A review by amber04
Chosen Ones (Lost Souls, Book One) by Tiffany Truitt

5.0

Chosen Ones, is deep, beautiful and intoxicating. Tiffany Truitt has a gift to communicate an emotional written story. This book was nothing short of AMAZING!

When I started chapter 1, my first thought was “disturbing.” They actually pulled out a branding iron to mark an innocent girl. She would be the one to carry out the term of servitude at Templeton. I immediately understood why Tess was the way she was. Any expressed emotions would result in some sort of discipline. I couldn’t ever imagine that sort of life.

The chosen ones were supposed to protect the naturals and yet they were the very reason for their demise. The council wanted bigger and better. The naturals were simply pawns, pieces to achieve their own personal glory.

When I was reading chapter 3, I felt a sense of relief. There was a flicker of hope when she found the piano and connected her fingers to those keys. She finally caved to her resistance, and opened up. I thought this was a pivotal turning point and a bonding of sorts between Tess and James. As a reader, I was drawn to that moment and felt the need for more.

I’m glad Tiffany added Tess’ father’s letters into the story. They were relevant and added an extra understanding of what the naturals were facing. In the first letter, there was a paragraph that hit home. One that really made me thing about what our future holds.

“We fought with other lands across the sea. Faraway lands that hated us for reasons that seemed ancient and ever pestering. But as we squandered away our money, we found it difficult to fight the enemy, and people became disillusioned. Why sign up to fight a war across the sea when one’s own family was starving? Why fight for a country that could not take care of its own people?”

This rings so true to what is happening today. Is this what will become of us, our world in the future. It was powerful. A touching and scary realization of what could be our future, our government and our people.

The story flowed well and kept me wanting to learn more. Just when I was in need of something, action maybe? It picked up. The execution was spot on.

The developing relationship between James and Tess, was set at a steady pace, which was refreshing. The heated moments were great, but I appreciated the self control and realism of it.
I seriously could go on and on. I wrote notes for each and every chapter, and that is no joke.
At times, I felt angry…I felt hope… This book has the ability to stir a whirlwind of emotions not touched by so many YA reads. This book leaves an imprint on your soul. When I finished this, I couldn’t fathom the idea of picking up another book. I needed time to unwind and marinate on the overall effect of such an amazing story.

This debut instantly takes Tiffany Truitt to the top of the Dystopian top reads list. You won't want to miss out on this ambitious story.