Review Detail

This book's premise intrigued me. What if you had to pay for the privilege to have oxygen? Only those privileged enough are able to have enough oxygen to play sports, play instruments, have 'real' food, and even have larger families.

The story is very similar to other dystopian novels out with those who fight against their world, those who use propaganda to keep people in line, and even deal with the same feelings/sentiments.

The three different points of view at times were kind of jarring. Alina, is the beautiful resistance fighter, who'll do anything to keep trees alive. Bea, is the 'good' girl who tries really hard to get out of second class, 'auxiliaries', where people struggle just to breathe. She does this by hoping to win at a debate and be on the prestigious Leadership Program that will help her parents have a better life. Quinn, is one of the privileged Premiums, and friend to Bea.

All these characters struggle in their own ways on either coping with their domed life or just surviving. They're forced to be with each other after a tragedy and find themselves outside the dome, which is nothing like Bea or Quinn had thought.

The back story on how this future came about is woven in without being too much of a back story dump. The only thing was I felt I'd read this story before and the oxygen premise at times wasn't enough to really set this story apart. The writing though kept me engaged with this fast paced futuristic tale. I also liked the relationship between Quinn and Bea which is kind of like a futuristic Romeo and Juliet story.

This is the first book in a series. I'm curious who'll survive after the climax of this tale--which I won't give away.

If you love dystopian tales with a hint of romance, give this one a try.