J. W. Lynne

**I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and not influenced by my source.**

I'm always up for a great dystopian novel and I definitely found one here!

The world here, while reminiscent of other novels in the genre, really did capture my attention. It was so interesting to me the type of life Seven led and how their society worked. It has its own unique flares that make this story original so you don't feel like you are reading a regurgitation of other dystopian stories. The plot itself is something I haven't really come across yet in the genre.

Seven is a bit of an unintentional unreliable narrator because she too is exploring the world. But this added to the mystery aspect of the story that I enjoyed the most. What is "the war"? What does it mean to be a "warrior"? Why did society resort to this? I had so many questions and I could't wait to get the answers!

While there isn't a lot of physical action (ex. fighting, etc), the story moved at a consistent pace that never left me bored. Throw in some interesting twists along the way and this is a stellar debut and the perfect start to a new dystopian series.

Check out more spoiler-free book and series reviews on my blog SERIESousBookReviews.com as well as read book series recaps!

Full Review: TBP on blog
Actual Rating: 4/5… (meer)

*Thank you to the author for providing a free e-copy in exchange for an honest review!*

Actual Rating: 4.25

After the shocking ending of Book 1, Seven, an eighteen-year-old girl living in a dystopian universe, has to figure out how to navigate her new life while making sure her secrets are safe.

And Jenny Lynne has done it again! This book was amazing, yet again, and I was shocked and engaged at every turn. The plot definitely had its ups and downs, and this time it followed both Seven and Six, Seven's sister. One thing I will have to admit, however, is that I felt like I was more emotionally invested in Seven's story because of everything we've read in the prequel. That's not to say that Six's story wasn't exciting - it was definitely action-packed, but I just found that I was more excited to see how Seven would handle everything that was being thrown at her.

The characters were, for the most part, the same from the previous book, although we do see a few new faces. Jenny Lynne did a great job introducing them to us and showing their personalities in a few chapters. We could really see Seven develop as the story progressed; the same could be said for Six - although I did feel a little frustrated with her actions in the beginning.

The writing style was very catchy and engaging, and it definitely moved the story along at a smooth, fast pace. With that being said, however, I did seem to notice a pattern in the writing. For almost all of the chapters, the author seemed to end the same way: one definitive sentence that felt like a cliffhanger or sounded "deep". While I absolutely LOVE this type of writing, it does seem to get a little tedious when the same writing tool appears over and over again.

Overall, I would definitely still recommend this series to everyone, especially those who like reading dystopian novels. Last time, I remember writing that the author had a great blend of more mundane, contemporary obstacles and issues that were more of the dystopian genre, and this is still extremely visible in this book, which really does set it apart from others of its kind.… (meer)

Here is a blurb of what the book is about. At this school every lesson is an adventure.

Sixteen-year-old Jessica Rainville's dream of working with exotic animals is about to come true. She's signed up to spend a summer learning to train and care for tigers, lions, leopards, bears, and elephants at an exotic animal ranch.

She will pet tigers, train grizzly bears, ride bareback on elephants, and despite her efforts, she will fall in love.

But Jessica's summer at the exotic animal ranch will test her in ways that she never imagined. And just one mistake can mean the difference between life and death.

Wild Animal School is a romantic young adult contemporary coming-of-age novel that is a must-read for animal lovers, especially those who have ever considered a career working with animals, from zookeeper to animal trainer.

I found this book to be a very interesting story. It was a page turner I couldn't put it down. I feel the author is a talented writer. The way the author writes makes you feel like you are apart of the story. While reading this story I pretended to be an animal trainer too. I would recommend everyone should read this book.… (meer)

Above the Sky takes place in a dystopian world. If you just went "ugh", just wait a minute and keep reading. The book follows eighteen-year-old Seven, who lives in a world where everything is mapped out for them, from the job they have to do to the person they are supposed to marry and grow to love. There are mundane jobs, and then there are warriors, specially chosen teenagers who go to fight in the War outside of their world and never return. When Assignment Day comes, Seven's future is set, and she is forced to leave her best friend, Ten, behind. That is, until she decides to go against the Decision Maker's wishes and carve her own path.

The plot for this was so engaging! In fact, I finished the entire book in one sitting, and guess who's now behind on writing college essays?

But anyways, the story was definitely a wild ride, and it was definitely unpredictable. I know the idea of a strong heroine in a dystopian world has been quite painfully overdone, but this was a book that was completely unpredictable. There are parts of this book that are extremely realistic, where the plot falls into contemporary, rather than a dystopian genre. This, I felt, really strengthened the story itself, and I greatly enjoyed the gentle balance between something out of this world, and something very much present in it. This blend is really something that sets this book apart from other YA novels.

The writing style was extremely fluent and beautiful, and the author really painted such a clear picture of what the world looked like.

I'm going to quickly move on to the characters, because I feel like the characters an aspect of this book that really made it work. There's none of that overused powerful/rebellious/uncontrollable trope used here. Instead, we get a main character that is sensible and thoughtful, yet driven by the love and passion that makes her the hero she is. Seven is a character that is so multi-faceted and realistic, and I found it so easy to connect with her despite the different worlds we live in. I just want to point out another aspect that sets her apart from every other dystopian heroine out there.

She was not the chosen one.
There's none of that leader of a rebellion thing going on. There's nothing about her being special, or one of a kind.
She was just a normal girl, and the kind of strength we see isn't in how much power she seems to have in a revolution - it's in the way she feels about her family and her friends, and it's in the way she thinks about her own future, and I think this is the type of subtle strength that we haven't seen enough of in literature. What a beautiful way to show that strength is something that exists within.… (meer)