The Ward

The Ward was one that I was very excited for this year, I mean New York City all under water, and a disease that is wiping people out, sounds good to me.

The main character Ren is an interesting protagonist. There is a lot to her, for one she is the only girl racer, which isn’t easy and she deals with a lot of crap for it. But Ren seems to have some pretty tough skin. Sometimes I found myself wanting to shake her for being selfish and such a dare devil, but as the story progressed I began to understand why and she did grow on me. I guess in a world where most people are only out for themselves, you tend to be this way. One thing that stood out the most for me with Ren is her loyalty to Aven. It was quite commendable and Ren does turn out to be a pretty good heroine. Aven is Ren’s sister, was a sweetheart all the way around, but she is sick with Blight, and might not have long to live. Her personality was wonderful, so full of heart and love for Ren.

There are a few secondary characters that were a large part of the story. Callum and Derek. Derek is Ren’s long time crush. At first I wasn’t real sure what to make of him, he is a little older than Ren but he does seem to care for her. There turned out to be more to him than I expected, but he is a pretty good guy. Callum on the other hand, was one mystery that I would love to unravel. What was his real motive with Ren and Aven? Was he really our to help her? He was intellingent and trying so hard to work toward a cure, so I found him to be intriguing and I hope that we get to learn more about him. Now on to the romance, Ren and Derek seemed to have some chemistry, but was a little on the lacking side, but that’s not to say that what we go get to see wasn’t sweet.

This world is one that I wished would have been explained more about, why the flood happened in the first place, and why if there is all this water everywhere, why is their water supply so low? I’m sure a lot of those questions will be answered in due time. The concept was great, with the mobile racing, they mystery of the water and Ren’s determination to save Aven, all made for a fun and exciting read. There was plenty of action once the story got going, maybe not the edge of your seat kinda action, but action that keeps you wanting to know more. Of course there villains, people who were trusted to good, don’t always turn out to be that. Personal agenda’s seem get in the way.

Overall, The Ward was enjoyable, I am curious to see what happens with Ren and Aven and how all of this ends for them. Will they find a cure, will they save her? I think this is a great book, with a fantastic plot and the sequel will be one that I will certainly be picking up.

What I liked:
Ren's strength: She knew how to work hard, she made courageous moves.
Her loyalty to her "sister" Aven. Ren met her when they were in the orphanage, she was Ren's first friend, and Ren worked so hard to find her after they were seperated. Aven is sick and Ren does the races, and she is a mole because she works for medicine.
The spark between Ren and Derek. It was very subtle and it didn't overpower the story at all. It was an almost there thing.

What I didn't like:
The lack of world building. For me, I just didn't understand this washed out world. What caused it, how it is different, and more about the disease. We find out a little more as the story goes on, but I was very confused a lot in the beginning.
The language wasn't well defined and I didn't know where the words were coming from. Seemed out of context.
The amount of technical description, especially of the mobile racers. It completely was over my head.
The descriptions of the action didn't sit right with me. I didn't know what was going on.

Bottom Line: Good premise but didn't blow me away.