author: scott westerfeld
personal star rating: 2.5/5 stars
Maybe a solid 3 stars. It's fluctuating.
From the inside cover:
Fame
It's a few years after rebel Tally Youngblood took down the uglies/pretties/ specials regime. Without those strict roles and rules, the world in in a complete cultural renaissance. "Tech-heads" flaunt their latest gadgets, "kickers" spread gossip and trends, and "surge monkeys" are hooked on extreme plastic surgery. And it's all monitored on a bazillion different cameras. The world is like a gigantic game of America Idol. Whoever is getting the most buzz gets the most votes. Popularity rules.
As if being fifteen doesn't suck enough, Aya Fuse's rank of 451,369 is so low, she's a total nobody. An extra. Her only chance to escape extra-land is to find a big story to kick - something wild and unexpected.
Then Aya meets a clique of girls who pull crazy tricks, yet are deeply secretive of it. But the Sly Girls are hiding something bigger - an explosive discovery that may change the face of the brave new world forever. If Aya kicks this story, she'll be propelled into the world of fame celebrity... and extreme danger. A world she's not prepared for.
I wasn't a huge fan of the characters once again. Moggle was my favourite part. Hiro and Ren were two characters that I can quite easily ship. Aside from that, it seemed that the whole thing was predictable. I do enjoy Scott Westerfeld's writing style and his description but the characters just weren't satisfactory. The new world created is so imaginative however, and that really makes up for it. I found the Sly Girls to be amazing and was disappointed that they had such a brief part of the story. Frizz and Aya's relationship wasn't as great as I would have hoped. Despite my complaints, it wasn't a terrible read. It didn't captivate me as much as other books have but I did make it through the book.
