Prized

Prized is the second book of Caragh M. O'Brien's Birthmarked trilogy.

Striking out into the wasteland with nothing but her baby sister, a handful of supplies, and a rumor to guide her, sixteen-year-old midwife Gaia Stone survives, only to be captured by the people of Sylum, a dystopian society where women rule the men who drastically outnumber them, and a kiss is a crime.  In order to see her sister again, Gaia must submit to their strict social code and the oppressive rules of Matrarc Olivia.  Meanwhile, two brothers claim her attention as they attempt to understand the environmental trap that keeps the people of Sylum captive, and suddenly Gaia must contend with the exciting, uncomfortable, and altogether new feeling of being desired.

But when someone from her past shows up, Gaia discovers that survival alone is not enough and that justice requires sacrifice.

The Breakdown:
1.  In this book Gaia goes from one dystopian society to another.  The very definition of out of the frying pan and into the fire.  I honestly thought that the structure and rules of Sylum were worse than the Enclave.  At least when Gaia lived outside of the Enclave, she was fairly free to live her life, but in Sylum the rules were quite ridiculous at times.  Plus, the Matrarc was quite manipulative under the guise of doing what is right for the society.

2.  So I really liked Gaia in the first book, Birthmarked, but her perosnality change in this book turned me off to her.  She stops standing up for what she believes in, and lets the Matrarc manipulate her into the position she wants her.  It is no wonder that Leon is so angry with her.

3. I was not a fan of the weird love rectangle going in this book.  Gaia is so mixed and confused about the brothers, Peter and Will, but of course then there is Leon, too.  It makes me a little crazy at times.  Especially when she tells Peter that Leon is the one for her, but she won't commit to being with Leon.

4.  I did like that at the end Gaia finally found herself again, and the interesting revelations about the Sylum community that came to light.  While this book was not as good as the first book, I am interested to see how O'Brien will end the series.

To Read or Not to Read:
Read