Take a photo of a barcode or cover
booksfitforadreamer 's review for:
The Pledge
by Kimberly Derting
Oh, angst. There's nothing worse than wanting so badly to like a book, and loving the original premise--but realizing while reading that the writing is not following through.
That's not to say that The Pledge didn't have it's high points; it certainly did. For one, the world, in my opinion, was set up in a fresh and interesting way. The classes are separated by enforced ignorance--a literal language barrier. What separates our young heroine from the rest is that she can understand all languages. This is her greatest secret, and could mean her immediate execution if she is discovered.
I loved the relationship between Charlie and her sister. Her sister doesn't speak, but I thought the author did a great job of having her character come through. Well-done sibling relationships are one of my favorite topics to read about.
Now, the bad. Many of the characters just weren't developed enough for me to care about them. As I said, I liked the sister dynamic, and that her parents were a presence in the story--too many YA books these days shoves parents aside for convenience--but a lot of the relationships fall short. I didn't even really get a feel for Charlie herself, which was problematic for me as a reader. I didn't dislike her, exactly, but I didn't feel much for her, either.
Max was the same way. As a love interest, he really wasn't all that interesting, and I'm sure, after reading a few more YA dystopian books that seem to be plentiful these days, I won't be able to remember anything about him.
Another big factor was predictability. Most of the twists weren't really much of a surprise, and it's irritating for me, as a reader, to be have to read pages and pages of a character trying to wrap her mind around something I've known/guessed since around the beginning of the story.
On a more minor note, the settings felt a bit clunky to me at times, specifically the scenes that took place in a makeshift nightclub. I can completely understand the prohibition vibe, but something about it felt off/out of place with the rest of the story. I can't exactly put my finger on why.
I'm on the fence about whether I would be interested in reading a sequel. I still like the world, and it was a fairly easy read, but I can't say it stands out from some of the other dystopian novels that have been popping up everywhere. I think I'll wait to read what others think of the next book, because I think there was potential here, even though it ultimately didn't come through for me.
That's not to say that The Pledge didn't have it's high points; it certainly did. For one, the world, in my opinion, was set up in a fresh and interesting way. The classes are separated by enforced ignorance--a literal language barrier. What separates our young heroine from the rest is that she can understand all languages. This is her greatest secret, and could mean her immediate execution if she is discovered.
I loved the relationship between Charlie and her sister. Her sister doesn't speak, but I thought the author did a great job of having her character come through. Well-done sibling relationships are one of my favorite topics to read about.
Now, the bad. Many of the characters just weren't developed enough for me to care about them. As I said, I liked the sister dynamic, and that her parents were a presence in the story--too many YA books these days shoves parents aside for convenience--but a lot of the relationships fall short. I didn't even really get a feel for Charlie herself, which was problematic for me as a reader. I didn't dislike her, exactly, but I didn't feel much for her, either.
Max was the same way. As a love interest, he really wasn't all that interesting, and I'm sure, after reading a few more YA dystopian books that seem to be plentiful these days, I won't be able to remember anything about him.
Another big factor was predictability. Most of the twists weren't really much of a surprise, and it's irritating for me, as a reader, to be have to read pages and pages of a character trying to wrap her mind around something I've known/guessed since around the beginning of the story.
On a more minor note, the settings felt a bit clunky to me at times, specifically the scenes that took place in a makeshift nightclub. I can completely understand the prohibition vibe, but something about it felt off/out of place with the rest of the story. I can't exactly put my finger on why.
I'm on the fence about whether I would be interested in reading a sequel. I still like the world, and it was a fairly easy read, but I can't say it stands out from some of the other dystopian novels that have been popping up everywhere. I think I'll wait to read what others think of the next book, because I think there was potential here, even though it ultimately didn't come through for me.