Review: The Underlighters

The Underlighters by Michelle Browne

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Book Info: Genre: Dystopian Sci-Fi
Reading Level: Upper Young Adult/New Adult
Recommended for: fans of older YA/NA books featuring lesbian character, speculative fiction
Trigger Warnings: killing, violence, lesbian sex

My Thoughts: This is, overall, a pretty cool book. I loved the idea behind the Dust and the people having to move underground to escape it, even if it is never explained very well. But since the story is told in journal format, that's not too weird, as the person writing the journal would expect whomever read it to already know the history.

The main problem I had with it was the inconsistent timeline. The MC would mention a specific event took place on a certain day, and then spent several days reporting it in her journal. On the final day, which was almost a week later, it was written to sound like it had just happened that day. There were other instances of this, such as at the dinner saying that Janelle and Jay had already accepted the Crow positions, but several days later Janelle receives a letter saying they need her format acceptance of the position, that sort of thing. It was not only confusing, it was somewhat aggravating.-

I did love the fact that all aspects of the QUILTBAG were readily accepted in the new world, and the idea of the term Between to describe all Intersexual people, as well as the pronouns “xe, xer, xis” to describe it, although the interchangeable use of “xer” and “xis” was somewhat confusing. Still, it was a lovely idea and one I hope someday we'll actually see.

Still and all, overall a good story and one I think a lot of folks will like. Just be aware there are fairly explicit lesbian sex scene as well as polyamorous relationships. If that bothers you, best to move on. For the rest of us, it's a good, solid story.

Disclosure: I received an e-book ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Synopsis: Nightmares are bleeding into her waking world. Children are going missing. To save them, she must overcome her wreck of a personal life and a closet full of skeletons. She doesn’t know whether the horrors in the shadows are real... or if she is going mad. 

18-year-old Janelle Cohen is an electrician in an underground city. The world above has been swallowed by mind-destroying Dust. Her small life changes forever when a dragon attacks her on the way home from work. 

Her friends worry that she has the Fever, Dust-induced insanity. A terrifying trip to the surface of the world, the ancient and abandoned Up, deepens the nightmare. With no world left above, she and the other Crows cannot afford to fail…



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