Tag: dystopian

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Prized: Caragh M. O’Brian

What a fabulous book, but I must say, it’s pretty dark and dreary for a good chunk of the book. I was like, “SERIOUSLY, WHEN WILL THIS CHICK CATCH A BREAK!?” I was pretty emotional during the parts of her newborn sister, but alas, I can’t give anything away. That’s not the point of these here recommendations. You just want the meat of it. Did I like it? YES! I just felt it could have been a bit longer. It wasn’t even 400 pages.
Great book, GREAT set up to book three (grrr) and 5 stars and I recommend!

Amazon Description:
Striking out into the wasteland with nothing but her baby sister, a handful of supplies, and a rumor to guide her, sixteen-year-old midwife Gaia Stone survives only to be captured by the people of Sylum, a dystopian society where women rule the men who drastically outnumber them, and a kiss is a crime.  In order to see her sister again, Gaia must submit to their strict social code, but how can she deny her sense of justice, her curiosity, and everything in her heart that makes her whole?



  • Hardcover: 368 pages
  • Publisher: Roaring Brook Press (November 8, 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1596435704
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The Death Cure: James Dashner

The much anticipated finale of the the Maze Runner trilogy.

I liked it and really did enjoy it, but I felt I still spent most of the book going, “Huh?” It was just confusing, but it was a great story and I’m satisfied with the ending. I’m a little torn, what did you think?

4 stars and recommend

Summary: Thomas knows that Wicked can’t be trusted, but they say the time for lies is over, that they’ve collected all they can from the Trials and now must rely on the Gladers, with full memories restored, to help them with their ultimate mission. It’s up to the Gladers to complete the blueprint for the cure to the Flare with a final voluntary test.
What Wicked doesn’t know is that something’s happened that no Trial or Variable could have foreseen. Thomas has remembered far more than they think. And he knows that he can’t believe a word of what Wicked says.
The time for lies is over. But the truth is more dangerous than Thomas could ever imagine.
Will anyone survive the Death Cure?

  • Hardcover: 336 pages
  • Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers; Exclusive Edition edition (October 11, 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0385738773
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Blood Red Road: Moira Young

This sort of reminded me of that movie Book of Eli. You know when the world ends and all these crazy people take over like it’s the wild wild west?

Blood Red Road is sort of like that, but in a good way. I really liked the book although I thought the ending was a bit “ehh”.

But again, loved the book and totally recommend it!

Summary:
Saba has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried-up wasteland ravaged by constant sandstorms. The Wrecker civilization has long been destroyed, leaving only landfills for Saba and her family to scavenge from. That’s fine by her, as long as her beloved twin brother, Lugh, is around. But when a monster sandstorm arrives bearing four cloaked horsemen, Saba’s world is shattered. Lugh is captured, and Saba embarks on a quest to get him back.
Suddenly thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside of desolate Silverlake, Saba discovers she is a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent—and she has the power to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Teamed up with a handsome daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revolutionaries called the Free Hawks, Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her own civilization.
Blood Red Road has a searing pace, a poetically minimal writing style, intense action, and an epic love story—making Moira Young one of the most promising and startling new voices in teen fiction. 

Reading level: Young Adult Hardcover: 464 pages Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books (June 7, 2011) Language: English ISBN-10: 1442429984

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Birthmarked: Caragh O’Brian

This was one of my more favorite books I’ve read in 2011. It may be because I had a baby and the protagoinist is a midwife? I’m not sure, but I enjoyed the book. It took a bit to get going, but once it did, I really enjoyed the characters and the dystopian world they live in.
The second book in the trilogy comes out next month and I’m really excited about it!
I will give it 4 stars and recommend it!

Summary: It’s been 300 years since Lake Michigan became Unlake Michigan; the “cool age” is only hazily known to residents of Wharfton, a small village that sits alongside the walled city of the Enclave. Gaia is 16 and works in Western Sector Three with her mother delivering babies, “advancing” the first three per month to live a better life inside the city. It’s a wrenching routine Gaia doesn’t question until her parents are mysteriously arrested by Enclave authorities. Gaia’s rescue attempt is fraught with peril—the burn scar on her face marks her as a “freak” who would never be allowed into the Enclave’s exclusive gene pool—and soon she herself is tossed into a cell with other female physicians. Although the setup suggests speculative fiction, O’Brien’s concerns are corporeal; her impulsive and spirited heroine (who even resists, yes, romance) is the kind readers adore. The facts behind inbreeding and the numerous birthing scenes will give this an added appeal to science-minded teens. Continual revelations push this toward an ending that hints at more to come.

  • Reading level: Young Adult
  • Paperback: 384 pages
  • Publisher: Square Fish (October 11, 2011)
  • Language: English
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Delirium: Lauren Oliver

I had heard a lot about this book as it really made the rounds in the blogging circles as the author/publisher wanted to get the buzz out.

That said, I sort of hesitated to read it because it seemed a little blah.

You guys know that my genre of choice is Young Adult Dystopian Fiction, and this is right up that alley, but the premise of a society that cut out the emotional section of their brains at 18 seemed a little silly to me.

I must say I was pleasantly surprised by this book. Not the best I’ve ever read, no. But I enjoyed it and it kept my attention and actually had me wanting to read the sequal. SO?

I give it a wobbly 4 stars (though it’s more of a 3.5 stars) and I do recommend it.

Summary:
Lena Haloway is content in her safe, government-managed society. She feels (mostly) relaxed about the future in which her husband and career will be decided, and looks forward to turning 18, when she’ll be cured of deliria, a.k.a. love. She tries not to think about her mother’s suicide (her last words to Lena were a forbidden “I love you”) or the supposed “Invalid” community made up of the uncured just beyond her Portland, Maine, border. There’s no real point—she believes her government knows how to best protect its people, and should do so at any cost. But 95 days before her cure, Lena meets Alex, a confident and mysterious young man who makes her heart flutter and her skin turn red-hot. As their romance blossoms, Lena begins to doubt the intentions of those in power, and fears that her world will turn gray should she submit to the procedure. In this powerful and beautifully written novel, Lauren Oliver, the bestselling author of Before I Fall, throws readers into a tightly controlled society where options don’t exist, and shows not only the lengths one will go for a chance at freedom, but also the true meaning of sacrifice

  • Hardcover: 448 pages
  • Publisher: HarperCollins (February 1, 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0061726826