Review of Unsouled by Neal Shusterman

Unsouled is the third book in the Unwind series by Neal Shusterman, and was released this month. I finished about a week ago and have taken this time to process it all and get my thoughts together. Even so, it's going to be hard to do this book and series justice all in one go. I therefore recommend you read my previous post here so that I don't have to recap the general series premise. (Actually just read the books. Most of this terminology is going to make no sense otherwise and reading is good for you anyway.)

In this installment of the series, Connor and Lev have escaped from their ruined former safe haven (The Graveyard) and must avoid juvie cops and parts pirates as they look for answers about the mysterious Jansen Rheinschild, the scientist and creator of the process that allowed unwinding to become a reality. They've uncovered that he has been wiped from the history books, the Internet, everything. It becomes increasingly clear that finding the truth about him may be the answer to ending unwinding once and for all. In order to do so, however, they must return to their home of Ohio, where it all began and where Rheinschild's wife Sonia (from the first book) still lives.

On the other side of things, Risa has renounced the media statements she was forced to make by Proactive Citizenry. In Unwholly, they had blackmailed her with the security of her friends at The Graveyard but lost their leverage when the kids were attacked, killed and/or rounded up for unwinding anyway. Risa also cut ties with Cam (a little background: Cam's a modern day, handsome Frankenstein made entirely of Unwind parts), who doesn't take it well. He's obsessed with winning her heart even if it means cutting his own ties with Proactive Citizenry (which made him) and crushing anyone in his way, especially Connor.

As you can tell, there is A LOT going on in this book, but I've broken it down into some highlights and lowlights for a quicker and more accessible review (spoilers ahead):

Highlights:

Flow: The story is still smooth, transitions mostly seamless. It still reads with the urgency of a film script and yet allows for deep introspection and characterizations more predominantly found in books.

Villains:  The new greaseball Argent Skinner is pretty hopeless as a villain, but his strange manipulative/idolizing relationship with almost equally hopeless parts pirate Nelson is amusing and will probably do some damage to our favorite characters later on. Most importantly, Starkey's villainy has really taken form. The most traumatic moments in the book are his displays of violence against all who stand in his way and represent unwinding (specifically of storks, which are children abandoned on doorsteps and who become legally a member of that family, whether they're wanted or not). 

World Building: We've learned even more about this world now. People smoke tranquilizers recreationally. A push towards allowing criminals to be unwound is on the voting ballot. Most Native Americans (now known as People of Chance or ChanceFolk) generally abstain from unwinding practices. 

Recurring characters: CyFi! Hayden! Baby Didi, renamed Dierdre! Sonia!

Biggest Bad: I love the idea that the real string pullers behind unwind are corporations profiting from it instead of the government. We've seen this before in real life -- big business winning out at the expense of the people. Society will literally rip itself apart as it's manipulated by greed.

Biggest Bad Kryptonite: Obsolescence. Also taking a page from reality. What happens when people can get organs and other parts cheaper, faster, and without having anyone be unwound?  Unwinding goes the way of the VHS player. 

Lowlights:

Uneven character usage: Right now, it's hard to remember what Risa really got to do in this book, besides be an obsession for Cam. Well, she did stuff, just nothing particularly important. Got herself caught by a parts pirate then killed him, nearly got eaten by coyotes, hung out with CyFi at his weird commune, worked/hid at a salon, hung out with Sonia. At least she got to kiss Connor instead of Cam but that's probably going to come back to haunt her (that guy just isn't right).

Resolution: The answer to ending unwinding has apparently been right under their noses with Sonia and that feels pretty convenient. I miss the open ending of Unwind, but I know that the resolution offered will be hard-won in the fourth book so maybe that's okay.

No Trio Reunion: I want the original three back together all at once. I want Risa, Connor, and Lev, that weird little dysfunctional family. Glad Connor and Lev spent some time together, but it's just not the same dynamic.

Connor/Conner: The story occasionally slips between two spellings of Connor, though Connor is the predominant version. It's a small detail, but it irritates me. Isn't an editor or someone supposed to catch that? What about Find and Replace?

General weirdness: Connor talks to Roland's hand. And the shark tattoo talks back. Cam got pieces of Samson Ward and Wil? Who else does he have in there? Roland? Also Starkey's villainy also includes the need to impregnate girls under his authority...I DON'T UNDERSTAND.

Summation: Overall, this book was pretty awesome but it does show that the longer a series goes on, the more likely it will have a few missteps and a little more beating around the bush to get to the big picture. I'm ready for the next book, the title of which has been announced as Undivided.