Reviews with content warning for Forced institutionalization - Poster Girl

I loved this look into a dystopian regime being overthrown by another government. Such an interesting thought process. The original corrupt government rewards citizens by paying/removing rewards via monitoring eye implants and reporting behaviors by citizens. When overthrown all citizens who supported the government are held in a secluded and guarded community for life. Including MC Sonya, who was the literal poster child for the deligation government. Now the new government is offering her her freedom in exchange for finding a missing person displaced my the deligation. She will find that the government she knew as a child wasn't as she thought it wasn't uncovering secrets and very uncomfortable information she didn't know she'd rather leave buried.

This is a slow burn and I couldn't put it down. Perfect for a dystopian weekend read. Highly recommend, and eerily relevant to the times.

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fromjuliereads's review against another edition

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challenging dark hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

**Thank you to HarperCollins Canada for an advanced ebook copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.**

When I saw that one of the "classic" dystopian authors was releasing a new dystopian, I was excited to check it out - and very excited to get an advanced copy! I know that some people still hold Allegiant against Roth, but while it definitely wasn't my favourite series ending, I don't hold any grudges about it. I was excited for an adult dystopian!
This book was kind of a dystopian crossed with a mystery, with a lot of social and political commentary. It had a really good combination of these things, and I did really like the commentary. There were some really interesting things said and discussed between characters, or just commented on by the main character.

The one thing I was kind of excited about, even though it was so small, is that this book is set in the Pacific North West - or I guess what would have been it? - and it mentions places like Portland, Seattle, and even Vancouver! It was kind of exciting to see a Canadian city included - oh the small things that make us happy! I did also really like the writing of the book, and how short it was. Roth was able to pack so much into a shorter novel without missing anything integral to the story.

I did really enjoy the story, but I admit there were just a couple things that made me not give it a higher rating. Even though I loved how short the story was, there were a couple parts that felt almost like filler. We got a lot of background information, or more details on the way the new dystopia works - as one has taken over after a different one - but some of those sections made things drag just a little. I almost wish the pace had been kept up a bit more, especially through certain sections.
I also guessed a couple of the twists. Don't get me wrong! There are some absolutely fantastic twists and reveals throughout the book that I did NOT see coming - two that I could name right away as being fantastic twists in the book! But there were a couple others that felt a little predictable. And the ending, well, I have very mixed feelings on it. While it was the type of ending that I wanted for so many other dystopians I read during the height of that genre, it felt a little lackluster for this story.

But perhaps my biggest reason I couldn't rate this higher is that the characters weren't as developed as I would have liked them to be. I couldn't ever fully get a grasp on Sonya. She didn't feel developed enough for me to really have feelings about her through the story. The same went for Alexander, even the other side characters. I think somehow the ones that were developed were characters who were integral to the story but had such short little moments. It was a strange combination.

Overall though, if you are looking for a plot-focused dystopian that has some great twists and brings you back to the dystopian novels that we used to read - it will deliver on those fronts, in a short novel even!!

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