The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! 😌
emilywemily6's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This book was a lot and I am still sifting through my feelings. It felt like a mix of The Handmaid’s Tale, Lord of the Flies, and The Hunger Games. This story was gruesome and the oppression the women are conditioned for within this society is horrendous. Unlike The Handmaid’s Tale, this book was more bizarre and less relatable to our current day, definitely leaning more towards horror than pure dystopian fiction. There was a lot of mystery inherent to the plot since no one in the community talks about what happens during the grace year, and I think my lack of knowledge about the book beyond the synopsis helped me enjoy the reading experience more. There were a lot of twists and turns and I really didn’t know where the book was headed! I really hated reading about the magic/madness of the girls in the enclosure and almost DNFed because I was very unsettled and frustrated with the behavior. This book was also pretty gorey. The romantic subplot was sweet and wholesome but I wanted more depth/deeper connection between the characters; they seemed to jump from trusting each other platonically to becoming intimate. The last 50 or so pages broke me. This book also uses a lot of ambiguity, which was intriguing yet sometimes frustrating. I really liked the realistic approach at the end where the girls supported each other in public for the first time, and while the world was the same, the girls and women were not. A sequel would be really fun to read to see how this world changes overtime! Revolution doesn’t happen in an instant. Lots of interesting themes that make this a great discussion book for YA and adults alike, though some of the author’s choices seemed to be more for shock value than for furthering the plot. Reading about sixteen year old girls was also not my favorite because these are the worst sixteen year old girls I have ever heard of.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Child abuse, Child death, Murder, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Trafficking, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Blood, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Gore, Grief, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Classism, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Transphobia, Violence, Suicide, Death, and Self harm
Moderate: Medical content, Ableism, and Sexual content
Minor: Infertility
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