A review by thereadingvalkyrie
The Walled City by Ryan Graudin

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REVIEW

(DNF 34%)
The Walled City held so many promises, I was so excited to read it. Unfortunately I can only put down a book so many times before I have to finally say "I give up". The Walled City opens up to a dark City run by drug lords and overrun by brothels, I felt this was incredibly dark for YA but it was out of my comfort zone and felt the intrigue to keep reading.

The thing that got me was how bored I was reading the story -- it was incredibly slow and I honestly felt no connection to any of the characters. When I got to the 34% I finally realised that this book is not for me, the concept was so strong yet I felt I was waiting a lifetime for anything to even happen.

Even though I didn't particularly enjoy this book I can tell a lot of research went into it as I believed it was based on the Kowloon Walled City in Hong Kong. The characters were very realistic, I just wish I was able to finish the story.

THE COVER

Depending on which cover you get I think both covers reflect really well on what I was able to get through, on the cover above the black is very prominent and so is the red, creating a dark and eerie feeling. The graphics are beautifully done, probably my favourite thing about this book.

QUOTE

I don’t want to tell this boy my name. Too many people have stolen it, used it in ways I never intended. You never know what a fragile thing a name is until it’s used as a weapon, screamed like a curse.