Sixteen year old Aine lives in the Colony, and his whole life was decided before he was born. In two years he will marry the girl next door, Brin, who was assigned as his Other at birth. Then he will be given a position in the Colony's workforce that best suits his talents. Each night he takes four pills, like everyone else in the Colony, and he knows the pills keep them safe and their world in order. Everything is fine. Perfect, in fact. Until Aine accidentally drops one of his pills. Terrified, he tries to hide the mistake, but when he dreams for the first time in his life, he discovers all he's been missing. What scares him more than not taking the pill, though, is how alive his dreams make him feel. Because it isn't Brin he dreams of but his best friend Kyer. Another boy. Suddenly Aine's world turns upside down, and he doesn't know what to think or who to trust. All he knows for sure is he's falling in love with Kyer, which is forbidden by the Colony's Code, and he will do anything to protect their budding relationship. Even if it means defying the Overseer and leaving the Colony behind.

The Colony Book 1: Rebellion

When I was finished, I hurried after our class and Kyer fell in beside me. Speechless, for once. Up ahead, I saw Brin turn and look for me—I waved, then turned to Kyer so she’d know we were talking about something. Hopefully she wouldn’t come back and interrupt us.


I really wanted to know what he was thinking.


“Well?” I asked finally. “What do you think? Am I going to get in trouble at the Health Center?”


Kyer closed the distance between us until he was but a hair’s breadth away from me. His closeness set every nerve in my body on fire. “I think you’ll be fine,” he murmured, keeping one eye on the Monitor and our Teacher to make sure no one was watching us.


All I could do was stare up at him; I didn’t care who might have seen. “Really? Why?”


“Adults don’t have to take all their pills,” he told me.


This news was shattering. “What?” I cried.


Chapter 11