Lockdown: Escape from Furnace 1
In this prison, secret horrors are breaking free.
“Fresh and ferocious, Lockdown will hook boys with its gritty, unrelenting surprises.” —James Patterson
“Furnace is hotter than hell and twice as much fun! Sign me up for a life sentence of Alexander Gordon Smith!” —Darren Shan, author of the Demonata series
Furnace Penitentiary: the world's most secure prison for young offenders, buried a mile beneath the earth's surface.
Convicted of a murder he didn't commit, sentenced to life without parole, "new fish" Alex Sawyer knows he has two choices: find a way out, or resign himself to a death behind bars, in the darkness at the bottom of the world. Except in Furnace, death is the least of his worries.
Soon Alex discovers that the prison is a place of pure evil, where inhuman creatures in gas masks stalk the corridors at night, where giants in black suits drag screaming inmates into the shadows, where deformed beasts can be heard howling from the blood-drenched tunnels below.
And behind everything is the mysterious, all-powerful warden, a man as cruel and dangerous as the devil himself, whose unthinkable acts have consequences that stretch far beyond the walls of the prison.
Together with a bunch of inmates—some innocent kids who have been framed, others cold-blooded killers—Alex plans an escape.
But as he starts to uncover the truth about Furnace's deeper, darker purpose, Alex's actions grow ever more dangerous, and he must risk everything to expose this nightmare that's hidden from the eyes of the world.
Praise for Lockdown:
“Fresh and ferocious, Lockdown will hook boys with its gritty, unrelenting surprises.” —James Patterson
“Furnace is hotter than hell and twice as much fun! Sign me up for a life sentence of Alexander Gordon Smith!” —Darren Shan, author of the Demonata series
“This nightmarish start to a new series is unrelentingly bleak, uniquely horrifying, and strangely compelling.” —Realms of Fantasy magazine
“A great next choice for fans of The Maze Runner, The Grassland Trilogy . . . or Lord of the Flies. As for me, I'm looking forward to future books. Recommended for dystopia, thriller, and horror fans, or anyone looking for a fast-paced, spine-chilling ride.” —Jennifer Robinson's Bookpage
“Readers will be turning pages without pause, and the cliff-hanger ending will have them anticipating the next installment. Most appealing is Smith's flowing writing style, filled with kid-speak, colorful adjectives, and amusing analogies. Fans of James Patterson's ‘Maximum Ride' and Darren Shan's ‘The Demonata' series will find this satisfying fare.” —School Library Journal
“One of those leave-you-on-the-edge-of-your-seat thrill rides that will grab the reader right from the start. Teens will appreciate Smith's vivid imagery. His writing is extremely fluid, and he makes the reader feel for the characters, especially the young protagonist, Alex. Readers will be cheering him on from start to finish.” —Voice of Youth Advocates
“Not for the faint-hearted, this dramatic British import is both a page- and stomach-turner . . . The pacing is superb, building on the tension as each horror is revealed while saving the ultimate monstrosity for the cliffhanger ending. . . . Readers will find themselves rooting for even the most violent of the inmates as they try to make their escape and defeat the Furnace.” —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
“Smith establishes a quick pace.” —Booklist
“Lockdown is a beautifully written book that builds itself up on violence, suspense, and mystery.” —A YALSA YA Galley Teen Reader
“This is a compelling book.” —Ellaina, age 14
“The whole book was extremely compelling. The . . . plot was alluring and drew you in with its dark undertones.” —Hannah, age 17
“Lockdown was a brilliant book that gives vivid imagery to the life of Alex within the Furnace . . . it kept me captivated till the end.” —Ryan, age 16
“Lockdown is a beautifully written book that builds itself up on violence, suspense, and mystery.” —Gabe
Also by Alexander Gordon Smith:
The Devil's Engine series
The Devil's Engine: Hellraisers (Book 1)
The Devil's Engine: Hellfighters (Book 2)
The Devil's Engine: Hellwalkers (Book 3)
The Fury
The Escape from Furnace series
Lockdown (Book 1)
Solitary (Book 2)
Death Sentence (Book 3)
Fugitives (Book 4)
Execution (Book 5)
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Community Reviews
Second thought: What?
Third thought: What?
Fourth thought: WHAT?!
Rest of thoughts: WHAT THE SON OF A FLYING MONKEY AM I READING AND WHY CAN'T I STOP READING AND HOW THE HELL AM I GOING TO SLEEP TONIGHT BECAUSE I CAN'T STOP THINKING ABOUT THIS AND PICTURING EVERYTHING IN THIS BOOK INCLUDING THAT CREEPY GAS MASK WHEEZER ON THE COVER!
Honestly, this isn't a full on horror book. It is YA; although it's very disturbing YA.
Our main character is Alex. A kid who robs houses but not a kid who murders his best friend. He's been set up and sentenced to life imprisonment in Furnace Penitentiary. He is faced with horrors there that you and I can't even imagine (well, we can imagine). And he's going to try to escape (no spoiler - it's the name of the series and on the cover).
There is a time when you will need to push away thoughts like:
1. That wasn't even a real trial.
2. Wait a second...this is a prison where children go for life sentences that doesn't ever allow calls/visits/letters and no one in society has any problem with this whatsoever?
I let myself wonder about these things for a few seconds and then pushed past. If I could allow things like creatures with gas masks sewn into their skin and giant "dogs" with no fur or skin, I could allow these other things.
Alex meets a few guys in prison - some good and some bad. There are very brief descriptions of each. If it bothers you to not have a character described to a T, you may be annoyed. I was fine. The descriptions of the prison environment were amazing enough to make me forgive the lack of character development. There was also enough description of one particular character to make me chirp like a bluebird. Or a sparrow. Or some small, pretty winged bird.
Enter Donovan.
FACT: When I was young, one of my favorite movies was "The Story of 15 Boys." My favorite character was Donovan. He was my very first crush - a rough and tough boy with a "don't mess with me" exterior" and a "heart of gold" interior. I used to pretend he was sitting next to me on the school bus. He's the one holding the goat on the cover of the VHS case.
FACT: Donovan in this book reminds me of 15 Boys Donovan. But with bigger biceps.
If I can cling to one character wholeheartedly, I'm immediately more fond of the book. Donovan was the one character I could really care about above the others.
I would love to see this as a movie - although I'd probably be too scared to watch it. There is suspense and action and horror. I even chuckled once or twice.
This is probably a 4.5 for me, but I had such a good time that I'm bumping it up to 5.
1 Star for Originality (Seriously - I have never read anything close to this before)
1 Star because I couldn't put the damn thing down
1 Star for Donovan (old love hits hard)
1 Star for the creepy factor (I was having heart palpitations reading it at night)
1 Star for the cliffhanger ending that had me ordering the other books in the series seconds after finishing (there are five in the series - HALLELUJAH!)
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