Title: Bumped
Series: Bumped ⋯ Book 1
Author: Megan McCafferty
Pages: 237
Stars: ★★★★★
Summary: When a virus makes everyone over the age of eighteen infertile, would-be parents pay teen girls to conceive and give birth to their children, making teens the most prized members of society. Girls sport fake baby bumps and the school cafeteria stocks folic-acid-infused food.
Sixteen-year-old identical twins Melody and Harmony were separated at birth and have never met until the day Harmony shows up on Melody’s doorstep. Up to now, the twins have followed completely opposite paths. Melody has scored an enviable conception contract with a couple called the Jaydens. While they are searching for the perfect partner for Melody to bump with, she is fighting her attraction to her best friend, Zen, who is way too short for the job.
Harmony has spent her whole life in Goodside, a religious community, preparing to be a wife and mother. She believes her calling is to convince Melody that pregging for profit is a sin. But Harmony has secrets of her own that she is running from.
When Melody is finally matched with the world-famous, genetically flawless Jondoe, both girls’ lives are changed forever. A case of mistaken identity takes them on a journey neither could have ever imagined, one that makes Melody and Harmony realize they have so much more than just DNA in common.
Review: I loved this book! I completely devoured it, it was just so good! I think that the author did a wonderful job of writing about a sorta uncomfortable subject—teen pregnancy. While at times I thought it was horrifying to think of girls getting 'pregged' so young, it was also interesting to read about a world that was in such a possible danger of dying off that they paid teens to hook-up, get pregnant, and then give up their baby.
I loved seeing how Melody and Harmony's views change though out the book, and how not everything came together until the very end. Overall, I absolutely loved this book!
Title: Crossed
Series: Matched ⋯ Book 2
Author: Ally Condie
Pages: 367
Stars: ★★★★
Summary: In search of a future that may not exist and faced with the decision of who to share it with, Cassia journeys to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky - taken by the Society to his certain death - only to find that he has escaped, leaving a series of clues in his wake.
Cassia's quest leads her to question much of what she holds dear, even as she finds glimmers of a different life across the border. But as Cassia nears resolve and certainty about her future with Ky, an invitation for rebellion, an unexpected betrayal, and a surprise visit from Xander - who may hold the key to the uprising and, still, to Cassia's heart - change the game once again. Nothing is as expected on the edge of Society, where crosses and double crosses make the path more twisted than ever.
Review: Slight SPOILERS AHEAD! Read on at your own risk.
Loved the book, but it took me awhile to get into it. I felt like it dragged along in some places, and I didn't like Indie because she was really shifty, especially when her and Cassia found Ky and Eli. Other than that, I thought the book was good. I loved the detail that was used when Cassia and Ky described the canyons, and the paintings, and all of the colors. I also loved how the author switched between Cassia and Ky's perspectives every chapter. I liked how we got to see into Ky's head that way. Overall, it was a great book.
My review of the first book, Matched, can be found here.
Title: Wither
Series: Chemical Garden ⋯ Book 1
Author: Lauren DeStefano
Pages: 358
Format: Hardcover
Summary: Obviously, something went terribly wrong. Genetic mutations have festered, reducing human longevity to twenty-five, even less for most women. To prevent extinction, young girls are kidnapped, mated in polygamous marriages with men eager to procreate. Sixteen-year-old Rhine Ellery, a recent victim of this breeding farm mentality, has vowed to break loose from its fetters; but finding allies and a safe way out is a challenge she can only hope she will survive.
Really looking forward to reading this book.
Title: Matched
Series: Matched ⋯ Book 1
Author: Ally Condie
Pages: 369
Stars: ★★★★★
Summary: Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows he is her ideal mate . . . until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black. The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.
Review: I absolutely loved this book! I haven't read a dystopian in forever, so this was a refreshing change. I loved how the book was written, it made me feel like I was in a different time. The wording kinda reminded me of Victorian times, and I loved that. Another thing I loved was how grown up Cassia sounded in her thoughts and how she figured everything out. I can't say it enough, I loved this book! If it's not on your Christmas lists, it should be.
