Book Review: Pawn by Amiee Carter

Synopsis:

YOU CAN BE A VII. IF YOU GIVE UP EVERYTHING.

For Kitty Doe, it seems like an easy choice. She can either spend her life as a III in misery, looked down upon by the higher ranks and forced to leave the people she loves, or she can become a VII and join the most powerful family in the country.

If she says yes, Kitty will be Masked—surgically transformed into Lila Hart, the Prime Minister's niece, who died under mysterious circumstances. As a member of the Hart family, she will be famous. She will be adored. And for the first time, she will matter.

There's only one catch. She must also stop the rebellion that Lila secretly fostered, the same one that got her killed …and one Kitty believes in. Faced with threats, conspiracies and a life that's not her own, she must decide which path to choose—and learn how to become more than a pawn in a twisted game she's only beginning to understand.

My Review: 

   Wow! That was so much fun to read. It was surprisingly original as well, I mean, with all the dystopias out there you'd think that there would be a small possibility for a new original story but here we are, and Amiee Carter sure didn't disappoint! And I actually read this book in one day, possibly if I am right in about 3 hours in total - Hey! I had the time ;) But here is the thing, I hate starting a series which all of its books aren't all released yet. It's a hella torture and I don't fancy it. Nonetheless, here I am, agonizing over when will the sequel be out and how will the story go and blah blah. So it's not as fun, waiting that is and I reckon that a lot of you would agree.

   Onto the story! So it starts out fairly normal, you know, like we'd expect from a dystopia where people are suffering and under the mercy of the government and all that. People were ranked and the higher their rank was, the better life they'd get. But everything literally changes when Kitty agrees to this something. and that is when the story really starts. And I liked how we got a taste of both, being one of the higher ranks as well as being one of lower, suffering ones which the author did brilliantly! However, this ranking thing highly reminds me of The Selection which surprised me for some reason, actually its because I read the Selection after Pawn and found this idea in both although The Selection was out first, yeah so you get the point.

   The world-building was really good in a lot of aspects but we don't get as much as we need from it to get fully immersed in it and it was also the slightest bit odd. I am looking forward for more of everything in this story; the world-building, the love story - possibly a love triangle which I am excited to see how that will turn out to be and hoping it won't be a cheesy one - so yeah, everything. And although there wasn't really much of a cliffhanger, it ended peacefully to an extent and that I appreciated.

   The plot was intriguing. A bit twisted. A bit complicated. A bit bloody but without that much blood. It was thrilling to say the least. The sudden turn of events was not something that I expected. A lot of characters were there, I felt but I handled quite well keeping up so it wasn't confusing. All of the characters were well-written and I liked Kitty - although I despised the name - but unfortunately she didn't stand out enough as I wished she'd be, she was a normal heroine, one that I read hundred times before. She didn't have that much of a unique voice. However, there was this particularly this one character ( Kenox ) whom I felt we were a bit distant from. I wish we got more of him because he was a noteworthy character in the story and played a huge role but guess we won't get that until later, in the sequel. Perhaps some altering chapters between him and Kitty? Too much, maybe but we'll see.

   Overall, Pawn was a refreshing read for all those fellow dystopia lovers out there. As it was an enjoyable and thrilling read for all. It was a story about sacrifice, decisions, love, loyalty, and greed. A creative plot with heartfelt characters written exquisitely by Amiee Carter. So if dystopias were your cup of tea, the I'd whole-heartedly recommend this book for you!

Title: Pawn

Author: Amiee Carter

Series: The Blackcoat Rebellion #1

Source: NetGalley ( For Review )

Published: November 26th 2013 by Harlequin Teen

Links: Goodreads | Amazon

Rating: 4/5 

"Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Teen for providing me with an e-copy"

"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new lands but seeing with new eyes" -- Marcel Proust

xoxo, Mariam

Book Review: Forgotten by Cat Patrick

Synopsis:

Each night at precisely 4:33 am, while sixteen-year-old London Lane is asleep, her memory of that day is erased. In the morning, all she can "remember" are events from her future. London is used to relying on reminder notes and a trusted friend to get through the day, but things get complicated when a new boy at school enters the picture. Luke Henry is not someone you'd easily forget, yet try as she might, London can't find him in her memories of things to come.

When London starts experiencing disturbing flashbacks, or flash-forwards, as the case may be, she realizes it's time to learn about the past she keeps forgetting-before it destroys her future.

My Review:

   That was such a good book! Like seriously, I didn't expect it to be that good but yeah, it was. And the reason why is basically because it was fun as well as interesting and the characters were definitely a major factor in how this story turned out to be. The concept of this book I found at first a bit odd yet intriguing but then I grew to being familiar with it throughout the story and I really liked it to the say the least!

What I Liked:

• The love story. IT WAS THE SWEETEST! Together they were just spellbinding and individually they were also so lovable. Luke was like the perfect boyfriend and London had this attractiveness to her character and I loved them both.
• The characters in general were all well-crafted and I salute Cat for that. They were lovable as well authentic and they greatly added to the story.
• The plot itself was really fun. One where you can sit and read while having a good time and that is what you'd want from a story, right?!
• The twist! Oh yeah, there was one and a unique one too and boy! did it not make this story as awesome as it was. Because basically what it was that London had a messed up memory where she lives her life day by day and her memories are the future... or what she thought it all was. And as it odd as it may seem, it kinda sounds differently or less odd when you read it.

What I Didn't Like: 

• We didn't get much of a detailed ending as to how things ended which I usually don't mind but in this book it was kind of a bummer, just not as satisfying.

   Overall, I really did enjoy reading this book. A nice storyline with an engagingly sweet love story. The twist on this book was new as well as witty in the sense that it went well with the plot. The writing style was smooth and easy to follow. Moreover, the whole story just kind of lingered in my mind even after finishing it, guess I was sad that it ended. So, I do recommend this book for all of you contemporary novel readers out there ;)

Title: Forgotten

Author: Cat patrick

Series: Stand-alone

Source: Owned

Published: June 7th 2011 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Links: Goodreads | Amazon

Rating: 4/5  

Yay! So as promised I posted a review, school is still not in full force yet so I had quite some time to read and write the review :)

xoxo, Mariam