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kba76's review against another edition
4.0
Claysoot is a tough place in which to live. Similar to District 12 in The Hunger Games it’s a tough unforbidding place, where people struggle for survival. Boys in Claysoot only have until the morning of their 18th birthday, when the “Heist” occurs and they are seen no more.
Our main character, Gray Weathersby, is upset at the upcoming loss of his older brother, Blaine. He rages at the injustice of their lives, and hates the fact that anyone trying to escape Claysoot by climbing over the wall that surrounds their home is returned, but nothing more than a charred body. He struggles to accept this, and is determined to find answers.
When Gray uncovers some truths that force him to question everything he’s been told he risks climbing the Wall in an attempt to find out what is going on. What he finds is shocking, and becomes even more so as he uncovers a pretty large-scale deception.
Definitely owing a lot to Maze Runner and other dystopian novels of the time, but there’s enough here to keep it feeling different. It certainly has the feeling of a film-script unravelling before us and will provide welcome entertainment for those wanting something similar to other favourite reads.
Our main character, Gray Weathersby, is upset at the upcoming loss of his older brother, Blaine. He rages at the injustice of their lives, and hates the fact that anyone trying to escape Claysoot by climbing over the wall that surrounds their home is returned, but nothing more than a charred body. He struggles to accept this, and is determined to find answers.
When Gray uncovers some truths that force him to question everything he’s been told he risks climbing the Wall in an attempt to find out what is going on. What he finds is shocking, and becomes even more so as he uncovers a pretty large-scale deception.
Definitely owing a lot to Maze Runner and other dystopian novels of the time, but there’s enough here to keep it feeling different. It certainly has the feeling of a film-script unravelling before us and will provide welcome entertainment for those wanting something similar to other favourite reads.
sarahschem's review against another edition
I love the subtle cliffhanger. Bowman leaves you wanting more information on what will happen to Gray, but still a conclusive end for this book alone.
jade_trader's review against another edition
3.0
A dystopian novel, not my type of genre, though it never has been. I read this book because the author was coming in to talk about her job, and I wanted to know about her work.
The main characters are Grey, his brother Blaine, Emma and an evil society that picks them out when they escape a maze-runner type village. (Brother doesn't escape, he gets "heisted" or "taken", but whatever).
I thought that it was a decent book, though the characters loose flavor and personality half-way through, and I never really saw Grey as impulsive as the book tried to make him out to be. Many say that he "follows his gut" and that is something that they find attractive or admire about him, but "trusting his gut" seems to only apply to worrying about his brother when he is taken or when a girl decides that she is into him... sigh... I'd wish that hadn't become such an important part of the book as it was. Other than that the story grabbed me pretty well, and I am going to read the next book, with some hesitation as it was designed to be a trilogy and it is a dystopian novel.
The main characters are Grey, his brother Blaine, Emma and an evil society that picks them out when they escape a maze-runner type village. (Brother doesn't escape, he gets "heisted" or "taken", but whatever).
I thought that it was a decent book, though the characters loose flavor and personality half-way through, and I never really saw Grey as impulsive as the book tried to make him out to be. Many say that he "follows his gut" and that is something that they find attractive or admire about him, but "trusting his gut" seems to only apply to worrying about his brother when he is taken or when a girl decides that she is into him... sigh... I'd wish that hadn't become such an important part of the book as it was. Other than that the story grabbed me pretty well, and I am going to read the next book, with some hesitation as it was designed to be a trilogy and it is a dystopian novel.
erinreadsitall's review against another edition
5.0
Saw the cover, loved it. Got it, read it, loved it. Can't wait for the next one!
greenink's review against another edition
3.0
Honestly, I don't know what to think. I did like the action, which was plentiful in the story. You know how the stories with a lot of things happening in them? A lot of things happened, and you think that you read a huge chunk of the book, only to realize you hadn't read that much. That's how I felt. The setting was very also interesting and unique. Kind of different from a lot of dystopian books. The romance was weird though. There was a love triangle; for the first half it's one person, and the second half, it's someone else.
Spoiler
The even more weird thing is he goes through a lot to rescue the first girl (and someone ends up dying - if it's because of it, I'm not sure) and then immediately ignores her for someone else. I was pretty annoyed with the MC: what was the point of rescuing her anyways? It's not like she was even in danger. (She ended up getting a job as a nurse or doctor or something.)meepope's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
colls's review against another edition
3.0
The premise is interesting and I like the way the author is developing the story of the 'heist' and how it came about. The main character is painfully immature in that he's rash and impulsive in the way that paints him as flighty. There is a glimpse at the end of the book that perhaps he's growing up so I sense it's entirely intentional and hope he sheds some of that immaturity going forward. I'm not a fan of love triangles, but like how the author swapped this from girl in the middle to boy in the middle. Makes me dislike all three characters, but I do appreciate the growing against the grain on that point.
brandiv's review against another edition
4.0
In full disclosure, I won a copy of Taken via GoodReads First Reads.
I enjoyed Erin Bowman's Taken, a dystopian mystery set in a future as bleak and unwieldy as you might imagine. Gray Weathersby is a terrific character and interesting to follow as he discovers that his world is much larger, and more frightening than he ever thought possible. What I enjoyed most was his uncertainty, always questioning others but most importantly himself. The love triangle (if it's really gotten to that point yet) was surprising and well-developed. The overall mystery of Gray's village, and family, had some genuine surprises along the way so I won't spoil them here. I also loved how the truth about the state of the country slowly unfolded, with allegiances shifting and coming to light.
Taken really surprised me, and I'm glad I was given a chance to read it. I am definitely looking forward to Frozen, the sequel, since the first book leaves you blinking at the back cover going "Wait. What?!"
I enjoyed Erin Bowman's Taken, a dystopian mystery set in a future as bleak and unwieldy as you might imagine. Gray Weathersby is a terrific character and interesting to follow as he discovers that his world is much larger, and more frightening than he ever thought possible. What I enjoyed most was his uncertainty, always questioning others but most importantly himself. The love triangle (if it's really gotten to that point yet) was surprising and well-developed. The overall mystery of Gray's village, and family, had some genuine surprises along the way so I won't spoil them here. I also loved how the truth about the state of the country slowly unfolded, with allegiances shifting and coming to light.
Taken really surprised me, and I'm glad I was given a chance to read it. I am definitely looking forward to Frozen, the sequel, since the first book leaves you blinking at the back cover going "Wait. What?!"
marc_le's review against another edition
4.0
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I liked all of the characters and was intrigued by the plot lined, although I must admit it was a typical dystopian book. Protagonist meets corrupt government, must join rebels and fight back against bad government!
I'll forgive the book since the end seemed to go in a promising direction, and I'm currently enjoying the second book.
I like both female love interests and honestly can't decide which I want Grey to end up with. In the beginning I was practically yelling at him to stay away from Bree since he had Emma. But once she slept with Craw my opinion changed. Bree is strong-willed and snarky and blunt about her feelings to Grey. But I feel bad about how Grey is practically using Bree to make Emma upset. Whoever he ends up with will be interesting to read.
I'll forgive the book since the end seemed to go in a promising direction, and I'm currently enjoying the second book.
I like both female love interests and honestly can't decide which I want Grey to end up with. In the beginning I was practically yelling at him to stay away from Bree since he had Emma. But once she slept with Craw my opinion changed. Bree is strong-willed and snarky and blunt about her feelings to Grey. But I feel bad about how Grey is practically using Bree to make Emma upset. Whoever he ends up with will be interesting to read.