Tier 1
Tier 2
Tier 3
By: Cindy Gunderson
My Rating: Four out of Five Stars
Best for: 14 and up

Well now, here’s an unexpectedly unique take on dystopian future scyfy—and oddly (unintentionally) timely for this crazy year of 2020.

The set up: The world wasn’t ready when the virus came. Our selfish, me-first culture left the survivors with limited resources and a polluted world. There was one blessing the technology of the past left behind: DNA. Those companies that collect your DNA to reveal your heritage? That data all stuck around. In the new-post virus world of limited resources, it was decided that since we could determine who was most viable based on their DNA—who was least likely to get sick, who was most likely to be able to manage through change, stuff like that—we could then allocate resources to those who would be most likely to benefit first, then pass the excess down the line. All in the name of giving humans the best chance to survive.

Tier 1, you got what you needed because you were the best hope for survival. Your job is to mate with the optimal DNA match to strengthen our gene pool. How very Nazi-ish.

Tier 2, you got whatever Tier 1 didn’t need, and your job was to provide for Tier 1.

Tier 3, you are the least viable. You get the leftovers.

Sounds bleak, right?

Yep.

This certainly isn’t a future I want to be a part of, and that made the Tier Trilogy a terrific cautionary tale!

This is a series driven by its story. I found the foundational premise of a society built on fact-based science fascinating—and honestly all too plausible. So much of it was uncomfortable to read because I could see flashes of thought that exists in our world, and as much as I hated what the main characters had to go through, the story demanded I keep reading to discover the resolution. The unsatisfying and heart-breaking endings of books one and two promised a satisfying resolution that finally came, but not until the very end of book three.

I appreciated that there was no violence or language. The husband and wife were, um…very, in love. All the time. But everything stayed PG, and I can recommend the Tier Trilogy for ages 12 and up content-wise, but likely best for advanced 14 and up considering topics and pacing.

Get your copy here!

Happy Reading!