Kass Morgan’s first novel is a page-turner. She is a wonderfully descriptive and talented writer, and this reviewer looks forward to reading more from her.
The 100 is a fresh take on the dystopian genre, with rich description and varied characters. Four main characters with their own points of view tell the story, which is exciting and contains deliciously frustrating plot twists.
One weakness of the story is that it focuses a bit too much on romantic relationships and not enough on politics and exposition. We are left wondering about how things got to this point several times. However, teens who love dystopia and romance and don’t want quite as much adventure as The Hunger Games provides will really enjoy this book.
Content Analysis:
Profanity/Language: 7 religious exclamations; 17 mild obscenities; 5 religious profanities; 7 derogatory names; 13 scatological words; 8 anatomical terms.
Violence/Gore: A character is known to have attacked a law enforcement officer; execution methods are described; a character is fitted with a tracking device; characters are known to have been executed; a character punches another character in the face; a character is shot in the chest (no detail); characters crash to Earth from a satellite with five fatalities (no detail); characters carry out lethal medical experiments on children; a character treats minor injuries such as broken bones; a character is found in a pool of blood with significant injuries; a character claims to be a murderer; characters fistfight with no injuries; a character kills an animal for food with some blood (3 times); a character is dragged away by law enforcement; a character is accused of a crime and treated roughly by captors; a character faces execution; attempted rape (interrupted); a character almost falls to her death; a character unsuccessfully resists arrest; in an extended scene (4 pgs), an arsonist sets fire to a camp, destroying property, kidnapping one victim, and killing an unknown number of people; physician-assisted suicide (few details); a character is found lying in a pool of blood from self-inflicted wounds–she dies soon after (few details); a character is shot in the head with an arrow.
Sex/Nudity: Pornography is mentioned; a character thinks about being with their significant other; a character thinks about kissing; characters kiss briefly (4 times); unmarried characters come out of a bedroom together in the morning (2 times); characters hold hands (2 times); a character remembers being in bed with another character (no details); kiss on top of the head; characters embrace (10 times); characters hug and kiss passionately (6 times); underage characters go into a bedroom, implied sex; a character flirts; a character compares something pleasant to being in bed with a girl; a character touches another character’s face; attempted rape (few details, interrupted); girls sit on boys’ laps.
Mature Subject Matter:
Death penalty by lethal injection, death of family members, political intrigue, suicide, abortion, teen pregnancy, medical experimentation, blackmail.
Alcohol / Drug Use:
Prescription drug addiction; limited social alcohol use by minors and adults.
