To be published in the US on March 7, 2017 by Harper
Source: eARC for review from the publisher
Plot Summary for Corruption by Jessica Shirvington
How do you live with yourself when you've deceived the one you love? How do you move on when the person you've been fighting to save betrays you?
Two years ago, Maggie Stevens began the hunt. Four weeks ago, Maggie's world fell apart, when she finally found what she'd been looking for. And when Quentin, who had blindly trusted her, unraveled her web of lies. Now, Maggie lives in the dark.
But she's not about to stay there. Not when she still has to bring M-Corp down. Not when there is still a chance she could win him back. Maggie must do whatever it takes to show the world the truth. And the price for her quest? Everything. But for who?
Review of Corruption by Jessica Shirvington
Though I really liked Disruption, the first book in this duology. If you need a plot refresher on Disruption, you can find my review here.
I wasn't a huge fan of Corruption.
Yes, Disruption used the usual dystopian tropes: the idea of a perfect romantic match based on science, a family broken by cruel laws, and a feisty girl who's not afraid to face off with the powers that be. And there was romance. In Disruption, Quin and Maggie had an excellent hate-to-love relationship trajectory with no triangle.
But things seemed to fizzle in Corruption. I think it's important to note that I don't often enjoy second and third books in dystopian series. I liked Divergent, disliked the other two books. Liked Delirium, disliked the other two books. Liked Matched, couldn't even finish the second book.
I've figured out that I really like the set-up of these stories, where a girl is trapped by the Powers That Be and (probably) in love with someone forbidden to her. But in subsequent books, the couple is inevitably a) together b) on the run c) joining forces with some resistance group filled with new characters I'm not interested in. They're wandering around and sneaking around. And I'm bored.
This was pretty much what happened in Corruption. I had high hopes for this book due to the fact that there was a big twist at the end and that Quin found out that Maggie had been lying to him (not a spoiler). But the romance in this one didn't really work for me, and while the sneaking around and trying to stop the Forces of Evil is a good thing in theory, I'm not really interested in reading about quasi-military operations. On the positive side, Gus was a favorite character of mine and he only got better in this book. (spoiler) Until he died, which was sad but annoying to me as he sort of tragically sacrificed himself for Maggie.(end spoiler)
That said, plenty of people love ALL the books in dystopian series, and this book has high Goodreads ratings, so I think others might love it more.
Yes, Disruption used the usual dystopian tropes: the idea of a perfect romantic match based on science, a family broken by cruel laws, and a feisty girl who's not afraid to face off with the powers that be. And there was romance. In Disruption, Quin and Maggie had an excellent hate-to-love relationship trajectory with no triangle.
But things seemed to fizzle in Corruption. I think it's important to note that I don't often enjoy second and third books in dystopian series. I liked Divergent, disliked the other two books. Liked Delirium, disliked the other two books. Liked Matched, couldn't even finish the second book.
I've figured out that I really like the set-up of these stories, where a girl is trapped by the Powers That Be and (probably) in love with someone forbidden to her. But in subsequent books, the couple is inevitably a) together b) on the run c) joining forces with some resistance group filled with new characters I'm not interested in. They're wandering around and sneaking around. And I'm bored.
This was pretty much what happened in Corruption. I had high hopes for this book due to the fact that there was a big twist at the end and that Quin found out that Maggie had been lying to him (not a spoiler). But the romance in this one didn't really work for me, and while the sneaking around and trying to stop the Forces of Evil is a good thing in theory, I'm not really interested in reading about quasi-military operations. On the positive side, Gus was a favorite character of mine and he only got better in this book. (spoiler) Until he died, which was sad but annoying to me as he sort of tragically sacrificed himself for Maggie.(end spoiler)
That said, plenty of people love ALL the books in dystopian series, and this book has high Goodreads ratings, so I think others might love it more.
I used to be a huge fan of dystopian reads but that quickly got old due to the saturation in the YA genre. I have been reading a lot of post-apocalyptic lately, but in the Adult Fiction. I find that they rarely follow the same formula.
ReplyDeleteI'd be up for new ones, but I agree - I'd like a new formula!
DeleteI miss dystopian reads, it's been a while since I read it. I'm glad to hear you enjoyed this one and it didn't suffer from the second book syndrome.
ReplyDeleteI do miss dystopian reads!
DeleteHmm. I may like this, but I may not. The romance has to work for me and not be forced though, which if that's the case here... it will bug me. I also liked Divergent and liked the second book okay (not as much as the first) and have yet to read the third. I did see the movies. Matched, I read the first two and haven't read the third as well. I seem to have that tendency. I should finish them and see if I feel the same. Anyway, thanks for the review, Jen!
ReplyDeleteTressa @ Wishful Endings
Eh - the romance was good in book one but I thought it fizzled a bit in book two.
DeleteI totally agree about the Divergent trilogy!! Sorry this one went down a similar path for you. Great review!
ReplyDeleteI haven't read a dystopian in years! I have a few on my shelf but they're going to have a to put a different spin on the genre to hold me interest.
ReplyDeleteKaren @For What It's Worth