I think I've been spoiled with more recent dystopian novels, but the characters made this a very painful read. The concept and the world designed in the novel are so interesting and there's some great references/analogies/commentaries about citizen's privacy, ableism, capitalism, and ignorance when it comes to government. Additionally, there was this group of teens that were told they were just looking for something to be angry about when they were really informed and trying to influence the politics that controlled their lives, which I related to because young people are encouraged to get involved but are told their opinions don't count.

However, the bland, practically 2D characters made me wish I could re-write it. There were attempts at adding depth to Kayla, but there were just that: attempts. Mfumbe is probably my favorite and most fleshed out character; I probably would have enjoyed the book if it had been written from his point of view.