Pawn by Aimee Carter

Pawn by Aimee Carter
Series: The Blackcoat Rebellion #1
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Publication Date: November 26th 2013
Source: Netgalley [Publisher]

YOU CAN BE A VII. IF YOU GIVE UP EVERYTHING.

For Kitty Doe, it seems like an easy choice. She can either spend her life as a III in misery, looked down upon by the higher ranks and forced to leave the people she loves, or she can become a VII and join the most powerful family in the country.

If she says yes, Kitty will be Masked—surgically transformed into Lila Hart, the Prime Minister's niece, who died under mysterious circumstances. As a member of the Hart family, she will be famous. She will be adored. And for the first time, she will matter.

There's only one catch. She must also stop the rebellion that Lila secretly fostered, the same one that got her killed …and one Kitty believes in. Faced with threats, conspiracies and a life that's not her own, she must decide which path to choose—and learn how to become more than a pawn in a twisted game she's only beginning to understand.

As soon as I started this book I was hooked. Aimee Carter created such an amazing dystopian world in this novel. In this world you're given the chance to be anything you want, you just have to take a test which then determines which rank you're given and it also determines how you live your life. I was sucked in straight away by this world and I wanted to discover more about it.

Kitty Doe has just taken her test and has been awarded a III. Kitty got her hopes up and thought she'd managed a IV, so she's extremely disappointed with her rank. She doesn't want to move and leave everything behind, so she plans to join her friend in an illegal business. But then Kitty is offered a choice, spend her life as a III or she can become a VII. Kitty jumps at the chance to become a VII, but she doesn't realise what she has to sacrifice until it's too late. Kitty is Masked - surgically transformed - into Lila Hart - the Prime Minister's niece who recently died. Kitty now has to fool the public into believing she is Lila Hart and squash the rebellion that Lila supported. 

I adored Kitty's character. She was so desperate to get the life that she'd always imagined that she sacrificed everything for it. She had a lot of spunk and I loved that about her. She was always questioning what was the right thing to do and she was so determined to do the right thing and make sure no one was harmed for her mistakes. There were times when Kitty was pretty naive and she had a lot of learning to do about the upper ranks. But her determination and her strength made her a very likable character.

There was a point when I thought there was going to be a love triangle and I almost screamed, but luckily I was wrong! Sure, I like love triangles, but I just couldn't see one working in this book.
So there were two guys (but no love triangle!). First of all we have Benji. Oh Benji, I adore you. Benji is Kitty's boyfriend and he does nothing but look out for her. He loves her so much that he was willing to run away with her. Benji is a big part of the book later on after Kitty has became Lila.
And then we had Knox. Knox is (was) Lila's fiance and Kitty has to pretend to be with him so that she can fool the public into thinking she's Lila. There was a slight connecting between Kitty and Knox, but nothing serious. Knox was determined to back the rebellion and get Kitty to join him. Knox is a very sweet and protective of Kitty. He wants to keep her safe and he's always doing everything he can to help her.

The storyline of this book was action packed and parts of it left me shocked. The revelation of what "Elsewhere" is (it's the place where I's, II's and the elderly are sent to) left me stunned. It was such a horrible and shocking twist, and it was revealed in a shocking way as well. The rebellion storyline was interesting as well. I enjoyed finding out why Lila had backed the rebellion and what the rebellion stood for. There was also a lot of corruption and deceit within the Hart family and it was interesting seeing everything unfold. I adored learning about each member of the Hart family and finding out what side they were on. There was a lot going on in this book that I just couldn't put it down.

The ending was when everything came to a head and there was a major plot twist thrown in that I never saw coming! Talk about a jaw-dropping surprise! It made me even more excited to see how the ending was going to play out. It was action packed, full of twists and surprises, and I loved every single second of it. The ending of the last chapter left me hanging and I just NEED the next book so bad! I'm dying to see what's in store for Kitty next and what she'll have to face!

Overall, this was such a fantastic and action packed dystopian. It's a unique and dark society ruled by a corrupt family who would do anything to cover their tracks. It's packed full of action, suspense and some pretty jaw-dropping twists that leave you wanting more. If you're a dystopian fan, then this is a book that I definitely think you would love.