Possession...Or Not

Possession has a great premise...in the Goodgrounds, people live by strict laws and breaking them can mean banishment to the Badlands or worse. Which is horrible news for young rebel Violet, who has been breaking rules repeatedly since first her father and then her older sister disappeared. The one constant in her life is Zenn, the boy she has been matched with for five years, but since he has become a member of the Forces, their time together has been short. So when Violet once again breaks the rules in order to go see him, it's not surprising that she is caught; but this time she is imprisoned with a boy named Jag who seems to be just as determined as she is to not give in to the Thinkers who control their lives. Like I said, great premise...but the execution is so poor, it was almost a struggle to finish the book.

This book started off strong and I was captured at first by Violet's rebellious spirit and the mystery of her disappearing family. I liked that she was devoted to Zenn, but intrigued with her growing relationship with Jag. Once the two escape the Greenies and go on the run, however, things begin to fall apart. Neither Violet nor Jag are very likable at this point, with each abandoning the other and secrets withheld at every turn. It's a lot of "I've got a secret; I hate you; no, I adore you; no, we're fighting again; wait, I've got a superpower!" sort of thing. I'm still puzzling over where the "powers" came from; if they were that strong, wouldn't Violet have had some sense of them before suddenly realizing she can control everyone? Both Jag and Violet just aren't very empathetic creatures. Jag betrays Violet so often that I truly wanted to smack him...and Violet kept falling for it. Ugh. And while I sort of liked Zenn, considering he was controlled and unable to fight against the Association, he was pretty much worthless as a boyfriend.

Once again, I'm wondering where the editors are. This story moves so quickly and confusingly among scenarios that I stopped rereading segments because, honestly, I just did't care. When Violet enters Jag's dreams, there's no warning and nothing to separate it from the rest of the story...at least use italics or SOMETHING to let me know something odd is happening. The whole bit with the simulation, set up by Jag, was so preposterous and confusing that I skimmed it. Seriously, did no one read this part closely before going to print? And I still don't know why Violet's father was like he was and whether or not he even cared about her.

Saving this one from the deadly one star rating is the beginning, which was good and made me feel like Violet would somehow rescue her entire world on her own, and the last chapter, which was a surprising way to end the story. But along the way, we get so much techtricity, feelings, and uninteresting characters that I lost interest fast. I'm still puzzling how this one made it to print with its unlikeable characters and it's confusing plot. Not recommended.

~taminator40