The Gods of Spenser Island

The Chosen Twelve, Book 2

By: James Breakwell

Narrated by: Paul Bellantoni

Isolated and alone, the last twelve humans, all of them children, scramble to create a new civilization on the alien island that is now their home-and prison-for the rest of time.

Waylaid on all sides by hostile aquatic lifeforms that emerge from the deadly waters every night, the dozen survivors fight under the guidance of their de facto leader, Delta, who led the insurrection against the children's robot overlords just days before. But even as the twelve struggle against the planet-and each other-to build their new society, the yoke of their digital oppressors has not been lifted. SCASL, leader of all robot kind, downloaded himself onto the lander and now controls all critical systems, like the cloner, needed to terraform the island with animals and plants, and the immortality chamber, necessary to keep the children alive long enough to gain a toehold on the planet for all of humankind.

With their immortality injections delayed by the landing and the battle against SCASL, the "children" age for the first time after decades stuck at the biological age of twelve. It's hard to know what's the biggest threat: the sea monsters, the devious artificial intelligence, or puberty. The stage is set for an epic struggle that will determine the future of all sentient life.

©2024 James Breakwell (P)2024 Tantor

Teens/Young Adult drama

I was expecting an epic struggle for survival among a hard-pressed group of individuals. Instead, the books focused a lot more on interpersonal struggles and didn't resolve a lot of the external troubles the group was facing. It just wasn't what I was expecting, others may enjoy more. I also didn't care for the morally bankrupt leadership and the general lack of concern over it.