Chosen at random to fight in a staged war, the only way for her to survive is to kill.
America in the late 21st century is a pale shadow of its former glory. Decades of war and the growing divide between the poor and the wealthy leave all but the super-rich in the grips of the greatest depression since the 1930s. This is the world that sixteen-year-old Sharon Hall lives in. With her city on the verge of economic collapse, her dream of graduating and getting the diploma she needs to get a real job and save her family grows more distant with each passing day. However, a team of television developers has other plans for her city. In exchange for around 140 high school students selected at random, her city will receive the millions of dollars it desperately needs to jump-start its economy. Before Sharon knows what the developers are really filming, she's drafted into the production, known simply as "The Battle." But, "The Battle" is anything but simple. While touted as an ordinary wilderness survival show, the game is, in fact, a staged war that splits Sharon's circle of friends in half and equips everyone involved with rifles, machine guns, and other deadly weapons of modern warfare. If Sharon ever wants to see her family again, she's going to have to shoulder her weapon and step into battle. But when the cost of her survival is the lives of her friends on the other team, it may be a more expensive price than she's willing to pay.
America in the late 21st century is a pale shadow of its former glory. Decades of war and the growing divide between the poor and the wealthy leave all but the super-rich in the grips of the greatest depression since the 1930s. This is the world that sixteen-year-old Sharon Hall lives in. With her city on the verge of economic collapse, her dream of graduating and getting the diploma she needs to get a real job and save her family grows more distant with each passing day. However, a team of television developers has other plans for her city. In exchange for around 140 high school students selected at random, her city will receive the millions of dollars it desperately needs to jump-start its economy. Before Sharon knows what the developers are really filming, she's drafted into the production, known simply as "The Battle." But, "The Battle" is anything but simple. While touted as an ordinary wilderness survival show, the game is, in fact, a staged war that splits Sharon's circle of friends in half and equips everyone involved with rifles, machine guns, and other deadly weapons of modern warfare. If Sharon ever wants to see her family again, she's going to have to shoulder her weapon and step into battle. But when the cost of her survival is the lives of her friends on the other team, it may be a more expensive price than she's willing to pay.
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With the groundswell caused by her continual sacrifices bringing more and more people to rally against The Battle, Sharon and her friends decide to do what has never been done by any survivor and speak out publicly against the games. What follows is the realization that no matter how cold and bloodthirsty the Developers are, they can always do worse. The name of the game in Sharon's final season is "Reinforcements." As the battle lines stall out and both teams dwindle in numbers, what better way to ensure money keeps flooding in than reinforcing the current season with a batch of recruits? Not untrained recruits. But ones from schools have already experienced the misery of The Battle. And this time, there's not one school to choose from, but two.
Even if Sharon dies, there is no stopping this wave of public outrage aimed at the Developers. Her job is done. She may even ascend to the ranks of martyrdom and embolden the public for years to come. But surviving the absolute worst the Developers have would prove to them that she cannot be beaten, no matter what they do to her. And that she and her family and friends are not to be trifled with.