Vortex

by S. J. Kincaid Narrated by Lincoln Hoppe

Overview

The impossible was just the beginning. Now in their second year as superhuman government weapons-in-training at the Pentagonal Spire, Tom and his friends are midlevel cadets in the elite combat corps known as the Intrasolar Forces. But as training intensifies and a moment arrives that could make or break his entire career, Tom's loyalties are again put to the test.

Encouraged to betray his ideals and friendships for the sake of his country, Tom is convinced there must be another way. And the more aware he becomes of the corruption surrounding him, the more determined he becomes to fight it, even if he sabotages his own future in the process.

Drawn into a power struggle more dramatic than he has ever faced before, Tom stays a hyperintelligent step ahead of everyone, like the exceptional gamer he is-or so he believes. But when he learns that he and his friends have unwittingly made the most grievous error imaginable, Tom must find a way to outwit an enemy so nefarious that victory seems hopeless. Will his idealism and bravado cost him everything-and everyone-that matters to him?

Filled with action and intelligence, camaraderie and humor, the second book in S. J. Kincaid's futuristic World War III Insignia trilogy continues to explore fascinating and timely questions about power, politics, technology, loyalty, and friendship.

Editorial Reviews

Rae Carson

Hip, high-tech, and hilarious, INSIGNIA made my heart soar and left me with impossible-to-shake questions about technology, reality, and war.

Veronica Roth

PRAISE FOR INSIGNIA: “Insignia expertly combines humor with a disarming and highly realistic view of the future. The characters are real, funny, and memorable. You won’t be able to put this book down.

ALA Booklist

Elite teen-soldier Tom RainRaines is back in Kincaid’s popular Insignia sci-fi series, still battling the bad guys (aka his corporate bosses). The action again rises and the pace becomes more breathless. Vortex is ultimately a technological, high-concept boarding-school tale.

Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

Fast-paced battles in a variety of virtual worlds will excite gamers of all levels... Insignia [will] make a popular series for readers who enjoy adventures, science fiction, and espionage.

School Library Journal

10/01/2013
Gr 8 Up—In this sequel to Insignia (HarperCollins, 2012), Tom Raines still has many lessons to learn about politics in the Intrasolar Forces. Back at the Pentagonal Spire, he and his friends continue their training as superhuman government-weapons-in-training. Even though he has been promoted from Plebe to Middle, Tom knows he will need one of the multinational corporations to sponsor him if he ever wants to advance to Combatant. Unfortunately, after a series of disastrous meet and greets with the corporate VIPs, Tom alienates them all, severely damaging his prospects. The teen persists in furthering his friendship with the lead enemy fighter, Medusa. He's offered a chance to redeem himself and gain sponsorship through Obsidian Corp., but at Medusa's expense. And he's starting to suspect that when he and his friends unscrambled a fellow classmate's neural processor, they made a very bad choice. This action-packed novel delivers intrigue right out of the gate. Tom and his friends' interactions and dialogue are more natural and believable than in the first book, making these characters more memorable. There are still moments of forced dialogue, and some characters are over-the-top. However, readers who endured the length of the first entry will enjoy the action of this installment and will eagerly anticipate the next.—Kelly Jo Lasher, Middle Township High School, Cape May Court House, NJ

Kirkus Reviews

Kincaid's sequel to Insignia (2012) moves beyond derivative fun to real depth. Ever-rebellious Tom Raines has advanced with his pals Vik and Wyatt to Middle Company at the Pentagonal Spire. They've reached the level where they need to cultivate corporate sponsors in order to join the elite virtual warriors who conduct the ongoing space-based war between the Russo-Chinese and Indo-American alliances for control of the moon. Tom may be preternaturally great at virtual-war skillz, but he is horrible at sucking up and almost immediately alienates every single multinational corporate head he needs to impress. Meanwhile, Tom continues to pursue his odd but intense secret relationship with crack Russo-Chinese combatant Medusa and begins to suspect that Yuri, their Russian friend at the Spire, whom Wyatt "unscrambled" in the first book, may not be as innocent as they had thought. Kincaid lays a lot down, twining her increasingly complex plot and characterizations with Tom's growing awareness of the poisonous "military-industrial-media complex." As Eisenhower feared, it has made war a way of life that enriches a very few and impoverishes the many—one corporate head has bought Yosemite as his own private playground, one of many unsubtle but all-too-plausible symbols Tom contemplates. Action fans, fear not: For all the deep thinking Tom and readers undertake, pace, adventure and fun are not compromised one whit. A surprisingly and satisfyingly rich middle volume in a trilogy that exceeds popcorn expectations. (Science fiction. 13-16)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940173758538
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	07/02/2013
Series:	Insignia , #2
Edition description:	Unabridged

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