Defy
by
Sara B. Larson
Publication
Date: Jan 7th 2014
Publisher:
Scholastic
Source: Publisher
Source: Publisher
Find
This Book: Defy
Rating:
5/5
I won this book in a giveaway on Goodreads. This has not altered my opinion in any way and my review will be honest, as usual.
I just want to
start off profusely thanking Sara Larson and Scholastic for an arc copy of
Defy! I loved this book and it’s characters and have definitely become a fan :)
I can’t wait until it comes out and I’ll have people to talk about it with
haha. But for now I’ll have to settle for a review.
Defy is about Alexa
Hollen, a girl disguised as a guy to serve in the king’s army. Her parents were
killed when she and her twin brother, Marcel, were 14. Male orphans are forced
into the army, and female orphans are forced into the breeding house where once
they hit puberty they are raped to breed more men for the army. To save herself
from that fate she and Marcel become twin ‘brothers’ and she now goes by the
name Alex. She is pretty badass and unbeatable in a sword fight, which earns
her a spot on the elite prince’s guard. How she manages to do all of that
without revealing her secret, I have no idea. However, she’s no match for a
sorcerer that abducts the prince, herself, and her fellow guard Rylan. Being in
close quarters soon makes it obvious that she isn’t a guy, but fortunately for
the reader, unfortunately for the characters, everyone has their share of
secrets as tensions rise! Now Alex/a must trust the very people who might break
her heart in order to stop a war and save the kingdom from an even deadlier
enemy.
So as mentioned
above, I LOOOOVVVVVED this book. I didn’t read it in one sitting (time not
permitting), but I wished I had. I did, however, finish it in less than 24
hours since it showed up at my house though, so that must count for something. This
book was so beautifully written that I found it hard to believe that Larson was
a debut author! For me, the mark of a good author is A) me wanting to quote
parts, scenes, or something a character says (Check!) and B) developing the
characters to the point where the reader can just KNOW who is talking without
it necessarily being specified (Check!). Alexa’s brother, Marcel was easily one
of my favorite characters in the book. Even though he wasn’t in it long, he was
so intellectual and caring, always protecting his sister even when she didn’t
know it. This book’s Love Triangle consists of Rylan, her long-time friend and
crush, the sweet, caring, concerned, brotherly type, and then there’s Damian,
the lazy spoiled brat who isn’t all that he seems. In fact, it turns out that
Damian is actually a great guy in his own right and god did I ship Damian and
Alexa together <3
Most importantly,
Alexa was a well-built character that is respectable and a great role model.
Despite all she goes through, she learns about love and sacrifice, but most
importantly she learns about how to be herself. With great side characters to
back her up, she manages to make it through the intense plot twists in this
splendid face-paced novel. Another enjoyable aspect of the novel was the
setting in the rainforest. I found the concept and it’s affects on the
characters intriguing and refreshing.
I just have a
couple things I’d like to say about what I didn’t like about the book, because
there was a couple. There were plenty of unexplained parts that would’ve really
added to the book if they had been addressed/ addressed in detail. Such as how
some people caught on to the fact that she was a girl. Never explained, they
just know! Also, how the heck did she possibly keep her secret, especially
whenever it was her time of the month…. I think that would make her gender
quite obvious. How Hector became king in the first place, building up the land
and countries’ history would’ve been nice too. I felt like the reader didn’t
know anything at all until the end of the book, which doesn’t work with huge
chunks of information. Lastly, I wish that the whole ‘sorcerer’ thing had been
better clarified, especially since it seems to be more complex than other
author’s versions of sorcery and magic. There are clearly different kinds of
sorcerer’s and I feel like the reader should have been enlightened, especially
considering the number of characters who are sorcerers. Actually, I lied; I
have two more last things to nit pick about, though they have nothing to do
with things not being explained. At the beginning of the book there were so
many names all at once that it’s hard to keep track of who’s who in the palace.
And also why was Tanoori added to the book? She didn’t detract from the book of
course, but she didn’t seem to add anything to it either.
All in all, this
book is completely worth reading, despite it’s little irks, and I can’t wait
till book 2 (which will hopefully answer some of my questions). I think it will
definitely get good reception and that fans of Graceling and Iron Fey would
enjoy this novel. Either way I’m definitely looking forward to getting my hands
on more of Sara B. Larson’s works in the future and watching her grow as an
author :)
