Review: The Elites
The Elites
By Natasha Ngan
Published By: Hot Key Books
Publication Date: September 5, 2013
Date Read: December 31, 2021
Genre: YA – Dystopia
Source: Bought
Format: Paperback
Pages: 368
From Goodreads:
‘There is a rumour that the Elites don’t bleed.’Hundreds of years into the future, wars, riots, resource crises and rising sea-levels have destroyed the old civilisations. Only one city has survived: Neo-Babel, a city full of cultures – and racial tension.
Fifteen-year-old Silver is an Elite, a citizen of Neo-Babel chosen to guard the city due to her superior DNA. She’d never dream of leaving – but then she fails to prevent the assassination of Neo Babel’s president, setting off a chain of events more shocking and devastating than she could ever have imagined. Forced to flee the city with her best friend Butterfly (a boy with genetically-enhanced wings), Silver will have to fight to find her family, uncover the truth about Neo-Babel and come to terms with her complicated feelings for Butterfly.
Packed full of adventure, romance, exoticism and the power of friendship, The Elites is a highly compelling and beautifully written novel from a supremely talented debut author.
The Elites is a book that has been on my shelf for such a long time. I first came across this book at a book convention way back in 2014. The author was signing there and I thought it sounded like such a great dystopia premise and bought it immediately… Fast forward 7 years and I finally got around to reading this one. I’m really glad I finally picked up The Elites and read this one. It wasn’t the best YA Dystopia I’ve ever read but it was definitely enjoyable.
This is actually the first dystopia book I’ve picked up in over two years. I’m a huge fan of dystopia novels but recently I feel like we’ve been living in a dystopia so I didn’t really fancy reading them. The Elites was a good re-introduction to the genre as it is nothing like what is going on the world right now… which is a major plus. It was a really fascinating and interesting future where The Council run the city and The Elites train to protect the council and do everything they order. This standalone novel follows Silver and Butterfly, two Elite warrior who venture outside of the city and have to face the fact that everything they thought they knew was a lie.
The Elites was a fast-paced, action-packed novel and I enjoyed it. It gripped me right from the start and I found it really interesting. The world-building was fantastic however I didn’t feel like I really connected with the characters very well. There is a small romance story in the background but I didn’t really feel anything. When the characters expressed their love I believed they were in love but I was just kind of like… okay… moving on. I didn’t really feel it. I’d have liked to have had more of an emotional connection to them but unfortunately that didn’t happen.
This book is an enjoyable dystopia standalone. I found the fact that it is a standalone really interesting as usually you find most YA Dystopia novels are series. I kind of understand why as the ending of this seemed super rushed. To wrap everything up, it all just happened super fast. I think this is another reason why I didn’t really connect with this one emotionally. It seemed kind of superficial and on the surface without digging deeper to the characters feelings and emotions. This was Natasha’s debut novel and I will pick more up from her in the future, however I’m hoping the characterisation is better in her other novels. The Elites is enjoyable and if you’re a plot-driven reader who is a fan of dystopia you will enjoy this one.
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I’m Kayleigh, a teacher and blogger who is obsessed with all things bookish. I love reading YA books of all genres and I am happiest when sharing my love and passion for books.