Taken (Taken #1) by Erin Bowman

Taken (Taken #1) by Erin Bowman

Release Date: April 16, 2013

Publisher: HarperTeen

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages:  368

Summary:  There are no men in Claysoot. There are boys—but every one of them vanishes at midnight on his eighteenth birthday. The ground shakes, the wind howls, a blinding light descends…and he’s gone.

They call it the Heist.

Gray Weathersby’s eighteenth birthday is mere months away, and he’s prepared to meet his fate–until he finds a strange note from his mother and starts to question everything he’s been raised to accept: the Council leaders and their obvious secrets. The Heist itself. And what lies beyond the Wall that surrounds Claysoot–a structure that no one can cross and survive.

Climbing the Wall is suicide, but what comes after the Heist could be worse. Should he sit back and wait to be taken–or risk everything on the hope of the other side?

My Thoughts: I usually have a hard time reading books with a male perspective but this one, I just flew right through.

We are introduced to Gray Weathersby and his brother Blaine. They are a year apart and live in a small community called Claysoot. They’ve lived in Claysoot their whole lives. Their mother and father are both gone. They only have each other. And so when Blaine hits 18, they both know things are going to change. Blaine will be swept away by The Heist. Nobody really knows much about the Heist or why it exists.

Gray feels alone and his only comfort is Emma so he gets the idea that he will jump the wall. Anyone who has ever tried has came back burned. But he figures, oh well its worth the risk.

Gray and Emma’s worlds are about to change. Everything they have ever known is about to change, drastically.

I just couldn’t believe what was happening but it all made sense. I was surprised, I was sad, this one really tugged at my emotions.

And I loved the addition of Bree. She spiced things up for me and added more drama. Loved that.

I liked the plot. I liked how things happened. I also found myself drawn to Blaine as I got to know him more as well.

Even when Gray started to grow up, I still saw moments of him that seemed somewhat immature.

Overall:  I liked this one quite a bit, but I think its more of a 3.5 rating for me but I’m giving it 4 since I did enjoy it more than I thought I would.  

Cover: Love it! Love the people, and love the colors. Its so bright!

What I’d Give It: