Really, really good. The back and forth in the timelines, building up to the killer ending. Loved it. Can't wait to start the next one today. ( )

4.8

Highlights

10
Highlight(yellow) - Location 907
Troy played a hand of solitaire while Silo Twelve collapsed.

11
Highlight(yellow) - Location 969
Donald wasn’t one for napkins, but he obeyed decorum by shaking the folded cloth loose and draping it in his lap.
Note - Location 969
Donald

12
Highlight(yellow) - Location 1094
Here was the curse: a person had to be in charge, had to guard the secrets. Some wouldn’t be able to. It was statistically predictable. He reminded himself that it was inevitable, the cards already shuffled, the game just waiting to play out.
Note - Location 1095
Troy

14
Highlight(yellow) - Location 1342
Troy was tired of forgetting. He had decided to remember.

16
Highlight(yellow) - Location 1463
He rarely employed napkins during meals, a bad habit he had formed long ago. They went into his lap to be polite and then onto his plate when he was finished.
Note - Location 1464
Troy

17
Highlight(yellow) - Location 1611
‘Everyone thinks they’ve got all the time left in the world.’ She leveled her cool gray eyes at him. ‘But they never stop to ask just how much time that is.’
Note - Location 1612
Anna to Donald

22
Highlight(yellow) - Location 2107
And the medicine only touches our regrets.’ He glanced up. ‘Some of us don’t have any.’
Note - Location 2108
A Doctor to Troy ( )

To be honest, I read "Shift" before this book and 30 pages into it, I realized Hugh had imported much of this into the second book. So rather than read what I'd just read previously in "Shift (#2)" I decided I'd move to the next story instead. I love his narrative style and futuristic view though it's a bit scary and real in some ways. I'm addicted to Howey's storytelling and will read all the others now. ( )

Meh. Finished today. I will read the next one, but it better pick it up some... ( )

It's been a while since I read [b:Wool|12287209|Wool (Wool, #1)|Hugh Howey|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327889474l/12287209._SY75_.jpg|17263666]. Long enough that I'd started to forget the general shape of things, but as I went through [b:First Shift: Legacy|13603717|First Shift Legacy (Shift, #1)|Hugh Howey|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1334528415l/13603717._SY75_.jpg|19197480], things started to come back. It's interesting seeing the gaps in Wool's history.

That being said, the prequel chapters (of a prequel) just feel wrong. The Silos were built in a matter of years by the government? With apparently minimal or no leaks? Run by a Senator which apparently gets two Representatives to do his absolute bidding (What about their own jobs? It would have made more sense had Donald remained an architect).

On the other hand, the chapters set 200 years later in the Silos themselves, those (ironically) felt more real. There's a reason for Troy to have so out of it--drugs are a hell of a drug--and it's a world where absolute control makes far more sense. And as the story goes on and we (as readers) fill in the gaps between the two timelines? That's where the story really shines.

Overall, it's a fascinating bit of worldbuilding that answers a few questions I didn't remember having from Wool. Well worth the read and I'm curious to see where it goes from here.

Side note: There are a number of reviews commenting on the sexism / homophobia of having only the men awake in order to avoid 'passion'. Sure. But given the authoritarian nature of the entire project? I feel like it fits the world. I hope it's something dealt with in the [b:Second Shift: Order|16148938|Second Shift Order (Shift, #2)|Hugh Howey|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1352920738l/16148938._SX50_.jpg|21983905] / [b:Third Shift: Pact|16183060|Third Shift Pact (Shift, #3)|Hugh Howey|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1359195368l/16183060._SY75_.jpg|22091874].

Onward! ( )