Book Review: The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau
The
Testing by Joelle Charbonneau is a new and exciting addition to the
Young Adult book world, and should especially please Dystopian fans.
Similar in style to The Hunger Games, The Testing has great pacing and
kept me intrigued throughout. Filled with both psychological and
physical drama, I easily got caught up in the testing process. The
Testing had me turning the pages as the tension slowly escalated. Joelle
Charbonneau did a great job with the backdrop for the story too, giving
it a believable Dystopian setting for the story to unfold as well a
nicely developed characters. I think readers will be pleasantly
surprised after reading The Testing, and eagerly awaiting it’s next
installment. The tension is amazing, and the ending will really leave
readers wanting more!
The
Testing begins at the Five Lakes Colony where we meet Cia, the main
character, and begin to understand more about why Cia and the Five Lakes
Colony are such a unique community. Cia has just graduated and is
wondering if she will be chosen as a candidate for The Testing, a
process where only the “best and brightest” are chosen to compete for a
better future including further education and possible leadership. But
after Cia is chosen along with several other classmates for the Testing,
she begins to have doubts. Her father warns her about his strange
memories of the The Testing and warns:“Cia, Trust no one.”
There’s plenty of turmoil and distrust among the other candidates too. I felt like I was watching my back right along with Cia, and I was still guessing all the way to the end on which characters were really trustworthy, if any. By the time Cia is chosen as a Testing candidate and the actual Testing begins, the tension is already high, and it just keeps going, making you turn the pages to see why sort of test Cia must go through next. There was both mental and physical challenges that Cia and the other Testing candidates were going through. Overall, I thought the actual Testing sequences were amazing, and I definitely was not disappointed.
Cia's
character really shines in The Testing, and I found her not only very
likeable, but easy to admire. She is smart and adept both mentally and
physically. Her ability to keep adapting to the Testing and her unique
background from the Five Lakes Colony really made her interesting and
not easily forgotten.
There is some romance in The testing which I liked and it’s a gradual romance that compliments the story without overpowering it. I loved watching it develop slowly along side the tension that was building as each Testing sequence was happening to Cia.
The Testing had a great ending with just the right amount of surprise and drama. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series and can't wait to find out more about Cia. If you're looking for a new series set in a Dystopian world with a great heroine, lots of action and some gut wrenching tension, I think you'll enjoy The Testing.
My Rating: Four Stars. I really liked it!
I received an ARC copy of this book from the publishers via Netgalley.
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