(Cover picture courtesy of Goodreads.)

Twell lives in the new world of Como, and has always neglected her telekinetic gifts, desiring to be ‘normal.’ Her biggest drama in life is having to be genetically partnered with a boy she doesn’t know or love by her next birthday. Unfortunately she loves her best friend, who loves the girl she hates most, and Twell is left frustrated & heartbroken.

When Twell is requested alongside several other teens to develop her skills for the protection of Como, she reluctantly agrees to the training, and finds herself thrown into all sorts of mental and physical challenges.
Handsome, charismatic Jonaz, is gifted with the power of healing. According to Twell he’s an infuriating prat who delights in provoking her. But first impressions have always been her downfall.
When Como is attacked, life as Twell knows it is changed forever, with devastating consequences. With no choice but to fight, Twell risks her life to protect those who have survived, coming up against unexpected dangers she could never anticipate. Will she survive, and if so will she be matched to a stranger when the one she is growing to love is destined to another?

[Full disclosure: I was provided a free paperback through the blog tour in exchange for an honest review.]

In the first chapter of this book, I was filled with dread.  It seemed like your typical catty teenage drama book with only a little bit of science fiction and a dash of dystopia.  Then at the end of the chapter we learn that the leadership of Como, the Governing Body, chooses who you are matched with as life partners based on your genetics.  Pretty terrifying, huh?  There’s also the fact that every citizen wears a wristband that brings them updates from the GB and allows them to monitor everyone, everywhere.  That’s even more terrifying.

Twell is a complicated character.  She’s judgmental but at least she’s eventually willing to revise her judgments and act like a real human being rather than a super catty teenager.  To her credit, she does grow quite a bit as a person as the book progresses, but there is a lot of angst to get through in the beginning.  And to be fair, I’d be pretty angsty too if a government controlled my entire life like it does on Como.  Twell’s interactions with the other characters are fascinating and I’ll admit she is a sympathetic character, particularly after tragedy strikes in the later half of the book.  So I can’t really diss her or Kate O’Leary’s character development; it’s pretty good.

My only real criticism of Twell and The Army of Powers is the fact that the writing is unpolished.  I don’t mean it’s bad or has lots of typos, but it feels like there’s a little more maturity needed on the part of the author to pull off those super emotional scenes.  Part of the problem is that this is a first book so of course it’s going to be rough.  But the other part is the fact that Kate O’Leary sometimes doesn’t let her characters speak for themselves.  Whenever they say something that is clearly meant in one way she still adds an explanation after their dialogue that feels unnecessary, even in a book aimed at younger readers.  It gets a little distracting at times but I believe Kate O’Leary’s writing will only improve with the sequel (especially considering that heart-wrenching cliffhanger).

So aside from a little bit of rough writing, this book is actually quite good.  It’s not reliant on just one trope but it’s rather a mash-up of quite a few sci-fi and dystopian tropes into one unique, well thought-out world with realistic characters.  I’d recommend it for younger teens, although there are some scenes of violence.

I give this book 3.5/5 stars.

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