Monday 10 October 2011

The Pledge #1: The Pledge

A million thank yous to the Simon & Schuester Galley Grab program for us a galley of the book.....thank you, been wanting to read this since I saw its stunning cover. I present my views of Kimberly Derting's upcoming saga The Pledge #1 The Pledge.

Here is the summary of the book:

In the violent country of Ludania, the language you speak determines what class you are, and there are harsh punishments if you forget your place—looking a member of a higher class in the eye can result in immediate execution. Seventeen-year-old Charlaina (Charlie for short) can understand all languages, a dangerous ability she’s been hiding her whole life. Her only place of release is the drug-filled underground club scene, where people go to shake off the oppressive rules of the world they live in. There, she meets a beautiful and mysterious boy who speaks a language she’s never heard, and her secret is almost exposed. Through a series of violent upheavals, it becomes clear that Charlie herself is the key to forcing out the oppressive power structure of her kingdom….

A dystopic world where the people are divided into castes and the major distinction between them is the different languages they speak, i.e., the royals speak another tongue, vendors another, servants another with just one universal language between them. They are not meant to know what the others are speaking in their dialect but in the queendom of Ludania, a seventeen year old Charlaina (Charlie) can understand every language that is spoken, a dangerous ability she has hidden for her whole life. 

Her only release from such boundaries comes is during the time she spends in the underground drug ridden clubs but when she meets a beautiful and mysterious boy who speaks a dialect she had never heard before.....well all her years of effort of hiding her ability to understand all the languages might go waste and it was almost exposed. Charlie now can't seem to keep this mysterious boy out of her mind at all and even the boy wants to know her. Seeking more rendezvous with this stranger, whom she comes to know as Max might spell out the words trouble for her. 

Due a series of life changing, violent events that take place during this time Charlie finds out that she herself is the key to finally rooting out the oppressive force and laws prevalent in Ludania.

Charlie is a teenager, living in a dystopic world oppressed by laws but she has also got a righteous head on her shoulders. On top of that she has a dangerous secret to keep hidden; in the society where she lives in you are not meant to understand the language of the upper class. She has a terrible secret and wants to confide in someone about it. The trials she faces makes her start question her belief and enables her to start taking a stand.

Max as well is a complicated character like Charlie. He is also keeping a huge secret from Charlie, a secret that takes an awful lot of time to be out. He is the tall, dark and handsome guy....don't forget mysterious that that has Charlie sleepless and just happens to be there at the stop whenever she needs him.

The Queen on the other hand is merciless, she'll do anything to achieve the ends her wants regardless of the means taken. She'd burn a million bodies if it means she gets what she wants. She is a complex character and her thoughts are definitely going to horrify you to no ends. 

Kimberly Derting is officially now on my favorite authors list, I had recently read 'the body finder' and 'desires of the dead' and I loved them both and since I saw the gorgeous cover of this book I have been wanting to read it ever since. And I have nothing but positive thoughts about this book too. The Pledge marks a wonderful and an adventurous beginning to a new saga. Although the epilogue seemed to portray an ending to the tale but it shows to be a series so we'll see where Miss Derting takes the story from here.

"The Pledge is as dark and stunning as its cover."

Genre :      Young Adult, Dystopia


Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry


Courtesy of : Simon & Schuester Galley grab


Rate:              5/5 (It was amazing)

1 comments:

 

Le' Grande Codex Template by Ipietoon Cute Blog Design