Perfected (Perfected, 1)

An Open Letter To Perfected,Hello there, you diabolically, twisted, messed up, book! I love that you had me inwardly and outwardly cringing as I read your pages. The things inside of you are screwed up on so many levels, but you also use them in a way that reminds us of what it means to be a person. You're unsettling and I like you even more for it all...-The White UnicornI've said it before and I'll say it again, Birch has a way with writing stories that set you on edge as you read them. She's not afraid to tell a story with uncomfortable story devices. This time around she's telling a story of humanity through the eyes of a girl who's been genetically created to be something like a pet to people. The creepy factor is that Ella has emotions and feelings and is in all actuality a person. A person who is forced to be treated like a pampered poodle. It's a disgusting thought, but Birch gives us strong story building and characters that you will love.While reading this book, I was left with a creepy feeling. The fact that people were out there creating other people for their own pleasure makes me sick inside. These girls are being created in kennels to be the perfect doormats, but Birch reminds us that you can't take humanity out of someone, so things don't always go as planned. Going in to the book I had no idea that it was set in an dystopian future. I'm not sure what I thought it was going to be, but I'm glad that this was the case. It made it even more unsettling, knowing that the technology might be out there to do something like this.Ella doesn't even have a name while she's in the kennel. It isn't until she ends up at the congressman's house that they decide on her name. I can't even imagine what it's like to go 16 years without a name and only a number to your person. She shows up, get's a name, a necklace with a dog tag on it and a world full of luxury. She's clueless. She's been raised to listen and that's about it. Well, they also taught her how to play the piano as a way of entertaining her owners, but that wasn't originally for her, though she loves it with everything inside of herself. She doesn't know how to read, or cook, or do much of anything but sit around and look pretty. This could have been terrible for her as a character, but it actually makes the world that Birch created even more vivid. It makes Ella someone that you can root for as she starts to see things as they really. As she starts to see that she has options in the world, options that she never thought she'd have.She starts to gain a personality as the book progresses, so even though she seems like a weak character to begin with, you see that she's made of so much more as the book moves along. She starts to realize that she wants things and that she's been cheated out of the human experience and when she starts fighting for it, you'll want to cheer her on too.Perfected happens to be fueled by a romance. In this case it works and I think that it also softens the blow of all the intense things that are happening to Ella. How was she supposed to know that she'd fall for her owners son? I enjoyed Penn. He's what Ella needs. That being said, I felt like he was the weakest part of the book. For some reason I just didn't love his voice. I liked him, but every time he opened his mouth, it was like his words didn't match up with his personality for me. I can't put my foot on what was off, but this little thing didn't mess with my enjoyment of the story, because in the end, the book is about so much more than the love story, even if that is used to move the plot along.Birch manages to slowly peel back the layers on what is actually going on with the pets and as more and more comes to light, the more you want to rip the pets out of the pages of the books and free them from the hell that Birch has created for them. I have to admit that I saw a few of the twists coming, because they weren't very hidden, but a few things still snuck up on me.If you want to read a book that's going to set you on edge and make you feel like every person on this earth counts, this is the book for you. It's got so many blood boiling moments in it that will make you happy that Birch's world isn't a reality.You can read this and many other reviews on my YA book blog <a href="http://thewhiteunicornfiction.blogspot.com/">The White Unicorn!</a>

"Your sole purpose is to enrich the lives of your new owners."I'm walking into this review with the hope and assumption that there is a second book and hopefully this is a series. There is quite a bit of information in Perfected that can be expanded on and the ending left questions that I'm truly wanting answered. The blurb says that if you enjoy Selection and Chemical Garden that this one is similar. I have both of those on my to-read list, but I haven't gotten to them yet so I can't help answer that question.The GoodI couldn't sit this book down. There wasn't a lot of action going on, but the pacing and questions I had about where this book was headed left me wanting to read every bit of it as quickly as I could. The writing is done very well, flowing smoothly, and I enjoyed being in Ella's innocent mind for the narration.What truly sucked me in though was the philosophy involved. The world is an exact replica of my own America, and yet legislation has been passed in which people are now genetically engineered, raised to be obedient, raised to be pleasing, and sold to the highest bidder among elite citizens. These 'pets' are trained to believe that being a pet is a privilege; however, when Ella joins her new family, she soon realizes that being a pet to the world outside means little more than being a dog. For example, there are conversations about walking her and whether she needs a leash, micro-chips and chains installed, and talks of 'spaying'. IT WAS DISGUSTING. I was so revolted by how some characters legitimately thought this was fine, that I had to see if she could get the better of these ridiculous people. I was behind Ella the whole way, through the growth she experienced in finding out what makes HER happy, that I was yearning for her to overcome her circumstances.Her family seems likable enough at the start of the story. The congressman that becomes her 'master' has helped pass the legislation which allows these rich families to own pets. He has some secrets up his sleeve. His wife is exceptionally unhappy about having a pet at all. Their two kids, Ruby and Penn have differing opinions of Ella being there as well. For Ruby, she is a friend to play with. For Penn, she is an embarrassment on the family at first. Later, he becomes more sure that she has a personality hidden under all the 'yes sirs', and he helps to bring that out of her. Life for Ella takes a turn for the worse, and the story-line picks up a lot after that. Claire is a daughter of their's that shows up later that just confused me.The BadThe main huge mystery of the story, I had figured out pretty early on as I'm sure most of the readers will. The secret is made into a pretty big deal, mentioned over and over again, so I'm surprised that it was so easy to ascertain.While I was rooting for Ella the whole time to make it through in one piece with her own happiness found, I couldn't help feeling icky for reading about people as pets. They have to do whatever their 'masters' say, so there is some mention of people touching her with intentions that definitely do not seem innocent. Which brings to mind all of the owners with all of these pets, making me realize that some of them certainly aren't being appropriate with these girls. I want to see them all PAY for treating people this way.The RomancePenn helps Ella so much by introducing her to things she has never experienced. Their journey from him hating her to being so sweet and assisting was nice to read. They have some good romantic moments, all innocence and fanciful. It's a forbidden romance so it makes it more interesting.ConclusionA thought-provoking read that is well-written and flows smoothly. I turned page after page to get to the conclusion which left me with more questions although it was concluded. I am sincerely hoping there is a follow-up for this story. Recommended.*Sent for honest review.. Originally posted at http://jcbookhaven.blogspot.com/2014/07/arc-review-perfected-by-kate-jarvik.html and given 3.5 stars

I was leery to read it at first. I thought it was going to be like all the other YA novels like it. It is a good read. The problem I saw was the Penn and Ella relationship could have been developed more and the Penn character too. He seemed stale and the relationship seemed more one sided than equal. Still good though.

Welcome to a World where being beautiful is everything. And in this world, perfect girls are genetically engineered and sold off to the highest political bidder. I surprised myself by enjoying this concept - I fully expected to hate the idea of girls being sold off as "pets". And I do. But I can see what the author was going for: I was supposed to hate it. I was supposed to become angry, and I was supposed to want more for Ella - previously known as "Girl Eight".When Eight is sold off to a congressman and his wife, she is affectionately named Ella by their daughter. From this point we are introduced to lavish lifestyles where "pets" are a commodity used to demonstrate power and wealth. I thought the layers to Ella's story were good. It was interesting to imagine how women are effectively farmed to be perfectly poised, have wonderful heart shape faces and conduct themselves in a particular way whilst missing out all of the social norms of society. Ella can't swim, read or essentially form an opinion but she is taught to play an instrument to look attractive in society. The author had some strong ideas here.The relationship developments for me were hit and miss from this point. Ella swiftly befriends the congressman's young daughter who is believed to be ugly and fat by her mother; all because she has freckles! I'd kill for freckles! This friendship is sweet-natured and portrays the authors message of perfection being imperfect very well. I hated how poorly treated this little girl was and I love when authors evoke these kind of emotions in readers!Sadly, this story and any further relationships appears incredibly underdeveloped. Ella is entirely one dimensional. Although I understand that she has been engineered to behave a certain way, and in some ways this squashes her ability to have a voice - but she didn't even appear to have any internal struggles. Characters are continually portrayed to be talking about her as an object, as though she isn't even in the room. I thought this would annoy me. But actually, what I disliked was that she didn't fight back. She didn't even complain. Or think anything remotely negative about her owners. I tried to look past this, but when Ella fails to even question the simplest of things: What happened to the previous pet who mysteriously got sent back to the farm? Why would they euthanasia defective pets? What makes them defective? I just couldn't stand her personality. And don't be under the impression you'll ever find the answers to those questions either!The plot development is severely lacking. As the blurb will inform you, Ella is swiftly captured and kidnapped by those opposed to the "pet" farming industry. And yet I found that I was so disconnected from Ella I really didn't care. The plot was dull, slow moving and most concepts which could have been fantastic were unforgivably under explored. Where did this industry even come from? Who was behind it? What kind of era is this book even supposed to be set in? None of these things are made clear and so many interesting questions were just never explored. Birch could have taken this story in so many directions had she gone into some of these issues with more depth. She didn't even have to answer the questions; a teaser explanation indicating future developments in the next book would have been fine. The first half of this book therefore kept me interested because I really wanted to find out more about these issues whilst the second half fell flat due to a lack of answers or exciting explanations - and after I waited so patiently too!I really thought I was going to enjoy this book once I'd gotten started but I just didn't and surprisingly not for the reasons I initially suspected. A strong idea, lots of strong ideas in fact, but such poor delivery that I just can't recommend this book. There are much better books of a similar nature in this genre, "The Selection" and "Wither" especially are far more powerful and thought provoking. Give this one a miss.

3.5 stars rounded up. Really liked the concept of this book - on the surface it seems ridiculous until you look at the way capitalism and scientific progress are driving us head long into the unknown. Not that either are essentially bad but there is less and less care and moderation. I can see it theoretically being possible that the ultimate status symbol for wealth and power is a genetically engineered human girl, trained from birth to be a 'pet'. Although it's hinted at that old pets are resold into far less savory circumstances, it's never really expounded on. There is a very claustrophobic, rape-y feel to this book although nothing actually happens. In a way I think it would have been a better book if some of the more unpleasant hints had developed into full stories. Ella does seem to swing from wanting to please 'master' to needing freedom without enough of an inciting incident. I think the relationship with Ruth could have been better explored. There was no need for Claire to be there at all.On the other hand there were moments when being inside Ella's head gave you a real sense of what being a pet and therefore completely helpless against and dependent on her owners was like.This was a good concept but slightly under done on the story front. Still worth a read for dystopian fans though.

This book could have been good.It had a very interesting concept with great themes but they weren't explored enough.The main character was boring and passive and you would think at some point she would grow as a character and realise what's happening is wrong but she doesn't so she comes across as one dimensional.Yes, in a situation where being a pet is all you've ever known, you would be passive and naive but at some point she needed to lose this naivety to show growth and the author kind of tries to do this at the end but it's not enough. Her emotions aren't explored properly, it's all glossed over and the book lacks action.Nothing is explained. Maybe it's explained in the second book, I don't know, but I'm left with a lot of answers that should have been addressed in book one. How and why did humans as pets even get legalised? Why would society take some jumbo step back like that? How are the pets genetically engineered exactly? Are they altered in the womb or something before they're born or are they just socially conditioned to be a certain way? It's all unclear.The relationship between her and Penn is so weird. Ten seconds after meeting him she's thinking about him and worrying about who he's kissing. Seriously. Their whole relationship seems to happen in like five minutes and you'd think Penn would be more concerned about the fact that his dad basically comes off as a pedophile since Ella is sixteen and he keeps kissing her cheek and what not, but all he's concerned about is not wanting to write an essay or something.Also, don't know if the whole thing with the last pet was supposed to be a big twist but I guessed it within five minutes and it seemed so irrelevant because I knew nothing about the previous pet so didn't care in the slightest. Yes, it would have been a perfect way to raise more questions about how the pet thing works, what happens when they go through the 'door' and the social implications but it's not explored enough and so seemed pointless adding it in.Overall, was a good concept but it could have been so much better if the book was longer and actually addressed some big questions. It was basically a romance with a few dystopian elements thrown in but there was no world building or inkling as to how this particular society works or why people were on board with people being pets in the first place.

Imagine a world where girls are selectively bred to become the pets of other humans? Sounds stupid and implausible? I thought so too, and then I read this book. Now, I feel exactly the same still. Did this book make any kind of comment on the potential horrors of genetic engineering on humans? No. Were the ethical considerations of the pursuit of human eugenics addressed? No. Come on, I hear you cry, surely you didn't read between the lines! There must be an underlying criticism of capitalism? Inequality? Surely at least there was something on the effect of today's beauty standards on impressionable young teens? Of course not. In all fairness, you could argue that this is a book for teens, but that would be a poor excuse for the standard of writing and ridiculous storyline in the novel. It is made ten times work by the relatively open ending - the threat of a sequel looming over my head. The author does make some attempt at darker themes, likening the pampered but restricted lifestyle of a 'pet human' to slavery, but that in itself is a crude comparison. Oh well. At least there is an unfounded love interest.

One of the worst books I've ever read. It held such promise. With the dystopian theme and girls being treated as pets. However, the story didn't go anywhere. So many things were mentioned but contributed nothing to the plot. The author merely decided to write a YA romance (that occurred within seconds) and tossed in the dystopian theme. Horrific writing to say the least.