PAWN by Aimee Carter

(Review originally posted to my Goodreads on November 9th)

DNF on page 127

Due to this being a DNF, I will not be issuing a rating, though if I did, it would be very low.

This has to be one of the most insufferable books I have ever read. The main character was about as entertaining as a carpet, and the other characters were not much better. Everyone was so DULL, and there were some word choices that just brought me out of the story.
This has been on my TBR shelf for a really long time, and I began buddy reading them with my friend who managed to soldier on and finish it, but quite frankly I don't think my sanity can handle it.

Kitty was the main issue. For one thing... who names their supposedly badass heroine Kitty. Literally the only character named Kitty I can handle is Kitty Pryde, and even then she isn't my favorite. For another, she was like a chalk outline of what a character should be. It felt as though the author merely took the tropes that were popular at the time this was published (2013) and tossed them all together to create this mess.
She was obedient, weak-willed, and cowardly. But one of these side characters had the nerve to call her spunky.... Honey, a wet SPONGE is spunkier than she'll ever be.
Other than that, none of the other characters were memorable, and Daxton felt like a one of those mustache twirling villains. Completely unbelievable as anything other than a caricature, of which the same can be said of all of these characters.

The entire plot hinged on this, I guess, political intrigue and whether or not Kitty will become embroiled in this rebellion (it's not a spoiler! It's in the synopsis!), and quite frankly, I couldn't care less.
It felt non-existent and thin, like the author had a vague idea for a plot, but wasn't sure how to execute it. It didn't feel as though there were any stakes, and nothing about it intrigues me enough to complete it.
The idea behind the world was interesting, I guess, but I feel like this could have been executed so much better. I have read Carter's "The Goddess Test" but I'm sad to say this book has made me rethink what I thought about that novel.
She had an idea, but it was not executed as well as it could have been, I'm sorry to say.

Basically, it just felt as if the author wasn't sure what to write so she just did this, with numerous conveniences piling up on one another with some of the laziest writing I have ever had the misfortune to read. The characters are bland and emotionless, the plot is dry, and I really don't care about anything to do with this world. I have no interest in any of the sequels AT ALL.

I know this review has been harsh, but I'm just disappointed. I wouldn't go so far as to say I had particularly high expectations, but that just shows how, even with low expectations, I was extremely disappointed. It was tedious and melodramatic and I am glad that I never have to think about this world ever again.