Book Review- XVI

By Juila Karr

Published by Puffin/Speak

Released on January 6th, 2011

Source- ARC from author Kiki Hamilton

Stars- 3.5 It's A Good Read

Nina Oberon's life is pretty normal: she hangs out with her best friend, Sandy, and their crew, goes to school, plays with her little sister, Dee. But Nina is 15. And like all girls she'll receive a Governing Council-ordered tattoo on her 16th birthday. XVI. Those three letters will be branded on her wrist, announcing to all the world—even the most predatory of men—that she is ready for sex. Considered easy prey by some, portrayed by the Media as sluts who ask for attacks, becoming a "sex-teen" is Nina's worst fear. That is, until right before her birthday, when Nina's mom is brutally attacked. With her dying breaths, she reveals to Nina a shocking truth about her past—one that destroys everything Nina thought she knew. Now, alone but for her sister, Nina must try to discover who she really is, all the while staying one step ahead of her mother's killer (quoted from Goodreads).

I'll admit, when I started reading XVI I was a little worried it was going to turn into another futuristic book, dealing with teenagers gone wild, living in a dystopian world with a government who controlled their every move. I struggled through the first half of the book, as the world in which XVI is set is a little like that. It's the second half that I loved as it's characters really stand out as the story picks up, secrets are unraveled, action ensues and romance blossoms.

Here's what I loved about XVI, Nina! Nina is an empowering main character and not some sex crazed one who's looking forward to receiving the tattoo that marks the other sixteen yr old girls around her. Nina's society is one that feels they can take something so valuable away from young women, most with out their consent, and others with it, as the girls are trained to think they are entering an elite program. Even Nina's best friend is looking forward to turning sixteen. What I loved about Nina, is she's not like the rest of the girls. She will not let someone make that decision for her. Nina becomes an even stronger character when she mother is brutally murdered, and she's told that her father, whom she thought was dead is alive. Nina must find him and protect her younger sister from her mother's killer.

Julia Karr has done a wonderful job at painting a very vivid picture of a world who's government is run by the media, where sixteen yr old girls become property of the government and a toy to men. Julia shocked me and made me think, as XVI's futuristic government has a tiered society who track everyone's move through a GPS system and when the girls turn 16, they get a Governing Council tattoo and are forced into something they have no choice over, sexual exploration. They control the way people think, what they do, and what happens to them, everything is dictated by the media. More than once I found myself thinking of some of the similarities of XVI and reality. Let me say, there is a lot more to the book than "s", which is referenced many times, but not shown. In a society as brutal as this one, Nina has some really amazing friends to rely on. What I enjoyed most about the second half of the book was seeing how these relationships continue to grow and how much stronger they become. Two my favorites are Sal, the love interest and Wei. These three characters really made the second half of the book for me.

Nina, Sal and Wei are all strong characters who stand together in believing that no one has the right to take their identity away from them. These characters are what I loved about the story. Though they are all at different tiers, they all form a strong bond, which I loved. I really liked the romance as it's unique in that Nina and Sal are not two teens madly in love wanting to rip each other's closes off. That's not to say they don't have teenage urges, which makes them realistic, but they have a relationship that is more than just physical and in case your wondering, no they don't do anything that the society would like them to do. I am looking forward to finding out what is in store for Nina in XVI's sequel. XVI is a thought provoking dystopian book, with strong characters, action, and a sweet romance. I would recommend to readers 15 & up, as there are a few references to sex, though nothing graphic and no scenes.

You can visit Julia on her sites here Web& here 2K11 & follow her on Twitter.