Specials (Uglies Trilogy, Book 3)

A daring end to the initial trilogy. It was decent at tying up loose ends and bringing closure to the series, but it wasn't anything groundbreaking.

Alright, I have one big complaint. I am so, so tired of the female heroine who really doesn't want to save the world but is forced into doing it anyway. Katniss, Tris, and now Tally just feel like a boring litany of tropes. They are the humble brag of teen literature and I don't understand why a woman heroine has to back away from wanting to lead or change the world or be too weary to reach out for responsibility. I understand these authors are also going for the theme that authority is bad or that trying to change the world usually doesn't work out the way you plan, but I'm still tired of it seeming to be the only female heroine out there these days. On the flip side, I thought Specials was more interesting than Pretties. The Pretties as characters were annoying, and while the Specials were intended to be frightening, it was a pleasant change to obnoxious (that's so not fashion-making, Shay-la...kill me now...). I also thought their abilities were pretty cool. There are some secret parts of me that think it would be kind of awesome to (at least once in a while) have night vision and infrared vision and super-fast reflexes, probably just because I'm a klutz whose own feet have betrayed her too many times. This book, while at times predictable, also threw me for a couple of loops. Plus...SPOILERS...


I didn't really care for Zane (though he got sooooo much more tolerable in this book) and didn't really believe in their romance that much so I'm secretly excited that David's back in the picture.

Okay, lastly, I love the environmentalism. I love that Tally is finally on the side of nature, pushing back against anybody who encroaches too far, and the deep appreciation for nature that the book is always trying to convey. I think that freedom (Hunger Games,) or individuality (Divergent) are great ideas to be espousing, I think that the press of environmentalism is the most important one we should be pushing right now, especially on young people (sorry if that sounds a tad like brainwashing, but if we're going to push a message through books no matter what, I'm firmly on the side of nature).

Apparently the last one isn't really about Tally, though. WHAT IS UP WITH THAT? I literally just made my way onto a book four of a different series only to find out that book four was the only book not written about the main character, but someone new instead. I WANT MERLIN BACK. I WANT TALLY BACK. WHY WRITE A FOURTH NOVEL AND CALL IT PART OF THE SERIES WHEN IT'S KINDA SORTA NOT??

Okay, rage moment over. But I'm still annoyed.

A great ending to the trilogy! I think it really shows how much a person can conform to a certain thing, but always fall back on what they believe is right. I love the little romance thrown in as well, but the story still revolves around the strong female character, who is still real enough of a person.