lcgerstmann's review against another edition
3.0
I liked the first book in this series for it's dystopian world building. The story is more original and didn't "borrow" as obviously from "1984", "The Handmaid's Tale" and "The Giver" as most other YA dystopian novels do, but I felt it missed the target in the emotional connection arena.
I really liked the second book for building another totally different and interesting dystopian society and for convincing me emotionally, however, it lost some of the grit and darkness that made the first book more poignant.
This third book and final book attempted to mesh the best of both previous books. While it succeeded in bringing us full circle in our journey, it left me quite unsatisfied. There was a lot of repetition that hinted at danger without fully committing to it, until BAM, the horrible happens.... and then... a wedding. I guess we are supposed to be outraged and appalled and swooning all at the same time. It did't work for me.
I do still give this book 3 big stars, more like 3.5, for confronting mature issues for an YA audience. The most poignant being the bonds of mothers to their children, infertility and women's rights (as it concerns their own bodies). As a mother, I feel these issue resonant with me in a way that might not be as meaningful to a teenager and therefore may take away some of the intensity of the story for young readers, but hopefully it opens these young minds (especially girls) to think about the importance of these topics.
Now I'm going to call my mom and tell her I love her and kiss my daughter good-night.
I really liked the second book for building another totally different and interesting dystopian society and for convincing me emotionally, however, it lost some of the grit and darkness that made the first book more poignant.
This third book and final book attempted to mesh the best of both previous books. While it succeeded in bringing us full circle in our journey, it left me quite unsatisfied. There was a lot of repetition that hinted at danger without fully committing to it, until BAM, the horrible happens.... and then... a wedding. I guess we are supposed to be outraged and appalled and swooning all at the same time. It did't work for me.
I do still give this book 3 big stars, more like 3.5, for confronting mature issues for an YA audience. The most poignant being the bonds of mothers to their children, infertility and women's rights (as it concerns their own bodies). As a mother, I feel these issue resonant with me in a way that might not be as meaningful to a teenager and therefore may take away some of the intensity of the story for young readers, but hopefully it opens these young minds (especially girls) to think about the importance of these topics.
Now I'm going to call my mom and tell her I love her and kiss my daughter good-night.
beckykirk's review against another edition
2.0
A series started with such promise ends so... Ugh I don't even know what word I should use. I loved the 1st book, was ok with the 2nd but was really disappointed with this one. How stupid is Gaia? How many times does the Protectoret have to screw her over before she realizes what a liar he is? I'm just glad the series is over and I can look for better dystopia books!
snjluc's review against another edition
2.0
It frustrates me SOOOO MUCH when books are published with errors!!! Come on publishers!!!!
glitterbomb47's review against another edition
2.0
Disappointing end to the Birthmarked trilogy. Inane behavior by many characters just to move the plot forward. I wish now I had skipped this one entirely.
rachel_maloy's review against another edition
4.0
I thought it wasn't as good as the first one, but still good. I like her writing, although ever since the first book the story has been going a little downhill
rochelleisreading's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
medium-paced
5.0
sydney_09's review against another edition
3.0
I give this a 3.7 as I mentioned with the first two, this is like a mix between The Hunger Games and The Handmaid's Tale. I appreciate Gaia's growth but her age and naivety definitely showed through. I do feel like she lost her self as a Midwife, not sure if that is intentional by the author considering what happened to her. I think an epilogue would've been nice since the ending feels complete, but incomplete.
ama_reads's review against another edition
2.0
Perhaps it is due to the amount of time between reading the previous book and this one. I felt underwhelmed by the final installment of this series.
nbrenchley's review against another edition
2.0
Such a huge build up to what could have been a great ending and it just sputtered out. I was disappointed.