Author: Megan McCafferty
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Publication Date: April 26th, 2011
Genre: YA, Dystopia
In 2036, twins Harmony and Melody reunite after being separated at birth and raised in two different worlds. Harmony was brought up by a religious family in Goodside, raised from a young age to hopefully become a wife and mother before she finishes her teenage years. Melody’s parents are University professors who have lead her to become a top paid professional surrogate. A newly discovered virus causes sterility by the time teens turn approximately eighteen, so girls like Melody are paid to become pregnant. When Harmony shows up at Melody’s door, it seems like these two twin sisters couldn’t be more different. Now that both girls are sixteen, more pressure than ever is being put on them. For Harmony it’s to wed and have children, and for Melody it’s to become pregnant so she can have a free ride through college. While their lives couldn’t be more different, the one thing Harmony and Melody have in common is that their paths have already been chosen for them.
This is a funny little book, but probably not as appealing for fans of dystopia. Megan McCafferty is also the author of Sloppy Firsts, and this book is exactly as you would imagine a dystopian novel mashed with Jessica Darling. Thematically, this book is similar to many other dystopian fantasies, focusing on the importance of free choice. The style, however, is lacking the seriousness of most dystopia. I’d best describe this book as quirky, with all the silly slang and the style of writing. The main characters are twins, Harmony and Melody. Apart from the horrible choice of names, I liked them and the alternating points of view. While a lot of the characters felt like caricatures, I also liked Zen, who just wants to help people. The story was well paced and easy to get caught up in, and there were a few surprises along the way. Overall, I thought this book was entertaining, but it’s so different from other dystopian fiction that I’d say it’s more for fans of books like Sloppy Firsts. I enjoyed it enough that I will probably pick up the sequel eventually. While it didn’t have the depth of so many other YA dystopian novels, I still thought it was an interesting read.
3/5
“Faith is accepting what makes no sense, what we cannot prove, but know down deep in our souls is real.”