Branded Tour & Review

Branded by Abi Ketner & Missy Kalicicki

A Sinners Series

Fifty years ago the Commander came into power and murdered all who opposed him. In his warped mind, the seven deadly sins were the downfall of society. He created the Hole where sinners are branded according to their sins and might survive a few years. At best. 

Now LUST wraps around my neck like blue fingers strangling me. I’ve been accused of a crime I didn’t commit and now the Hole is my new home. 

Darkness. Death. Violence. Pain. 

Now every day is a fight for survival. But I won’t die. I won’t let them win.

The Hole can’t keep me. The Hole can’t break me. 

I am more than my brand. I’m a fighter. My name is Lexi Hamilton, and this is my story.

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About Abi and Missy: 

Abi and Missy met in the summer of 1999 at college orientation and have been best friends ever since. After college, they added jobs, husbands and kids to their lives, but they still found time for their friendship. Instead of hanging out on weekends, they went to dinner once a month and reviewed books. What started out as an enjoyable hobby has now become an incredible adventure.

Website * Facebook * Twitter * Abi's Goodreads * Missy's Goodreads

I received a copy in exchange for an honest review!

What I say: I'm going to start by saying I really like the new cover for Branded and Lexi's 'brand'. Although horrific in meaning it looks beautiful. Branded is a dystopian young adult story with one hell of a punch and a fun yet complicated subplot. 
The story begins as Lexi finds herself being taken to the terrible prison-like-state known as the Hole. She's been convicted with the crime of lust. In the dystopian world Lexi lives in, people can be 'branded' (labelled and tattooed) with different crimes which come under the seven deadly sins.  
As Lexi arrives in the Hole we learn more about the world she lives in and the evil dictator or Commander who controls society by force.
Lexi is shocked to find herself accused of such a crime and is forced into a very different life where she is branded a whore and has to be protected by a guard. The Hole is brutal and life is cheap. It was good to see Lexi grow in strength and to see the bigger picture.

I thought the secondary characters including Sutton and Alyssa were great but I wasn't convinced of the scenes with Keegan and they sometimes seemed a bit rushed. I really liked Cole but I would have liked to see him developed a bit more. The ending was rather abrupt and left me with several unanswered questions which I hope will be covered in the next instalment.

I enjoyed Lexi's dark and troubling story, although I did find the conversation didn't always flow at times. However, this didn't really lessen my enjoyment and I found myself immersed in this dystopian society, which was a sort-of combination of that shown in The Hunger Games and Divergent.

3.5 - 4 Stars in my Sky!

Excerpt:

I turn on the faucet for a long while only to discover

ice-cold water rushing out. The water never warms and I begin to understand.

The Commander thinks he can wash away my soul by freezing me to death. He

thinks he can destroy me by stripping away my possessions. But he can’t and I

won’t let him take my memories, my ambition, and my pride.

He thinks I’m so easily broken.

The Commander doesn’t know anything about me, what I grew up

with, what I endured—the father I lost, the mother I hate, the brother who

walked out of my life, and the stepfather I was forced to accept. He thinks

since I was rich, making me poor will cause me to give up. What he doesn’t

understand is that, after my father passed away, I grew up behind walls of

hatred. I had nothing, but had everything at the same time. I owned expensive

clothes, enjoyed good schooling, and lived in a nice home. But my body was just

a shell protecting an empty, desperate heart. My life was a colorful façade.

I had so much time to sit and think. I spent the majority of

my life between four walls. I was abandoned, neglected, starved, betrayed, and

abused. I’ve already been treated like the scum of the earth, so the Hole is

nothing new. He wants to erase every sign of my existence on this earth, but I

won’t let that happen. He can strip me naked, but he’ll never reach my soul.

It’s personal, completely personal.