When I read about it, it was listed under Young Adult, Paranormal, Dystopian Romance… so many genres I could tick off my faves list… and yet it seemed a bit ‘lacking’ for want of a better word…
The book is written from Charlaina (Charlie’s) first person POV in the predominant chapters, there are the odd chapters where we get from Max (the mysterious love interest) or Queen Sabara a third person POV scene… the main characters are all around the ages of 17/18, coming of age, with suggestive but no sexual scenes which gives it the perfect setup for a Young Adult audience…
It has a Paranormal ‘twist’ rather than a whole novel based upon the genre… the twist is good and original (for me) where Charlie can understand any language and read people’s gestures… her sister Angelina is mute and has a gift too, and of course we start the book in a scene where we learn what Queen Sabara can do…
This was nothing like the bigger Dystopian novels like The Hunger Games or Divergent… it feels more like Historical Fantasy… a city divided into classes where language is used to dictate the ranking system, ruled by a cruel and heartless queen… it’s only the part when Charlie is reading the story of Ludania’s history to Angelina that I recognised it as post-apocalyptic as it feels like a developing world rather than a collapsed one… although there probably isn’t much difference when I think about it, it just didn't 'feel' Dystopian to me…
The romance in this book was, unusually and unfortunately, not my favourite part, there were probably two scenes that were really good, the rest of the time it was all rather bland and Charlie pushed Max away so many times it was becoming frustrating… there was some physical attraction but I didn’t feel a connection… and then at the end it kind of leaps forward a couple of months and you don’t get any relationship development that I feel this book needs (sigh!)
Anyhoo… the writing was good, no typos or grammar errors… the plot was good and I liked the pace and development, there’s no cliffhanger but it definitely leaves you curious… I enjoyed the characters but I would say we could do with knowing them better, their growth throughout the story was nice, especially Brook... There were some twists I didn’t expect and I don’t know how I missed it, but I didn’t guess who either Max or Zander were until right at the last minute… I enjoyed the story, even if it wasn’t as much as I’d hoped for, and I’ve downloaded the second one and am optimistic that it’s going to get better...
The Blurb
In the violent country of Ludania, the classes are strictly divided by the language they speak. The smallest transgression, like looking a member of a higher class in the eye while they are speaking their native tongue, results in immediate execution. Seventeen-year-old Charlaina has always been able to understand the languages of all classes, and she's spent her life trying to hide her secret. The only place she can really be free is the drug-fueled underground clubs where people go to shake off the oppressive rules of the world they live in. It's there that she meets a beautiful and mysterious boy named Max who speaks a language she's never heard before . . . and her secret is almost exposed.
Charlie is intensely attracted to Max, even though she can't be sure where his real loyalties lie. As the emergency drills give way to real crisis and the violence escalates, it becomes clear that Charlie is the key to something much bigger: her country's only chance for freedom from the terrible power of a deadly regime.
Charlie is intensely attracted to Max, even though she can't be sure where his real loyalties lie. As the emergency drills give way to real crisis and the violence escalates, it becomes clear that Charlie is the key to something much bigger: her country's only chance for freedom from the terrible power of a deadly regime.
Click HERE to view this book on Amazon.co.uk
and HERE to take a look at it on Goodreads
No comments:
Post a Comment