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Unwanted

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Raised to be a slave. Sold to the highest bidder. Her very existence is a crime. Will she be the one to turn the new world order upside down?

In a dystopian America, the government's plans for population control are in effect. Georgia has spent every day of her life on the Atlanta outskirts in a government-run facility with other Unwanteds. They are children born outside of a federal child-restriction law, stolen from their parents, and used for the government's own purposes.

Just days after her twelfth birthday, Georgia learns someone is coming to buy her. She'll have to do whatever they say. She'll be their slave. The only question that runs through her mind is, can the outside world be any worse than the one she's lived in?

After being bought by a well-to-do family with a terrible secret and sold into sex trafficking, Georgia crosses paths with a male Unwanted named Kyle, who's been raised to be a soldier in a military experiment. Unable to leave Georgia in her circumstances, Kyle hatches a plan to free her from the captivity of a dangerous pimp. Along with two other Unwanteds, Georgia and Kyle go on the run in an unknown world where the bond they form may be the only thing that keeps them alive. They know they'll be hunted. They know they can't run forever. But freedom is worth the risk.

In the vein of 1984, Unwanted is a fast-paced thriller chock-full of riveting suspense, touching moments, and engrossing characters living in a frighteningly realistic society gone wrong.

Pick up a copy to begin the journey today.

354 pages, Paperback

Published July 26, 2019

43 people are currently reading
61 people want to read

About the author

Nathan Deen

4 books9 followers
Join The Deen's List, my exclusive newsletter to receive updates on my author journey, books and other bonus short stories and information!

To sign up for the newsletter, visit nathandeen.com. You'll receive a free ebook of Unconditional, the prequel novella to The Unwanted Trilogy, immediately upon joining.

Nathan writes gritty and dramatic high-stakes thriller fiction. Nathan believes gripping, realistic suspense can be written without the profanity and gratuitous sexual content commonly found in the mainstream market. His books will always be clean and compelling. He is also passionate about exposing the injustices that plague society and incorporates those themes into his books.

Nathan grew up wanting to be a screenwriter, and his background in film studies allows him to take a cinematic approach to writing his books. Along with minoring in film studies, he majored in journalism and pivoted toward a career as a sports journalist. He spent seven years working as a sports writer and columnist at several newspapers before discovering his passion for writing fiction. He graduated from The University of Florida in 2010 with a bachelor's degree in journalism. He currently lives in Savannah, Ga., with his wife and business partner, Anitra.

Follow Nathan on Facebook and Instagtam: @NathanDeenAuthor

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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
Profile Image for Ellie.
24 reviews
August 5, 2020
I started out with a lot of hope for this book. The idea was interesting and the start drew me in. In general, I enjoyed some of the settings and descriptions and a lot of the story was brought to life, but unfortunately for me, there was a lot that frustrated me too.
The book feels slow. It sometimes feels like not a lot happens. This might be due to a lack of action scenes (aside from two or three intensely detailed fight sequences that feel a bit jarring). I don't usually mind slower plots as long as the characters are strong. I did like the picture of the characters that was painted but the narrative style felt a little distant and cold and there would be frequent paragraphs that would switch between different characters which made it hard to follow. There were also large leaps in time after spending pages on a few days and it felt like we were missing a lot from those gaps.
As for my biggest gripe: (and please be aware I am about to spoil the ending in detail here, do not read ahead of you don't want to know). We spend almost a third of the book with Kyle and Art and slowly developing their story only to have them both die 'offscreen' with very little build up or fallout from it. I don't know if this was deliberate to tie in with the feel and theme of the book but it felt very cheap. Even following this, Georgia's escape, aided by someone who knew her mother seemed to very conveniently come out of nowhere and simply seemed to happen in order to set Georgia up for the next book with money and education.
This book wasn't for me but I appreciated the idea and the use of stronger issues. The slower pace was nice when it allowed for interesting settings and scenes but I felt like this book could have been so much more.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
369 reviews7 followers
August 20, 2020
I received a free copy to review: Every once in a while I branch out and read something that differs from my usual types of books - and Unwanted was that for me. I was pleasantly surprised! I was absolutely engaged and enraptured from the first chapter till the end and grabbed every spare moment to read! Nathan gives a 5 course meal, rich in flavour and variety in the story: science fiction, intrigue, action, love, friendship and faith. A deep, raw emotional experience, where one steps into the "Unwanteds'" shoes and walks the journey with them. Highly recommended! I suggest it be reserved for mature readers due to some adult content.

Profanity / Blasphemy: none.
Sex: rape and prostitution are described; not in detail but sufficiently to mentally envisage them.
Triggers: rape, prostitution, neglect, abuse, prejudice, slavery, death.
Profile Image for Sofia Danokaras tsotrou.
76 reviews2 followers
July 23, 2020
I have read the Prequel to this book first, and I could not wait for the first book to come out.
We are in the future . The Unwanted are sold as slaves, and the government wants to control the popullation. The children the Unwanted are sold to rich family's and to other places.
Georgia is sold to a rich family and she meet's Kyle a unwanted who was raised in a military experiment facility to be a soldier.
Georgia and Kyle and 2 more unwated go on the run and hide for their lifes. Freedom is worth it even though they are being humted.
I HIGHLY recommend this book, and wait for the 2nd book to come out.
Profile Image for Sam.
2,612 reviews45 followers
May 11, 2020
Another excellent book from Nathan Deen! A brilliant first book in this exciting emotional roller coaster of a story! Well written, great plots, well thought out characters & ideas! I was completely emotionally invested with this from the start & can't wait for more of this series! I do recommend this to anyone that liked Handmaids tale or dystopian fiction!
Profile Image for Terry M.
594 reviews10 followers
June 18, 2020
An excellent Dystopian book and a great read. A child too many means you cannot keep them. They are taken into custody where the government have them raised to be sold into service. Suffering a life of hardship, torture and suffering, Georgia and Kyle run away with others to find a better life but they don't all make it across the border together. A gripping story, well written. Recommended.
43 reviews1 follower
December 27, 2019
Intense

This a very intense read. It is also a great read.
Unfortunately I can easily see our world becoming this type of society.
The good news is that there is hope given.
I heartily recommend this book.
Profile Image for Laura.
15 reviews
January 15, 2020
Very Good Reading I didn’t want it to end!!

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ you will become invested in the lives of the characters! It’s one of those books you don’t want to end.
Profile Image for Chris Hellerman.
93 reviews
September 12, 2020
Into the future

This was a good book of what the future could look like...we have already seen the limits on how many children allowed....sure puts a spin on it!
Profile Image for Mary Dallenbach.
83 reviews1 follower
September 20, 2019
I just finished this book and I am very glad I read it. It is an interesting story, the world built, fascinating. The perspective of the Unwanted, the children that weren't supposed to be born, is thought-provoking. I can absolutely see our society doing to these children what was done in the book.

Georga's story was one that captivated me from the first. I wanted to follow her through her trials and tribulations. I suspected her life would not be easy. She would suffer, she would have loss and that made me want to see her triumph all the more. The same is true of Kyle. I wanted them both to have a happily ever after. I will say that this is book one and the path is being laid. No happily ever after - yet (I hope.)

The story was captivating. The writer did a great job of pulling us into this world with his words. I loved that he used words I had to look up. Well done. Making me feel smarter while I am immersed in a fantasy.

This story is about a journey. And as the first book in the series, we get the groundwork. It is the origin story and I enjoyed it. I will say that toward the end I just wanted to see where it all ended up. Part of it was what I expected but quite a bit was not.

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys young adult dystopian. The society the author has built is enough to make this book worth reading.
Profile Image for Christina .
95 reviews3 followers
September 3, 2019
This book is about a not so distant future with a dystopian setting. A world where people are allowed to only have 2 children and even then, only in "acceptable" circumstances. The fate of the children born as number 3 or beyond is harsh to say the least. They are raised to be slaves in their own way - girls as house servants, boys as a disposable military. This book follows the story of 2 of these "unwanted" children. I felt the character development of both was really good, there were a few minor characters I would like to know more about. Perhaps that will be in the following books? I read this not realizing it was part of a series, actually, but felt that this book was very good and felt complete enough as a stand alone novel. I'm definitely interested in reading the rest of the story though! Slight reader warning: there are topics in this book that could be triggering for some surrounding the subjects of abuse and sexual abuse/violence. Definitely better suited for a mature reader.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
1 review
November 11, 2019
OMG. I couldn’t put this book down. I absolutely loved it. All of the characters were fascinating and had great story lines. I don’t know how I’m going to wait until next year for the next book!!!! So, so good!!!
153 reviews
February 27, 2021
Great book

This is a really good book! I enjoy dystopian books a lot but this one is one of the best I've read. There is no cussing or sex scenes which is a great asset in my opinion. It is very well written and you can't help but become invested in the characters.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews