Review: For fans of dystopian novels. This book is original, interesting with a balance between the power struggle and romance.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 07 10, 2014
After a few pages, I feared it was a Hunger Games clone : apocalyptic world; poor districts ruled by a Capitol; forbidden to hunt in the woods, archer …I’m sure you get me. But soon enough it became totally different with its own world, characters and uniqueness.It’s the year 3035, corporations rule the world and the majority is oppressed. Everything is merchandised, the earth, the air, the water, the woods…Ellie is the beautiful Governor Callum’s daughter. She lives in a privileged world were appearances are of the utmost importance to ascertain its position and power. She is engaged to Edmund, her father future heir.Whereas Ellie comes from money, Jared is from the poorest parts of district 8. At 27 and with his father taken away, he has to provide for his family. Governor Callum helped with in the arrest of his father and Jared’s hate for the Callums runs deep in his heart. He is bitter, dead set against the Corporations and its iron fist. Every day undernourished children die under his eyes. "There  is nothing bad with rules if they’re meant to help you. Their rules though, are made to enslave us."When he meets Ellie, he is instantly drawn to her even knowing she is the enemy. They fight hard but they can’t forget each other.  Jared is obsessed with her : "The instant she had touched him, his soul had recognized her as being a part of him. And now he felt like an invalid, clinging to life, desperate to live because she had become as vital to him as air."And Ellie does not fare better as she thinks constantly about their encounter : "She blushed a the mere thought of how she had longed for him to wantonly possess her."But Ellie and Jared come from two different worlds. She is unattainable to him and engaged to another.  Jared despair grows even more when he discovers he is a chimera.  How could she accept a freak? He is desperate and has a hard time coming to term with his new identity. "I live scared each day that I will slowly grow into an animal. That I will forget what it is like to be a man."Even when Jared will accept to become the rebellion’s secret weapon, The Winged Archer, he’ll still struggle with the role he has to play as he would have to put aside his love for Ellie. He did not see how she could love a beast but he still nurtured the secret hope they could end together somehow."He understood the importance of freedom…But he was no martyr. He had not chosen his fate. In fact, he was doing his damnedest to live to his best. Why should he have to be so sacrificial? To surrender the one thing he has begun to love."I won’t go any further in the plot, you’ll have to discover by yourself if they’ll be together, if the rebellion will grow,…I liked the idea of a chimera in a book, it’s a nice change from the vampires, shapeshifters and angels I usually read about.I also did enjoy Ellie’s determination. Hesitant at first, she’ll emerge like a chrysalis to unfurl her own wings, take risks and make a difference. She’ll fight for a better world too because :"Fairness is not an attitude you carry proudly. It’s a skill that’s meant to be executed and exercised in order for it to manifest."This book is original, interesting with a balance between the power struggle and the romance. But…the end left me hanging! Will there be a second book?