Abi Ketner

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I've been reading some of the reviews and ratings here and I feel like the odd one out. I didn't believe this to be some kind of special Dystopian YA, even though it had a very good premise.

Lexi is about to be branded blue for lust. She will then be thrown into the Hole, a place where all criminals are kept. The downfall of society was caused by the seven deadly sins. So, everyone who shows signs of one of them will be branded with their sin and removed from civilized society. Survival of the strongest is likely to be the only rule in the Hole.

Blues usually don't survive long in the Hole. They're easy prey for the real criminals and (sexually) frustrated people. And even though Lexi is already suicidal even before she enters the Hole, she then changes her mind and is desperate to survive this ordeal. How? For some reason she's assigned a personal bodyguard named Cole (and guess what, she's his first female assignment).

It's obvious that Lexi is getting some help from outside the Hole, as she's also assigned one of the few good (as in not prostitution) jobs in the Hole, nurse in the hospital. Even more seems off, because, who's this Commander? One critical note towards the hospital though; they don't have the money to buy morphine, but at the same time there are people working on a vaccine to some kind of virus? How does that work? Creating a vaccine cost millions (billions perhaps); how come they don't have money to buy morphine then?

-Some spoilers ahead-

Lexi annoyed me. At times it almost looks like she is about to become a competent nurse, but then for some reason she falls back into her very unoriginal instalove infatuation with Cole (Stockholm syndrome?) Even witnessing what happened with other people who embark on a relationship between guards and prisoners (namely, execution) isn't enough to put her off the idea and keep to more pressing matters like staying alive. In the second half she'll transform into one kick ass fighter with less than a week of training, while the men - Cole and a surprise family member - are fighting over the fact if she should or shouldn't help fighting in the important battle. How nice of them.

For me, the first half dwelt far too much on the instalove romance plot. I'd liked to know more about the Hole, the rules and more importantly, what exactly happened that lead to the instalment of the Hole. The second part was a generic Dystopian YA training/fighting plot as can also be see in Divergent and many other books. So all in all, I was a bit disappointed and I don't really feel like continuing this series now (but perhaps in a few months I might give it another try).

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Branded is the first book in the Sinners series. The second book Hunters is expected to be published March 31st 2015.… (mais)

Okay let me give you the lo down on Branded: It’s a book set in this dystopian world fifty years after World War 5 (OMG!) where a ruthless man called The Commander uses the seven deadly sins to punish criminals. Said criminals are branded around their neck with the color of their sin.

Lust – Blue
Gluttony – Orange
Greed – Yellow
Sloth – Black
Wrath – Red
Envy – Green
Pride – Purple

These criminals are then cast out by society and thrown into The Hole. In comes Lexi Hamilton. She’s an 18-year-old girl who’s been branded with lust and must live out the rest of her days trying to survive in the Hole. She’s immediately paired with Cole, a mysterious yet compassionate guard who has to protect her from the horrors of the Hole. As The Hole keeps descending into chaos, Cole and Lexi discover things about the system that’ll make them question everything. Soon they’ll learn that maybe, the only ones they can really trust are themselves.

What I liked the most about this book was the way that it started. It immediately jumps into the action and we’re discovering Lexi’s rebellious and strong spirit from the get go. While she wasn’t necessarily the strongest of the lot (she would faint or throw up or cry), she definitely tried her absolute best to survive.
“You’re a sinner,” they say. […] I stand defiant. I refuse to bend or break before them, even as I shiver with fear.

Lexi is compassionate and headstrong, and at times much too curious for her own good. However I really enjoyed seeing her journey throughout this novel because Lexi began as a scared little girl trying to battle some ghosts from her past and at the end she’s a strong and determined girl willing to fight for what she believes in.

When Cole enters the picture, you could immediately notice that he’d be the love interest in this book. I honestly can’t complain. Cole is a brave warrior and he’s determined to protect Lexi, even if her brand says she’s a… loose woman. He sees past Lexi’s mark and learns to love her regardless.

Their romance was definitely well developed. It was a forbidden romance (guard and prisoner) and it was so fun seeing them fight against their feelings. It was slow and even when it was painfully obvious that they were definitely falling for each other, the authors put it aside for a while in exchange for more world building and mystery and whatnot.

There was a wonderful cast of side characters; they all left their own special mark on the story. My favorite character was Alyssa because her storyline was so emotional and definitely one of the things that defined Lexi’s actions most of all.

A thing I didn’t like in the story was the fact that Lexi seemed to have so many privileges throughout: a guard to protect her, a relatively safe place to live, allies, and all around conveniences for her. At the end it is explained why, but it was hard to believe at first. I also didn’t like that while the romance isn’t insta-love; once it finally surfaces it’s kind of all encompassing. Suddenly Cole and Lexi get super intense, which kind of threw me off for a while. Also, the writing didn’t sit well with me at first because I could feel when one author would end writing and the author would begin. Nonetheless after the initial chapters the writing became seamless.

Overall, Branded is a surprising debut novel by Abi Ketner and Missy Kalicicki that introduces a brand new dystopian world with a forbidden romance and a refreshing main character. It’ll leave you breathless for more after you pass the last page.… (mais)