Then, how about when towards the end we have this deus ex machina who conveniently helps them along in an impossibly tight situation. What is up with that? I can see dystopians where this might work–Like Fever by Lauren Destefano–but it did not fit in the world we see beyond these wall. Then there are a lot of little quirks along the way that only ground my dissatisfaction further: How, for example, they arrive in a withering post apocalyptic town where we’re told they have to ration water and supplies, but the first thing the people in charge do is give Emma a makeover: face make-up to the max, eyebrow tweeze, high heels etc. Everything is a twist, no character is who you think they are it’s a little overwhelming, and not in a good way. It’s like the plot simply becomes too crowded. Plus, it gets increasingly predictable the further you read, making it all the less exciting. It arouses many questions from the mysteries surrounding their lives–this heist thing truly had me fascinated for a bit–but then it all goes downhill when we start getting some less than interesting answers. Well, to be honest, it literally made me nauseous I wanted it to end so badly–so I think it’s safe to say it’s full of barf? It starts off with such a great premise too. Now for the world building, or the whole plot, really. “All those times that I felt things for Bree, anytime there was even the slightest feeling of affection growing, I’d brushed it aside for Emma” - As if this made him such a gentleman, someone who dances in fidelity’s good graces. If only his behaviour would at least improve, but as the story progresses he only gets more annoying: thinking he’s much better than he is (he’s pretty full of himself) making demands when he’s trapped in a risky situation with people who would–and want to–kill him (toopid) or saying things like: Still, I expected to come to understand him by the end.

Thus it did not come as a shock when I didn’t find myself in love with him. I was forewarned from other readers, though, so I knew to expect a douche who hits girls (he punches ones several times in the opening chapter), and is overall an arse.

Unfortunately with an insufferable protagonist, the world building and plot were all that this book had left, and after seeing the halfway mark come and go, I realized that in both of these aspects it was beginning to fail miserably–and it didn’t stop.

It has such a unique premise with a super intriguing world that could have been awesome had it been executed much better. Such a shame especially that up until almost halfway I would have given this book a good 3 stars. – A copy was provided by HarperCollins for review–

Taken by Erin Bowman