Flawed (Flawed, #1)

by Cecelia Ahern

The gorgeous, thought-provoking first YA novel from internationally bestselling author Cecelia Ahern.

FLAWED is set in a powerfully realised society where perfection is valued above humanity, with an intense love story at its centre. Good-girl Celestine has always agreed with the system but following an act of kindness towards one of the Flawed is herself excluded and soon she is fighting for her own survival – and for love. Hugely accessible, emotionally resonant and with a character who will seize the hearts of anyone who meets her, this is the ideal book for anyone who has ever felt the pressure to be perfect.

• ISBN13: 9780008125103
• Publish Date: 24 March 2016 (first published 17 March 2016)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Imprint: Harper Fire
• Format: eBook (EPUB)
• Pages: 416
• Language: English
• URL: http://harpercollins.co.uk

Reviews

[Amber (The Literary Phoenix)]

As the risk of starting this review with a bit of a bad pun... Flawed is inherently... flawed.

I'll start with the good.  The concept of this dystopian world is fascinating and not so outlandish it couldn't be possible.  There's a great pressure to fulfill a sort of expectation as human culture evolves, and with with rise of social media, the pressure to keep up with others and to be perceived as perfect grows and grows.  So why not take it a step further - create visible brands for those who are imperfect, so they can't hide it and we know?  That way, we could avoid the "scum of the earth" and make strides toward a more perfect version of humanity.

This is all interesting, and the bare bones of it are well conceived.  But beyond the idea, beyond the ticking clock of Celestine's courtroom case... the story begins to unravel.  There's not a lot of support for this society, and things shift too quickly.  Even Celestine herself, an outspoken supporter of the Flawed system, finds herself completely changing her worldview after a single, seemingly inconsequential event.  And, somehow, this girl inspires the country?  The plot pieces fall too perfectly into place without anything substatial to support the change.

Similarly, the characters are shallow.  They chase their minds and change their stories at a moment's notice to serve the author's grand design of the story... no motivation required.  It was impossible to care about the characters because they never went more than words.  They lacked a multifaceted depth that made them relatable.  So many characters seemed to appear solely to create a subplot.  Subplots that never blossomed into fruition, to my opinion.

The story moved along quickly enough, so I'll give it points in that respect.  I'm not sure if the general shallowness was because of Cecelia Ahern's writing, or if she's just better suited to her usual adult novels instead of YA.  It just didn't grip me as much as I felt like it should.

As a whole, there's a lot of potential in Flawed, but it failed to follow through.  The elements were there, but the lack of depth in characters and the apparent whimsy in the plot shifts are dealbreakers for me.  I appreciate the idea, but as a package, this did not work for me.  I won't be adding the sequel to my TBR.

[Leah]

Flawed is one of those books that grabs hold of you and doesn’t let you go until the very end (and even then, you’re dying to get started on Perfect, book two). When I heard Cecelia Ahern was writing a YA novel I was sceptical – it was as if all these fantastic authors saw how well received YA was and thought, “easy peasy”, but I actually loved Flawed so much. It’s entirely different to her adult novels, with not a scrap of magic in sight, but it’s compelling, fast-paced and it actually made me feel genuinely sick, which is a first for a book. I’m generally okay with gore and stuff as long as I’m reading about it and not actually seeing it, but reading about the branding of the Flawed made me feel physically sick for hours. So, um, well done?

Flawed is set in the UK (I assume), although an actual place is never mentioned, except Hemmings, and I’m not quite sure if it’s set in the future or the now, but that’s not important. What’s important is that in this world, there’s a system where if you make a mistake – like embezzling money, cover up something you did that was perceived as wrong or, in Celestine’s case, help out a Flawed you become Flawed; you get shunned from regular society, you get branded and you have to live within a set of rules. Now I like the idea of the Flawed manifest, but their reasons for becoming Flawed are arbitrary. It all hinges on what the Judges think of you, kinda like the X Factor.

What makes the book so compelling is the fact that Celestine not only tried to help someone (compassion is over-rated in this world) but she’s seen as the poster girl for change #Katniss #Mockingjay and there’s plenty of people around her who want her to help them with their own agendas. There’s a lot to take in, a lot of things thrown at you throughout the book but it’s set itself up for the second book so incredibly well. Celestine is a likeable heroine, I actually liked Judge Crevin for a hot minute until it all went head over heels, and I liked her family, the way they’re initially presented made me worry Celestine would be ostracised, but that wasn’t the case and her mother, Summer, impressed me most of all with her actions.

Cecelia Ahern has written a winner here. I loved it. Like I said, I raced through most of the book in one sitting and only put it down to go to work and picked it back up as soon as I was finished. I’m so excited to get stuck into Perfect and see where it takes Celestine. There seems like there’s so much more to learn and I’m SO curious about Carrick, a boy Celestine meets while awaiting her trial – they barely talk/interact, but Celestine feels something so I’m intrigued to see where it goes. I really enjoyed Flawed, it was a flawless (sorry) first book in the Flawed series and it’s left me on tenterhooks for book two.

[readingwithwrin]

“I know the difference between right and wrong. I understand the rules. But today I feel that the rules have been blurred, because today they were literally on my front doorstep.”

Celeste is a model student and person in her society. But she also has mixed feelings on things once they start happening to people around her. Before these things always happened to other people, but now it's on her doorstep and she does something that she shouldn't. Because she does this it not only puts her in danger but the rest of her family as well and has them all on edge. Plus it had extreme and unheard consequences for her because she didn't do what the main guy told her to.

Celeste not only has the marks on her body, but she also has become the new face of something that has been going on behind the scenes for quite some time now. But Celeste doesn't want to be this new face, she just wants life to go back to how it was even though she knows it never can.



“We see being Flawed as a strength, Celestine. If you make a mistake, you learn from it. If you never make a mistake, you’re never the wiser. These so-called perfect leaders we have now have never made a mistake. How can they have learned what’s right and wrong, how could they have learned anything about themselves? About what they feel comfortable doing, about what they feel is beyond the scope of their character? The more mistake you have made, the more you have learned.”


Celeste also gets to meet and interact with people she has never been allowed to before. And she learns things that had been kept from those un-flawed. She sees how flawed this new system is in itself and how it really isn't helping much of anyone. It's an eye-opening experience for her and I can't wait to see how she deals with what is happening next.




Before reading this book, I thought that all dystopian kind of had the same theme. But this one doesn't follow the theme in previous dystopian for the most part. Instead, this one is far more political than the others and shows the beginning of a dystopian/dictatorship meaning we get to see how it can happen so easily if no one stands up. Sadly this is also something I can see happening in today's society relatively easily. Ahern did an amazing job of making me feel for the characters when Celeste was scared I was scared and when happy things happened I was happy for her. I really want to read her others books, and I can't wait to get my hands on the next book in this series.



“Courage does not take over, it fights and struggles through every word you say and every step you take. It's a battle or a dance as to whether you let it pervade. It takes courage to overcome, but it takes extreme fear to be courageous.”

[pamela]

One day Cecilia Ahern got bored writing the same romance novels over and over. She read 'The Hunger Games' trilogy and then read the 'Divergent' trilogy and thought "I can do that." And then proceeded to do that, exactly.

But here's the surprising bit; Flawed is really good! It is miles ahead of the Divergent series, and while not as good as the first hunger games book, took what Katniss should have been and made Celestine that. Celestine makes her own choices, and is weak but strong in the face of that weakness. She's intelligent and unwilling to be manipulated, but aware of the danger and weakness of her situation.

I would have liked some more development of the satellite characters, but Flawed had some genuinely moving and tragic moments. I read the whole book on a flight, and despite not being terribly original, I found it impossible to put down.

http://iblamewizards.com/review-flawed-cecilia-aherne/

[Kelly]

Following the storyline of Celestine, readers are introduced into a society that breeds perfection. Those deemed less than are branded as Flawed and made an example of. It reminded me of The Giver with that aspect, an introduction to dystopian without delving into intricate details. Celestine lives the perfect existence. She's intelligent, with a bright future and is dating her long time friend and son of Judge Bosco, the head of the Guild. Her only misdemeanor is her nightly rendezvous with Art, where the two teens sit atop the mountain and watch the world go by. It's her sister Juniper who has always had the rebellious streak, so when an elderly Flawed passenger on the bus needs assistance, it's Celestine who breaks the law and rushes to his side.

Reminiscent of the warfare between Katniss and President Snow, It's Judge Bosco who is facing an inquiry between his fellow members of the Guild who want to make an example of the seventeen year old. In order to ensure her freedom, Celestine will need to plead her innocence and sentence an already Flawed man to what may be an early death. The system of the Guild law is itself Flawed. Open to not only interpretation to suit each case but also to be abused by those in power and Celestine is about to discover what a dangerous game she's playing. Telling the truth means risking it all. Her relationship, her family, her status as a model citizen and faces the wrath of Bosco.

The barely there romance made little impact to the storyline, as Art lacked any real personality or character development. It was Carrick who was being held in the next cell who captured my attention. With little interaction, his character was far more interesting than Art and has already asserted himself as a possible love interest for Celestine. But it was the morality behind Flawed that captivated me. A panel of self appointed and wealthy citizens that decide the fate of those posed with moral dilemmas from crime, cheating on a partner to something as small as aiding a Flawed citizen to a chair as in Celestine's case and the corruption behind the kangaroo court method of justice.

Flawed was a great introduction to dystopian or for those who are hungry for a new and entertaining read that will sate your need for the genre. Apart from a few snippets of information exchanged between characters, the history of the Guild wasn't fully explored but hoping book two features greater world building than it's predecessor.

With a few minor issues, Cecelia Ahern has created a successful transition into the young adult genre. With more emphasis needed on world building and character depth, the Flawed series is a new and exciting series from a much loved adult author.

[shannonmiz]

You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
True story about this book: I almost DNFed. Several times. It was, pun absolutely intended, Flawed. I liked the idea a lot from the description, but it doesn't really go into much detail about the whole "Flawed" business. The thing is, being Flawed in this society (which I assume to be some kind of dystopian England?) is basically this: You do something... kind of dumb maybe. Like, not something illegal, or harmful. Just something that this random court doesn't like. I have no freaking clue why they get to decide these things, but they get carried away. Apparently it stems from some kind of bad economic decisions? But what on earth that has to do with some random person lying and- get ready- having their tongue branded forever, I will never know. Sorry, but those things don't equate. It was all weird, mundane stuff- lying, making a bad decision (what even is that? What if you pick like, the McMuffin instead of the Biscuit at McDonald's? That's a bad decision, but is it Flawed? Your guess is as good as mine), or cheating, or.... helping an elderly Flawed man who was basically dying on a bus?

Yes, that is how Celestine gets her Flawed status- she helps an old man sit in a bus seat. It's so damn contradictory that I wanted to stop reading right there. And branding people? The thing is, there wasn't enough backstory/worldbuilding to make this the least bit plausible. Celestine and her sister and boyfriend were riding on the bus to school, everyone's normal and happy... so this doesn't equate in my head to a society that treats people who make these ridiculously arbitrary "offenses" like cattle. 

So you see why I almost DNFed, right? But here's the thing- it actually started to get really good. Like, Celestine was a great character- she started off very unlikable, but then really started to develop as a character. Her boyfriend was annoying, but he faded away. Her family was hugely involved so that was even more awesome. Mom, Dad, siblings, even her grandfather (who was the most awesome of the bunch) had a big role in this story. Oh and diversity? Yes there was!

And then, things got interesting! It turned into this whole shady business political thing, with Celestine's case being one of the ones the media was highly focused on. The side characters got interesting, and I really wanted to know what the outcome would be. So somehow, some way, I ended up really liking this book- after about 30%. So keep that in mind. I can't in good conscience rate it higher than 2.5-3 stars, simply because I was seriously about to DNF it, and I still find the lack of worldbuilding (or perhaps, world explaining?) to be troublesome. But you'd better believe I will be reading the sequel!

*Copy provided by publisher for review

[Silvara]

Check out my other reviews, discussions and link ups at Fantasy of the Silver Dragon.

I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.


I didn't realize this was a first in a series when I requested it. So when I got to the end of the book and saw it only wrapped up some of the story, and one of the major plot lines was still going, I wanted to go out and grab the next book immediately! Which is good, because it means I really liked this book. And also bad, because book 2 doesn't come out until 2017!

The world building was amazing. Though not in the 'completely different world' way. This world is basically our world, but with a few twists to it that make it feel totally different and yet still familiar. I also liked the people we meet.

I had a few issues though. Mostly having to do with Celestine. She had a falling out with her sister over something that she didn't blame her boyfriend for, pretty much at all (other than a few moments). Her sister was no more in the wrong than Art was, and yet she decided she hated her but still loved him? It was also a little strange to me how obsessed she got over Carrick. Before they'd even spoken to each other. And the fact that he only said one thing to her during the entire book, but she decided they had this huge connection and worried over him and all? He was pretty much a perfect stranger to her. So that didn't work for me.

On the other side of things, I DID like how much Celestine changed as a character. We see her first as the 'perfect' girl. The one who always follows the rules, dates the right boy, behaves in the way everyone expects her to. Her life is completely planned out, down to what she'll study in college, and who she'll be. And then, suddenly she isn't perfect. The way it all spiraled out of control worked so well! It made complete sense that it would happen that way, and even the actions of the bad characters fit and sucked me in further.

It is not a light read. There are going to be strong emotional issues, and you will feel a full gamut. I actually had to wait a few days after reading this to get my thoughts together enough to put something together past "It's over? Where's the next book?!" There are dark moments, some very very dark. But there are also happy ones.

Celestine isn't the only character we see growing and changing. Her parents, Pia, her grandfather, and others, all change from the way we first see them. They become more than expected, more than we saw. And it was amazing.

If you're looking for a sci-fi book that will really make you think, you need to read this.

This review was originally posted on Fantasy of the Silver Dragon