Specials by Scott Westerfield

Specials by Scott Westerfield is the final book in the Uglies trilogy. I loved Uglies, liked Pretties, and had high hopes for Specials. It did not disappoint.

Tally thought they were a rumor, but now she's one of them. A Special. A super-amped fighting machine, engineered to keep the uglies down and the pretties stupid.

But maybe being perfectly programmed with strength and focus isn't better than anything she's ever known. Tally still has memories of something else.

But it's easy for her to tune that out—until she's offered a chance to stamp out the revels of the New Smoke permanently. It all comes down to one last choice: listen to that tiny, faint heartbeat, or carryout the mission she's programmed to complete. Either way, Tally's world will never be the same.

Specials are scary beautiful, very strong with reflexes so fast they're almost unbeatable. Tally and co. are sent to bring down the New Smoke and almost start a world war in the process. But as they hunt down the location of the New Smoke, the wild works its magic on Tally again. It changed her once; it's changing her again.

We revisit the cycle of friendship and betrayal between Shay and Tally, explore the relationship between Tally and Zane, catch up with David, and visit another city that is very different from Tally's.

I love this trilogy. For a more in-depth review, visit my blog.

Oh wait. Did I say trilogy? There's a fourth book out now. Look for my review coming soon.

Pretties by Scott Westerfeld

Pretties by Scott Westerfeld is book #2 in the Uglies trilogy. (Read Heather's review of Uglies here and my review here.) Again, the theme is that pretty on the outside doesn't guarantee pretty on the inside, and sometimes you have to really fight for what you want—in this case, freedom. It also takes a look at what jealousy, betrayal and power can drive people to do and to become. Here's the back of the book promo:

Gorgeous. Popular. Perfect. Perfectly wrong.

Tally has finally become pretty. Now her looks are beyond perfect, her clothes are awesome, her boyfriend is totally hot, and she's completely popular. It's everything she's ever wanted.

But beneath all the fun—the nonstop parties, the high-tech luxury, the total freedom—is a nagging sense that something's wrong. Something important. Then a message from Tally's ugly past arrives. Reading it, Tally remembers what's wrong with pretty life, and the fun stops cold.

Now she has to choose between fighting to forget what she knows and fighting for her life—because the authorities don't intend to let anyone with this information survive.

Pretties ends with another cliff hanger, making you want to run right out and buy the next one. Overall, I liked the book. Looking forward to seeing how Westerfeld wraps it all up.

For a more in-depth review, visit my blog.

Uglies by Scott Westerfield

I'm new to contributing to this blog, so I hope this book hasn't been done before. I just read Uglies for my book group. Lately we've been reading a lot of YA and I've found it to be quite fun.

Uglies is a futuristic novel that takes place centuries after our civilization (we're referred to as the Rusties). It took me a few chapters to really get into the language of this new world, but once I clued in, it became a great read. The main character is Tally, and she is nearing her 16th birthday. In her world, when someone turns 16, he/she undergoes a series of operations to be made pretty. Then the teenager goes and lives in Pretty Town, doing nothing but having fun and going to parties.

Tally meets another girl about to turn 16 who doesn't want to turn pretty. This girl, Shay, introduces Tally to a whole new way of thinking. Tally begins to second-guess her desire to become pretty.

Uglies is the first book in a trilogy. This book will be enjoyable for grades 6 and up.