A Dream Within A Dream: The Darkest Path Blog Tour: Review, Dream Cast + Giveaway

Welcome to my stop on the official blog tour for The Darkest Path! Today I have a dream cast by the author and my review of the book. Don't forget to scroll to the bottom of the post to enter the tour wide giveaway! To follow along with the rest of the tour, click HERE.

The Darkest Path
Author: Jeff Hirsch
Genre: YA Dystopia

Release Date: September 24, 2013
Publisher: Scholastic Press

Description:

USA TODAY bestselling author Jeff Hirsch once again creates a futuristic world with stunning, dramatic realism.

A civil war rages between the Glorious Path--a militant religion based on the teachings of a former US soldier--and what's left of the US government. Fifteen-year-old Callum Roe and his younger brother, James, were captured and forced to convert six years ago. Cal has been working in the Path's dog kennels, and is very close to becoming one of the Path's deadliest secret agents. Then Cal befriends a stray dog named Bear and kills a commander who wants to train him to be a vicious attack dog. This sends Cal and Bear on the run, and sets in motion a series of incredible events that will test Cal's loyalties and end in a fierce battle that the fate of the entire country rests on.

Dreamcast

Callum Roe played by Dane DeHaan - You guys seen him in Chronicle? I was on the fence about the movie but thought he was awesome, vulnerable and tortured at the same time, kinda like our friend Cal

James Roe played by Eddie Redmayne - Don't know a lot of this work but he was pretty darn good in Les Miserables. He seems to have the intensity but seeming innocence of James.

Nat Whitaker played by Elizabeth Olsen - Man, she was great in Martha Marcy May Marlene. Hard to believe she's Mary-Kate and Ashley's sister! She can do super tough and intense and shattered and vulnerable just as well.

Nathan Hill played by Henry Ian Cusick - Come on, who doesn't love this guy? Besides looking almost exactly like Hill to my mind he's charismatic and projects this incredible decency, two things that would be pretty darn handy to a megalomaniac like Hill.

Bear played by Rosie - No contest here. Bear is bases exactly on my dog Rosie who I got right before I started writing the first draft. Ain't she cute?

The Darkest Path is a young adult dystopian novel that follows main character Callum "Cal" Roe as he goes about his life at a camp for the Glorious Path - a militia type religious group that dedicates themselves to the teachings of Nathan Hill, a former US soldier. The Glorious Path and what is left of the US government have been at war for years, trying to gain control of the country. Cal and his younger brother, James, were captured and taken in by the Glorious Path six years ago. After Cal murders his superior, he decides to attempt to escape the clutches of the Glorious Path and try to find his way home to Ithaca, NY. Along with Bear, the dog that he rescued, Cal must find his way across the country without being caught by the Path. Little does he know that his actions have set in motion a series of events that will have Cal relying on instinct and his loyalties - and ending in a battle that will effect the entire nation.

This was a gripping and intriguing dystopian novel that had me hooked from the first pages. The story line is definitely a dystopian one, but it doesn't seem that far fetched. That was one of the scarier parts for me - that this could actually happen in our country some day. The story line kind of reminded me of the TV show "Revolution" with the militia fighting what's left of the government to control the land. Cal was a great main character for the book. He was brave, strong, smart, dedicated, and loyal - even when it cost him dearly. I loved the addition of Bear into the story as well - his doggie character made things seem a little bit easier to handle and helped to keep Cal safe and sane as he made his way across the country. I was totally rooting for both of them the entire time - right from when they met and Cal rescued him. The writing was captivating and had such vivid imagery and detailed descriptions of everything that I felt I was right alongside Cal throughout the story. Overall, this was a creepy and very realistic dystopian novel that will have fans of the genre begging for more.

I live in upstate New York with my wife and a small passel of animals. I used to write plays (I actually have an MFA in it, which is number 8 on US News and World Report’s list of the top twenty most useless masters degrees) and now I write books for teens. I’ve written three, The Eleventh Plague, Magisterium and The Darkest Path.
A few random facts about me:

I’m incredibly superstitious.
I believe in baking as the ultimate stress reliever. I mean, sure, I write pretty good books but have you tasted my Triple Chocolate Espresso Cookies?
I’m deeply obsessed with the work of Joss Whedon, Stephen King, Bryan K. Vaughn, Prince and Tom Waits.
I started writing because of two women—Susan Cooper, author of the Dark Is Rising Series and Denise Stewart, my 7^th grade English teacher.