I've read the first four books so far (as I haven't been able to find the last three books in my library yet), and for me, this series was a great surprise! I had been willing to read the Tomorrow series for years, but somehow I never really got to the point where I would buy and eventually read them.

Till last year! And I may say that I thought it to be the best series I've read that year! This second book, I thought it to be thrilling, and I love the fact that (even though the things that happen are terrible) the story is original and full of suspense!

I would recommend this book to a lot of people, but please read the first book first!

There is an edition which includes the first four books of the Tomorrow Series. I first saw the book in 2006 and after that I've been willing to read the book. Unfortunately, I never bought the book, because I thought it was a bit too expensive for a series I completely didn't know yet.

A few weeks ago I went to my library and there it was (I had never seen it there before). Needless to say, I took it home and read it (during my final exams, which was not the best idea I ever had).

The story is about a bunch of teenagers, who happen to be camping while a war breaks out in Australia. Therefore they aren't put together in some sort of camp, but are still free. They become guerrillas in order to free their country...

I read it and I loved it. I liked the way it was written, liked the story. I couldn't put the book aside. For me, it is a 5 star rating, and I immediately started to read the second book of this series.

I loved this series I was hooked and couldn't staring. "These books man I want to get with them and take their picture!"Sir Mix-A-Lot. But seriously this was an amazing series. Would read again, and again, and again, and again. I think you get the idea. This series gets you from the first book and leaves you wanting more. I would recommend.

I was a pretty big fan when this movie first came out and couldn't understand why no one else seem to appreciate it. Tonight i watched it again and clearly understood. Australia i love you but you have some shitty actors, lol. << this i have always known, except for a few special people aussies' are not known for their acting skills, we tend to over dramatise it, plus the accent can be cringe-worthy. But even with all that held against it i still managed to tear up during the movie and now i realise why i loved it so much in the first place - it transfer's me back into the emotion when i was reading the books, in the movie you can't understand how difficult it was for Robin to pick up that gun and kill people, but in the books we get that loud and clear, that she had to not only sacrifice a big part of her belief, self values and morals but also a part of her soul to save her friends - i know how far she's willing to go for them as well (it is heartbreaking) and with Corrie, i know that she doesnt survive that gun shot, that her friends will never see her again, but the movie can't express all this, can't express the emotions the book beats you with until you can't handle anymore.
But what it does is a rather fantastic job of putting me back into that frame of mind, to help me remember how i felt while reading, and thats its own kind of special. Still while i adore the actors, i kind of wish they had chosen better quality ones, so everyone who didnt read the books can realise how spectacular this story truly is.

Opening Line: “It’s only half an hour since someone-Robyn I think- said we should write everything down, and it’s only twenty-nine minutes since I was chosen, and for those twenty-nine minutes I’ve had everyone crowded around me gazing at the blank pages and yelling ideas and advice.”

This was very good and had I read it when I was a teenager I know I would have loved it. Back in the day this would have been comparable toThe Outsiders or the movie Red Dawn. I've actually heard this compared to Red Dawn quite a bit but other than a couple of major plot points it’s a very different story.

I loved that this takes place in rural Australia (including all the Aussie slang) and the Australian bush almost becomes a character of its own here. I loved the magic of the teens ascending “Satan’s steps” and finding “Hell” Their own private world in all its secluded beauty, far away from civilization, parents and rules. The excitement of their camping trip and the discovery of this hidden place along with the mystery of the hermit were my favourite parts. These are the things I would have loved as a teen reader- well that and all the sneaking around evading the bad guys, driving heavy equipment and blowing shit up -the action scenes are really quite awesome. There’s a bit of awkward romance here but for the most part this is just one great action adventure, I just wish I’d read it 20 (yeah, okay 25) years ago.

When The War Began is the first book from the “Tomorrow” series and the author obviously knew from the onset that this was going to be a series because the ending is left wide open without any real conclusion, in fact the reader is left hanging. I just mention this because you might want to have book 2 ( The Dead Of Night) handy when you start.

This is written from Ellie’s POV and in the first chapter she explains why she and her friends felt it important to start writing everything down. For them it means that one day they might be remembered because their world has already changed forever. Then she takes us back to the beginning of their story.

It’s the Christmas holidays in an undisclosed rural area of Australia. Ellie and her six friends have decided to go camping for a week instead of attending the annual fair at the showgrounds in Wirrawee. Most of the group was raised on farms, which is important here because they are a tougher breed; able to use a rifle, drive trucks and motorcycles, move stock, deal with a snake bite etc. Anyways, after a lazy week in the bush our group return to Ellie’s family property, which is the closest and soon realize that something is terribly wrong. The first things they notice are the dead animals and that the power is out, the radio is only picking up static. Where are her parents?

Heading to the other teens homes they find more of the same, everyone is just gone. Could it have anything to do with the V-shaped lines of jets that flew overhead for what seemed like hours the other night? Gradually they come to learn that their country has been invaded and soldiers are holding everyone from the district POW style at the fairgrounds in town. Our group then faces a startling decision, they can flee to their oasis in the mountains or they can fight back.

The author cleverly never gives a nationality to the enemy. They are just nondescript soldiers, wearing unremarkable uniforms, speaking a foreign language. This I liked very much. Cheers.
307jb4