Review: AMAZING!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 03 21, 2014
This is one of those books that is extremely hard to review. Partially because all I want to say is “this book is amazing, go read it right now” and also because there is a lot that can be spoiled about this book and that would ruin all the fun. I picked up this book the moment I saw that it was a New Adult dystopian, because I am all for this category branching out and growing. This book was everything I have come to love about New Adult and everything I love about dystopias.First I want to talk about the characters, and I’m going to talk about them in general mostly because to focus on one would end up giving too much away. These characters are definitely interesting and not your normal characters. All of them are accused of committing some sort of horrible crime; however the details for all of those crimes are blurred. When it comes to our main characters, all of those crimes live in a very gray area. On one hand they all did something horrible, but at the same time their motivations are not what you might expect. Our main character Evalyn is a real mystery. You spend a lot of the book trying to figure out what exactly her crime was and it takes a while to even figure out if she is truly guilty or not. You really don’t know if you’re rooting for someone evil or not and that is really kind of fun and gut wrenching.The whole concept for this book was just awesome. We deal with Compass Rooms and basically in lieu of a jury deciding their fate, criminals are put into Compass Rooms which measure their brains reactions to certain situations and assess how evil they truly are. It’s a pretty scary concept because it starts with criminals, but you know it has the potential to grow to a preventative step where everyone is subjected to a Compass Room. It’s putting a lot of power into the hands of a few. On one hand, it’s a way of determining if a criminal is truly wicked, but on the other can a test really determine that? It really makes you question and I’ve found that my favorite dystopias are the ones that make me questions things.The other thing I loved about this book is that it constantly keeps you guessing. It kept me on the edge of my seat and there were moments where it felt like my heart was beating out of my chest. It’s creepy and a bit twisted and the characters are all a bit damaged, but it’s addictive and just awesome.Then of course there is the romance. It wasn’t the main factor in the story, but it definitely added another layer and it was a layer I really enjoyed. It was beautiful in its own way. Because no matter the bleak circumstances, the twisted situation, or the fact that these characters took part in some horrible actions, they still found someone who could see through them and love that person; someone who truly understood them. Also, the chemistry was pretty hot.The Wicked We Have Done is a fantastic read; one that will appeal to both New Adult and dystopian fans and it hit the bulls-eye in both of those genres. It’s twisted, addictive, dark, edgy, and sexy. A must read!