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Possession #1
Possession
Vi knows the Rule: Girls don't walk with boys, and they never even think about kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the Rules more than Zenn ... and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi's future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself.
But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they're set on convincing Vi to become one of them ... starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can't leave Zenn in the Thinkers' hands, but she's wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous—everything Zenn's not. Vi can't quite trust Jag and can't quite resist him, but she also can't give up on Zenn.
This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.
But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they're set on convincing Vi to become one of them ... starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can't leave Zenn in the Thinkers' hands, but she's wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous—everything Zenn's not. Vi can't quite trust Jag and can't quite resist him, but she also can't give up on Zenn.
This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.
416 pages, Hardcover
First published June 7, 2011
180 people are currently reading
31865 people want to read
About the author
Elana Johnson
178 books2,078 followers3-time USA Today bestselling author Elana Johnson writes adult contemporary beach romance. She is the author of over 130 books across two names, and there's nothing better than sun, sand, and swoon-worthy kisses! Unless it's a sweet-and-sexy cowboy - read those under her pen name of Liz Isaacson. Or an emotional, heartfelt women's fiction novel - read those under her pen name of Jessie Newton.
Learn more at:
www.elanajohnson.com
www.lizisaacson.com
www.authorjessienewton.com
Learn more at:
www.elanajohnson.com
www.lizisaacson.com
www.authorjessienewton.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,234 reviews
November 13, 2011
Oy vey. What was going on in this book? Seriously.
The first thing that comes to mind when I think of this book is unorganised. It reads like a first draft where Johnson just wrote whatever came to mind, and then didn't go back to fix the inaccuracies. Nothing makes sense, and there is no clear vision as to what's supposed to be happening. The world-building, in short, sucks balls.
Then there's the characters. Holy crap, I hate Violet. She is dumber than Bella Swan in every way. The choices she makes are half-assed, and hardly thought through. I'm surprised that she managed to survive all 400 pages of this book.
Yeah, I hated this book. I'm surprised that it managed to get published. This is just another pointless dystopian that rips off 1984 and has all of the angst and a shoddy love triangle where both guys are massive jerks. *yawn*
The first thing that comes to mind when I think of this book is unorganised. It reads like a first draft where Johnson just wrote whatever came to mind, and then didn't go back to fix the inaccuracies. Nothing makes sense, and there is no clear vision as to what's supposed to be happening. The world-building, in short, sucks balls.
Then there's the characters. Holy crap, I hate Violet. She is dumber than Bella Swan in every way. The choices she makes are half-assed, and hardly thought through. I'm surprised that she managed to survive all 400 pages of this book.
Yeah, I hated this book. I'm surprised that it managed to get published. This is just another pointless dystopian that rips off 1984 and has all of the angst and a shoddy love triangle where both guys are massive jerks. *yawn*
April 19, 2012
I felt like there was a significant lack of thorough world-building going on with this one. Lots of things just did not make sense, and led me to believe that they existed in the story merely to move the plot or characterization along. For instance, how does it make sense to put Jag and Vi, both apparently dangerous criminals, in the SAME JAIL CELL, when there is a whole entire room full of empty cells? And then to leave it minimally guarded so that escape is possible (yet is mysteriously never able to be fully realized)? That just screams rape scenario to me, and resulted in me not feeling the weird relationship between the two of them at all.
And then there was the scene in which Vi eats really good food in jail, in which she eats ham or something, and remarks that she doesn't know what ham is. So the guards or Jag told her the term "ham"? Otherwise, she would not know the term. I mean, COME ON. The most important part of any dystopian novel is credibility and logic. I felt like this book left that aside in favor of advancing some magical li'l "romance" between Jag and Vi.
Speaking of which...no. Just no. I think YA readers should be discouraged from falling in love with someone about whom the only thing they know is that he is "bad" and thus in jail or whatever. Come on, Vi. You claim to be smart and rebellious (what is up with that, by the way? You say you're a smart character but all you do is scream and kick and fight and you do no THINKING at all) but then end up just as enraptured by love as the next addlepated "dystopian" "heroine." Note the quotation marks. Yes, they are there on purpose.
I never thought I'd say I'm tired of dystopians, but the recent deluge in the YA genre of poorly conceived dystopians that sacrifice believability and thoroughness for the sake of the illusion they call "luuuuv" is beginning to make me think I'm done with this subgenre. And that is a terrible, terrible thing for a book to lead YA readers to.
And then there was the scene in which Vi eats really good food in jail, in which she eats ham or something, and remarks that she doesn't know what ham is. So the guards or Jag told her the term "ham"? Otherwise, she would not know the term. I mean, COME ON. The most important part of any dystopian novel is credibility and logic. I felt like this book left that aside in favor of advancing some magical li'l "romance" between Jag and Vi.
Speaking of which...no. Just no. I think YA readers should be discouraged from falling in love with someone about whom the only thing they know is that he is "bad" and thus in jail or whatever. Come on, Vi. You claim to be smart and rebellious (what is up with that, by the way? You say you're a smart character but all you do is scream and kick and fight and you do no THINKING at all) but then end up just as enraptured by love as the next addlepated "dystopian" "heroine." Note the quotation marks. Yes, they are there on purpose.
I never thought I'd say I'm tired of dystopians, but the recent deluge in the YA genre of poorly conceived dystopians that sacrifice believability and thoroughness for the sake of the illusion they call "luuuuv" is beginning to make me think I'm done with this subgenre. And that is a terrible, terrible thing for a book to lead YA readers to.
May 31, 2012
Oh dear. Someone is going to have to tell me what the hell happened in this book, because I couldn’t follow any of it.
It’s not often I so badly rate a book, but I have to be honest, Possession was disjointed, incoherent, with unlikable, inconsistent characters and a rambling plot. And the synopsis sounded so promising.
One of the most important aspects in a dystopian to get right is the world building, and Possession’s was vague to say the least. A quick run down on what I did manage to grasp:
There’s the Goodlands and the Badlands where the Goodies and the Baddies live. The Baddies aren’t actually bad, they simply want to have the freedom to wear what they want, dye their hair any colour they like, live how they wish etc. The Goodies submit to authority and control, via brainwashing for the most part. The Goodlands are technologically advanced, have very strict rules such as no showing any skin, no boys or girls to have contact (I always wonder about this type of segregation – particularly in a dystopian future. Not everyone is heterosexual, just saying) and they use mind control to maintain order. It’s a fairly basic set up and nothing particularly original jumps out so far.
Vi, our heroine, (I use this term loosely – as she does spend an awful lot of time unconscious or sulking), is a ‘Good girl’ who doesn’t like to do as she’s told. Arrested within the opening chapter for walking in the park with her boyfriend, she ends up in a cell with Jag, a ‘Bad boy’… and you probably have a good idea of where things go from here. Fed up with her attitude (in some ways I’m not sure I really blame them), Vi is banished to the Badlands. I’m not entirely clear on why this is a sensible punishment, sending a loose cannon to where, presumably, the rebellious sit around plotting, or even why Vi is so upset about it. For all her talk and hatred of the system, when push comes to shove, she doesn’t actually want to leave.. Both Vi and Jag are sentenced to be tagged, so they take off and run… immediately to the Badlands.
There are far too many inconsistencies to list here, but I did wonder why it was so easy for Vi to just stroll across the border? Why was there a tech range about a stone’s throw away from Jag’s treehouse? How is it he’s never noticed it before? He’s meant to be a rebel, so surely he should be more aware of these things?
Characters appear out of nowhere, situations arise randomly, the story jumps around with no warning and nothing is ever explained. So many different Capitalised names are thrown at you, I couldn’t follow them all. There’s Rangers, Mind Rangers, Thinkers, Goodie Raiders, Mechs, the Associations of Directors, Free Thinkers, Insiders, Special Forces, Greenies…
The language is childish but then overly convoluted to describe the simplest of things, such as Vi blacking out. I’ve read, and loved, books where information is withheld from the reader for a reason. Where the plot and sentence structure is beautifully or intelligently crafted in a way that carries the story and you know eventually everything will piece together and make perfect sense. Possession isn’t one of those books. It’s simply sloppy and I’m have to say it, poorly written. It’s told from Vi’s (aggravating) point of view but every so often we would suddenly be in Jag’s head, with no indication there had been a switch of narration. I actually read another review where they weren’t sure if there wasn’t three different narrators! Someone here is missing something and I’m not so sure it’s the readers.
Possession is also, unfortunately, one of the worst examples of the dreaded ‘insta-love’. Violet is deeply in love with Zenn, her best friend/boyfriend of five years, but within 24 hours of sharing a cell with Jag, is head over heels for him. There’s no foundation or reason for it, other than he is attractive (though I can’t say the blue hair does it for me, but each to their own), In fact, Jag treats Violet like dirt. He blames her for things beyond her control, regularly throws a tantrum and runs off in a huff, leaving Violet to fend for herself in the middle of nowhere, lies to her continuously (for her own good and because he simply can), controls her with his own powers (usually when he wants to make out with her), and has a tendency to randomly burst into tears. There were times when I wondered whether he was entirely sane. As a character, Violet isn’t much better. She whines far too much, is foolish and has a know-it-all attitude that grated from page one. Neither is she quite the rebel she seems to think she is.
The there’s the irritating trait of having your characters do something incredibly stupid and illogical for no reason, other than it creates some action/tension/drama.
‘He has to do this’.
‘Well why?’
‘Because he does’.
‘But, why does he though?’
‘Because that’s the way it has to be’.
But why??!? Sob the reader and the protagonist.
This type of cryptic nonsense happens a lot in this book.
I will say the ending had some merit (though it far too similar to Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies) and would have been quite good, had the rest of the book allowed us to actually care about these characters.
I don’t know why I forced myself to keep reading this, other than I paid money for this book and I was damned if I was going to let it beat me. I almost felt like an idiot after closing it and had no freaking idea of what on earth happened in this 400+ page book. Fortunately, a quick glance at Goodreads reassured me that I wasn’t alone in feeling this way. It seems I’m not the only one who was left utterly bewildered. Sorry Johnson, but this ones going on the donate pile.
“No.’ I shook my head. ‘No.’ This could not be happening. I would not abandon Jag. He filled my empty places.’ ~ page 377
‘I tilted my face up to his and he rested his forehead against mine. ‘I mean it, Vi. Without you, I would die. You really are my Choker. I’ve never felt so full.’ ~ 316
It’s not often I so badly rate a book, but I have to be honest, Possession was disjointed, incoherent, with unlikable, inconsistent characters and a rambling plot. And the synopsis sounded so promising.
One of the most important aspects in a dystopian to get right is the world building, and Possession’s was vague to say the least. A quick run down on what I did manage to grasp:
There’s the Goodlands and the Badlands where the Goodies and the Baddies live. The Baddies aren’t actually bad, they simply want to have the freedom to wear what they want, dye their hair any colour they like, live how they wish etc. The Goodies submit to authority and control, via brainwashing for the most part. The Goodlands are technologically advanced, have very strict rules such as no showing any skin, no boys or girls to have contact (I always wonder about this type of segregation – particularly in a dystopian future. Not everyone is heterosexual, just saying) and they use mind control to maintain order. It’s a fairly basic set up and nothing particularly original jumps out so far.
Vi, our heroine, (I use this term loosely – as she does spend an awful lot of time unconscious or sulking), is a ‘Good girl’ who doesn’t like to do as she’s told. Arrested within the opening chapter for walking in the park with her boyfriend, she ends up in a cell with Jag, a ‘Bad boy’… and you probably have a good idea of where things go from here. Fed up with her attitude (in some ways I’m not sure I really blame them), Vi is banished to the Badlands. I’m not entirely clear on why this is a sensible punishment, sending a loose cannon to where, presumably, the rebellious sit around plotting, or even why Vi is so upset about it. For all her talk and hatred of the system, when push comes to shove, she doesn’t actually want to leave.. Both Vi and Jag are sentenced to be tagged, so they take off and run… immediately to the Badlands.
There are far too many inconsistencies to list here, but I did wonder why it was so easy for Vi to just stroll across the border? Why was there a tech range about a stone’s throw away from Jag’s treehouse? How is it he’s never noticed it before? He’s meant to be a rebel, so surely he should be more aware of these things?
Characters appear out of nowhere, situations arise randomly, the story jumps around with no warning and nothing is ever explained. So many different Capitalised names are thrown at you, I couldn’t follow them all. There’s Rangers, Mind Rangers, Thinkers, Goodie Raiders, Mechs, the Associations of Directors, Free Thinkers, Insiders, Special Forces, Greenies…
The language is childish but then overly convoluted to describe the simplest of things, such as Vi blacking out. I’ve read, and loved, books where information is withheld from the reader for a reason. Where the plot and sentence structure is beautifully or intelligently crafted in a way that carries the story and you know eventually everything will piece together and make perfect sense. Possession isn’t one of those books. It’s simply sloppy and I’m have to say it, poorly written. It’s told from Vi’s (aggravating) point of view but every so often we would suddenly be in Jag’s head, with no indication there had been a switch of narration. I actually read another review where they weren’t sure if there wasn’t three different narrators! Someone here is missing something and I’m not so sure it’s the readers.
Possession is also, unfortunately, one of the worst examples of the dreaded ‘insta-love’. Violet is deeply in love with Zenn, her best friend/boyfriend of five years, but within 24 hours of sharing a cell with Jag, is head over heels for him. There’s no foundation or reason for it, other than he is attractive (though I can’t say the blue hair does it for me, but each to their own), In fact, Jag treats Violet like dirt. He blames her for things beyond her control, regularly throws a tantrum and runs off in a huff, leaving Violet to fend for herself in the middle of nowhere, lies to her continuously (for her own good and because he simply can), controls her with his own powers (usually when he wants to make out with her), and has a tendency to randomly burst into tears. There were times when I wondered whether he was entirely sane. As a character, Violet isn’t much better. She whines far too much, is foolish and has a know-it-all attitude that grated from page one. Neither is she quite the rebel she seems to think she is.
The there’s the irritating trait of having your characters do something incredibly stupid and illogical for no reason, other than it creates some action/tension/drama.
‘He has to do this’.
‘Well why?’
‘Because he does’.
‘But, why does he though?’
‘Because that’s the way it has to be’.
But why??!? Sob the reader and the protagonist.
This type of cryptic nonsense happens a lot in this book.
I will say the ending had some merit (though it far too similar to Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies) and would have been quite good, had the rest of the book allowed us to actually care about these characters.
I don’t know why I forced myself to keep reading this, other than I paid money for this book and I was damned if I was going to let it beat me. I almost felt like an idiot after closing it and had no freaking idea of what on earth happened in this 400+ page book. Fortunately, a quick glance at Goodreads reassured me that I wasn’t alone in feeling this way. It seems I’m not the only one who was left utterly bewildered. Sorry Johnson, but this ones going on the donate pile.
“No.’ I shook my head. ‘No.’ This could not be happening. I would not abandon Jag. He filled my empty places.’ ~ page 377
‘I tilted my face up to his and he rested his forehead against mine. ‘I mean it, Vi. Without you, I would die. You really are my Choker. I’ve never felt so full.’ ~ 316
January 26, 2011
High quality dystopian fiction. The sarcastic voice is distinct, and possibly my favorite part of the book. As far as the conclusion goes, I was really satisfied, even if (or perhaps especially because) it's not what you would expect. I can't wait to hear what comes next from Elana Johnson!
July 20, 2024
My Thoughts:
I had low expectations to begin with, since this book sounded like a ripoff of countless other books, like Matched and its less-successful ripoffs. (Think "1984" but dumbed down by publishers who think teen girls can't read.) But this book truly outdid all knockoff dystopians in its terribleness. The plot is a mess, the characters annoying, and the setting barely explained at all.
The Plot
Can I hear one collective "ugh?" Thank you.
First off, it was just annoyingly cliched. You have your Orwellian society where everyone is watched, with your garden-variety evil government run by spawn-of-Satan evil people. And of course, they've brainwashed everyone except our chick, who is hanging out with her boyfriend Zenn, some bland white-toast nice guy. Until, voila, hot James Dean-esque rebel Jag sweeps her off her feet! And they run away to a place where they can be free for*INSTALOVE* *TRUE LOVE.*
And the lingo is very convenient for identifying the stereotypical "good boys" and "bad boys." The mindless, wholesome people are called "Goodies" and the punk rock, nonconformist people are called "Baddies." The "Baddies" are of course ultimate "bad boys," liking loud music, partying, black, spiky hair, etc. It's like the author put the names in as filler labels to be changed into something more original at a later time, then forgot.
It only got worse.
Way too many of my questions started going unanswered. Like, for example, why does the government never enforce the Badlands (where the Baddies all live)? If being Baddie is so bad, not enforcing the Badlands is like taking all the inmates from a max security prison, putting them in a random part of the country without any guards or supervision, and expecting them not to cause any trouble. Also, why do the Thinkers (evil government people w. weird superpowers that are never explained) lock up Jag and Vi in normal jail for not following government rules, but when they recapture the two, they change their minds and decide even if they're supposedly impossible to be integrated into normal society, they'll still be perfect Thinkers-in-training?
Plus, Vi and Jag kept lying to each other, and then Jag kept ditching Vi. Over and over again. If I got a dollar for every time they lied or Jag ditched Vi, there would be a worldwide economic collapse. Although they have a supposedly amazing relationship, they don't seem to realize that loving someone requires being supportive and open, not just acting petulant.
And, every time there was a slight problem, Vi or Jag would use their "magical mystery powers" or whatever and VOILA! The problem would magically go away! The powers were never really defined, leading to plenty of confusion over what Vi and Jag and all the other people with weird powers could do. For the Thinkers, evil people in government, the big thing is mind control. Rangers, who are good in some parts of the book and bad in some parts of the book, can do mind control, technology sensing, and a bunch of other random stuff. I had no idea what the big difference between a Thinker and a Ranger was, because some Rangers worked for the evil government.
I was wondering if the book could get any worse. IT DID.
The events started jumbling together and making zero sense. Some of the sentences started sounding like hallucinations rather than actual writing, something that would only make sense if someone was on drugs. Example:
You're probably thinking there must be SOME precedent for Vi getting cryptic prophecies in her toothpaste, but I didn't get this paragraph, even though I actually read the book. The only thing I can figure out is that "sticker" is the kind of tracker on Vi, which can't be taken off. Your guess to this scene's meaning is as good as mine.
Another nonsense example.
"'See, [Jake] programs the simulator to for 3 talents- tech, elements, and genetic adaptions. Every ranger falls into one of those categories...So, did you pilot the helicopter?' [Jag] asked. 'Or did you ride the wind? Or maybe you adapted. Sprouted wings, perhaps?'" (page 369)
I understand Rangers have powers, like mind control and tech sensing, but do the "elements" mean you can Airbend like in Avatar? And "genetic adaptions" mean you can just sprout wings like Maximum Ride? This is unprecedented. No one in the book ever sprouts wings or airbends, so it's totally random.
Characters
Vi is supposed to be a plucky punk teenager, but she's dumber than a "dumb Bella" and acts like a petulant toddler. Example of her TDTL-ness: she talks about how she has this special gift to sense tech, yet she never figures out she can control it until, like, halfway through the book, even though a whole boatload of "coincidences" happen- she wishes for a robot to shut up, and it shuts off. She wishes for her handcuffs to break, and they break. Also, she has special powers and makes some guy's eyes glaze over and do what she says, yet she's super shocked when someone tells her she can control people. Geez girl, better not fight in the rebellion. You can't afford to lose any more brain cells. And she's a pathological liar and hypocrite. She gets pissed when Jag lies to her, but lies to him all the freaking time.
Also, even though Jag is supposedly the love of her life, every time he does something mildly annoying, she explodes and goes into a teenage temper tantrum and does something dumb, like ditch him in the wilderness to go "on her own," even though she knows next to nothing about survival.
Her narration annoys the heck out of me. She's constantly thinking about how hot Jag is, how pissed she is at him, or having an existential crisis of who she should be with, Jag or Zenn. Of course, she never thinks about important things, like *how to escape from prison* or *how to improve her mind control so as to not get killed.* Her romantic language made me gag.
"[Jag] was right. He wasn't bad. He was perfect."
About Jag: he's sweet sometimes, but I didn't like him. Just some other cardboard bad boy I could have pulled from any other dystopian. Plus, he's a jerk. He keeps ditching Vi in the middle of the woods and stuff, yet still has the nerve to say he loves her. He even ditches her just because she doesn't say she loves him the way he wants her to.
Harsh.
I think the author is trying to make him seem sensitive, but in reality, no one reacts like that except that stereotypical woman on sitcoms who thinks everything her husband says is an insinuation that she's fat.
He also acts "emo" in other places, too. "'But I'm not really bad, you know. That's just what you guys call us. We're really just like you.'" (page 56) Aww, how sweet. He's misunderstood. Let's throw a pity party!
And Zenn? I couldn't figure out what his allegiances were. So first he's a super Goodie (someone who follows the government), a Special Forces agent, but he hangs with Vi and throws illegal parties. THEN, he sells out Vi to the Goodies by planting a tracker on her. THEN, you find out in Jag's flashback THEN, Vi says kissing her was actually a betrayal of the Thinkers...
Romance
Total instalove. Zenn is Vi's boyfriend of years, yet suddenly, after thirty pages, she's head over heels for Jag. Jag himself sums it up perfectly: "You've loved [Zenn] for five years, but you've only known me for, like, a week." (page 291)
Plus, even bad-boy Jag gets super cheesy love dialogue. "You're my choker, Vi. I've never felt so full."
Please choke him! I can't take this anymore!
And of course, to make things worse, there's a bad boy versus good boy love triangle.
Setting
There's not so much setting as an absence of setting. I had so many questions about it.
The Tech, which played a big part in the book, was never fully explained. Questions about tech:
1. Is Techtricity different from electricity?
2. Is there any reason for Tech to be capitalized?
3. What are ascenders and descenders?
4. How do Mechs sense bar codes if they're UNDER YOUR SKIN?
Also, the dystopian society had plenty of convenient holes. 5.If the Goodies are total mindless slaves, and security is actually that strict, how come it's so easy for teens to sneak out and throw parties? 6. If tech has FLASHING LIGHTS, how come nobody except *speshul* people like Vi can see it? 7. Vi's universe has things like cubes that can make food, wearable cameras, and teleportation. Yet they still have touch screen phones, helicopters, and Tasers. (Good thing to know Apple won't be going out of business anytime soon.) It's like a person from 100 years ago saying that in 100 years, people will have clean transportation, music that you can carry in your pocket, etc, but people still have telegraphs and ride in horse drawn wagons. There's also the problem of how much free reign the Baddies get.
And the butt-kicking powers were never fully explained. 8. Do all rangers have powers? 9. What is a ranger, anyways? 10. Can all rangers use mind control? 11. If so, what's the difference between a ranger and a thinker? 12. How does Thinker mind control work? 13. How does Vi interface with Tech? 14. Why do Zenn and Jag have the same powers?
In short, Possession turned out to be a mess. I want my reading time back.
I had low expectations to begin with, since this book sounded like a ripoff of countless other books, like Matched and its less-successful ripoffs. (Think "1984" but dumbed down by publishers who think teen girls can't read.) But this book truly outdid all knockoff dystopians in its terribleness. The plot is a mess, the characters annoying, and the setting barely explained at all.
The Plot
Can I hear one collective "ugh?" Thank you.
First off, it was just annoyingly cliched. You have your Orwellian society where everyone is watched, with your garden-variety evil government run by spawn-of-Satan evil people. And of course, they've brainwashed everyone except our chick, who is hanging out with her boyfriend Zenn, some bland white-toast nice guy. Until, voila, hot James Dean-esque rebel Jag sweeps her off her feet! And they run away to a place where they can be free for
And the lingo is very convenient for identifying the stereotypical "good boys" and "bad boys." The mindless, wholesome people are called "Goodies" and the punk rock, nonconformist people are called "Baddies." The "Baddies" are of course ultimate "bad boys," liking loud music, partying, black, spiky hair, etc. It's like the author put the names in as filler labels to be changed into something more original at a later time, then forgot.
It only got worse.
Way too many of my questions started going unanswered. Like, for example, why does the government never enforce the Badlands (where the Baddies all live)? If being Baddie is so bad, not enforcing the Badlands is like taking all the inmates from a max security prison, putting them in a random part of the country without any guards or supervision, and expecting them not to cause any trouble. Also, why do the Thinkers (evil government people w. weird superpowers that are never explained) lock up Jag and Vi in normal jail for not following government rules, but when they recapture the two, they change their minds and decide even if they're supposedly impossible to be integrated into normal society, they'll still be perfect Thinkers-in-training?
Plus, Vi and Jag kept lying to each other, and then Jag kept ditching Vi. Over and over again. If I got a dollar for every time they lied or Jag ditched Vi, there would be a worldwide economic collapse. Although they have a supposedly amazing relationship, they don't seem to realize that loving someone requires being supportive and open, not just acting petulant.
And, every time there was a slight problem, Vi or Jag would use their "magical mystery powers" or whatever and VOILA! The problem would magically go away! The powers were never really defined, leading to plenty of confusion over what Vi and Jag and all the other people with weird powers could do. For the Thinkers, evil people in government, the big thing is mind control. Rangers, who are good in some parts of the book and bad in some parts of the book, can do mind control, technology sensing, and a bunch of other random stuff. I had no idea what the big difference between a Thinker and a Ranger was, because some Rangers worked for the evil government.
I was wondering if the book could get any worse. IT DID.
The events started jumbling together and making zero sense. Some of the sentences started sounding like hallucinations rather than actual writing, something that would only make sense if someone was on drugs. Example:
I grabbed a blue teeth-cleaning tablet and chewed it.
Smiling widely, I examined my tongue. Through the blue foam, a message swam. I willed it to stay so I could read it.
"Stickers only stick when there is danger
To remove the adhesive, use a ranger." (page 221)
You're probably thinking there must be SOME precedent for Vi getting cryptic prophecies in her toothpaste, but I didn't get this paragraph, even though I actually read the book. The only thing I can figure out is that "sticker" is the kind of tracker on Vi, which can't be taken off. Your guess to this scene's meaning is as good as mine.
Another nonsense example.
"'See, [Jake] programs the simulator to for 3 talents- tech, elements, and genetic adaptions. Every ranger falls into one of those categories...So, did you pilot the helicopter?' [Jag] asked. 'Or did you ride the wind? Or maybe you adapted. Sprouted wings, perhaps?'" (page 369)
I understand Rangers have powers, like mind control and tech sensing, but do the "elements" mean you can Airbend like in Avatar? And "genetic adaptions" mean you can just sprout wings like Maximum Ride? This is unprecedented. No one in the book ever sprouts wings or airbends, so it's totally random.
Characters
Vi is supposed to be a plucky punk teenager, but she's dumber than a "dumb Bella" and acts like a petulant toddler. Example of her TDTL-ness: she talks about how she has this special gift to sense tech, yet she never figures out she can control it until, like, halfway through the book, even though a whole boatload of "coincidences" happen- she wishes for a robot to shut up, and it shuts off. She wishes for her handcuffs to break, and they break. Also, she has special powers and makes some guy's eyes glaze over and do what she says, yet she's super shocked when someone tells her she can control people. Geez girl, better not fight in the rebellion. You can't afford to lose any more brain cells. And she's a pathological liar and hypocrite. She gets pissed when Jag lies to her, but lies to him all the freaking time.
Also, even though Jag is supposedly the love of her life, every time he does something mildly annoying, she explodes and goes into a teenage temper tantrum and does something dumb, like ditch him in the wilderness to go "on her own," even though she knows next to nothing about survival.
Her narration annoys the heck out of me. She's constantly thinking about how hot Jag is, how pissed she is at him, or having an existential crisis of who she should be with, Jag or Zenn. Of course, she never thinks about important things, like *how to escape from prison* or *how to improve her mind control so as to not get killed.* Her romantic language made me gag.
"[Jag] was right. He wasn't bad. He was perfect."
About Jag: he's sweet sometimes, but I didn't like him. Just some other cardboard bad boy I could have pulled from any other dystopian. Plus, he's a jerk. He keeps ditching Vi in the middle of the woods and stuff, yet still has the nerve to say he loves her. He even ditches her just because she doesn't say she loves him the way he wants her to.
'I don't know what it is. You're...' I couldn't think of the right word that wouldn't reveal my longing. 'Different.'
He dropped his hands and pushed past me, his eyes reflecting a glimmer of moonlight.
'Jag?' I trotted to keep up with him. 'What did I say?'
'I get it now,' he said, his voice harsh. 'You only like me because I'm bad.'
'That's not true.'
'--and I'm just a new adventure for you...But guess what?...I'm not your next rule breaking expedition, Violet.'"(page 109)
Harsh.
I think the author is trying to make him seem sensitive, but in reality, no one reacts like that except that stereotypical woman on sitcoms who thinks everything her husband says is an insinuation that she's fat.
He also acts "emo" in other places, too. "'But I'm not really bad, you know. That's just what you guys call us. We're really just like you.'" (page 56) Aww, how sweet. He's misunderstood. Let's throw a pity party!
And Zenn? I couldn't figure out what his allegiances were. So first he's a super Goodie (someone who follows the government), a Special Forces agent, but he hangs with Vi and throws illegal parties. THEN, he sells out Vi to the Goodies by planting a tracker on her. THEN, you find out in Jag's flashback THEN, Vi says kissing her was actually a betrayal of the Thinkers...
Romance
Total instalove. Zenn is Vi's boyfriend of years, yet suddenly, after thirty pages, she's head over heels for Jag. Jag himself sums it up perfectly: "You've loved [Zenn] for five years, but you've only known me for, like, a week." (page 291)
Plus, even bad-boy Jag gets super cheesy love dialogue. "You're my choker, Vi. I've never felt so full."
Please choke him! I can't take this anymore!
And of course, to make things worse, there's a bad boy versus good boy love triangle.
Setting
There's not so much setting as an absence of setting. I had so many questions about it.
The Tech, which played a big part in the book, was never fully explained. Questions about tech:
1. Is Techtricity different from electricity?
2. Is there any reason for Tech to be capitalized?
3. What are ascenders and descenders?
4. How do Mechs sense bar codes if they're UNDER YOUR SKIN?
Also, the dystopian society had plenty of convenient holes. 5.If the Goodies are total mindless slaves, and security is actually that strict, how come it's so easy for teens to sneak out and throw parties? 6. If tech has FLASHING LIGHTS, how come nobody except *speshul* people like Vi can see it? 7. Vi's universe has things like cubes that can make food, wearable cameras, and teleportation. Yet they still have touch screen phones, helicopters, and Tasers. (Good thing to know Apple won't be going out of business anytime soon.) It's like a person from 100 years ago saying that in 100 years, people will have clean transportation, music that you can carry in your pocket, etc, but people still have telegraphs and ride in horse drawn wagons. There's also the problem of how much free reign the Baddies get.
And the butt-kicking powers were never fully explained. 8. Do all rangers have powers? 9. What is a ranger, anyways? 10. Can all rangers use mind control? 11. If so, what's the difference between a ranger and a thinker? 12. How does Thinker mind control work? 13. How does Vi interface with Tech? 14. Why do Zenn and Jag have the same powers?
In short, Possession turned out to be a mess. I want my reading time back.
August 12, 2016
I blame this on too many dystopian love-triangle books in a row, so this rating is partly my fault. I got about a third of the way through and just stopped reading. Maybe I'll come back to it later.
November 20, 2010
A dystopian novel for young adults, Elana Johnson's debut novel, Possession, will be published by Simon & Schuster in June, 2011.
From the author's website:
Vi knows the Rule: Girls don't walk with boys, and they never even think about kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the Rules more than Zenn...and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi's future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself.
But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they're set on convincing Vi to become one of them...starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can't leave Zenn in the Thinkers' hands, but she's wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous--everything Zenn's not. Vi can't quite trust Jag and can't quite resist him, but she also can't give up on Zenn.
This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.
If you couldn't get enough of Scott Westerfeld's series THE UGLIES and have suffered from the cavernous void of emptiness since finishing reading that series, cheer up. POSSESSION will help you breathe again.
The main character (from who's point of view the story is told), Vi, has a fresh and unique voice that brings the whole story to life. I dont' think I've read such a strong teen voice, well, ever. Vi is believable, sympathetic and unapologetically human.
This book has two hunks vying for Vi's attention and the story will keep you guessing until the very end as to who is the right choice for Vi. Be prepared to take sides. I can see Team Jag and Team Zenn tee's already.
Elana's created a world that merges awesome science fiction with real life and all of it set in a world that's just similar enough to our own to make it scary. You can see how certain choices we might make today could lead to a world of such extremes. And in the end, the moral of the story is the same one we face every day: Is there really one right way? Because nothing can ever be so black and white, so Good and Bad. Can it?
Truly excellent story telling and fantastic character drive this story with a heart that has meaning for all of us.
From the author's website:
Vi knows the Rule: Girls don't walk with boys, and they never even think about kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the Rules more than Zenn...and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi's future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself.
But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they're set on convincing Vi to become one of them...starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can't leave Zenn in the Thinkers' hands, but she's wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous--everything Zenn's not. Vi can't quite trust Jag and can't quite resist him, but she also can't give up on Zenn.
This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.
If you couldn't get enough of Scott Westerfeld's series THE UGLIES and have suffered from the cavernous void of emptiness since finishing reading that series, cheer up. POSSESSION will help you breathe again.
The main character (from who's point of view the story is told), Vi, has a fresh and unique voice that brings the whole story to life. I dont' think I've read such a strong teen voice, well, ever. Vi is believable, sympathetic and unapologetically human.
This book has two hunks vying for Vi's attention and the story will keep you guessing until the very end as to who is the right choice for Vi. Be prepared to take sides. I can see Team Jag and Team Zenn tee's already.
Elana's created a world that merges awesome science fiction with real life and all of it set in a world that's just similar enough to our own to make it scary. You can see how certain choices we might make today could lead to a world of such extremes. And in the end, the moral of the story is the same one we face every day: Is there really one right way? Because nothing can ever be so black and white, so Good and Bad. Can it?
Truly excellent story telling and fantastic character drive this story with a heart that has meaning for all of us.
November 15, 2011
Ugh! I seriously could NOT get into this book! The reader is thrown right away into this dystopian world in which the Goodies and the Baddies do not agree, obviously. The Thinkers are these brainwasher-types who fight and condemn freewill. The premise had promise (heh) but that's it. Once you start reading this book, it just...UGH! We get absolutely no world-building (and yes, I appreciate it when it happens in dystopian books!), no real reason to like Violet OR Jag, and Zenn is completely non-existent!!
Jag and Vi, I'm sorry, but they are not believable! Of course, that's a huge issue of mine with most of the YA books these days (girl meets boy; girl falls for boy within a milisecond; boy is bad, but not really! He's misunderstood; boy has loved girl from the beginning...blah, blah, blah!)though most of the time I can overlook it. I couldn't with this book. Vi just doesn't seem likable to me and just because the hair is dark and short, spunky does not a protagonist make.
Overall, I really, REALLY disliked this book. I returned it as soon as I figured out I wouldn't be able to get past the first 100 pages.
Jag and Vi, I'm sorry, but they are not believable! Of course, that's a huge issue of mine with most of the YA books these days (girl meets boy; girl falls for boy within a milisecond; boy is bad, but not really! He's misunderstood; boy has loved girl from the beginning...blah, blah, blah!)though most of the time I can overlook it. I couldn't with this book. Vi just doesn't seem likable to me and just because the hair is dark and short, spunky does not a protagonist make.
Overall, I really, REALLY disliked this book. I returned it as soon as I figured out I wouldn't be able to get past the first 100 pages.
March 29, 2011
I had a hard time getting into this book. I think the potential was there but it didn't grab me. I didn't feel connected with the characters and was getting frustrated with Violet, the leading heroin. This story is similar to Matched, The Giver and Dilirium.
I just really wanted to like this book more but it just wasn't happening. It was just an okay read for me.
I just really wanted to like this book more but it just wasn't happening. It was just an okay read for me.
December 28, 2010
Loved this book. It's action-packed, and the genre can only be described as a YA paranormal dystopia with a snarky female protagonist.
May 28, 2021
This was a weird roller coaster of a book. Listen. If you read any of the one star ratings for this book, they make many many points that I agree with. There was no world building, there's no reason to root for Vi and Jag other than the fact that they're the main characters, and pretty much nothing about this book made sense. So why did I rate this 4 stars? Because despite the nonsense, I actually really enjoyed this.
I genuinely don't know who I'm supposed to trust in this story. Vi? Jag? Zenn? I don't trust any of them lmao. I have so many questions, and honestly I don't even know if they'll be answered in the next book if the way things went in this book is anything to go by. I'm still adding the sequel to the top of my TBR pile though lol.
I genuinely don't know who I'm supposed to trust in this story. Vi? Jag? Zenn? I don't trust any of them lmao. I have so many questions, and honestly I don't even know if they'll be answered in the next book if the way things went in this book is anything to go by. I'm still adding the sequel to the top of my TBR pile though lol.
July 12, 2011
In the past few weeks I have read some amazing dystopian novels and looking back now I wish I would have waited to read this one to give it a fair chance. I can't really decide if I liked this one or not since I still have Legend and Divergent and I don't know if anything will ever measure up to those 2 books. That being said I did enjoy Possession on some level but it just wasn't strong enough in my opinion to stand out in a crowd of books.
The story centers around Violet, a baddie criminal who just wants freedom. She lives in a place where everything is controlled including who you talk to, what you wear, your job, and even interaction between parents and their children. Every person must log into a transmission at night where they are taught the "proper" ways to live. Violet learns how to get around this and thus begins her criminal career. When the court decides that she is just not able to follow rules any longer they decide to throw her and Jag a fellow rule breaker in a cell to be transferred later to the Badlands (a place of banishment). Things start unraveling from there and Violet discovers that in order to survive she must find her Father who left her when she was 7. Does she find him, you will have to read to find out but the adventure there is a long one so be prepared.
So the story sounds good, well probably not my retelling but you get the drift. I think I would have liked this one better if the main characters would have been more likable. I started out loving Violet, she is a strong girl who isn't afraid to break the rules, but my goodness this child is whiny. I got so tired of reading her inner monologues because they were always about the same things and sometimes it seemed like the whole paragraph was just copied and pasted. Jag wasn't much better either. I read a lot of YA and I know that instalove is a big thing but these two really broke the record with falling in love after 2 days. I had to read that part twice to make sure that I read it right and yup it took them two days to fall in love and Violet had a boyfriend, who was her match and she loved, at the time. I guess out of sight out of mind worked for her? The whole triangle felt weird, I never believed that anybody loved anybody and it didn't help that with every page there was a new lie that was uncovered to show that all they cared about was themselves. So yeah the romance fell really flat with me.
I think that the concept of the book needed more structure also. After finishing the book I am still confused about so many things. I would list them but I don't want to type out that much, I will just say that the whole tech world that Johnson has created needs to be explained more. I was so shocked about all the special abilities also. Mind control and voice control are a huge part of the story and while I think they fit the author tended to turn them off when she wanted. I just don't understand why Violet didn't use her talents at the end with the final showdown. It doesn't make any sense.
I really wanted to like this one and maybe i would have if I had read it before a few others but after writing this review I have come to the conclusion that this book would probably have bothered me know matter what.
Thank you Kirsten for letting me borrow it I really appreciate it =)
The story centers around Violet, a baddie criminal who just wants freedom. She lives in a place where everything is controlled including who you talk to, what you wear, your job, and even interaction between parents and their children. Every person must log into a transmission at night where they are taught the "proper" ways to live. Violet learns how to get around this and thus begins her criminal career. When the court decides that she is just not able to follow rules any longer they decide to throw her and Jag a fellow rule breaker in a cell to be transferred later to the Badlands (a place of banishment). Things start unraveling from there and Violet discovers that in order to survive she must find her Father who left her when she was 7. Does she find him, you will have to read to find out but the adventure there is a long one so be prepared.
So the story sounds good, well probably not my retelling but you get the drift. I think I would have liked this one better if the main characters would have been more likable. I started out loving Violet, she is a strong girl who isn't afraid to break the rules, but my goodness this child is whiny. I got so tired of reading her inner monologues because they were always about the same things and sometimes it seemed like the whole paragraph was just copied and pasted. Jag wasn't much better either. I read a lot of YA and I know that instalove is a big thing but these two really broke the record with falling in love after 2 days. I had to read that part twice to make sure that I read it right and yup it took them two days to fall in love and Violet had a boyfriend, who was her match and she loved, at the time. I guess out of sight out of mind worked for her? The whole triangle felt weird, I never believed that anybody loved anybody and it didn't help that with every page there was a new lie that was uncovered to show that all they cared about was themselves. So yeah the romance fell really flat with me.
I think that the concept of the book needed more structure also. After finishing the book I am still confused about so many things. I would list them but I don't want to type out that much, I will just say that the whole tech world that Johnson has created needs to be explained more. I was so shocked about all the special abilities also. Mind control and voice control are a huge part of the story and while I think they fit the author tended to turn them off when she wanted. I just don't understand why Violet didn't use her talents at the end with the final showdown. It doesn't make any sense.
I really wanted to like this one and maybe i would have if I had read it before a few others but after writing this review I have come to the conclusion that this book would probably have bothered me know matter what.
Thank you Kirsten for letting me borrow it I really appreciate it =)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 23, 2013
Oh boy, yet another amazing book that has left with a hugely annoying cliffhanger waiting for me till the next year *sigh*
Violet the main character in the story and a badass if I dare say, and has an amazing and scary life, her sister got taken away and killed 3 years ago, her dad disappeared 7 years ago and no one knows where he is.
This Dystopian novel is also technology bases as was the last novel I read, both are in a world where technology is mostly everything and the leader will do nothing to stop the control he has on everybody, people are forced to wear certain things, eat certain things, there not allowed to interact with the opposite sex and there is absolutely not touching whatsoever past the age of 8. Not even parents can touch them to comfort them or give them hugs.
Violet has been in trouble with the law 8 times, but the last time she abided the law was the last straw. She was sentenced and thrown in a cell with a boy who she didn’t even know, meanwhile she’s constantly thinking about Zenn the boy she loves and her match.
While Jag and Violet are in the cell violet has to think of an escape, they can’t stay in here, Somehow Violet and Jag escape and then begins their journey. As their journey continues and they are faced with hundreds of near death situations, Violet finds the power she never knew she had; she can control people with her mind. Just like Jag can control people just by saying something.
I know what you’re thinking, not another love triangle. But in “possession” it fits. I never thought that Zenn was right for her anyway.
While reading this book I have been thinking of some similarities between the books “Matched” and “Delirium” but all books are all creatively different. Dystopian is my new favorite YA genre and I love it.
By the way, team Jag all the way ;)
Violet the main character in the story and a badass if I dare say, and has an amazing and scary life, her sister got taken away and killed 3 years ago, her dad disappeared 7 years ago and no one knows where he is.
This Dystopian novel is also technology bases as was the last novel I read, both are in a world where technology is mostly everything and the leader will do nothing to stop the control he has on everybody, people are forced to wear certain things, eat certain things, there not allowed to interact with the opposite sex and there is absolutely not touching whatsoever past the age of 8. Not even parents can touch them to comfort them or give them hugs.
Violet has been in trouble with the law 8 times, but the last time she abided the law was the last straw. She was sentenced and thrown in a cell with a boy who she didn’t even know, meanwhile she’s constantly thinking about Zenn the boy she loves and her match.
While Jag and Violet are in the cell violet has to think of an escape, they can’t stay in here, Somehow Violet and Jag escape and then begins their journey. As their journey continues and they are faced with hundreds of near death situations, Violet finds the power she never knew she had; she can control people with her mind. Just like Jag can control people just by saying something.
I know what you’re thinking, not another love triangle. But in “possession” it fits. I never thought that Zenn was right for her anyway.
While reading this book I have been thinking of some similarities between the books “Matched” and “Delirium” but all books are all creatively different. Dystopian is my new favorite YA genre and I love it.
By the way, team Jag all the way ;)
July 5, 2011
Saw this on PulseIt and decided to give it a whirl. I admit, I was lured by the gorgeous cover. However, Possession is a shining example of the saying, "Don't judge a book by its cover."
The plot is the kind where, on paper, it sounds like a great idea, but the actual result fell very flat. It felt like all the ideas were just thrown together. It felt disjointed. I didn't understand many of the terms specific to this book because nothing was explained, nor were there enough hints provided for me to understand it myself.
Somehow the story went from rebellious girl being thrown in prison to running away to some "outside" land to her finding out she can mind control people and technology and that her And then it turns out a whole bunch of other people have special powers, so now they seem like a band of superheroes ... I don't know. I didn't get it. The story didn't flow properly.
The relationships were horrible as well. Everyone seemed to know everyone one way or another. It was way too coincidental. And the "love" between Vi and Jag felt like it was smashed together with no rhyme or reason. Vi talks about how in love she is with Zenn in the first chapter, and two chapters later, she is head over heels in love with Jag, for no apparent reason. I mean, she got thrown into jail, into the same cell as Jag (which didn't make sense to me because I thought boys and girls have to kept separate in this world?) and within a day she's forgotten about Zenn and is all about Jag. And why? From what I can tell, because he's good looking.
I think this book could have been really good, but the execution was very confusing and the funky coincidences and cheap relationships just made this a book that felt like it didn't have a lot of heart in it.
The plot is the kind where, on paper, it sounds like a great idea, but the actual result fell very flat. It felt like all the ideas were just thrown together. It felt disjointed. I didn't understand many of the terms specific to this book because nothing was explained, nor were there enough hints provided for me to understand it myself.
Somehow the story went from rebellious girl being thrown in prison to running away to some "outside" land to her finding out she can mind control people and technology and that her And then it turns out a whole bunch of other people have special powers, so now they seem like a band of superheroes ... I don't know. I didn't get it. The story didn't flow properly.
The relationships were horrible as well. Everyone seemed to know everyone one way or another. It was way too coincidental. And the "love" between Vi and Jag felt like it was smashed together with no rhyme or reason. Vi talks about how in love she is with Zenn in the first chapter, and two chapters later, she is head over heels in love with Jag, for no apparent reason. I mean, she got thrown into jail, into the same cell as Jag (which didn't make sense to me because I thought boys and girls have to kept separate in this world?) and within a day she's forgotten about Zenn and is all about Jag. And why? From what I can tell, because he's good looking.
I think this book could have been really good, but the execution was very confusing and the funky coincidences and cheap relationships just made this a book that felt like it didn't have a lot of heart in it.
November 10, 2011
So, this is scary to write a review about this book, because the author is my friend, neighbor, sister in the Gospel, and my HOME TEACHER (she and her husband together home teach us). When I review books on Goodreads, I just say what I feel about whether I liked it or not. When I read other reviews, I notice that people get all professional by using phrases such as "beautiful prose", "lyrical", and "the imagery was astounding." I think if you were to look at some of my reviews you would see that my comments are of a lesser sort. I can't give this five stars because I'm not especially fond of teen lit, the dystopian genre, or whatever we're calling all of this. It's just not my thing. But of course I wanted to read Elana's work! So, the angst. Let's just say that I much prefer to read historical fiction and realistic fiction. Tech. Mech. I just don't get into all that, but from time to time, I do try to broaden my horizons and stretch my mind a wee bit. I'll keep trying. The good news is that I actually finished the book. That says a LOT. I gave up on the vampires a loooooong time ago.
So, I just finished this book AGAIN. Last night. For a class. 11/09/2011. My review is about the same. I DID understand everything much better this time and did NOT remember very much from the first time I read it. More enjoyable the second time around!
So, I just finished this book AGAIN. Last night. For a class. 11/09/2011. My review is about the same. I DID understand everything much better this time and did NOT remember very much from the first time I read it. More enjoyable the second time around!
did-not-finish
September 28, 2012Despite how many attempts I made to sit down and read POSSESSION (at least five different times and couldn't make it past page 20), I simply could not get into this story.
Perhaps it's burnout again. It's possible that I'm getting sick of the same typical dystopian societies in YA now. The girls are either baby makers, zombies are eating brains, or love is forbidden and girls are paired up with boys they're initially madly in love with... until they meet "the bad boy." Then all bets are off.
I thought I had quite some time before I began complaining about dystopians, but apparently, POSSESSION was the final push to make me wary of yet another YA genre.
Honestly, I think the more likely culprit was the fact that the heroine's voice left me uninterested. I had no idea what the hell was going on in the world, and frankly, I could not get myself to care--even within the first ten pages.
I'm not one to give up on a book without at least getting through 50 pages, but I couldn't make myself continue. If I'm flipping back and counting down until I'm done with a book, I already know the author's lost me; it's like reading high school US history books all over again.
Unfortunately, this one's a DNF for me.
Perhaps it's burnout again. It's possible that I'm getting sick of the same typical dystopian societies in YA now. The girls are either baby makers, zombies are eating brains, or love is forbidden and girls are paired up with boys they're initially madly in love with... until they meet "the bad boy." Then all bets are off.
I thought I had quite some time before I began complaining about dystopians, but apparently, POSSESSION was the final push to make me wary of yet another YA genre.
Honestly, I think the more likely culprit was the fact that the heroine's voice left me uninterested. I had no idea what the hell was going on in the world, and frankly, I could not get myself to care--even within the first ten pages.
I'm not one to give up on a book without at least getting through 50 pages, but I couldn't make myself continue. If I'm flipping back and counting down until I'm done with a book, I already know the author's lost me; it's like reading high school US history books all over again.
Unfortunately, this one's a DNF for me.
December 28, 2011
Oh my gosh, so good! I loved this book!!!!!
Read it!!!
Here is the book blurb:
Vi knows the Rule: Girls don't walk with boys, and they never even think about kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the Rules more than Zenn...and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi's future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself.
But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they're set on convincing Vi to become one of them...starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can't leave Zenn in the Thinkers' hands, but she's wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous--everything Zenn's not. Vi can't quite trust Jag and can't quite resist him, but she also can't give up on Zenn.
This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.
Read it!!!
Here is the book blurb:
Vi knows the Rule: Girls don't walk with boys, and they never even think about kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the Rules more than Zenn...and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi's future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself.
But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they're set on convincing Vi to become one of them...starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can't leave Zenn in the Thinkers' hands, but she's wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous--everything Zenn's not. Vi can't quite trust Jag and can't quite resist him, but she also can't give up on Zenn.
This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.
June 11, 2012
What's this? A dystopian romance? Why, how new! How unexpected! And it's the first in a series, you say? My goodness! The vapors!
I slogged through just about 3/4 of this and I'm giving up. It's not very good. It's disjointed. I don't care about any of the characters. I don't care if they live happily ever after or take down society or whateverthehell they do with their magical powers, where one can control people with his voice and the other can just THINK at things to make them work. It's like the Wonder Twins crossed with Superman--there's nothing they can't do, so... yawn. Oh, they're in a predicament? OH LOOK THEY USED THEIR MAGIC POWERS AND NOW THEY'RE SAFE.
With 80 pages to go, I could have just knocked it out, but I just didn't want to. Now I'll never know how it ends. I'm okay with that.
I slogged through just about 3/4 of this and I'm giving up. It's not very good. It's disjointed. I don't care about any of the characters. I don't care if they live happily ever after or take down society or whateverthehell they do with their magical powers, where one can control people with his voice and the other can just THINK at things to make them work. It's like the Wonder Twins crossed with Superman--there's nothing they can't do, so... yawn. Oh, they're in a predicament? OH LOOK THEY USED THEIR MAGIC POWERS AND NOW THEY'RE SAFE.
With 80 pages to go, I could have just knocked it out, but I just didn't want to. Now I'll never know how it ends. I'm okay with that.
Read
November 29, 2012Got this for 4.99$ today, hopefully I wasn't ripped off.
I may have been.
I may have been.
August 17, 2011
After a forbidden walk in the park with her match, Zenn, Violet loses her status as a Goodie. The Thinkers have been monitoring Vi's behavior for a long time--ever since her sister Ty's death when Violet unplugged herself from the transmissions that tells the Goodies how they are to think and act. While imprisoned, Vi meets Jag Barque, a young man who is a Baddie. Vi knows she no longer has a future with Zenn, who is now working for the Forces. She is drawn into Jag's world--one where he can think and act on his own desires.
But the Thinkers have other plans for Vi; they want her to become one of them. A high ranking official has a very special interest in Violet, and the things that she is capable of doing. Joining their cause means she will get Zenn back, but Violet is certain that it is Jag she loves, even if she doesn't trust him. Who will Violet choose?
I'd heard a lot of excited buzz about Elana Johnson's debut novel, so I bumped it up on my TBR--only to end up super disappointed. I consider myself to be pretty familiar with dystopian novels, especially ones written for the YA crowd. Immediately I disliked Violet's voice, and Johnson's writing style. Certainly she writes with simple sentences that take very little brain power to decipher, but it's the plot development and the structure that ruin what could have otherwise been a more than acceptable addition to dystopian fiction.
I re-read the front flap after finishing POSSESSION, and found myself wondering if the person who wrote it read POSSESSION, or if they were just as confused as I was while reading this trippy novel. The front flap leads you to believe that Violet's match, Zenn, is an important character in the novel, and that Violet must go through some trials to save him. The majority of the novel is interactions between Violet and Jag, and we only meet Zenn through flashbacks and memories until he finally makes a few appearances later on.
I haven't had a chance yet to see what others have thought of this book, but I imagine there is probably a whole Team Zenn vs. Team Jag. Well, I'm for neither. Zenn felt very...hollow. I didn't think that he had much personality, and couldn't figure out what he had that made Violet so gaga for him. Jag has more personality, but I didn't trust him at all. I didn't in the least feel myself attracted to him. Violet would be better off without both of them.
POSSESSION confused and irritated me to no end when it randomly started switching scenes and also narrative voices. We would sometimes end up in Jag's head, where he would be narrating for a page or two, but there was no lead up to this happening; the transition was poorly made. If I'm figuring correctly, Violet, Jag, and Lyle are the 3 different voices we hear, but it all sounds the same. Johnson does absolutely nothing to make them sound different from each other, and if this was intentional, I really didn't like it.
I think the ending, however, is actually pretty decent. For a certain type of reader, the ending will be very disappointing. But it worked for me, even if the rest of the book was a catastrophic failure on so many levels.
Apparently a companion novel is in the works, but I will be passing on it to seek out better written and structured dystopian novels.
But the Thinkers have other plans for Vi; they want her to become one of them. A high ranking official has a very special interest in Violet, and the things that she is capable of doing. Joining their cause means she will get Zenn back, but Violet is certain that it is Jag she loves, even if she doesn't trust him. Who will Violet choose?
I'd heard a lot of excited buzz about Elana Johnson's debut novel, so I bumped it up on my TBR--only to end up super disappointed. I consider myself to be pretty familiar with dystopian novels, especially ones written for the YA crowd. Immediately I disliked Violet's voice, and Johnson's writing style. Certainly she writes with simple sentences that take very little brain power to decipher, but it's the plot development and the structure that ruin what could have otherwise been a more than acceptable addition to dystopian fiction.
I re-read the front flap after finishing POSSESSION, and found myself wondering if the person who wrote it read POSSESSION, or if they were just as confused as I was while reading this trippy novel. The front flap leads you to believe that Violet's match, Zenn, is an important character in the novel, and that Violet must go through some trials to save him. The majority of the novel is interactions between Violet and Jag, and we only meet Zenn through flashbacks and memories until he finally makes a few appearances later on.
I haven't had a chance yet to see what others have thought of this book, but I imagine there is probably a whole Team Zenn vs. Team Jag. Well, I'm for neither. Zenn felt very...hollow. I didn't think that he had much personality, and couldn't figure out what he had that made Violet so gaga for him. Jag has more personality, but I didn't trust him at all. I didn't in the least feel myself attracted to him. Violet would be better off without both of them.
POSSESSION confused and irritated me to no end when it randomly started switching scenes and also narrative voices. We would sometimes end up in Jag's head, where he would be narrating for a page or two, but there was no lead up to this happening; the transition was poorly made. If I'm figuring correctly, Violet, Jag, and Lyle are the 3 different voices we hear, but it all sounds the same. Johnson does absolutely nothing to make them sound different from each other, and if this was intentional, I really didn't like it.
I think the ending, however, is actually pretty decent. For a certain type of reader, the ending will be very disappointing. But it worked for me, even if the rest of the book was a catastrophic failure on so many levels.
Apparently a companion novel is in the works, but I will be passing on it to seek out better written and structured dystopian novels.
January 21, 2015
POSSESSION
Vi is a young teenage girl, living in a hellish, overly controlled world. Her life is created for her by Thinkers (people who can read your thoughts and brainwash you into doing anything), but she won’t stand for it. Vi is a rebellious girl, who is put into prison for breaking the rules too often. In the prison she meets a boy of the same age, Jag, and they realize they have an immediate connection. Jag and Vi stand up to the Thinkers and their brainwashed citizens and join a rebellion to free the people. Vi and Jag face the toughest challenges of their lives while being stalked and followed by two of the Thinkers, constantly under the threat of losing their lives. Through blood baths, page turning confrontations, and breath taking character revelations, Possession is a book that’s impossible to put down!
Possession was by far one of the best books I’ve read in a long time. Each and every one of the fight scenes had me on the edge of my seat, wondering whose life Elana Johnson was willing to spare. She was able to fully captivate me, I felt so close to the characters that sometimes I had to remind myself I wasnt a part of the book. The way Johnson was able to describe the characters’ actions and decisions was what really made me feel as though all the events were affecting me as well as Jag and Vi. She explained all the events in such deep detail that I always knew how everything looked, and constantly had a movie playing in my head, allowing me to fully understand all the events in the book, and enabling me to make estimates as to what might happen next. Possession is a fast paced book that made me think twice before assuming things about the characters. I found myself second guessing constantly, about who Vi could and could not trust. Elana Johnson always kept me pondering the outcome of all the events, hoping and wondering that all would turn out well for Vi and Jag.
Though Possession was a very fast paced, mind boggling book, it had some down sides. I found that sometimes while reading, I got bored of the way Johnson was describing what was going on, and was often fighting the urge to skip ahead to where the dialogue was taking place. I found that at some points in the book, she could have been a bit more vague, and that she was being excessively detailed about parts of the book that weren’t as important as she made them seem. Overall though, Possession is a very desirable book, that always left me wanting to know more.
To conclude, Possession is the type of book that lures you into the world of the characters. If you’re looking for a quick read, with heart pumping chapters, filled with unanswered questions, leaving you wondering what’s going to happen next, Possession is the right book for you. I hope this review was helpful, and that you enjoy Possession as much as I have!
Happy reading!
Vi is a young teenage girl, living in a hellish, overly controlled world. Her life is created for her by Thinkers (people who can read your thoughts and brainwash you into doing anything), but she won’t stand for it. Vi is a rebellious girl, who is put into prison for breaking the rules too often. In the prison she meets a boy of the same age, Jag, and they realize they have an immediate connection. Jag and Vi stand up to the Thinkers and their brainwashed citizens and join a rebellion to free the people. Vi and Jag face the toughest challenges of their lives while being stalked and followed by two of the Thinkers, constantly under the threat of losing their lives. Through blood baths, page turning confrontations, and breath taking character revelations, Possession is a book that’s impossible to put down!
Possession was by far one of the best books I’ve read in a long time. Each and every one of the fight scenes had me on the edge of my seat, wondering whose life Elana Johnson was willing to spare. She was able to fully captivate me, I felt so close to the characters that sometimes I had to remind myself I wasnt a part of the book. The way Johnson was able to describe the characters’ actions and decisions was what really made me feel as though all the events were affecting me as well as Jag and Vi. She explained all the events in such deep detail that I always knew how everything looked, and constantly had a movie playing in my head, allowing me to fully understand all the events in the book, and enabling me to make estimates as to what might happen next. Possession is a fast paced book that made me think twice before assuming things about the characters. I found myself second guessing constantly, about who Vi could and could not trust. Elana Johnson always kept me pondering the outcome of all the events, hoping and wondering that all would turn out well for Vi and Jag.
Though Possession was a very fast paced, mind boggling book, it had some down sides. I found that sometimes while reading, I got bored of the way Johnson was describing what was going on, and was often fighting the urge to skip ahead to where the dialogue was taking place. I found that at some points in the book, she could have been a bit more vague, and that she was being excessively detailed about parts of the book that weren’t as important as she made them seem. Overall though, Possession is a very desirable book, that always left me wanting to know more.
To conclude, Possession is the type of book that lures you into the world of the characters. If you’re looking for a quick read, with heart pumping chapters, filled with unanswered questions, leaving you wondering what’s going to happen next, Possession is the right book for you. I hope this review was helpful, and that you enjoy Possession as much as I have!
Happy reading!
March 3, 2012
As long as you plug in your fine. You can be a Goodie but what happens when you stop. Vi may know the rules but that doesn't mean that she likes them or follows them and living in a world where the thinkers control it all and control is power, is not easy. This is double true for Vi who wants to believe she is good but tends to do bad things. The question is, is there only black and white, good and bad or is there an area inbetween that she belongs to?
I really enjoyed this book. Dystopian is something I only recently learned about and have really come to love. Elana did an amazing job with writing this new world. Every step of the book the picture is so clear you believe you are there. You will be really captivated with the story and all its characters. This is also a very technalogically advanced future that will appeal to people that science fiction. It's not the main part of the book but plays a very large part.
Violet (aka Vi) is really a strong and emotional charater. Elana does a wonderful job at helping you feel what she is. Though it doesn't always make sense right at the moment she will work right through the feeling. At times I am a little bothered by the amount she talks to herself and about the same thing almost every time but I also think that is part of who she is. I think the time she is at her best is when she is with Jag. Stubborn and hard headed as they can both be, they work. Both of them can see that, not right away but they can. I guess I should also mention Zenn who has been Vi's best friend forever and was hand picked to be her partner. Now I guess you could call this a love triangle but I don't really see it that way. To me Elana created more of a dilemma with the two boys. Like a choice between the easy and familar and the hard and exciting. I personally was rooting for Jag but I know that there are Zenn fans out there somewhere. The end of the book wasn't what I expected but maybe that's because it was not what I wanted and had high hopes that something big was going to happen.
I would recomend this book to anyone that has a love for dystopian books and can handle a little science fiction being thrown into it. This book will pull you from start to finish and leave you wanting more. I think that if you loved the books Open Minds by Susan Kaye Quinn and Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi you will really enjoy this book!!
I really enjoyed this book. Dystopian is something I only recently learned about and have really come to love. Elana did an amazing job with writing this new world. Every step of the book the picture is so clear you believe you are there. You will be really captivated with the story and all its characters. This is also a very technalogically advanced future that will appeal to people that science fiction. It's not the main part of the book but plays a very large part.
Violet (aka Vi) is really a strong and emotional charater. Elana does a wonderful job at helping you feel what she is. Though it doesn't always make sense right at the moment she will work right through the feeling. At times I am a little bothered by the amount she talks to herself and about the same thing almost every time but I also think that is part of who she is. I think the time she is at her best is when she is with Jag. Stubborn and hard headed as they can both be, they work. Both of them can see that, not right away but they can. I guess I should also mention Zenn who has been Vi's best friend forever and was hand picked to be her partner. Now I guess you could call this a love triangle but I don't really see it that way. To me Elana created more of a dilemma with the two boys. Like a choice between the easy and familar and the hard and exciting. I personally was rooting for Jag but I know that there are Zenn fans out there somewhere. The end of the book wasn't what I expected but maybe that's because it was not what I wanted and had high hopes that something big was going to happen.
I would recomend this book to anyone that has a love for dystopian books and can handle a little science fiction being thrown into it. This book will pull you from start to finish and leave you wanting more. I think that if you loved the books Open Minds by Susan Kaye Quinn and Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi you will really enjoy this book!!
March 2, 2011
Vi knows the Rule: Girls don't walk with boys, and they never even think about kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the Rules more than Zenn...and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi's future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself.
But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they're set on convincing Vi to become one of them...starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can't leave Zenn in the Thinkers' hands, but she's wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous--everything Zenn's not. Vi can't quite trust Jag and can't quite resist him, but she also can't give up on Zenn.
This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.
My Take: This is one of those books you read and and think you need to read it again once you know so much more about the characters by the end of the book. I questioned their motives then made different assumptions than I did by the end.
The edges of Good and Bad are blurred in this dystopia. Ultimately, Vi's assessment is that there is no good or bad but freedom of choice is the ultimate prize. What I really liked about the characters is that they seem so average yet as the story progresses, they (and we) discover their gifts. Reality is not as it seems and can be rewritten.
The other thing I liked about this book is an extension of the blurry edges of Good and Bad (and yes, I did capitalize on purpose). The love triangle takes shape early in the book between Vi, Zenn and Jag and they are clearly put into different camps - Jag is bad, Zenn is good, and Vi is heading toward bad. But then this changes. Zenn and Jag may be on the same side or they may have switched sides. Honestly, I had no idea who was good or bad by the end of the book except for one person I have reasonably categorized into "Bad."
If you plan on getting all the answers in this book, you will be disappointed. If you want to start an interesting dystopia trilogy with similarities to Scott Westerfeld's The Uglies, you will enjoy this one.
I know I did. I can't wait for the next book!
Parental warnings: Very few. Sexual tension, mild swearing.
But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they're set on convincing Vi to become one of them...starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can't leave Zenn in the Thinkers' hands, but she's wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous--everything Zenn's not. Vi can't quite trust Jag and can't quite resist him, but she also can't give up on Zenn.
This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.
My Take: This is one of those books you read and and think you need to read it again once you know so much more about the characters by the end of the book. I questioned their motives then made different assumptions than I did by the end.
The edges of Good and Bad are blurred in this dystopia. Ultimately, Vi's assessment is that there is no good or bad but freedom of choice is the ultimate prize. What I really liked about the characters is that they seem so average yet as the story progresses, they (and we) discover their gifts. Reality is not as it seems and can be rewritten.
The other thing I liked about this book is an extension of the blurry edges of Good and Bad (and yes, I did capitalize on purpose). The love triangle takes shape early in the book between Vi, Zenn and Jag and they are clearly put into different camps - Jag is bad, Zenn is good, and Vi is heading toward bad. But then this changes. Zenn and Jag may be on the same side or they may have switched sides. Honestly, I had no idea who was good or bad by the end of the book except for one person I have reasonably categorized into "Bad."
If you plan on getting all the answers in this book, you will be disappointed. If you want to start an interesting dystopia trilogy with similarities to Scott Westerfeld's The Uglies, you will enjoy this one.
I know I did. I can't wait for the next book!
Parental warnings: Very few. Sexual tension, mild swearing.
June 11, 2011
Review courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy
The world in POSSESSION is a complicated mix of dystopian and sci-fi elements that unfortunately is never explained very well. The world is divided into two groups: The Goodies and the Baddies. The Goodies are those who obey the rules, create all the groundbreaking technology, submit to nightly brainwashing transmissions, and dedicate their lives to duty. The Baddies are the ones who live free and make their own rules. There are subdivisions in each group, but again, they were never adequately defined. The first half of the book I didn’t mind the confusion because I expected that eventually everything would be explained. Sadly, that is not the case.
I’m pretty sure that in addition to being some kind of tech Messiah, Violet is bipolar. She goes from pissy and screaming one second to self-pitying and crying the next. I empathized with her frustration when no one would explain to her what her abilities were and the abilities and motivations of those around her, but her whiplash mood swings got old real quick. I was less than thrilled with the two love interests as well, specifically Jag who was almost more emotional than Violet.
There are a couple twists that are no doubt supposed to be shocking but were actually extremely predictable or just not really a big deal. There was, of course, a ideological subtext criticizing totalitarian governments and Big Brother type demagogues, but I had very little energy to find it provocative or even interesting in the face of the worldbuilding and character failings.
Overall, an interesting premise in what had the potential to be an interesting dystopian setting fails to explain itself or portray a likeable protagonist. I should be thankful that I never became invested in this book, because if I had, the ending would have been untenable. POSSESSION is a standalone novel, but there will be a companion book tentatively titled FUGITIVE that will be published in Summer 2012.
Sexual Content:
Kissing
The world in POSSESSION is a complicated mix of dystopian and sci-fi elements that unfortunately is never explained very well. The world is divided into two groups: The Goodies and the Baddies. The Goodies are those who obey the rules, create all the groundbreaking technology, submit to nightly brainwashing transmissions, and dedicate their lives to duty. The Baddies are the ones who live free and make their own rules. There are subdivisions in each group, but again, they were never adequately defined. The first half of the book I didn’t mind the confusion because I expected that eventually everything would be explained. Sadly, that is not the case.
I’m pretty sure that in addition to being some kind of tech Messiah, Violet is bipolar. She goes from pissy and screaming one second to self-pitying and crying the next. I empathized with her frustration when no one would explain to her what her abilities were and the abilities and motivations of those around her, but her whiplash mood swings got old real quick. I was less than thrilled with the two love interests as well, specifically Jag who was almost more emotional than Violet.
There are a couple twists that are no doubt supposed to be shocking but were actually extremely predictable or just not really a big deal. There was, of course, a ideological subtext criticizing totalitarian governments and Big Brother type demagogues, but I had very little energy to find it provocative or even interesting in the face of the worldbuilding and character failings.
Overall, an interesting premise in what had the potential to be an interesting dystopian setting fails to explain itself or portray a likeable protagonist. I should be thankful that I never became invested in this book, because if I had, the ending would have been untenable. POSSESSION is a standalone novel, but there will be a companion book tentatively titled FUGITIVE that will be published in Summer 2012.
Sexual Content:
Kissing
August 5, 2011
Hmmmmm.....
While I had fun reading this story, I'm not exactly sure how I feel about it.
Let's talk a little bit about the characters first. Vi. She is a kick-ass heroine. I'll give her that much, and I liked her, it was fun reading from her point of view. But does she have to get mad. At. Everything!? I felt like she was pissed off the entire novel. Pissed off or crying, it was one or the other, I needed to see something more from her. It was hard to get to know any of the other characters. Although we spend most of our time with Jag, I never felt like I knew him, and their (Vi & Jag's) relationship seemed rushed and unnatural. Zenn we see from a far and in memories.... but what is his appeal? The pieces were there, they just didn't come together as seamlessly as I was hoping. I wanted these characters to give me a lasting impression!
The plot was very fast paced... and I like that. However, I found myself a little confused at times.. flipping back a page and rereading a paragraph trying to discern what had just happened to get the characters in their current situation.
The world was very interesting. It was probably one of my favorite aspects of the novel, yet I feel as though it needed to be a little more developed. Which may have been a direct result of the fast pacing?That being said, Johnson writing style easily introduces readers to this world and it's gadgets. It was that writing style that kept me turning the pages. (And the story too.. because when it all came down to it. I REALLY wanted to know what was going to happen.)
And the ending. That was one heck of an ending. Now that made a lasting impression.
That ending and the story itself... will keep me in anticipation for book two.
While I had fun reading this story, I'm not exactly sure how I feel about it.
Let's talk a little bit about the characters first. Vi. She is a kick-ass heroine. I'll give her that much, and I liked her, it was fun reading from her point of view. But does she have to get mad. At. Everything!? I felt like she was pissed off the entire novel. Pissed off or crying, it was one or the other, I needed to see something more from her. It was hard to get to know any of the other characters. Although we spend most of our time with Jag, I never felt like I knew him, and their (Vi & Jag's) relationship seemed rushed and unnatural. Zenn we see from a far and in memories.... but what is his appeal? The pieces were there, they just didn't come together as seamlessly as I was hoping. I wanted these characters to give me a lasting impression!
The plot was very fast paced... and I like that. However, I found myself a little confused at times.. flipping back a page and rereading a paragraph trying to discern what had just happened to get the characters in their current situation.
The world was very interesting. It was probably one of my favorite aspects of the novel, yet I feel as though it needed to be a little more developed. Which may have been a direct result of the fast pacing?That being said, Johnson writing style easily introduces readers to this world and it's gadgets. It was that writing style that kept me turning the pages. (And the story too.. because when it all came down to it. I REALLY wanted to know what was going to happen.)
And the ending. That was one heck of an ending. Now that made a lasting impression.
That ending and the story itself... will keep me in anticipation for book two.
September 6, 2011
Since I read "The Hunger Games", I have devoured the dystopian genre. For the most part, I have enjoyed each book, and each author does his/her part to create a unique spin on the genre.
I haven't finished Possession yet, but so far I don't have anything positive to say about it. So here is a short list of the reasons why this book should stay on the shelf.
1. The characters' names-- I read book reviews for YA books every day, and I have seen some terrible names in current YA fiction i.e. Tansy, Elvira, etc. However, this book takes the cake. We have our heroine Vi, and the two boys who complete her love triangle: Zenn and Jag. And yes, those are their real names. I can't take the book seriously when I read the name Jag. (Also Jag has two brothers, Pace and Blaze)
2. Sector Names-- The government is ruled by the Thinkers (how original), but even more original are the names of the two types of people who live in this society. It is a war between the Baddies and the Goodies. Do you think you can figure that one out?
3. The Dilemma-- Vi, our heroine, grew up a Goodie, but she has escaped the Goodlands and is now on the run in the Badlands. Can she be both good and bad at the same time? Do we care?
4. Ridiculous plot-- If you can't already tell, this book is horrible. I'm still reading it because I can't give up hope that something will turn around, and the book will magically redeem itself. It would take a miracle.
I haven't finished Possession yet, but so far I don't have anything positive to say about it. So here is a short list of the reasons why this book should stay on the shelf.
1. The characters' names-- I read book reviews for YA books every day, and I have seen some terrible names in current YA fiction i.e. Tansy, Elvira, etc. However, this book takes the cake. We have our heroine Vi, and the two boys who complete her love triangle: Zenn and Jag. And yes, those are their real names. I can't take the book seriously when I read the name Jag. (Also Jag has two brothers, Pace and Blaze)
2. Sector Names-- The government is ruled by the Thinkers (how original), but even more original are the names of the two types of people who live in this society. It is a war between the Baddies and the Goodies. Do you think you can figure that one out?
3. The Dilemma-- Vi, our heroine, grew up a Goodie, but she has escaped the Goodlands and is now on the run in the Badlands. Can she be both good and bad at the same time? Do we care?
4. Ridiculous plot-- If you can't already tell, this book is horrible. I'm still reading it because I can't give up hope that something will turn around, and the book will magically redeem itself. It would take a miracle.
April 6, 2014
I'm still in the mood for the Dystopian/Apocalyptic books, particularly so because the last few I read were fabulous. Possession by Elana Johnson was, however, a let down.
Violet lives with the Goodies, who always obey the Thinkers. The Baddies, however, live for themselves and break all of the rules. Vi knows what will get her into trouble and she breaks the rules anyways; walking with her match in the park after dark, which earn her a one way ticket to prison... in a cell with another boy named Jag... yeah. Things develop between Jag and Vi as she finds herself compelled by him. When the opportunity comes to escape the two take it and find themselves running from those in control.
I was intrigued for a bit of the book but as things went on I found my interest subsiding. I wasn't really a fan of Vi, or Johnson's numerous inner dialogue asides (annoying!), or the whole "This is Vi-speech for, or Jag-speech for"... Blah. I was over it very quickly. I fell that this premise could have been something more. However, Johnson missed the mark and that makes this a mediocre book.
3 out of 5 stars. Meh. I won't bother with the sequel.
- review courtesy of www.bibliopunkkreads.com
February 10, 2011
Book 10 for 2011. Elana Johnson does a fantastic job of bringing something fresh and unique to the dystopian world with POSSESSION. What really makes POSSESSION stand apart is the fantastic voice of Violet. She's sarcastic, an unlikely heroine, and makes you fall in love with her just like the two guys in the love triangle. Totally recommended for fans of dystopic fiction and paranormal fantasy, seventh grade and up.
September 9, 2015
Possession was one of those books I picked up with high expectations & that I really wanted to like.
I had several issues with this book, but the biggest one was the character's credibility. I know people act strange sometimes, but Vi & Jag surpassed that.
I don't think finishing this book would have relieved my confusion & frustration. Maybe someday I'll pick it up & give it another chance, who knows.
January 2, 2015
I can't believe I made it as far as I did in this book.
The world building is virtually nonexistent and makes no whatsoever. The protagonist is dumb and dull. The plot was just . . . so all over the place. Complete disorganization, this book!
The world building is virtually nonexistent and makes no whatsoever. The protagonist is dumb and dull. The plot was just . . . so all over the place. Complete disorganization, this book!
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