Name: Dark Parties
ISBN: 9780316085946

Sara Grant

Sixteen-year-old Neva has been trapped since birth. She was born and raised under the Protectosphere, in an isolated nation ruled by fear, lies, and xenophobia. A shield "protects" them from the outside world, but also locks the citizens inside. But there's nothing left on the outside, ever since the world collapsed from violent warfare. Or so the government says... Neva and her best friend Sanna believe the government is lying and stage a "dark party" to recruit members for their underground rebellion. But as Neva begins to uncover the truth, she realizes she must question everything she's ever known, including the people she loves the most.

Dark Parties

Jessica Nottingham

Like a snowflake, each person is different and unique. Or at least, they used to be before the Protectosphere was put into place. Welcome to Neva's world. A world that claims to protect its people, but has dark secrets hidden beneath the surface. Neva and her friend Sanna know something is wrong. They aren't going to let things go. So begins the story of Neva's revolt.

Now what I loved about Dark Parties is that it drew me in from the very first moment I started to read. In fact, this book is so fast paced and filled with twists, deception and action, that there is hardly a moment to breathe! I didn't put this down once while I read it. That's how amazing it really was. The world under the Protectosphere is different enough to feel dystopian, and yet Sara Grant allows it to have just enough of a link to our own that it is unnerving. Deliciously so.

Neva was a superbly written character, and I loved her fire. Despite everything that comes her way (and there is a lot) she always refuses to back down. However what really made me connect with her was her refusal to let her own needs outweigh that of the others she is around. Neva makes tough decisions in this book, but they are almost always completely unselfish. She's amazing! I won't spoil it, but the one thing that eats her up inside most has to do with Sanna's friendship. That alone made me feel like Neva was a real person, and not just a fictional character I was reading about. She has doubts, she is flawed, and I adore her.

The one thing I missed while I was reading, was more about the world that Neva is in. It is explained enough to make you understand why she feels so stifled and bent on rebellion. However the action takes the reins a lot of times, and things are left out. There were times that what I was reading felt a bit jumpy, as if there was a race going on to fit everything important in before the end of the book. It was fleeting, but I was kind of hoping to find out a little more about the government that was so viciously hunting down Neva.

Still, overall I really enjoyed this read! As I mentioned, I devoured Dark Parties from start to finish without a break in between. It's that well written. Despite the small things I felt were missing, I'd rank this as a read that is not to be missed! Neva and Sanna's world has the possibility of coming to fruition, and that is what is most terrifying of all.

I've lit a fuse and I'm waiting for the explosion. All her life, sixteen-year-old Neva has lived in Homeland, completely cut off from the rest of the world. All her life, she has been told everything beyond is an unlivable wasteland. All this time, the government has fed her nothing but lies. Now, Neva keeps a tattered notebook under her mattress and fills it with the names of The Missing, those who have vanished with no explanation. Now, she and her best friend, Sanna, plan a secret Dark Party to recruit members for their underground rebellion. The group begins to uncover horrifying truths. But can Neva break through the secrecy that has shrouded her whole life? Or will she and her friends become part of The Missing?

Jessica 

Blog | Twitter | Instagram

I've been trying to put together my thoughts on the good, the bad and the in betweens in Sara Grant's novel Dark Parties for at least a week now. But, I can't. There was something so disappointing about it--and a bit patchy in terms of how things tied together--but I am having difficulty putting it into words. I think I expected something else entirely when it came to this novel due to its intriguing blurb. There's something about the description that holds a promise for a dystopian novel that is unique in a sea of similarities.

But Dark Parties seems to trip over itself on more than one occasion and it is what ultimately makes this read to be so tedious. It just felt like at every damn turn, the concept could have really worked but didn't quite make the mark. The entire time you felt like you knew what would happen--that you'd read it in some other variation before. Like literature deja vu. Except you hadn't, not really. Dark Parties isn't a bad novel, it's just not terribly good and hits so many speed bumps on the way.

Which kind of makes no sense because Sara Grant isn't an awful writer.

Continued: BOOKEDJ

Dark Parties

Reviews

Highlights