I marathoned the whole 'Slated' trilogy in less than a week, and it was so easy to do so because I could not keep my hands off these books; every time I set them down, my soul ached for more and I had to pick them up again.
Honestly, I really wish I didn't want to give this 5 stars because I am so, so unhappy with the ending of this book. I was genuinely devastated with the path the Kyla/Ben situation took. When Kyla and Ben were reconnected roughly half way through this book, I had so much (SO MUCH) hope that things were going to work out for them and end happily ever after. I was wrong. When the whole Ben/Lorder/Tori/College Shooting plot twist occurred, my heart shattered (see what I did there). Seriously, NO; Teri Terry how could you do this!? We were thrown so many bags of hope throughout this book, and then..it was snatched away from us. I really am furious at Teri Terry for doing this and making me cry. AND THEN, we see Ben start to turn back to his old self, starting to remember Kyla and Skye and THEN HE IS TAKEN AWAY FROM US. AGAIN. The heartbreak was real. Ben shaped so much of the story in 'Slated' and 'Fractured' so I was really disappointed that 1; he and Kyla did not end up together, but 2; because he was such an important character in the story, I felt he deserved a better ending than what he got. I loved Ben for so many reasons, he was smart, funny and genuinely cared for Kyla. Then I think Teri started rooting for Kyla and Aiden (not sure why), and decided to take the easy way out and turn Ben into this horrible, sneaky character (not the character Kyla and I fell in love with). Then there is Aiden. By the end of this book, I was just so unsatisfied with him, and I did not see the connection between him and Kyla at all. It's a hard life when you ship Kyla and Ben but the author ships Kyla and Aiden. I just...Ben.
HOWEVER, I don't feel like there is any other option than to give this book 5 stars. Shattered - the whole trilogy for that matter - was just so good, I can't even put it into words. I was hooked from the very first page. Teri Terry is a genius, (even if she does not know what the readers want regarding happy endings.) the whole story and world was so thought provoking and scarily realistic, with so many twists and turns that I could not fault at all (excluding Ben *cough*). Every single page filled me with emotion, whether it be happiness, sadness, confusion, anger or downright terror; and I think that is what makes these books so great.
Throughout the whole series, two of my favourite characters were Jazz and Mac. They were the only two that didn't make me want to strangle them at one point. They were both such likeable characters and I really loved them.
And of course, Lucy/Rain/Kyla/Riley/Hope: to me, she is Kyla. Holy, did that girl go through some character development OR WHAT. I have never loved a female protagonist as much as I did Kyla. She went through so much, and I mean so much trauma and heartbreak and confusion and she still remained strong when it mattered most, that I had to love and root for her in every situation she found herself in.
The feels are just too real right now. This is 100% my favourite my favourite dystopian/futuristic thriller trilogy, it holds such a special part of me and I recommend this trilogy to everyone!
*Taking time to appreciate the existence of Teri Terry*
However I am still, and will forever more be furious about Ben's fate.
