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The Resistance Trilogy #1
Recruitment
In the Valta, no matter what month you were born, everyone is assigned the same birthday. November 1st. It's the anniversary of the day when the government declared war on the Eastern Order.
The day you turn seventeen, the Recruiters come to take you away. And no one ever hears from you again.
It's October 31st. Today, Kress is sixteen years old.
Tomorrow, she'll be taken.
The good news? So will her best friend Cardyn, and Brohn, the handsome, enigmatic boy she's avoided all her life.
The bad news?
Recruitment isn't what any of them expected.
Weeks of training await. Military and psychological tests, escape rooms, hand-to-hand combat. The Recruits are told they're the key to winning the war. But with each day that passes, things begin to make less sense.
If only Kress had been able to bring her trained raven, Render, with her.
If only none of them had ever had to come to this place.
The day you turn seventeen, the Recruiters come to take you away. And no one ever hears from you again.
It's October 31st. Today, Kress is sixteen years old.
Tomorrow, she'll be taken.
The good news? So will her best friend Cardyn, and Brohn, the handsome, enigmatic boy she's avoided all her life.
The bad news?
Recruitment isn't what any of them expected.
Weeks of training await. Military and psychological tests, escape rooms, hand-to-hand combat. The Recruits are told they're the key to winning the war. But with each day that passes, things begin to make less sense.
If only Kress had been able to bring her trained raven, Render, with her.
If only none of them had ever had to come to this place.
316 pages, Paperback
First published November 28, 2018
About the author
K.A. Riley
56 books691 followersK. A. Riley is a writer of speculative and science fiction, dedicated to creating worlds just different enough from our own to be entertaining, intriguing and a little frightening all at once. For Riley, writing isn't a job. It's a laboratory where readers can wander into a land of ideas; it's a playground where they can scamper around, giggling, gasping, and freaking out to their hearts' content.
Riley is the top-secret pen-name of a NYT and USA Today best-selling author.
Riley is the top-secret pen-name of a NYT and USA Today best-selling author.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 531 reviews
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May 7, 2026Dystopian is one of my favorite genres, and Recruitment hooked me right from the start. I had already been looking forward to this one after enjoying Thrall by the same author, and it delivered.
The pacing was steady and kept me engaged without ever feeling like a drag. The setup pulled me in quickly, and the story balanced tension and mystery well. Even when some of the dystopian elements felt familiar, there were enough fresh ideas and momentum to keep me fully invested.
Considering this originally came out in 2018, some of those familiar genre setups make sense. A lot of dystopian trends feel more common now than they probably did at the time.
To me this was a strong foundation for the rest of the series, and by the end, I was fully invested in the world and I’m excited for the rest of the series.
I’d recommend it to readers who enjoy dystopian fiction, survival stories, controlled societies, and series starters with steady pacing and strong setup.
The pacing was steady and kept me engaged without ever feeling like a drag. The setup pulled me in quickly, and the story balanced tension and mystery well. Even when some of the dystopian elements felt familiar, there were enough fresh ideas and momentum to keep me fully invested.
Considering this originally came out in 2018, some of those familiar genre setups make sense. A lot of dystopian trends feel more common now than they probably did at the time.
To me this was a strong foundation for the rest of the series, and by the end, I was fully invested in the world and I’m excited for the rest of the series.
I’d recommend it to readers who enjoy dystopian fiction, survival stories, controlled societies, and series starters with steady pacing and strong setup.
May 14, 2019
Nice plot
I loved the plot.
Spoilers-
But most of the book was so incredibly slow for me. It felt like so much was missing and when they all are talking about how terrible it is at the “ training “ facility, I had to keep myself from rolling my eyes multiple times. I came into the book thinking it was gonna be a lot darker than that. Yeah some terrible things happened but nothing before that to be a shock factor. If anything it seemed... cheap. The last chapter or two really caught my attention and heart racing and the only reason why I’m going on to the next book because I have hope. This story has fantastic potential. Another thing is they kept saying how big of a heart kress has, how empathetic she is. I might have missed something but I didn’t see any of that until much later in the book. She kept to herself and hardly said anything to her conspiracy. She had to stop herself many times from only thinking about her pain and even then it felt superficial. I did end up finally seeing it but not when they kept pointing it out. Hoping for a ton of character and relationship development in the next book.
I loved the plot.
Spoilers-
But most of the book was so incredibly slow for me. It felt like so much was missing and when they all are talking about how terrible it is at the “ training “ facility, I had to keep myself from rolling my eyes multiple times. I came into the book thinking it was gonna be a lot darker than that. Yeah some terrible things happened but nothing before that to be a shock factor. If anything it seemed... cheap. The last chapter or two really caught my attention and heart racing and the only reason why I’m going on to the next book because I have hope. This story has fantastic potential. Another thing is they kept saying how big of a heart kress has, how empathetic she is. I might have missed something but I didn’t see any of that until much later in the book. She kept to herself and hardly said anything to her conspiracy. She had to stop herself many times from only thinking about her pain and even then it felt superficial. I did end up finally seeing it but not when they kept pointing it out. Hoping for a ton of character and relationship development in the next book.
September 8, 2019
This was predictable & boring up until the last two maybe three chapters, if I’m generous. However, those two or three chapters set things up to be very interesting in the next book. Soooo I’m willing to give book 2 a try.
2 stars
2 stars
February 1, 2021
A really interesting plot
I really liked this, after not reading dystopian for a while it was nice to come across this book. I think after reading the incredible Marie Lu dystopian it's hard to find another book that matched to this, but this one was enjoyable.
It follows a typical start to the story, where seventeen-year-olds are recruited by the government to fight the war that ravaged their city, but obviously they find out that the government is not the government at all, but something else, blah, blah, a little predictable there but the actual ending is pretty original and I didn't see it coming.
The story develops nicely, lots of brain riddles and mysteries and clues for the characters and even the readers to figure out.
→ 4 stars
I really liked this, after not reading dystopian for a while it was nice to come across this book. I think after reading the incredible Marie Lu dystopian it's hard to find another book that matched to this, but this one was enjoyable.
It follows a typical start to the story, where seventeen-year-olds are recruited by the government to fight the war that ravaged their city, but obviously they find out that the government is not the government at all, but something else, blah, blah, a little predictable there but the actual ending is pretty original and I didn't see it coming.
The story develops nicely, lots of brain riddles and mysteries and clues for the characters and even the readers to figure out.
→ 4 stars
September 20, 2024
It's giving dystopian divergent apocalyspe vibes.
Recruitment is the first in the trilogy that follows Kress and her group of fellow seventeens as they are taken from their war torn village and brought to a military training camp to prepare for the war. But all is not as it seems as threads start to unravel. I like how the author writes in all the personalities of the group, it's not just solely focused on Kress. We get to see the strength and weaknesses of each character. I would normally give this like a 3.75 because it was a bit slow for me, a lot of world and story building (to be expected). But the ending and the promise that the series shows is what makes it a 4. I think the second book
"Render" will be even better. Also Canadian author and it's on Kindle Unlimited. So major wins.
Recruitment is the first in the trilogy that follows Kress and her group of fellow seventeens as they are taken from their war torn village and brought to a military training camp to prepare for the war. But all is not as it seems as threads start to unravel. I like how the author writes in all the personalities of the group, it's not just solely focused on Kress. We get to see the strength and weaknesses of each character. I would normally give this like a 3.75 because it was a bit slow for me, a lot of world and story building (to be expected). But the ending and the promise that the series shows is what makes it a 4. I think the second book
"Render" will be even better. Also Canadian author and it's on Kindle Unlimited. So major wins.
July 8, 2019
Good book
A little predictable but definitely a good read. Excellent characters. The plot kept moving and there were a couple of surprises. I think this is a little above young adult but still acceptable for them.
A little predictable but definitely a good read. Excellent characters. The plot kept moving and there were a couple of surprises. I think this is a little above young adult but still acceptable for them.
June 12, 2020
2.75/5. "For fans of the Hunger Games and Divergent, yadda yadda yadda." A kinda poor imitation that combines a little of this with a little of that from dystopian novels in general. One of the problems I had with this book was this: many YA/dystopian novels don't *feel* like they're written solely for young adults in that adults can enjoy them too. This one felt like it was written solely for young adults in the writing, and in including pictures of symbols to help us understand, and in the plotlines. I rolled my eyes more than once (especially over how many times one certain thing was pointed out at the beginning) and I didn't feel any real depth from the characters at all nor any real tension until the very last moments. The "hidden menace" was *too* hidden. I almost stopped reading the book just because it wasn't interesting for me. I did finish it, however. This is the first in a planned series of 9 books (4 or 5 have been written already). Normally, I'd read at least the second, but ... in this case, I don't think I'm going to bother.
February 24, 2019
I’m just going to start this by saying that I called the plot twist 25 pages in. And I’m so excited I did.
I’m not always great at writing reviews so here’s one of my “these are the notes I took” reviews.
•The saying “For now, at least” that is referred to a few times and makes for a wonderful quote.
•I honestly really love all of the puzzles and tests in this book. I’m not much of a military, fighting, war strategy kind of person so I love that the training covers training the mind too.
•I really enjoy that the “I’ll inevitably fall in love with my best friend” trope doesn’t happen in this story.
•It’s really interesting to think about how Trench and Granden change the longer the Recruits are there.
I’m not always great at writing reviews so here’s one of my “these are the notes I took” reviews.
•The saying “For now, at least” that is referred to a few times and makes for a wonderful quote.
•I honestly really love all of the puzzles and tests in this book. I’m not much of a military, fighting, war strategy kind of person so I love that the training covers training the mind too.
•I really enjoy that the “I’ll inevitably fall in love with my best friend” trope doesn’t happen in this story.
•It’s really interesting to think about how Trench and Granden change the longer the Recruits are there.
September 27, 2022
2.3/5 ended up not being too bad of a story (aside from being very cliche and cringey) but holy horrible writing. ya terrible character development, felt like I was reading a wattpad story written by a middle schooler😵💫
June 15, 2023
This was like reading Crime and Punishment. The crime was the book was published and the punishment was reading it.
The book was so drawn out and every trope you could image checked off a list. The fact that this is a trilogy seems like a joke. This entire book was just a set up for the rest of the story and it was sooo long and boring. Yuck.
The book was so drawn out and every trope you could image checked off a list. The fact that this is a trilogy seems like a joke. This entire book was just a set up for the rest of the story and it was sooo long and boring. Yuck.
June 23, 2021
Ugh, I'm just to old for this book I think. I'm only 6% in but the idea of a guarded town of just kids made me roll me eyes. The beginning is. Huge info dump, that totally defies logic. Whole town is bombed but someone the school where the kids were hiding was fine? But no adults are left... yeah.. Especially when she says there was only 40 of them left. That's not a town, that's a classroom. Even still, I kept going until she called her raven's grouping a Conspiracy instead of a Murder and I realized I just wouldn't be able to put up this book long enough for anything to actually happen. I'm not able to suspend my belief on this.
August 24, 2019
4⭐️
At first, this book reminded me of the series “Divergent”, with the scoring and tests they are put through. They had a lot of similarities, but this book was still different (thankfully).
The beginning was a little slow, but after I kept reading a few chapters, I was hooked. I enjoyed this first book and I am excited to see how each character grows and how their abilities enhance!😍 And also excited to see the romance that happens between 2 characters as well😏
Also, I think I have decided that Amaranthine is my favorite 😂🙌🏿
At first, this book reminded me of the series “Divergent”, with the scoring and tests they are put through. They had a lot of similarities, but this book was still different (thankfully).
The beginning was a little slow, but after I kept reading a few chapters, I was hooked. I enjoyed this first book and I am excited to see how each character grows and how their abilities enhance!😍 And also excited to see the romance that happens between 2 characters as well😏
Also, I think I have decided that Amaranthine is my favorite 😂🙌🏿
July 29, 2024
3.5 ⭐️ The ending made me want to read more but the pacing, narration and some of the escape room games made me think the characters were 14 and not 17.
February 21, 2025
✮⋆˙𝗠𝘆 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 ✮⋆˙ ⭐⭐⭐⭐.75
✮⋆˙ 𝗣𝗹𝗼𝘁 ✮⋆˙ HELLO WHAT THE ACTUAL HECK WAS THAT ENDING. I was originally gonna rate it four stars because it was kinda boring but DUDEEEEEEEE. K.A RILEY CAN RIGHT A PLOT TWIST. LIKE OH MY GOODNESS. This was slower paced for a dystopian, but thats alright! t
✮⋆˙𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 ✮⋆˙
I LOVED THE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT OF KRESS. AND BROHN. LIKE I CANNOT BELIEVE HOW GOOD THIS BOOK WAS CONSIDERING THE RATINGS. Rip to (SPOILER) and (SPOILER) we will love you THE VILLIAN? WHAT DO YOU MEAAAAAAAAAAAAAN MY GUY. AHHHH
✮⋆˙𝗥𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 ✮⋆˙
The slowburn was burning highkey. We love the unexpected couple fr. I'm so happy this is a trilogy because I don't think I would have LIVED if the second book wasnt released yet. LIKE AHHHHHH. I cannot wait to see what this couple goes through (yes, I mean even reading the trauma thats gonna rip my heart to shreds!)
✮⋆˙ 𝗣𝗹𝗼𝘁 ✮⋆˙ HELLO WHAT THE ACTUAL HECK WAS THAT ENDING. I was originally gonna rate it four stars because it was kinda boring but DUDEEEEEEEE. K.A RILEY CAN RIGHT A PLOT TWIST. LIKE OH MY GOODNESS. This was slower paced for a dystopian, but thats alright! t
✮⋆˙𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 ✮⋆˙
I LOVED THE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT OF KRESS. AND BROHN. LIKE I CANNOT BELIEVE HOW GOOD THIS BOOK WAS CONSIDERING THE RATINGS. Rip to (SPOILER) and (SPOILER) we will love you THE VILLIAN? WHAT DO YOU MEAAAAAAAAAAAAAN MY GUY. AHHHH
✮⋆˙𝗥𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 ✮⋆˙
The slowburn was burning highkey. We love the unexpected couple fr. I'm so happy this is a trilogy because I don't think I would have LIVED if the second book wasnt released yet. LIKE AHHHHHH. I cannot wait to see what this couple goes through (yes, I mean even reading the trauma thats gonna rip my heart to shreds!)
January 1, 2025
Nothing you haven’t read before if you’re a YA Dystopian fan. Think Divergent + Shadow and Bone + I Am Number Four rolled together. If you enjoyed any of the above three, I’d recommend this one.
June 30, 2020
I hate to say it, but I couldn't bring myself to finish this. I'm not super picky, so it might just be my current bad mood that's ruining it for me, but here are my thoughts:
- There was SO much telling in the exposition.
- This doesn't usually bother me, but Kress was kind of "I'm not like other girls". Her internal monologue about not liking company, refusing to admit she's pretty, wondering why boys were showing interest in her, etc. really annoyed me. If it was because she was insecure, that would've been different, but in her case, it was just utter oblivion and cluelessness, and it drove me insane.
- There was SO much telling in the exposition.
- This doesn't usually bother me, but Kress was kind of "I'm not like other girls". Her internal monologue about not liking company, refusing to admit she's pretty, wondering why boys were showing interest in her, etc. really annoyed me. If it was because she was insecure, that would've been different, but in her case, it was just utter oblivion and cluelessness, and it drove me insane.
May 7, 2021
This was an uninteresting book! For example, it seemed like the author just copied ideas from good books such as The Hunger Games and Divergent. For instance, at one point, the main character learns that the program she is in is actually for finding "special" gene mutations in teenagers, which is exactly what happens in Divergent. At first I thought that the main character's pet bird, Render, would have a more important role, but after reading this book he didn't seem as important as he should have been. You should read this book if you like Divergent or The Hunger Games. Then, we can talk about our opinions of this book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 18, 2019
Weak at times
The storyline is good and the characters well thought out and sympathetic but unfortunately there are many holes in the plot. Naive at times. Why would the government go through all this and not bug the rooms the kids are in to keep tabs on them. A hole in the fence. How convenient. A trainer just happening by and opening doors and secret stairways? And not noticing being followed? A little bit much. It needs a little bit of work to make it more believable. The writing itself is great though.
The storyline is good and the characters well thought out and sympathetic but unfortunately there are many holes in the plot. Naive at times. Why would the government go through all this and not bug the rooms the kids are in to keep tabs on them. A hole in the fence. How convenient. A trainer just happening by and opening doors and secret stairways? And not noticing being followed? A little bit much. It needs a little bit of work to make it more believable. The writing itself is great though.
June 2, 2021
The puzzle was wrong
The books okay. Little tedious. It’s clearly for a very young age group as not much was happening kinda just felt like we were going through the motions with the characters. The puzzle in in the escape room was wrong which really annoyed me. The dots where in rows of 3 and when it was completed it’s managed to remake into rows of 4 otherwise it would have been completed using 4 lines. If your going to add things like this to the book make sure it’s correct! Stopped reading after that as it really frustrated me.
The books okay. Little tedious. It’s clearly for a very young age group as not much was happening kinda just felt like we were going through the motions with the characters. The puzzle in in the escape room was wrong which really annoyed me. The dots where in rows of 3 and when it was completed it’s managed to remake into rows of 4 otherwise it would have been completed using 4 lines. If your going to add things like this to the book make sure it’s correct! Stopped reading after that as it really frustrated me.
August 9, 2021
I'm so glad my bookie-friend recommended this trilogy to me. I just finished Recruitment, and I'm rushing into book 2 "Render". This story might be reminiscent of other dystopian series' we've read, but where it differs most is the relationships between the characters. It's refreshing to see teenagers recognize their differences and work through tough challenges with level heads and maturity. I loved it.
March 21, 2019
Book 1
Book 1 had errors throughout and was a fun read. The characters and plot are new to me, but it was slow to start and was somewhat predictable. The characters where naive for living in a world where there is not much. I am not sure if I'll read book 2.
Book 1 had errors throughout and was a fun read. The characters and plot are new to me, but it was slow to start and was somewhat predictable. The characters where naive for living in a world where there is not much. I am not sure if I'll read book 2.
March 31, 2021
Wow!
I enjoyed this book! This book moved right along and kept me on the edge. Cant wait to read the next one.
I enjoyed this book! This book moved right along and kept me on the edge. Cant wait to read the next one.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
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If you have read more than three dystopian books in your life, you already know the ending to this one. There is nothing new here: the usual trials, power ups, teammate bonds, evil adults, and misinformation.Story: Riley lives a quiet life in her town until the day drones come to destroy/kill - wiping out most of the residents and their buildings. A war has been declared in the country and a new government has formed to address the combat. Recruiters come to get able bodies to fight to prevent more drones from completing the destruction. Riley knows she will be recruited shortly: anyone over the age of seventeen is taken away and never seen again. Can she survive the training and save her country from further war when her time comes to be recruited?
When I started this, I didn't realize it is already part of a trilogy (which itself is part of a larger trilogy). But I was unimpressed with this one and found little reason to want to continue the story. It's another teens are put through horrible training and main character forms friendships and enemies until the day she finds out all is not what she was told. The only new angle here is a bond with a raven created through some kind of mix of magic and technology. She will, of course, have to learn how to use her unique snowflake power in order to survive.
Honestly, this was boring. Whether it is Fourth Wing or Maze Runner, the 'take innocent kids and force them into cruel training" has been done so often now that it is getting frustrating. Certainly, by the end there was nothing new here: if you've read Divergent, you've read this. I had a hard time finishing it and didn't really like any of the characters. I will not be continuing the series as a result.
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July 26, 2026This book was absolutely amazing!!
If you liked the hunger games, what remains, or divergent, then this book is for you!!!!!!!!!!!
There is a bit of swearing, though, minor grammatical errors, and I feel like the romance doesn't exactly build up nicely. It just, pops up.
But other than those few things, I love this book.
I highly recommend!
If you liked the hunger games, what remains, or divergent, then this book is for you!!!!!!!!!!!
There is a bit of swearing, though, minor grammatical errors, and I feel like the romance doesn't exactly build up nicely. It just, pops up.
But other than those few things, I love this book.
I highly recommend!
January 23, 2022
FANTASTIC Dystopian. 4.8888899 stars
If you love teens being taken by the government to be train to kill people in an army but only to find out shifty shennanigans are happening behind the scenes then this is for you!
If you love teens being taken by the government to be train to kill people in an army but only to find out shifty shennanigans are happening behind the scenes then this is for you!
June 21, 2025
I liked the plot of the whole book and can't wait to read the next one. I feel like the author might have purposefully left out details on how they were trained. I loved how all the characters interacted with each other, and the whole Conspiracy thing.
August 5, 2024
This book reminded me a lot of divergent. It wasn’t bad but parts lagged for me and took a while to really get to any sort of point . The puzzles made me laugh at times for how easy they were . It was a fast read and entertaining enough . I’m not sure if it made it want to read the rest of the series though . My favorite character ended up being Render and I don’t know if that’s a good thing haha
February 7, 2026
Uhhhhhh it was fine. I feel like my sister might have overhyped the character development a little ….
The language was consistent but not terrible l
The language was consistent but not terrible l
August 15, 2026
Slow to start but amazing plot twist. Reminds me Maze Runner and Divergent!
January 22, 2024
This review is for the first 3 books in the Conspiracy Series, which is the Resistance Trilogy. The world-building was great and I really liked the plot-line. However, I feel like in all three books, nothing really happened, even though the story obviously progressed. Some of the characters were a little one-dimensional and that included the main character at times. I didn't really feel invested in the characters. The relationship between the MC and the love interest didn't really have any depth. I feel like there were certain scenes that could have been longer to add action or drama to the story, but the scenes were condensed down to like 5 pages and didn't have enough embellishments. The series is what it claims to be, which is a YA dystopian novel. It wasn't terrible but it could have a used a little something more.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 531 reviews