Review: The Chosen One - Carol Lynch Williams

Where I got it: Library

Rating: 5 stars

Cover Rating: 5 stars (Plain but fitting)

Genre: Young Adult

Publication Date: August 31, 2010

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Page Count: 213 p.

Kyra's family is part of the Chosen Ones, a polygamist cult. Kyra and her family except the way life is with their new leader. Maybe they can't leave the compound freely anymore, maybe some people have been killed and they had to burn all the books they own. Life is still good though, they are still happy to be going to God's kingdom. That is until The Prophet converses with God and decides the Kyra is to marry her uncle, who is quite a few decades older than her. Kyra's father goes to the Prophet to dispute this, but it is done. Kyra fears this is due to her sins. She has been sneaking out and seeing and kissing a boy, she has been hiding books to read, and she has been saying terrible things about killing the Prophet. Kyra knows there is no way she can go through with the marriage, no way she can face becoming her uncle's seventh wife. She knows she has to run away, or do something, but how? Who is willing to help her escape?

Well, one thing is for sure, Carol Lynch Williams does not know how to write a happy story. ;) This was beautifully written though and completely heartbreaking. This is her first novel, but the second one I've read. Like Glimpse, this details the struggle of a girl growing up in an unwanted situation. The isolation that Kyra and her family face living on the compound makes this book all the more intense. I personally have ver been in a polygamist cult, or a much similar situation, but I could feel every heartache as Kyra's as I hung on her every move, every word. This was a fascinating and gut-wrenching read that you would do yourself a favor by reading. If you cannot handle being depressed and horrified however, please pass this book by. I appreciate Carol Lynch William's knack for writing just the right endings. They are hopeful, but not overly positive. They are happy without being unrealistic. It's sad that there are no super happy endings, but it's how life often happens.

First Line:

"'If I was going to kill the Prophet,' I say, not even keeping my voice low, 'I'd do it in Africa.'"

Favorite Line:

"Outside the sky has gone all dark except for the half-moon."