4 star #bookreview - Enslavement by @MelindaFriesen #ya #dystopian @chapterxchapter @RebelightBooks

Welcome to the blog tour for Enslavement by Melinda Friesen. Here's some book info and below is my review!


Blurb from Goodreads:

"One world. One currency. One bright future."

That's the promise made by OneEarth Bank after a global economic collapse--but only for those who accept the insertion of a commerce chip.

When Rielle's parents refuse to comply, government officials tear her family apart. As punishment for her parent's crimes, Rielle is forced into a Community Service Contract--a legalized form of slavery--and sold to a wealthy, abusive banker.

The Banker's secrets hold the key to Rielle's freedom, but will she risk prison or even death to escape and search for her family? 

Buy at Amazon

My Review:

I enjoyed Enslavement and look forward to the next book. The editing and formatting were topnotch. The book started with a bang and the author did an excellent job building an unfortunately possible-sounding world. It was easy to make an emotional connection to the main character, Rielle, as she is torn from her family and essentially sold as a slave, although the authorities claim she’s just being rehabilitated for any criminal learnings she may have received from her parents who refused to have tracking/financial chips inserted.

Rielle reacts to her out-of-control situation by controlling the only thing the can – her voice. She refuses to speak to her owner or any of the other “Contracts.” I appreciated this as a device to have Rielle fight back, but I thought she could have worked harder to find other ways to communicate and do more than just react to one of her fellow Contracts who might have a way out, or to really understand her owner’s nephew who clearly has some kind of secret.

Rielle did her best to stand up to her owner and take punishment to protect the others. She is clearly strong and smart. The only real complaint I had was that Rielle did nothing to cause her own salvation. Other people put the opportunities in place and she had to be pushed into them. Then she waited to be rescued. It wasn’t until the last line of the book that we see that she intends to fight the system going forward. And while this nicely sets up the sequel, I would have preferred to see her be more proactive at least through the last quarter of the book. But again, the writer’s skills and world-building do ensure that I look forward to the next book and seeing a more active fight.

I rate this 3.8 stars, rounding up to 4 in most systems. I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

About the author:
Melinda Friesen was born in Portland, Oregon. She attended school in Texas and met a vastly interesting Canadian man, who she allowed to drag her to his home in the wilds of Manitoba, Canada. Living in an igloo wasn't easy. Wait. She didn't actually live in an igloo, but that would make this story much more interesting. 

Among her accomplishments are surviving -40 degree weather, gestating four human being inside her body, and staying happily married to that Canadian man for over 20 years despite the weather conditions he's exposed her to. And she writes too!