[REVIEW] The Cure

Series: N/A
Author:
Stephanie Erickson
Genre:
 young adult, science fiction, dystopia, apocalyptic, 
Published:
 November 27, 2013
Purchase: Amazon

"One life will make the difference." Macey Holsinger has heard that promise for as long as she can remember. But it hasn't saved anyone yet, not even her little brother. 
Little is known about the disease, except that it's a rapid and absolute killer. Countless lives have been claimed in the last hundred years, and government scientists are working hard to stop the spread through human experimentation. Testing has killed nearly as many people as the disease and, to Macey at least, it seems like they're no closer to a cure. 
At sixteen, conformity to the government's idea of "sacrifice for the greater good" is a difficult concept for Macey. Shocked by how many aspects of life the disease controls, she faces her own testing reluctantly. 
Macey feels alone as questions plague her about things that are simply a way of life for most. Questions no one else thinks to ask. Why is the quest for a cure reason enough to ban things like flags and freedom of expression? How can death be justified with more death? In the end, how much will the cure cost, and why is Macey the only one who thinks the price is too high? 
Answers evade her until she's left with only one question... How much will she sacrifice in the name of the cure? 

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Plague. Such a common thing in young adult books these days. But it's practically one of those book plots I kind of like reading.

THE THING. An unnamed plague kills even the healthiest person. No one knows the cause. A research for the antidote has been going on for years. Everyone is given a 'date' in which the government will be allowed to use them for finding out the cure. With the government's desperation, Macey Holsinger's date was moved ahead of schedule. She's the first one.

THE WORLD. I'd really love to get into this world but the author didn't really fully explore the condition of the setting - what it looks like, how advance the technology is, how the people are really receiving the plague, etc. Some parts of the book hints scientific advancements yet the author doesn't talk about it very much which really left me wondering by myself at times. 

Several times as I read, I question the world. What really is going on? Aside from the plague, is there any subplots I should know about in here? Around 20% towards the end, some things were explained  - the nature of the plague, why was there no freedom of expression, etc. But it didn't satisfied me. There were still several questions hanging especially questions that involves the heroine, Macey.

Macey Holsinger is a nice heroine. I liked her although not completely at first because I she sounds like a kid constantly whining. But as I read though I get to know Macey and really like her - she's rebellious by nature, she would always reason things out (but at times she'll just surrender). She sometimes makes rash decisions and would at times be heavily driven by her emotions but we always have our weaknesses, yeah? Macey is really nice all in all. 

The ending was just plain convenient. As I read through it, it feels like everything was happening for convenience sake. It also left me with a few more questions like what made Macey special? Not very good but quite tolerable if you ask me.

OVERALL, The Cure is a decent apocalyptic novel. It has an unexplored dystopian society, an unnamed plague, a strong heroine, and a fairly convenient ending. While it all sounds quite uninteresting, I honestly enjoyed this because of the heroine, Macey :) The Cure is a nice quick apocalyptic read yet not recommended if you want something worthwhile. 

*             *             *

What I Like: (1) Macey Holsinger - how she thinks and faces the unfair soceity, (2) the people around Macey - especially Alex, (3) the premise (could have been written better though),

What I Didn’t Like: (1) the unexplored world (I could have rated this higher if the world had been better presented and explored), (2) the convenience of the ending, (3) some parts are obviously calling for strong emotions from me but no, just no. not very moving



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