Publisher: Scholastic
Publication Date: 4th July 2024
Genre: Dystopian fiction
Summary:
The world didn't end all at once but drip by drip...
Manon Pawlak has just turned eighteen, a debutant at the start of the Virtue Season: a process that will result in a match with a suitable genetic mate. Her best friend, Agatha, has been decommissioned, forbidden to partake in the season and unite with the boy who has had her heart since they were children.
When Manon's mother wades out into the waters of Penn Vale with stones sewn into the lining of her coat, Manon's genetic purity is called into question and she's forced to rely on the fisherman's son, Wick, to keep her secret. But as they dance, the truth about their world starts to unravel, and Manon finds herself at the centre of it all. And the council is watching.
Review:
Firstly thank you to Random Things Book Tours, Scholastic and L.M Nathan for having me on this tour and sending me a copy of the book.
Gotta start off by saying that the cover of this is really pretty, it definitely set off my magpie tendencies and looks gorgeous on my shelf. And the blurb really drew me in, no that's a lie it wasn't the whole blurb I was hooked by that first line "The world didn't end all at once but drip by drip" It completely made me need to read this to find out how.
So I really loved the writing style of this, it kind of reads like it's a YA book even though I don't think it is, but that makes sense as the Main characters in it are all 18, and all the adults are really just supporting characters. You know me I love a dual POV book and I really enjoyed getting everything from two contrasting points of view, Manon who's going through everything as a Debutant and Agatha who's been decommissioned and gets a very limited view of proceedings. The only thing about this book is the ending doesn't feel finished, it feels like you've got to the end of a binge-worthy TV series with a massive cliffhanger leaving you eager for series 2. I feel like this is book one in a series and we've laid the groundwork for more from both Manon and Agatha as the fight to change things carries on, a fight which as we leave them in book one feels like an uphill struggle.
Firstly thank you to Random Things Book Tours, Scholastic and L.M Nathan for having me on this tour and sending me a copy of the book.
Gotta start off by saying that the cover of this is really pretty, it definitely set off my magpie tendencies and looks gorgeous on my shelf. And the blurb really drew me in, no that's a lie it wasn't the whole blurb I was hooked by that first line "The world didn't end all at once but drip by drip" It completely made me need to read this to find out how.
So I really loved the writing style of this, it kind of reads like it's a YA book even though I don't think it is, but that makes sense as the Main characters in it are all 18, and all the adults are really just supporting characters. You know me I love a dual POV book and I really enjoyed getting everything from two contrasting points of view, Manon who's going through everything as a Debutant and Agatha who's been decommissioned and gets a very limited view of proceedings. The only thing about this book is the ending doesn't feel finished, it feels like you've got to the end of a binge-worthy TV series with a massive cliffhanger leaving you eager for series 2. I feel like this is book one in a series and we've laid the groundwork for more from both Manon and Agatha as the fight to change things carries on, a fight which as we leave them in book one feels like an uphill struggle.
I definitely feel like it has strong elements of The Handmaid's Tale in a really good way. It's a dystopian fiction that I've really enjoyed I kept wanting to keep reading it and seeing what happened next, and if it is part of a series I will definitely be reading the rest to see where it takes us.
Krystina xx
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