Independent Study- ♥♥♥♥♥

When I started this book I wasn’t sure what to expect of University. I don’t think this was quite it though. Cia is starting to get flashes of the testing, but it’s not a lot. Her and Tomas seem to be on really good terms, and they are cute together. Michal was still really nice, and I was glad to see her get some communication from her family.

When the Inductions started, it felt a lot like the testing all over again. One wrong move and they would die. It makes me wonder if anyone really gets away from that threat. It also makes me wonder why no one stepped in to stop all of the crazy. Most adults don’t remember their testing, but they would all remember University and the Inductions. It seems like someone should have done something sooner. While I understand that dissent was sought out and squashed, something else could’ve been done.

Will grew on me a little, not a lot. I can’t really tell if he is someone I would really want to trust. He made a lot of terrible choices in the testing, but in this book he seemed to redeem himself a little. He still has a lot to make up for though.

Raffe is still kind of a mystery to me. Cia did help him during the first test on the scavenger hunt, but that doesn’t seem like enough to make him loyal to her that quickly. I’m just not sure. He did try his best to help Cia with the tapes, and getting her out of the base at the end… So he might be ok.

Ian… I want to see more of him. He talks to Cia a few times, but I feel like we didn’t get enough information about him. I want more. He seems like a really good guy, and I think he could provide some much needed assistance with what Cia has planned now. What I really want to know is if he remembers his testing, and if so, how much he remembers.

Damone was an ass from the beginning. While I don’t like the idea of murdering people we don’t like (says the writer of an assassin series…), he would have killed Cia. There really wasn’t another option. Not one I could see anyway. The fact that Raffe was ready to jump in and help with that also made me kind standoffish.

Tomas. Oh Tomas… He kept his memories from Cia. His reasoning was understandable, but that was definitely not the right choice. They had an agreement beforehand. While it wasn’t his fault he couldn’t get the pill to her before the memory wipe, he knew that she would want to know what happened. He willing went against her wishes, and that is more upsetting that the lie itself. He was supposed to be someone she could count on, and he failed.

What happened with Zandri didn’t upset me like I thought it would. No one was really at fault from my perspective. It was a tragic accident. Will didn’t actually kill her, and he wouldn’t have known walking up to them would cause that reaction. Tomas probably shouldn’t have pulled the knife out, but he didn’t want to kill her. He didn’t even mean to kill her. It was just a bad situation because of the testing process. It is more to blame than anyone else.

Cia went through a lot in this book. From trying to grasp what the recording could mean, to finding out what redirection means, Michal stopping her from running, wondering what Tomas knows, being afraid of the consequences of her actions, to boldly doing what is right. She felt like she was being a coward, but I didn’t see it that way. She is young and that is a lot of pressure. She just needed time to come to terms with it all before she decided to very literally risk her life for what is right. The betrayal of Symon was shocking for her. I think that will be the final catalyst for her. The last big betrayal that will propel her forward to change the world. She has had to cope with a lot of betrayal, and it has really taken its toll.

I have mixed feeling about her emotions coming back. I think she needs them in order to succeed, but some of those memories are absolutely haunting. That will be the perfect motivation to enact change, but it is still an awful lot to stick on her, and what happens after? If she succeeds and shuts down the inhumane practices of the testing… what happens to her? That is a lot of guilt to live with. Most people won’t even come close to it. Since she is young, that’s a long time to remember all that stuff.

Her brother being at the base surprised me. I saw the rebellion betrayal coming, I was blindsided by the presence of her brother. I think that will actually make things much harder for her. She will have another person to worry about, someone that means more to her than almost anyone else. I like the logic used for Symon’s placement. If the people feel like they are in a rebellion, they won’t start another one. It’s sound. It makes sense. I hope Cia can surprise them. The next book should be even more intense. I’m looking forward to it!