The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! đ
ckdexter44's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
laughlinesandliterature's review against another edition
5.0
So I have to start off saying that I had huge expectations for this book. I begged my library over and over to get this book until they did. So saying that I was expecting a lot from this book is not understatement. And boy, it did not disappoint me! I loved this book from the beginning until the end. I thought it started off a little slow but once I got about 100 pages in I realized why. That first 100 pages was so important because it really gave you time with characters plus it showed that they had every right to be so concerned and cautious. I have to say I loved Rachel. She was not the perfect heroine, in fact there were times when I downright wanted to strangle this girl. But that's part of what I loved so much. Rachel just felt real to me, she was so hurt by Logan's rejection, her father's missing/dead, and then on top of that Logan gets to be her Protector. I agreed with her it was absolutely unfair and I understood why she was being such a brat about it. In her shoes I probably would've been worse, she had no idea that Logan was in love with her he just couldn't say anything and that her father while yes missing/dead was doing what was right. In a way Rachel was her own worst enemy. Yes, there was the commander and he was evil but Rachel played right into his hands. She was too headstrong, too stubborn, and too concerned with getting her own way. Now like I said before this is part of what I liked about the book but still a lot of terrible things could have been avoided if Rachel had just used her head a little more. Then there's Logan. I loved Logan from the beginning, I am not usually a big fan of point of view changes but I felt like there was so much going on that it definitely worked in the book's favor to do it. Logan was sweet and kind although he too had his moments of being a jerk. I love that you get to see that he does care about Rachel for numerous reasons and that he never meant to hurt her. By the time the journey is underway and Rachel is growing and changing I already felt like I ran a marathon. I'm definitely intrigued to see the next book because these two characters are so in love with each other I don't know what I would do if they ended up doing something stupid to break that bond between them. I give it 5 stars because I couldn't put this book down and while I hoped for a little more at the end it's not enough to bring it down to 5 stars.
eternalcat's review against another edition
1.0
I'm not sure what to rate this book but I'm giving it a 1 because I could not finish.
I hated the world building. Why are females required to have a Protector? And claiming age? Really? This book is full of backwards notions that I can't stand.
Also I cannot imagine a loving father leaving his daughter's protectorship to his 19 year old apprentice rather than to a well respected older man that views Rachel as his granddaughter.
Rachel was dumb, Logan's chapters read very similarly. Not worth the time.
I hated the world building. Why are females required to have a Protector? And claiming age? Really? This book is full of backwards notions that I can't stand.
Also I cannot imagine a loving father leaving his daughter's protectorship to his 19 year old apprentice rather than to a well respected older man that views Rachel as his granddaughter.
Rachel was dumb, Logan's chapters read very similarly. Not worth the time.
becs_l's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 Stars
Also available on: www.areaderdevotion.blogspot.co.uk
In most YA books we establish the characters, the setting and the plot. There is a bit of tension, a plan is formed, something goes wrong, things are fixed and the heroes save the day. Defiance is slightly different.
ââIs there a problem?â the Commander asks in a tone meant to convey that thereâd better not be.
âItâs, ah, just a bit irregular. Highly irregular.â The manâs fingers clench the parchment, curling the edges until they begin to crumble.
âContinue,â the Commander says to him. A hard knot forms in the pit of my stomach.
âIn the matter of Protectorship of my daughter, Rachel Elizabeth Adams [âŚ] I do hereby appoint as her Protector, until such a day as she is legally Claimed, my apprentice, Logan McEntire.ââ
The story is not as straight forward as I originally expected. A plan is formed, it failed. Another plan is formed, it failed. People are not that predictable. The story is not predictable. I loved it. I donât know how things are going to pan out. You think you have something sussed but apparently it is not going to help. You are kept on your toes.
You are taken on a journey. It has been awhile since I read a book that was spread out over a long chronological period of time. Normally the problem that arises is the pace is either too fast or too slow. I either canât keep up or I am falling asleep. Well done C.J. Redwine. I was neither of those things. I thought it was paced just right. I was engaged all the way through wanting to know what will happen next.
Rachel goes on an emotional roller-coaster. Seriously, it was torture. I would hate to be in her position. She is forced into a sort of mentality that someone so young shouldnât have. While many of her decisions I didnât like, I understood why she made them. If it was me, as I am now, having to face those choices, the story would have turned out differently. Her decisions drive the story. I am curious to know what will happen to her next. The way it ended doesnât leave a natural opening.
The Commander is the perfect antagonist. He is sneaky and unpredictable. He is clever. They are the most dangerous kind of enemy. He is the reasons why you cannot fall into a sense of security. He will always have a Plan B. It is what made him so scary. âHow are they going to get out of this one?â was a constant question in my head.
Personally I would have liked more information on the construction of the society. I guess it wasnât truly essential to the story. All you need to know is the Commander is a tyrant and violent. Hopefully we will find out more in the next book.
I would have liked the romantic tension to have started a little later, after we had gotten to know Logan and Rachel a bit better. It feels like it was too heavy too soon. At the beginning it should have focused more on the main plot.
Defiance is an engaging, action packed read causing you to question throughout the entire story. A dystopian with a paranormal twist, this book is a must read.
Also available on: www.areaderdevotion.blogspot.co.uk
In most YA books we establish the characters, the setting and the plot. There is a bit of tension, a plan is formed, something goes wrong, things are fixed and the heroes save the day. Defiance is slightly different.
ââIs there a problem?â the Commander asks in a tone meant to convey that thereâd better not be.
âItâs, ah, just a bit irregular. Highly irregular.â The manâs fingers clench the parchment, curling the edges until they begin to crumble.
âContinue,â the Commander says to him. A hard knot forms in the pit of my stomach.
âIn the matter of Protectorship of my daughter, Rachel Elizabeth Adams [âŚ] I do hereby appoint as her Protector, until such a day as she is legally Claimed, my apprentice, Logan McEntire.ââ
The story is not as straight forward as I originally expected. A plan is formed, it failed. Another plan is formed, it failed. People are not that predictable. The story is not predictable. I loved it. I donât know how things are going to pan out. You think you have something sussed but apparently it is not going to help. You are kept on your toes.
You are taken on a journey. It has been awhile since I read a book that was spread out over a long chronological period of time. Normally the problem that arises is the pace is either too fast or too slow. I either canât keep up or I am falling asleep. Well done C.J. Redwine. I was neither of those things. I thought it was paced just right. I was engaged all the way through wanting to know what will happen next.
Rachel goes on an emotional roller-coaster. Seriously, it was torture. I would hate to be in her position. She is forced into a sort of mentality that someone so young shouldnât have. While many of her decisions I didnât like, I understood why she made them. If it was me, as I am now, having to face those choices, the story would have turned out differently. Her decisions drive the story. I am curious to know what will happen to her next. The way it ended doesnât leave a natural opening.
The Commander is the perfect antagonist. He is sneaky and unpredictable. He is clever. They are the most dangerous kind of enemy. He is the reasons why you cannot fall into a sense of security. He will always have a Plan B. It is what made him so scary. âHow are they going to get out of this one?â was a constant question in my head.
Personally I would have liked more information on the construction of the society. I guess it wasnât truly essential to the story. All you need to know is the Commander is a tyrant and violent. Hopefully we will find out more in the next book.
I would have liked the romantic tension to have started a little later, after we had gotten to know Logan and Rachel a bit better. It feels like it was too heavy too soon. At the beginning it should have focused more on the main plot.
Defiance is an engaging, action packed read causing you to question throughout the entire story. A dystopian with a paranormal twist, this book is a must read.
kstring's review against another edition
3.0
First read: December 2012; 5 stars
Very well written. I got sucked into the story line and became the character. I breezed through this book in 3 days because it was so absorbing! Love it! Can't wait for the next book to come out.
New review:
I am struggling to rate this book after reading it for the second time because I really disliked the audiobook reader and I think that's definitely got me biased. It was easy to tune out, so I missed some stuff. Coming at this book again 3.5 years after first reading it, with a lot more YA novels under my belt, I saw some flaws I didn't see the first time. The story line is not as substantive as I would have liked it to be. A lot happens, but not a lot is explained; the story jumps between plot events. What I really liked, though, was the development of the romantic relationship between Rachel and Logan. It had a history, and some serious thought was put into it by both characters before deciding whether or not they loved the other. One of my biggest pet peeves is when, in the course of a page, one character goes from having a crush on the other to feeling like they can't live without the other and all they can think is "I love you, kiss me, I can't keep my hand off you even though I have for the past 16 years of my life." Middle school romance, much? There should be a term for that--flash love? Anyway, that's not so much the case in this book, which made the romance line very appealing.
I want to know more about the Cursed One. It's a major character in the plot in terms of importance to way of living, but we don't know hardly anything about it. All I have in my head is a picture of a ginormous blind maggot. That's all I got.
I might come back later and expand this review.
Added thoughts: I think the real reason I didn't like this book was the writing style. It's sometimes hard when someone is reading it to you to pick up on things like that, but I think that was a barrier for me. I didn't find the text engaging and so I just didn't care enough to listen astutely to the audiobook and learn what was going on. Please keep in mind that it has been 3+ years since I've read this, so everything was a surprise again and it wasn't my familiarity with the book that made it unexciting.
Very well written. I got sucked into the story line and became the character. I breezed through this book in 3 days because it was so absorbing! Love it! Can't wait for the next book to come out.
New review:
I am struggling to rate this book after reading it for the second time because I really disliked the audiobook reader and I think that's definitely got me biased. It was easy to tune out, so I missed some stuff. Coming at this book again 3.5 years after first reading it, with a lot more YA novels under my belt, I saw some flaws I didn't see the first time. The story line is not as substantive as I would have liked it to be. A lot happens, but not a lot is explained; the story jumps between plot events. What I really liked, though, was the development of the romantic relationship between Rachel and Logan. It had a history, and some serious thought was put into it by both characters before deciding whether or not they loved the other. One of my biggest pet peeves is when, in the course of a page, one character goes from having a crush on the other to feeling like they can't live without the other and all they can think is "I love you, kiss me, I can't keep my hand off you even though I have for the past 16 years of my life." Middle school romance, much? There should be a term for that--flash love? Anyway, that's not so much the case in this book, which made the romance line very appealing.
I want to know more about the Cursed One. It's a major character in the plot in terms of importance to way of living, but we don't know hardly anything about it. All I have in my head is a picture of a ginormous blind maggot. That's all I got.
I might come back later and expand this review.
Added thoughts: I think the real reason I didn't like this book was the writing style. It's sometimes hard when someone is reading it to you to pick up on things like that, but I think that was a barrier for me. I didn't find the text engaging and so I just didn't care enough to listen astutely to the audiobook and learn what was going on. Please keep in mind that it has been 3+ years since I've read this, so everything was a surprise again and it wasn't my familiarity with the book that made it unexciting.
sadblueapple's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
4.0
gracedreads's review against another edition
5.0
This book is amazing! Read it in one night, I recommend this book to anyone who buoys a good dystopian or just romance. It literally has the best of everything, it's fast paced without confusing