Amazon.com Review
Ellie has started to believe she won't survive the war. Their band of eight teenage guerrillas is down to five now--Robyn and Corrie and Chris are dead, and only she and Homer and Kevin and Lee and Fi are still trying to sabotage the enemy who has taken over their country. They're growing numb and soul sick from the violence, because they've been fighting for a long time--through four previous novels, actually: John Marsden's
Tomorrow: When the War Began,
The Dead of Night,
A Killing Frost, and
Darkness Be My Friend. At the same time, they are normal teens who kid around, fall in and out of love, and think long thoughts about the meaning of life.
It is this poignant human dimension that lifts Marsden's series above the run-of-the-mill spy action novel--that and the fact that nobody is better at writing about things blowing up. And his scenes leading up to the explosion create tension so powerful it is almost unbearable to keep on reading--but impossible not to. In Burning for Revenge, the five have been abandoned in enemy territory when the New Zealand general decides that they are not valuable enough to send a rescue helicopter. Without any definite plans, they sneak into the back of a truck, only to find themselves at the end of the ride deep within the enemy's airfield. How they battle out of the situation and leave the enemy's air power in ruins makes a breathlessly exciting story that will not disappoint the many teen fans of this excellent series. (Ages 12 and older) --Patty Campbell
From School Library Journal
Grade 8 Up-"If only our country hadn't been invaded." Ellie and her friends are back in this fifth volume of Marsden's adventure series that started with Tomorrow, When the War Began (Houghton, 1995). Having orchestrated several harrowing guerrilla attacks on the enemy, the five teens find themselves inside the enemy-held Wirrawee Airfield, outnumbered by hundreds of trained and heavily armed soldiers. Their decision to inflict as much damage as possible sounds like a suicide mission, but these gutsy teens pull off a brutal attack and escape worthy of a Hollywood movie. The action is fast paced and heart stopping, and the characters are so believable that readers forget that the story is fiction. Although Marsden's description of warfare and death is explicit, it is necessary to make his story real. Ellie, the narrator, is thoughtful, resilient, brave, and yet totally human. The other characters are equally intriguing; teenagers will readily identify with their fears and emotions. Fans of this incredibly suspenseful and riveting series will not be disappointed. If your library owns volumes one through four, this is a must buy. If you haven't yet discovered Marsden's writing, it is well worth investigat-ing.
Susie Paige, Rogers Memorial Library, Southampton, NY Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
