Monday 16 February 2015

Pawn by Aimée Carter

Pawn by Aimee Carter
Published: Harlequin Teen, November 26th, 2013
Pages: 343
Source: Hardcover, purchased
Genre: Dystopian
Rating: 4/5

How I Felt: After just over a year of having this book on my shelf, I'm so glad I finally picked it up! It was such an easy and quick, yet interesting dystopian. I really enjoyed reading this book, definitely worth my time!

Our protagonist, Kitty Doe was so spunky and awesome, I loved reading about her. She reminded me a lot of America Singer and Katniss Everdeen. Kitty was so passionate about the country and its people, which of course is a necessary characteristic for the heroic figure in a dystopian setting.  Kitty is placed in a group home because she is what people call 'extras', the child of parents with more than one child. Through the group home she meets her long life friend, and boyfriend, Benjy (Benjamin Doe). (Everyone in the group home has the same last name, they're not related...at least I hope not at this point.)

The people of this new version of the United States have a lot of strict rules placed upon them because nothing is just. In this world when you turn 17 you take a test to determine where you'll be ranked in society, a II, III IV, V VI or VII which is reserved for the Prime Minister and his family. The higher your ranking, the more special treatment you receive. And if you don't pass the test you get sent Elsewhere because you're deemed 'useless' by society. You can only imagine how much chaos this system causes. I loved the way this world was set up, it had the typical corrupted government, with people in poverty fighting for their lives, and then we have this protagonist that's stubborn, and brave so it was great to see all those elements come together!

In this book there was some sort of war in the United States and so when the country recovered they had a Prime Minister instead of a President and the title was inherited so there's no real sense of democracy.

I'll admit this wasn't the best dystopian book I've ever read but I thoroughly enjoyed myself and read it pretty quickly. I definitely can't wait to pick up the sequel, Captive! I hope we learn more about the government and the way that it's set up.

There were a few plot twists that were literally on the last page of the novel so I really want to learn more about those. I thought the romance aspect was a little shaky and uncertain and kept going back and forth between the prospect of a love triangle and this didn't sit well with me. Also, the fact that the main character has dyslexia didn't occur to me until after I finished the book and I can't believe it took me that long to figure that out because it was hinted at quite a lot.

Other than that I really liked this world and story; it reminded me a lot of a mixture between Uglies and The Selection. I highly recommend this if you're in a reading slump because it got me out of one! Also if you're a fan of either Uglies or The Selection or both you'll definitely have a fun time reading this! I need to get my hands on #2!!

Favourite Quotes:
  • “Have you ever played chess, Kitty?”
    I eyed her. What did a board game have to do with this? “Not really.”
    “You and I should play sometime. I think you would like it,” she said. “It’s a game of strategy, mostly. The strong pieces are in the back row, while the weak pieces—the pawns—are all in the front, ready to take the brunt of the attack. Because of their limited movement and vulnerability, most people underestimate them and only use them to protect the more powerful pieces. But when I play, I protect my pawns.”
    “Why?” I said, not entirely sure where this conversation was going. “If they’re weak, then what’s the point?”
    “They may be weak when the game begins, but their potential is remarkable. Most of the time, they’ll be taken by the other side and held captive until the end of the game. But if you’re careful—if you keep your eyes open and pay attention to what your opponent is doing, if you protect your pawns and they reach the other side of the board, do you know what happens then?”
    I shook my head, and she smiled.
    “Your pawn becomes a queen.” She touched my cheek, her fingers cold as ice. “Because they kept moving forward and triumphed against impossible odds, they become the most powerful piece in the game. Never forget that, all right? Never forget the potential one solitary pawn has to change the entire game.”
Thanks for reading!
~Birdie

***Quotes taken from Goodreads.com and Pawn by Aimee Carter***
*Info on book taken from Goodreads.com*

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