Breathe (Breathe #1)

What I Loved:

Fans of true dystopians will find elements to enjoy in BREATHE. All of the pieces are there: evil dictator/government, conspiracies to keep the government in power, a class system that keeps the people in their place, a growing resistance movement, secrets to uncover, and the gradual awakening of characters who'd formerly accepted their way of live as unchangeable.

The strength of this book is the action-packed plot. While the pacing feels a bit uneven, there's always something happening. From the first page to the thrilling climax, the conflict keeps escalating, the plot keeps twisting, and the stakes keep rising. The middle of the book had some difficulty maintaining my interest, but the climax is absolutely epic and will satisfy readers who've invested in the story all the way to the end.

The setting is described in vivid sensory details, making the entire story play out in the reader's mind like a movie. Readers will be as fascinated with life inside the dome as they will with the ruined cities outside of it. The author also does an excellent job of examining the class system that exists inside the dome. The idea of giving Premiums more access to oxygen (and therefore the ability to be alert and physically fit) than anyone else is a unique take on privilege.

What Left Me Wanting More:

The premise of this book is fascinating at the outset, but closer examination within the story itself raises problematic questions. This reader found it very difficult to believe that when the world faced a food shortage, their solution was to cut down every single forest to allow more land for farming. For one, we have a society that is highly focused on environmental concerns. For another, we have the scientific know how to develop ways to grow or manufacture more food--greenhouses in colder climates, genetically altered plants that will produce more etc. Having difficulty believing how the world in BREATHE came to be made it that much harder to invest in the story itself.

The characters of Bea, Quinn, and Alina each have their own chapters told from their own viewpoints, and they are virtually indistinguishable from each other. That made it difficult to stay in the flow of the story (when I suddenly realized I'd forgotten to look at the heading of the chapter to see who was speaking), and it also made it hard to fully connect emotionally with any of them.

Final Verdict:

Fans of true dystopians who love grand government conspiracies and plucky revolutionists will enjoy the action-packed plot.

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.

OK, so, this is one of those books that I was really, really excited to read but ended up struggling to finish. The concept is interesting, the story well written, and the characters; while engaging, were also annoying a lot of the time.

Bea and Quinn have been BFF's forever and of course, she's in love with him and he's as clueless as ever. (silly book boy) Air is the hot commodity that is controlled by the government and they decide who gets more and who doesn't If you're a Premium (like Quinn) your life is generally better and longer than say, Bea's who comes from the wrong side of the tram stop. While she may dream of a life with Quinn, it's really just that, a dream because Auxiliaries and Premiums don't belong together.

Quinn is your stereotypical rich boy whose oblivious to all he's privileged to and Alina, the beautiful girl Quinn falls for, is a rebel looking for change. If they were political parties, Alina would be the far left, Quinn the far right and Bea, the moderate that balances them out and helps them see reason. I found Quinn to be a bit of a whiner and it doesn't matter how hot a guy (or girl) is, whining is a downer. Alina may be pretty but her selfishness overpowers her beauty and I just didn't care for her. I liked Bea most because she's smart, compassionate, selfless and focused on the bigger picture, whereas the other two are too caught up in themselves to notice much else. (Potential spoiler - Quinn and Bea have known each other for YEARS and he doesn't know what color her eyes are. WHAT?!)

Alina is pining away for someone she believes is dead as a result of her choices and Quinn is caught up in playing Alina's knight in shining armor because he's convinced she's his dream girl. He eventually learns that what he's really looking for and what he needs has been in front of him all along but at what cost?

For as frustrating as this book was for me, all of the characters have opportunities to make changes for the better not only for themselves, but for the world around them too. This is part of a trilogy so it will be interesting to see how it all pans outs and who will survive.