Hive: A Dystopian Time-Travel Thriller by D.L. OrtonMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
D. L. Orton’s Hive opens a door into a wildly imaginative and eerily plausible world, a rare combination in dystopian fiction. This is the first installment in the Madders of Time series, and it wastes no time plunging you into a narrative that is as sharp-edged as it is emotionally resonant.
At its heart, Hive is more than a time-travel adventure; it’s a meditation on survival, connection, and the strange elasticity of love when the rules of time no longer hold steady. Orton’s writing brims with energy—taut in its pacing, yet expansive in its emotional reach. The future she conjures is not a sterile, clinical dystopia, but one that hums with tension, danger, and the stubborn persistence of hope.
The characters, particularly Katie and Diego, are drawn with an immediacy that makes them more than vehicles for the plot. Their choices, heartbreaks, and flashes of humor feel lived-in and real. Even with the high stakes of collapsing timelines and fractured realities, their humanity remains the anchor. This layering of the personal against the apocalyptic makes Hive so compelling.
Orton also balances the science-fiction elements with an accessible style. The time-travel mechanics are intricate enough to intrigue seasoned genre fans, yet they never weigh down the momentum. Instead, the speculative framework serves as a backdrop for what is ultimately a very human story of resilience and impossible love.
If you crave thrillers that keep the pulse racing but also value the quiet, aching moments that make characters unforgettable, Hive delivers on both fronts. It’s the kind of book that lingers—raising questions about fate, choice, and what it means to fight for a future worth living.
As the first step into the Madders of Time series, Hive promises a journey as thought-provoking as it is exhilarating.
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