ARC REVIEW: The Glass Arrow by Kristen Simmons

The Glass Arrow by Kristen Simmons

Release Date: February 10, 2015

Publisher: Tor Teen

Format: E-ARC, 336 pages

Genre: Young Adult, Sci-Fi, Dystopia

Pre-order Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

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The Handmaid’s Tale meets Blood Red Road in Glass Arrow, the story of Aya, who lives with a small group of women on the run from the men who hunt them, men who want to auction off breeding rights to the highest bidder.

In a world where females are scarce and are hunted, then bought and sold at market for their breeding rights, 15-year old Aya has learned how to hide. With a ragtag bunch of other women and girls, she has successfully avoided capture and eked out a nomadic but free existence in the mountains. But when Aya’s luck runs out and she’s caught by a group of businessmen on a hunting expedition, fighting to survive takes on a whole new meaning.

My Review:

   The story immediately opens up with our main character, Aya, running away from men who are hunting her. And they wish to capture her and then auction her off for breeding. Because in this type of world, women are deficient and so they are sold. Women like Aya go and hide in the wilderness to escape from all of this. So she is considered an outsider.

   When she is captured and being prepared for the auction, she meets these other girls who are also being sold. And they bully her for living in the outside world. They were all kinds of mean girls and I thought they were stupid for not seeing what was about to happen to them. You see, they see themselves being auctioned off to men as an honor. They don't see anything wrong with it. They were born into that world and Aya was not. So she was taught how unethical it all is. And she tries to make herself seem unfit.

  She is taken to solitary where she meets a young man and has a wolf-friend, Brax. In time, she starts to trust the man that she starts to call Kiran. And he tells her he will help her escape the city and go back to the mountains where her only family is.

   The premise of the story is what really drew me in and I liked it more than I thought I would. But there were some things that did fall short. I didn't really connect much with the characters. But they weren't completely terrible. There was a particular character that I hated at the start and she just grew on me. I was also saddened at the loss of another. And I was enjoying coupling of Aya and Kiran but there wasn't enough of it

   But towards the middle to the end, I felt like things were just being rushed. And while the ending wasn't bad. I felt like there was something missing. I guess you could say, I liked the ending but then I didn't because it felt like the world was yet to be resolved.

   I'd recommend it to all dystopian fans because I definitely liked the plot of the story where girls are sold and auctioned off. I've never read a dystopian book that had covered that subject matter. And the beginning just captured my attention really quickly. The opening scene is one of my favorite parts. My only wish is that was a series and not a standalone. I really would have loved to have seen the relationship between Aya and Kiran progress. But it was still enjoyable!

3 Stars: I Liked It