Full review at Wild and Wonderful Reads

This very well may be a case of “it’s not you; it’s me,” but ultimately, I was not a huge fan of The Grace Year.

It can be said that this book is intriguing and thought-provoking. The beginning is strong and compelled me to keep reading. The feminist undertones and portrayal of the relationships among the girls really made me stop and think! However, I can’t say that I found the story to be wildly unique. The oppressive, patriarchal, dystopian society is reminiscent of The Handmaid’s Tale (and just as cringe-worthy) and the unraveling from civilized to barbaric among the grace year girls is akin to that of the boys in Lord of the Flies.

I’m sure it was intended that this book have a lot of WTF moments — and believe me, those startling moments are very much present — but the execution as a whole missed the mark for me, which made those moments less exciting and feel forced or unnecessary. The pacing was also a huge issue for me. Things often seemed rush (particularly the romantic storyline) while dragging other times.

Overall, despite not working for me, I know a lot of people do and will love The Grace Year.