Author of Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac and Elsewhere, Gabrielle Zevin totally and completely ensnares the reader in her latest teen novel. All These Things I've Done is the first book in the Birthright series which promises to be an exciting dystopian thrill-ride!The year is 2083. Chocolate and caffeine are controlled substances, water is carefully rationed, and books are scarce. Anya Balanchine is the daughter of New York City's most notorious (and dead) crime boss and a member of one of the great chocolate families in the world, though she distances herself from them as much as possible. With a dying grandmother, a brain-damaged older brother, and a genius little sister to look after, Anya becomes the head of her immediate family. And when she falls for Win Delacroix, the new assistant DA's son, she knows the match is doomed from the start. Things become even more complicated when her bully of an ex-boyfriend is almost fatally poisoned by a bar of Balanchine chocolate and Anya is briefly thrown into prison.
I was completely caught up in the paranoia that surrounds Anya's everyday life through her association with her mafiya-esque extended family. Just when I though I had the whole thing figured out, another twist in the plot completely threw me for a loop. Anya is a strong character who will do whatever it takes to protect those she loves, even if it means the ultimate self-sacrifice. Plus, the love story is as sweet as it is forbidden. I think the Publisher's Weekly review says it best about this story: "Offering the excitement of a crime drama and the allure of forbidden romance, this introduction to a reluctant Godfather-in-the-making will pique the interest of dystopia-hungry readers."
Grace gives this book five out of five carrots!
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