Queen by Aimee Carter

Genre:  YA Dystopian

The Blackcoat Rebellion Series, Book 3

Aimee Carter's website

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Note:  This is the third book in a series.  Anything below could potentially spoil plots from earlier books in the series.

Description (taken from Aimee Carter's website):

PAWN…CAPTIVE…QUEEN?

Kitty Doe is a Blackcoat rebel and a former captive with a deadly connection to the most powerful and dangerous man in the country, Prime Minister Daxton Hart. Forced to masquerade as Daxton's niece, Lila Hart, Kitty has helped the Blackcoats take back the prison known as Elsewhere. But Daxton has no intention of ceding his position of privilege—or letting Kitty expose his own masquerade. Not in these United States, where each person's rank means the difference between luxury and poverty, freedom and fear…and ultimately, between life and death.

To defeat the corrupt government, Kitty must expose Daxton's secret. Securing evidence will put others in jeopardy, including the boy she's loved forever and an ally she barely trusts. For months, Kitty's survival has hinged on playing a part. Now she must discover who she truly wants to be, and whether the new world she and the rebels are striving to create has a place in it for her after all.

Kitty has been Masked to look like Lila Hart, the prime minister's niece.  She has been the spokesperson for both the rebellion and the current government.  But once Lila comes back into the limelight, Daxton no longer has a use for Kitty.  So he discards her in Elsewhere, a place he hopes will end her.  But instead, Kitty finds the full power of the rebellion willing to listen.

When Kitty tries to oust Daxton in front of his people, it's hard for people to believe her especially if they live a privileged life.  What she needs is evidence.  But is she willing to risk her life and the lives of her loved ones to get this?  As the rebellion leads a life of its own, key characters will come into play and choose to risk it all.  But in the end, will Kitty get what she wants?  A life without a corrupt ranking system?

This book is fast-paced and kept me hooked.  The story is easy to follow, and I don't remember a lot from the earlier books other than I enjoyed them.  However, there is something that happens in the story that bothered me.  I became so fixated on it that I kind of ignored the rest of the story.  And...  I don't know if that just made me get through the story faster or if I quit paying as much attention.  But regardless, I was happy with the ending.

I think this is a good dystopian series that people will like.  I was definitely glad I got my hands on it.

Captive by Aimee Carter

Genre:  YA Dystopian

The Blackcoat Rebellion, Book 2

Aimee Carter's website

Amazon | Book Depository | Goodreads

Note:  This is the second book in a series.  Reading anything below can spoil plots from the first book a little bit.

Description (taken from Aimee Carter's website ):

For the past two months, Kitty Doe's life has been a lie. Forced to impersonate the Prime Minister's niece, her frustration grows as her trust in her fake fiancé cracks, her real boyfriend is forbidden and the Blackcoats keep her in the dark more than ever.

But in the midst of discovering that her role in the Hart family may not be as coincidental as she thought, she's accused of treason and is forced to face her greatest fear: Elsewhere. A prison where no one can escape.

As one shocking revelation leads to the next, Kitty learns the hard way that she can trust no one, not even the people she thought were on her side. With her back against the wall, Kitty wants to believe she'll do whatever it takes to support the rebellion she believes in - but is she prepared to pay the ultimate price?

Kitty has agreed to continue living as Lila Hart, the voice of the rebellion.  She will help Knox, her pretend fiance, destroy the ranking system that exists in this society.  But she's having difficulty trusting Knox, and he is fed up with her questioning him at every turn.  So when a fatal error occurs, Kitty finds herself in the spotlight playing the Hart game again.

As this story starts off with a bang, Kitty finds herself betrayed and sent to Elsewhere.  Elsewhere is the place where all of the criminals and unwanted people go.  But instead of the Hunt that she experienced when she was first Masked, she finds herself in a warped society.  A place where rats and snitches always have the upper hand.  But even in the worst part of society, the rebellion lives and Kitty finds herself reluctantly helping them.  Can she survive Elsewhere and the Blackcoat Rebellion, or will she lose everything she holds dear, including her life?

Honestly, this book starts out super strong.  And it just keeps going.  Yes, there are some very predictive spots.  But the dynamic between Kitty and Knox...  And Benjy.  I love this trio, and how hard they work at rebelling society.  I was pretty much hooked with the first, and now I'm definitely attached to the series and waiting for the third.

This is a fun dystopic read that I recommend to anyone who finds the plot interesting.  I don't think it will disappoint...

Pawn by Aimee Carter

Genre:  YA Dystopian

The Blackcoat Rebellion Series, Book 1

Aimee Carter's website

Amazon | Book Depository | Goodreads

Description (taken from Goodreads):

YOU CAN BE A VII. IF YOU GIVE UP EVERYTHING.

For Kitty Doe, it seems like an easy choice. She can either spend her life as a III in misery, looked down upon by the higher ranks and forced to leave the people she loves, or she can become a VII and join the most powerful family in the country.

If she says yes, Kitty will be Masked—surgically transformed into Lila Hart, the Prime Minister's niece, who died under mysterious circumstances. As a member of the Hart family, she will be famous. She will be adored. And for the first time, she will matter.

There's only one catch. She must also stop the rebellion that Lila secretly fostered, the same one that got her killed …and one Kitty believes in. Faced with threats, conspiracies and a life that's not her own, she must decide which path to choose—and learn how to become more than a pawn in a twisted game she's only beginning to understand.

Have you ever thought about the perfect society where everyone contributes?  And those that don't are sent away.  The thiefs and criminals aren't allowed in society.  And you are ranked based on what you can contribute which also determines your class in society.  Almost sounds like the perfect world, right?  Too bad we'll never get it right.

Kitty, the second child in a family whose class only allows for one child, spent her life in a group home.  The only mother she's known she's had to share with 40 other kids.  At the age of seventeen, every kid takes a test that determines their rank in society.  The Is (those that can't contribute to society) will be sent away while the lower rankings will have mediocre jobs but a roof over their heads.  Kitty's goal is to get a IV: something that lets her stay in her town to wait for Benji to get his ranking.  Only problem is she can't read and it's a written test.  Unfortunately, she ends up a III and must leave everything she's ever known for a mediocre life.

But...  People from very high places have noticed her.  She's given the opportunity to be a VII: a ranking that only belongs to the Hart family.  Only problem is she'll have to be Masked as one as well.  She will become Lila Hart.  But once she's a VII, nothing gets easier.  Instead, everything is more complicated and nothing is as it seems.  Can Kitty handle losing her identity and taking a new one?

The description that comes with this book is good and enticing.  But there's so much more to this story than that.  This book builds on the world Kitty is in.  And once you think you've figured it out, you're thrust into Lila's world.  And while a lot of the plot twists are predictable, you're so engrossed in the world that you don't care anymore.  This is the kind of world-building I love to see.  It's as if I can throw the characters aside and think of myself in this world (as a VI of course).

This is a dystopian that doesn't disappoint.  It's fun to read, and you begin to question all those off-handed remarks you've said about your own society (or at least I did).  I'll be picking up the next one for sure.