Breaking Point by Kristen Simmons
Rating: *** Suggested Age: 13
Summary: “After faking their deaths to escape from prison, Ember Miller and Chase Jennings have only one goal: to lay low until the Federal Bureau of Reformation forgets they ever existed. Near-celebrities now for the increasingly sensationalized tales of their struggles with the government, Ember and Chase are recognized and taken in by the Resistance—an underground organization working to systematically take down the government. At headquarters, all eyes are on the sniper, an anonymous assassin taking out FBR soldiers one by one. Rumors are flying about the sniper’s true identity, and Ember and Chase welcome the diversion….Until the government posts its most-wanted list, and their number one suspect is Ember herself. Orders are shoot to kill, and soldiers are cleared to fire on suspicion alone. Suddenly Ember can’t even step onto the street without fear of being recognized, and “laying low” is a joke. Even members of the Resistance are starting to look at her sideways. With Chase urging her to run, Ember must decide: Go into hiding…or fight back?” (Summary found on Goodreads).
This series is rather unappreciated and I’m beginning to understand why. The first book, Article 5, was actually fairly good, but Breaking Point is the usual, boring, cliche-filled dystopian novel. Ember, the main character, isn’t a very strong person and is rather annoying at times. I found the majority of the parts boring and confusing. Article 5 was so much better and kept me on the edge of my seat. Breaking Point didn’t seem to move the plot forward and lacked the excitement I needed. As for the cliches? The “bad guys” are reminiscent of pretty much every dystopian government that exists in the young adult fiction world. There is a lack of creativity in this series and that is why I will not be picking up the next book.
With that said, I did enjoy a few parts of the book, earning in three stars. I liked Sean (a secondary character) because he seems to genuinely care for the other characters. He’s a good friend and he just seems like such a well-rounded person. Part of me wishes that the book was from his perspective or that he was the love-interest. Sadly, that’s not the case and it wouldn’t work well anyway. I also appreciated some of the scenes. About 3/4s of the way through the book, I was mildly captivated and I read the rest in a day.
I think it is books like these, the cliches, that are ruining the dystopian genre for me. It’s overdone and it doesn’t have enough creativity anymore.
-Book Hugger
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