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samreads12's review against another edition
3.0
In the future, when a teenage girl turns 16, she gets a tattoo on her wrist, announcing to the world that she is legal and in everyone’s eyes ready for sex.
Nina, the main character, does not want to turn 16. Her mother, Ginny, warns her about the world and terrible things in it. But, Nina’s best friend can’t wait to turn sixteen because of the way the Media portrays life.
In this book the Media is the one in control. They sexualize young teens and mystify other people’s minds so they won’t find out what they’re really up to.
I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this book. It took me forever to get to it but I was glad I finally had the chance to read it. I liked it…enough. It’s well written and the characters are very well fleshed out. You never get the sense that you’re missing something.
I don’t like how Karr portrayed Nina’ and Sal’s (love interest) relationship. She was mad at him one moment and was okay a second later. Nina was conflicted between her feelings and the feelings she thought were arousing because of the Media, but Karr didn’t go deep enough. Nina didn’t question long enough.
The ending was another thing I was disappointed about. It didn’t leave jumping for the next one (considering there is a sequel). There was a big development at the end but I felt like Karr just touched the tip of the domino and didn’t let it fall.
Will I read the sequel? Maybe. Will I read it soon? Definitely not.
Nina, the main character, does not want to turn 16. Her mother, Ginny, warns her about the world and terrible things in it. But, Nina’s best friend can’t wait to turn sixteen because of the way the Media portrays life.
In this book the Media is the one in control. They sexualize young teens and mystify other people’s minds so they won’t find out what they’re really up to.
I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this book. It took me forever to get to it but I was glad I finally had the chance to read it. I liked it…enough. It’s well written and the characters are very well fleshed out. You never get the sense that you’re missing something.
I don’t like how Karr portrayed Nina’ and Sal’s (love interest) relationship. She was mad at him one moment and was okay a second later. Nina was conflicted between her feelings and the feelings she thought were arousing because of the Media, but Karr didn’t go deep enough. Nina didn’t question long enough.
The ending was another thing I was disappointed about. It didn’t leave jumping for the next one (considering there is a sequel). There was a big development at the end but I felt like Karr just touched the tip of the domino and didn’t let it fall.
Will I read the sequel? Maybe. Will I read it soon? Definitely not.
booklife4life's review against another edition
3.0
Basic Info
Format: Paperback
Pages/Length: 325pgs
Genre: Young Adult; Dystopia
At A Glance
Love Triangle/Insta Love/Obsession?: No.
Cliff Hanger: No.
Triggers: n/a
Rating: 3 stars.
Score Sheet
All out of ten
Cover: 8
Plot: 8
Characters: 8
World Building: 7
Flow: 7
Series Congruity: n/a
Writing: 7
Ending: 4
Total: 6
In Dept
Best Part: The MC wasn't totally clueless.
Worst Part: Love story took over.
Thoughts Had: oh really.; hmmm; yuck.
Conclusion
Continuing the Series: yes
Recommending: yes
Short Review: I didn't know this was part of a series! I have a little less angry towards that crap ending now. I am over the happily ever after endings right now. I WANT MESSYYYYYY GIVE ME MESSYYYYY. The love story took over wayyy too much, make me sad. The ending felt rushed and i was expecting something epic at the end, but guess not. The fight with Ed wasn't enough for me either. A bit disappointed but otherwise an alright read.
Misc.
Book Boyfriend: None.
Best Friend Material: The MC wasn't too bad.
Review in GIF Form:
hezann73's review against another edition
3.0
Overall, I liked this book. I can completely picture future society with a lot of the features and attitudes that were shown here. I had 3 problems with it though 1) the whole idea of sixteen being all about sex. Yes, I see the sexualization of young girls in our society, but for it to so ingrained and rape practically accepted was hard for me to buy into. 2) The bad character(s) were all bad - no good at all. 3) it wrapped up WAY to quickly. When I had about 50 pages left I thought "there will have to a be a follow up, but then the entire thing went into fast forward and ended. It felt unsatisfying in that regard.
Recommended for high school
Recommended for high school
andye_reads's review against another edition
3.0
So, these are the tough reviews for me. When I love a book, I can't help but go on and on about it. When I hate a book....well, pretty much the same. But when a book is just ok, that's where I have trouble. I really liked the idea of this book. I've actually been waiting for it to come out for a long time. I bought it pretty quickly after it came out, read about 1/3 of it, then got side-tracked by other books, and never felt too compelled to go back. However, we were requested to read it by a parent, so I decided to pick it back up and finish it.
Things I liked about XVI:
* The cover. I just love it! It looks really tragic, almost, and I think it fits the book SO well, with the tattoo and the desperation that Nina feels. Kudos, cover people!
* The concept. First of all, I love a good dystopian. I love thinking about how the world will be, or what our actions today may lead to tomorrow. With all the sexualization of teens today, and just women in general, I was anxious to see what Julia's world would look like in the future. The idea that girls would actually be branded was really fascinating.
* The mystery. I didn't know going into this that there would be a mystery. I love a good mystery, so I was happy to see that included.
* The family relationships. I loved that Nina's grandparents were so fleshed out. They were awesome grandparents. I also liked how much Nina cared for her sister. It was obvious that she would do anything for her. And it wasn't just Nina's family that was explored. We also got glimpses into Wei's family and Sal's family.
* Speaking of Wei. She had to be my favorite character. I loved her strength and confidence, her love and concern for her friends, her willingness to put her life on the line for those she cared about. She was a fantastic character.
* Nina's friends. It was really great to see a group of friends that loved and looked out for each other as much as these friends did. All of them seemed genuinely concerned for each other, going out of their way to keep each other safe, or showing an interest in their passions.
Things I wasn't crazy about:
* The writing. It's not that the writing was bad, it just wasn't my style. I felt like the slang was a little corny, and the sentences were a little choppy. I tend to like books (and I'm just finding this out about myself) where the writing is a little more poetic and beautiful.
* Nina. I just couldn't connect with her.
o There are two very tragic incidents in Nina's life during the story, and I just didn't really feel bad for either of them. And I didn't feel like Nina really felt all that bad either.
o I felt like Nina was whiny and wishy-washy. Her thoughts and feelings were just all over the place.
o We were "told" that she was strong, but I didn't really see strength. And she kind-of came off a little slow. I mean how many times can you say to yourself, "I know there's a madman out there ready to snatch me or my sister away, but I'm going to go hang out outside.....by myself......at night....again......I'm sure it will be fine." It just drove me a little nuts.
* The Background. Why? Because there was none. Why did this society get to this point? Why would they push girls into having sex? What was the point? Why sixteen? Maybe the answers were in there and I just didn't see them, but to me, the society didn't make sense. In two books I've recently read, BUMPED and WITHER, there were similar dystopian societies that focused on the sexualization of young girls. But, in both of those worlds, there was a reason things had advance to that point. In BUMPED, there was a virus that caused all women over a certain age to be sterile. In WITHER, because of gene-manipulation, girls died at age 20. But, in XVI, there didn't seem to be a cause for this ridiculous society. And that just made it seem unbelievable.
Overall, like I said before, I think this book was ok. I have a hard time finishing books that are just ok, because there are SO MANY books I want to read and can't seem to get to (especially when I have Supernaturally, Divergent, and City of Fallen Angels sitting on my shelf). But, I wouldn't say this one was a waste of time. If you're in love with dystopian, and are looking for another book in that genre, you may want to pick this one up.
~Andye
http://ReadingTeen.net/
Things I liked about XVI:
* The cover. I just love it! It looks really tragic, almost, and I think it fits the book SO well, with the tattoo and the desperation that Nina feels. Kudos, cover people!
* The concept. First of all, I love a good dystopian. I love thinking about how the world will be, or what our actions today may lead to tomorrow. With all the sexualization of teens today, and just women in general, I was anxious to see what Julia's world would look like in the future. The idea that girls would actually be branded was really fascinating.
* The mystery. I didn't know going into this that there would be a mystery. I love a good mystery, so I was happy to see that included.
* The family relationships. I loved that Nina's grandparents were so fleshed out. They were awesome grandparents. I also liked how much Nina cared for her sister. It was obvious that she would do anything for her. And it wasn't just Nina's family that was explored. We also got glimpses into Wei's family and Sal's family.
* Speaking of Wei. She had to be my favorite character. I loved her strength and confidence, her love and concern for her friends, her willingness to put her life on the line for those she cared about. She was a fantastic character.
* Nina's friends. It was really great to see a group of friends that loved and looked out for each other as much as these friends did. All of them seemed genuinely concerned for each other, going out of their way to keep each other safe, or showing an interest in their passions.
Things I wasn't crazy about:
* The writing. It's not that the writing was bad, it just wasn't my style. I felt like the slang was a little corny, and the sentences were a little choppy. I tend to like books (and I'm just finding this out about myself) where the writing is a little more poetic and beautiful.
* Nina. I just couldn't connect with her.
o There are two very tragic incidents in Nina's life during the story, and I just didn't really feel bad for either of them. And I didn't feel like Nina really felt all that bad either.
o I felt like Nina was whiny and wishy-washy. Her thoughts and feelings were just all over the place.
o We were "told" that she was strong, but I didn't really see strength. And she kind-of came off a little slow. I mean how many times can you say to yourself, "I know there's a madman out there ready to snatch me or my sister away, but I'm going to go hang out outside.....by myself......at night....again......I'm sure it will be fine." It just drove me a little nuts.
* The Background. Why? Because there was none. Why did this society get to this point? Why would they push girls into having sex? What was the point? Why sixteen? Maybe the answers were in there and I just didn't see them, but to me, the society didn't make sense. In two books I've recently read, BUMPED and WITHER, there were similar dystopian societies that focused on the sexualization of young girls. But, in both of those worlds, there was a reason things had advance to that point. In BUMPED, there was a virus that caused all women over a certain age to be sterile. In WITHER, because of gene-manipulation, girls died at age 20. But, in XVI, there didn't seem to be a cause for this ridiculous society. And that just made it seem unbelievable.
Overall, like I said before, I think this book was ok. I have a hard time finishing books that are just ok, because there are SO MANY books I want to read and can't seem to get to (especially when I have Supernaturally, Divergent, and City of Fallen Angels sitting on my shelf). But, I wouldn't say this one was a waste of time. If you're in love with dystopian, and are looking for another book in that genre, you may want to pick this one up.
~Andye
http://ReadingTeen.net/
irissel's review against another edition
2.0
The premise was interesting and characters and plot had potential, but the potential was never reached because the writing was just BAD. About fifty pages in, something awful happened in Nina's life and I should have felt her pain, but I didn't. A lot of it had to do with the way the author worded things. Sometimes I would think, "If only she had worded this sentence this way, then it would have been so much more impactful." Also, she did something that I've been tirelessly teaching myself not to do: She used had or a contraction thereof WAY too much. She seemed especially fond of the contraction: she'd, I'd, Ginnie'd, it was getting extremely annoying.
Also, Nina seemed to over-react to a lot of things. I didn't understand why she and Sal had that fight. It seemed like it was her just being paranoid and unreasonable. I didn't see any sign that he wanted to be with her only so he could learn more about her father. And I never understood why Nina decided to tell half the world a secret her mother had been keeping for years. It was obvious she only wanted Nina to know.
Ah well, I did finish it. The last fifty or so pages were better than the first two hundred, which is why I gave this book two starts instead of one, but that hardly made up for the clumsy prose and the main character that I couldn't understand half the time. At least, the plot was somewhat unique. I didn't know how it would end so curiosity drove me to keep reading.
For more reviews, check out my blog: irissel.blogspot.com
Also, Nina seemed to over-react to a lot of things. I didn't understand why she and Sal had that fight. It seemed like it was her just being paranoid and unreasonable. I didn't see any sign that he wanted to be with her only so he could learn more about her father. And I never understood why Nina decided to tell half the world a secret her mother had been keeping for years. It was obvious she only wanted Nina to know.
Ah well, I did finish it. The last fifty or so pages were better than the first two hundred, which is why I gave this book two starts instead of one, but that hardly made up for the clumsy prose and the main character that I couldn't understand half the time. At least, the plot was somewhat unique. I didn't know how it would end so curiosity drove me to keep reading.
For more reviews, check out my blog: irissel.blogspot.com
melissa_reads_books's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book. I think what drew me to it initially was the fact that was dystopian (I liked dystopian in 1984 before it was even trendy) but what made me stay was so much more. First of all, strong female characters. Nina was a strong female character, as were her mother and her little sister. I loved the larger questions it made me think about teenagers and the pressure to have sex and the way a society is (like maybe it’s more formal in this society – more spoken about, but is it really that much different now?). I loved the relationship between Nina and her little sister – it reminded me of the relationship between me and my little sister, even if I don’t have the same family situation. I love the hidden secrets and the things left under the surface. I love that Nina is written like a real character – you can see her struggle and I felt her feelings and emotions were very real. I think this is a must read book for anyone who is interested in these larger questions about sex and teenage girls in society in particular.
pantsyreads's review against another edition
2.0
Finally I'm reviewing a book that I just read for shits and giggles (not a bookclub/challenge pick or a book I read for school.) I signed it out at work because I wanted to make a conscious effort to read more releases from 2011 (I don't know why I had this thought, but I rarely read new releases, so I wanted to try something different I guess.) With that said, I had absolutely no idea what to expect when diving into this novel. Unfortunately, I didn't really buy into this dystopia society, which really hampered my reading.
It's no secret that dystopias have become one of the new "it" things in YA literature, and while I do like me some dystopia, I find that this upsurge in interest has really diluted the quality of dystopia titles coming out in the YA market. The premise of this novel sounded interesting, what with the tattoos and the sex, and how the main character wanted to take no part in it, but there were a few things I just couldn't buy into. For one, why did these girls need to get tattoos when they turned sixteen? It was supposedly as a means to protect their young and innocent selves from being taken advantage of or something, but I never got that feeling; all the tattoos did was make girls targets for sex offenders because they knew that they were "of age". Maybe I'm just not remembering the reasons for the tattoos correctly because I read this about 3-4 weeks ago.
Another thing that bothered me was that the characters dialogue wasn't really distinct. Everyone kind of sounded the same, but their personalities were enough to differentiate them from one another. Speaking of characters, I have to say I did like Nina, and she is a good role model for younger to mid-teens who will probably end up reading this novel, what with her values of not wanting to have sex the very moment she's legal. However, she doesn't completely ignore her feelings and urges; she acknowledges them, but doesn't let herself get carried away. Her best friend on the other hand, drove me nuts, which I guess was the point. There was very little that was likable about her, but I suppose she was meant to be an example of what happens when you become obsessed with sex: you start dressing like a bimbo, putting boys over your best friend, become a brainless airhead, etc etc. She did have some redeeming moments though, which added a bit of depth to her character, until she was killed off.
Another small plus for this novel was the role that the parents had in the story. It's a common complaint that YA books focus too much on the teen characters and there's little to no coverage on the parents of any of these characters. With this book, it's definitely not the case. These kids know that they're in over their heads and ask their parents for help, though the only parents we actually see are Nina's mother (who dies near the beginning of the book), her grandparents, and her asian friend's parents (sorry, I can't remember her name at the moment.) Anyhow, it was still nice to see the inclusion of parental units within the story.
My last complaint is with the writing: there's nothing particularly BAD about it, but there's nothing very good about it either. It's very plain, very simple and rather bland. I don't think that'll bother the target audience too much, but I like a little more something-something in my writing. The overall plot was a little meh as well, but there's definitely enough to keep it going at a decent pace: Nina's trying to figure out who her father is while protecting her little sister from her crazy dad. The sister-sister bond was definitely super-cute and something else I appreciated.
The last thing I wasn't sold on was the romance. Nina and her love interest start off disliking each other (of course) and while their reluctant friendship was genuine enough, the flat writing never really brought it to life for me. Also, I felt like their feelings progressed pretty quickly given how much time they actually spend together. Granted, their in a pretty heavy situation together, so maybe that's what brings them together so quickly, but there was just something off about it, for me.
The book ends on a cliff-hanger of sorts, so I do believe that there's going to be a sequel. I don't think I'm going to continue with this series though.
Final Verdict: I didn't really buy into this dystopic world, or the romance, so while the premise sounded kinda cool to me, it ultimately ended up falling flat. The main protag is someone that girls will be able to relate to and I think she's a good role model for said target audience which is a definite plus, but I think I was a little too old for this book. This was perpetuated further by the simplistic writing, which isn't actually bad, but it just didn't do anything for me. As far as dystopia titles go, I've read much better, but this isn't all bad. Still, I'm a little hesitant to recommend it, unless you're between the ages of 14-17.
It's no secret that dystopias have become one of the new "it" things in YA literature, and while I do like me some dystopia, I find that this upsurge in interest has really diluted the quality of dystopia titles coming out in the YA market. The premise of this novel sounded interesting, what with the tattoos and the sex, and how the main character wanted to take no part in it, but there were a few things I just couldn't buy into. For one, why did these girls need to get tattoos when they turned sixteen? It was supposedly as a means to protect their young and innocent selves from being taken advantage of or something, but I never got that feeling; all the tattoos did was make girls targets for sex offenders because they knew that they were "of age". Maybe I'm just not remembering the reasons for the tattoos correctly because I read this about 3-4 weeks ago.
Another thing that bothered me was that the characters dialogue wasn't really distinct. Everyone kind of sounded the same, but their personalities were enough to differentiate them from one another. Speaking of characters, I have to say I did like Nina, and she is a good role model for younger to mid-teens who will probably end up reading this novel, what with her values of not wanting to have sex the very moment she's legal. However, she doesn't completely ignore her feelings and urges; she acknowledges them, but doesn't let herself get carried away. Her best friend on the other hand, drove me nuts, which I guess was the point. There was very little that was likable about her, but I suppose she was meant to be an example of what happens when you become obsessed with sex: you start dressing like a bimbo, putting boys over your best friend, become a brainless airhead, etc etc. She did have some redeeming moments though, which added a bit of depth to her character, until she was killed off.
Another small plus for this novel was the role that the parents had in the story. It's a common complaint that YA books focus too much on the teen characters and there's little to no coverage on the parents of any of these characters. With this book, it's definitely not the case. These kids know that they're in over their heads and ask their parents for help, though the only parents we actually see are Nina's mother (who dies near the beginning of the book), her grandparents, and her asian friend's parents (sorry, I can't remember her name at the moment.) Anyhow, it was still nice to see the inclusion of parental units within the story.
My last complaint is with the writing: there's nothing particularly BAD about it, but there's nothing very good about it either. It's very plain, very simple and rather bland. I don't think that'll bother the target audience too much, but I like a little more something-something in my writing. The overall plot was a little meh as well, but there's definitely enough to keep it going at a decent pace: Nina's trying to figure out who her father is while protecting her little sister from her crazy dad. The sister-sister bond was definitely super-cute and something else I appreciated.
The last thing I wasn't sold on was the romance. Nina and her love interest start off disliking each other (of course) and while their reluctant friendship was genuine enough, the flat writing never really brought it to life for me. Also, I felt like their feelings progressed pretty quickly given how much time they actually spend together. Granted, their in a pretty heavy situation together, so maybe that's what brings them together so quickly, but there was just something off about it, for me.
The book ends on a cliff-hanger of sorts, so I do believe that there's going to be a sequel. I don't think I'm going to continue with this series though.
Final Verdict: I didn't really buy into this dystopic world, or the romance, so while the premise sounded kinda cool to me, it ultimately ended up falling flat. The main protag is someone that girls will be able to relate to and I think she's a good role model for said target audience which is a definite plus, but I think I was a little too old for this book. This was perpetuated further by the simplistic writing, which isn't actually bad, but it just didn't do anything for me. As far as dystopia titles go, I've read much better, but this isn't all bad. Still, I'm a little hesitant to recommend it, unless you're between the ages of 14-17.
marirey's review against another edition
2.0
This book when by fast before I knew it was the climax and then the epiloque. This book was so-so. I really wanted the main character to spend a page, paragraph, anything really explaining the world or gov't. It didn't even tell what year it was. I wouldn't really suggest this book to anyone who really loves dystopian books.