Book picks similar to
Soledad by D.L. Young


dystopian
dystopia
post-apocalyptic
sci-fi

Qualify


Vera Nazarian - 2014
    You die, or you Qualify. The year is 2047. An extinction-level asteroid is hurtling toward Earth, and the descendents of ancient Atlantis have returned from the stars in their silver ships to offer humanity help.But there’s a catch.They can only take a tiny percent of the Earth’s population back to the colony planet Atlantis. And in order to be chosen, you must be a teen, you must be bright, talented, and athletic, and you must Qualify.Sixteen-year-old Gwenevere Lark is determined not only to Qualify but to rescue her entire family.Because there’s a loophole.If you are good enough to Qualify, you are eligible to compete in the brutal games of the Atlantis Grail, which grants all winners the laurels, high tech luxuries, and full privileges of Atlantis Citizenship. And if you are in the Top Ten, then all your wildest wishes are granted… Such as curing your mother’s cancer.There is only one problem.Gwen Lark is known as a klutz and a nerd. While she’s a hotshot in classics, history, science, and languages, the closest she’s come to sports is a backyard pool and a skateboard.This time she is in over her head, and in for a fight of her life, against impossible odds and world-class competition—including Logan Sangre, the most amazing guy in her class, the one she’s been crushing on, and who doesn’t seem to know she exists.Because every other teen on Earth has the same idea. You Qualify or you die. * * *EXCERPT!Now you can read Chapter One in its entirety (click here)!* * *

The Savage Series, Books 1-3: The Pearl Savage, The Savage Blood and The Savage Principle


Tamara Rose Blodgett - 2013
    word count: 95,000THE SAVAGE BLOOD:Matthew and Bracus of the Band travel alongside eighteen-year old queen, Clara Williamson, as she journeys to the sea to unlock the puzzle of her lineage.Trouble strikes when the fragment absorbs Prince Frederic and undertake plans that involve Clara and her home sphere in a dangerous scheme of coercion.It isn't long before Clara discovers the Guardians terrible secret through horrible circumstances she must escape from.Can Clara protect herself from her own destiny?App. word count: 85,000THE SAVAGE PRINCIPLE:King Raymond is betrothed to Princess Ada of a neighboring sphere in an arranged match not of his choosing. Travelers from a parallel world have bargained to save the future of his people and he cannot refuse their offer.Raymond does not believe that an alliance with the savages would result in a life-altering experience. He soon finds himself overwhelmed when an entanglement of emotion and love conspire to undermine his vow in the most unlikely place.Rowenna, warrior female of the Band, is a much sought-after female select. When her kin agree to an offer that will unite the races of their future, they do not realize what the sacrifice will cost her.Can the two peoples of separate societies survive the prejudicial position that has been hoisted on them? Will their sacrifice afford a future of liberty, or will heartbreak be the only consequence of their love?App. word count: 30,000

Aftertime


Sophie Littlefield - 2011
    Having no idea how many weeks have passed, she slowly realizes the horrifying truth: Ruthie has vanished.And with her, nearly all of civilization.Where once-lush hills carried cars and commerce, the roads today see only cannibalistic Beaters -- people turned hungry for human flesh by a government experiment gone wrong.In a broken, barren California, Cass will undergo a harrowing quest to get Ruthie back. Few people trust an outsider, let alone a woman who became a zombie and somehow turned back, but she finds help from an enigmatic outlaw, Smoke. Smoke is her savior, and her safety.For the Beaters are out there.And the humans grip at survival with their trigger fingers. Especially when they learn that she and Ruthie have become the most feared, and desired, of weapons in a brave new world….

One Second After


William R. Forstchen - 2009
    Forstchen now brings us a story which can be all too terrifyingly real ... a story in which one man struggles to save his family and his small North Carolina town after America loses a war, in one second, a war that will send America back to the Dark Ages ... A war based upon a weapon, an Electro Magnetic Pulse (EMP). A weapon that may already be in the hands of our enemies.Months before publication, One Second After has already been cited on the floor of Congress as a book all Americans should read, a book already being discussed in the corridors of the Pentagon as a truly realistic look at a weapon and its awesome power to destroy the entire United States, literally within one second. It is a weapon that the Wall Street Journal warns could shatter America. In the tradition of On the Beach, Fail Safe, and Testament, this book, set in a typical American town, is a dire warning of what might be our future ... and our end.

Lightning Blade


D.N. Erikson - 2017
    Each year, on the same day, the necromancer kills. And today marks the eighth anniversary. But after dying at the killer's hand, Ruby discovers something strange: the day repeats over and over, in an endless time loop starting at midnight. The killer has something much bigger planned for today. And Ruby, as the only one capable of seeing the necromancer's endless time loop, must stop the psychotic necromancer from obtaining unlimited power. But the world outside the fence has changed, the supernatural forced to live in sprawling slums lying just outside gleaming cities. And in this uneasy new world, there might be threats even greater than serial killers lurking in the shadows...

Todd


Adam J. Nicolai - 2015
    Reeling and alone in the aftermath, Alan and his son Todd scrounge through the ruins of civilization to survive. Finding food and water is easy. Electric power is harder. But Alan has his own search, one he tries to hide from his son: after a lifelong struggle with depression, his scarcest resource now is a reason to keep living.Through wildfires and tornadoes, as the deadly cold of a Minnesota winter draws closer, the two ask questions that may never be answered. Why did this happen? Why were they spared? They don't realize that behind the empty sky, the entity that did this still watches.Or that its plans have only begun.

Fate of Perfection


K.F. Breene - 2017
    But her daughter inherits more than superior genetics…little Marie has a rare ability that the world has never seen, and her conglomerate, Moxidone, will stop at nothing to have sole possession of the child.Teamed with Ryker, the formidable master of security, Millicent must risk everything in a life-and-death struggle to tear her daughter away from the ruling force who wants to own them all. The odds are stacked against them, but Moxidone will learn that the pursuit of perfection comes at a perilous cost—and that love can’t be bought at any price.

Into Shadow


T.D. Shields - 2015
    Thirty years of world war, rampant bombing, and the melting of the polar ice sheets have changed the very face of the planet. The former countries of Canada, Mexico, and the United States of America have banded together as the North American Alliance, led by distinguished military hero President Walker. His daughter Poppy has served as the First Lady of the North American Alliance since she was only twelve years old, helping her father restore order to the chaotic new world they live in. Now nineteen, Poppy finds herself caught in the middle of a government takeover and dodging assassins. After fleeing to the war-torn ruins of Denver, she must face unknown dangers and new experiences. She will have to use every skill learned from her military upbringing to survive the terrifying beasts, deadly plant life, and fierce rebels who live in the shadows of the abandoned city.

The Tide


Anthony J. Melchiorri - 2015
    He’s taken them to all corners of the earth to protect the United States from biological and chemical warfare. When his CIA handler, Meredith Webb, gives him a mission to investigate a disturbing lead on a laboratory based out of an abandoned oil rig, they discover the most terrifying threat to mankind they’ve ever faced—a genetically engineered biological weapon called the Oni Agent. Back in the United States, Meredith discovers a frightening connection between the CIA and the Oni Agent. But her investigations are short-lived when the Agent spreads and brings mankind to its knees. Cities burn as it turns humans into warped creatures hell-bent on destruction. Dominic and Meredith vow to do everything they can to combat the Agent and find a cure. But will their efforts be enough to turn the tide—or is humanity’s fate already sealed?

Earth Alone


Daniel Arenson - 2016
    They came to destroy us. Fifty years ago, bloodthirsty aliens devastated the Earth. Most of humanity perished. We fell into darkness. But now we rise from the ashes. Now we fight back. Marco Emery was born into the war. After his mother is killed, he joins the Human Defense Force, Earth's ragtag army. Emery must survive basic training, become a soldier, and finally face the aliens in battle. Against the alien onslaught, Earth stands alone. But we will fight. We will rise. We will win.

The Angel & the Brown-eyed Boy


Sandy Nathan - 2011
    Two people carry the keys to survival: Jeremy Edgarton, a 16 year old, tech genius and revolutionary; and Eliana, the angelic, off-world traveler sent to Earth on a mission to prevent her planet's death. By the late 22nd century, the Great Recession of the early 2000s has lead to a worldwide police state. A ruined United States barely functions. Government control masks chaos, dissenters are sent to camps, and technology is outlawed. War rages while the authorities proclaim the Great Peace. Join Eliana and Jeremy as they begin a quest to save two doomed planets ... and find each other. ˃˃˃ AWARDS-WINNER FOUR NATIONAL AWARDS: 2011 IPPY (Independent Press) AWARDS, GOLD MEDAL in Visionary Fiction. More than 3,900 books were entered in this contest. 2011 Indie Excellence Awards, Winner (1st place) of the Visionary Fiction Category. Best Books of 2011, USA Book News Winner: Fiction, New Age Finalist: Fiction: Fantasy/Sci-Fi ˃˃˃

The Dawn: Omnibus edition


Michelle Muckley - 2014
    He has been stuck inside his tower since the bombs destroyed the world he knew, causing near total extinction. The reason for the war is still a mystery, but ever since that day the world stands still, trapped by the nuclear winter and the Guardians who patrol the exits. Zachary should feel lucky to be alive, but he is haunted by past mistakes which he never got a chance to put right. The only way out is the New Omega Lottery. The prize is a place in Omega, a giant glass tower in the center of their barren world where the new government, The Conservators, rule. Nobody from Delta has ever won. But when Zachary meets Emily he knows she is not from Delta. Convinced there must be another way out, he vows that he will find it. But he doesn't realise that The Conservators have already found him, and they have their own agenda. CALL OF OMEGA (book 2) With the roads destroyed and the bridges near collapse, Zack cannot believe what he has learned about The Barrens. He has a job to do, and so he must try to put things right. But there are those in the shadows who want him to fail, and when Zack learns of a mysterious group who The Conservators refer to as Drifters, he must decide if he is courageous enough to withstand their test. Will he be brave enough to follow his heart, or will he fall under the spell of The Republic of New Omega? EVERYBODY IS SOMEBODY (book 3) Life in Omega Tower is not what Zack expected, especially now he understands the relationship between the Conservators and the Drifters. He had his chance to make a choice, and now Zack feels a long way from home. But with the help of his new friend Serena he takes his first Renunciation Pledge and vows to become a good citizen of the Republic. But tensions are rising and rebellions are forming in the Republic of New Omega. Desperate to protect Leonard, Serena promises Zack that she will get a message to him. But when she comes to him begging for help he is faced with another dilemma. He turns to Emily, swearing to do whatever it takes to help Serena. But there are others who have invested in Zack, and they have other plans. MAN IN THE MIDDLE (book 4) With new alliances forming in the Republic of New Omega, Zack is forced to question what he has learned so far. Who can he really trust? But when he learns of a plan to try to save those trapped by the regime he must put his concerns aside. With Emily stuck inside Omega Tower under the threat of denunciation, he is willing to risk everything to save her. Even his life. But a mysterious transmission changes everything. Whose voice is it? Could it possibly be real? The walls are closing in on President Grayson, and control is getting harder to maintain. But if the regime should fall, who and what are waiting to take its place? RISE OF A HERO (book five) Europe is at war, and with ChemWeap attacks and the transmissions from the north fast approaching the borders of New Omega, President Grayson is forced to take a drastic decision. But when Emily learns of her father’s plans she only has one question on her mind; where is Zack? President Grayson thinks he has her on a tight enough lead, especially since the shock result of the Denunciation Ceremony.

Awaken


Michelle Bryan - 2014
    The cities left in ruins and the people all gone. Technology now nothing but the subject of folklore. Each and every day a struggle to survive. This is Tara's world.Raised as a survivor in the harsh, lawless sand lands, Tara is no stranger to hardship. But when her village is destroyed and the young people taken by the merciless Prezedant, she quickly learns how much of a fighter she really is.Now on a quest to rescue her only remaining kin, she is joined by the most unlikely of companions. Finn, an orphaned boy who has a devil Cat as a pet. Tater, the dwarf storytelling trader who seems to know more than he is willing to admit. And Jax, a surly young man who seems to hate everything about Tara. Together this little band of adventurers will face dangerous adversaries on a journey into the unknown. Nothing will ever be the same.

Infected: The Shiners


Tara Ellis - 2013
    A sixteen-year-old girl. A fight to save the world. When a rare meteor shower unleashes a mind-altering infection, the people Alex loves begin to change. They’re smarter, faster, emotionless, and they have a plan. One that doesn’t include her. Guided by cryptic clues left behind by her deceased father, Alex follows a trail of increasingly shocking discoveries. Earth’s history isn’t what she learned in school, and a new hive mind threatens to rewrite the future. Alex is a fighter, but pursued by both friends and an unknown enemy, it will take everything she has to fulfill her destiny. Desperate to save her little brother, she flees to the mountains surrounding her home, where the only chance for humanity has lain hidden for thousands of years. WINNER, Reader's Favorite Book Awards, 2015, Honorable Mention, YA scifi FINALIST, Young Adult Finalist in the IAN Book Awards, 2015 Infected, The Shiners is book one in the Forgotten Origins Trilogy

Flare


Jonathan Maas - 2014
    The sunlight blinds and burns instantly, and then kills within minutes. The radiation has also destroyed all of the earth's circuitry, leaving the nights dark and dangerous. TWO FIND HOPE AMIDST THE CHAOS Two survivors, a thousand miles apart, each hear a rumor of a distant safe haven that can withstand the sun. Zeke is a silent wanderer, Ash is a brilliant young man hiding a painful past, and neither know just what this place really is. To get there they must each travel through ravaged towns and over hundreds of miles of charred earth, and must do so under a sky waiting to kill them with every sunrise. But with the world's population dying off and humanity getting more and more violent as the days pass, their paths are destined to collide, because this unknown and unseen place might be the only hope remaining.