Dust

"The knot in Lukas's throat bobbed up and down.  His smile vanished.  "You aim too far," he said meekly.  Juliette smiled and squeezed her lover's hand.  "Says the man who watches the stars."

Juliette Nichols, newly elected mayor of Silo 18, knows what's outside of the silo walls.  She knows, and she's angry.  She plans to make the world better for her community and take out the men responsible for the destruction of life all those years ago.  And she isn't alone in her quest.  Donald has found himself leader of Silo 1 and he's not entirely sure how he got there.  But he isn't about to let the opportunity go to waste.  Burdened by guilt and suffering from failing health, Donald reaches out to the Head of Silo 18 and it's mayor in hopes of helping them on their quest to more information and a better life.

Dust is the third and final book in the Silo Series by Hugh Howey.  It's every much as good as the first two, Wool and Shift.  Hugh Howey is an excellent writer who has not only created this amazingly detailed post-apocalyptic world, but has also created a wide variety of real and enjoyable characters.  

In Dust we see the residents of Silo 18 begin to put the pieces of the puzzle together.  They are lead by Juliette, who isn't always extremely self confident, but knows in her heart that there has to be something better out there.  Her character is the perfect unexpected heroine.  She didn't necessarily want the job of leader, and she often feels she's doing more harm than good, but she puts the safety of her people above all else and follows her heart.  She's equal parts smart and stubborn, which I think most women will appreciate it.  When we first met Juliette in Wool she kept herself extremely guarded, but as the series comes to an end we see her learning to open herself up to the love and support of others.  

Nicely paired with Juliette is Donald in Silo 1.  I loved Donald's character because it's so raw.  Donald has been struggling emotionally since the beginning of Shift, when we first met him.  He's a train wreck of fear and guilt and anger.  He often messes up and acts on impulse, and that's why I love him.  He gives the reader an idea of what it's like to be on the side of the people that flip the switch. 

And then we have Jimmy.  Jimmy who will pull at your heart strings and make you smile and worry all at once.  I found myself really enjoying the chapters that were about Jimmy.  I tend to gravitate towards characters that have faced a lot of solitude.  I often see a kindred spirit there.  And no one knows solitude like Jimmy.  He gives the reader a lot to think about in regards to what life would be like when you've been cut off from the rest of the population for decades.  I also thought his character was fun because the others look at him as some kind of feral human.  This wild man that was left to go crazy all alone in Silo 17.  And while Jimmy's lifestyle has definitely made him different than the others, we see that in all actuality he is very intelligent.  The others have been so blocked off from the thoughts and world beyond their walls that they know very little of anything except Silo 18.  Jimmy, on the other hand, had a cavern of books and nothing but time to fill his mind with the words in them. Jimmy's character grows so much in Dust.  He still tends to be afraid of everything, but he learns to push his fear down.

All three of the books in this series were fantastic.  I'd even go as far as to say there were the best books/series I read this year.  I just couldn't get enough and now I'm sad they are over.  Wonderful work by Hugh Howey.