Review: Hope Carries On
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 09 1, 2013
"...there are places in this world that aren't made out of stone. That there's something inside... that they can't get to, that they can't touch. That's yours."In a strange twist, I saw something about "Shawshank Redemption" on TV this morning, just as I was in the middle of WJ Davies' "The Watcher." The quote above was Andy Dufresne talking to Red about Hope - that even in the darkest parts of the prison, even when everything else is taken away, hope resists and hope carries on.I suppose if I was going to sum up the three parts of Davies' Submerged Series, I would say "Hope Carries On." In spite of all the darkness present in the silo and the secrets harbored by the innocent and guilty alike, hope carries them through. By the end, I found myself cheering for Ace to complete his self-appointed mission and for Silos 35 and 36 to come through the storm together.In "The Runner," Davies tells the story of Ace Enders and his attempts at bettering the silo, only to be met with an offer to clean by the Head of IT. When Davies gave his readers "The Diver," I loved it, but was left wanting the continuation of Ace's story. Instead we received the story from the first book retold from other characters' points of view. It was a welcome change, but the payoff came in "The Watcher."Ace is back and in full frame throughout most of the story, finding himself in a new and strange silo, #36. This silo operates differently than #35 and Ace is immediately a central figure in its story as well. Eventually we do get back to Silo #35 and find it back in (mostly) normal operation  after the events of "The Diver." What comes next is unexpected and yet wonderful to read.Like I said, hope is the theme and even with all of the tragedies and terrible events, Ace and company manage to preserve hope for not just one, but two silos. I was thrilled to see the end of Davies' Silo series and can't wait to see what else he has to write.