Friday 22 March 2013

ARC Review: The Rules (Project Paper Doll) by Stacey Kade

The Rules (Project Paper Doll, #1)Author: Stacey Kade
Series: Project Paper Doll
Pages: 416
Genre: Young Adult
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Amazon Pre-order: The Rules
Release Date: 23rd April 2013

Synopsis: (Goodreads)

1. Never trust anyone.

2. Remember they are always searching.

3. Don’t get involved.

4. Keep your head down.

5. Don’t fall in love.

Five simple rules. Ariane Tucker has followed them since the night she escaped from the genetics lab where she was created, the result of combining human and extraterrestrial DNA. Ariane’s survival—and that of her adoptive father—depends on her ability to blend in among the full-blooded humans in a small Wisconsin town, to hide in plain sight at her high school from those who seek to recover their lost (and expensive) “project.”

But when a cruel prank at school goes awry, it puts her in the path of Zane Bradshaw, the police chief’s son and someone who sees too much. Someone who really sees her. After years of trying to be invisible, Ariane finds the attention frightening—and utterly intoxicating. Suddenly, nothing is simple anymore, especially not the rules…

Review: 3 ½ out of 5 stars

The Rules was kindly provided to me by Netgalley for Dysney Hyperion and is the first book in the Project Paper Doll series by Stacey Kade.

I was so intrigued by the premise of The Rules, I love a good sci-fi thriller, team it with school drama and forbidden romance and it definitely piques my interest but as I started reading this book, I came to the realisation that it was very different to what I had initially thought.

Sixteen year-old Ariane Tucker was created by GTX in a genetics lab; she is a human/alien hybrid and spent the first years of her life being experimented on and tormented until an explosion gives her an out and she is rescued by staff member, Mark Tucker and takes on the role of his deceased daughter. Ariane lives by five very important rules:

1.  Never trust anyone.
2. Remember they are always searching.
3. Don’t get involved.
4. Keep your head down.
5. Don’t fall in love.

She has always kept a low profile until a horrible prank goes wrong at school and she is bought to the attention of the ‘popular’ group, including the grand-daughter of GTX director, Rachel Jacobs and the police chiefs’ son Zane Bradshaw.

I loved the voice of Ariane, the powers she once had at GTX she had managed to block but now she is feeling a wide range of emotions they are being bought to the surface once again so it is even more important that she remains invisible, not an easy feat when she seeks revenge on Rachel, the person who has terrorized her best friend. Ariane had a unique personality, she was quite naïve but also strong when she needed to be and she showed real emotion when it came to things she believed in – she was a character who was relatable and realistic.

The love interest is Zane who has a difficult home life, his mother has left and his father has extremely high expectations. He has always thought Ariane was interesting and I absolutely adored him for the way he looked out for her, especially considering who he was friends with; I definitely didn’t expect this from him but he was more than eager to pay-back Rachel for her mistreatment of others.

The plot mainly focused on high school drama and seeking revenge but we also gain a lot of insight about Ariane’s purpose and why GTX were so eager to get a hold of her again, the story was filled with many surprises, one twist left me heartbroken for Ariane but the ending also left a lot of hope.

A lot of the characters were your typical YA stereotypes – hot boy, mean girl, invisible love interest, and bad guys with an agenda but despite this I still enjoyed them all. I liked that the story was told from both Ariane and Zane’s POV, we get insight into both of their thought processes which I always enjoy.

I quite liked Stacey Kade’s writing; it was crisp and entertaining. I found the pacing was at times too slow and I was left with a number of questions by the end of the book so I am hoping they are answered in the sequel.

10 comments:

  1. This one's a new book to me and it looks good. Love the cover. Might check it out after it's released...

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    1. It was good Ash so if you read it I hope you enjoy it.

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  2. I just read a book that was loaded with YA stereotypes, so I'll want to wait on this one, but it sounds sort of intriguing, especially that twist, ya big tease. ;) I'm a little interested in the alien hybrid thing and being a Wisconsin woman, I always have to know how badly an author can mess up my state.

    Great review!

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    1. Thanks Barbara, there were a lot of YA cliches, in some books I don't find it as noticeable but in this I did, I would have liked more emphasis placed on the alien hybrid storyline but it wasn't to be.

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  3. I have this one, and have been really looking forward to it. I like a good sci-fi read! It sounds like despite some flaws, this was a good read for you, Sharon! Too bad several of the characters are stereotypical, but both the main characters and the romance sounds awesome.

    Molli | Once Upon a Prologue

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    1. The romance was great, I think the Sci-Fi element definitely needed to be further developed but it was an enjoyable read otherwise.

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  4. *shakes head* Uh, no cupcake, I really liked the concept for this and Hyperion has been on a roll with books lately, but typical YA sterotypes and lack of world-building have me running from this one. I am glad that despite the slow pace you enjoyed it. Lovely review my friend!

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    1. Thanks Kimba! This is one I was really looking forward to but the high school drama and lack of Sci-Fi was a bit off putting. I did enjoy it but had to overlook the YA cliches whilst doing so ;)

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  5. I've loved Stacey Kade's books, and this book really looks good! I'm gonna check this out. :)

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    1. This is the first book I have read by her, I'm definitely have to check out her others :)

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