Perfect was a great follow up to Flawed. I wish more authors would go the duology route because, let's face it: we, as readers, are all too familiar with middle-book syndrome. But in a duology, you don't have that.

I'll admit I liked the first book better, but I almost always do. Usually the follow ups are more political and action-packed, but I typically like the set up that takes place in the first book the best. Either way, this was a great duo. Dystopian seems to be a dying breed, but for me that's kind of a good thing as it makes them all the more fun when a new one does release. I will definitely be purchasing the hardcover of Perfect to go with my hardcover of Flawed.

If you read Flawed, you will have been eagerly awaiting the release of this book and it is so well worth the wait! It was wonderful and brought up so many emotions. Celestine had been branded Flawed and almost all of her basic human rights were stripped from her. The Guild is an organisation responsible for judging who is Flawed, how they are Flawed and where the brand will be on their body. A book which reminds us of how much discrimination there has been in the world in the past and how easy it can be to judge others by your own moral standard, which could also be Flawed. I just loved this book so much and it made me think hard about humanity, how we learn from our mistakes, how not to judge others because they may be different from us, not inferior to us.

This was an incredibly compelling sequel that really built on an intriguing political system.

Especially reading this book in today's climate, I was really impressed with the political world building that Ahern has done. It is very obviously dystopian and requires suspension of disbelief; however, it's at the same time very believable. It seems to focus on a rather small state, which makes it work.

It's intriguing that even in a society where everyone almost had equal rights, people found a way to divide themselves. It really hit home and showed the importance of unity and the prevalence of fear. Maybe it was the time period I was reading it, but I found this to be a great example of why dystopian books can be very relevant and serve as warnings.

The premise and the strong writing were definitely the strongest aspects of the book, however. A lot of the events in this book fell too nicely into place and happened so fast that I found myself confused as to how exactly they had worked so perfectly. There's a lot of subtle plotting that I wasn't quite a huge fan of. But all of this builds the plot so I guess I can't complain too much.

I also wasn't terribly enamoured with any of the main characters other than Celestine. It seemed like all of the side characters were absolutely awesome, but there was a looot of focus on the romance and the romantic relationships where I would have enjoyed more development between Celestine and her sister or mother. Still, I appreciated that intriguing characters did exist.

The revolution was intriguing, and Celestine was a beautiful character for this genre--the way she felt so unintentional made her feel so much more real than characters of other novels.

I loved this book and wholeheartedly recommend it to any fan of dystopias or fascination with politics.

Maybe even 4.5* - Advanced copy received via NetGalley for honest review.

I don't really have a lot to say about this one because if you're planning on reading it then you've probably already read Flawed. And this is pretty much more of the same really. The writing was consistent in its refreshing simplicity and the story was well paced with lots of action to maintain interest. It was also clearly well thought out because at one point I thought I'd picked up a little flaw in the plot, but no sooner had I done so hen it was immediately addressed.

As in Flawed, Celestine's character continued to be very likeable and this second instalment, I think developed her feminist side which made her character even more stronger. One of the things I loved about both Flawed and Perfect was the positive relationships Celestine had with her family. Something which is definitely missing from a lot of YA.

I was about to say that this is the perfect (pun intended) duology for younger YA readers. But I'm 38 and I thoroughly enjoyed it too; so yeah, recommended to anyone who just wants to pick up a nice, quick and easy read that's fast paced with a satisfying conclusion.

There were interesting and timely elements to this YA novel concerning oppressive societies.

I was fortunate enough to wait to read book one in this series so when I saw this book, Perfect, on Netgalley I figured I would give both a try. I am so glad I did because I had my ARC ready and opened the second I finished Flawed.

Flawed is a dystopian set in a world very much like ours but where if anyone sins they are punished severely. That punishment leaves a brand on the skin of the perpetrator and then they can no longer live in society the way they did prior to the branding. Each sin is given a different punishment but then you are made to wear an arm band the notifies everyone around you that you are Flawed.

Perfect picks up right where it left off with Celestine. She is trying to figure out who she can trust but in this new place in her life she is not sure just who is an ally or who will turn her in.

There are so many twists and turns in this, not only for the reader but also for Celestine. I read this so quickly that the only thing I wrote down in my reader's journal was OH CRAP and I think that was around 65% but I can't say for sure because I moved right along!

This is one of those where you want the characters to be safe and as the reader you feel for them but I also did not want the story to end. I want more! Although Cecelia did wrap it up beautifully but with such a heart-wrenching story I just needed a few more, say 100 more pages to get me through the end. Of course with this kind of story I would ask for yet another 100 pages if she yielded to my request!

You'll definitely want to read the first to understand, although there are some reminders, the full story. I think that Celestine's story is worth living with her. It's horrific but has moments of hope and happiness.

Fantastic story. FIVES all around!

This is a fast paced read for fans of both dystopian fiction and also is a bit of a twist on The Scarlet Letter, for fans of classics. The duology wrapped up nicely without being too "pat".

A must-read series, whose message is timeless.
I can't think Macmillan publishers and NetGalley enough for allowing me access to this much-awaited sequel early. I am already so excited for April-and can't wait to see how people react as they see things come together as they do here.
Celestine is a fascinating character, and her courage shines through the events of the novel. There are some powerful scenes here-some of which will be burned into my memory.
As I read this I was reminded of some classic texts-amongst them The Handmaid's Tale, The Scarlet Letter and others.

Perfect picks up immediately where Flawed left off, but from the beginning of this sequel, it felt like we were working towards the conclusion with not a lot of new information being introduced. The resolution to this story felt rushed, and I think in this case I might have enjoyed this conclusion more if the story had been spread out over a trilogy. I thought the concept of the series was original and interesting, but the resolution borderline predictable to me.

I would probably call this a 3+, if I had that option. It was entertaining, but some of the writing felt a little clunky to me (like all the flashbacks -- I don't really like that method of trying to keep the tension high...skipping over what really happened and then going back a little later to explain it in detail). The world-building also wasn't as strong as I personally like. I like Celestine, however, and Carrick was also an interesting character. I didn't quite get their love story, though (it had a strong insta-love feeling to it). I thought maybe I'd missed something from the first book, but when I looked into it a bit, turns out I didn't. So their romance is a little too typical teen-shallow for my taste. Still, I like Celestine's loyalty, her strong sense of morality, her determination to right wrongs...though I didn't see a strong reason for that character development. She kind of popped into existence with everything in place. So yeah, a mixed bag for me. But the plus comes from wanting to see how everything would turn out, so I'd say the overall urgency is good.

The suspense was as tight as the first book and it was gratifying to see that our heroine's moral compass remained true. There was only one possible outcome for this book and we all knew where the video clip was hidden, but the manner in which things went down, the way she managed to get hold of the clip, the revelations and tightly knotted strings of coincidence were all wonderful surprises that me eager to turn the page and find out where exactly Ms Ahern was going with each new angle..
It was a fairly slow start, like a train pulling out of a station, but it built and built, with a few sections where the action seemed to pause momentarily before, whoosh!, we were off again, revisiting previous adversaries and making new friends. Just when you thought all hope was lost, she managed to pull another rabbit out her hat of tricks.
The end seemed a little harried, particularly the scene in the courtyard, but I suppose it was in keeping with the nature of the action that occurred.