The beginning of the book Mina is young and inexperienced and like all teenagers she struggles to find her path in life. The GEMs are the next generation of humans, clones that are custom made to perfection. They are trying to prevent the Blemish, natural birth humans with all their di I received this book from the author, free of cost, in exchange of an honest review and I just have to take the time to thank Sarah for this book!
They are trying to prevent the Blemish, natural birth humans with all their diseases, from having any more children so they die out completely. Mina is one of the Blemish and struggles to accept her upcoming surgery that will sterilize her.
Oh yeah, she has telekinesis powers that she is also struggling to control and keep hidden. Things just don't go her way and it seems she is always getting into trouble. While this makes the story continue forward I would have liked some time to truly enjoy each character and the budding romances between Mina and the guys. This is the only reason it got 4 stars instead of five.
Overall, I truly enjoyed this book! I would recommend this to any reader who loves dystopian novels and am very eager to continue in the series. Jan 22, Abbie rated it liked it. I liked this one, but the beginning seemed a bit slow. The characters: Mina - Mina was a pretty good character. I loved how loyal she was. No matter how much she wanted to fight, she wouldn't do it without her friends. Angela - I did like her, but she seemed to lack development in some areas. I felt like she was only really there to create another love triangle.
I really wish she could of stuck up for Mina more. Daniel - I liked how protective he was. Really wish we got to see more of his ability. S I liked this one, but the beginning seemed a bit slow. Sebastian - I liked him at first, but then he started acting shifty.
The teacher - I really didn't like her. She was horrible. Emily and Billie - Their story was really sad, I felt so sorry for them. Elena - I hated Elena at first, she acted like a snob. Though, as the story progressed, i had a soft spot for her. The romance: I didn't really like the romance. One love triangle is enough, let alone two. While i did like both boys at first, i didn't think that Mina had a good romantic connection with either of them.
I might read book two, but i'm not in a desperate rush. I hate giving negative reviews to books that hold so much promise. This is one of those books that I wished were better written and executed.
Though the story be typical - imperfect girl gets involved with two almost-perfect if not perfect guys while trying to battle the evil forces of society - I see potential for this. The idea that beauty is equal only to the outer appearance holds room for argument to our protagonist, Mina.
In a world where there is division between those who had flawless l I hate giving negative reviews to books that hold so much promise. In a world where there is division between those who had flawless looks and to those who are natural-born calls for change.
But is that even possible? How can these kids trump over the Ministry? Although fast-paced, I really disliked the characters. Mina liked playing hero to the point of stupidly putting everybody at risk. Daniel professed his love for Mina but selfishly led her to danger.
Angela, the cool friend, still blindly believed that Daniel could love her. And Sebastian, what the hell does he really want? Lol Sorry but I just rolled my eyes a lot of times while reading this.
Jun 23, Ivan Amberlake rated it really liked it Shelves: read-in , dystopian. It was quite an exciting read. The world building was well done, and the characters are likeable.
On the whole, it's a good read for YA readers. This was a reread and I loved it absolutely as much as the first time round. May 03, Amanda rated it really liked it. For some reason I started this book with super low expectations. That might have been because someone else bought it for me, or because I didn't like the cover. But I was completely blown away by this one. It has been a while since I devoured book as fast as I did with The Blemished. The Blemished follows Mina heart, a girl with "blemished" genes.
The blemished are second class citizens, they are considered worthless and become slaves for the Children of the GEM. Mina also carries a secret, she is telekinetic.
She tries to stay under the radar at her new school to hide her gift. But for the first time she's made friends with Angela and Angela's adoptive brother Daniel, who carries a secret as well. Mina can't help but stay out of trouble as she attracts the attention of both Daniel and Sebastian, a GEM boy.
Looking out for herself and all of her friends, Mina wants to fight back This book was incredible. I picked it up and never put it back down until I was finished. The relationships between the characters and their struggles really touched my heart. I think character development was done really well, even for minor characters.
The Blemished is definitely a fast paced story, it's not very easy to find a spot to stop reading with this one, so make sure you have the time before you start because otherwise you'll be upset any time you have to put it down.
Obviously I have been in a reading slump, but this book pulled me right out of it, AND compelled me to write a review. I bought the rest of the series as soon as I finished it Jan 20, Joey Woolfardis rated it did not like it Shelves: sterling , bairns , feminine , bloody-cack , ce21 , Full review to follow. Aug 28, Emma Williams rated it it was amazing.
Just wow. And also, thank heavens! It is rare for YA novels to deal so directly and so successfully with feminist issues, and this one does it brilliantly. Girls who pick this terrific novel up will be looking for their usual dystopian fare, and they will certainly get it in spadefuls: danger, excitement, adventure, overcoming the odds, romance, racing hearts and some fantastic surprises about who can be trusted and who can't. But they will also get something different. They will find a heroi Wow.
They will find a heroine who refuses to be controlled by the rather sexy-sounding chaps that she seems to have at her beck and call. But this is no Lara Croft, ridiculous male-fantasy game. Oh no. Girls who read this novel will be exposed to some challenging stuff about women's place in society, and how all regimes, whether religious or political, have oppressed women since the dawn of time.
We see girls being judged on their appearance, girls' fertility being surgically controlled when it would be biologically simpler to control the fertility of men , girls in a servile role, girls being punished for their sexual desires, and older women thoroughly damaged and screwed up by all of the above.
And I cheered for the sheer joy and rarity of our youngsters being exposed to this. There is even a character called Eve with a painful story! I love it! Dalton has shown striking skill in exposing young people to these ideas in an accessible and exciting way. Like the best books that educate, they won't even know it's happening. Even more so, and it is essential to point this out, the male role models are sound. How sick I am of the supposedly-devastatingly-attractive bleurgh , controlling, manipulative, misogynistic and downright whining "heroes" that young girls and, unbelievably, adult women are exposed to in modern novels.
Quite frankly, if we can't move on from the disturbing fantasies of 19th and early 20th century novels now we're well into the 21st century, then I despair for humanity.
But in Dalton's novel the wonderful Daniel is flawed, vulnerable, and supportive when he can be; he cares fiercely for our heroine, but does not wish to control her. Sebastian is further flawed, not least through biological interference, and we see him learning that it's not acceptable to control women, and, by the by, that it's not acceptable to hit them.
I hope not. But rare to see in novels. I salute Dalton's male characters not only because they are better role-models for young girls to be lusting after, but also because I am heartily sick of young boys getting such a bad press; the world is changing, and Dalton seems to be one of the few authors that understand that. And as for the planned sequels, all I have to say to Dalton is, "you go, girl! I can't wait. Jan 04, KG rated it it was ok.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. The Blemished is a about a dystopian society where the Genetic Enhancement Ministry has taken over Britain, and anyone with genetic predispositions to disease defective genes are known as the Blemished. Blems are denied a proper education, confined to ghettos and slums where access to food and supplies are limited by the Ministry, and trained to become servants to the GEM.
Above all else, they are not allowed to have children. Then there are the GEMs, who are named after the Ministry and compr The Blemished is a about a dystopian society where the Genetic Enhancement Ministry has taken over Britain, and anyone with genetic predispositions to disease defective genes are known as the Blemished. Then there are the GEMs, who are named after the Ministry and comprised of those considered to have good genes and their designer children, who are cloned by the Ministry.
Mina Hart is a yr-old blemished girl, who is anything but the good, obedient and submissive girl she is expected to be. Mina finds herself falling for Daniel. The trouble is…Blemished girls are not allowed to look at, touch, or talk to GEM boys. This soon leads Mina on a rollercoaster ride she will never forget. I really wanted to like this book.
However, I found the story boring, predictable, and kind of ridiculous. The GEM clones are supposed to be the perfect children.
However, the clones we are introduced to in this story are liars, thieves, and bullies. Not to mention, they are disrespectful, lazy, shallow, and dumb. Then, there is the GEM, Sebastian, who gives us hope. But, instead of the author making Sebastian the exception to the rule, she builds him up only to let us down later in the story. Next, I became overly excited to find out Mina was telekinetic, only to be let down by her being too exhausted to use it.
To add further to the ridiculousness, the Enforcers are always shooting, missing, and getting beat up. This could have been a really awesome story. But, instead, I found myself fighting the urge to give up and read something else. None of the characters stood out to me enough for me to care what happens to them in the next book. Needless to say, I will not be reading any more books in this series.
Jul 21, Michelle rated it liked it Shelves: young-adult , arc , reviewed , own , dystopian-post-apocalyptic. That's what made me ask the author about getting an ARC for review. Plus the summary sounded like the kind of book that I would read. Plot: The summary sounded really cool and the actual turned out to be not bad. It moved at a good pace and it didn't drag on. The world building and dialogue could use a little work, but with some editing this could be a really great story.
It wasn't completely original, but what is these days? Parts of it reminded me of other books including Lauren Oliver's Delirium and vaguely of Matilda , I think there was something else too, but I don't remember what. Some of the story was predictable, but there were some twists that I didn't see coming. Characters: No annoying characters which is always a good thing. I think they could have been developed a little more.
Maybe they'll be better in the final print. Some fell flat, but others like Elena had depth. Romance: The romance was probably my least favorite part. The relationships developed too fast and I didn't believe it.
Plus it's not even a love triangle, it's a square. The author handled the relationships really well, but a love square is a little too much. Overall, this is a great story with a lot of potential. And after reading so many books with cliffhangers I'm glad this book had some closure. It was open enough that the next book has a lot of possibilities, but not so much that I'm dying for the next book. I will be reading the next one to see what Mina does next.
Jan 02, Joanne Armstrong rated it liked it. I struggled with the writing style in this book, and found it very hard to overlook.
I felt my reins tugged this way and that way, my eyes and ears pointed directly at events, and this got very tiring. I'm a reader who likes to make up my own mind; I like to pick up clues like breadcrumbs, and it doesn't matter to me that the author is dropping them quite consciously. I just like to feel as though I'm doing some of it on my own. The Blemished didn't allow me any of this independence, hence why I I struggled with the writing style in this book, and found it very hard to overlook.
The Blemished didn't allow me any of this independence, hence why I struggled. The dystopian setting which Dalton has created is novel and interesting. The premise here is that our society's obsession with beauty and physical perfection has led to test tube babies, all others being classed as "lesser" and therefore not allowed to breed; only allowed to live in order to serve the GEMs.
I like the premise. Matthew looked at me with an amused grin, which I instantly found annoying. He laughed. He had the same laugh as my dad which was disturbing. Matthew smiled. He had warm brown eyes and dark hair. The Vanished are the forgotten: those who live beyond law or society. Mina fought for freedom.
She fought for a better life — a future. But even a free world can decay. This is a work of fiction. O nce, my mum told me a story about a princess, and it began with her stuck in a castle.
My story begins with my head stuck in the toilet. Any school with the Blemished as pupils deserved the saint of lost causes as their patron. But it was the same hopeful feeling which was beaten away within the hour. An hour was all it took for a GEM to push my head down the toilet and flush. Her bony hand squeezed my skull. Water pulled my skin. It flooded my nose. I choked and my fingernails scraped the porcelain.
I thought — this is how I am going to die, with my face being sucked down a drain. Then, I almost did it again. In the twitch of my fingers I felt the urge to do the one thing my father told me I could never do. The thing which would get us both killed. She released me and I gasped for air. Her heels sounded against the tiles and the girl and her group ran off in giggles.
I dragged myself up from the floor with shaking legs. At the sink, I took a deep breath and tried to calm my pounding heart and quell the rising disappointment. This was supposed to be my fresh start away from Area I removed my headscarf and laughed.
Moving here was supposed to keep me safe. Like my dad said — out of the frying pan and into the fire.
0コメント