YAShot Blog Tour: Outwalkers by Fiona Shaw Book Review

* I am reviewing this book for the YAShot blog tour but this in no way affects my review *

Title: Outwalkers

Authors: Fiona Shaw

Source: Bought Myself

Publisher: David Fickling Books

Rating: 4/5 stars

(Goodreads|Amazon)

Book Review Summary:

The border’s closed, Jake said. No one can get into Scotland, just like no one can cross the Channel . . .
This is England and it’s no longer a free country. The Government can track anyone, anywhere, from a chip implanted at birth. But Jake has escaped from his Academy orphanage, and he needs to get to Scotland with his dog, Jet.
When the Outwalkers gang grabs him, they go off-grid while the Government hunts for them. The closer they get to Scotland, the more dangerous it is. Because now, it’s not only their own lives that are at stake...

Book Review:

Outwalkers was a book that I haven't really heard of before this YAShot tour, but this does not mean that I didn't enjoy the book. Even though I read a lot of Dystopian fiction when I was younger, Outwalkers is still a fresh and new dystopian read that is well worth the time. 

I think the first thing to strike me about Outwalkers is its English setting. I know that there have been other books set in the UK, but I just haven't read them so is to me was a good thing. It was just interesting to see this setting used because as someone who reads a lot of US Dystopian I always wondered what the UK was like in this place. This one was not the greatest if I am honest, but it was interesting to read it. The scariest thing is the fact that this could be a reality kind of. 

One of my favourite elements of the book was the relationship especially Jake and Jet because fictional dogs are one of my favourite things. To be honest I was quite scared what would happen to the dog at the start of the book from previous reading experiences, but this was OK in the end. 

I also really like the dynamic between Jake and the Outwalkers themselves especially with Ollie who was likable. It was just nice to see relationships that were more multi-layered and had so many good characters. There relationships were often put to the test which is understand with the circumstances. 

Although I really liked the book, I think that some of the plot points were a little unrealistic. I know that this is a fiction book, but this is kind of mentioned in the book itself and did not take away from the story. The plot in places was quite slow going but I do think that this allowed for good world building and was a way to build the characters. When the plot got going it was a book that I couldn't put down. This was especially the case in the end where everything came together, and I wanted to get straight to the end. 

The Verdict:

Outwalkers was an enjoyable read especially a UKYA dystopian read which I was hooked on from start to finish. 

About the Author:

Fiona wrote a memoir and four novels for adults before Outwalkers. She was just beginning a 5^th adult novel when she had a dream about a boy trying to leave England that wouldn’t leave her mind. That dream, together with lots she was reading about in the news, was the start of her first YA novel.

Fiona’s adult novel Tell it to the Bees will be released as a feature film in 2018.  It will star ten year old Gregor Selkirk as Charlie, together with Holliday Grainger and Anna Paquin. Fiona lives in York and teaches Creative Writing part-time at Northumbria University.

Twitter: @fionakshaw        Website: ww.fiona-shaw.com