Killer of Enemies

Review
By Booklist

In a future in the southwest of what used to be the United States, one fearless, lethal, spiritual young woman must fight the evil of man and the anomalies of nature to rescue her family and start again. Seventeen-year-old Lozen, Apache “Killer of Enemies,” is employed by four evil tyrants in unstable alliance. Her job is to travel out from Haven, the former penitentiary that is now their shelter, and dispatch of the Gemods (genetically modified animal monsters), bloodless zombies, and other threats to the compound. Skilled in hand-to-hand combat, armed to the hilt, and blessed with extrasensory and spiritual gifts, Lozen could easily escape, but the four Ones and their soldiers are keeping her family prisoners. Episodic high-octane chapters alternate between Lozen’s battles in the wilderness and the sinister intrigue in Haven. Though the imaginative dystopian mythology is thick and occasionally heavy, the brisk pace and nonstop action keep things moving. This original addition to the dystopian genre ends with the open-ended promise of more to come.