Tool of War by Paolo Bacigalupi

Set in a dark future devastated by climate change, Tool of War is the third book in a major adventure series by a bestselling and award-winning science fiction author and starring the most provocative character from the acclaimed novels Ship Breaker and The Drowned Cities. In this gripping, eerily prescient sci-fi thriller that Kirkus described as masterful, Tool--a half-man/half-beast designed for combat--proves himself capable of so much more than his creators had ever dreamed. He has gone rogue from his pack of bioengineered augments and emerged a victorious leader of a pack of human soldier boys. But he is hunted relentlessly by someone determined to destroy him, who knows an alarming secret: Tool has found the way to resist his genetically ingrained impulses of submission and loyalty toward his masters... The time is coming when Tool will embark on an all-out war against those who have enslaved him. From one of science fiction's undisputed masters comes a riveting and all-too-timely page-turner that explores the intricate relationships connecting hunter and prey, master and enslaved, human and monster. Suzanne Collins may have put dystopian literature on the YA map with 'The Hunger Games'...but Bacigalupi is one of the genre's masters, employing inventively terrifying details in equally imaginative story lines. --Los Angeles Times Editorial Reviews Praise for Ship Breaker Michael L. Printz Award Winner, 2011A New York Times Bestseller National Book Award Finalist, 2010 A VOYA 2010 Top Shelf Fiction for Middle School Readers BookA Rolling Stone 40 Best YA Novels Book A Washington Post Best Book for Young Readers, 2012 Green Earth Book Award Young Adult Fiction Honor Book, 2011 YALSA Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults, 2010 Publishers Weekly Best Children's Books, 2010 ALSC Notable Children's Books, 2011 Bacigalupi's future earth is brilliantly imagined and its genesis anchored in contemporary issues...The characters are layered and complex, and their almost unthinkable actions and choices seem totally credible. Vivid, brutal, and thematically rich, this captivating title is sure to win teen fans for the award-winning Bacigalupi. --Booklist (starred review) A stellar YA debut...the book's message never overshadows the storytelling, action-packed pacing, or intricate world-building. --Publishers Weekly (starred review) *A strong, entertaining continuation of Bacigalupi's postapocalyptic series.--School Library Journal, starred review *Bacigalupi's environmentally ravaged world remains both richly described and terrifying, his characters diverse and complex. Through Tool, he explores free will and the consequences of humans playing at being gods. ...Well worth the wait. --Publishers Weekly, starred review *Tool is at center stage at last as readers move through Bacigalupi's exploration of the intricate relationships connecting hunter and prey, master and enslaved, human and monster. Masterful.--Kirkus Reviews, starred review A cleverly described, intricate, and equally desolate world. Fans of the series will love it, and...new readers will quickly understand the world. --BCCB Bacigalupi masterfully examine[s] larger questions about humanity, genetic engineering, loyalty, freedom, violence, and survival. This striking novel...is an all-too-timely reminder that humans' actions have the power to change the world for better or worse. --The Horn Book Bacigalupi's action scenes are brilliantly cinematic, powering the pacing with breathtaking superhero stunts. Tool, as ever, is a character impossible to forget.--Booklist Makes readers think about what it means to be human, the price of genetic engineering, and the inhumanity of the corporations who put profit above all else. --Booklist Praise for The Drowned Cities A 2012 Kirkus Reviews Best of YA BookA 2012 VOYA Perfect Ten BookA 2012 Los Angeles Times Book Prize FinalistA 2012 Los Angeles Public Library Best Teen BookA 2013 YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults BookA 2013 CBC at Bank Street College Best Children's Books of the Year BookA 2013 Capitol Choices Noteworthy Titles for Children and Teens Book A Junior Library Guild SelectionA 2014 Tennessee Volunteer Book Award Nominee Praise for Tool of War: A 2018 Locus Awards Finalist for Young Adult Books - From the Publisher *08/01/2017 Gr 10 Up--The third entry in his award-winning dystopian series, following Ship Breaker and The Drowned Cities, tells the story of Tool the augment, a genetically engineered half-man made up of a cocktail of genetic material--human, dog, tiger. Augments are designed to be the ultimate killing machines while remaining fiercely loyal to his creators. However, once Tool discovers that he can suppress his submissive instincts, he rebels against his creators and splinters off from his augment pack to lead an army of soldier boys--human child soldiers--to capture the Drowned Cities. Tool's creators find him and wipe out his army, which forces him back into hiding. With the help of a new pack--a band of teen merchant sailors--and old allies, Tool resumes his desrtructive mission. Bacigalupi proves once again that he is a master of world-building; the world he created in the previous two books is just as desolate, violent, and intriguing in this installment. The tension--from the time Tool's creators rain fire down upon him in the Drowned Cities, to when Tool finally comes face-to-face with the man who built him--is relentless throughout the narrative, and the lack of primary character development (perhaps a result of expecting readers to have plowed through the first two books) allows for the introduction and development of supporting characters, such as Jones, a junior analyst and young prodigy for Mercier Corporation who is helping track Tool down. The amount of violence and bloodshed makes this more suitable for an older audience. VERDICT A strong, entertaining continuation of Bacigalupi's postapocalyptic series; teens will be hoping for future installments. Hand to those who devoured the first two books.--Tyler Hixson, Brooklyn Public Library - School Library Journal Bacigalupi returns for the third installment in the Shipbreaker series, focusing on Tool, a bioengineered augment and his quest for revenge. Sunil Malhotra's gruff, resolute narration is well matched to a dystopia with hardened characters, heavy backstory, and harsh environments. While prior knowledge of the Shipbreaker series may be useful to fully grasp the worlds of Tool's army and his foes, this installment is still vivid and engaging as a stand-alone work. Malhotra's pacing and vehement tone speak to the hardships of battle and bring richness to characters' internal monologues and past experiences. There's a sizable cast in this work, and Malhotra's characterizations give urgency to conflicting opinions and challenging conversations. K.S.B. AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine - FEBRUARY 2018 - AudioFile Bacigalupi returns for the third installment in the Shipbreaker series, focusing on Tool, a bioengineered augment and his quest for revenge. Sunil Malhotra's gruff, resolute narration is well matched to a dystopia with hardened characters, heavy backstory, and harsh environments. While prior knowledge of the Shipbreaker series may be useful to fully grasp the worlds of Tool's army and his foes, this installment is still vivid and engaging as a stand-alone work. Malhotra's pacing and vehement tone speak to the hardships of battle and bring richness to characters' internal monologues and past experiences. There's a sizable cast in this work, and Malhotra's characterizations give urgency to conflicting opinions and challenging conversations. K.S.B. AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine - FEBRUARY 2018 - AudioFile *2017-08-07 Bacigalupi returns to probe his brutal, post-apocalyptic American landscape and darkly provocative characters in this third installment of the series begun in Ship Breaker (2010) and continued in The Drowned Cities (2012). Following the pattern of existential fracture found in its predecessors' narratives, this latest novel further explores the consequences of war and corruption with a focus on the DNA-spliced augment called Tool. Tool (also called Blood, Blade, and Karta-Kul the Slaughter-Bringer) is a finely honed weapon, bred for massacre, survival, and loyalty. But after breaking free of his conditioned servitude, Tool represents a serious threat to his former masters, who attack with everything available in their considerable arsenal to destroy him lest they be forced to face the terrifying question of what happens when a weapon turns on its creators. For Tool was uniquely designed for more than just the tactical strategy and lethal bloodlust of most augments--he has a power that, now unleashed, could spell the end for a violently factionalized, inhumanly cruel humanity. Told in third person, the novel alternates among the perspectives of several new as well as familiar characters, none of whom shy away from the constant gore and near-paralyzing moral complexities of their war-torn existence. After playing fascinating, catalyzing roles the first two books, Tool is at center stage at last as readers move through Bacigalupi's exploration of the intricate relationships connecting hunter and prey, master and enslaved, human and monster. Masterful. (Dystopian. 14-adult) - Kirkus Reviews