Review: Graduation Day by Joelle Charbonneau

Graduation Day by Joelle Charbonneau is the conclusion to her Testing Trilogy featuring Malencia Vale, a 16 year old University student. That age is not unusual for students to be attending University in this dystopian world.

First, a word. These books are best read in order. Otherwise the horror of the Testing isn't at all clear until later in this book.

Graduation Day pretty much picks up where the last one left off. Cia aka Malencia also has an internship with the President's office. In the beginning of this book, she rides to tell the President that one of her employees has been killed by the rebel leader Symon. In return, the President gives Cia a list of people that need to be killed in order for there to be an end to the Testing and a code to get resources from a room on the fifth floor.

Cia realizes that she can 't accomplish this all on her own, but she agonizes over who to trust and how she will know they are trustworthy. The only one she knows for sure is Tomas, her love.

Will she be able to go through with killing the people on the list? Who can she trust to help her if she does? Will this really end the nightmare of the Testing? And what really happens to all of those that fail in some way?

This book ties up loose ends from the other 2 books. That's good. A lot of the what happens this time was internal. Not so good. Definitely important to the plot, but it makes for a slower read. The other 2 books had more action in them. Also, a lot of the action in this book was Cia and her friends discussing the issues of who could be trusted and how would they accomplish the deaths needed on the list. Since Cia isn't a fan of killing, it was a little surprising that she agreed to take on the task.

The action in the book was good and fast paced once it gets started. The ending seemed a little strange to me, but you need to read it yourself to judge.

In spite of tying up a lot of the loose ends from the other books, it still left open the possibility to further exploration in this world.

You can read an excerpt from this book at the website for the book.

I gave this book 3 stars because even though I enjoyed it, I didn't think it was quite as good as the first 2 in the trilogy. The writing is still good, but a lot of it was passive thoughts. The action was good, but there was a lot less of it than in the first 2 books. There were definitely enough twists to go around though.

If you enjoyed the first 2 books, you should read it to finish off the trilogy. It is not a standalone.

I borrowed my copy from my local library.

Teaser Tuesday: Graduation Day by Joelle Charbonneau

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by Miz B of A Daily Rhythm. Anyone can participate, just do the following:

• Grab your current read and open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page.
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title and the author so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers.

I straighten my shoulders and walk around the residence to the vehicle shed, trying not to look at the place where Raffe and I pushed Damone over the edge of the ravine.

p.12

Worry about my brother propels my body forward despite my fatigue. 

p.12 

Graduation Day is the conclusion to the Testing Trilogy by Joelle Charbonneau. 

Synopsis:

In a scarred and brutal future, The United Commonwealth teeters on the brink of all-out civil war. The rebel resistance plots against a government that rules with cruelty and cunning. Gifted student and Testing survivor Cia Vale vows to fight. But she can't do it alone. This is the chance to lead that Cia has trained for - but who will follow? Plunging through layers of danger and deception, Cia must risk the lives of those she loves - and gamble on the loyalty of her lethal classmates.

Based on the teasers, would you keep reading? Share a link to your teaser in the comments so we can check it out. Happy Reading!

Review: Independent Study by Joelle Charbonneau

Independent Study is book #2 in Joelle Charbonneau's Testing Series. It was recently released on January 7, 2014 from HMH Books for Young Readers.

The setting is a dystopian future Earth after a big war and many natural disasters. The United States has reorganized under a new government. There is a much smaller area that is deemed safe to live in. People are working to make other areas safe as well and creating new technologies to help in that mission.

This is the continuing story of Malencia Vale and her friends and enemies as they find out that all is not as expected at the University. The advice her father gave her in book one that is mentioned again in this book, "Trust no one," seems at times to be particularly apt. Even her beau, Tomas, leaves her doubting his trustworthiness.

It is Year 2 at the University for Cia and her friends. They have finished with their general courses and are now placed into the fields that the teachers and administrators feel they are best suited for whether they agree or not. Cia would much rather work with mechanical things than spend her time learning things she would need to know to be a good political leader.

But something fishy is going on. The upperclassmen are supposedly hazing them, but it is like a brief repeat of the original testing. And there is word that an uprising is coming. All that is needed is proof that the testing is barbaric and not at all civilized. Will Cia and her friends be able to get the proof and get it into the right hands to insure a peaceful transfer of power instead of a bloody one? Who is really behind what is going on? Who will survive?

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. It is a really enjoyable story, but it reads better if you have also read book one.

Teaser Tuesday - Independent Study by Joelle Charbonneau

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of 

Should Be Reading. 

Rules:

• Grab your current read

• Open to a random page

• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week my teaser is from Independent Study (The Testing Book 2) by Joelle Charbonneau.

From p.147: "And while I don't think the University officials intend to watch us plunge to our deaths, I doubt they will lift a finger to prevent it. There has to be another solution."

This teaser is from an advance reader copy. The book is due out January 7th, 2014 from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing. I have been provided a copy in exchange for my unbiased review - which is yet to come.

What's your teaser this week?

Review: The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau

The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau is a YA dystopian novel told from Malencia Vale's point of view. This is  book one in a new trilogy.

It's after the Seven Stages War and the majority of the population is organized in colonies for safety. Cia and her family live in the Five Lakes colony which is the smallest colony and hasn't sent any graduates to the testing in several years. It's also a little more self sufficient than the other colonies giving the students lots of skills. Cia is a young student about to graduate school and wants nothing more than to go for Testing for University. But, is she ready for the Testing and all that it holds?

Ready or not she is selected along with a few others from her colony. Before they leave, her father gives her one last piece of advice based on his own shadowy recollections of his own testing, "Trust no one."

Tomas is her love interest. Everyday he seems to be more in love with her. But. should she trust him? Should she be ruled by her heart or her head?

I usually don't much like dystopian novels, but this one I did. I found myself turning the pages wanting to find out what happened next. I liked the characters especially Cia and Tomas. I liked the variety of action and the character development. People who enjoyed The Hunger Games or dystopian fiction in general will like this book. And I think if you like science fiction at all you will enjoy it. This book is expected to be available
June 4, 2013.

I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased opinion.