Ascendancy

The Van Winkle Project #2

by Karri Thompson

I’ve been lied to, deceived, and manipulated—again. You’d think I’d be treated with dignity and respect. I’m the one who’s supposed to save humanity, right? I’m the one with the power to re-populate this dying world. But the clones want to control me, force me to give birth over and over again. And my daughters will face the same fate—unless I change it.

My awakening into this future should have been a chance for a new life, but it just promises a living death. With Michael on my side, though, maybe I can save us. He’s the only person I can trust.

I hear rumors of others… A secret society is growing. Tension is building.

A rebellion is imminent.

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

188 pages, Paperback

First published November 30, 2015

About the author

Karri Thompson, a native of San Diego, attended San Diego State University where she earned her bachelor’s degree in English and master’s degree in education. When she’s not writing novels and teaching high school English, she can be found nerding out at San Diego Comic-Con and cooking delicious meals for her family. Karri is the recipient of the San Diego Book Awards Best Published Young Adult Novel for 2014.

Reviews

[Andrea: BookStoreFinds · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ascendancy was a crazy whirlwind of a book. Fast paced and filled with twists and turns. The book follows Cassie who in book 1 was brought back to life as the new EVE to re-populate the planet being the only fertile woman alive. Cassie has 3 kids, a daughter and a set of twins whom she hasen't ever seen.

Cassie travels to Tasma in book 2 with her daughter and boyfriend Michael to continue the Van Winkle project on their own. Unfortunately, they wont have it that easy.

Cassie is from the 21st century while Michael is front the current time. I love how the two are so different yet so similar. There were a few time where I chuckled out loud at Cassie and her 21st century ways. Cassie is one if the most bad ass characters that I've read in a while. Not only is she bad ass, she's bad ass with a child! She has to do all the lings that most heroines has to do (rise up against diversity and conquer against the evil doers) but she has to do it all being a mother too. You just don't see to many Parental Heroines as main characters in YA books these days. Cassie is very strong and i really enjoyed how she handled being the only person (other then her daughters) who can save the planet. The future of the race is literally up to her now.

I really enjoyed Ascendency, I loved the concept and the character development. I loved the mix of Cassie and the future. I would suggest this series to all sci-fi lovers!

[Ria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full Review @http://www.abookishescape.com/2015/11...

The End, with help from unlikely sources Cassie and Michael come face to face with one of their most wanted moments. I wasn’t sure these two would survive but they manage the impossible. Things aren’t all hunky dory but they are on their way to the beginning where Cassie wants to do things on her own terms. There is a lot of things going on in the background that I want to see resolved and come to light. I highly recommend this series as it is sure to entertain and keep you steadily turning the pages.

My Rating

4.5 Secret safeguard, Perilous Treachery, Missing Daughters, Kindling love and the promise of a better future love filled stars.

[nightlyreadingheather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow Oh Wow!!!

I thought that nothing could top the first book in this series and then I read this one!

Cass & Michael are still on the run trying to avoid being captured by The Van Winkle Project coordinators and the government. I love them together and really enjoy the love that they feel for Victoria! All while reading, I try to imagine a world like this one and I have such a hard time with all that they have to go through especially Cassie. I can't imagine having to be forced to bear children over and over again with them being taken and having the same fate. It really is a scary thought.

I love the fact that the author is not afraid to push the boundary with her writing. The things that happen in this series are absolutely shocking! I know some readers have had a hard time with reading but I really love this series. Every time you think things are going to be okay, you are thrown another twist. This book was an absolute roller coaster and I can only imagine what the next installment will bring. Thank goodness I have it on hand because if not...I am not sure I would be able to sleep at night until I did!

[T.H. Hernandez · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars. This review includes spoilers for Mirror X. Please don't continue if you haven't read the first book in the series.

Ascendancy picks up right where Mirror X leaves off. Cassie and Michael are on their way to Tasmania to hopefully be reunited with their twin daughters and run The Van Winkle Project under their own terms. Almost immediately, Cassie senses something is off, and she's not wrong. Where the first book took some time to build, Ascendancy starts off with a bang that launches Cassie and Michael on a rollercoaster ride through hell. There is a lot more action this time around, but Michael, as the love interest, still rubs me the wrong way. He's whiney, needy, and though he'll do whatever it takes to save Cassie, that's his only saving grace in my view. He gets frustrated and pouts when Cassie won't sleep with him, which is something I'd expect from a fourteen year old, not a man in his twenties.

Plot
The plot is a lot more action-packed than in Mirror X as Cassie and Michael are almost constantly fighting to stay one step ahead of their pursuers and remain alive. While it was fun, there wasn't nearly as much character growth as last time, and far fewer plot twists,

Characters
I dislike Michael even more than before, and even Cassie started to get on my nerves, although it may have just been the fact that she likes Michael that bugged me about her. A few new characters were introduced, but I never got a deep sense of who they were. As I mentioned above, there isn't much character development because the action overshadows nearly everything else.

Ending
The ending was more of a cliffhanger than I was expecting, and I'm definitely anxious to find out what happens next!

What Didn't Work for Me
1. The romance. Michael is still all wrong for Cassie. I'm really hoping she doesn't end up with him.
2. Cassie's attitude. She came across as far more angry this time around. Understandably so as everyone continues to lie to her, wants to use her, and attempts to manipulate her, but I found myself liking her less because of this.

What I Enjoyed about Ascendancy
1. The twists. There were two pretty unexpected twists that were perfectly foreshadowed in retrospect.
2. A mother's devotion. Where Cassie really shines is when she's fighting for her daughters. Not just for their lives, but for their futures and their freedom. Sometimes I had to remind myself she's only a teenager, though.
3. The action. There was a lot of action, which kept the story moving from start to finish.
4. Magnum. Still my favorite character in the series. He's smart, funny, and loyal.

[Suey_Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

***Received an Advanced Readers Copy during a blog tour with InkSlingerPR in exchange for an honest review***

And we are back! Whew. Who is ready for it? I know I am comrades!

ASCENDANCY was definitely a bit of fresh air after reading MIRROR X. There was more emotional rollarcoaster's that this book took the reader for, there was more character depth shown and I felt there was a better steadiness to the pacing. 

Something that I felt really struck out this time about Cassie was that she was embracing her feminine heroine side. In MIRROR X I felt at many points she was becoming overshadowed, almost inferior to other secondary characters as well as the romance with Michael, but here in ASCENDANCY I felt Cassie was growing as an adult and circling into a more developed character. She really just turned into a more powerfully, strong willed character, one that I personally could actually connect with more than I did previously. 

Plus the moments of finding the little enjoyments? Hilarious. 

And speaking of hilarious moments, the dynamics between Cassie and Michael shifted, a lot more towards the better in my opinion. I am still on the fence with how I fully can appreciate his character but I will say he is slightly growing on me like a leech, possibly good. I think it was how different yet similar Cassie and Michael are that struck me - Michael being from the current timeframe and Cassie from the 21st century, it was interesting to see how they both reacted. 

Personally I am happy I stuck with the series, ASCENDANCY really proved to grow in the right direction for me to keep my attention. I am still really enjoying the concept, the overall backbone of the plot dynamics and I can actually say I rather enjoyed this installment. I am definitely look forward to see how this one ends! 

[Marjolein (UrlPhantomhive) · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

Read all my reviews on http://urlphantomhive.booklikes.com

Last year I read, liked and reviewed Mirror X, the first book in the Van Winkle Project series. Van Winkle refers to a short story by Washington Irving about a man who wakes after twenty years and finds the world has completely changed.

In the last book, Cassie was awakened ten centuries after she died and found herself (and the daughter's she gave birth to while in some kind of a coma) the only fertile female in the world. Obviously everyone is after her in this Brave New World where everyone's every move is followed and documented.

I was expecting a lot of this book, since I quite liked the first book, but I was a bit disappointed. Not in the least because at the beginning I had a lot of trouble remembering who everyone was and what their role in the series was. The secret society really doesn't seem that secret and their plan is not that original (I have a feeling I know where this is going). I'm very much surprised that Cassie is still surprised when she finds out she has been deceived, again.

Some small things bothered me while reading, in general the 31st century is looking way too much like the 21st. But then Cassie makes a lot of references to things that are apparently completely unknown, like for example Latin (I will not believe that the knowledge of the fact there once was a language called Latin is completely lost to a 'genius geneticist'). Also James Bond and quite some other references are unknown, although this doesn't stop Cassie from using them all the time.

Also, 'son of a clone' *sigh*

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast-paced with plenty of action, kangaroos and crocodiles. Interesting premise about a future world where only one girl - Cassie - and her three daughters and her three IVF babies are the only fertile females on the planet. I feel uncomfy about the fact that she was impregnated while unconscious though.

[Sasha Hibbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow... Stunning. Harrowing. Beautiful. Review to follow with tour.

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Ascendancy” the next compelling book in the “Van Winkle Project” trilogy opens in Tasma where Cassie, Victoria and Dr. Michael Bennett have sought refuge with the support of the President of Region Three, Shen-Lung who’s agreed that they will head up the Van Winkle Project on their terms. Celebrating the future cloning project and the signing of a treaty between the three regions President Shen-Lung has invited not only President Tupolev (Region Two) but the new President of Region One to attend the festivities along with Cassie and Michael.

The revelries go awry when President Harrington treacherously betrays Shen-Lung’s goodwill, Region One’s military attacking and killing the Prime Minister and his Cabinet and holding their scientists hostage while searching for the prize- Cassie and her daughter. Fleeing the reception hall, Michael, Cassie and Victoria seek safety knowing that a secret society whose mandate is to overthrow the corruption may provide them a safe house from which they can look for their twins taken from GenH1. With Michael by her side, feeling she can trust no one, the military hot on their trail, the tension mounts as they look for their children, uncovering unexpected information about the secret organization, about ongoing experiments and missing friends.

Set in a future world where women are sterile after a plague that devastated humanity globally, 21st century archaeologist Cassie Dannacher has been resuscitated from a cryogenic state and willingly impregnated while still in a coma, delivering twins, then later manipulated and conceiving a second daughter. She’s determined not only to find her lost children but to take back control of her life from the clones who want her to be a baby-making machine and to save humanity from extinction. Fast-paced and action-packed tension escalates when Michael and Cassie looking forward to taking charge of the program at a new organ-cloning facility and to be able to extend the lives of current/future clones in Tasmania renamed “Autonomy” an independent island with its own constitution, suddenly find themselves on the run again from the new President of Region One and his military.

Well-developed and intriguing intensity and suspense heat up as they search for help from a secret organization only to have Victoria taken under its protection while they search for their twins. All to quickly they uncover sinister experiments being conducted by Cassie’s former nemesis Dr. Little on Possession Island. Fighting to stay out of the clutches of President Harrington and his military the plot twists and turns as it progresses to an ending that promises an exciting conclusion to the adventure.

In this story main characters like Dr. Michael Bennett a geneticist and passive clone who fell in love with Cassie, helping her and her daughter escape GenH1 develops and grows in character. A pacifist who’s level-headed and optimistic he takes on a more aggressive nature while still showing a loving and caring side to Cassie and his daughter. Eighteen-year-old Cassie Dannacher is wary, trusting no one, often not even Michael who she feels lied to her. Strong-willed and resilient she’s determined to save the twin girls that were taken from her. As the story progresses the bond and affection between Cassie and Michael grows, especially when she begins to forgive him.

Yet it’s arrogant, power-hungry President Donovan Harrington, cold killer Mia Clover, and the cruelty of Dr. Little that add a dark chill to this sequel.

I liked “Ascendancy” and look forward to reading the third book in this trilogy.

[Zu Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

So, despite my two-star review for the first book, I wanted to continue with the series because I still really like the concept and idea behind this series. And I will say, this book was much better in comparison to the first.

I still think it had a lot of problems, and even new ones, but it WAS a read that I couldn't put down, despite the problems. It also gave me more interest in the series as a whole, and I felt like it was going on a better path and was paving the way for a great finale.

My love for the protagonist, Cassie, really waned in this book. I liked that she had grown to get over that selfishness and take on her role in this new society, but all of sudden she was wonder woman. Perfectly perfect at everything, faultless. She got very boring, and annoying. The other characters around her still felt two dimensional. I could not tell you one thing about love interest Michael except that he was in love with her and is good looking.

[Betty F · Rating 2 out of 5]

This has just become one of those read bc i want to know what happens to the kids, they're innocent yo. Cassie and Michael continue to be a mess and I'm over the repetitiveness, they argue, they make up, they make dumb decisions, one has to rescue the other somehow and repeat. This world of going too far with science is such an intriguing premise but its getting bogged down by too much. This secret society feels like too big of an undertaking to develop and resolve this issue of corrupt governments, recloning and whatever world domination plan is bubbling but there is one more book i could hate read lol

[Chloé · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm continuing this series because each book ends with a bit of a cliffhanger and I want to know how the story overall wraps up!

It picks up right where the last book left off, and basically continues the story of Cassie and Michael trying to reunite with their twin girls and start a life for themselves and their children free from governmental control. Much of it felt similar to the first book of the series, but it elaborated on the clones in the society and some of the darkness and questionable ethics for preserving the human race in this future dystopia. There were some good plot twists too, enough to keep me going with the series.

[Ilana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Title: Ascendancy
Author: Karri Thompson
Publisher/Year: Entangled Publishing 11/30/15
Length: 248 Pages
Series: Van Winkle Project #2

Overview

I've been lied to, deceived, and manipulated-again. You'd think I'd be treated with dignity and respect. I'm the one who's supposed to save humanity, right? I'm the one with the power to re-populate this dying world. But the clones want to control me, force me to give birth over and over again. And my daughters will face the same fate-unless I change it.

My awakening into this future should have been a chance for a new life, but it just promises a living death. With Michael on my side, though, maybe I can save us. He's the only person I can trust.

I hear rumors of others... A secret society is growing. Tension is building.

A rebellion is imminent.

My Thoughts

Where we ended book 1 was an intense place - knowing that Cassie and Michael were on the run w/ baby Victoria in the hopes of finding their twins that were taken and creating a version of the Van Winkle Project that they could all get behind. Things do NOT seem to be going well for them as folks that they felt they could trust are proving otherwise and they have really no idea where they are going and what's next.

This 2nd installment of the series takes us on quite a roller coaster. They trusted the leader of one of the regions to lead them to a safe haven in Tasma, not only to be reunited with their twins but to jump start the VW project in a safe way to really help society thrive. Of course things aren't always what they seem though, and others who seemed to be on their side are not to be trusted, and what results is a lot of death, chaos and another fight for their lives.

We spend much of this story with Michael and Cassie, trying to find their way to safety, figuring out where their children really are, trying to find out who's behind a secret society and what it's truly about. and of course, just trying to keep life growing since she's really the only line of life with fertility as an option.

What i love about this series so far though is the way that the character dynamic continues to evolve and play out. I still don't know who to trust and our main characters are constantly faced with the question of whether someone's for them or against them. There's the expected teen romantic angst, jealousy and what not, but knowing that Cassie was forced to grow up a lot faster once she was awakened - well she's dealing with the future of humanity on her shoulders and it's an interesting place to be.

The key word 'newlywed' is their savior most of the time, and it's kept them alive so far. At the tail end of this 2nd book, we are reunited with Travel (Victoria's father) or the close that we 'think' is travel - so i think that's going to be interesting to see if it's him or not. We also see that the evil president Harrington is back and perhaps behind everything - so we'll have to see how that plays out. We have VW2 in our sights, but no sense of where Victoria is or VW3, so that's yet another complexity to it all.

I can't wait to see where book 3 takes us. Are we going back to the Regions, are we going to Tasma? will Shen Lung be found? and what's the deal with the Society? is their rebellion reality and what will it mean? who's truly behind it and how much information do they have and know?

[kelly {BookCrushin} · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 3.5 stars
“Something big is going to happen, and after it does, you won’t need to hide anymore.”

Ascendancy is the second book in the Van Winkle Project series and it picks up right where book 1, Mirror X, left off. Possible spoilers for book 1 may be included in this review. This was an action-packed sequel & it definitely left me wanting more.

There is so much action to start off and things stayed fast-paced throughout. I was so excited for Cassie and Michael to start off their new Van Winkle project in the unsupervised nation of Tasma, but I knew it was too good to be true. So things turned into chaos and Cassie & Micheal are on the run again, but this time things are different. They have no idea whom they can trust and they can’t decide if following orders from anyone, even from those who they thought were their friends. It was hard for them to determine if their so-called friends are doing things in the interest of Cassie, the Van Winkle project or just in the interest of themselves and political power.

I really, really felt for Cassie in this book. She has decidedly accepted her new life and that maybe she was fated to save what was left of the human race, but at what cost to her and her children? Not to mention that she never planned on having these babies, especially as an 18 year old, and if she had been made a willing partner in the plan, things could have been different from the start. Sometimes science can be too determined to restrain itself; the potential for advances of society are too important, but honestly at what cost to humanity? Do the means outweigh the cost? Is it by any means necessary?

Well the government thought so and so does Cassie and Michael; but the difference is that Cas & Michael are fighting for their freedom while still working towards saving humankind, ethically. Cassie and Michael grow closer throughout the entire book as they are on the run the entire time and needing to depend and trust one another, because they can’t trust anyone else. I really wanted Cassie to give Michael a break when it came to forgiving him, but she seems like she is still placing a lot of the blame on him, even though she understands that he may have been a willing participant at the beginning, but now he has put his life on the line for her. Cassie is still strong willed but also scared and frightened. They both take a lot of risks for each other and I hope they eventually find some solace.

I feel like I have just as many questions after finishing as I did when I started book 2. It was entertaining, but the reader in me wanted more answers. I am assuming this is a trilogy because, hello?! that ending did not clear anything up! Come on, I need a HEA! I wanted to like this story more, as I said in my review of Mirror X, that I think this can be a very divisive story, and I felt that Ascendancy had a bit of something missing, it had plenty of action, intrigue and mystery, but I wanted more. Maybe I needed more romance or something to believe in. I am definitely going to be on the lookout for information about a final book, as I really do need to know how this story will end.

[Janelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

**I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review**

3 stars

Cassie and Michael’s story picks back up, right where they left off in Mirror X – with them on their way to Tasma to continue the Van Winkle project on their own terms. And while they are out from under the thumb of those running the project, they still don’t feel like they have a lot of people they can trust – even though they feel some sympathy from Region Three’s President Shen-Lung, as he has promised to reunite them with their twin two-year old daughters that were taken while Cassie was still in her medically induced coma. But they don’t trust easy, for very good reason…just when they feel like things could really be changing for them, the clones of the new Earth once again betray them. And when they find themselves on the run once more, with poor baby Victoria in tow, the stakes are even higher – with a new President in Region One who wants Cassie for himself, Michael is expendable once again to everyone except for Cassie. While Cassie is still sorting out her feelings about the lies she was told when Michael was acting as her doctor back in Region One, she knows that even if the fate of Earth is up to her and her daughters, she doesn’t want a future without Michael by her side. But will their relationship be enough, or once again, the thing that puts a target on their heads and lives?

Cassie and Michael don’t seem to stop running though out the entire book – which is why it’s hard for her to put her finger on defining their relationship. So while there is constant action, I felt like there was a certain amount of predictability to the moves that Cassie and Michael made. Cassie still has her fiery sense of self and at times seems so much older than eighteen years old, she has a naivety to her and the course that her life has taken has forced her to grow up too quickly. I really wanted to like the story more than just 3 stars, I feel like there was something missing – something that I couldn’t put my finger on. While I’m excited to see what happens next, I’m hoping for some diversity and change in the next chapter of Cassie and Michael’s struggles.

[Roxanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of an e-arc from Netgalley and Entangled Teen

This book picks up right where book one ends. Although I will say the way Mirror X ends makes you think Cassie and Michael have been recaptured. Ascendancy is certainly action packed. Cassie and Michael are on the run trying to get back Cassie's twin daughters. They are just barely staying ahead of the opposition.

Cassie continues to be lied to, and let down. She and Michael believe they are going to be reunited with their daughters in another region only to find that their daughters aren't there and no one knows where they are. They barely escape with their lives from Mia. They head back to Trail's to get help again only to find that he has been taken. At this point they try to contact the resistance and end up with Victoria taken into hiding so that they can continue with their search for the twins.

Will they find them?


I hope that this is a middle book, I haven't been able to find any information about a book 3 and if that is the case it would change how I feel about the book a tad, because this book definitely ends like a middle book, some resolution but with a for sure cliffhanger. There were some major twists in this book that I seriously want to squeal about but can't because spoilers so needless to say if you enjoyed book 1 then you must read this one!


I still love Cassie, and feel horrible for her. It feels like from the moment she awoke, she has been lied to, used and manipulated. It almost feels like it is never going to end and that still frustrates me. I really just want her to kick butt and take names. I am still not quite into her and Michael but I don't hate them either. This book was so fast paced and action packed that I felt like I was just flying threw the whole book. I loved it, it was a great follow-up and I still adore the realistic premise of these novels! So if you are looking for a futuristic sci-fi feel than look no further The Van Wrinkle Project series is so good. Realistic, gritty and a little dark!

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recently wanted a change at times and get into novels that had more story with occasionally hints of romance plus even see what the youth was into. I was given the opportunity to read this one so I snatched it. It is a not read alot storyline for me so refreshing and exciting it became. I do not know if I would of handled it as well as Cassie did and will, but she turned out to be one extra-ordinary girl. Cassie and Michael were on their way to a signing of importance but also to be reunited with their twin daughters but things go really left field. Michael is not your ordinary male either and very few human females are left and used for one purpose mostly. It has also not been that long since she was awakened from a sleep state. You are given a solid beginning to follow and when the action really begins you are no longer anywhere but with them as they take Victoria and run for their lives with the other goal to get the twins. Hold onto your seat as you go from one scene to another with those they meet along the way that will aide them or hinder them. The things they must do are fascinating, with especially what they have to work with. I have not read anything quite like it. They do have real feelings for each other but that is not by no means what they can focus on if they are to be successful. The truly excruciating part where you will grip whatever is when they reach the island because anticipation has reached a climax. This author gives you tremendous reading but will leave you with ahhhh darn. Now am like a cat to see what they will do next.

[Cassie · Rating 4 out of 5]

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

After waking up 1000 year in the future Cassie is the only person that can save humanity from its current destiny but yet again she has been lied to and deceived. All Cassie wants is to be treated with a little dignity and respect, which she deserves as the only person that can repopulate the dying world.

Ascendancy does a wonderful job of picking up right where Mirror X left off. I enjoyed this book a lot although at times I felt like the amount of time passing in the book was not equivalent to what it felt like as a the reader. All together the events of this book were only apparently a week where as to me as the reader the pacing made the book feel like it took the period of closer to between 3 and 4 weeks. Overall that is my only complaint about this book. I love the main character Cassie because she is such an empowering character to read about.

[Charity · Rating 4 out of 5]

For full review please go to: 5girlsbookreviews.blogspot.com, twitter @camartinez and Facebook "5 Girls Book Reviews"

REVIEW BY: Arianna, age 12 years, 15 days until 13!

MAY CONTAIN SPOILER:

This book was very interesting!

My favorite character is Cassie because she is resilient and strong, even when her family is taken away she keeps her wits and moves forward.

My favorite part is when Shen-Lung speaks to Cassie at the gifting ceremony.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a super fast paced story and I think I would have enjoyed it more if I had read book 1 first. Since I did not read the first book some of Cassie and Michaels story had holes in it for me, but it did not take me long to get up to speed. I may pick up the first book to fill in some holes, but don't believe it is strictly necessary. This is a very talented new to me author and I will be looking for more books from her in the future.

[LadiesMan217 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked this book better than the first. Cassie wasn't such a naive bitch in this book, she was more likable. Hope there is going to be a third book. There is right? Feel like this story isn't done yet.

[T. Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Noooo! I cannot wait for the next book.
Intense. I was wanting more the second I started reading.
Wow!!! Wow!!!! Wow!!! I loved it.