Prized (Birthmarked #2)
Caragh M O’Brien
Publisher: Roaring Book Press
Release Date: Novemberr 8, 2011
Pages: 368

Rating: 4 stars

Striking out into the wasteland with nothing but her baby sister, a handful of supplies, and a rumor to guide her, sixteen-year-old midwife Gaia Stone survives only to be captured by the people of Sylum, a dystopian society where women rule the men who drastically outnumber them, and a kiss is a crime. In order to see her sister again, Gaia must submit to their strict social code, but how can she deny her sense of justice, her curiosity, and everything in her heart that makes her whole?

I was very much anticipating Prized, after reading Birthmarked and absolutely loving it. While I didn’t love Prized quite as much as Birthmarked, it still was a really good read. I found the plot very intriguing, but my biggest issue was with the main character, Gaia.

I wasn’t as on board with the plot for the first chunk of the book. It seemed a bit rocky and I was a little uncomfortable by the happenings of some of the characters. This changed, and the plot became very intriguing. It was so different from the world of Birthmarked, and I loved discovering it!

Gaia changed a lot in this book, and I found her to be a much weaker character. Many of her choices just didn’t see on board with the Gaia I had come to know in Birthmarked. That aside, I loved all the characters in Prized. Will, Peter, Norris, they were all just extremely lovely. I still can’t help but to fall for Leon, I simply love him. He is probably my favorite character of the book, and he just gets more complex as a character in Prized.

Prized was an intriguing read that I didn’t want to put down. Most of the characters are absolutely lovely, and the plot is one to get you hooked! I am eagerly anticipating the last book in the trilogy, I am very curious to see where Caragh M O’Brien will take readers after the unpredictable twist Prized ends with. These books are among my favorite dystopians, as I just love mostly everything about the two!