Vanquished: An Honest Review

 

Vanquished

Enslaved Book #1

~ 5 stars ~ 

Author: Katie Clark

Title: Vanquished

Series: Enslaved

Genre: Dystopian Fiction

Audience: Young Adult

 

Synopsis:

When Hana’s mom is diagnosed with the mutation, she confesses to Hana she doesn’t know what will happen if she dies. Fischer, a medic at the hospital, implies there is Someone who can help–but religion’s been outlawed. Hana embarks on a dangerous journey, seeking the answers Fischer insists are available. But when the truth is uncovered, will Hana stick to what she's been taught? Or will she join the rebellion and take a stand against an oppressive society? 

My Review:

Okay, *inhales deeply* I  did it. I took the plunge and finally bought a book from an entirely new author. It's been far too long and it had to be done. Now, where do I start? First of all, I've never read a dystopian novel before, so entering a new genre was exciting. At first, it was strange to hear of the world we live in now being referred to in the past tense as "the Early Days" but I adapted to it after a few chapters. 

Now let's dig deep into the actual review. Katie Clark is not the kind of writer I'm used to reading. Not only does she use the first person writing POV, but she isn't very descriptive. Unlike my favorite author Melanie Dickerson, she uses simple, plain words and as few as are necessary to get the scene or point across. Clark is very concise and doesn't use a lot of million-dollar words. However, since her writing style allows us to hear how the main protagonist, Hana, thinks, this approach I believe, is the most efficient. Hana's thoughts wouldn't be elaborate or articulately-versed and her observation skills may be dulled since she's lived in the same place for so long. Therefore, Clark's lack of description actually adds a source of realism that I enjoy and I find draws me closer to the character and makes me feel like I'm actually inside their head. 

 The way the plot was written was also amazing. To start, Clark plunges you right into the thick of her dystopian world in the very first chapter of the book. This is a tactic that I wish was used more by today's writers, as it immerses you into the fantasy world in such a way that you have to keep reading in order to find out what is going on. For example, just in the first chapter we learn that Hana's mom has the "mutation" but we need to keep reading in order to find out what this mutation is and why Hana is so concerned for her mother's life. Clark's writing grabs you within the first few paragraphs, a feat that most author's fail to accomplish. Furthermore, her consistency is on point. While still managing to incorporate numerous subplots within the novel, Clark begins her book with Hana preparing to take her Test and ends with Hana receiving her test scores. Even while exploring other plots, Clark still manages to end where the story, in essence, began. 

Now, onto the characters. Hana is my new hero. And though having a strong, kick-butt female as the lead in a dystopian novel is a little too typical, I believe it appeals to every woman's independent side. (Hey, we all have our thing.) I enjoyed seeing how Hana transformed from a broken, confused girl into a fighter who is not willing to take things at face value. The flaws Clark wove into this character were also intriguing, and it was nice to find myself sometimes berating Hana for making certain decisions, frequently the protagonist of a novel can be made into a perfectionist. Hana's struggle with herself over what rules she was willing to break to do what was right really hit home for me, and I think that a lot of young adults with find the hard decisions that she had to make thought-provoking. 

Since I don't want to give away spoilers, I will refrain from going into too much detail about Fischer and just say that I find him to be a very likeable character. He is ambitious, thoughtful, and has a patience about him that I wish I could possess. What I found that Clark did differently in the way of characters was that there was no middle man. She was able to write the story in a way that made you relate to every character you came across, no matter their significance in the story. I was able to feel emotions towards Ava, Keegan, Jamie, etc. as if they were really a part of my life. That is something I want to have whenever I read a book. 

Well, we've covered the plot, the writing, the characters... so, I think that's it. Oh, wait. No. There's still the faith element. But again, I can't say much about it in regards to spoilers. So, I'll play it safe and say that the amount of faith in this book was moderate. It was by no means heavy or convicting, but rather it was faith as seen through the eyes of someone who was discovering it for the first time. And for me, that was a real treat. I may not have grown personally in my faith as a result of this book, but I got to see someone else grow instead.

I highly recommend this book and am looking forward to reviewing book #2 in the Enslaved series very soon. :)