REVIEW: Chosen Ones (The Chosen Ones #1) by Veronica Roth

Synopsis: A decade ago near Chicago, five teenagers defeated the otherworldly enemy known as the Dark One, whose reign of terror brought widespread destruction and death. The seemingly un-extraordinary teens—Sloane, Matt, Ines, Albie, and Esther—had been brought together by a clandestine government agency because one of them was fated to be the “Chosen One,” prophesized to save the world. With the goal achieved, humankind celebrated the victors and began to mourn their lost loved ones.

Ten years later, though the champions remain celebrities, the world has moved forward and a whole, younger generation doesn’t seem to recall the days of endless fear. But Sloane remembers. It’s impossible for her to forget when the paparazzi haunt her every step just as the Dark One still haunts her dreams. Unlike everyone else, she hasn’t moved on; she’s adrift—no direction, no goals, no purpose. On the eve of the Ten Year Celebration of Peace, a new trauma hits the Chosen: the death of one of their own. And when they gather for the funeral at the enshrined site of their triumph, they discover to their horror that the Dark One’s reign never really ended.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC for this book!

I was torn about my rating for this one. I think that maybe it deserves 3.5 stars. I loved the premise for this one. Someone else compared it to a book about what happens after superheroes do what they are supposed to do and save the world and I think that about sums it up. Sloane, Matt, Esther, Ines and Albie were the Chosen Ones and they were able to fight the Dark One and win. Now they have to do with the aftereffects and some are having a harder time than others. I loved Sloane, the main character. She is a bad ass who portrays this image of being someone who doesn't care, but she does care . . . a lot. She is also suffering from PTSD from what she went through and it doesn't help that Matt (also her boyfriend) is acting as though she should be over it by now. I also loved the character of Albie and I liked his relationship with Sloane. Matt and Esther though just seemed . . . meh.

I think the problem I had with this story was that it was so incredibly slow. And maybe that's due to the world building. but there was just not a lot happening for a large part of the book. When they were taken to another dimension, I thought the story might pick up again and it did for a while. But then there was just a lot of training and a lot of standing around, not doing anything. But close to the end, it picked up again and I absolutely loved the cliffhanger at the end. So even though there were many slow parts, I thought this was a worthwhile start to the series and I am looking forward to the next installment.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐1/2