Astrid was brought back to restore balance in the city. Cursed with a past she can barely remember, she fills her role as an assassin with ease. Astrid realizes she knows dangerously little about the place she lives and the people she kills for. As her trigger finger begins to fail her, she fears she might be labeled as Unworthy next. When an enigmatic doctor draws her into a rebellion, she won’t just have to save the city – she will also have to decide what it truly means to be human.

Title: Life2

Author: Aisha Tritle

Pages: 243

My review

Life2 by Aisha Tritle is a dystopian science-fiction novel revolving around the life and memories of Astrid Rayner, an assassin. Astrid is bought back into life to maintain balance in the city. She lost almost all the memories of her past life when she is renewed. She works for a mysterious organization known as the Office of Regulations (OR) headed by Mr. Winters. She has purpose in this renewed life, to assassinate “unworthy” persons who broke the rules. Although she is confused with haunting rudimentary memories from her past-life now and then, she eases into her role as a perfect and merciless assassin to fill the hole. She has been bought back into this new life for almost a year and the one thing that scares her most is whether she will be marked as unworthy and eliminated or not. Michael, an enigmatic doctor who seems to be particularly interested in Astrid quickly draws her attention. With this newfound company, she slowly realizes the truth about herself and the world she lives in.

Life2 is a reminder to the world that how quickly injustice can take over humanity. At the time of adversity, humans will eventually let go of their morality to survive. A world without vision will be ruled by injustice. But we will choose to accept this future-less matrix rather than thrive for a better tomorrow. This invaluable message is beautifully conveyed through this story.

The author has developed every character with care and passion, especially Astrid. The story is told through her point of view. So it is essential to build a character with an equal amount of vulnerability and courage. She is somewhat scared and confused at the beginning of the story. But she is gradually transformed into a strong personality as the story progresses. She is trying to conquer her fears by eliminating ignorance.

The whole story is structured just like a rabbit-hole. We could not know what will happen next. It is a perfect thriller this way. Altogether, this is a very enthralling plot that everyone should read once in their life.