Perfect was a sequel to the book 'flawed', which was my last read. I Must admit, I did attempt to start two other books but I was too excited to start this one, and as soon as I started, I couldn't stop! The sequel was definitely just as good, if not better than Flawed, and every chapter something else happened to keep you right on the edge of your seat.
The book was the Story of Celestine North, and her life carried on after she was flawed, and branded 6 times, the last brand being a secret to everyone but her and the person who did it. At the end of the last book, it leaves you with a cliffhanger of what will happen next. This gave me more anticipation to read this, and from the first page, it hooks you. The book starts with Celestines 18th birthday, and her having escaped her "whistleblower" (who administrates that she follows all the rules of living as a flawed) she was living with her Grandfather secretly. But, soon she gets found out that she is located and her story begins. Carrick, the boy who was opposite her when she was in a cell before her trial in the previous book, finds her, and together they want to remove the government and the rule of the Flawed that comes with it, with a video of her having her secret sixth brand burnt in to her, which was not stated in court, without any anaesthetic.
She soon finds an institution for the flawed, which is secret and away from the government. At first, Celestine is content. She feels safe, she's with people who are not trying to hunt her down, and she's with Carrick, who makes her feel safe wherever she goes. But she soon realises, is she safe anywhere?
The book moves on to where she meets more and more people, devises more and more plans, and realises that she can not trust anybody, the wise words her Grandfather once gave her.
What I particularly loved about the sequel, more so than the first one, is it had so many valuable lessons that will stay with me and I found the book although some parts possibly disturbing, you were rooting for Celestine in everything she did, and it had so many lessons about humanity and was an incredibly uplifting book once you finished it.
My favourite thing about the novel was the author really highlighted Celestines intelligence and logic, in a way the reader could relate to. You learnt that Celestine always had a plan, and the plan was so thought out and she had so much power and resilience. The book was in the first person, therefore narrated by Celestine, and sometimes she would not give away her plans to the reader, and you would be left with a cliffhanger of what she would do next, only to find out later, at the same time as other characters. I think this technique must have been very hard to do well and it was so clever because even though the book was in 1st person, therefore revolving around her thoughts, Cecelia Ahern, the author, still managed to keep information from the reader, therefore Celestine was always one step ahead of you, which made it even more thrilling.
I really felt I connected with the characters in the novel, and they really developed in this book. In the last book, I actually didn't at first like the main character Celestine, but even though by the end I did, in this novel I really understood her way of thinking, and I was rooting for her so much that when I finished the book I felt like I just read an autobiography (even though it is fiction) and I felt like I have got to know someone so well. The author created such a complicated and interesting fictional character and I found it really sad to finish the book because her thoughts that I read were so complex and so interesting. She was such an inspiring character because of how bold and brave she was. Even though she is fictional, she inspired in the way she acted, and everything she did and said.
The book had such a powerful message in and even the title really showed this. The fact that in this book, you were either classed as flawed or perfect, and the previous book was called "flawed" and this called "perfect", really suggested that the flawed were intact perfect themselves, and actual flawed and accepting your flaws are what make people perfect. It was a really great reflection on segregation in the world and in history, and it was such an interesting way of outlining how ridiculous and disgusting segregation really is. The separation of people for doing something that someone else thinks is not the right thing is such active event in the history of our world, and I think this book really makes you reflect.
It was written brilliantly, and the descriptive language created such good symbolism. Overall, it was an absolutely fantastic sequel to Flawed, and is an absolute compulsory read! (Obviously, read Flawed first, where they amazing story starts..) I am genuinely envious of those who have not read it yet and have it coming there way. It is a young adult book but highly recommend it to adults too. I will be recommending it to EVERYONE age 13 and over.
BUY IT:
