Swipe

Written by Evan Angler

Narrated by Jeff Stewart

 

“Apocalyptic dystopian fiction at its best. Angler’s sharp wit and dexterity with political themes are matched only by the thrilling suspense on every page.” —Lis Wiehl, New York Times bestselling author and FOX News correspondent

 

Everyone gets the Mark. It gives all the benefits of citizenship. Yet if getting the Mark is such a good thing, then why does it feel so wrong? 

Set in a future North America that is struggling to recover after famine and global war, Swipe follows the lives of three kids caught in the middle of a conflict they didn’t even know existed. United under a charismatic leader, every citizen of the American Union is required to get the Mark on their 13th birthday in order to gain the benefits of citizenship.  

The Mark is a tattoo that must be swiped by special scanners for everything from employment to transportation to shopping. It’s almost Logan Langly’s 13th birthday and he knows he should be excited about getting the Mark, but he hasn’t been able to shake the feeling he’s being watched. Not since his sister went to get her Mark five years ago . . . and never came back. 

When Logan and his friends discover the truth behind the Mark, will they ever be able to go back to being normal teenagers? Find out in the first book of this exciting series that is Left Behind meets Matched for middle-grade readers.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tommy Nelson
• Release date: Sep 14, 2021
• ISBN: 9781400235810

Reviews for Swipe

[a_reader_of_fictions · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

There are a lot of dystopian elements going on in here. Like a lot. Corrupt government. Check. Revised history. Check. Creepy ways to track all citizens. Check. Mysterious deaths. Check. Religion replaced with patriotism (The Inclusion). Check. Evil adults! Check, although that's not so much dystopian as MG/YA, but whatevs. So yeah, lots of things. They do all seem to nest pretty well and believably, which is good. Sometimes authors try to make too many things happen in their books, and it ends up feeling like a forced, cluttered mess, but not so Swipe.

Swipe is getting added to the list of books that tells me to stop being all judgey judge about books based on the publisher. Like Halflings, Swipe is published by Thomas Nelson, a Christian publisher. I have nothing against Christians, but I cannot deal with inspirational fiction at all, like when every chapter starts with a Bible verse and everyone's always praying and praising the lord (Hallelujah!) every other paragraph. However, these books are reminders to me that just because a novel is published under the Christian fiction umbrella, it really doesn't have to mean that it's pushing a religious message all up in your face.

Oddly, Swipe reminded me of The Immortal Rules, despite being for completely different age groups, and mostly different dystopians. What they share, though, is the mark. In Kagawa's I believe that the registered are branded or tattooed or something, which earns them a right to food from the vampire government. In Swipe, there's a similar system. People can choose not to be marked at the age of 13, but that means you're not getting anything. Son, you're on your own. Basically, the government is saying that unless you let us track you, you'll have to become a criminal to survive, so you're damned if you do and damned if you don't. Nice.

The only thing that really didn't jive with me was the Dust. I have trouble seeing how the government could have trouble stopping that movement. I mean, they know where a lot of them are, and it's not like the people would really care. It just seems like, so far as resistance movements go, the Dust was pretty lame, and should have been easily nipped in the bud. Perhaps, though, this will receive explication later on.

Much of the story reads like a dystopian mystery. Erin and Logan take on the role of teenage sleuths to figure out who is watching Logan, and what Erin's dad is doing in Spokie. Swipe reads somewhere between middle grade and young adult, perhaps ideally aimed at folks in their young teens. However, I found it to be a solid, fun dystopian read, and will be checking out book two, Sneak, for sure.

[missaligirl · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The world that Evan Angler builds in Swipe is, well...creepy. As stated in the synopsis, at the age of thirteen all citizens are required to get "marked" by the government. The mark is essentially Big Brother's human bar code. Without a mark, you are not eligible to earn money, spend money or have any societal benefits. Those who choose to remain markless end up squating in the slums, scrounging or committing crimes just to eat.I loved the premise of this world, though admittedly the idea freaks me right the hell out. I can imagine a world where the government has a complete 'nanny state' control on it's citizens and I can see them spinning it as a good idea. Perhaps the fact that I can imagine it, is what freaks me out about it. Angler does a great job at taking the imagination to the next level.Logan is a great character. He is so paranoid and scared and written with such care that you really can't help but feel for him. I practically tiptoed around in the dark with him. The other main character, Erin, left me wanting. I couldn't really connect with her. She's a tough girl, brave, confident but not empathetic. That was hard for me to like. She just wasn't very endearing most of the time. But a few of the other characters made up for what I was lacking in her.All in all the story is a good one. My only real fault with this story is that, for a middle grade book, it lacked in action and humor. There is a bit of both, mind you. I'm just not sure there is enough of either to really hold most younger audiences attention.Swipe ends on quite a cliff hanger and I am anxious to read book #2, Sneak which is due out in September. I think it promises much more action, to which I am looking forward to.My Rating 3.5/5 Stars

[bailschris · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I think this cover is so epic. I love when covers manage to capture an important part of this story and maintain the mystery to draw people in. Anyone who says don't judge a book by it's cover has never seen an amazing cover for a book yet. This is by far one of my favorite book covers.Swipe tells the story of a future America, once ravaged by war and separated based on differing ideals now united by one thing -- the Mark. The perspectives of the story shows the opposing views of a world that is as unfamiliar as it is familiar to the reader. Logan is afraid of the world ever since his big sister died while getting her Mark and with the day of his pledge coming up, he can't seem to think about anything else. Everyone tells him that he is being ridiculous -- that his fears are irrational and formed without sufficient evidence. Little do they know how right he really is. Erin is, well, proud to be a Mark bearing member of society and doesn't see any reason for Logan to fear. She is determined that everyone should see the benefits of being a member of this utopian society but where there is perfection on the surface, greater flaws simmer just beneath. These characters are about to realize just how big of a flaw is being hidden.Logan is an endearing character from the beginning with his almost paralyzing fear of everything. In many ways, he reminds me of a young child but that sort of behavior presents itself for a long time after the trauma occurs. It didn't take seeing his sister taken to prove to him that there is a reason he should fear his community and his government. He grows a lot throughout the course of the story, maturing beyond his fear of everything partly because of his crush and mostly because of what the situations demand. I can relate very well with the way he struggles with what is considered right and what is considered wrong by his society. I feel like I do that a lot with different things so it was nice to see it portrayed in a character. One thing I admired about him is how cautious he is about everything. He doesn't take anyone at their word, instead he allows his own reasoning and his own opinions to make up his own mind. So many characters are so trusting, blindly following other people, and believing that everyone deserves that amount of trust. That is what causes betrayal. Erin kind of maintains the role of a main character without being the complete center of the whole story. I had a different experience with her than I did with Logan because while his character was endearing, hers was off putting. She is extremely selfish, in the sense that she looks at everything to see what she has to gain from it. To a certain extent I think it is a defense mechanism of hers because she is pulled from her home, her life, and her mother. If I were in her position, yeah, that would be all I would think about. Especially if I could find a way back to her. This feeds into her need to appear stronger than she actually is. No one expects or anticipates that she should be strong after being up rooted but she is stubborn and that causes a lot of struggle for her throughout the story. Her biggest growth in the story is when she shows weakness and strength by betraying the society she has placed so much faith in. It showed me that despite her selfishness, a great part of her was actually selfless. I just didn't get to see it much.The Dust are the perceived bad guys for the bulk of the novel. I learned a lot about their lifestyle and about what this utopian society did to those who remained Markless. What was unique about it was that these people were more than what the society believed them to be. They had an unflinching faith in their cause that I think Logan probably should've been jealous of. How can they be so certain that their cause was right when he couldn't even decide if getting the Mark was the right idea? The best part of these "bad guys" was the fact that you really got to see into their lives through the alternating perspectives of the stories. Of course, their side of the story was few but it was nice to see who was behind the ominous group. Logan's sister became a sort of icon throughout the story, at least for me. I grew attached to a character that never really showed up in the story other than being mentioned. Her story as a girl who was essentially perfect in her family's eyes suddenly wasn't good enough in her society's. It made me question what I deemed perfect and beautiful compared to what really was. Who decides whether something is perfect? Society or us?I miss the days when getting a hug from a guy was pass out worthy. Oh, the joys of being young, right? I love simplicity in relationships and the build up to them if any occur. I hate relationships that just happen or suddenly appear. Not cool, not cool at all. The relationship ( I use the term loosely) between Erin and Logan flip flops between, well, awkward acquaintances, friends, friends pretending to be in a relationship, to a full out crush. Of course, the saying is a crush is meant to be crushed. I think we will see more occurrences of this duo throughout the series but that is just my assumption. There was a couple other little side relationships or hints toward crushes that potentially might bloom in the future. I can't wait to see what happens. Friendship played a huge role in the film both behind what created the Dust and what Logan depends on throughout the story. I learned a lot about the importance of friendship as well as how easily it is taken for granted. I liked this story. It was a great dystopian with a beautifully created society and culture that I think will develop into something extremely captivating as the series progresses. Check it out!

[glenajo · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I began reading the second novel in this series first, which was a mistake. It kept me confused about the meaning of several tools they use. So, I picked up Swipe, and totally entered this dystopian world of the future of evolved technologies and one world vision. After the “Total War” everybody is thankful just to be allowed to live, and doesn’t examine the requirements of the leaders. Each person must swear their allegiance and then they receive a tattoo like marking on their arm that allows them to function in society. When Logan’s sister dies when she goes in to make her pledge, Logan’s family begins to fall apart, and Logan believes that he is being watched. I definitely think that this series should be a hit with middle school and older students. The writing is tense enough that you will check over your shoulder to make sure you are not being watched. The book is clean, but the sense of ‘big evil government’ permeates the story. A must read for dystopian lovers, as well as those who enjoy a good mystery.

[lovez2read · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Swipe is the first book in the Swipe Series by author Evan Angler. Swipe tells about Logan, a 12 year old boy who is paranoid that someone is watching him . . . unfortunately he's right - he IS being watched.I enjoyed this book immensely. It reminded me a little of the "Left Behind" series, but was different enough to capture and keep my interest on it's own. A well-written, intriguing adventure set in a time after civilization has been at war again, and everyone has been offered a "Mark" which allows them to get jobs at only 13 years old, buy whatever they want, whenever they want, and basically have as much "freedom" as those in charge allow. This story is scary in its realistic ideas, captivating as the reader feels the fear and distrust of a young boy who knows someone is watching him, and the devastating reality that everything he thinks to be true, is in fact lies.I highly recommend this book for readers age 11 and up. I'm looking forward to reading the second book in the series: Sneak, which is due to come out in September of 2012!

[bookswithbite · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

After reading the synopsis of this book, I was so excited to get into. Finally a book that I know will give me goosebumps as well as the truth of the Lord. First off, the plot is really good. I really loved the setting of the world that Logan is in. he is faced with lots of questions that he gets no answers too. He is searching for answer but his time is running out. The plot build up is sort of slow but quickly picks up the pace with much action by the markless. The world building of the fallen world with the ruin that are left to stand are great! I loved how easily the reader is able to let their imagination run away with them.Logan meets other characters that help him along way. Though I am glad they help him I am disappointed in one thing. The truth. God's Word. I was hoping that by the end of the book Logan would learn the real reason by the mark and not just because he is questioning if it is wrong or right. Know what I mean? Iwanted Logan to stand and be courageous!! Instead in the end, the reader is left with many questions and Logan on the run.Swipe is a great start of an awesome series. It has so much that can be build on, that the possibilities are endless. Never a dull moment, Swipe is great!

[bornbookish · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

FINALLY! I think I started this book about 3 or 4 months ago and I’m just now finishing it. Reading this book was like pulling teeth for me. I had to force myself to read it little by little.I always feel bad when writing a completely bad review of something, especially when I was taught that if you don’t have anything nice to say don’t say anything at all. However, I agreed to review this book and give my honest opinion, so that’s what I’m going to do.Usually, one of my favorite things about reading Dystopian is learning about this new world that the author has created. I was very disappointed in how we learned about this future world. The only way we learn about it is through Logan’s studying for his Pledge exam, or just random passages about how things were before. This seemed like a very dry way of presenting the information, almost like reading a history textbook for another world.The character development just wasn’t there. I didn’t feel like I really knew Logan, Erin, Dane, Hailey, or any of the other characters. The main character could have been beaten over the head and about to die and I had no problem putting the book down right then. No part of me cared what happened next.I was going to say how boring I thought the story was, but it really wasn’t that nothing was happening because it was- CONSTANTLY. I think the reason it came across as boring was that there was too much of it (I didn’t think that was possible) and it was all very anti-climatic and just kept happening. Problem arose… problem solved…. arose…. solved, and even the things that didn’t get resolved right away were very predictable, which took away the excitement.The ending was pretty dramatic, definitely trying to hook you for the next book in the series. Unfortunately, I didn’t take the bait and will not be continuing on with the next book.

[alwaysyaatheart · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a great apocalyptic dystopian novel. I really enjoyed it. I'm a big dystopian lover, so even though this was middle grade, it really caught my interest. Though the book is fiction based, it was easy for me to imagine that many of the things in the book could actually happen in the future - The Mark, war, famine, global union, technological advancement with governmental control. I really liked the main character, Logan Langley. Even though he seemed really paranoid in the beginning, which he ended up having good reason for, he displayed outstanding morals, character, and courage in the book. I liked Erin also, she was smart and funny, and even though she and Logan had different ideas about how things should be, they were still able to be good friends. I hope in the next book we get to learn a little bit more about the other characters also. The characters did seem mature for 12 and 13, but if you consider the era they lived in and the way society operated at that time, I would expect that age group to be more mature than today's typical 13 year old. Sometimes I think we don't give those in that age group enough credit. I believe they are a lot smarter than we realize.Swipe was filled with suspense, action, intrigue, and mystery. There was no foul language or sex, and I feel that this is an outstanding middle grade novel. I have two nephews that are 12 and 14, and I can't wait for them to read it. I think that even though Swipe is a really enjoyable work of fiction, that it has the potential to also cause many to stop and think about how things could possibly be in the future, and also challenge you to think about what kind of person you would be under those circumstances. Evan Angler has done a great job writing this novel and I am looking forward to the next book in the series, Sneak, which will come out in the fall.

[skstiles612 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved this book. I am purchasing it for my school bookshelves. I think this will appeal to people of all ages. As an adult I can see our society headed this way. I can only imagine the fear Logan felt when his sister didn’t return from her trip to get the Mark. I was concerned in the beginning of the book that he was just being paranoid that he was being watched and followed.Erin’s move to Spokie made me wonder why her mother did not come with them. Her father can stop a question from anyone; just by telling them he works for the government. Any government that is this secretive and deceptive can’t be that great. This book did have something unique that stuck with me. In the beginning of the book Evan’s house was describe. Most of the houses are vertical. This means there is one room per floor. I thought this would seem very strange as a living situation. You couldn’t just walk across the hall to your sister’s room. You would need to go up or down a floor to see them.This book has enough suspense to hopefully hold the reader until the second book comes out in September. It is called Sneak, and will hopefully answer many questions that are left unanswered. I am grateful to Thomas Nelson’s BookSneeze program for allowing me to read and review this book. It is one I will promote to my students next year.

[janarose1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In the future, all individuals are eligible to become citizens at the age of thirteen. All they have to do is take the pledge and get the mark, a nano-tattoo on their wrists. The mark allows them to purchase items, take buses, vote and enjoy all rights of full citizenship. As Logan nears his thirteenth birthday he becomes increasingly paranoid, believing he is being followed and watched.I highly enjoyed this book. It was a quick read and the plot moved at a great pace. The characters seemed to be normal teenagers yet did not come across as stereotypical. Overall, this book was very well written. I believe any middle-schooler or teenager would enjoy Swipe.