Dualed (Dualed, #1)

by Elsie Chapman

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*NOTE: I received this book as an ARC from the publisher through Random Buzzers. This in no way influenced my review.

In the city of Kersh, everyone has an Alt, short for alternative. An Alt, is exactly what it sounds like. An Alt, is an Alternate you. A twin that you never know. A twin you have to kill to prove your worth. To prove that you deserve to live, that you are the better copy of yourself. In DUALED, West Grayer, struggles with the concept of having an Alt, and having to kill her. She has trained her whole life for the day when she will get her assignment. The test that will prove her worthiness to continue living in Kersh. But she knows, you can train your body and maybe your mind. But it is hard to train your emotions, especially when something tragic just occurred.

DUALED had me at the very beginning. I was thrust into a world I knew little about, and began to start collecting the facts right away. Elsie Chapman wrote an effect introduction. She had West began narrating what was going on, and give the reader some action at the same time. Needless to say, I was NOT bored. Within the first few chapters, someone had already died. In DUALED, West experiences a few flashbacks and has short flashes of memories of the past. What someone said, or who the car originally belonged to. And little by little, those tiny flashes, start giving you a hint about West’s childhood, her family, and what happened to them.

The plot was very fast paced. It started out really fast. I wondered how Elsie Chapman would take it from there. How can you continue the build suspense after you kill a character? I was not disappointed. Throughout the story, there were various amounts of action. Sometimes there wasn't much, just West reminiscing on the past and what could have been. Other times, she was out there kicking a whole lot of butt. It kept me wanting to see what would happen next, yet provided me with some time to relax and truly understand what was going on in the story.

I have mixed feelings about West. At first, I liked her. Okay, maybe she was a bit hot headed, and stubborn, but overall she was likable. You could understand why she was acting the way she was. I felt that West started out strong and then became weaker. There were times when I felt like yelling at her “Why are you doing this? Stop and think!” However, I do understand why she did those certain things. I can’t imagine living in a society like the one West lives in. For her, it is literally, kill or be killed. That’s the difference between life or death. It makes you question your morals. Is it worth taking someone else’s life just to save yours? West was able to keep me guessing what she would do next. She was kind of unpredictable with her emotions all out of whack. I would say she managed to redeem herself at the end.

The romance. What can I say about the romance? Only that it was interesting to read about and maybe that I wish there was more... Oh well, I hear there are more books to come. (The amount in this book is just fine but...) One can only hope. West’s love interest is Chord. He is not as well developed as West, but he doesn't need to be. Chord is like the perfect boyfriend. More like the best friend turned boyfriend. The one that seems to be protective and still give you some space. The one that understands.

Originally posted at Icy Cold Reads