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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
I really enjoyed this book. Some of the reviews made me a little nervous but I’m really glad I gave it a chance. I was pretty hooked for the entire thing and I will definitely be reading book 2.
*ARC received from Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review*
2.5 stars
When I saw the blurb, I immediately wanted this book. Then I saw the author and knew I just had to have it. But sadly I'm left underwhelmed and confused. The biggest letdown was the romance because.... What romance? There was 1 kiss and what I would call a barely there friendship. The whole book leads up to this big climax and the climax just ended up being a big ball of confusion. Who did what and why? Then there were bursts of mma fighting and although I like action, I was sitting there reading thinking, 'What does this have to do with the story?'. I kept reading to see what came of all the cloak and dagger and to see where the hell this 'romance' would go. Very strong beginning. Boring middle. Weak and confusing ending.
2.5 stars
When I saw the blurb, I immediately wanted this book. Then I saw the author and knew I just had to have it. But sadly I'm left underwhelmed and confused. The biggest letdown was the romance because.... What romance? There was 1 kiss and what I would call a barely there friendship. The whole book leads up to this big climax and the climax just ended up being a big ball of confusion. Who did what and why? Then there were bursts of mma fighting and although I like action, I was sitting there reading thinking, 'What does this have to do with the story?'. I kept reading to see what came of all the cloak and dagger and to see where the hell this 'romance' would go. Very strong beginning. Boring middle. Weak and confusing ending.
This book was an ok read. Kind of predictable and very middle of the pack. I felt like I had read this book a million times before opening it. But if you like dystopian YA novels tropes then this is the book for you.
This book was a quick read that felt a little predictable but was well done overall and kept me interested. It didn't have the tension or emotional depth of the books it's compared to, and I don't know if I would recommend it. Liked it more as I neared the end, but probably won't continue with the series.
I liked this book!! It's a really interesting concept, the two kingdoms. One ruled by men, one ruled by women, and both with tons of flaws. While the "plan" did confuse me, especially in the first half of the book, the ending really makes it clear why. I liked Violet's character and how things developed between both her and Lee and her and Viggo. And then the ending, wow! The last chapter had me on the edge of my seat and now I can't wait to read the second book! The only complaint I have is that I wasn't a huge fan of the cage fighting scenes. They just didn't hold my interest. Overall though it was a great book and I can't wait to see where the story goes from here.
I dared complete this book
After reading this phrase maybe thirty times I was starting to become fed up but thanks to my compulsion, I just had to finish it. The plot for this story was incoherent- violent girl just happens to be the person called upon by the queen to perform this top mission?? I assume the book was supposed to be some clever way of addressing gender differences or stereotypes but it came across as clumsy at best. More often the gender references were cringe inducing. The very names patrus and matrus say enough. Completely unimaginative, as was the romantic subplot, which mostly seemed childish. Astonishing that this book received so many five star ratings.
After reading this phrase maybe thirty times I was starting to become fed up but thanks to my compulsion, I just had to finish it. The plot for this story was incoherent- violent girl just happens to be the person called upon by the queen to perform this top mission?? I assume the book was supposed to be some clever way of addressing gender differences or stereotypes but it came across as clumsy at best. More often the gender references were cringe inducing. The very names patrus and matrus say enough. Completely unimaginative, as was the romantic subplot, which mostly seemed childish. Astonishing that this book received so many five star ratings.
Not quite the new "Hunger Games" as everyone is saying, but it's an engaging tale of two lands--one matriarchal that sends all boys 'marked' violent to work the mines, and one patriarchal that treats women as property. Violet has always lived in Matrus but she has been in workhouses and juvenile detention centers ever since she was caught trying to sneak her 'marked' brother out of the country before he could be captured.
However, she may have a chance to free him if she successfully completes a mission that requires her to sneak in Patrus and complete a dangerous mission. But how can she know who to trust?
However, she may have a chance to free him if she successfully completes a mission that requires her to sneak in Patrus and complete a dangerous mission. But how can she know who to trust?
This was kind of ridiculous, and I'm not sure what I expected. I can't really get on board with this Hunger Games (cough* Battle Royale *cough) bandwagon anyway, but I always somehow hope I'll read something as mindblowing as Battle Royale, BUT NO. DO NOT THINK THIS BOOK WILL BE THAT. It's alright, kept me entertained, and took my mind off the actual real life dystopian shitshow we're living in but there were so many things about the plot I didn't understand. The best example of this being why on earth Violet was chosen to retrieve the egg, considering she'd proven herself to be a complete liability previously and was quite likely to rebel entirely?!
Fast paced YA novel
Pretty good character development. Interesting dystopian vision. Ended in a cliff hanger when I prefer to have at least some loose ends tied up.
Pretty good character development. Interesting dystopian vision. Ended in a cliff hanger when I prefer to have at least some loose ends tied up.
This book is far from perfect, in fact, it leaves a lot to be desired. I would be lying if I said that the plot is what kept me reading, because it's not. I lost interest in the book, and didn't even touch it for a few weeks. But then Viggo happened. Viggo Croft is what got me through this book and he is the only thing that I care about in this book. Period. Also, Samuel, but of course I'm going to care about the dog, who wouldn't? I don't care about Patrus, I don't care about Matrus, I don't care about the sociopolitical commentary (not that it's very hard hitting, let's be honest) but I do care about Viggo. This book does get pretty good about a couple hundred pages in.
The ending of the book however, isn't just a cliffhanger. It's a cliffhanger that left me completely unsatisfied.
But overall, if you're in the market for another dystopian, and you don't want something that's super hard hitting and serious, you might enjoy this. If you're looking for something with some actual sociopolitical commentary, then skip this.
This is where things start to get REALLY SPOILERY, so don't read on if you're not interested.
As I said, the only character I care about is Viggo Croft because he is absolutely yummy and I can just picture Adrian Brody or Keanu Reeves as like, a basic model to picture Viggo. around the middle of the book, we learn that Lee wants to pin this whole thing on Viggo. So the book ends with Violet getting away, Lee dying, and nothing being mentioned about her going to find Viggo or Samuel (the dog) and I'm just kind of not having that. I'm not having that at all. I have no desire to read on in this series, unless I get more Viggo and specifically more growth in the relationship between Viggo and Violet. I'm literally going to look up spoilers just to find out if Viggo is dead or not, because I don't really have the spare money right now to buy the book (even the ebook version) if I'm not going to get what I want from it.
The ending of the book however, isn't just a cliffhanger. It's a cliffhanger that left me completely unsatisfied.
But overall, if you're in the market for another dystopian, and you don't want something that's super hard hitting and serious, you might enjoy this. If you're looking for something with some actual sociopolitical commentary, then skip this.
This is where things start to get REALLY SPOILERY, so don't read on if you're not interested.
As I said, the only character I care about is Viggo Croft because he is absolutely yummy and I can just picture Adrian Brody or Keanu Reeves as like, a basic model to picture Viggo. around the middle of the book, we learn that Lee wants to pin this whole thing on Viggo. So the book ends with Violet getting away, Lee dying, and nothing being mentioned about her going to find Viggo or Samuel (the dog) and I'm just kind of not having that. I'm not having that at all. I have no desire to read on in this series, unless I get more Viggo and specifically more growth in the relationship between Viggo and Violet. I'm literally going to look up spoilers just to find out if Viggo is dead or not, because I don't really have the spare money right now to buy the book (even the ebook version) if I'm not going to get what I want from it.