Review: The Replaced by Kimberly Derting

Title: The Replaced

Author: Kimberly Dertin

Publisher: HarperTeen

Publication Date: 4.28.2015

Pages: 368

Genre: Young Adult, SciFi, Romance

Series: The Taking #2

Source: ARC from publisher

Rating: 3 ½ Stars

Summary (from Goodreads):

Kyra hasn't been the same since she returned from her mysterious five-year disappearance. Now, on the run from the NSA, Kyra is forced to hide out with others who, like her, have been Returned. Yet she is determined to find Tyler, the boy she loves who was also abducted—all because of her. When her group intercepts a message that Tyler might still be alive but is in the hands of a shadowy government organization that experiments on the Returned, Kyra knows it's a risk to go after him. What if it's a trap? And worse, what if the returned Tyler isn't the same boy she lost? 

Perfect for fans of The Fifth Wave and the Body Finder series, The Replaced is both chilling and explosive, with creepy, otherworldly elements and twisty, psychological thrills that will have you questioning what exactly it means to be human. 

Review:

After the heart-stopping ending of THE TAKING, I was desperate for more. More Kyra, more Tyler, more alien crazy, more EVERYTHING. But I have to admit, I'm a little let down by this book.

Let's start with what I loved: I loved Kyra in this book (OK, she makes a few bonehead mistakes, but she's a teenager who was abducted by aliens and Returned 5 years later - cut her a break). She's a fantastic narrator and Kimberly Derting writes her in a way that you cannot help but root for her.

The entire Replaced element ... I loved it. It is a total game changer, and that is all I'll say without spoiling you. But trust me - it's EPIC.

My biggest let down: The romance. I'm not going to get into specifics but a couple of things happened here that made me wonder why Tyler and Kyra ever got together in book 1. Because what happens here? Total 180. It's not a BAD decision, mind you. I enjoyed the romance, but it made the romance in book 1 fell invalidated, and since so much of Kyra and Tyler’s relationship played a part in THE TAKING, it kind of made the book feel like a waste of time.

Confused yet? Good. So am I - and I read the book.

I will read the last book because I'm curious to see how it ends, but I do fell a little let down and my expectations for the ending are now more of a mild curiosity than a burning desire to dive back in.