Thursday, July 19, 2012

Possession ~ Elana Johnson

Title: Possession
Author: Elana Johnson
Pub Date: June 7, 2011
Publisher: Simon Pulse
405 pages (hardcover)
Author website: http://elanajohnson.blogspot.com/

From GoodReads:
Toe the line between rule-following and rule-breaking in this tense and twisted start to a smart and sexy dystopian trilogy. Vi knows the Rule: Girls don’t walk with boys, and they never even think about kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the Rules more than Zenn…and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi’s future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself.     But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they’re set on convincing Vi to become one of them….starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can’t leave Zenn in the Thinkers’ hands, but she’s wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous—everything Zenn’s not. Vi can’t quite trust Jag and can’t quite resist him, but she also can’t give up on Zenn.     This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play

Oh em gee. First off, 5 out of 5. I don't typically rate books on the blog, so this means something! lol Possession completely blew me away. It was not what I was expecting-and in fact it far exceeded my expectations.  

As far a non-post-apocalypse dystopian story goes, I found Possession to be one of the more interesting ones. Johnson has created an entire world complete with lands, vocabulary, an underground rebellion movement, etc. 


To start, there are two distinct groups of society members, and they live in two different areas. First is the Goodgrounds and the Goodies; and the Badlands and Baddies. But what makes Baddies bad? Well, they are tanned and have crazy hair! Apparently, Violet Schoenfeld is about to find out. Vi is a Rulebreaker and for her latest rulebreaking (walking with a boy after dark) she is going to be shipped off to the Badlands.


Thus begins Vi's journey with Baddie Jag Barque. And from that point on discovers her life is not what she thought, and not quite as simple. There is also more to the story of her dead sister and missing father. Will Vi be strong enough to withstand all of these new discoveries?


I absolutely ADORED Vi! She has such a fabulous voice, and kind of reminds me of how I talk to family and friends O.o Vi is a sarcastic, smart ass, semi-violent (but in a good way) girl. Even knowing it is going to bite her in the ass she can't hold her tongue.
"Yeah, the biting-my-tongue-thing only happened once in a lifetime, and I'd just used my quota."
The best dialogue in the book occurs between Vi and Jag. Between them, it's the important things that matter: "You think X is cute?" Yes-let's not focus on anything else but that single comment. Love it! 

Oh, and there is also a love triangle. Guess what? I like this one! I know, two for two this week! There is Jag-Mr. Baddie himself. My first impression of Jag was not high. I was hoping he was a low rank character. Happily I admit he was not. He is a good guy, who is sensitive and just utterly in love with Vi. Then there is Zenn. He is Vi's matched. But there is something off about him. Could it be that he is Special Forces? Or is it something else? Yeah, not a fan of his, at all.

Okay, that is about all of the story I am going to share. I don't want to spoil anything because Possession is chock full of super-secret-shockers!

And now your Vocabulary Lesson, compiled by moi so it is not complete or whatever.
  • Thinkers: Persuasive people who control minds "the ones who broadcast the transmissions and categorize the people"
  • Control: gifts some people have, gifts that allow them to well, control things
  • Controlled: Basically, you're brainwashed or someone is making you do something with their mind!
  • the Green: Fancy name for Thinkers
  • Rangers: High ranking society members. Different types of rangers, all are top of class, smart, etc
  • Free Thinker: a person who cannot be controlled and thinks for themself

And some places mentioned in the book:
  • City of Water
  • Badlands
  • Fire Region
  • Centrals
  • Goodgrounds
  • Southern Rim
  • Freedom -NOT the place to be!
  • Seaside-where you can be free! 
So, there you have it. Possession by Elana Johnson. Do yourself a favor and get your hands on a copy! And then go read Surrender, book two. This is my next goal! I need to see what happens next!!


"We never let go of the ones we lose."

If you lived in Vi's world, do you think you would be a Goodie, or a Baddie? Would you want to be a Free Thinker or Controlled?






No comments:

Post a Comment