Synopsis: New York, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C., have been abandoned.

The Bill of Rights has been revoked, and replaced with the Moral Statutes.

There are no more police—instead, there are soldiers. There are no more fines for bad behavior—instead, there are arrests, trials, and maybe worse. People who get arrested usually don’t come back.

Seventeen-year-old Ember Miller is old enough to remember that things weren’t always this way. Living with her rebellious single mother, it’s hard for her to forget that people weren’t always arrested for reading the wrong books or staying out after dark. It’s hard to forget that life in the United States used to be different.

Ember has perfected the art of keeping a low profile. She knows how to get the things she needs, like food stamps and hand-me-down clothes, and how to pass the random home inspections by the military. Her life is as close to peaceful as circumstances allow.

That is, until her mother is arrested for noncompliance with Article 5 of the Moral Statutes. And one of the arresting officers is none other than Chase Jennings…the only boy Ember has ever loved.

Review: Article 5 presents a United States that lies in ruins. The war has ended, and life has changed. There are no police anymore - there are soldiers in it’s place. The Bill Of Rights has is replaced by the MOral Statutes and anyone found in contempt of these Statutes is locked up or sent to reform school, or worse - killed.

Ember Miller and her mother are pulled apart by soldiers for breaching one of the statutes. Her mother is taken to one place, and Ember another. Ember decides she needs to break out to find her mother without being captured by the soldiers along the way. Enter chase Jennings - Embers childhood love - who also happens to be one of the soldiers that took her mother. The love/hate relationship between Ember and Chase is intense and powerful as it is enthrawling.

I loved that unlike so many other dystopians, the relationship between Ember and Chase was full of bumps along the way. It’s not always smooth sailing, which is just like real life at times. It gets tiring reading of these easily formed relationships. Chase and Ember faced so many trials and tribulations. There was questions of trust throughout. Ember hated Chase at times, and loved him other times - either way it made for an interesting read.

I appreciated that this was based in the United States as opposed to a fictional world of the authors choosing. I don’t feel like this is something that a lot of dystopian books so, and it’s completely under rated. With talk of laws coming in such as SOPA you can kind of understand a Government that just takes things too far until everything as we know it is broken. I found the escape aspect of the story fantastic, there was truly some amazing action scenes in this book, and twists that I had no warning were coming. I really thought this part of the story was what set Article 5 aside from other dystopians of a similar nature. It really emphasised more issues of trust. Who you CAN trust and who you can’t. Pretty much, you can’t trust anyone.

Chase was a great character. Whilst at times he appears indoctrinated and cold, there is a reason for his behaviour, and ultimately he would do anything to keep Ember safe by all means. He will not leave her. He will not let anyone hurt her. He’s definitely a swoon-worthy male lead! Ember (whilst I didn’t enjoy her name too much, I got over it), is the strong, determined kick-ass type of chick. I mention this in my reviews anytime this type of female character appears, because I think as a female it’s important to have strong females in our books. Not that it’s always appropriate.. and not that I am aa feminist. lol But I do really find myself loving a brave girl who just goes for it.

Overall a solid dystopian for fans of the genre. I did think there was some slight similarities to “Eve” by Anna Carey at times, but I still really enjoyed it. I rated this a 4 instead of a 5 because I did think there are other dystopians I have read and probably thought were a smidge better. But I don’t want to overshadow the fact that this is an absolutely solid debut from Kristen Simmons, and the other books in this series will definitely be something to keep an eye out for!

Rating: 4 out of 5