Oh Dystopia. We have had a rough ride in the last couple of years. Whereas before I had read maybe a half dozen books where the Earth (or at least humanity) was near extinct for one reason or another, in the last year alone I've read 14 books with that premise. That's a lot. Like a real lot. It makes it a little hard to find new ways to invent the wheel sometimes.

Chosen Ones does at times remind me of the other books. I'd kill for a YA Dystopia that didn't involve a romance in some fashion honestly, but Tess and James was far more palatable then I would have thought. Its understandable that Tess falls for him almost immediately--different is always alluring and James is very different from any other 'Chosen One' that Tess has meant. James for his part is cognizant in a way that Tess doesn't seem to understand at first, what it means for them to be 'together'.

The history of how humanity reached the level its reached by the story's start was less interesting to me then the real world reactions Tess' father and James extoll. In an economy that is doing better than others, but still seems unable to sustain itself, I can understand her father's sentiment that people grow resentful when their hardwork (in this case protecting the country) seems to mean nothing. If you go off to war to protect your home from being destroyed, but its taken away because you're not being paid enough to keep up the mortgage why did you go off to war? You could have instead found a better paying job and let someone else protect your house.

By in large I enjoyed this book. Some of it dragged with uneven pacing...plus Tess is rather unlikeable until she starts to 'blossom', but Truitt makes up for it by engaging the reader in a game of 'It Could Happen To You'. I certainly hope that the next book, Naturals, builds on the premise (and maybe lets the romance take a backseat). ( )

I really wanted to like this book, but just could not get into it. It took me weeks to finish because it just could not hold my attention.

It was a very unique idea though.

I couldn't envision the world Truitt described in my head. I had a hard time understanding why things happened. There were so many unopened questions. I didn't feel like the romance between Tess and James was genuine. I couldn't find myself caring for either character; they were hard to relate to. Tess seemed very unstable and cold. While James just felt very boring.

Overall it was an interesting plot, but I would not read this book again. I do not think I will read the sequel either. ( )

Chosen Ones not only has a beautiful cover, but an intriguing plot as well. Humans are almost to the point of extinction, and then there are those who have been artificially created with incredible abilities. You have two types of people. Naturals which are the humans, and the Chosen Ones that are bred and trained to be bigger and better. There were so many questions, and I was hooked from the beginning.

Tess is a 16 year old girl, who has been placed at Templeton with her sisters. One thing about Tess is that she has stuck to the rules, she believes what she has always been told. Tess comes across as being so angry, and learning why I did understand. She keeps her emotions to herself, that is until she meets James. He is this gorgeous Chosen One, but he wasn’t like the rest of them though. James thought for himself, he was sweet and shy. Their connection was something that I enjoyed, with music and their reading together.

This flows with ease from the beginning right up till the end, with pieces of the puzzle given a little at a time as to what is really going on. This is a world where woman are thought of as being weak, and are thought to have little purpose and are losing their ability to reproduce. With swift punishment for not following the rules, and the awful treatment of the Naturals, this is one terrifying world Truitt created. We learn a little about outside the compound and it sounds like one rough place too. The letters from Tess’s father gave even more insight as well. There are a few secondary characters that were part of the story, but as the story flowed on they played a much bigger role, all leading up to one major cliffhanger. There are so many questions left unanswered and I am really looking forward to the Naturals.

Chosen Ones is a beautiful story of lies and betrayals, twists that will leave you wanting more and a romance worth gushing over. It is one that I would highly recommend picking up.
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I love this book so much! ( )

My Rating – 3 Stars

Tess lives in a future where women are evil and humans are weak. America has spilt into sectors and the country is as constant war. Humans failed to win the war and so the government (the Council) took it upon themselves to create perfect super soldiers, or The Chosen Ones (this name bothers me. They aren’t chosen they are made).

The Council (though being humans themselves) force humans to live in compounds and doesn’t allow them to books or music or really anything. Women are considered too emotional and wanton and are (according to the council) basically the downfall of humans (vaginas are evil, yo) and are forced to be servants for the Chosen Ones (or sexual play things, willing or not, which bothers me immensely).

Also, woman can no longer give birth, which is never explained and it apparently happened in the three years between when Tess was born and when her sister was born. I really hope it’s explained in a later book because that’s just so random to me.

Anyhoo, Tess’s older sister has done the stupid thing of falling in love, getting married, and getting pregnant; which ends in her death. Now Tess must take over her sentence at the Chosen Ones training center, Templeton.

The secrets she learns at Templeton about the Council and the Chosen Ones are very disturbing but she also meets James, a Chosen One with a *gasp* flaw! There is a little bit of insta-love but Tess plays hot and cold so much that that Katy Perry song could be her theme song.

Though practically every person she’s ever been closely associated with is a part of the resistance, she is completely unaware of the resistance’s existence. An attack on a new batch of Chosen Ones brings it to her attention but also brings her and her relationship with James to the attention of the Council. Her life is now in danger and they must get her out of the Council’s reach.

This book was okay. It was actually a little confusing, because there is no pretty much no explanation of anything. A lot of questions were raised and I’m hoping they are answered in the second book. James was very bland to me; I didn’t really feel their attraction. Tess feels bipolar and her mood/personality changes are very frustrating to me. I was also confused by the timeline of events that led up to humans being forced to live in the compounds.

The book has its flaws but the plot is interesting. Women are evil and can’t reproduce anymore and the government plans to phase out humans and just have the super soldiers (are they teaching the Chosen Ones how to create more Chosen Ones because the Council is full of old men, they aren’t going to live forever).

I will at least read the next book because I got it from Netgalley and because I need questions answered!

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