Halo by Frankie Rose

Halo is an interesting tale with a great deal of potential. It is clearly slated to be another trilogy (what is it with trilogies these days?!) so in this first outing the general foundation was laid, the pre-requisite love interest is met and fall for...for the genre these are the aspects we expect. In this world of Halo, there lies a town called Sanctuary, in which the caste system is heavily in place and they get their jollies by betting on gladiator style games involving the lowest class. These are called the Falin, who are forced to wear the titular halos that pump them full of a drugs that leave them completely devoid of all emotion. Which makes great fighters, after all. Our leading lady is one of the best fighters in Sanctuary and she is called to fight against her training partner whom she had known all her life. She expects to do what she is required to do. He, on the other hand, has a few surprises for her. He sacrifices himself, stabbing himself. While he is on the ground he reaches up and tears the halo from the skin around her neck, leaving her exposed to what life is like with feelings.

Her friend loved her and led clues so she could escape, which she did, and was found by a member of another town called Freetowne that has...different views on how women should act. But Kit has larger problems. Or I assume she does. Much of this first novel is exposition to the rest of the story, I feel. The beginning of her relationship with the obvious love interest almost made me mad because he was so deplorable, but that changed in a believable way. 

There are secrets abounding in these towns. There is a history we are not yet privy to- how did the world get this way? What are the castes and who decided things should be this way? Who are these mysterious Priestesses that law down the law and force Freetowne's own version of gladiator fights? And what do they want with Kit? 

These are all questions I actually want to know the answers to, and so, for that, I am looking forward to the next installment and would definitely recommend giving this one a read. 

Never Fade by Alexandra Bracken

*based on an ARC edition

This second book in The Darkest Minds series killed me. More so even than the first because by now I am fully in love with these characters...and it breaks my heart that everything is not exactly the way it should be. In fact, it made me a bit mad that things weren't just coming together the way I think they should. However, that is simply a testament to the skill of Ms. Bracken. In addition to the characters we already know and love (and a few we hate), we are introduced to Vida and Jude, kids from the Children's League, with whom Ruby had made a pact so as to protect the boy she loves. Despite Liam's hatred of the League that we learned about in the first book, following Ruby as she trains and becomes a part of this organization we find out that just like everything else, not everything is cut and dry. 

My heart hurt again as I read Never Fade, but as it ended there seemed a glimmer of hope in the horizon. There too were new questions and mysteries, more complications, and more tests for Ruby and her compatriots. Never Fade was a very satisfying and solid second book, escaping the "middle book" trap that some series find themselves in. No one who enjoyed the first book will be disappointed in this one, and like me they will all go quietly insane waiting for the next installment. 

On a personal note- Ms. Bracken, for the love of Pete, please let things go the way they should for Ruby and Liam!

Allegiant by Veronica Roth

*spoilers*

This will be an unusual review for me, because it will be full of spoilers, so only those who have read it should continue. I have never talked about plot points in reviews because I tend to just think that people are interested in opinions on the story overall- however, with this one I feel like I have to talk about the points because they are just that important. Spolier-y bits are in the last paragraphs.

To start, I have to say that the knowledge that this trilogy is moving to the big screen affected the way I read Allegiant, the final book in the trilogy. I LOVED the first two books, and I loved Tris and Four. Tris is a wonderful character, and I continue to be pleased at the tide of strong, powerful, female characters that are hitting the young adult bookshelves. But again, the movie thing. I watched the preview for Divergent and I got literally giddy. Then I finished Allegiant and realized there is no way that they can keep true to the written story on the screen, and that makes me sad. This doesn't necessarily take away from the book, but it is something I considered as I read.

Allegiant was not my favorite of the three books. I really enjoyed it, until the end, but not as much as the first two. I have to say I disapproved of Tobias continually not trusting in Tris' proven instincts, and also of Tris and her apparent death wish. I thought that the "genetically pure" versus "genetically damaged" storyline got a bit heavy handed with the its obvious nods to how the Nazis saw the Jews and how some see African Americans. The big twist of who the factions really are, why they are, and what lies beyond them I thought was more derivative than I would have liked. However, the plot was handled well and the writing has always been exemplary. The added bonus of genuinely liking the characters helped as well. 

Now, for the part that I was not happy about. These stories, these characters we fall in love with, become parts of us when we read them, and for the very special ones even after we've turned the last page. So what to do when one half of that love story is no more? This is an issue I as a writer have been struggling with. Is it right to end a story with the death of the most important character if that is how the story is meant to end? Anyone who writes knows that stories write themselves; we have almost nothing to do with how they grow and end except to be the typing monkeys. They have lives-and deaths- of their own. But then you have to think about how your readers will react. Will they want to stop reading right there? Or throw the book across the room, cursing your name? My reaction was somewhere in between. I kept reading because I kept hoping there would be some last minute deus ex machina that would make everything alright...but there wasn't. I didn't curse Ms. Roth's name, but I came close! But then, maybe that is just a testament to the quality of the writing because if you don't love a character, you cannot mourn them, either. 

Into the Still Blue by Veronica Rossi

*based on an ARC edition

I was thoroughly satisfied and happy with how this trilogy ended. It was suspenseful, thrilling, romantic, and sad, and happy...and I'm sure a bunch of other adjectives too. It tied up every end it needed to, while leaving me with a sense of hope about my favorite characters and the fictional universe as a whole. Ms. Rossi handled the issue of the hate between the Dwellers and the Outsiders with incredible subtlety and grace and I was happy to see the tide turning towards peace and tranquility among them all by the end. The love between Perry and Aria always felt true to me, even despite the problems I think all young adult books throw at romantic couplings. As an older reader I read the situations sometimes and want to scream at the characters but always, Under the Never Sky was true to how I think kids of that age not only approach love but also relate to it. Maybe in twenty years they'll know differently but it is nice for me to experience that kind of passion vicariously through these fictional people. I love Roar, and I wish things had ended up even better for him, but I guess that if it did it wouldn't ring true to his feelings for Liv. Throughout all three books I adored Roar and Aria's relationship almost as much as her's and Perry's because it illustrated beautifully the kind of love you can feel for a friend- and that you can love someone of the opposite sex with all your heart without it meaning something romantic. I have always felt that there were not as many of these types of relationships in YA fiction as there should be.

Anyway, as I said, Into the Still Blue was ultimately satisfying and beautiful. A perfect ending to a near perfect trilogy.