This is, most definitely, YA and safe for young readers. Kari isn't just a 'freelance hacker and high school student." She is crazy good with code - a young hero that sticks with an ethical code, navigates through the normal drama of school, and happens to find herself in the middle of the Civil War. There is death and destruction, but it isn't gratuitous violence. Like I said, totally YA. Unlike everything on Nickelodeon, parents aren't fodder for canned laughter. Lingwall takes normal people, family, military, and politics and portrays them all true to nature. In some ways, there is comparable nature to Artemis Fowl. No sprites and such, but brilliance, technology, self-doubt, and grit. Fun overall, but too clean for my normal tastes.
4 of 5 Stars - ARC provided.
From the Publisher:
The country is tearing itself apart at the seams, but Kari is just trying to make it through high school without being discovered. With the second civil war starting any day, Kari is forced to choose to stay hidden, or to use her elite hacking/design skills to protect people she doesn't even agree with. Doing the right thing and resisting tyranny from wherever it might come isn't easy, luckily Kari isn't your average teenager of the future. Mind chips, 3D printers, and drones are just a few of the resources Kari has at her disposal, but she'll need more than that in this near-future thriller.
