Break Out

by Rosemary Hayes

Thirteen year old Flora lives with her guardian, Ramona, on the remote island of Tara where there are no computers, no tablets and no phones. They were all destroyed forty years ago, at the time of a global plague, to keep the islanders safe and cut off from the rest of the world.

Some time ago, Flora's parents disappeared and the island rulers refer to them as traitors. At first, Flora was able to continue to visit her grandparents who live in a guarded compound where old people are kept segregated because of their knowledge of IT, but she's not been allowed to see them for months.

One night Flora finds a mobile phone on the floor of her cottage. As she stares at it, she's grabbed from behind. Her attacker is Anders, a boy who used to be at her school. Pocketing the phone, he swears her to silence and vanishes.

When Flora finally discovers where he's gone, she meets a group of rebels. A meeting that changes her life - and everything she thought she knew - for ever.

"A lone girl's search for truth in a world of violence and lies. I read Flora's story with my heart in my mouth." Kat Armstrong, author of "A Pair of Sharp Eyes."

Paperback

Published January 1, 2022

About the author

There is more than one author with this name

Rosemary Hayes was brought up and educated in the UK but has also lived in France, America and Australia. She has written over fifty books for children many of which have won, or been shortlisted for awards and several translated into different languages. She has recently turned her hand to writing historical fiction for adults, and the first in this genre, the award winning 'The King's Command' is about the terror and tragedy of a Huguenot family living in Louis XIV's France. The second, 'Traitor's Game' is the first in the trilogy 'Soldier Spy' and follows the exploits of Will Fraser, disgraced soldier, lover and reluctant spy, during the Napoleonic Wars. For many years Rosemary was a reader for a well known Authors’ Advisory Service; she now runs creative writing courses and workshops for adults.
To find out more about Rosemary or to order her books, visit her website www.rosemaryhayes.co.uk
Follow her on Facebook and X @HayesRosemary

Reviews

[Nyaurimusa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A most engaging tale and very topical during a pandemic, neatly inverting perceptions of modern technology.

[Richard Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rosemary Hayes has produced yet another tense, fast-paced, exciting story with strong characters, to add to her long list of successes. This one has a futuristic element: we are on a remote island some forty years after a plague has, so it's inhabitants are told, wiped out the rest of the world. This is Flora's story: she is thirteen; her parents have disappeared; her grandparents have been banished to a grim compound; she herself is being looked after/guarded/spied upon by Ramona at the behest of the members of the island's ruling Council. It's a one-town autocracy; people live in fear of the authorities; but there are rebels: when Flora discovers them she gets caught up in a nail-biting resistance plot. She's a percipient and resilient girl, which is just as well, because the author puts her through a succession of ordeals, including an escape from a torture chamber - as she tries to escape a chilling fate. There are allies and villains, mysteries, hidden caves and tunnels, staunch friends, secrets and hidden motives, much bravery, all skilfully woven into a page-turning narrative, which I'm sure any 9-14 year old will be gripped by.

[Jane Wilson-Howarth · Rating 5 out of 5]

The remote, wind-battered island of Tara is Flora’s home where, bereft of her parents and separated from her grandparents, she lives a lonely existence. It is 40 years since the plague that wiped out most humans elsewhere on the planet and these survivors have – of necessity – returned to a simple life without technology. Over the years though their island government has become authoritarian and guards are everywhere. Rules seem harsh and ordinary people are frightened.
This novel for middle grade readers is taut, tense and horribly believable. I felt for Flora as she strove to find out what happened to her parents and also to understand who she could trust and why she seemed to be in such danger.
Hayes is a consummate story-teller and has managed to come up with yet another compelling tale to make us appreciate the good things we have in life but also how easily that could all slip away.
A gripping and enjoyable read.