It's graduation day for sixteen-year-old Malencia Vale, and the entire Five Lakes Colony (the former Great Lakes) is celebrating. All Cia can think about--hope for--is whether she'll be chosen for The Testing, a United Commonwealth program that selects the best and brightest new graduates to become possible leaders of the slowly revitalizing post-war civilization. When Cia is chosen, her father finally tells her about his own nightmarish half-memories of The Testing. Armed with his dire warnings ("Cia, trust no one"), she bravely heads off to Tosu City, far away from friends and family, perhaps forever. Danger, romance--and sheer terror--await.
Industry Reviews
VOYA Top Shelf for Middle School Readers 2013 list "Electrifying."--EntertainmentWeekly.com ""The Testing" is a chilling and devious dystopian thriller that all fans of "The Hunger Games" will simply devour. Joelle Charbonneau writes with guts and nerve but also great compassion and heart. Highly recommended."--Jonathan Maberry, "New York Times" best-selling author of "Rot & Ruin "and "Flesh & Bone" "I galloped through this excellent read; I was in suspense the whole time."--Charlaine Harris, author of the Sookie Stackhouse series "There is nothing standardized about this Testing. Charbonneau's imagination will surprise readers at every turn."--Jennifer M. Brown, children's editor, Shelf Awareness "Action-packed and full of twists, "The Testing "will keep you guessing until the very last page--and desperate for the next book!"--Erica O'Rourke, author of the Torn Trilogy * "The rising tension, skillfully executed scenarios, and rich characterizations all contribute to an exciting story bound to capture readers' imaginations. . . . Charbonneau works action, romance, intrigue, and a plausible dystopian premise into a near-flawless narrative."--"Publishers Weekly, " starred review "Charbonneau jumps into the packed dystopia field with a mashup of Veronica Roth's "Divergent "and Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games trilogy, but she successfully makes her story her own."--"Kirkus" "Charbonneau is a fantastic story teller and this book is a tribute to that background. The intrigue in "The Testing" passes evaluation of what a good dystopian novel should represent."--"VOYA, " 4Q 5P M J S "The plot twists are well integrated and will keep readers on edge awaiting the next volume."--"Horn Book" "The influence of "The Hunger Games" is obvious, and "The Testing" will satisfy readers who want similar dystopian adventures." --"SLJ " "I galloped through this excellent read; I was in suspense the whole time."--Charlaine Harris "There is nothing standardized about this Testing. Charbonneau's imagination will surprise readers at every turn."--Jennifer M. Brown, children's editor, Shelf Awareness "Action-packed and full of twists, "The Testing "will keep you guessing until the very last page--and desperate for the next book!"--Erica O'Rourke, author of the Torn Trilogy * "The rising tension, skillfully executed scenarios, and rich characterizations all contribute to an exciting story bound to capture readers' imaginations. . . . Charbonneau works action, romance, intrigue, and a plausible dystopian premise into a near-flawless narrative."--"Publishers Weekly, " starred review "Charbonneau jumps into the packed dystopia field with a mashup of Veronica Roth's Divergent (2011) and Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games trilogy, but she successfully makes her story her own."--"Kirkus" "Charbonneau is a fantastic story teller and this book is a tribute to that background. The intrigue in "The Testing" passes evaluation of what a good dystopian novel should represent."--"VOYA, " 4Q 5P M J S "The plot twists are well integrated and will keep readers on edge awaiting the next volume."--"Horn Book" "The influence of "The Hunger Games" is obvious, and "The Testing" will satisfy readers who want similar dystopian adventures." --"SLJ "
