Liam's Story

The Darkest Minds #1.6

by Alexandra Bracken

This is a short story that you will receive after subscribing to Ms. Alexandra Bracken newsletter.
It's told from Liam's POV and it takes place after the end of book 1.

Genres: Dystopia, Fantasy, Young Adult, Fiction, Novella, Science Fiction, Short Stories

49 pages, ebook

About the author

Hi! I'm Alex and I write books. Please note that I don't respond to messages here on GoodReads. Please send me a note on twitter or IG @alexbracken. xx A

Reviews

[Lia Carstairs · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I brace my elbows against my knees, press my face against my hands, and I let them come up—all those tears I’ve been trying to hold in, for no reason at all.

There’s no one here to see.

There’s no one here to care that I’m falling apart."

LIAM NO😭
This was too much.

Liam in pain = me in pain


It's not fun reading 3 different books that make me want to cry in only one day >_<

[Carrot :3 (on a hiatus) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set between books one and two, this short gives us Liam’s pov immediately after leaving safe house at the end of book one and it’s heartbreaking T-T.

4 stars cuz it’s too short.

[jessie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Turns out! Me thinking it was okay with the fact that I don’t remember anything from the original trilogy proved to be a mistake. I absolutely understand nothing from this novella but I want to read TDL because damn I miss these characters so much!

Liam and Cole my poor babies :(

[Becs · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Some guy on the radio called us "the lost generation" the other day. I wanted to find a payphone and a few quarters and tell that fool that we aren't lost at all. We're exactly where they put us."

Alexandra Bracken shares Liam's story following directly on from his release from the safe house at the end of The Darkest Minds in her email subscription service. It's a short 49 page slice of southern drawl, filled with Liam's erratic thoughts as he sifts through the gaps Ruby left in his memory (not that he even remembers who Ruby is!).

The story is actually really fun and fast paced - usually extracts like this feel like filler, because they are, and just give an insight into a character's personality or back story. We already know quite a lot about Liam from The Darkest Minds, so that ship has long since sailed, and instead Bracken shows off the world Liam now finds himself in: one in which he isn't even surprised anymore when it turns out people are awful and every man is out for survival and nothing else.

A bleak look at living life in the gutter, searching for meaning amongst the rubbish.

[catherine ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Liam and it was so interesting to read more of his backstory!

[Veronica Alvarez · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

It was an entertaining book, I liked we see more about Liam and it's good to know him better, the writing as good as always.

[Monika · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have no explanation for my rating other than the fact that its about Liam.

[Sahil Javed · Rating 5 out of 5]

“It’s been so long since anything really went my way that I can’t really remember what “easy” feels like anymore—maybe like breathing without inhaling the ash of the world burning around you”

This novella really hurt me, no surprise there. Alexandra Bracken is so, so good at writing novellas, it's unreal. The way she's able to make you feel things just with her words is amazing.

This novella takes place between the first and second book and it follows Liam after the events at the end of The Darkest Minds. Liam really broke my heart in this novella. I felt so sorry for the constant struggle he was going through in his mind. It tore me to pieces alongside him and it made me really emotional. Liam is by far one of my favourite characters in this series. He is so incredibly selfless and brave and his determination to ensure that the people around him are safe never fails to amaze me. This was a sad novella but it reminded me just why I love Liam.

"I make a choice. I save myself."

[Safiyah Razzak · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm totally not having a mental breakdown on the inside...

[Paloma Umaña · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mi pobre Liam :'( ..... se que el va a recuperar esa memoria algun dia.

[ebs ⚘️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so good, so well-written, & fun to read even though it felt sad.



The way Ruby gets mentioned a few times is just 💔. I can’t wait for them to see each other again.

[.]

drew 🤕💔

Liam you’re so loved by me wtf I’m crying you’re the sweetest kid

[Shoshannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

My heart can’t handle this…

[Misty's Book Space · Rating 3 out of 5]

When you sign up for the authors newsletter you will receive a PDF copy of this story. This novella touches on what happened to Liam after the events from the ending of book 1. Liam has always been a favorite character of mine and I was looking forward to having a story from his point of view however I am just meh about this. It is fast paced and again you get to see what people are willing to do but it was way to short for me to really get into

[Galy · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting short story from Liam's point of view after the first book.

I love Liam. I read another short story from him after The Darkest Minds (my edition has an additional short story from him) and I didn't enjoy that story that much so I was kind of sceptic about this one but I really liked it.

You can get this short story by subscribing to Alexandra Bracken newsletter and I highly recommend it if you liked the first book.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

«For now it's enough to know one thing for certain, and maybe it's the most surprising thing of all: that when I make the call, my brother will answer.»

I'm sorry but all I can see here is Cole strapping his hero hair on once again.

[Angela's Booked · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like that these novellas are set up to introduce us to the next novel but I need a happy ending! I cannot take all the sadness.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. LIAM WILL ALWAYS BE UTTERLY IN LOVE WITH RUBY EVEN IF HIS MEMORY HAS BEEN WIPED OF HER… RUBY RED…CALLING REMY RUBY BY ACCIDENT, UGH I LOVE THEM!

[Scarlett · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a sweet and heartbreaking little novella. I haven’t read many of these books yet but I’m starting to feel like if the series continues in this direction it may become one of my favorites. I’ve always felt like novellas can make a series and so far the novellas I’ve read have only increased my positive opinion of the series!

This novella picks up right where the first book ends but from Liam’s perspective. I don’t want to give any spoilers for the first book, but I am definitely glad we get to see a glimpse into Liam’s mindset at this point. And like I said in my review of In Time, this author has an amazing talent for making you care about characters in such a short time that you may never run into again in the series (or maybe we will! That’d be great). Even for such a short story the last few pages had me on the edge of my seat. I can’t wait to see where the story goes from here!

[Maud · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Liam as a character in The Darkest Minds and missed him while reading Never Fade so I decided to read this one in between. I liked the story, I didn't know what to expect in the beginning but in the end it packed a punch, it once again showed us that the Liam that we met in TDM is really a good guy but he has grown, he has had to change even if he didn't want to. I'm curious to see if this will influence his character in NF and ITA, I really hope so because I would like to see him struggle/reflect on the events that took place in this short story.

I'm recommending this to people who like Liam. If you don't care about him I don't think this will really add anything. If you want to read it, subscribe to the author's newsletter and you will get it for free in your mailbox.

[Noelia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Me duele ver lo mal que lo está pasando Liam. Como se le da tan mal estar solo, lo que es normal, no creo que nadie quiera estar en una situación en la que no puedes contar con nadie. (Yo al menos no)
Me duele lo que causa la acción de salvarse él, lo culpable que se siente... se que le tendieron una trampa, pero sabiendo el tipo de persona que es (que siempre intenta salvar a todos, pueda o no), no suaviza el golpe.
PD: su subconsciente sí se acuerda.

[Fiore Masiello]

Oh my Liam ❤

[ayesha · Rating 5 out of 5]

the little mentions of ruby omg i cant.😭

[Abby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just a side book

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh Liam. 💔

[Nadia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best short story for this series so far. It almost made me cry. Liam is one of the best characters in this series and this was such a well written story. Loved it.

[Crimelpoint · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fajny dodatek do całej historii, ale jakoś mnie nie zachwycił.

[Kenza · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am never forgiving ruby for what she made him endure !!!

"I’m alive.
And…I’m alone"

"It’s okay.
I’m okay.
I’m not."

This is killing me !!!’

[hi · Rating 4 out of 5]

no live laugh loving for me

[Ollie · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I flick my turn signal on out of dumb habit, and because the end of the world's no excuse for bad driving manners." 5/5