Panic by Lauren Oliver

Before I start this review, I just wanted to apologize for not being on this blog for a while! I had so much to deal with the last few weeks of school (FINALS :( ) but now it's summer so I'll give you guys PLENTY of book reviews :D
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Synopsis: "Panic began as so many things do in Carp, a dead-end town of 12,000 people in the middle of nowhere: because it was summer, and there was nothing else to do.

Heather never thought she would compete in Panic, a legendary game played by graduating seniors, where the stakes are high and the payoff is even higher. She’d never thought of herself as fearless, the kind of person who would fight to stand out. But when she finds something, and someone, to fight for, she will discover that she is braver than she ever thought.

Dodge has never been afraid of Panic. His secret will fuel him, and get him all the way through the game, he’s sure of it. But what he doesn't know is that he’s not the only one with a secret. Everyone has something to play for.

For Heather and Dodge, the game will bring new alliances, unexpected revelations, and the possibility of first love for each of them—and the knowledge that sometimes he very things we fear are those we need the most."

Title: PANIC
Series: None
Genre: Romance, YA Fiction, Suspense, Contemporary
Pages: 408
Ages: 14+
My Rating:
My Word: Heart Racing, freaking anxiety filled
My Fave Quote:
"But Autumn nibbled the blue sky with its teeth, tore off chunks of the sun, smudged out that heavy veil of meat-smelling smoke. It was coming. It would not be held out much longer.
It would bring rain, and cold, and change.
Just before that: the final challenge.
The deadliest challenge.
Joust" (375).
Review
I live in a bubble. Every day, I go to school, see my friends, go home, do homework, and repeat. My town is filled with some rich kids and seeing them waste their money on extra drinks in the cafeteria or wearing a new outfit a day makes me want to cringe. I've learned from an early age not to spend more money than I have to, and now I don't even have to remind myself. It's just a habit to conserve my money.

In Panic, many residents in Carp are poor. There is Meth Row, where Dodge and other poor residents live, and there is the trailer park, where the even poorer people live, including Heather. It was fascinating to read about their lives and their families and the trouble that they endured.

Not only that, but hearing people say "This novel is just like the Hunger Games! It such a copy." First of all, this book isn't set in the futuristic dystopia where you're forced to play a game to show power. This game was created by students and personally I thought this book was more exciting and thrilling due to the absurd stunts and tasks the students have to do. That said, the plot was definitely original and the different challenges made my heart race for these fictional character.

Speaking of fictional characters, the absolute reason why I got this book to be four stars were the characters, specifically Heather and Bishop.
“They had their own language, their own jokes. They were constantly touching each other too – pushing and shoving, pinching and hugging, like kids flirting on a playground.”
*sigh* best relationship ever.Literally, I was waiting for their perfect relationship to happen and once it did I could not contain my feelings.





Not to mention Dodge. He was absolutely perfectly imperfect and his and Heather's background story made me sympathize for them throughout the whole story. Nat on the other hand was a little annoying for the first half of the story and very reckless (not that all of them weren't). She was crying over the stupidest things and making horrible decisions. During the end though, she didn't bother me as much.

One of the things I didn't like as much was that Oliver kind of rushed the last challenge, and she never showed Heather resolve any of her problems, like with Bishop. She just skipped right to the epilogue. I liked the epilogue, but I think I would've been a lot happier if we got to read that scene.

This story was a quick and fun read, and literally had my heart racing for the characters as they went through each challenge. I figured out the twist at the end with Bishop when Dodge started suspecting it and I was shocked and mad at myself for not figuring that out sooner! This story was very creative and I can't wait to read more of Oliver's upcoming books!
★★★★