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A review by lauredhel
Captive by Aimée Carter
3.0
I was a little lukewarm on the first Blackcoat Rebellion book, which I thought was solid if a little formulaic. This book kept me a bit more glued to the pages, which was promising.
Kitty Doe, still Masked as VII Lila Hart, falls from grace and finds out what it's like amongst complete outsiders to the I-VII ranking system in her society. Little did she know that outside the system there was another highly organised society of outcasts and criminals and rebels, where she faces brutality and more revelations of just how badly her world treats people it considers disposable.
Kitty has to try to figure out who to trust in a world of spies, double agents, and shifting allegiances. She has to sit and think about just who and what she's prepared to sacrifice in order to carry through the planned rebellion.
Unfortunately, although high-stakes decisions and sacrifices are foreshadowed throughout the book, Kitty never really ends up having to make one. Tranquillisers appear conveniently so that she doesn't have to kill anyone, and another huge potential decision is cut short by circumstances. I was disappointed in what felt to me like an evasion of any substantial examination of Kitty's backbone. Maybe this is all waiting for the third book, but I have to say, it's a long wait.
I enjoyed some of the unexpected revelations in this book, and as it's a genre I like, I had no trouble sitting and reading it for long periods. It just felt a little unsatisfying in the end, for me. However it's solid and well-written, and easily earns "three stars - I liked it".
Kitty Doe, still Masked as VII Lila Hart, falls from grace and finds out what it's like amongst complete outsiders to the I-VII ranking system in her society. Little did she know that outside the system there was another highly organised society of outcasts and criminals and rebels, where she faces brutality and more revelations of just how badly her world treats people it considers disposable.
Kitty has to try to figure out who to trust in a world of spies, double agents, and shifting allegiances. She has to sit and think about just who and what she's prepared to sacrifice in order to carry through the planned rebellion.
“We all have blood on our hands already. Now it’s your job to make sure those people didn’t die for nothing.”
There’s no such thing as a bloodless revolution.
Knox’s voice echoed in my mind, and I closed my eyes. He was right.
Unfortunately, although high-stakes decisions and sacrifices are foreshadowed throughout the book, Kitty never really ends up having to make one. Tranquillisers appear conveniently so that she doesn't have to kill anyone, and another huge potential decision is cut short by circumstances. I was disappointed in what felt to me like an evasion of any substantial examination of Kitty's backbone. Maybe this is all waiting for the third book, but I have to say, it's a long wait.
I enjoyed some of the unexpected revelations in this book, and as it's a genre I like, I had no trouble sitting and reading it for long periods. It just felt a little unsatisfying in the end, for me. However it's solid and well-written, and easily earns "three stars - I liked it".