Reviews

I think I liked this one a little bit better than the first. Jack is awesome and Kevin even more so. If you like well-written dystopian, read this series!

Book: Cured (2#) by Bethany Wiggins
Genre: Romance, Dystopia, Post Apoclopystic, Horror, Science-Fiction.
Creatures: Zombies.
Age: Young Adult, Mature.
Pages: 321 pages.
Format: Ebook (Kindle)
Publication: March 13th 2014 by Bloomsbury Childrens.
Final Rating: 2.5/5

The real me exists only in dreams now. The other me? The one that exists in the real world? That's the Fake me ― Bethany Wiggins, Cured

You know, when I am starting to like something, usually it's either going to get cancelled, or it ends with a sour taste for me. I just find that its sort of an never ending cycle that keeps repeating to me. Which makes me frustrated... And I hate that. I don't want to be feel down by a book. When I read a book I want it to make me excited, emotional, terrified, etc, etc. So what does that have to do with CURED? To be honest not much. I don't hate it or angry about it. I AM JUST DISAPPOINTED. Why? Simple, when you read the first book to a series you except that the next ones will be as much as engaging and entertaining as your previous read.

But the things is... Cured could have been incredible. Sure the first book, STUNG had its fair shares of flaws as I stated previously on my latest review (which if you haven't read it or the book itself then go and do it now, dummies! Hello, spoilers obviously...) Stung spread the seeds of things to come, of a promising beginning of something fresh and new. But alas, it didn't... Now let's stop moping about it. If I continue beat myself over my feelings to this book, I won't be able to give it a fair review.

STORY & WORLD BUILDING:

Cured picks up exactly a few months after Stung has ended. The cure has finally been found thanks to Fiona's and Doctor Grayson contribution in the end of the previous book. Things seems to finally becoming brighter for the people of Wyoming. Perhaps the entire the human race too! Hack, maybe they can once again rebuilt everything they lost before the bee epidemic. But not everybody is happy about it. The Raiders are still up and running causing riots on the streets and the beasts are still at larger, and who knows what else is lurking out there in the shadows of this chaos?

But non of that matters to Jacqui "Jack" Aislynn Bloom. Jack has been told all her life what to do, from abandoning her old identity for the favor of a so called protection to be ordered around in order to survive this hellish earth. She's sick of everybody telling her what to do. Things are going to change around here, and Jack will be the master of her own fate. And her first act as an adult is to find her missing older brother, Dean. He has been missing for years and her parents lost hope of ever seeing him again since he left. But not to her. No. She's going to find him, but not without of a help from an old friend.

Let me just explain one thing about this book before I go and start explaining one of the many problems of it. Wiggins decided that unlike her previous work in stung, the narration is not told by Fiona but in fact a new character. And who might it be you ask? Well, it's actually somebody we were already introduce before, Jack. Now, changing a character perspective isn't something new in fiction. Done a million times before throughout the years.

Not many folks love changes like this since the author can honestly could securitize the plot and characters. Of course, I am one of with the supporting camp who does enjoy new stuff like this. Getting to know new characters and their feelings, histories and demons while reemitting and catching up with the old characters and what they have been up to since then.

So then, why does it create a problem for this book or for much important reason the world building? Simple. THERE IS NO FREAKING WORLD BUILDING!

Look, stung offered a lot of potential with its bee flu epidemic destroying the world. How it created the beasts, made cities and men crumble and become twisted versions of themselves, and the worst of all of this? People becoming much cruller in order to survive. And with how things ended in Stung, it seems to rise the stakes. Sure, the cure has been found and Governor Sonechen has been dethroned, but he escaped his custody. And with our journey with Fiona we learned so much about Wyoming community becoming so horrible that god knows if it can even been saved despite the governor's influence and corruption of power finally gone.

I mean there's the black market still running around, there's the pit fights, there's the beasts still lurking around, and let's not forgot the freaking raiders. I mean since we have all of this, doesn't it mean Wiggins should have developed more to the world building at this point? Like even if the situation in Wyoming changed it doesn't mean the community have. She should had written a bit more about how it effect the dynamics of the city. For example city riots or the people inside the wall being threaten thinking their good lives are about to be taken away by the Fecs. Or maybe an election of a new governor? If you going to write from a different perspective we should get to introduce to new things. Yes, we do have a few stuff like for example the sirens, people who promising granny tales in order to drag poor innocents souls to god knows where and more new pieces of technology like the water pacifier which I loved.

We do get to finally step outside Wyoming only to be hugely screwed over. There's hardly anything important or memorable about this exploration. The author could have used that to explore what happened to the world outside of Wyoming. Like, how badly where the other cities effected? Did the white house survived? AND WHAT ABOUT THE REST OF THE WORLD? We could have gotten to other communities like Wyoming, reading and experiencing new horizons, meeting new characters and a whole new set of problems. But no. Instead the plot didn't move or did any importance because they were too focusing on the so called rescue mission. I honestly didn't cared at this point since I just wanted to be over with it. It just makes you not to care about the plot.

I mean sure, we do get to see some new stuff in this book. I will acknowledge that. For example the raiders. Yes, we get to encounter them once again despite how they seriously contributed nothing to Stung just as they have now. They were like this rumor that never got reveled or used at all. Like this new toy that as a kid they promote you to buy with promises of grandeurs. So in Cured what do we get?

Not much about the raiders. We do get to see about this so called scary group members and how they are doing things. But once again it's not even making them enough terrifying or remarkable for us to be wary of them. They are hardly even leave an impact on the story. It is so poorly handled here like so many other aspects of this book.

Like there's a bit of an answer about the cure which I loved that. How despite inventing the cure it's limited and even if used it take a lot of time for the former beast to recover back his humanity. But even if they are cured some characteristics of the beast are still remaining. Like their stupendous strength and agility. And speaking of the beasts, we did get some new information about them. For example, their spit (YES THEIR SPIT. I was I am not even joking.) can regenerate their wounds faster, that even cured beasts like Jonah or Fiona can still use. I do have to point that there was one other thing I wasn't expecting. Like something that totally caught me off guard, beasts dogs. Yeah I am such a sucker for zombie animals.

Which is sad since if you are going to feature animal beasts, and by god do you even comprehend how cool is that, only to never be used or mention again? It just makes the plot of spreading the cure just more meaningless in comparison of finding their missing love ones. Which Wiggins could have done both! Their journey could have taken them to new places, encountering numerous new threats, horrifying beasts and dangerous groups. And in the meantime trying to spread the cure, saving people and in the way finding Dean and Jonah and Fiona's mom. But non of that matter because this book is a romance novel and not a real dystopian one like Stung was. 60% of it was all about the romance and little to do with the plot.

I have many questions and non of them got answered in this book. I can continue blabbered on and on and point on more poorly created world building to the camp fire. But no... Non of that is matter... Cause there is no world building in this book. It's simple not about that. This story, and I am trying to say it nicely, is a romance coming of age story. It's not a dystopian fiction if there ain't any struggle in it or a world scared from it. I feel betrayed. I feel... sad. I wanted this book to be better. I wanted it to suppress its predecessor but no. It got bad. Sadly...Let's just go on... Please...

CHARACTERS:

Jacqui "Jack" Aislynn Bloom since the downfall of this world had to endure lots and lots of pain. First having to abandon her old identity as a girl in order to be protective from the raiders and other unsettling parties. She was taught how to be a boy. How to sound, how to walk, everything there is to make it convincible that she was one. She became so adjust to this life she can't even recognize herself anymore. She is lost. But worst of it all, she is lonely without her brother, Dean. Jack then decides to go on a journey to find out where has her brother is and why he never come back.
Jack character is a very interesting one. Her narration is fascinating to me since throughout the book she's cautious and she knows how to survive. However that doesn't mean she doesn't have a weakness. She doesn't value herself enough above others and hate doing nothing while everybody risks themselves for her. I love how we have those moments where she lectures herself about her acting out of her character as it a bit of a personal identity crises. Jack is an all around character that anybody can fall.

Kevin Winston Emerson is a survivor living in a bunker outside of Wyoming. He scavenges for food, water and other resources. But ever since he encounter Jack and her buddies his life gone upside down. Now my problem with his character is that everything we know about him is a total mystery. Sure we get small info such as he has connections to the raiders and that he is an artiest, making sculptures out of metal wirings but beyond that nothing.
Then, when you do learn the truth about him (which in this case its basically about Kevin being in fact a siren. He lures people to his community with the hopes of saving his sister. He also has been masquerading as the vagabond, getting food from Jack's family in exchange for information) the mystery is uplifted making you either love this character, completely feeling sorry for him or just nothing cause everything about him is a total lie.

Now, the relationship itself between the two despite is complicated. Despite it being nice at first, you can't really call this a romantic one. Yes there are some sad and romantic moments between the two, but a relationship that has been built on a lie shouldn't be considered romantic. At least in my honest opinion. If I was the author I would had reduce Kevin as a supporting character, and used Jonah (yes that one) as the main love interest for Jack.

BUT SPIRA, you may ask, WHY ARE YOU EVEN THINKING ABOUT SUCH A THING? Well, let me answer that..
.
Jonah is simply a far better character then Kevin in every aspect. Since the end of Stung, Jonah has been recovering from his former beast status. He still trying to regain back his humanity but he remember every single act he has done. Like for example killing his father thanks to the vaccine shots he got in the early day or trying to gnaw his sister. He blames himself and fears of finding his mom since she was there when it happened. He is damaged but trying to be better, and is also evolving just like Jack is, which could have been far better romance. Plus childhood friends, duh~

Now if I do discuses about the other characters, Fiona and Bowen do make a recurring appearance but in a way I think they shouldn't have return. Jonah should had being only character on Jack's quest since they are hardly doing something for the plot. Which makes me sad cause I love those characters. And if you want to know, even the villain is not that worth mentioning cause, I honestly have no strength or the will to keep discussing this.

WRITING & PACING:

Bethany Wiggins writing isn't flutters here. In fact I think this book has far more better narration then the first one. Which is one of the many redeeming qualities I love about it. Wiggins included tons of humoristic tone to the book, kinda of black humor to bluntly say that I honestly couldn't helped myself then burst into laughter. That plus Jack character viewing the world is enough to progress this story. But despite my sugarcoating this, there is one thing that again ruins this book to me.

THE PACING. My god, is it insane! We can hardly have enough time to breath. It moves so fast to Point A to B I didn't sometimes remember what was going on. The first 4 chapters of the book in plot and pacing were great. It was slow, building up Jack and her world and then what we are getting ourselves into and then, it just went to someplace else. Running from danger, fighting raiders, and then the book stops. It keeps dragging on and on and just goes nowhere until the finale. I just hate when people do that.
I want the pacing to be slow, then build up to higher ground then go back to slow and then ends with a blast. It's not hard to ask for right? Then why is it written so badly here? If you planning on reading this, do try to focus since, trust me on this, you are going to be lost after a few pages...

OVERALL:

I wanted to love this book. I was dreaming it will take Stung to a whole new place in terms of story. But it didn't it just stumbles in its place and it didn't progress. Honestly it feels like an entire different. Something that has nothing tot do with what I had read before. And it pains me to say it, but I feel betrayed. I feel disappointed and I don't want to hate books. I love all the good and bad but this book doesn't cure anything. It just makes the disease still at large...

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