Review: Pure (Pure #1) by Julianna Baggot

Title: Pure (Pure #1)

Author: Julianna Baggott

Published: February 8th 2012 by Grand Central Publishing
Arc taken from netgalley

Book Description:

Pressia barely remembers the Detonations or much about life during the Before. In her sleeping cabinet, she thinks about what is lost--how the world went from amusement parks, movie theaters, birthday parties, fathers and mothers . . . to ash and dust, scars, permanent burns, and fused, damaged bodies.

My Thoughts:

She has her own scars, and that’s what makes her strong…

                Pressia is one of the wretches who were left outside the dome when the detonation happened, and as a result, they lived a life of misery and pain, especially with their fused bodies, but to make their lives worse, there are also mutated creatures that posed great danger to them, plus there are the OSR who takes away anyone who will turn sixteen. Pressia is turning sixteen, and she has to choose between staying and running away from everything.

                I really enjoyed reading this book. It only made me crave for more dystopian/post-apocalyptic novels! Pure is a different kind of dystopian novel that I’ve read, in a way that it actually freaked me out a bit. The way Baggott described the mutations really made my skin crawl. One of Pressia’s hand is a doll head, Bradwell’s back has birds embedded on it (and no, they’re not dead), and El Capitan’s brother is fused with him on his back. There are more types of mutations that you could never imagine would even exist, and yet it does in Pressia’s world. It’s disturbing, and at the same time, amazing!

                The story was told in different POV’s, and although I’m not a fan of novels with multiple POV’s, I was actually okay with this one. I enjoyed every chapter, and I always look forward for what will happen next. The characters are interesting and unique in their own ways. Pressia is one of the characters I loved. In such a young age, her eyes were opened to the cruelty around her, wherein the strongest survives, and the weak dies, thus she strived so hard to be strong, not only for herself but also for her grandfather, who’s the only person left she cares the most. I love Pressia’s attitude. She’s independent and strong, and despite all her scars and deformities, she continued to move on in search for a better life. Bradwell and Partridge are one of my faves too. Bradwell can be mean sometimes, but he’s actually a really sweet and protective guy. Partridge is a Pure, a person who came from the dome who doesn’t have any scars or deformities in him. He started as someone who’s highly dependent on Pressia and Bradwell, and as the story progresses, you’ll see that he really changed a lot. He’s stronger, and is now proud of his own scars. The other minor characters were great as well, such as El Capitan and Lyda.

                The plot is unique, and Baggott did an amazing job with this one. The world she created was strange, yet beautiful and believable. Fans of dystopian/ post-apocalyptic novels will surely enjoy this one!

I give this book four whales.