An Exhilarating Dystopian!

filled star filled star filled star filled star filled star
reenie0429 Avatar

By

I love dystopian YA novels. Your One and Only hit the nail right on the head for me. I was a bit hesitant at first because I don’t like it when characters have numbers next to their names it can be a little confusing, but Finlay definitely made Althea-310 a human clone, stand out among the others. This book screams difference, individuality, and acceptance from all corners.
With two point of views, one from Althea-310 and the other from Jack (the last living human), the story is told exquisitely. Once the two are introduced, the goods and bads from both species are highlighted and your mind really gets to thinking. I love it when a book gets me to thinking like this one did. The fact that clones are a large possibility in our future and with all of the diseases spreading, a plague is never out of the question either, both really have an impact on you when you read this. Finlay made these clones real, almost as real as humans and so you don’t think of them as empty or robotic. They breathe and feel and think for themselves.
Jack is the outsider here, and though a bit aggressive, I love him for it, every second. I love his perspective of the clones and of Althea-310 in particular. While Althea-310 accepts Jack and Jack accepts Althea-310 and even a slight romance seems to begin, the story does not focus on romance. Sam’s role in the story could’ve been a little stronger. His affections towards Jack seemed kind of all of a sudden and not so built up from earlier in the story.

Though there is definitely great world building, the story is absolutely character driven and Finlay does a fantastic job of getting you to know her characters and wanting to meet them in real life. I felt the first quarter of the book was a bit too slow but the next 3 quarters totally made it up for it. I would definitely recommend this book to fans of YA Dystopian and Sci-Fi.