The Chosen Ones by Veronica Roth, Vol.1, spoiler free

 The Chosen Ones 1 (spoiler free).

The Chosen Ones by Veronica Roth was highly recommended on Booktok. Tempted at first, I purchased it because I was annoyed at just how many people recommended it. 

I had already read the Divergent series by Veronica Roth, so I did not mind discovering her new work anyways, especially when I learned it was targeted for a more mature audience. I always find it nice when authors (and artists) grow with their fans. 

So I went to the first bookshop that had it and started to read it.

What is it about?

One day, a mysterious, dangerous and magical enemy, the Dark One, appeared, destroying everything and killing many. A clandestine government agency searches eagerly for someone to fight against the monster. That someone became a group of five teenagers, Sloane, Matt, Albie, Ines and Esther. Together, after long fights and terrifying nights, they succeeded. The war is over. 

Ten years later, we find the Chosen Ones as adults. Sloane and Matt are dating and living together. Albie and Ines are also living together, even if Ines is lesbian. Esther lives alone in luxury. Their journey together traumatized them to the core, and they each found a way to cope with it. Sloane shuts herself from the world, appearing on public events when only necessarily. Matt puts the mask of THE Hero, mourning with the people, smiling for them, by becoming the savior they want and need to see. Ines also shut herself, but in public, she appears doing fine, while her bedroom is filled with deadly traps. Esther chose to become an influencer and sells a luxurious life to act as if everything was okay. Finally, Albie felt into drugs. They all try to live with the horrible experiences they had and kept a close friendship. 

As the chapters go on, we learn that Sloane and Albie are exceptionally close, which is due to the fact that the both of them were kidnapped together by the Dark One for a couple of days. Neither of them talked about what exactly happened to them, but we learn that Albie went mostly through physical torture while Sloane faced more a psychological one (she heard Albie's screams). None of the Chosen Ones is doing okay, they are all walking tick bombs, some with less time that others. 

On the eve of the Ten Years Celebration of peace, one of the Chosen Ones die, which opens old wounds on the remaining four. Then, the next day, during the ceremony, a strange event occurs... that leads to terrifying news: the Dark One is back.

Let's talk about the characters.

The one thing that made me take my time reading, is that the characters we see the most are the most annoying, and they all somewhat reminded me of Hunger Games' characters.

Sloane is the main character. We follow the story through her perspective. She is very cold, distant, and agressive towards people. The only ones she trusts are her comrades, and among them, Albie, even though she is dating Matt. She has a lot of insecurities and issues and does not seek help, considering no one, except her fellow Chosen Ones, could ever understand what it was like. What it felt like when you are facing the Dark One. The horror, the realization of how weak and fragile you are... She did not heal, and she is not sure she can ever heal one day. I had a lot of compassion for her, but she is still annoying and quite detestable actually. She rejects everyone and while it's understandable, it's also rude, because she acts like that with everyone, including the four other Chosen Ones. The reason why she likes Albie so much is because she does not need to try and be nice with him. She reminds me of angry-bitter Katniss. 

Matt is said to be the Chosen One among the Chosen Ones. Or at least, that's how Sloane view him. As said earlier, they are dating and living together. Matt is said to be black and faces racism even though he saved the world. He is very active in his role and appears in many public events. He also sold the rights of a book about him. He seems righteous and confident but he has his own part of darkness and traumas. The war was not easy for him either. He reminds me of saint-fake.camera.smiling Peeta. 

Albie is Canadian. He felt into drugs and went a few times into cure. He lives with Ines but has more chemistry with Sloane. He is the most visibly damaged of the Chosen Ones. If the others felt like struggling to me, he felt miserable. The kind of person who gets back home completely broken, left soulless and hopeless. He reminded me a bit of Haymitch, considering they are addicts who feel bitter and disgusted by what they had to go through and angry at people who made them go through those horrible experiences.

Esther is said to be non white, and I think she is Asian, more precisely Korean, as her family name is Park. I do not remember if it is stated clearly in the book though. She sold her entire life to media. She is an influencer and acts like that perfect rich and pretty young woman, doing lives, always being well dressed with perfect makeup on. Sloane has not only kind thoughts for her, and it pissed me off (the whole "I'm not like the other girls" kind of vibe). But it is true that Esther can be blunt with words. Contrary to her online image, she is very honest and does not sugar coat what she has to say. Sometimes, she even comes off as annoying, rude, and even a bit cruel. However, I do not find her as superficial as others paint her to be. She reminded me a bit of Finnick, as she sold her life to the public and acts all cheeky and pretty, hiding her true personality which is way more likable than her persona.

Ines is latina (I think it's safe to say that she is Mexican, since her mother lives there). Even if her ethnicity is not precised, she is non white. We see her the least but she seems the most unfortunate. The war made her a shut-in, but not in the angry type like Sloane. She is paranoid to the point that she never leaves her room that she locks and which is filled of deadly traps. She is so fragile and afraid that I wanted to hug her tightly. I had a lot of sympathy for her, especially since she seems sweet. She is way more discreet than her comrades. She reminded me of Wiress. 

Anyways, the more I read, the more they reminded me of Hunger Games' characters! In the beginning, I did not even see similarities, as the setting is different. But chapter after chapter, I thought "they remind me of a character...". Not as in they make me think of someone I know IRL, or they are cliche-like characters (the quarterback, the nerd, the cheerleader...) but really as in "I read about a character like that before". And then, I noticed. Now, I have to say. We are 7 billions in this world, so no one is ever truly that unique. It's the same as fictional characters; they are similar ones now in every book. But the similarities here are a bit too strong... Maybe it's because I watched again Hunger Games 2 few days before reading, but it was a thought I could not get rid off. It pissed me off, since the story was nice and kind of original. 

Thoughts on the story.

The first party was enjoyable. I did not find it slow, as helping us immerse in the story was crucial ; the war was TEN YEARS before the beginning of the story. We need elements before having the action, otherwise we would be lost. One thing I loved was adding files, reports and articles in between chapters, to give us some information and a different insight of the story. It made me understand better the dynamics of their world, and see what was at stake. It reminded me of the Cathy's Book series (the three books included the exact clues and objects as they are described in the story, such as pictures, ring, origami, paper, notes, phone numbers that truly worked...)

Among the five Chosen Ones, only Ablie and Sloane are white. Which led many to believe the two of them were the real heroes and the other three only supports. There is a rise of a white supremacist group who wishes the Dark One was back, to "purge" the society, while highly despising the Chosen Ones, and especially the three non white. Even between those three, Matt is the main target as he is black. There is a scene where racism is discussed, and Sloane is pissed at Matt for doing nothing and not defending himself. He explains that he just does not have the luxury to do that.

Now, moving on the second part... It was quite hard for me to immerse myself into the story. Many things happened, but it felt so... fake...? I felt so distant with the story and struggled to finish the book. There are a lot explications, fights, pettiness and just unrelatable and distasteful characters. I liked the first part more, even if nothing happens. 

Will I continue the series?

Apparently, the Chosen Ones are supposed to be a series. I think it could be a stand-over, as the first book ending is satisfactory enough. If Veronica Roth decides to continue the series, I might take a look at the resume and some reviews before jumping. I have many books left to read and the story did not entertain me enough to actively look for the next part.