"The Swan Riders" picks up shortly after "The Scorpion Rules" ends, and as a series it continues to be some of the finest, most thought provoking science fiction I've read. Erin Bow explores the dichotomy of being both human and AI, and deftly navigates the politics of an insurgency that arises from the dispossession of both bodies and minds. This series is a perfect rebuttal to all parents that think science fiction or fantasy turns kids' brains into mush.
Treacherous twists await Greta as the stakes get even higher in this stunning follow-up to the “masterful” (School Library Journal, starred review) novel, The Scorpion Rules.
Greta Stuart has become AI. New transmitters have silvered her fingerprints. New receptors have transformed her vision. And the whole of her memory has become one book in a vast library of instant knowledge. Greta is ready to rule the world.
But the new technology is also killing her.
Greta is only sixteen years old, but her new enhancements are burning through her mortal body at an alarming rate. The leader of the AIs, a ferocious artificial intelligence named Talis, has a plan. Greta can simply do what he’s done when the time comes, and take over the body of one of the Swan Riders, the utterly loyal humans who serve the AIs as part army, part cult.
Now two of the Swan Riders are escorting Talis and Greta across eight hundred miles of post-apocalyptic Saskatchewan. But Greta’s fate has stirred her nation into open rebellion, and the dry grassland may hide insurgents who want to rescue her—or see her killed. Talis has enemies everywhere. And even the Swan Riders may not be everything they seem…
About the Author
Erin Bow is the author of The Scorpion Rules, which received three starred reviews and was a Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year and it’s sequel, The Swan Riders, which received two starred reviews. She also wrote the acclaimed Russian-flavored fantasy Plain Kate, which received two starred reviews and was a YALSA Best Book of the Year, and the terrifying YA ghost story Sorrow’s Knot, which received five starred reviews and was a Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year. Visit her at ErinBow.com.
Praise For…
*"A fascinating follow-up and stunning story that is a must-read." — School Library Journal *STARRED*
*"Brilliant and compelling: don't miss this." — Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review
