268 pages
Published December 17th 2013 by CreateSpace
Source: Received in exchange for an honest review
My Rating: 4 Stars
From Goodreads:
Mary is stuck in Section One, living with three hundred women in a crumbling hospital. She wonders what life was like two centuries ago, before the Cleansing wiped out all the men. But the rules—the Matriarch’s senseless rules—prevent her from exploring the vacant city to find out. Taylor’s got a dangerous secret: he’s a boy. His compound’s been destroyed, and he’s been relocated to Section One. Living under the Matriarch means giving up possessions, eating canned food and avoiding all physical contact. Baggy clothes hide his flat chest and skinny legs, but if anyone discovers what lies beneath, he’ll be exiled. Maybe even executed. Mary’s never seen a boy—the Matriarch cut the pictures of men from the textbooks—and she doesn’t suspect Taylor’s secret. If she knew, she might understand the need to stop the girls from teasing him. If she knew, she might realize why she breaks the rules, just to be near him. Then again, she might be frightened to death of him. Taylor should go. The Matriarch is watching his every move. But running means leaving Mary—and braving the land beyond the compound’s boundaries.
When I first read the premise of this, I was thinking it could go one of two ways: really great and interesting, or totally unbelievable. I wanted to give it a try, and luckily, it turned out to be pretty good. Sometimes it is really hard for me to get behind a premise in which an entire group is taken out of the equation (like adults are all killed off, or in this case, an entire sex is eradicated). And while there were parts that bugged me, overall I did enjoy this one!
What I liked: Obviously, you know that Mary and Taylor are going to be in some kind of relationship. The insta-love did not bother me, especially on Mary’s end (obviously, everyone would be vying for the only known living male!). I also liked that Mary was a bit of a rabble rouser from the beginning. It makes it more believable to me when a character is rebellious by nature rather than changing their whole personality for a cause. The plot moved quite quickly as well, and the action was pretty much constant- no lagging, no boring parts. I especially enjoyed that there were some really good plot twists that I absolutely did not see coming.
What I didn’t: While the plot (and the book in general) was fast-moving, it left little time for world building and character development. I really, really needed more backstory. I think that is what was mainly lacking for me. It was hard to feel connected with the characters when I was uncertain of a lot of things going on in their world. While I do enjoy a quick pace and a lot of action, this book would have been better served by a few more details.
Bottom Line: While I did have some issues with the book, I did quite enjoy it, and the plot definitely kept me entertained and wanting to find out what happened next!
Praise for The Only Boy “It’s not a dystopia that does a good job—it’s a great book that happens to be a dystopia.” Rachel Miller, Editor “This book is one of the best of its genre I have read, it kept me gripped to its satisfying end.” Janet Love, Amazon UK Reviewer “If you like a different take on the dystopian genre then I would highly recommend this unique and amazing book.” Tamara Bass, The Avid Book Collector
Blog Tour Giveaway $50 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash Ends 6/8/14 Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. a Rafflecopter giveaway
Leave a Reply