Pros: quick paced, interesting protagonist, several plot twists, minor romantic elementsCons: elements of the ending were problematicFor Parents: kissing, violence, nothing graphic Seventeen year old Jenna Strong has spent the last 2 years in prison for the murder of her parents, agents of ACID (Agency for Crime Investigation and Defense), because she didn’t like the boy they’d picked to be her LifePartner. Sprung by a mysterious organization for reasons she doesn’t understand, her life outside quickly goes downhill.Jenna’s an interesting character in that she’s sympathetic for readers, but apparently quite prickly to people around her in the book. She’s standoffish and quickly alienates several of the people trying to help her, though in her defense, she’s given little reason to trust the people helping her. She’s pretty street smart, though she does make some decisions that cause her serious problems. While I saw a few plot twists coming the book goes in a lot of directions I did not anticipate, making it a fun book to read.There are minor romantic elements that enhance what’s happening with Jenna without becoming the focus of the story. And while there is some kissing, there’s no other sexual content.There’s a variety of violence in the book (which involves some prison scenes, an interrogation, bombing and more) nothing is graphically described. Part of the ending required Jenna to be an angry teen who doesn’t care that the adults around her know more about what’s happening than she does and are better prepared than she is, just that they’re not doing what she wants, which was kind of annoying. It also depended on an adult making some very stupid decisions, which I questioned while I was reading. Having said that, I did like the ultimate resolution.It’s a quick paced book with some very tense moments. ACID is a pretty generic dystopian book, and while there are some intriguing elements present in the plot that should lend it an air of originality, ultimately, the story falls flat where it counts. Initially, what drew me to ACID was the premise: a section of Europe is taken over by a radical political group (AKA ACID), which rules with an iron fist. Interesting, right? Add in a seemingly capable, independent, and driven protagonist with a good back story, and needless to say I had high hopes. However, the novel devolves its main heroine very quickly, and while Jenna Strong starts out as a force to be reckoned with, she becomes nothing but an impulsive, and unfortunately, somewhat stupid character, risking the lives of everyone around her for the love of a 16 year old boy. Any of the spunk and charisma she possesses at the beginning of the book that makes her appealing (and which is limited to begin with) is lost at the turn of every page as she fumbles and mistakes her way towards the final resolution, failing to demonstrate the forethought or physical prowess she's said to have gained at the beginning of the book during her prison term. She becomes blatantly irrational, unsympathetic, and unconcerned about the consequences of her actions, even though other supporting characters repeatedly try to stress how she could jeopardize everything they have worked for and ruin their chance for a free nation (which of course is never really an issue. Even when Jenna disregards basically everything they say, it all works out for her in the end, and the aforementioned warnings are nothing but words on paper). I wanted to like this story, because I felt it had a twist I had not seen in other novels, but it wound up falling victim to all the tired tropes that limit teen literature today, and I was left disappointed.
What do You think about La Huida (2013)?
Very interesting and on the edge story that keep surprising you all the way to the end
—ruroo
Not my usual genre, but enjoyed this enormously and found it hard to put down.
—preston
This book was amazing, I hope she continues and makes a series!
—jnae1997
