Burn (Pure Trilogy)
Partridge has murdered his evil father, Willux, and assumed control of the Dome, his goal to effect a rapprochement between the Pures, who live in the Dome, and the Wretches, who are survivors of the Detonations and whom the Pures regard as no longer human. Meanwhile, Pressia, Bradwell, and El Capitan are attempting to reach the domed city with conflicting missions: Pressia plans to deliver a medication and its formula that might cure the Wretches, who are badly mutilated, fused to whatever object they happened to be near when the Detonations occurred (El Capitan and his brother Helmud are fused); as for El Capitan and Bradwell, they plan to destroy the Dome even if it means revolution. To complicate matters, both El Capitan and Bradwell are in love with Pressia; how will this affect their missions? Baggott’s conclusion to her monumental Pure trilogy about a postapocalyptic, strife-torn world is hardly original, but it’s effective in its dramatic, occasionally suspenseful treatment of its subject and in its charismatic characters. Readers should be aware, however, that this is not a stand-alone title; to understand its complexities, it’s necessary to have read the preceding two volumes. --Michael Cart