Review: The Program
09:00
By Suzanne Young
Source: Personal purchase, e-book
Genres: Young Adult, Dystopian, Romance, Science Fiction, Mental Illness,
Goodreads Synopsis:
Sloane knows better than to cry in front of anyone. With suicide now an international epidemic, one outburst could land her in The Program, the only proven course of treatment. Sloane’s parents have already lost one child; Sloane knows they’ll do anything to keep her alive. She also knows that everyone who’s been through The Program returns as a blank slate. Because their depression is gone—but so are their memories.
Under constant surveillance at home and at school, Sloane puts on a brave face and keeps her feelings buried as deep as she can. The only person Sloane can be herself with is James. He’s promised to keep them both safe and out of treatment, and Sloane knows their love is strong enough to withstand anything. But despite the promises they made to each other, it’s getting harder to hide the truth. They are both growing weaker. Depression is setting in. And The Program is coming for them.
My review:
I expected this book to be amazing. The concept was really promising for a heart-breaking and gritty dystopian, that could have been painfully relatable to today’s society. Although it was scarily similar to today, I was disappointed. It was a love story first, dystopian second. Some may find it beautiful and heart-wrenching, but I just got a bit fed up with the book. It was a bit repetitive, and I thought it had the potential to be so much better.
My main problem with the book was the focus on romance. I was disappointed with the lack of world building and the description of the dystopian setting. I know some will really enjoy this book, but it just wasn’t for me at all.
It got a little repetitive and slow moving towards the middle too. Sloane was a very annoying lead, so I got tired of her ‘mourning’. I feel like she could have done more to change her situation (because she obviously wasn’t happy with it), instead of just thinking about herself, and how she was feeling at the time.
Overall, I enjoyed this book, but I feel it has too many flaws for me to continue with the rest of the series. The ending was very inconclusive, but not much was left to happen, so I think this would have worked as a stand-alone too. I know that fans of romance will really enjoy this, so I would recommend it to fans of Shatter Me, though the writing style isn’t as poetic or beautiful.
Rating:
Hello! I'm D - a dog-loving feminist from the UK. You'll probably find me with my nose in a book or playing my clarinet
4 comments
Oh, I get so disappointed when an amazing premise is wasted on romance. There's so many other things you could have done instead, author! Sorry to hear that this book was ultimately lackluster, better luck with your next read :D
ReplyDeleteAentee at Read at Midnight.
It seems to be happening more often in YA books, which is sad. I think the authors / publishers think we want romance - not true! Give me a fight scene over kissing anyday, haha! Thank-you, and thanks for the comment too :)
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ReplyDeleteThank-you very much! I'll be sure to check that out now :)
DeleteThanks for commenting! I read and respond to every comment, so make sure to check back to see my reply. Have a nice day! ☺♥