Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

If you can get over the ridiculous title to crack open Bella Forrest's dystopian fiction, then you'll find that it is strangely addictive. However, the addiction quality doesn't come from real interest in the story, as it reads as poorly planned and filled to the brim with mcguffins, but rather the same sensation you would get if watching two trains collide. Violet starts out as a likeable enough character, strong willed, independent, self-sufficient, and tragic, but quickly spirals into a giddy schoolgirl when introduced to Viggo Mortensen's Lord of the rings knockoff...Viggo. No, I'm not kidding. Violet frequently describes Viggo's rippling muscles, inhuman strength, and serious but steely gazes. It's almost like an erotic fanfiction, minus the sex and plus the Mary Sue-ness. The character of Lee is also pretty erratic. He starts off as friendly and feminist, and he veers back and forth with that quite a bit, as if he isn't sure himself how he thinks women should be treated. He could've tried harder to win over violet's affection, and ends up reading as a boring asexual person with anger issues. The events that happen seem to exist for the purpose of making Viggo appear sexier to Violet and making Lee appear as more of a jerk. The genders in both cities are degraded into general platitudes with no individuality allowed, which isn't really something the cities ban. The idea was interesting, but the plot and characters were not. I'd like it better if: Violet and Lee were each more likeable (the twist would be more surprising then) Viggo wasn't so two dimensional. Spoiler alert! It's super convenient that Lee leaves photos of his deeds and a detailed letter about what he did for violet to find. Deus ex machina much? So cheesy!