In Pretties, the second installment of Scott Westerfeld’s series, the infamous ugly Tally is now a pretty. Everything is perfect in Tally’s pretty world. She is with her friends again, and she has nothing but fun. But then Tally’s perfect world takes a turn when she is contacted by one of the uglies, and then finds the letter that she had written to herself.Tally and her new beau Zane find the cure, but Tally is to afraid to go it alone. So, Tally takes one pill and Zane takes the other. But the pill seems to have different effects on Zane and they must escape to find the new Smoke where Zane can get help.In their escape they are separated and Tally makes yet another discovery in the Pretties not so perfect existence. When Tally finally reaches the Ruins it is David that she meets, and learns what has happened to Zane. Once again the Specials are on Tally’s tail, but now she has a choice to make. Will it be David or Zane.Pretties is even better than Uglies. Tally’s character is even more complex as well as the storyline. You never know what is going to happen next and that makes it that more interesting. I have to say I couldn’t put it down and the cliffhanger ending has me eager to read Specials. ( )

The Pretties is a continuation of the Uglies.... which picks up where the first novel left off. Tally returned to New Pretty Town and was transformed into a Pretty, with a vauge recollection of the circumstances that preceded her "surg". This book covers Tally's adventures to find her way back to the New Smoke, to stay "bubbly" despite the lesions, and admit to her feelings for her new friend Zane. I listened to this book on audio, which was VERY SLOW, as I guess teenagers can't listen quickly??? Anyways, it was fine but I found myself wanting to race ahead as her time in New Pretty Town seemed to drag, as I was ready for her to get out and meet up with her friends. It got better after the Crims attempted to leave... but like the first book, ended on another cliffhanger, setting the stage for the next book, The Specials. ( )

Pretties follows on from Uglies, I am sure you could read this one as a stand along novel, but it's much more exciting if you read Uglies first. The story continues Tally Youngbloods tale, and what a tale it is, adventure, beauty and mischief in one book. The plot is fast and full of action but also deep and exciting. The characters have their flaws but not annoyingly so, well worth a read! ( )

Tally Youngblood is no longer Ugly, she is now Pretty and she is getting ready to join the Crims, one of the coolest cliques in New Pretty Town. Tally is finally at the party she’s been anxiously awaiting, the one at which the Crims will decide whether or not she can join, when some of the Smokies show up with a secret about the past she can no longer remember. Tally and her new boyfriend Zane fight to stay bubbly and not let themselves give into the lesions that make them pretty-minded, but it isn’t easy when the city and Zane’s own body are against them.

I really do like this series. Westerfeld keeps up the action without making this a brain-dead action book. The love-triangle also worked much better than one in another young adult I could name. Perhaps the best part is the social commentary, which works because of the dystopian society in which Tally lives. I don’t even want to describe some of the commentary both about Tally’s time and our own because I don’t know how to keep it from sounding heavy-handed, although Westerfeld pulls it off quite nicely.

Perhaps the only the I didn’t like about “Pretties” is that it ended with a similar sort of cliffhanger (although not quite the same) as did “Uglies.” They were a little too similar for my taste, but that didn’t stop the ending from propelling me straight into “Specials!” ( )

Pretties suffers from what I like to call Middle Book Syndrome. It's stuck in the middle so it has to continue the story to its conclusion without getting too close to the conclusion to justify an ending in book #2. It has to convey just the amount of information necessary to have #3 make sense while continuing to build on what was introduced in #1, and it also has to have its own story to keep the reader interested enough to move on to #3 without giving up altogether. It's a high order to fill and few middle books actually manage it. I slogged through this one because even though I wasn't thrilled with the first, I simply wanted to know how the story ended. In some way, Scott Westerfeld succeeded in making a story in which the reader wants to know the ending, even if the trip on the way to the ending isn't the most enjoyable journey.

Pretties provides an interesting picture into the lives of the people who have gone through the surgery and how they live and think (or don't think, as the case may be). It's interesting to see the parallels with the current 'Pretties' who flirt and flounce and party until they can't see straight, as well.

Where Uglies was not engaging, Pretties does not become any more engaging, and in fact wasn't even quite as interesting as Uglies, since the world is already introduced. However, it wasn't something that I regretted reading, and not regretting reading something means it can't have been all bad. ( )