Book Review: XVI

XVI
Author: Julia Karr 
Pages: 325 pgs
Reading Level: YA
Published: January 6th 2011
Review Source: Purchased

So here we have another Dystopian book, Ive noticed this is my trend lately. I picked up XVI since I had it in my Debut Author Challenge. I don't like comparing but XVI felt like Matched to me. I kept waiting for that "Ooh" and "Ahh" moment and it did happen eventually but towards the end of the book. The storyline was definitely different from the rest but a little hard to accept. I enjoyed the characters, the author did a great job of making them stand out. The action is the 2nd half of the book is what help me rate the book higher then when I started reading it. The little bit of love story we got towards the end wished it could have started earlier so we could read more about it. The plot is about a world that is run by the government and when a girl hit the age of 16 she gets branded with a tattoo on her wrist and is now free game for the men to have sexual relations with. Sometimes it can be consensual or sometimes the men take advantage and don't wait for a yes.

I really loved Nina's character, she is different from every other "sex-teen" as they are called. She is not ready to be branded and give herself up. She is one tough cookie. She has to deal with circumstances involving her step-dad and her mother. She has to move in with her grandparents and sister. She meets new friends that are very helpful with her and her dilemma that she needs to figure out since it was her mother's dying wish. So of course that adventure leads to lots of trouble and well Nina along with her friends take it on. While all this is going on she also has to protect her sister and try to change her best friends mind about becoming a "sex-teen". She also meets Sal, and they begin a sweet relationship, even after she find out certain things about Sal. So Im very curious as to what the second book will bring us. I will state that I recommend reader that are 16 and older to read this book. I think anyone younger might need to let your parent read first to see if they believe your mature enough to read this novel. There is a lot of reference to sex.

Summary: Nina Oberon's life is pretty normal: she hangs out with her best friend, Sandy, and their crew, goes to school, plays with her little sister, Dee. But Nina is 15. And like all girls she'll receive a Governing Council-ordered tattoo on her 16th birthday. XVI. Those three letters will be branded on her wrist, announcing to all the world—even the most predatory of men—that she is ready for sex. Considered easy prey by some, portrayed by the Media as sluts who ask for attacks, becoming a "sex-teen" is Nina's worst fear. That is, until right before her birthday, when Nina's mom is brutally attacked. With her dying breaths, she reveals to Nina a shocking truth about her past—one that destroys everything Nina thought she knew. Now, alone but for her sister, Nina must try to discover who she really is, all the while staying one step ahead of her mother's killer.