The Artful
By Wilbert Stanton
May 26, 2014

In this dystopian year is 2025 and a virus has decimated the city's population. For Twist and Dodger, it's not just the virus that is out to get them, but also the sun and even the Empire. They steal from the rich to help those in need, but that does not make them a Robin Hood hero.

I’m such a sucker for dystopian/post-apocalyptic books and this one was just another.


Thank you to CPW Productions and NetGalley for the E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The kindle this book was on was lost long ago.

Review posted on book to remove from the pending list.

Bowed out at 11%. I wasn't feeling it even before then. Everything about the writing style has this slightly juvenile, outlandish feel to it. The rich people aren't just decadent, they're passed out in the halls high. Dodger doesn't just flirt with girls, he does it poorly and then makes out in the middle of a group. The dialogue between Dodger and Twist is full of jokes I'd expect to see in a middle school, not a dystopia. I kept reading anyway, because I at least liked the basic outline of what was going on.

And then Gia showed up. Her introduction was of the "rescued from being raped" variety, which, just, bleh. And then it was immediately followed by all three making sex jokes as if nothing had happened and, nope, that's it, I'm done with the book.

Such an interesting concept. Totally something I'd recommend to my students.