Review: Taken By Erin Bowman

There are no men in Claysoot. There are boys—but every one of them vanishes at midnight on his eighteenth birthday. The ground shakes, the wind howls, a blinding light descends…and he’s gone.

They call it the Heist.

Gray Weathersby’s eighteenth birthday is mere months away, and he’s prepared to meet his fate–until he finds a strange note from his mother and starts to question everything he’s been raised to accept: the Council leaders and their obvious secrets. The Heist itself. And what lies beyond the Wall that surrounds Claysoot–a structure that no one can cross and survive.

Climbing the Wall is suicide, but what comes after the Heist could be worse. Should he sit back and wait to be taken–or risk everything on the hope of the other side? 

My thoughts...

***Arc copy was provided by the publisher*** 

Claysoot is a place where there are no men above 18 thanks to the Heist. The Heist takes away boys when the clock hits midnight at their 18th birthday. No one know the reason for this plague. It was Gray's brother's turn to vanish. He wanted to make his brother's last day the best for him since it was their last goodbye. Gray has only a few months till he turns 18 and  he has to wait for his turn to vanish, but then he sees a mysterious note from his mom that was taken secret from him by his brother and mother. The only thing that came out of his mind was lies lies lies lies. He's been living a lie his whole life. Now he questions what the Heist really is and what lies beyond the wall. Climbing the Wall would be suicide, but Gray is a stubborn one. He'll want to know the truth about who and what he is.

Erin Bowman created an original concept, this dystopian novel both impressed and disappointed me. Why? There were secrets in Claysoot that was begging to be answered. It intrigued me...about the Heist and about the main character. As soon as the secrets were revealed that's when the story started going down hill. I was expecting something more dynamic or something that was awe-worthy. Thank the stars that I did not put the book down. I had many thoughts of putting this book.  

I wanted to see this book through since Gray was a promising character, he's stubborn, but that's what I love about the protagonist. Erin Bowman also included romance in the story which I also enjoyed until a certain scene popped out and ruined the whole image. Instant betrayal doesn't seem realistic to me when Erin Bowman introduced me to the characters and they all seemed to have there own perspective, but none had traits that would lead to betrayal. Disappointing, no? 

What did impress me was the writing style of the author, it was smooth and fast paced. My eyes didn't grow tired after reading for hours that's one of the reason why I'm giving the story a higher rating. I planned to give the story a 3 at first, but after drowning in my thoughts, I knew the book deserved better. 

The main problems were how the twists turned out to be pathetic and how the author squished a love triangle which was unnecessary. She should have given her readers the time to think and process the story. The characters were memorable, but individually the most interesting character was Bree. Emma's not much of fighter, I expected a lot from her instead I fell in love with another character. I really hope the story get's better on the sequel, but for now I'm still debating what kind of rating I should give. For now I'd give this book a 3.8! 

The book had so much potential from the beginning, but plots and twists are the main tricks that pushes the reader to read on. And just saying I'd like things not rushed all the time. Taking your time in writing creates a better aura for the story and you might hatch another "better" idea.