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mindytemplin's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
4.5
dlew's review against another edition
3.0
A girl vs the leadership. I thought it was missing the meat of the story.
theme - has a plant in the title or on the cover
theme - has a plant in the title or on the cover
jenabrownwrites's review against another edition
5.0
"My mother's words come back to me: "Beware of beauty in this life, child. It will break your heart."
Daughter 4254 is a haunting dystopian set in a world far in the future. A world where only things deemed "useful" are legal. Beauty, art, love, color, compassion, laughter. These are not useful. They do not feed the population or help them fight illness, or live. so they are illegal. Forbidden. Names aren't useful, so citizens are given numbers instead.
We meet Daughter 4254 as she struggles in a prison. We don't know her crime, only that she fears having her mind wiped. Her very essence wiped from her brain, leaving her useful (and compliant) body in return. The days progress miserably, and we see that while positive emotion is frowned upon, absence of it doesn't make people kind or tolerant. It leaves them harsh and sterile instead.
"Our civilization cannot survive if we don't all comply. We have limited resources and must make the best use of everything, including our time."
Statham alternates each chapter to be a Before and an After. Before prison and after. The tension in seeing what life is like between these two timeframes is incredible. Each reality holds its own horror, and the entire time you are wondering what could she have done to have landed in prison. And, even more importantly, what will happen next. In this way we get a lot of backstory for this society without losing the tension or fast pacing of the plot. It is quite remarkable to write a story where I want to know both what happened, what's happening and what's going to happen all at the same time!
Life for 4254 gets interesting when for reasons unknown to her, she is moved to a new cell block. One where she can hear and see other prisoners, though she is ordered to not speak to them. One prisoner in particular, Thomas, with a name not a number doesn't listen to rules though.
"He smiles at me, an irresistible grin filled with mischief and mayhem."
I loved this book! Dystopian novels always hold a special place in my heart, especially when they examine the dark underside of humanity. I found this society fascinating. Every detail that emerged made complete sense in the construct of their logic, and yet was just as horrifying to imagine. Even worse, (or better, for dystopian sake), was that it was easy to see how a society like this could emerge. There are some very famous psychological experiments that this society felt very similar to. It was chilling how similar they felt.
Daughter 4254 ends with the possibility of more to come, and I do hope this story continues! I need to know more, and am looking forward to exploring this world outside of the confines of a prison or strict community structure. More exists, and I can't wait to unravel it. I am especially excited to see the development of 4254 herself. She was already pushing boundaries within herself, but was still stuck within the logic of how she was raised. It will be interesting to see how freedom truly helps her evolve into a more developed person.
Even the nature of the rebellion itself felt like there was more to them than we initially saw. Are they actually good, or not? Its an interesting question that I'm dying to learn more about! I also hope we see more of 4254's roommate, 0203. She was a fascinating character, curious and smart, and I really hope she plays a larger role in upcoming books.
This is my first novel by Statham but I am already a fan! I will be dying to read the next book and will be looking up her other books in the meantime.
Anyone who loves good dystopian fiction needs to read this book! It is a fast read that will simply leave you breathless in it's pages. You'll love getting to know these characters while reviling the society they live in. Dystopian at it's best, if you ask me. Daughter 4254 comes out November 7.
Thank you Rockstar book Tours for sending me a copy to read and review for this tour!
Want a chance to win a finished copy??? Head over to my blog for a chance to win one of two finished copies OR a $25 Amazon gift card!!!
Daughter 4254 is a haunting dystopian set in a world far in the future. A world where only things deemed "useful" are legal. Beauty, art, love, color, compassion, laughter. These are not useful. They do not feed the population or help them fight illness, or live. so they are illegal. Forbidden. Names aren't useful, so citizens are given numbers instead.
We meet Daughter 4254 as she struggles in a prison. We don't know her crime, only that she fears having her mind wiped. Her very essence wiped from her brain, leaving her useful (and compliant) body in return. The days progress miserably, and we see that while positive emotion is frowned upon, absence of it doesn't make people kind or tolerant. It leaves them harsh and sterile instead.
"Our civilization cannot survive if we don't all comply. We have limited resources and must make the best use of everything, including our time."
Statham alternates each chapter to be a Before and an After. Before prison and after. The tension in seeing what life is like between these two timeframes is incredible. Each reality holds its own horror, and the entire time you are wondering what could she have done to have landed in prison. And, even more importantly, what will happen next. In this way we get a lot of backstory for this society without losing the tension or fast pacing of the plot. It is quite remarkable to write a story where I want to know both what happened, what's happening and what's going to happen all at the same time!
Life for 4254 gets interesting when for reasons unknown to her, she is moved to a new cell block. One where she can hear and see other prisoners, though she is ordered to not speak to them. One prisoner in particular, Thomas, with a name not a number doesn't listen to rules though.
"He smiles at me, an irresistible grin filled with mischief and mayhem."
I loved this book! Dystopian novels always hold a special place in my heart, especially when they examine the dark underside of humanity. I found this society fascinating. Every detail that emerged made complete sense in the construct of their logic, and yet was just as horrifying to imagine. Even worse, (or better, for dystopian sake), was that it was easy to see how a society like this could emerge. There are some very famous psychological experiments that this society felt very similar to. It was chilling how similar they felt.
Daughter 4254 ends with the possibility of more to come, and I do hope this story continues! I need to know more, and am looking forward to exploring this world outside of the confines of a prison or strict community structure. More exists, and I can't wait to unravel it. I am especially excited to see the development of 4254 herself. She was already pushing boundaries within herself, but was still stuck within the logic of how she was raised. It will be interesting to see how freedom truly helps her evolve into a more developed person.
Even the nature of the rebellion itself felt like there was more to them than we initially saw. Are they actually good, or not? Its an interesting question that I'm dying to learn more about! I also hope we see more of 4254's roommate, 0203. She was a fascinating character, curious and smart, and I really hope she plays a larger role in upcoming books.
This is my first novel by Statham but I am already a fan! I will be dying to read the next book and will be looking up her other books in the meantime.
Anyone who loves good dystopian fiction needs to read this book! It is a fast read that will simply leave you breathless in it's pages. You'll love getting to know these characters while reviling the society they live in. Dystopian at it's best, if you ask me. Daughter 4254 comes out November 7.
Thank you Rockstar book Tours for sending me a copy to read and review for this tour!
Want a chance to win a finished copy??? Head over to my blog for a chance to win one of two finished copies OR a $25 Amazon gift card!!!
carmenrm's review against another edition
3.0
The story was ok but there was a huge lack of world building and context about how the society become that way. The author just give the reader a basic idea and that's all. The other thing that bothered me a lot about the book was the "instant love" which was not exactly instant. I liked the way it started but suddenly it become a "you're the love of my life and i can't leave without you but i barely know you" thing. It would have been much more realistic if the author kept the slow grow of the relationship.
A thing a liked a lot and about which i wanted to see more during the book is 0203 and her projects, she was such an interesting character (a lot more than our main one). I hope there's more about her in the second book.
A thing a liked a lot and about which i wanted to see more during the book is 0203 and her projects, she was such an interesting character (a lot more than our main one). I hope there's more about her in the second book.
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