The Declaration by Gemma Malley

Synopsis:
It's the year 2140, and longevity drugs have made the world a wonderful place--for some. Taking Longevity means you can live indefinitely, but there's a catch, of course: you must first sign the Declaration and, if you op0t in, you agree not to have children.

For children born outside the Declaration, the world is a grim place. Surplus Anna is one such teen: a worthless burden who must pay back society for her very existence. Bleak and foreboding Grange Hall, with its severe headmistress, will prepare Anna for her short life of servitude.

But Anna is different. In the pages of a coveted diary, she secretly pours out her heart, her hopes and her many, many fears-- including her mistrust of a new arrival to Grange Hall, a boy named Peter. Peter says that Longevity is bad, that nobody should be considered a Surplus... and that Anna's parents love her and have been searching for her. Who is she to trust? The strange boy whose version of life sounds like a dangerous fairy tale? Or the cold, familiar walls of Grange Hall and the headmistress who has controlled her every waking thought?

My Rating: 6/10

My Thoughts:
This book had a very interesting premise dealing with the morality of living forever and what the consequences are of going against nature. However I think it fell a little short. First of all I couldn't stand Anna in the beginning. She starts off as an indoctrinated surplus and spends a lot of the time talking about how much she hates her parents and how she's grateful she's been given the chance to become useful to society. I kept with it though knowing her mentality would change as soon as Peter arrived. But even after she realizes how wrong the world is that she's living in, she still never really does anything. All in all I felt her character was flat.

The other major problem I had with the book was how easily things were solved all the time. Anna and Peter need a way to escape? Oh a secret tunnel leads from the one place the two are left alone. Anna and Peter need a place to hide? a sympathetic former employer happens to live right there. Anna and Peter are about to be caught? ...you get the picture.

Overall it was a quick read that brought up some interesting points, but had flat characters and a story line that was to easy and tidy. There is a second book in the series dealing with the resistance which I'm planning on reading, so I hope that will be better.