The Kiln

KLIATT

To quote from the review of the hardcover in KLIATT, March 2003: Following The Kindling (reviewed in KLIATT in March 2002) and The Keepers of the Flame (reviewed in November 2002), this concluding volume continues the compelling story of a small band of teenagers and children struggling to survive in a world where almost all the adults have been killed by a sudden and terrible virus (Fire-Us). At the start of The Kiln, the group stumbles on a retirement home where some elderly women still live, cared for by a kind doctor. This is as much of a refuge as they have come across in their difficult and dangerous travels, but the teenagers are determined to press on to locate the president. If he is still alive, they want to find an answer to the mystery of the devastating virus, and to discover if he has an antidote. In the preceding volume, The Keepers of the Flame, they had narrowly escaped from a group of murderous religious fanatics living in an abandoned Florida mall, presided over by a mysterious Supreme Leader. Finding the president means confronting this group again, only to discover that the president is the Supreme Leader—and that one of the teenagers in their group is his son. The president, it emerges, was responsible for the release of the virus. He wanted to cleanse the world for a Second Coming, and he has a second vial of the virus, which he threatens to use. How can our brave gang foil his evil plans and save themselves, and the world? What kind of sacrifice will it take? The suspense runs high in this exciting SF tale, and all the loose ends from the other books are neatly wrapped up. The fierce love the teenagers have for the children they look after is deeply moving,and the religious symbolism will appeal to thoughtful YAs. This volume doesn't stand alone, but readers of the first two titles will clamor for it. (Fire-Us Trilogy, Book 3). KLIATT Codes: JS*—Exceptional book, recommended for junior and senior high school students. 2004, HarperCollins, Eos, 244p., Ages 12 to 18.
—Paula Rohrlick

VOYA

In this concluding volume of Armstrong and Butcher's widely praised Fire-Us trilogy, a group of eleven emotionally damaged youth continue their quest across a near-future America in which, five years previous, nearly everyone died from a horrific, possibly man-made plague. Their goal is to avoid members of the fundamentalist end-times cult known as the Keepers of the Flame and travel from Florida to Washington, D.C., to ask President why the disaster occurred and what they should do about it. Early in the novel, the characters come across an old people's home populated exclusively by elderly women-grandmothers who somehow managed to survive the virus. There they also discover that the nearby headquarters of the hated Keepers, called Pisgah Island, was once the summer residence of the president of the United States. Fearing that President might be held captive by the Keepers, the five older youngsters set out to rescue him, with dramatic and unforeseen results. Beautifully written but not for the weak of heart, this installment and its predecessors depict the protagonists as moving across a desolate landscape of half-collapsed buildings and derelict automobiles filled with the remains of the dead. Genocide becomes a major theme in this third novel, and the mass murder of young children is hinted at, although only two actual deaths occur in the book. Still, despite its grimness, this book also contains a fair amount of warmth and humor. With the threat of yet another viral apocalypse averted, this fine novel ends on a somber but positive note. VOYA Codes: 4Q 4P M J (Better than most, marred only by occasional lapses; Broad general YA appeal; Middle School, defined as grades 6 to 8; JuniorHigh, defined as grades 7 to 9). 2003, HarperCollins, 208p,
— Michael Levy

School Library Journal

Gr 7 Up-In book three of the trilogy, Angerman, Mommy, Teacher, and the other members of the makeshift family have found their way to The Woods, a retirement community filled with elderly women who somehow managed to survive the virus that killed most of the adults in the world. However, the youngsters' troubles and travels are not over yet. As Mommy deals with the bewildering changes that come with puberty, Angerman grows increasingly agitated, and insists on continuing the effort to find the President of the United States. Traveling in solar-powered golf carts, he and the other kids manage to find the president on Pisgah Island-and he turns out to be the Supreme Leader of the Crossroads enclave. He also turns out to be related to more than one of the children, and an over-the-top, power-hungry madman to boot. One family member makes the supreme sacrifice to save what's left of the world in an explosive finale. Armstrong and Butcher have crafted a chillingly realistic picture of events that unfortunately isn't that hard to imagine, and have created believable characters who act in believable ways. A strong finish to an engrossing and disturbing series set in the near future.-Mara Alpert, Los Angeles Public Library Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

An exciting if thin conclusion to the Fire-us trilogy. The headlong flight that concludes The Keepers of the Flame (2002) has led the children to "grandmother's house"-also known as The Woods: A Golf-Centered Retirement Community. There, a group of inexplicably surviving elderly women thrives, with a herd of goats and a fleet of solar-powered golf carts. Mommy, Hunter, Teacher, Angerman, and Cory are understandably wary after their near-escape from the deranged Keepers. But the grandmas seem sincerely kind, if occasionally senile. Though they have found a comfortable and protected place to be, the children know they must finish their quest to find President and learn the reason for the Fire-us plague. In a drama-filled journey, the children learn answers to questions that have worried them since they began. What was the reason for the plague? Why did they (and the grandmas) survive? And what is wrong with Angerman? Even Angerman's name is discovered, in a revelation of his history that resolves his traumas and leaves him sane. This adventure is jam-packed with thrills, narrow escapes, and grief, and the answers will satisfy fans. But the evil responsible for the near-destruction of life on earth (as well as a few more personal and gruesome horrors) should be frightening or hateful. Since this trilogy has endowed only the protagonists with any character depth, the villains are mere stage dressing. Suspense and resolution, but not much more. (Fiction. 11-13)