I finished this book two days ago. I tried to write a review yesterday but felt like I had to continue processing. Today, I'm still not 100% sure how I feel, so I don't know how much sense this review is going to make.

Here's the thing - as far as the story, the pace of the novel, and the characters go, I loved it. It was a a page-turner and I identified with the characters. Yes, some of it felt forced and rushed, but overall, I think the story and the way the author painted it was great.

It was, by far, the most realistic dystopian society I've read about. As in, I could actually imagine it happening. Which brings me to the reason I think I'm having such a difficult time writing the review. I feel like I should have something profound to say - about the separation of church and state, about the way we treat criminals in our society, about what the future has in store for America. And I DO have things to say about all of that, it's just that in today's political climate, with the election months away and both parties raging at each other, I'm not even sure how I feel about some current political issues, not to mention the issues raised in this book. So I think my problem is a dissapointment in my ability to articulate exactly how this book made me feel.

Bottom line, is it will make you think long and hard about many hot-button issues, but it is also a great story.