Crossed

In search of a future that may not exist and faced with the decision of who to share it with, Cassia journeys to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky - taken by the Society to his certain death - only to find that he has escaped, leaving a series of clues in his wake. Cassia's quest leads her to question much of what she holds dear, even as she finds glimmers of a different life across the border. But as Cassia nears resolve and certainty about her future with Ky, an invitation for rebellion, an unexpected betrayal, and a surprise visit from Xander - who may hold the key to the uprising and, still, to Cassia's heart - change the game once again. Nothing is as expected on the edge of Society, where crosses and double crosses make the path more twisted than ever.

I actually had the same problem with this book as I had with Matched. It was way too slow. I put the book down several times and picked up something else. I didn't like the characters more either.

What prevents me from giving the book a really bad rating is the world Condie has built. It's interesting to read about and it's possible that is our future. Frightening! I'm not going to read the third and last installment in this trilogy, sorry.

Crossed by Ally Condie
Paperback, 367 pages
Speak
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Matched

Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate... until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.

The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.

This book was incredibly slow and it took me forever to get through it. At least it felt like that! I started other books at the same time as well, more exciting ones.

The settings and the characters could have been better described. Oh, it's so hard to make a review of this book because everything I write is so negative but I didn't like it. That's it.

Matched by Ally Condie
Paperback, 366 pages
Razorbill
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The Hunger Games

Could you survive on your own, in the wild, with everyone out to make sure you don't live to see the morning? 

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. 

Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister’s place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before—and survival, for her, is second nature. Unintentionally, she becomes a contender. 

If Katniss is to win, she will have to start making choices that will weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

This is the first book in the Hunger Games-trilogy and I read it in april last year. I actually saw the movie before I picked up the book but it was no problem reading it. It was just as exciting and thrilling as I hoped it would be.

The book is a real pageturner and pretty thin so I got through it fast. Suzanne Collins is a good writer and I really like the world she has created. The only problem with this book is that it sometimes is incredibly predictable but it wasn't something I cared about a lot.

I really recommend this book so if you haven't picked it up yet - just do it!

P.S. I'm going to re-read the trilogy very soon and then I'll give some more comments about it.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Hardcover, 374 pages
Scholastic Press
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Unravel Me

Our lips 
touch 
and I know I'm going to split at the seams. He kisses me softly then strongly like he's lost me and he's found me and I'm slipping away and he's never going to let me go. 

Juliette has escaped from The Reestablishment. Now she's free from their plan to use her as a weapon, and free to love Adam. But Juliette will never be free from her lethal touch. Or from Warner, who wants Juliette more than she ever thought possible. Haunted by her past and terrified of her future, Juliette knows that she will have to make some life-changing choices. Choices that may involve choosing between her heart—and Adam's life. Juliette has escaped to Omega Point. It is a place for people like her—people with gifts—and it is also the headquarters of the rebel resistance. She's finally free from The Reestablishment, free from their plan to use her as a weapon, and free to love Adam. But Juliette will never be free from her lethal touch. Or from Warner, who wants Juliette more than she ever thought possible. 

I absolutely LOVED the first book in this trilogy and I had very high expectations about this one. It turned out to be really slow in the beginning but it got much better. The last chapters were just so great but it wasn't as good as the first book. Nope.

Some new charachters showed up in this book but you didn't really get to know them. Maybe, there'll be more about them in the final book but it almost felt like something was missing. It wasn't as thrilling as I hope it to be either. We get to know Warner a bit better though and I know a lot of you love him but I still can't stand him. Even though we get to know a little about his background, there's no excuse for torturing people. He's not one of my favorite characters as you might have guessed. Kenji grew a lot in my eyes though and I hope to read more about him in the final book.

Anyway, it's a great book and if you haven't start reading the trilogy yet, you should definitely do it!

Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi 
Paperback, 461 pages
HarperCollins
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Delirium

Ninety-five days, and then I’ll be safe.
I wonder whether the procedure will hurt.
I want to get it over with.
It’s hard to be patient.
It’s hard not to be afraid while I’m still uncured, though so far the deliria hasn’t touched me yet.
Still, I worry.
They say that in the old days, love drove people to madness.
The deadliest of all deadly things: It kills you both when you have it and when you don’t.

Right before I picked this book up, I read a very negative review about it so I started reading it with pretty low expectations. I think that was pretty good because I ended up really liking the book. It started a little slow but it got better and then I couldn't even put it down. It was easy to read and even though it's pretty thick - it was a fast and exciting read.

I liked most of the characters and they really made me feel something for them. At first, Lena was kind of boring but suddenly she did a real turn. I also liked Gracie but I'm not so sure she turns up later on in the trilogy. We'll have to wait and see.

It's a great book, interesting and thrilling and I highly recommend it.

Delirium by Lauren Oliver
Hardcover, 441 pages
HarperTeen
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Shatter Me

Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days. 

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color. 

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war – and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now. 

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

OK, this is so good I don't even know what to say. This really is a book that is impossible to put down! I got hooked from the first page and just wanted more.

It is a well-written young adult book with a really good story and it feels real! The only thing that possibly disturbed me at the beginning of the book was the underlined words but I learned quickly that it was a special part of the book and finally I barely saw it. It was poetic.

R-E-A-D-I-T-N-O-W!

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
Paperback, 340 pages
HarperCollins
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Tomorrow, when the war began

Seventeen-year-old Ellie Linton wants one final adventure with her friends before the school holidays are over. Packed in Ellie’s parents’ land rover they drive to the famously isolated rock pool Eden dubbed ‘Hell’ by the locals. Returning to their home town of Wirrawee, the seven teenagers realize that something is seriously wrong. Power to the houses has been cut, pets and livestock have been left dead or dying, and most alarmingly of all, everyone’s family has vanished. When the hostile armed forces discover that the teenagers are lying low in the vicinity, Ellie and her friends must band together to escape, outwit and strike back against the mysterious enemy that has seized control of their town and imprisoned their friends and loved ones…

Well, everyone seemed to love this book so my expectations were pretty high. I didn't like it, though! I had to force myself to read a few times and the fact that I were in a reading slump didn't make things better.

I thought it was hard to get to know the people and the settings and I felt nothing about it. I really like dystopian novels so I wanted to like this book as well, but no, sorry.

Tomorrow, when the war began av John Marsden
Paperback, 304 pages
Quercus Publishing Plc
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Divergent

Beatrice Prior lives in a dystopian Chicago where the people is divided in five factions, the honest, the brave, the selfless, the intelligent and the peaceful. Once a year, everybody who has turned 16 must choose a faction and it's a difficult choice since they are going to stick with it for the rest of their lives. Beatrice can't really decide if she wants to stay with her family and never feel right about it or if she would take the chance to switch faction but then she'll never see her family again.

Beatrice's life would change no matter what and since her little secret would put her life in danger if it came out, she would have to trust the right people.

It felt like everybody had read this book before I even knew it existed but now it was my turn and I freakin' loved it! I haven't read that many dystopian novels yet but this became my favorite and I'm so excited about "Insurgent", which I'm going to read as soon as I can.

This book is pretty big but I read it in no-time. It was so exciting and I really wanted to know what happened to "Tris" and her family. Except from Tris, I also really liked Four (of course, doh) and hope to know more about him in "Insurgent". The third book in the trilogy is released in the fall and recently got a title, "Alliegent".

If you haven't read this book, put it up right away and start reading!

Divergent by Veronica Roth
Hardcover, 487 pages
Katherine Tegen Books
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