I had my ups and downs with this one. On the up side, I really liked the characters and Anya's voice. I liked it that she acted in ways that were unique to her character, the daughter of a murdered mob boss, but that she was still, in many ways, a normal teenage girl. The strength of her character and the enjoyability of the narrative made me want to overlook some of the problems I had with the setting of this book, but I couldn't do that entirely.

It bothered me that there wasn't a more thought-out explanation of why chocolate and caffeine would be illegal, but not alcohol. Gable's getting drunk and passing out on caffeine made no sense to me. I don't remember drug trafficking being mentioned at all in a city that's supposed to be "riddled" with crime. (I read this quickly, though, and maybe that was explained and I've just forgotten) And for such a horrifying place, Liberty hardly gets any mention the second time around. I was a bit bothered that she had left it behind the first time without trying to do anything to expose the place or the "headmistress". I did like the location of Liberty and some of the other fates of buildings in New York-that was interesting.

In the end, I do recommend this-it was a fun read, and I'll read the next because I like the characters. I think she poured more thought into her characters than her world, but Anya's entertaining voice made it worth the read. ( )

She may have been the daughter of a police woman but it was her father who people remembered most, who she remembered most. It was his name she carried after all, and with it his reputation. It didn't matter that he had been dead for years, it didn't matter that he was a good man, it only matter that he was in a business that was illegal. A business that produced and sold an illegal substance; chocolate.

There was nothing more important in her life then her family, her brother and sister were her responsibility and she took that very seriously. There was nothing she wouldn't do for them, nothing she wouldn't do to keep them safe; however she never guessed at the lengths she would go to do just that. But when her heart interferes with her responsibilities she finds more trouble them she can handle and her only way out is to give up the boy she loves.

All These Things I've Done were done to keep her family safe and to keep her family together. However with a family like hers that was harder then expected. With criminal activity, mob wars, family politics, a vindictive ex, poisoning, attempted murder, betrayal, love and chocolate, this story literally has a bit of something for everyone. An engrossing and engaging story that is as bitter as it is sweet. A brilliant introduction to an exciting new series. ( )

3.5 stars

Really interesting story set in a dystopian future in which chocolate and coffee are illegal and everything else is rationed. I liked Anya even though I didn't agree with all of her choices. When I got frustrated with her, I had to remind myself that she was just a 16-year-old girl. ( )

Great premise. ( )

YA dystopian future, first person adolescent girl, trying to keep her family safe. Have we reached a point where enough of these have been published yet? Can we stop? The nice thing about this one is that the main character isn't trying to disrupt her dystopian government, just survive along with her mafia related family. Also, the rest of the world hasn't disappeared, the economy actually makes sense, and they have vouchers and poverty and items that are banned. The main issue I had with this book is the writing style. If the parts where the main character was addressing the audience were cut it would have been much more effective. Word choice was frequently iffy. ( )