fantasy – Books, I Love you.

Rating:

What can I say about The Darkest Minds that will sum up its total awesomeness? I was a little worried about starting it because of how much hype surrounds it, but I wasn’t let down at all and I ended up loving it.

What made this such a phenomenal read? The characters, by and far. Ruby, the protagonist, grew on me as the book went on. Although her experiences are unlike anything I (and most readers) have ever been through, her emotions are easily understandable. It’s the supporting cast, though, that really stand out. Liam (oh, he’ll make you melt), Zu, and especially Chubs are just perfectly created. Chubs, much to my surprise, became my favorite character by the story’s end. His development is done so naturally and his attributes are revealed in small but endearing ways. Zu is another great example of Bracken’s skill; she doesn’t say a single word the entire novel, but is one of the sweetest, funniest characters. One of the challenges of a first book in a series is to get readers fully invested in the characters so early on in their stories, but Bracken succeeded. It’s because of this cast that I choked up twice during TDM.

It’s so easy to get lost in the world created in The Darkest Minds. I was so invested in the lives of the characters that I felt what they were feeling. My facial expressions must have been a sight to witness when I read this because the imagery used makes everything feel very realistic. Not to mention that I’m the same age as many of the characters so, if this was real, I would be in the same situation. Let me tell you that I would not survive a day.

The camps reminded me a lot of Nazi concentration camps during the Second World War and there were many similarities – the human testing and the harsh work, for example. I can’t imagine being put into one of the camps, helpless and frightened. The camp that Ruby was in, especially, was extreme and I would have been petrified.

So yes, you could definitely say that this book is packed with emotion. It’s a rollercoaster ride- to use a cliche- one that I couldn’t put down. Because there’s just as much action as there is emotion. You never know what’s going to come next, but whenever anything is going well for these kids, you know that’s going to change fast.

I think my very favorite part of the book was the plot twist at the end, but at this moment I’m not really sure of my emotions. I both hated and loved the ending. Ruby grew so much as a character because of the decision she made, and that’s why I think it’s my favorite part of the book.