Man. I really wanted to like this one. Its dystopian, first of all, and its not too much a stretch of the imagination to picture our future being like this. And for the first few chapters all was still well. The world-building is solidly vividI could clearly visualize the parched, struggling land that Vera lives in when I closed my eyesand the characters, while not standouts, were at least not irritating. Veras not a particularly convincing narrator, but I was willing to overlook narratorial blandness in favor of the attention-holding world-building.

But when Vera and Will set off to rescue Kai is when the book completely lost my interest and sympathies. THE WATER WARS seems like an overly ambitious melding of too many genresdystopian, Western, action. One minute theyre plodding along in a lonely, lonely world where it feels like theyre the only people around; the next, theyve been captured by water pirates? And the next, a big explosion (quite literally) sweeps them awaybut right into the hands of other evil dudes?? Im sorry, but thats where I stopped reading. I like the premise well enough, but it turns out that Stracher never fully convinces me to invest in these characters outcomes, which was apparent after they began encountering extravagant deus ex machinas.

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In a futuristic, dystopian America environmental disaster has occurred and water is the new gold. Countries have dammed their rivers and fresh water cannot be found. This is the world Vera and her brother Will grew up in. Their mother is ill and bedridden, sick from drinking toxic water. Then the meet Kai, a rich kid with a father who drills for water. When Kai is kidnapped and they try to find him, Vera and Will find themselves in danger after being kidnapped by water pirates. Their odyssey through post apocalyptic America weaves a story that is fast paced and well told.

The story grabbed me in the first chapter and the nonstop action carried me along to the end of the book. The dry, parched world was so well developed, you could feel the thirst of the characters. In a world covered with water it is a scary thing to think that the drinkable portion could be taken and used as a commodity. The characters were well developed and you wanted to cheer them on as they fought for their lives. The story was believable to a point, but it is unlikely that someone will be there every time you need help. But that is the fun of fiction so I was willing to overlook this flaw and go with the story. It was a fun, fast read and although the ending was satisfying, I can't wait for the sequel to find out what happens to Vera and Kai in the future.

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