For readers who enjoyed The Hunger Games, Alex Vinnie's debut novel is a chilling page-turner that will keep you up until the early hours of the morning.
In the dystopian world of Wonderland, an artificially intelligent, immortal ruler, The Queen of Hearts, has divided society into genetically determined classes of skill, also known as "Hearts." There are seven Hearts, which correspond to professional occupations: Builders (Yellow-Hearts), Dealers (Red-Hearts), Thinkers (Pink-Hearts), Healers (Orange-Hearts), Travelers (Blue-Hearts), Nature-Dwellers (Green-Hearts), and Creators (Purple-Hearts).
To ensure that society is populated by only the very best and most cooperative Hearts, The Queen captures each and every newborn child in Wonderland and places them in a high-tech prison called "The Rabbit Hole," where they will be raised and mentored by members of the class they are assigned to. Once children turn eighteen, they will fight for their lives in a nationally televised tournament, "The Rabbit Hole Tournament," hosted in the bright lights and rosy gardens of Wonderland's extravagant Queendom. A total of seven survivors -- one from each Heart -- claim their place in society.
The rest fall.
Ella is falling apart trying to live a "perfect" high school life. Then she meets Ren, who can see past her scars. Suddenly perfection isn't her only option.
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Ella Volkov is a gifted music student, but she's depressed and starting to crack under the pressure of high school. Her overbearing father won't even let her choose what instrument she plays. Then she finds herself alone at a party with Ren, her best friend's crush. She'd always thought he was rude, but after that night he's all Ella can think about. Now she's trapped. If Ella dates Ren, it will ruin her friendship with Jenny. But if she stays true to Jenny, she's losing the one person who can see past her scars. It's up to Ella to decide if she will forge her own path, or stay in the "perfect" box designed for her...
Content and/or Trigger Warning: depression, anxiety, self-harm, violence, sexual assault.
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