The Bane by Keary Taylor (The Eden Trilogy #1)

I read Keary Taylor's Eden before she rewrote it as a series, and then re-read it as The Bane once it was republished. I reviewed them separately. 

Genres: Young Adult, Sci-fi, Post-Apocalyptic, Romance
My Rating: 5 out of 5

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Before the Evolution there was TorBane: technology that infused human DNA with cybernetic matter. It had the ability to grow new organs and limbs, to heal the world. Until it evolved out of control and spread like the common cold. The machine took over, the soul vanished, and the Bane were born. The Bane won't stop until every last person has been infected. With less than two percent of the human population left, mankind is on the brink of extinction.

Eve knows the stories of the Evolution, the time before she wandered into the colony of Eden, unable to recall anything but her name. But she doesn't need memories to know this world is her reality. This is a world that is quickly losing its humanity, one Bane at a time.

Fighting to keep one of the last remaining human colonies alive, Eve finds herself torn between her dedication to the colony, and the discovery of love. There is Avian and West – one a soldier, one a keeper of secrets. And in the end, Eve will make a choice that will change the future of mankind.

The Bane is The Terminator meets The Walking Dead with a heart-twisting romance.

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This was great! It reminded me a lot of The Immortal Rules. I didnt like The Immortal Rules as much as most people. It was still good, but I prefer Eden. There was a band of survivors in a post-apocalyptic world. The main girl, Eve, is different from the rest of the survivors. They travel to a safe haven for humans, which was called Eden in The Immortal Rules. Although in this Eden is the name of their group, not their destination. And there is even a young guy in the group, West, who reminds me a lot of Zeke.

The main difference, besides this being about cyborgs instead of zombies and vampires, is that this has a love-triangle. An equilateral love-triangle. I have never seen such an equally matched love-triangle before. There were absolutely no hints to who Eve was going to choose for the whole book until I was 92% done. She never even leaned to one or the other. She was split 50/50 for the whole book up to 92%! After she had a particularly tender moment with Avian, I wondered if she was finally leaning towards one of them. But the next thing it says is, "That night I dreamed of West." And I was like, "OMG! This is hopeless!" It was ridiculous but enthralling!

I preferred one of the guys but I wasn't convinced he was necessarily best for her. So even though she didn't pick him in the end, her reasoning was good and I wasn't upset. I was actually pleased that this took a different route from most YA romances. It was extremely romantic either way, and after reading all her ridiculous helplessness in everything guy related for most of the book, I was so happy when she finally made a choice that I cried. I don't mean to sound negative when I call her ridiculous. I have never seen a love-triangle that was drawn out like this before, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. I was absolutely captivated! I couldn't put it down! I had to find out what would happen next. Who she would pick. It made the pay-off all the more exciting. And it even managed to make me happy when she didn't pick the guy I liked better, because its about Eve, not me. But I don't get why some people were making a big deal out of the age difference between Eve and Avian. I didn't think it was that bad. Eve was 18, West was 19, and Avian was 25.

  

I also really loved learning about the robots or cyborgs, and the infection, and Eve's history. It was all very interesting. And Eve was amazing. A seriously kick-ass heroine! I love that scene right after Eve had her epiphany. She found out that the guys went on a dangerous mission without her and she runs after them doing robot head shots. That would be an awesome scene to see on screen! And a movie is planned, which is very exciting.

Keary Taylor made this fake poster herself. I had seen it on her blog before I started the book and I pictured Gillian Zinser as Eve the whole book, and Wentworth Miller as Avian. Matt Lanter isnt really how I pictured West but he is not a bad choice. Since it is Keary Taylor's choice I have no right to complain. This will be an amazing movie! I cant wait!

I am pretty sure this is a standalone. There is no sign of any more books being planned. The story was mostly tied up. There were a few things we could have had more information on. Namely the fate of a particular character, and what the future of the world will hold. But over-all the ending tied up all the more immediate issues and I cant help but be excited for Eve's future, even though I dont get to see it.

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Genres: Young Adult, Sci-fi, Post-Apocalyptic, Romance
My Rating: 5 out of 5

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I loved this just as much the second time around, having already read Eden, if not more. At first I wasnt enjoying it as much because it was focusing mostly on the love-triangle, and I know how that turns out. But as it went on the story picked up and dragged me back in, plus there were subtle differences that had me feeling like I did the first time.

The backstory about how the Bane came to be was more thorough (the name the Bane is also new), as well as Eve's history. I don't remember her having flashbacks in Eden, but I may be wrong. The balance of the love-triangle was also changed. Its hard to explain without spoiling, but in Eden one of my favourite things about the book was the fact that I had no idea who Eve would choose until she made her choice. She didn't lean towards one guy or the other. It was completely even before she had her epiphany. 

In this one the balance was changed. Some scenes were taken out, and the guy that Eve eventually chooses was given more focus. I guess that can be a good thing too, so readers don't get too attached to the other guy and become disappointed. It happens a lot, of course. There are lots of fans of Gale, Puck, and Jacob out there. But at least in The Bane, readers are not misled. I really enjoyed these changes and I loved the fleshing out of Eve's love interest. In The Bane, he is the obvious choice for her. They belong together, they fit together like two pieces of a puzzle. There's really no contest anymore. The changes were a definite improvement.

I didn't notice much of a difference in Eve as a character, or the story. There were no improvements needed. Eve still kicks ass, and the story is a great post-apoc world with heavy sci-fi, action, and romance elements. I am so glad that this time around I have a sequel to look forward to and I cannot wait to read The Human!

“In that moment I finally knew.

I knew which one I would grieve over. A piece of me would be missing forever if he was gone. A part of me would break. But I would make it through.

And I knew which one of them I couldn't live without, couldn't take another single breath if he were to be taken away from me.

In that moment I finally understood what love meant.”