Unchosen by Katharyn Blair

Hi everyone! Welcome to the last stop of the "Unchosen by Katharyn Blair" blog tour organised by Turn the Page Tours. Thanks to them and the publisher, I was very excited when I was granted an e-arc of Unchosen in return for an honest review. This book has all tropes that snag my attention; apocalypse, flesh-eating monsters, feminist fantasy, swoon-worthy captains and lastly, the rarest thing I've never discovered in young adult fictions is that the lead character is not the chosen one. Such a refreshing read! Read on to see my final thoughts about this book. Click here to visit others' stops.

Book title: Unchosen

Author: Katharyn Blair

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

Release date: January 26, 2021

Genres: young adult, fantasy, science fiction, post-apocalyptic

Book purchase link: HarperCollinsPublisher

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐/ 5

DESCRIPTION

Katharyn Blair crafts a fiercely feminist fantasy with a horrifying curse, swoon-worthy sea captains, and the power of one girl to choose her own fate in this contemporary standalone adventure that's perfect for fans of The Fifth Wave and Seafire, and for anyone who has ever felt unchosen.

For Charlotte Holloway, the world ended twice.
The first was when her childhood crush, Dean, fell in love—with her older sister.
The second was when the Crimson, a curse spread through eye contact, turned the majority of humanity into flesh-eating monsters.
Neither end of the world changed Charlotte. She’s still in the shadows of her siblings. Her popular older sister, Harlow, now commands forces of survivors. And her talented younger sister, Vanessa, is the Chosen One—who, legend has it, can end the curse.
When their settlement is raided by those seeking the Chosen One, Charlotte makes a reckless decision to save Vanessa: she takes her place as prisoner.
The word spreads across the seven seas—the Chosen One has been found.
But when Dean’s life is threatened and a resistance looms on the horizon, the lie keeping Charlotte alive begins to unravel. She’ll have to break free, forge new bonds, and choose her own destiny if she has any hope of saving her sisters, her love, and maybe even the world.
Because sometimes the end is just a new beginning.

MY REVIEW

Unchosen by Katharyn Blair is a story that takes place in a post-apocalyptic era whereby humanity is threatened by the vast spread of infection that can turn them into flesh-eating monsters via eye contact. The infection is called Crimson. Ones who have seen the eyes of the infected one shall turn into zombies that tear limbs to limbs.

The story navigates three sisters who are trying to survive against those monsters and on a quest to end the curse that leads to the said infection. Their life after the catastrophe has undergone through a huge turning point ever. Harlow the eldest sister (once guitarist but now a commander), Vanessa (a gymnast but now she's deemed as the Chosen One) and lastly, Charlotte, nothing is special about her, the same old thing. She always feels that her presence is overshadowed and underwhelmed by the grandeur attributes her sisters have exuded. Worse thing ever, she's still in love with her childhood friend Dean, Harlow's boyfriend.

Charlotte's resilience in forgetting her one-sided love is quite palpable throughout the story. I could feel how she yearns for him so much that she could literally risk her life for this man. For me, it's a turn-off because almost every occasion that has put her life on the line is because of that guy. However, I think, her action contributes a lot to the plot even though its storyline is not to my liking. I didn't feel the apocalyptic atmosphere enough, just some mere mentions of people being eaten and that's it. I was actually looking forward to seeing some gruesome graphic descriptions but to no avail, this book is more invested in romance tropes.

However, don't be discouraged by my review, this book might sound right up your alley. The fascinating takeaways for me about this book are the idea of the unchosen one who'll be going to save the world and a new wave of infection that can turn a flesh-eating monster into an extremely strong and freakishly agile being. It's a book that's worth your time to delve into your own escapism. A fast-paced read it is!

"You will not choose my end, for this heart is mine," - Charlotte, Unchosen.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

I live in LA, drink way too much coffee, and write all day long -- because I'm crazy blessed to do what I've been doing for fun since I was a kid hiding in my garage loft writing terrible, terrible vampire stories. Glitter enthusiast. Bethyl shipper. Pluviophile. Ask me about my Dean Winchester obsession. John 1:5.

I'm wife to Ross and mom to Aryn, Liam, and River Grace. Also, mom to Cricket (a dog, not an insect), Maximus Dogimus Meridius (a ferocious cuddlebug) Maggie Rhee (cat, not the bad ass from The Walking Dead), and Kovacs (no parenthetical needed for him).

Author links: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr | Goodreads