Review: Promised by Caragh M. O'Brien

Promised
(Birthmarked #3)

Author: Caragh M. O'Brien

Publication Date: October 2nd, 2012

Publisher: Roaring Brook Press

Genre: Dystopia

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Synopsis:

After defying the ruthless Enclave, surviving the wasteland, and upending the rigid matriarchy of Sylum, Gaia Stone now faces her biggest challenge ever. She must lead the people of Sylum back to the Enclave and persuade the Protectorat to grant them refuge from the wasteland. In Gaia's absence, the Enclave has grown more cruel, more desperate to experiment on mothers from outside the wall, and now the stakes of cooperating or rebelling have never been higher. Is Gaia ready, as a leader, to sacrifice what--or whom--she loves most?

My Thoughts: The end of a series is always a somewhat sad event for me, especially when it's a series that I've enjoyed so much! I have to say, there are some events that happened in Promised that were slightly disturbing for me. Yes, I realize that it's a dystopia and that kind of thing generally happens, but there was just one thing that happened to Gaia forcibly that shocked me so much. I couldn't even believe it. I felt so bad for her and still do!! So what happened to her? You'll have to read the book to find out ;)

Promised starts off about a year after Prized leaves off. As the new leader of Sylum, Gaia is leading her people out of the death trap that was their home and across the wastelands to the Enclave. Their arrival is less than inviting and Gaia is actually arrested immediately for treason. After a bit of negotiation, the Protectorat and Gaia come to an agreement and she is released. Of course, the Protectorat doesn't follow through on his end of the bargain, which was to provide water for New Sylum, so you can only imagine what will happen when people start to get desperate.

Promised shows us a new side to a lot of characters when they become desperate. Leon completely changes again and Gaia struggles to come to a balance between what she feels is right and what has to be done to survive. It's a harsh reality for her when she realises that they're going to need to do some horrible things to get results. She once again grows as a character and it's nice to see her adapt to her leadership role.

I really enjoyed this series overall. Caragh M. O'Brien has created a very interesting world, which is completely believable.  The characters are ones that you come to care for (seriously horrified about what happened to Gaia! Omgosh!) and it's hard to see them suffer the way they do. I will be definitely recommending this series to anyone who enjoys the dystopian genre and to those that are looking to give it a try. It's a wonderful story and original in it's own way. It keeps the reader engaged, which is always a good sign. I'm defnitely a new fan of Caragh M. O'Brien and this was a great end to the series. I'll be watching for more from her!