Ugh. I kept waiting for something to happen, but the writer was too busy showing how awful a post-nuclear world was.

Did I say ugh?

After a big explosion, the main girl fused with a doll. While her grandfather had a fan merged into his body after being exposed to a massive, destructive explosion that destroyed the world as we knew it? It’s impossible. How could it be? With plastic, glass, and steel melted into their bodies, how are these people still alive without infection?

The genesis of Baggott’s new world order also intrigued me. I still find this part of the narrative irritating, despite understanding its importance.

The author had an idea that could make a great story. This book takes place in a dystopian future where people live inside the dome under strict rules and regulations. Partridge longs for escape and wants to discover the truth about the world they left behind. In the world outside the Dome, Pressia lives in fear for the mutants that were created by the detonations decades ago. Pure is a story of lies, radiation, friendships, and conspiracies... But what is more important: safety or freedom?

There was the potential for it to be fantastic. It could have been amazing.

The characters are fine, the action scenes are decent, and the author did not water down the cruelty and violence. How poorly the author handles plot twists is something I dislike.The author builds the world poorly, and I don't like it. The villains kill people for no reason at the end, which I dislike.

Even though I didn’t hate this book, I felt let down by Baggott’s plotting.

There is no guarantee that I will continue the series. ( )

adult sci-fi (teen-friendly). Sort of an extra dark/twisty Hunger Games, with the priveleged living safe in the Dome and everyone else left to be suffer as Wretches and Dusts and Beasts and such. I need to request the second book from my library right away. ( )

Wow ... ( )

This is yet another entry into the saturated field of YA dystopian literature and, I know, if you're anything like me, you're beginning to get wary of reading yet another book of this genre. But, I urge you to give Pure a look.

Baggott creates a world post "Detonations" where there have been nuclear type bombs that destroyed most of the world. Many people were able to remain untouched because they had been inside these Domes that had been built at the times of the explosions. They are called Pures. Others, like the main character, Pressia, were damaged. Their bodies became fused with other objects causing horrible deformities. Life outside the Domes is difficult on a good day. At age 16, all people outside the Domes are required to turn themselves over to the OSR so that they can be either trained to be soldiers, or if not healthy enough, used as live targets. The book starts with Pressia's 16th birthday.

The other main character is Partridge. Partridge is a Pure raised inside the Dome. His father is one of the leaders. Partridge's brother committed suicide and his mother never made it inside the Dome and died a martyr helping others. Then, one day, his father makes a remark that leads Partridge to believe that his mother might still be alive. This leads Partridge to escape outside the Dome to try and find his mother. When he and Pressia meet up, both of their lives change forever.

I really enjoyed this book. I had some difficulties with some of the imagery and picturing some of the fusions described in the book in my head. i just couldn't wrap my mind around some of it. Guess my imagination is failing me there. ( )