Flawed by Cecelia Ahern

Pages: 402
Publish date: April 2016
Publisher: Harper Collins Australia
ISBN: 9780008126360
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU 

 

Flawed:

I received a review copy of Flawed by Cecelia Ahern from Harper Collins Australia in exchange for an honest review, this has in no way influenced my thoughts and feelings about the book.

I have seen this book around for a while, however I am not the biggest fan of dystopian, and I’ve just not had the best luck with it, so picking it wasn’t high on my list. In saying all this, I quite enjoyed Flawed and cannot wait to read the sequel.  

Flawed follows Celestine North as her perfect life turns on its head. An instinctive decision changes everything Celestine knew, and what people thought of her. She breaks a rule of this new world and has to suffer the consequences.

I enjoyed Celestine as a protagonist, but I didn’t love her. She lives in a world where she is seen as perfect, where you are punished for sometimes simple mistakes. She has a notion of how the world works and she cannot see otherwise. However, as the Flawed goes on she witnesses a different side to this world and her opinions change.

I loved seeing Celestine grow, her character development was something that I adored about the book and cannot wait to see where she goes. Like I said at times she could be naïve and all I wanted to do was scream – however I understood why.

 

What happens to her is horrible and my heart broke. She now lives a very different life and she doesn’t have too many people on her side. I did want to see her a little more vulnerable though, Cecelia Ahern could have taken that a little further.

One of the things that I loved about Flawed was the family relationship. It’s not every day that you see a good family bond, especially in YA, so I loved seeing it. Her parents; if I could hug them, I would – they were brilliant. They stood by her and did as much as they could.

I loved seeing the interactions between them all; at times the younger members of the family were a bit…I don’t even know how to explain it, supportive, but it overall the relationship was okay.

Another thing I loved about Flawed was the world – I was fascinated, intrigued; it was a horrible world where people get published for the most simple of things, but it was done so well.

If you have done wrong, you are tried and if found guilty you are punished by a branding, an F. There are five brand placements and each mean a different thing;

The temple, for bad decisions.

The tongue, for lying.

The right palm, for stealing from society.

Over the heart, for disloyalty to the guide.

And

The sole of the right foot, for stepping out of line with society.

Apart from the branding they are treated like outcasts. They have to follow certain rules, they cannot live a normal life – they are flawed.

The romance in Flawed wasn’t exactly my favourite and we don’t see too much of it. At the start of the novel she is with Art Crevan, it seemed like a stable relationship, however I didn’t feel the spark. I felt like there was something missing.

Then there is Carrick and we don’t see too much of him, but Celestine feels something and she is intrigued and pulled into his direction.

Cecelia writing in Flawed was great, it was easy to read and follow. The world building was done okay, however at times I was confused because there was a lot of characters to follow.

Overall, Flawed was an intriguing read. With a world that marks people for being flawed and follows a system that is flawed itself, a protagonist that needs to hold on, Flawed is a captivating read and I cannot wait for more.

Have you read Flawed yet? Did you enjoy it? Are you going to read it? Have you read read any other Cecelia Ahern books? Let’s Chat.