Listed

Listed #1

by L.J. Kerry

They should have never met...

When Judas Wells is ordered to send Nadine Ellis to her execution, he defies orders for the first time in his life by concealing Nadine in The Rebellion. However, once it is revealed that Nadine has actually been kidnapped from a neighboring country, The Rebellion and Judas realise her experience as an outsider could bring down their own country's ruthless regime and restore freedom to the nation.
Yet this proves no simple task when the government starts hunting them all down. As an uprising looms over the country in retaliation, nowhere is safe. With the help of The Rebellion, Judas and Nadine must survive long enough to see freedom restored—or face their demise.

Kindle Edition

Published November 1, 2021

About the author

L.J. Kerry is an author based in England. She’s an avid reader turned author with some of her favourite genres being Fantasy and Dystopia. Kerry likes to spend her free time playing video games and travelling.

Reviews

[Sabinah Adewole · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Author L. J Kerry captured my imagination from page one I was led into this vivid life underground and was introduced to the two main characters. The plot unfolded nicely I got lost a few times but on the whole the Author was very creative a used vivid images. I am not a familiar of dystopian novels but I found out I did not want to leave this book I Always was left asking for more my curiosity was listed in this book. I also like how the title of the book was derived from a barcode which at first seemed silly but it was just the sarcasm of how it was introduced. When the book started off it seemed it was an investigatory type of movie looking for someone that was listed but it was ironical and the complete opposite the Author did a fantastic job and this book is a must read for anyone as it applies to any audience.

Sabìnah Adewole

[Daniëlle Faber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely enjoyed this book! It has action, suspense, love stories, LGBTQ representation and a little spice.

The country of Denmé isn’t free, it is being ruled by Our Leader (some dictator) and she has taken all her citizens freedom and individuality.

Denmé is divided in several zones, to try and keep the citizens apart and unable to organize. The younger generation is brainwashed and have no recollection of the past freedom and the fact that they are living a lie.

When Nadine gets kidnapped from a neighboring country and is supposed to be executed, she’s rescued by Judas, who takes her to the Rebellion. Realizing she might be of help, being an outsider, an uprising is looming…

[Rebecca Dee Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the concept of this book. Got slight V for Vendetta vibes at times from it. I enjoyed the relationships, friendships and family connections that developed over the course of the story. I was a little lost at times but the different POVs helped sort that for the most part. One thing I would say is that I am used to YA dystopian and at points, this is clearly adult, didn't stop me enjoying though as it fit with the story and character progression. Book 2 is out soon so will pick that up at somepoint for sure

[Heather Carson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast paced and intriguing!

I loved the dual POV narrators in here! It really helped to show the different perspectives of the situation. Some of the characters were so relatable and I’m hoping at least one makes an appearance in book two. About half way through, the book picked up and moved so fast I had a hard time holding onto it!

[E.S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Judas grew up in Denme, but he never stood him his Leader. Rather, he has spent his whole life fighting for his freedom, hiding his identity, and working for The Rebellion. Meanwhile, Nadine has never known this struggle; living life in Olympia, she was aware of the struggles in Denme, but until she is kidnapped and brought there, she never witnessed it first hand. Now, Nadine has a choice: hide with The Rebellion as an unlisted until they can get her home…or become Listed and help to take down the Leader of Denme and bring peace.

That summary only describes some of what happens in this fast paced and exciting book that keeps you on the edge of your seat! Listed was a refreshing take on Dystopian novels, taking some of the best elements from books like The Hunger Games, The Giver, City of Embers, etc. and putting a New Adult, darker twist on them.

Honestly it was so refreshing reading a New Adult Dystopian novel. I wasn’t faced with the same tropes that often annoy me in YA Dystopian Novels: love triangles, teenage leaders, etc. Instead, we have a group of individuals fighting for their lives but also working together. There is not a singular leader, but a group, willing to discuss the pros and cons of their actions, and chose the right path. The characters are more mature and face far darker circumstances. All in all, I really enjoyed it!

The characters pop, with Judas and Nadine acting as the traditional POV characters. But along side them you characters like Michael who was learning how his entire world was a lie, or Ezekiel the main leader, or Samhain the destructive one. All of these characters work together as a unit to really make the story pop.

Yet, my primary issue with the book was the pace. There was so much that happened, and if the book had been longer or even split up into two parts, it would have given us a chance to explore more of the worldbuilding (which was pretty sound as it is) as well as the different character. Yet, that is a more personal reason than anything; if you’ve seen my reviews before, you know that I just want more!

That’s why I’m so excited for the sequel, Rebound. I’ve already pre-ordered it and have it on my short list to read later this summer!

All-in-all, Listed is a fantastic NA Dystopian novel that takes many common tropes and expands upon them. So if you like fast paced, dystopian novels with LGBTQ+ rep and characters that pop…check it out!

[Blanche Maze · Rating 4 out of 5]

Uncommon dystopian story

-Big thanks to the author for this free copy for the Indie Novembre TBR takeover-

After Judas defies an order to lead Nadine to her execution, he brings her to the Rebellion with him. Nadine - who has been kidnapped from her country - will have to make a choice: become Listed and go do the tasks with everyone else in the oppressive outside world, or stay underground with the Rebellion. Either way, it won't be easy for either of them. With the government hunting them down, they will have to fight if they want to change things up and gain their freedom.

It had been a while since I read a dystopian book, and this one was pretty cool. I immediately liked the main characters. They were realistic and relatable, each in their own way. I loved that we were directly put into things, seeing how horrible life in Denmé is for everyone. What I also liked is the difference between Olympia and Denmé and how Nadine had to adapt to everything. It really showed how bad life was for Denmé citizens and how important it was for them to gain their freedom. The parallel between "normal life" scenes and intense and stressful action scenes was also really interesting. It's not often that in a dystopian book, you still find some trivial scenes and I liked that about this one for the most part. However, I sometimes found they were a little too present, but in the end, no big deal! It was interesting, surprising and stressful all at the same time. If the writing was sometimes a bit heavy, with long sentences, it didn't prevent me from really getting into the story. It was also really easy to understand how the world works so congratulations to the author for that because it's not always easy! All in all, it was pretty unique and I loved the conclusion!

I'd recommend if you're into dystopian books!

"Denmé was one step closer to true freedom."

[Juniper · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the dystopian world of the novel, despot "Our Leader," has controlled every aspect of her citizens' lives for almost 20 years. Dress is standardized, people have bar code tattoos that allow their movements to be controlled and their days to be divided into state-mandated tasks. Death is the penalty for the smallest infraction. It's clearly a hellish way to live, but there is the underground Rebellion. This novel alternates between the perspectives of Judas, a "listed" man and part of that underground, and Nadine, kidnapped from neighboring country Olympia and rescued by The Rebellion. The subsequent events of the novel reshape the world as the characters know it, and it's a heck of a ride. There's a great range of diverse characters and the world building is imaginative and consistently engrossing.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

While it had a very promising start I felt the book started to fall away from its founding story line about 1/4 of the way through. Scenes jumped around with no context as to why they were important to the reader. I did appreciate the LGBTQ representation with one of the main characters, but despite the rep I felt the story could have been better written. One scene in particular still sits with me as the author needs to better describe a room. There was no 3-D description on mapping out a room when she was describing it and when she says the one character crossed over to the other character in the apartment she does not tell the reader when that second character is. It's simply X walked over to Y. Props to the Author though as I know writing is hard and I want to let her know to not get discouraged because of the less than stellar review. There is always room for improvement and I want to advise to keep writing and stay positive.

[Ellie Dunne]

This was a mixture of those classic elements of YA dystopia that many of us love, with some more adult themes and moments, making for a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience of this New Adult book. I liked getting to know the unique cast of characters and the relationships they shared, and also enjoyed the world building and how this set up a fast paced, fun read with plenty of twists and turns. This wasn't a perfect read for me, particularly towards the beginning I noticed the sentences were very long and drawn out, and there were a couple more instances where the writing left me quite confused and so I often struggled to follow the narrative. However, I still overall enjoyed my reading experience with this book and am looking forward to picking up the sequel- particularly as I have absolutely no guesses as to what will happen!

[Leighann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book from L.J. Kerry and I'm positive there will be many more.
Listed captivated me from the first chapter, the dystopian world building is phenomenal, the charters are intriguing (hello Sam, he's my favourite!!) with enough mystery that you can't stop reading, there's always enough bread crumbs to leave you wanting to keep reading, it's a "just one more chapter" kind of book where you say that and then suddenly you're finished the book.
This book leaves you rooting for everyone and imagining yourself as being part of the world (even if it is a brutal dystopian world).
I loved how inclusive the book is! LGBTQIA+ characters and BIPOC, LJ Kerry deserves a round of applause for writing these characters so well.
I can't wait for the inevitable next book from LJ Kerry.

[Kelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you like dystopian novels, Listed is a must-read. The writing was full of detail. The story is told from two POVs: Nadine and Judas. The story follows The Rebellion in the country of Denmé as they fight against Our Leader to gain their freedom. I loved that we had resolution in one book, although there is a sequel coming out later this month. There is LGBT representation, so this is also a good pick for Pride month.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok, so there are a couple of errors and a couple of times where I was confused but overall it was amazing!
I absolutely loved the characters! I loved the story! I needed a map because the locations of the zones above and under ground just wouldn't fit together in my brain. Very compelling and lovely story with some good spice!!!!

[Lauren Douie · Rating 4 out of 5]

While some of this story is definitely rated R - it was an interesting and intriguing spin on the typical dystopian society. It is interesting to think how one country could be so drastically different from its neighbor and know no difference! I’m excited to see where the story leads in book 2.

[Sarah Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this! It was so different to anything else I've read. The swapping between Judas' and Nadine's POVs was very interesting, showing what was happening from the inside and from an outside perspective. I loved that the characters got that ending as well.

[Ash · Rating 4 out of 5]

Got a copy of this as part of tik toks TBR month. This was a brilliant first book by Kerry. She painted a good picture of the dystopian world the story was set in. Would definitely recommend reading this book and I cant wait to see more work from Kerry.

[Z.K. Dorward · Rating 4 out of 5]

The world of Demne is insanely immersive and Kerry has a way with words that puts you right in the scene. I was able to visualise the tunnels as she walked us through them, the City Hall(?) with its mural of the Seven Deadly Sins, the apartment buildings. There were a couple of places that had some white room syndrome (Hanna's house), but otherwise, the descriptions were amazing.

And now to scream about these characters. I think I'm actually in love with Carlos and I spent the entire book begging her not to kill him off. A couple of characters were a little predictable, but I didn't mind that; they played the roles they had to play. This cast is wonderfully diverse and presented in a way that is respectful. I would like to applaud a cis-het woman for presenting gay men in a positive light.

There were a couple of lines that really stood out to me as wonderfully written: "... with each passing moment, the space between us got warmer like a summer heatwave"; "I was now stuck in a limbo, dangling half way to safety, and half way to death".

I had moments where I was sobbing over this. I had other moments where I was laughing.

I didn't hate Sanchez as much as I probably could have - not the way that I hate President Snow, or Umbridge, or Joffrey. Her tyranny was shown through the Rebellion living under ground, the things they could or couldn't do, but she wasn't depicted as particularly violent - it was her guards that did that. I think this is the only part that could have really been developed more.

[Maya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Listed for its fresh take on dystopian themes, blending elements of popular works like The Hunger Games with a darker, more mature tone. The relationships and family dynamics that developed throughout were a highlight, adding depth to the characters, especially Judas and Nadine. It's clear this isn't your run of the mill YA dystopian—there’s a more adult, gritty edge to it, which fit well with the character progression and higher stakes.

[Lily · Rating 1 out of 5]

Read this from the November indie tbr, not sure if it's the dystopian factor or writing but yeah no. It felt like the wings of the book were cut off before they even got the chance to fly. I would take this back for more thorough editing. Many scenes were not set up well and I don't understand how the plot, was there even a plot, progressed. Grammatical errors almost made me stop multiple times.

[readbymidnight · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first LGBTQ+ book and I was not disappointed. I really loved the relationship between Judas and Carlos. The story was amazing, it gave me a little divergent vibes, but I liked this story more. There is a lot of action and there is here and there what romance. I loved the ending so I’m really curious what will happen in rebound (book 2).

[lostinabookbrb · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had a really strong start. It follows this country called The Republic of Denme which has a brutal totalitarian rule where people are shot for making simple mistakes on their daily tasks. I liked how the author sets up the book but I had a bit of a problem with pacing. The story jumps between two characters. Sometimes the chapters end on a twist or a type of cliff hanger but then the next chapter time has passed and you're wondering "But what happened with x, y, and z!?". The story will eventually answer that question but it is a narrative style I'm not the fondest of.

Overall, I liked a lot of the ideas and thought the story really creative. It is a fast pace book and has a lot of action. Just wish some of the narrative choices were different and some of the scenes were more detailed.

[L.J. Kerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can be biased and rate this five stars. Re-reading this after the sequel it makes me so proud of my characters journey.

Anybody who reads this book, I truly hope you enjoy the first instalment of Listed. I hope you enjoy Judas and Nadine's journey while they battle to not only find themselves, but to get the freedom they deserve.