Review: Defect by Ryann Kerekes

Locked in the mental ward on her sixteenth birthday, Eve Sterling doesn't think things can get any worse. 

They can. 

After failing the mindscan procedure that predicts future crime, she’s deemed a Defect and subjected to endless psychological and physical testing as the government tries to determine what’s different about her. 

The one bright spot is military guard, Will. He’s gentle with her when no one’s watching and suppresses a smile whenever she defies their challenges. Will’s lessons begin to dance dangerously close to knowledge she shouldn’t possess, like what’s beyond the fenced compound. Though it’s forbidden and Will would be killed on the spot if they’re discovered, they steal away moments together. With her very life on the line, Eve has to decide if she can trust the guard she’s falling for.

DEFECT, young adult romance takes place in the near-future.

It is a survivalist love story

So I usually love the first book in a series about a dystopian society. I'm absolutely captivated by it but then I read the entire series, I tend to fade and just want to get to the ending. The very best part about this book for me is that this is it. One book. One story. Wrapped up in the confines of one cover and I couldn't be happier about it.

Eve is a 16 year old girl who goes in for her mindscan, a right of passage in her society for children when they turn 16. Most kids get scanned and then go on their merry way, knowing that they are going to live a nice peaceful life. Unfortunately for Eve, the scan doesn't work on her and she's taken away from her mother and put into a facility for defects. In this facility you're either a test rat or trained to be a soldier. Originally dumped with the rest rats, she spends her days in a psych ward. That is, until she meets Will , the training soldier that seems to have a soft spot for her and goes above and beyond  to get her put into training and prepares for some unknown future.

I was so captivated by this book the entire way through. Worrying for Eve, cheering her on, hoping for more with Will. Eve is such a strong character, and totally blew me away.

Then we get to the ending and it was so abrupt. I thought I missed a few chapters until I realized this isn't a war story. It's not about the uprising.  This is a story about a woman's strength and about the power of selflessness and love.