Reading through other reviews it's clear I'm in the minority here, but I really enjoyed this book!

I haven't read anything by Veronica Roth since the Divergent series, but it's incredible how clear her voice as an author still is. The one thing that really stood out to me were the descriptions of the fashion and fabrics on Genetrix, including the siphons. I also loved how Genetrix was described; the balance between the familiar and the slightly off-putting made for a really great parallel universe. Then, of course, there were the not-so-subtle nods to the followers of the Dark One on Earth and a certain group of people in our current society. Let's just say it felt very satisfying when Sloan punched that guy in the camp! I also really loved Sloan's take on things on Genetrix, with how everyone being focused on magic made them forget about the basics of how things work.

As someone who grew up reading pretty much every YA/dystopian series out there, I absolutely loved the premise of this book. We get a look at what happens after the big bad is defeated. What happens to all those heroes we read about? What does "normal" life look like, not only for them but for society? Some people found the start of the book slow, but honestly, the first part of the book was interesting to me because of the mundane! We got to see the where are they now? parts while getting to know these characters. Poor Albie! I was heartbroken!

The little glimpses we got into reports, interviews, papers, all of that helped propel the story forward. I loved the format that was used, and I really want to see what it looks like in a print version of the book. Much like Sloan, my reading was driven because I wanted to know more. But strangely, I really hope there isn't a sequel. I know this is set up to potentially be a series, but rather than a sequel, I'd love just a non-redacted version of all of the reports in this one! I felt like all of the plot strings were nicely wrapped up, and I am not sure how the story would benefit from continuing on. I loved this as a stand-alone!

Either way, I enjoyed it and highly recommend keeping an open mind and just let yourself go along for the ride!

This book was really interesting. I just love SFF because what's better than science mixed with fantasy? Nothing, that's what. Sadly I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought because not all characters got enough page time and bits of it was somehow confusing, but not much so it was still a very intriguing story about grown-up teens facing the world 10 years after they faced something that changed them forever.

I have never read a Veronica Roth book so I wasn't familiar with the writing but now I know why many people love her books. They're hard to put down and really easy to get into. You get involved with the characters and their wellbeing fast. That's why I would've loved more details about some of them since I was already getting attached. But I still liked the story and all the twists and turns very much.

The lack of on page time of some characters certainly means that we're getting more in the sequel and I think I will give the series another chance to really impress me.

As much as I hate to say it, Chosen Ones is another one of those books with a great concept but not so great execution. I mean, taking the chosen one trope and grounding it in reality by looking at the aftermath and trauma that comes with it? Such a good idea! If only this fantastic potential had been better taken advantage of.

Too Long to Reach the Good Stuff
If I had to use one descriptor for this book, it would, unfortunately, have to be ‘a slog’. The last third or quarter of Chosen Ones is actually pretty enjoyable. Plotlines come together, secrets are revealed, there’s action, our villain develops a backstory…but gosh, does it feel like a trial to get there.

The pacing for most of this book leaves a lot to be desired. My interest would register in short bursts only to disappear again for large stretches of time. The earlier chapters deal with establishing the chosen five (plus their baggage) and the world ten years after the defeat of The Dark One. This was fine at first but after a while I found myself wondering where it was all going. Once part two hit, a major and unexpected shift in the narrative occurred which led me to believe things would start to pick up. Instead, I got some wandering around the city, character squabbling, and boring magic instruction (something I’m normally crazy about). Finally, at long last, some new characters were introduced and I began to get a better sense of the overarching conflict, allowing me to feel more engaged in the story. However, by this point, I couldn’t help but feel as though it was a case of too little, too late.

Not My Chosen Ones
When it comes to slower reads, I’m 100% fine provided I have characters I can connect with and get invested in. This wasn’t really the case here. I enjoy the occasional abrasive, emotionally complicated and typically ‘unlikeable’ character, but for some reason I just didn’t click with Sloane. I’m not sure whether it was the distance created by the third person narration but I never really felt as though the book got as emotionally deep with her trauma as it should have. Regrettably, I felt the same way about the rest of the chosen ones and for a book that I believed was going to focus on exactly this theme, it’s hard not to be disappointed.

In the end, my attitude towards most of the characters in this book can only be explained as indifferent. While I thought Albie was sweet, Ines disappeared for most of the book, Matt was annoying and boring, and Esther was…eh. Both Mox and Ziva were likeable with solid potential but because of their point of introduction in the story, there wasn’t enough time to properly develop them into anything substantial.

Documents and Files
One of the things I quite liked about the book was its use of files, reports, newspaper clippings, etc. to break up the third person narrative. There may have been one or two inclusions that I found a little pointless (poems?), but overall, these were a nice way to provide context to some past events in a different way than the standard flashback. Each excerpt isn’t always relevant at the exact moment it arises, but they do provide useful world-building and background information for events further on down the track.

All Grown Up?
Chosen Ones is Veronica Roth’s first adult classified book. Despite it being targeted at an older audience, there’s a definite young adult vibe here. A couple of the themes seem slightly more mature, but the characters and writing often still have that YA feel. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing and I can understand why such an approach would fit this particular story. Here, we have several adults who lost a significant part of their teenage years training to fight a mass murderer magician in a fight they weren’t even sure they would survive. Consequently, they didn’t go through the usual milestones, learning experiences and development of normal teens and this has impacted how they interact and behave as adults. Sure, it can be a bit frustrating to read about adults acting like bickering teenagers, but it’s believable in the context of the narrative.
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The later parts of Chosen Ones give me hope for a more enjoyable sequel, yet I don’t really see myself picking up the second entry in this duology. I’m sure that the big bang ending to the book will pull a lot of readers in on curiosity to see how events play out, but I don’t think I can trudge through another 400 or so pages if I’m wrong.

2.5 STARS

I found this hard to put down. I got swept up pretty quickly in the plot and characters. You either love or hate the characters as some of them have very flawed and tiresome personalities due to their previous showdown. I found that this endeared me to them especially Sloane Andrews. I loved the dark and fantasy elements and the characters back stories slowly getting revealed. through classified documents. There are plot twists along the way.as well.
I class this as a marmite book you are either going to love it or hate it but the only way to find out is to read it.
Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder&Stoughton for my ARC ebook

Enjoyable read and easier to promote to readers who loved the divergent series. More YA than adult fiction. I liked the story of the Sloane and the otehr champions and found it a good start for a light summer read..

I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Veronica Roth is one of my ALL TIME favorite authors. It was no surprise that I would absolutely fall in love with this book. I do hope she continues this series. I loved it.

Thank you kindly to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this review copy.

In the first book of the new series by Roth, we are in an alternate universe where there are fated 'chosen ones' that are called upon to take out 'The Dark One'. The five teenagers are successful and now are just trying to live their lives, until they are forced to take on 'The Dark One' again. Do they have it in them to succeed a second time?

Sloan is the main protagonist in the story and while it's not told from first person POV, it is from her perspective. There are times when she is very jaded with the world (which would definitely be me if I was in her shoes) and we get to see the story unravel how and why she got to be so negative with the world.

I liked how we got to see the after effects of what happened when the teenagers saved the world. I am a fan of these kinds of books (ie Harry Potter, Hunger Games, Divergent, The Mortal Instruments) and you get to see the war but not what happens after the war. The effects it has on these young adult. I always found it interesting that it's always up to these young adults to save the world and how no one seems to find that ironic? Like why can't adults do it?

There is a bit of a lull around the 70% mark where we are just trying to get up over the hump to the climax. While it did drag on, most of the information passed is vital to the big reveal. If you can push past this part, then you will be satisfied with the ending.

I have seen that there is going to be a sequel which I am interested to see what Roth does with this book, because this one ended with kind of a big bow and didn't really set up for a sequel. But there is some room, just not sure which direction she will take it.

I love The Divergent series by Veronica Roth and was excited to read this. It is an interesting premise and starts 10 years after a devastating event where "The Chosen Ones" saved the world. Now 10 years later, we watch as the now adults adjust to life and facing the reality that they may not have eliminated the threat as they once thought they did. While this was meant to be Roth's foray into adult literature, it still felt very YA to me (barring one very mild mention of a sex scene). The characters were flawed and interesting and the story kept me intrigued.

As much as I have enjoyed her previous works, I enjoyed this one even more! I loved all of the plot twists and really came to root for the characters and their situation. I sincerely hope a sequel will be forthcoming!

I loved Veronica Roth when she first started writing but honestly I haven't loved what she's released lately. Maybe this just caught me in a reading slump and I'll try it again and see if it works out for me later.

This book is pretty middle of the road for me. When I started this book, I was in love. I had immediately thrown it over to my fiancee with the request that he read it immediately. But once we got into part two I was so lost. One moment we were at her friend's funeral and the next we're in an alternate dimension? It was so weird to be transported with no idea what happened, though it seems that was kind of just what happened.

I didn't expect this book to go the direction that it did and I'm curious how there's going to be a sequel. The ending was so clean that I'm not sure what else is supposed to happen. Going off of what did happen, I was kind of disappointed with how this book went. The beginning held a lot of promise and once we got transported, it just felt like a copt out almost? Like it would have been so much cooler if the plot lines had taken place in their universe and The Dark One's plots had unfolded that way. Or there was a different plot line in general. Though there were several plot points I enjoyed - again, very middle of the road for me. 

While I like the alternate universe plot line, it just wasn't what I expected. One thing I really like about this book though, is Sloane. She's not the typical hero and it brings up the question "what happens to the hero once the villain has been vanquished?" Her experiences after The Dark One was vanquished shows that not everyone recovers from their trauma quickly, nor should they have to. She's the opposite of a people pleaser, not caring if others are uncomfortable in her presence or making anyone happy. Though it did make me sad to see her leading Matt along. It's a shitty thing to do, but she's our anti-hero, so it's clear she's not perfect.

There are a lot of things I liked and stuff I didn't. I had high hopes for this book and where it was going to go, but this book ended up being middle of the road for me. I'll probably end up reading the next book in the series, just to see what else is supposed to happen. If you like anti-heroes, alternate dimensions, and discussions of trauma/PTSD - this is a perfect book. But be warned that the jump from part one to part two is pretty jarring and you will be confused - I definitely was.

Just being honest, I still have a little grudge against Veronica Roth. 8 or 9 years ago, in the depths of my dystopian days, I stumbled upon Divergent. Of course I loved it, and Tris ascended to the hallowed hall of heroines I adore. Everything was great.... Until Allegiant. I don't believe I have to explain any further than that. Anyway, I'm always keen to refine my opinions, and I had greatly enjoyed the Divergent series, mostly. So, I was very much intrigued by Chosen Ones, Veronica Roth's foray into adult fiction. The premise is fantastic; what happens to the chosen ones after the Big Bad has been defeated? A peak inside the lives of the heros, who are now grown adults. Adults who are a decade distant from the epic takedown that has literally defined their lives. I thought maybe this book would expand and inflate the neat little bow that's tied on to many chosen one tales. It would be the much more realistic exploration of the epilogues that other authors tack on to please the crowd. (Looking at you, Albus Severus Potter.) I was expecting this book to take the "chosen one" trope and flip it on its head, and be completely subversive. I don't know if that was the intention or not, but that's not what I took away from the story.

I wasn't all that invested in Sloane, and the story really centers on her. I liked that the trauma and stress of having the world on her shoulders was explored, but I wanted to go deeper with the other characters as well. My biggest problem with this book is the pace. I really had to plod through it. Some elements were also confusing and hard to keep track of, and the book is too long for no purpose. Now, all that is not to say that I didn't enjoy the book. For the most part, I actually did. I loved the pop-culture and humor, and the story really went somewhere that I never saw coming. I think maybe my expectations were too high, and that's why my mind wasn't blown. Chosen Ones would be great as a tv show, and I even have some casting ideas! (The NERVE of me, right?) When I give an opinion or recommendation of this book, I'm going to suggest that the reader should go in blind. Don't even read the synopsis! With no expectations, I can imagine the experience would be quite different and much better. I've been waffling between 2.75 and 3 stars, but to try and mend the rift between Veronica and I, I'm going to round up to a solid 3.
Thank you to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and Netgalley for this copy.

I received a complimentary copy of Chosen Ones through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
However, I could not finish this book. I got about a third of the way into the book, but it was just boring to me and I didn't connect with any of the characters.

I picked this book up solely based on the author. I was curious about how I would like Roth's writing now that I am out of the whirlwind of dystopian trilogies. I also wanted to know how Roth would shape up in an adult publication.

My biggest takeaway from this book? It was fine.

Roth's writing style is clear and recognisable, even in this book aimed at an adult audience. For this reason, alongside the obviously trope-heavy story plot, I think this could be a great gateway adult book for many young adult readers.

But that is honestly my only complement. While the writing style made this (way too long) book easy to fall into, the premise overall felt mildly juvenile. This is a book clearly relying heavily on the chosen-one trope and it seemed to struggle to do much beyond that. And as a reader that it incredibly familiar with the trope, I found the less than unique concept pretty dull.

Don't get me wrong. I did enjoy some of the more adult elements that were thrown into the story. Things like the celebrity status after being publically 'chosen ones', discussions on marriage and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were nice inclusions. But it wasn't enough to make the story an interesting one.

I appreciate what Roth was trying to do with this book. But it wasn't something that worked for me.

This book caught my attention straight away from the premise alone. We're all to familiar with the idead of The Chosen One. The special snowflake that will save the world with luck, duct tape, and a group of friends more skilled, likeable and intelligent than they are.

Chosen Ones promised to be a breath of fresh air in an oversaturated genre, a rare look behind the curtain - but most of us have larned, at this point, that getting a look at the wizard is not all it's cracked up to be.

Sloane is one of the five teenagers who stopped the Dark One — the villain who tried to use Drains to destroy the world as they knew it. As such, it's no surprise Sloane and her Chosen gang are a hodge podge of coping mechanisms and PTSD. People love them, people hate them, people love to hate them.

At the 10 year anniversary of their "Win", things start to go horribly wrong once again - in more ways than one.

The YA fantasy reader in me appreciated all the Easter Eggs and nods to all the classics, cliches and tropes you can think of, giving it sort of a Breaking of The Fourth Wall quality to it, making it almost comical.

Unfortunately, that's where Roth lost me. Pacing was probably the biggest issue here, as well as my inability to muster any real afection for the characters past pity and basic empathy.

The outline of this novel was really what attracted me to it: what do heroes become once they've saved the world? Especially those young, idealized Chosen Ones we've repeateadly seen in teen movies and books? This is basically what's explored in the first third of this novel. I immediately found our main character, Sloane, very relatable and realistic, and I was glad for once to read from the point of view of an actual grown-up, with an adult life to deal with, someone supposed to have some maturity, but also her skeletons in the closet. However, it all started going downhill after that first part. We're thrown into a world where the more things happen, the more confusing it gets, until the very end that I barely understood. The author does try to explain everything, but there's just too much, which means it's still confusing and we don't get much action. The beginning had so much potential, and I could see it going to some dark place, but in the end the story kept pretty mild, with very predictable and way too foreshadowed "plot-twists", so I was a bit disappointed.

Chosen Ones has a lot of really interesting ideas within it. The story begins at the 10 year anniversary of when the "Chosen Ones" defeated the "Dark One," an evil magical being. The story feels taken right from Marvel in many ways. A group with various abilities assembles to defeat an enemy. The exploration of the aftermath is an interesting twist. We are introduced to characters who are still struggling, even 10 years later, to grapple with what they lost. PTSD, addiction, and interesting reactions to fame are explored. The story is told in third person yet focuses entirely on Sloane, which made the narrative voice choice an odd one. Sloane is cynical, abrasive, and doesn't know how to get over what happened and move on to a normal life.
Without giving away the plot, parallel universes are explored, what makes someone good or evil, loyalty, and Sloane has a coming of age story - at age 30. This is supposed to be an adult novel but it's very YA in feel. There's magic, interesting concepts, and a lot of great twists at the end.
However, there are also plot points that are murky, absolutely no character development for anyone except Sloane, and some very slow and slogging parts to the novel. There is a lot here that is good, but I was never excited to get back to it - I left it several times before finally finishing it. The end wrapped up quite firmly and satisfactorily so I am unsure why this is first in a series. It feels like this story is very much over, although characters can always have a new chapter in their lives! It's really between 2 and 3 stars. Be prepared for some slow parts, but also be prepared for some really interesting ideas.

This book left me with a hangover for days! Fast-paced, great world-building, everything you should expect from a great SciFi book, and more. Couldn't put it down.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book but I thoroughly enjoyed the Divergent series so was excited to give it a go.
I ended up really enjoying it. It took a couple of chapters for me to get into it but once it got going, it was great. Action packed with believable characters (besides the magical power thing obviously...) and unexpected twists and turns!

Moved at a decent pace, kept my interest and was entertaining till the end. I’d recommend if you’re looking for a new read.