Branded
Author: Abi Ketner and Missy
Kalicicki
Series: Sinners
Pages: 252
Genre: Dystopian
Publisher: Self
Synopsis.
(Goodreads)
Fifty
years ago the Commander came into power and murdered all who opposed him. In
his warped mind, the seven deadly sins were the downfall of society. He created
the Hole where sinners are branded according to their sins and might survive a
few years. At best.
Now LUST wraps around my neck like blue fingers strangling me. I’ve been accused of a crime I didn’t commit and now the Hole is my new home.
Darkness. Death. Violence. Pain.
Now every day is a fight for survival. But I won’t die. I won’t let them win.
The Hole can’t keep me. The Hole can’t break me.
I am more than my brand. I’m a fighter.
My name is Lexi Hamilton, and this is my story.
Now LUST wraps around my neck like blue fingers strangling me. I’ve been accused of a crime I didn’t commit and now the Hole is my new home.
Darkness. Death. Violence. Pain.
Now every day is a fight for survival. But I won’t die. I won’t let them win.
The Hole can’t keep me. The Hole can’t break me.
I am more than my brand. I’m a fighter.
My name is Lexi Hamilton, and this is my story.
Review: 4 out of 5 stars
Branded started out
brilliantly, I found myself completely immersed in the story and flipping
through the pages, I would have given the book a solid five stars based on the
first portion of the book but at some point my interest tapered off and I found
myself pushing through it.
The world Ketner and Kalicicki have created is unique, brutal
and quite horrifying, The Commander has ordered people who commit one of the
seven deadly sins be branded with a colour which matches their crime and exiled
to the Hole which is more or less hell for humans, it’s his way of keeping the
society pure.
Lexi Hamilton has been branded with a blue mark which means
lust, a crime she doesn’t get a hearing for, she is instantly guilty and with
her stunning looks she becomes a prime target in the hole. Lexi was a character that
has been dealt a difficult hand, both in and out of the hole but she was
resilient and had strength which was needed to survive, but there was something
about her which I am struggling to pinpoint that left me conflicted about her
as a character.
 |
| Lexi |
Lust - Blue
Gluttony – Orange
Pride - Purple
Greed – Yellow
Wrath - Red
Sloth - Black
Envy - Green
Sloth - Black
Envy - Green
Ordered to guard Lexi is smexy, hardened Cole who I really liked, he would
pretty much do anything to protect her against the cruel society which I
appreciated but he was also one of the Commanders guards so I was wary about his motives and the kindness he showed, he was nothing like the other guards who seemed ruthless.
 |
| Cole |
Guards and sinners are forbidden to be in a relationship; it’s a
crime punishable by death but Cole and Lexi came to form a really sweet bond in
a world filled with injustice and pain, there were a few eye rolling moments
between them but I did find myself hoping they would get together.
Amidst the violence, filth and brutality we have some sweet
moments, especially with Cole’s clumsy yet protective dog Zeus who bought some
light humour to the story and also Alyssa who was a sweetheart, my heart broke
for her. All secondary characters were each fleshed out well, I admired Sutton and Bruno and the villain was pure evil and I was quite shocked by who he was, I also wasn't a fan of Lexi's brother Keegan, I didn't trust him at all.
I really liked the writing style, it flowed well but the
dialogue at times felt stilted, the world-building was wonderfully creative and
I’m curious to see what lies ahead for the hole and the revolt, the authors
have painted a dark and dreary setting that you can’t help but visualise, it
was absolutely disturbing how people were having to live to survive.
Overall, Branded is
an emotionally intense, action-packed read filled with pain, violence and a forbidden love
with many twists and turns you don’t see coming. A great debut for Abi Ketner and
Missy Kalicicki.
About the authors: Abi
and Missy met in the summer of 1999 at college orientation and have been best
friends ever since. After college, they added jobs, husbands and kids to their
lives, but they still found time for their friendship. Instead of hanging out
on weekends, they went to dinner once a month and reviewed books. What started
out as an enjoyable hobby has now become an incredible adventure.
I'm glad you ended up liking this even though the last part wasn't as great as the first. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Sara! It was a really interesting story, the first half was definitely stronger for me.
DeleteI've never heard of this one but it sounds like a unique dystopian book. It's a shame that the last part wasn't as strong as the beginning. But the characters and the world building sound quite interesting.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that you enjoyed this overall, Sharon!
Fabulous review! :)
Thanks Nick! this one was really unique which I loved, the concept is creative and I quite enjoyed it overall.
DeleteThis one definitely sounds interesting. I'm a little burnt out on dystopian, but once I'm over it this is one I'd definitely pick up. I'm especially intrigued about that romance!
ReplyDeleteI love a forbidden romance <3 I have been a bit burnt out on Dystopian as well and for me this didn't really read like one which I quite liked.
DeleteThis one is blowing up all over my Goodreads feed that although this isn’t what I usually read, I want to read it :)
ReplyDeleteI hope you do Nereyda! it was really interesting.
DeleteThis sounds so scary and good! I never heard of it until now. I need to add to my TBR list ASAP!
ReplyDeleteThe world was really scary, I hope you enjoy it if you get a chance to read it :)
DeleteI saw this one on sale and thought about buying, but wasn't sure. It sounds really good though. Thanks for the great review. I might just have to get it.
ReplyDeleteI bought it on a whim, it kept appearing on my Amazon recommendations list and the reviews have been quite high. I'm excited for the sequel :)
DeleteWow, Branded sounds like a very, very cool story. I do like the pics of Cole and Lexi you posted, and it seems like they were good characters overall. I'm glad you enjoyed this, despite the couple of issues you had with the story. Great review, Sharon!
ReplyDeleteThanks Andrea! Cole was pretty smexy and I really enjoyed the overall story.
DeleteHoly Dystopian how did I not know about this! I love that it was violent but had sweetness to it, and the premises sounds amazing, I am off to find this one!
ReplyDeleteI hope you enjoy it Kimba! It is such a unique concept but there were quite a few violent scenes. I'm excited for the sequel.
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