I loved Pure! I just ate it up causing me to finish this in 2 days . I loved the plot and the characters. I couldn't believe all the surprises and How amazing the book was. I loved how the author described the book, and how the story played out. There were endless surprises and twists and turns. I couldn't believe the author thought of all this. :D

One of the best YA Dystopian novels that I have read in a long time. It is a definite standout from the rest of the pack.

Interesting take on an esoteric group shielding itself from nuclear war in a dome. The ones lucky enough to be in the Dome during the bombs are called Pures, those that weren't so lucky are the Wretches, the Fused. When the bombs went off, people bacame fused with objects near to them. One character has birds in his back that are still alive and flutter. Pressia has a dolls head for a left hand. Her grandfather has a fan in his throat. Very strange. There's a great conspiratorial theme throughout. This book is filed as adult fiction, but I felt it read more like a young adult book - not to say it wasn't well done, because it was. It is also part of a series. Many questions get answered at the end of the novel, but many don't.

You can view all of my review at http://www.alluringreads.blogspot.com Where do I start! This book is heart wrenching from the very first page. The hardships that the "wretches" in this book face are unimaginable. It is a split POV novel written in the 3rd person, and I'm not really a fan of books written in 3rd person but this book chewed me up and spit me out. Pure isn't a fast paced novel that keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout, the charm here is in the detail and world building. The detail of history that Julianna Baggott goes into reaches inside you and pulls at your heart strings. It is beyond imaginative and though it is so far fetched it feels absolutely real and painful. The reason I only gave this 4 stars is because I felt as if some important parts of the book were skimmed over and I still had questions (what is exactly is the OSR and how did they come to be? who picked the 7 best and brightest?) The characters of the book (it is written from 4 different POV's changing with each chapter) were excellently developed with my star being Pressia. The strength inside this girl is admirable, I felt connected with her and felt pain when she felt pain. What is fascinating about the authors writing is how she made me feel the same amount of sorrow for Partridge as I did for Pressia, and they are from two very different worlds. This is a slower book with a high level of attention to detail but it is a fulfilling read. I definitely recommend Pure!

Wow. This book is a STUNNER. It's dark and disturbing and creepy-cool, but it's also so darn fascinating! I don't think I've ever read a book like it before, and I don't think I ever will again! Set after the Detonations (which caused mutations that merged inanimate objects to some people's bodies), Pure takes place in a post-apocalyptic world that twists the definition of "dystopian" and molds it into something darker, something terrifying, something that makes me so thankful I don't live there and captivated at the same time. Admittedly, Pure starts out so slowly that I had trouble getting into it at first, but as soon as I was immersed in the world, I was captured like a butterfly in a net! I empathized with Pressia more and more as the story went on — because can you imagine how awful it would be to have a doll face for a hand? — and the other layered characters took my breath away, too! As dark and detailed as it is, Pure may not be for everybody, but I really hope you give it a shot anyways! I didn't expect to love it this much but I did. Julianna Baggot has such beautiful prose, and her imagination makes you wish you'd thought of this yourself. Ominous and dangerous and probably one of the most vivid books I've ever read, Pure is a novel that blew my mind continuously. I'm really excited to see what the next book will bring! BUY or BORROW?: This is a hard question because as much as I adored this book, I know that some people will love it and some people won't. So for now, I'll say pick it up first and buy it after, if that makes sense! ;)

*Copy provided by publisher for review* Without a doubt, Julianna Baggott's Pure is the most enticing dystopian novel I've read to this date! Admittedly, I've never read Baggott's other titles, but Pure's striking post-apocalyptic synopsis instantly drew me in! Julianna Baggott's Pure starts off with two key point of views, that of Pressia (outside the Dome) and Patridge (inside the Dome). Life outside the Dome is treacherous! After the dreadful detonations years ago, when Pressia was still only a child, the world outside has crumbled to the ground and has been infested by horrendous creatures called Dusts. In addition, the detonations brought on an onslaught of terrible mutations to the survivors, some of which who suffered inanimate objects being permanently molded to their bodies. Pressia is one of these people, with a doll's head on her hand and a mere sock to cover up it's existence. Enter Patridge, a resident living inside the Dome, an isolated community that thrives on education and science, not to mention completely mutation-free. However, not everything is perfect for Patridge in the Dome, he yearns to find his mother and risks leaving the Dome. There, he meets Pressia. Julianna Baggott's dialogue in Pure is unbelievably unique, but regrettably very slow paced. In fact, I had originally picked up the novel to read during the Summer 2011 when it first arrived for review, only to put it back down halfway through and pick it up once again a few weeks before release day. With that said, however, when diving back into Pure, I instantly found myself falling in love with the story once more. Pressia's narrative voice was unbelievably real! She wasn't someone I could connect or identify with, but my sympathy grew the more I learned about her. Patridge was an instant hit for me. For whatever reason, I found myself connecting with him and his pressured lifestyle a lot more then I did with Pressia. Needless to say, Patridge was by far my favorite character. Learning about the Pures and those who live outside of the Dome was some-what of a heartbreaking story. I felt disgusted at times and ashamed of the Dome residents for their lack of humanity and compassion. Moving on, I couldn't help feeling that the novel itself was a major illusion all on it's own. The story felt like it was moving into hundreds of different directions, however as I reached the end it all seemed to mesh together so well, revealing an enticing climax that made me eager for the next installment in the Pure series. It wasn't until I nearly reached about halfway through Julianna Baggott's Pure that I finally realized the meaning behind the front and back cover design. As all readers know, the front of the cover features a flawless blue butterfly in what looks like a dome. In my perspective, I find that it represents the pures within the dome, who are without mutation. On the back of the cover is a butterfly outside of the dome, flying around with trinkets and other things attached to it due to the mutation, which I believe to represent those who live outside the dome and suffered the mutations from the detonations. Isn't it wonderful how publishers/cover artists blend in aspects of the story and represent them on covers? Without a doubt, I have some serious cover love for Pure! In the end, I couldn't help falling for Julianna Baggott's Pure! It's novels that are as beautifully written as Pure that make you realize how "dumbed-down" most young adult novels really are. With that said, Pure will make you think and hope right to the last page.