies hover nearby, reminding us of the constant danger. Since this is the first in a series, I am eager to follow Madison, Jonah, and their friends as they continue striving for the freedom to make their own choices. Five stars.
June 3, 2013
I really enjoyed this book! The-end-of-the-world-as-we-know-it is always fascinating to me but quite often books and stories in this genre don’t give you enough details to satisfy me. This one did. You really understand what the people in this book are doing to survive.
The heroine is very likeable and you care what happens to her. The other characters are drawn very well and they seem very realistic. We’ve known people like these. I will be ready to read more from this author!
The heroine is very likeable and you care what happens to her. The other characters are drawn very well and they seem very realistic. We’ve known people like these. I will be ready to read more from this author!
July 9, 2013
I absolutely loved this book. I was drawn into the main character, her melancholy, her slow burn to develop a passion for life and love... It surprised me and kept me on the edge of my seat. Such a great read....
May 4, 2022
Great Dystopian Novel.
There was a Pandemic that killed 99.99 % of the population, including pets and animals. Most everyone lost their entire families. Survivors gathered in groups and communes. Many survivors of the Pandemic couldn't accept the loneliness and committed suicide before finding others. This story takes place in a community of mostly older women, when men arrived they were imprisoned and used for labor and procreation. Madison is an 18 year old survivor, the story centers around her. The Characters are well written and the story is believable. I read this story in 2 nights. I am so looking forward to the next book in the series. Fasten your seat belt it's a crazy ride.
There was a Pandemic that killed 99.99 % of the population, including pets and animals. Most everyone lost their entire families. Survivors gathered in groups and communes. Many survivors of the Pandemic couldn't accept the loneliness and committed suicide before finding others. This story takes place in a community of mostly older women, when men arrived they were imprisoned and used for labor and procreation. Madison is an 18 year old survivor, the story centers around her. The Characters are well written and the story is believable. I read this story in 2 nights. I am so looking forward to the next book in the series. Fasten your seat belt it's a crazy ride.
September 9, 2017
Loved it.
Fastastic read. I was completley entranced in this narrative. Im looking forward to discovering more of Madisons journey in this new world adventure.
Fastastic read. I was completley entranced in this narrative. Im looking forward to discovering more of Madisons journey in this new world adventure.
October 25, 2013
3.5 STARS: Madison is an eighteen year old girl living in a post-apocalyptic world where a virus has obliterated most of the human and animal population. The survivors are few, but women outnumber men and Madison is rescued from loneliness and starvation by the mothering Katherine who runs a women only compound established on a university campus. This establishment loathes men and blames them for the virus, thus men only exist as work slaves or sperm donors and are guarded and executed if necessary by the sheriff Callie and her armed crew. Madison finds that the rules of the community differ from her own values and her life unravels as she finds herself rebelling against Katherine and Callie.
This story definitely had some fresh ideas for the PA genre, but I found it predictable at times. Madison's voice was weak and she did not sound like any teenager I've encountered...her voice sounded more like a fifty year old. She just wasn't believable and the dialogue was often cliche. The plot was actually pretty good, but the characterisation needed some serious help. I was disappointed in the under developed romance and for me the story is emotionally flat.
My biggest problem: I still don't really know who Madison is...she was too pristine. Where is her flaw (besides her blind trust in Katherine)? Why does she always do the right thing? The heroine needs to mess up sometimes and then rise from her failures. I didn't find myself even close to cheering for Madison or covering my eyes in shame on her behalf because she doesn't do anything worthy of that and that is exactly what makes a book a stand out for me. In general, I think the foundation of Obsolete is solid, but there are some missing bricks and mortar. It's a mystery to me how this is book one because there doesn't seem to be a set up for book two or am I missing something?
This story definitely had some fresh ideas for the PA genre, but I found it predictable at times. Madison's voice was weak and she did not sound like any teenager I've encountered...her voice sounded more like a fifty year old. She just wasn't believable and the dialogue was often cliche. The plot was actually pretty good, but the characterisation needed some serious help. I was disappointed in the under developed romance and for me the story is emotionally flat.
My biggest problem: I still don't really know who Madison is...she was too pristine. Where is her flaw (besides her blind trust in Katherine)? Why does she always do the right thing? The heroine needs to mess up sometimes and then rise from her failures. I didn't find myself even close to cheering for Madison or covering my eyes in shame on her behalf because she doesn't do anything worthy of that and that is exactly what makes a book a stand out for me. In general, I think the foundation of Obsolete is solid, but there are some missing bricks and mortar. It's a mystery to me how this is book one because there doesn't seem to be a set up for book two or am I missing something?
March 9, 2015
l recieved this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. Often in this situation I'm worried if I can find something possitive to say . With this one there was no problem , I loved it !
There are so many other books covering what happens when the world almost ends. This one is rather different, an intersting story, where men are almost obsolete.
The suspence keeps you listing throughout. The " good guy's ( or mainly gals) are very likeable and the baddies suitably evil . Nicely narrated by Carla Mercer Meyer .
I really enjoyed this one .
C.T French is a new author for me , but I will definately be checking out her other audiobooks
There are so many other books covering what happens when the world almost ends. This one is rather different, an intersting story, where men are almost obsolete.
The suspence keeps you listing throughout. The " good guy's ( or mainly gals) are very likeable and the baddies suitably evil . Nicely narrated by Carla Mercer Meyer .
I really enjoyed this one .
C.T French is a new author for me , but I will definately be checking out her other audiobooks
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews