A review by nimzipow_reads
Powerless by Lauren Roberts

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I started out absolutely adoring this book. The concept of the Elites and Ordinaries is something that I LOVE and really want to explore more of in this world. The part that bothered me and stopped it from being a 5 star read was its similarity to The Hunger Games.
I was fine with the Trials being comparable to the Games, no problem. It was the TV show with a colourful-haired host, the gifts placed in the forest to help competitors in the Trials, the crowd’s hand symbol to honour the fallen, Pae’s prowess with a bow and arrow, the rebellion… these details and a few more gave me THG vibes.
. I understand that certain tropes will pop up a lot in dystopian books, but I felt like there were too many similar details that could have been avoided. The world created is SO cool, so I hope that the next books come into their own. If you haven’t read THG (or don’t mind - I have some friends who weren’t bothered by this at all), you’ll probably adore this book and none of this will matter to you. 

I honestly can’t decide what to rate this book as I would like to read the sequel and I was SO gripped for the first half, but because of my personal gripes I don’t think I can rank it alongside some of my 4 star reads. Perhaps a 3.5.
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