Review: Robin Hood meets Spiderman...
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 6, 2014
Clarissa Cartharn’s dystopian romance, The Woodsmen, is a page turner with rich characters that I fell in love with and hated for the story to end.  Set in the year 3035, Cartharn has created a world where air, water, and food are all controlled by corporations which in turn control the government.  The arrangement leads to a stratified class society where the haves refuse to give up their status, regardless of the detriment to humanity.  Intertwined with the political problems of Cartharn’s world is the romance between Jared Ryder, a man born to be the leader of the resistance army and Ellie Callum, the Governor’s daughter.  She stands to lose all social standing by following her heart, both to Ryder and to her belief in equal rights.  Ryder stands to lose his life and his family.I enjoyed following Ryder’s character development through the book.  He begins as a man who is willing to withstand the burdens of being lower class for a sense of safety for his family.  He tolerates the inequality rather than stand up for what he truly believes.  It Is not until he is forced to recognize his true abilities and that he must be the resistance leader that I believe he becomes worthy of Ellie’s love.Ellie is the iconic Maid Marian.  She is sympathetic to the people of her Sector, willing to speak her mind, and finally, willing to lose her social status for what she believes is right.  I love her strength of character throughout the book.  The fact that both Ellie and Ryder are willing to sacrifice their own desires to help others makes it even sweeter when there is ultimately a very happily, ever-after.