Starters

TITLE: Starters

AUTHOR: Lissa Price

SERIES: Starters #1

PUBLISHER: Delacorte

FORMAT: ARC

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Note: An ARC of this novel was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Starters is the latest addition to the dystopic genre, taking place in a fictional future after the devastating Spore Wars have ravaged North America. In a world where children have no rights and everybody is out to benefit only themselves, this novel is a chilling yet captivating glimpse into the mind of one young girl in such a place.

Callie is the strong point of this novel – strong, independent, and fiercely protective of the brother; the only remaining member of her family. Price’s characterisation of Callie shows her situation in heart wrenching vividness, and it only encourages you to feel even more supportive and endearing of our young heroine. I especially loved the determination she showed when unravelling the mystery around her Ender and the uses they find for her body, and the courage it took to delve into that world when all she wanted to do was turn around and run.

Starters is masterful at inciting adrenalin and suspense; in reality the premise of it seems ridiculous, yet Price has managed to balance it so that it becomes a catalyst for our emotions. The plot of the book grabs you and doesn’t let you go until the that very last page, and as you explore this horrific new world of prime Destinations with Callie and the atrocious things Starters are made to do it really makes for an enthralling tale.

There were a few niggly things that let the book down a touch, though they still don’t take away from its core brilliance. For instance, the history behind this world is not delved into much, and it is hard to see how some aspects of it would have naturally come into being. We are given very little information about the Spore Wars and the ‘why’ of some things, and I can only hope that this will perhaps be expanded on in later book(s).

A wonderful new breakthrough in YA fiction, Starters is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat and reading way past your bed time. An astounding success from debut author Lissa Price, I am now eagerly awaiting what she can do with the second book, Enders.