I woke up one morning with the ambition to read- and this sounds mean and weird- a shit book. My mind alighted immediately on this, lying forlornly at the top of the stairs awaiting the loft, where I had discarded it a couple of months earlier after failing to get into it the first time. 
 The thing is, this is not a shit book. 
 Sure, the cover is terrible, and the contents are by no means the best thing I have ever read. This book was good though, and in fact, the second in the series is on a goodreads shelf for me to buy or borrow and get round to, at some point. 
 Adelina was an alright character, I guess. I liked the concept of a main character who had obvious flaws that were not just small, quirky things that are quite easily overlooked or even seen as cute (like those clumsy protagonists: Bella Swann). This was pulled off well, the looks of her which almost everyone else shunned, hated and feared. I also liked the concept of the protagonist who was dark, although I personally do not think that this was pulled off as well as the misunderstood, flawed aspect. Yes, she was bitter, (view spoiler)[and yes she betrayed 'her people' and killed one? two? of them, (hide spoiler)]but both of these can actually be seen as misunderstandings. Drastic? Yes. But misunderstandings nonetheless. I think I would have enjoyed it more if she had been properly dark, truly vindictive and cruel, as I feel that it is not that often that you get a protagonist like this. She cannot really be called a villain, I think, though many people have called her just this. Her childhood was terrible, and she does not actually do anything that bad except to people that would have done the same to her first! 
 The other characters I do not feel had much to commend them. I read this book at the end of last year, so about three months ago at most, and yet I cannot remember the characters well. I think that they must have been a bit one dimensional and black and white; throughout most of the book, they either seemed to like Adelina or loathe her. The exception seemed to be Raphael (Rafael?), though this is also not quite true, as he still seemed to have his mind made up pretty fast as well... He just did not tell Adelina. 
 The plot itself, also, I do think was not that special. Oh, it may have been interesting; a tried and tested formula. It seems to me to be a bit like Red Queen and Shadow and Bone, though I have not quite read the former yet, or finished either the latter or this series yet... Seemingly normal girl from the lower hierarchy of some sort has a super special dangerous power and then gets moved up in rank! In this, she finds her Own Group, which turns out to actually not be all that. An interesting premise, yet an unoriginal one. Throw in a old friend or a sibling that does not also join the Exclusive Group and who they cannot leave behind and you are basically all set! It may be done differently, but when you strip the books down to their bare bones, that is what you find. 
 The book itself, I found quick and easy to read, and that is what I wanted. So basically, I have nothing in particular about this book, apart from the storyline which was reminiscent of a few others in the Young Adult section at this same time. I am considering reading the rest of the series, because this read, though not particularly memorable, was a nice and uncomplicated read for me.