The Wanted by Lauren Nicolle Taylor
Clean Teen Publishing © 2014
Kindle Edition
Dystopian
Reviewed by Leah
I paid for a book I already owned because my Kindle is an asshole. I. Regret. Nothing.
Summary:
Everything is falling apart.
After a failed mission, Joseph and Deshi are forced to leave Rosa behind in the healing machine. With them, they carry the haunting questions, What have we done? Will she survive? Will we ever see each other again?
Rosa is determined to answer at least one. Waking up in the machine, she realizes that she has come back from the dead … and she's about to face a whole new nightmare. After all, wheelchair-bound Superior Grant isn't about to let her forget that he has the power to kill her. And it will take everything in her to stay alive long enough to prove that he can't break her.
Without Rosa at his side, Joseph is falling apart. Between trying to stay strong for Orry and not knowing how to live with what he had to do to survive, he is no longer the same man that Rosa fell in love with. He's just as broken. Just as frail. And somehow he has to find his own way to keep going.
And when everything falls apart, they have to ask themselves if what they want is worth it to keep going.
Initial Thoughts:
I went into this as emotionally prepared as possible. I still almost ended up as pummeled as before. Were this not the actual ending to the series, I might have been. And in some ways, it was worse.
Characters:
Rosa, Rosa, Rosa… From the first book, we are introduced to this impulsive, defiant, strong young woman. She is angry but hopeful in the beginning. Though she doesn't fit in the perfect world the Superiors have created, she has some hope that she might one day form a niche. A hope that is ripped away at the Classes and forms a whole new Rosa. A Rosa that has gone past angry and straight to enraged. No longer hopeful, Rosa of The Woodlands becomes desperate as everything begins to change her … and threatens to break her.
In The Wall Rosa is just as desperate. For Joseph. For Orry. For herself. For her new, and old, family. She is not only desperate, but determined. As she grows into her roles as partner and mother, she has to revisit an old role that never seemed to fit right: daughter.
A role that feels even more ill-fitting in The Wounded. With the sadness looming overhead, it isn't enough that her family has survived if they are no longer able to live. As the horrors of their lives erupt in one single blow, Rosa is far from backing down. This is a mother ready to fight. For every life.
When it comes to her own life, however, she has to learn the meaning of the phrase "bide your time." Entrapped in the world of The Wanted, Rosa embodies exactly what it means to love another. To protect them, no matter the cost. And to survive every ounce of torment forced unto her so that she could see her son again.
As a person, Rosa does this wonderful thing where she grows and matures … without losing any of the qualities that make her the Rosa we fell in love with in the beginning. Still strong, impulsive, and defiant, she now adds forgiving, clever, and courageous to her list of attributes. A very convincing heroine.
Joseph has managed a few leaps and bounds, but this book sent him down the rabbit hole. To a place I was ashamed to find him, sometimes. Without Rosa by his side, he just sort-of disintegrated as an individual. The guilt of his necessary actions ate away at him. From the violence needed to save his life to the guilt of leaving Rosa behind, both actions drove him into a despair so deep that all he wanted was to forget. And he almost didn't remember in time.
I'll be honest, I was highly disappointed in Joseph. But he needed this. He was too perfect by far in the first three books, and his downward spiral made him more human than anything else could. Though I didn't like him for pretty much any part of The Wanted, I at least understood him. And that's enough.
Deshi is honestly the character I think I related to the most in the terms of doing what is necessary. (Spoiler alert for everyone who hasn't read the books yet…) When he admitted to not regretting killing Superior Este, I knew I had found a kindred spirit. Where Joseph suffers from his guilt and Rosa can't bring herself to do it, Deshi identified Este as a severe threat to his family and he took her out. As he should. No need to feel guilty over defending the lives of yourself and those you love. This boy right here knows what it means to survive and keep his family safe.
Rash is an awesome answer to those who think men and women cannot be friends without wanting to be romantically involved. As he tells Joseph: he loves Rosa, but he's not in love with her. I wouldn't say it affects him more than anyone that Rosa isn't there, but he's the most open with his animosity. Which I loved. There are no filters when it comes to Rash. Happy, sad, or angry, he will show it. And you will know it.
Elise is the role-reversal of that jerk that keeps hitting on you after you already friendzoned his ass. Not even kidding. Despite Joseph wanting to be alone … she shows up. Joseph is clearly in love with someone else and tells her so. Her response? "Just fun. Nothing serious." Excuse me? Bitch say what? He says "just friends" and she takes that as "not right now". People, if a man had done this to a woman, she'd be calling harassment on him so fast, there would be a crowd of feminists with pitchforks and torches lighting up his ass before he had time to blink. But because she's a woman and he's polite enough not to completely tell her off, she gets away with this? No. Hell no. OH HELL FUCKING NO!!
Her role, for me, actually serves a purpose. She reminds me that there are actual women who do get away with this kind of shit. These types of women are the reason, when a guy cheats, his girl will typically go after the other woman, instead of blaming him. (Which Rosa doesn't exactly do, since she knows Joseph is responsible for his own actions.) The point I'm making is: feminism is about gender equality. If it's not okay for a man to constantly keep coming onto a woman who has clearly shut him down, it sure as hell is not okay for a woman to do the same damn thing.
Plot & Setting:
With Rosa being left behind, we all know where this plot is going. The poor girl is going to be tortured. Which means that the torment she suffers is just as horrific for the reader as it is for Rosa. There's no escaping it. Only enduring through it.
Consistent with its predecessors, this book is character-based. It's all about the feels and the triumph, here. (Though why that opening when none of those characters were relevant sort of bugs me now…)
Writing Style:
I'm just going to paste my Amazon review here for you. Just so you get the proper idea of how I feel about Lauren's writing.
Lauren Nicolle Taylor does not know the meaning of moderation. She hits hard, fast, and earnestly. Opening one of her books is akin to waiting on an active volcano to erupt. Because there will be an eruption. There is no doubt. It is only the 'when' that has you worried as you proceed with caution into The Woodlands Series. You will not emerge the same. Ashes will cover you from head to toe. Tear stains will create black streaks down your face. And you will hold your arms tight across your chest as you try to protect yourself from feeling more, and to keep yourself from exposing just how much you have already felt.
The Wanted is the final book in the series, and I loved and hated it for that fact. Much like its predecessors, it will make you FEEL. Anger, pain, heartache, loss… There is no escaping it. These books are all emotional, but this one is even more so for being the end to a truly fantastic story.
Will it appeal to everyone? No. Is it for meant for mature young adults, rather than those just entering their teen years? Yes. Does that mean it should be avoided by anyone? Not at all.
This is a remarkable experience, reading the entire series. I just hope more people will continue to enjoy Rosa's journey.
Overall Opinion:
This series will devastate you. And it will be worth every heartbreaking minute.
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