Review: Awakening by Shannon Duffy

Awakening

Author: Shannon Duffy

Series: -

Pages: 352

Publisher: Entangled Teen

Release date: 7th April 2015

Amazon

Synopsis (Goodreads)

A thrilling, futuristic sci-fi novel set in a unique and thought-provoking world, from author Shannon Duffy.

Desiree Six (because she was born on a Friday) believes in everything the Protectorate stands for. She likes the safety and security of having her entire life planned out—her career, her mate, even the date of her death. She doesn't even think to question when Darian, her childhood friend and neighbor, is convicted of murdering his parents. They had seemed like such a loving family. But if he was convicted, then he must have done it.

Then Darian shows up in her room late one night. He has escaped from the Terrorscape—a nightmare machine used to punish all Noncompliants—and needs Desiree's help. What he tells her rocks her world to its core and makes her doubt everything she's ever been told. With this new information, will Desiree and Darian be able to escape the Protectorate before it's too late?

Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Awakening was kindly provided to me by Entangled Teen in exchange for my honest review.

Our MC is Desiree Six – The six being the sixth day of the week and the number that determines the age when someone will die. She has always believed in the Protectorate and the laws that had been made but she begins to question them when her loyal, childhood friend Darian One is charged with the murder of his parents – a crime punishable by life in the Terrorscape, he escapes jail, seeks out Desiree and tries to convince her of the faults within their society and what they are being forced to believe.

Desiree was a likeable character but there were instances where she did grate on my nerves – in saying this she also made some wise choices and chose to believe Darian despite the evidence against him; I liked the friendship she shared with him; he was wonderful character and one I really felt for. We also meet Asher who is Desiree’s intended I also liked him; I found him to be quite noble and sincere despite their predicament.

The concept was interesting – the dystopian world we are introduced to has the Protectorate governing with their sole purpose to eradicate the manic world’s problems by devising a system where marriage, dreams and jobs are determined for each citizen; those who don’t comply are known as noncompliant and are put in a nightmare terrorscape at Olympus Jail which is witnessed by the population. I found this aspect to be quite intriguing and creative but I do still have many unanswered questions about the world overall and how it came to be which I hope will be answered in the sequel.

I also found the bonding process to be interesting; I thought this aspect was a little like Matched where the characters are bound to each other based on certain criteria, as we learn it isn’t a process that is without fault. It is a system with flaws but one the population has no idea about because of their Protectorate daily dreamscapes, it was truly an imperfect society.

Shannon Duffy’s writing is vividly detailed and engaging; I enjoyed the characters overall and I found the plot to be fast-paced and the world-building creative. I am looking forward to reading the sequel.

Thank you to Entangled for the opportunity to read and review Awakening by Shannon Duffy.

About the author: Author of MG and YA books full of adventure. I grew up on the east coast of Canada in the province of Newfoundland and now live in Ontario. I love writing, reading, fashion, fitness, and traveling. 

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