Like a lot of the population I have recently been on a Hunger Games high. Why are they so addictive? I don't know, but I couldn't put them down! And once I'd read them all (in a week) I decided to go right ahead and re-read them straight away. I then decided that maybe this was a little sad and I should probably surrender my Kindle over to my housemate so that she could experience their wonder. This lead to a dilemma: what do I read now!? I hit the YA Dystopian Romance Fiction blogs and came up with 'Unwind' by Neil Shusterman.
The principle of this book is that once a child becomes a teenager, they can legally be unwound at any point until they turn 18 should their parents wish. Unwinding is a process of harvesting all the person's organs and limbs without actually killing them, allowing them to live on, just in a different form. The book follows Connor, Risa and Lev; 3 unwinds drawn together by accident.
Having read 'Never Let Me Go' and 'Breathers' before starting 'The Hunger Games' this plot appealed to me. Why not carry on the dismembering and organ donating theme? And although 'unwinding' hangs over the heads of many of the characters involved, this is not a particularly dark book. I found it a really effective substitute to suppress my HG induced cravings. It's fast-paced and plot-filled! The book changes character view-point with each chapter so you get a well-rounded opinion on each teen. When you finally experience the unwinding process, it's quite unsettling, mainly because of the bits you don't get told. There's also a bit of romance, not as much as HG but enough to keep me happy!
All in all I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to those of you trying to break the HG cycle. It did only take me 2 days to read though, so please view this as a quick fix.Now, what to read today.........?
