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The Testing: The Testing, Book 1

The Testing: The Testing, Book 1

byJoelle Charbonneau
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Top positive review

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Linda
5.0 out of 5 starsA harsh world
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 27, 2013
*I received a free ARC of The Testing from Houghton Mifflin Books for Children via Netgalley in exchange of an honest review*

The Testing starts with Cia’s graduation, and the hope that she will be selected for the testing in the Commonwealth’s capital Tosu City. Several of Cia’s friens think she’ll be chosen, even if it has been a long time since any student from Five Lakes has been chosen. When no government official shows up, Cia tries her best not to show her disappointment, her oldest brother Zeen understands exactly how she feels, though. The next day, a government official arrives, though, and he wants to see Cia and three other graduates from her class. Cia is elated when she realizes she has been chosen for the testing, her dad, however, seems troubled more than anything else.

The one advice Cia’s father gives her the last evening she is home is to trust noone. Not even the other kids form her class. And he tells her the few things he remembers from his own testing. It gives Cia chills, and she suddenly understands that maybe the testing isn’t the thing she has hoped for during her whole childhood. Before leaving the very next morning, Cia can pack very few things, and one of the things she chooses is a communication device her father and her brother have modified a little.

What I liked the most about The Testing is Cia, and her resourcefulness! She is the kind of young woman who is looking for solutions, not for problems. And when the going gets tough, Cia is actually even tougher! At the same time, she really cares about her friends, and helps out other people she encounters during the testing in the classroom. Even in the capital, the testing is truly unforgiving, though, and what Cia and the other characters go through is really gruesome. Yes, they are fed, and they have beds to sleep in – but really, the pressure they are under, and the way failing is treated is chilling to say the least! The final part of the testing is even worse, as all the candidates who are still being tested are left far from the capital, and they only have the few items they brought from home, plus three items they could choose before leaving the capital.

The adventure and the action start for real once the candidates are in the wilderness, and I was so invested in Cia, Thomas and their success it was really hard to read about some of the things they had to got through. The government in this society gets no points from me! Cia has a very good explanation for why things are the way they are – and it is that they now need a leader who is strong enough to strike back when s/he has to, but also smart enough to know when to retreat.

The world building is really well done! The was the readers learn more about why things have become so difficult through the way candidates talk to each other, or the interactions Cia has with her family at the beginning of the Testing made the world accessible in a very natural way. It made sense that there would be less water, dry lands and difficulties to grow enough food.

I loved Cia, and her character development followed the same direction during the whole testing. She always tried to find the best solution, even when she was in untenable situations, she would only go to drastic measures if it was the only way to save herself. Her friendship with Tomas from her hometown is what saves both her and him, I think. They can lean on each other, both to move forward, and to stay safe in this extremely aggressive environment, where there is not way to know who is friend and who is foe. And where friends end up not being friends at all!

The pacing is quite slow at the beginning of The Testing, but as the characters move away from the city, the pacing is faster, until it reaches a peak where anything is possible! I was always kept at the edge of my seat, and I could never guess what would happen next. The only constant is Cia’s resourcefulness, and her caring. And I think both of these things are what will keep her together in the future books of The Testing series. The writing is really good, the ‘next page’ button on my kindle practically made itself move forward, not much effort was demanded of me at all!

Towards the end, Cia and Thomas know they will have their memories wiped, and they are trying to find ways to hold on to those memories anyway, because amid all the horrible things that happened during the testing, they lived through their first kiss, and started to have real feelings towards each other. And there were some things they wanted to make sure to remember too – like who to trust, and who to stay very far away from.

The very end broke my heart! But in a really good way, and now, I’m even more impatient to read book two in this series! As I said – Cia’s resourcefulness really is something else! Now, I have seen that some people who compare The Testing to Hunger Games, and although I love the Hunger Games, I can’t really say I agree. The Testing is not something that seems ominous to those who are chosen, they think they will be able to take some theoretical tests, then go on to university. This is pretty far from what happens, and not only their intellectual skills are tested, their survival skills as well as their ability to judge the character of other people is at least – if not more – important. And there is no victors in The Testing, only a bunch of kids who don’t remember the last month of their lives…
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Top critical review

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John. N
2.0 out of 5 starsA rather awful book; and no, it doesn't even become "bad funny"
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 16, 2023
In last year or so, it's become a thing of mine to read books that various YouTube personalities deem to be bad or so bad they're funny. Most of the books I've read so far were, for most intensive purposes, bad, but at least there was something about them that made them more than worthless or not a complete waste of time. I could see how someone (the target audience) could like them, and hell, I could find things in them I liked. However, here we have a book where there isn't much to redeem the experience in the end and is easily the worst book I've read since Fight Club. With that last part, don't crucify me for saying that yet; I have a point and do have nice things to say about Fight Club :)

However, The Testing (and I assume the other two books which I will force myself to read since I bought them) has an odd issue. There's just SOMETHING about the author's style (rather, her style of prose) that feels like it's meant to mock me. It feels like the sentence structure and word usage is dumbed down to a level below the age group that is intended to read this. It's almost like she's saying "I have to dumb everything down so you get the grandiose points I'm trying to make" but sigh, their are no points of real value. Well, I'm sure there MAY be themes in here (I guess), but the author just doesn't make the reader work for them because everything here is so surface level.

The book would only receive a single star, but I feel the second half of the book IS an improvement, and the revelation at the end is interesting, only the plot somewhat "erases" it from meaning anything much in the end. (Those who have read this probably get what I'm referring to.) That being said, this drudgery does somewhat remind me of when I read Fight Club years ago, annoying prose and all. The thing is, Fight Club had themes that you kind of had to work towards (and many people completely misinterpret to this day, which is hilarious) and has that superior movie version to fall back on. What does The Testing have? It's basically some lazy carbon copy of the Hunger Games someone wrote for a paycheck they didn't deserve that says tests suck.

However, I do want to reiterate my point about the simplistic prose. I don't think this is a good book, but I could see using this a springboard to introduce slightly younger than YA age readers to the genre. They probably won't realize how cliché everything here is and will judge it less harshly. Yes, there may be a few sentence enhancers here and there but all the violence seemed kind of tame to me (the one death may be troubling for some tho as it's self inflicted) and there's really next to no sexual content in here beyond the female lead kissing the male lead.

The bottom line is when you can't even make your failure funny, I think you should perhaps have to pay a fine for all the trees wasted for printing your supposedly thought-inspiring book.
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From the United States

Linda
5.0 out of 5 stars A harsh world
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 27, 2013
Verified Purchase
*I received a free ARC of The Testing from Houghton Mifflin Books for Children via Netgalley in exchange of an honest review*

The Testing starts with Cia’s graduation, and the hope that she will be selected for the testing in the Commonwealth’s capital Tosu City. Several of Cia’s friens think she’ll be chosen, even if it has been a long time since any student from Five Lakes has been chosen. When no government official shows up, Cia tries her best not to show her disappointment, her oldest brother Zeen understands exactly how she feels, though. The next day, a government official arrives, though, and he wants to see Cia and three other graduates from her class. Cia is elated when she realizes she has been chosen for the testing, her dad, however, seems troubled more than anything else.

The one advice Cia’s father gives her the last evening she is home is to trust noone. Not even the other kids form her class. And he tells her the few things he remembers from his own testing. It gives Cia chills, and she suddenly understands that maybe the testing isn’t the thing she has hoped for during her whole childhood. Before leaving the very next morning, Cia can pack very few things, and one of the things she chooses is a communication device her father and her brother have modified a little.

What I liked the most about The Testing is Cia, and her resourcefulness! She is the kind of young woman who is looking for solutions, not for problems. And when the going gets tough, Cia is actually even tougher! At the same time, she really cares about her friends, and helps out other people she encounters during the testing in the classroom. Even in the capital, the testing is truly unforgiving, though, and what Cia and the other characters go through is really gruesome. Yes, they are fed, and they have beds to sleep in – but really, the pressure they are under, and the way failing is treated is chilling to say the least! The final part of the testing is even worse, as all the candidates who are still being tested are left far from the capital, and they only have the few items they brought from home, plus three items they could choose before leaving the capital.

The adventure and the action start for real once the candidates are in the wilderness, and I was so invested in Cia, Thomas and their success it was really hard to read about some of the things they had to got through. The government in this society gets no points from me! Cia has a very good explanation for why things are the way they are – and it is that they now need a leader who is strong enough to strike back when s/he has to, but also smart enough to know when to retreat.

The world building is really well done! The was the readers learn more about why things have become so difficult through the way candidates talk to each other, or the interactions Cia has with her family at the beginning of the Testing made the world accessible in a very natural way. It made sense that there would be less water, dry lands and difficulties to grow enough food.

I loved Cia, and her character development followed the same direction during the whole testing. She always tried to find the best solution, even when she was in untenable situations, she would only go to drastic measures if it was the only way to save herself. Her friendship with Tomas from her hometown is what saves both her and him, I think. They can lean on each other, both to move forward, and to stay safe in this extremely aggressive environment, where there is not way to know who is friend and who is foe. And where friends end up not being friends at all!

The pacing is quite slow at the beginning of The Testing, but as the characters move away from the city, the pacing is faster, until it reaches a peak where anything is possible! I was always kept at the edge of my seat, and I could never guess what would happen next. The only constant is Cia’s resourcefulness, and her caring. And I think both of these things are what will keep her together in the future books of The Testing series. The writing is really good, the ‘next page’ button on my kindle practically made itself move forward, not much effort was demanded of me at all!

Towards the end, Cia and Thomas know they will have their memories wiped, and they are trying to find ways to hold on to those memories anyway, because amid all the horrible things that happened during the testing, they lived through their first kiss, and started to have real feelings towards each other. And there were some things they wanted to make sure to remember too – like who to trust, and who to stay very far away from.

The very end broke my heart! But in a really good way, and now, I’m even more impatient to read book two in this series! As I said – Cia’s resourcefulness really is something else! Now, I have seen that some people who compare The Testing to Hunger Games, and although I love the Hunger Games, I can’t really say I agree. The Testing is not something that seems ominous to those who are chosen, they think they will be able to take some theoretical tests, then go on to university. This is pretty far from what happens, and not only their intellectual skills are tested, their survival skills as well as their ability to judge the character of other people is at least – if not more – important. And there is no victors in The Testing, only a bunch of kids who don’t remember the last month of their lives…
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kb
4.0 out of 5 stars Some elements are familiar, but still has enough twists to make it unique. CONTENT RATING INCLUDED
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 10, 2020
Verified Purchase
**No spoilers in first half:

While this book has some Hunger Games/Divergent-type elements, the story carries itself in a way that still makes it unique. The pacing was a little slow for me in the beginning but picks up once the MC is selected for the testing (book blurb reveals this), and really takes off about 40% in. The characters are believable, with real flaws, concerns, hopes, etc. I like that the main character questions the way things are done, even if she isn’t in a position to change it right now. Knowing who you can and cannot trust is a major theme. The book doesn’t necessarily end on a typical cliffhanger, but it’s enough to leave readers needing to know what comes next. Overall, great read.

Content Rating:

Age- 12-13+

Language- minimal language. Some uses of a** and d***.

Violence-
**mild spoilers, but no specifics**

there are questions of what happens to candidates who fail, talk of some candidates committing suicide including a current student who is found hanging in their room, talk of candidates using poison or other forms of sabotage to eliminate competition, a student impaled in the eye with a nail, mutated animals/people, bombs, shootings, stabbings, betrayals, cleaning infected wounds, PTSD type emotions, etc.

Drugs/Alcohol- The MC sips alcohol on one or two occasions, but not enough to be inebriated. Pain pills are consumed for injuries, injections/serums for truth telling and forgetting

Sex- no sex scenes. Any kissing scenes are non-graphic, mainly descriptions of butterflies and soft lips. A character receives a wound on their backside and teases the other character a couple times about having to take off their pants, but no description of the backside itself—just the wound.

**Spoilers below**

As far as similarities to other popular books like H.G. And Divergent, the country is in disrepair trying to recover. Students are selected for testing where failing means death—but they don’t know this at the time. The MC receives some help and advice from an official who probably sticks his neck out more than he should. Candidates must survive various tests, including a 700 mile trek where anything goes (including killing) and there are boobe traps, mutations, etc.

Once I got into the book, I really liked the MC Cia. She’s intelligent, resourceful, and has good morals, even if she is a bit naïve in the beginning. She isn’t perfect and has to face unpleasant truths about herself and how far she will go to survive. There were some characters who I thought would play bigger roles, but they were offed fairly quickly. It did throw me off a little when practicality the first time Tomas is around, he’s holding her hand so much. Later we learn they danced last year and had potential sparks as Cia thinks back on it, but at that point in the book, I didn’t have enough information about his character to know that. If one of my guy friends started holding my hand after years of not doing so, I’d have been weirded out. Just sayin’.

I did like Tomas’ character though and that there was some strain in their relationship later in the book but not enough to derail everything—though I’m super curious to know what really happened when Cia left Will and Tomas alone. I’m also curious if Tomas was able to lie his way through the final interview. I was a little confused with the two pills he had stashed— he didn’t know Cia had the vial, so why didn’t he offer her one, even if she’d have to come clean about the man across the fence? Or if they were for the memory wipe, again, why didn’t he give her one? My curiosity is pulling me in different directions: did he want them both to forget? Or did he have the chance to take his and actually remembers everything and is pretending he doesn’t? Though that would make it much harder to be nicer to Will when you know he tried to kill you and your girlfriend, so I guess we’ll see in book two.

I was also a little bummed when her memory was actually wiped, but it made for a great way to set the tension high for the next book.
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John. N
2.0 out of 5 stars A rather awful book; and no, it doesn't even become "bad funny"
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 16, 2023
Verified Purchase
In last year or so, it's become a thing of mine to read books that various YouTube personalities deem to be bad or so bad they're funny. Most of the books I've read so far were, for most intensive purposes, bad, but at least there was something about them that made them more than worthless or not a complete waste of time. I could see how someone (the target audience) could like them, and hell, I could find things in them I liked. However, here we have a book where there isn't much to redeem the experience in the end and is easily the worst book I've read since Fight Club. With that last part, don't crucify me for saying that yet; I have a point and do have nice things to say about Fight Club :)

However, The Testing (and I assume the other two books which I will force myself to read since I bought them) has an odd issue. There's just SOMETHING about the author's style (rather, her style of prose) that feels like it's meant to mock me. It feels like the sentence structure and word usage is dumbed down to a level below the age group that is intended to read this. It's almost like she's saying "I have to dumb everything down so you get the grandiose points I'm trying to make" but sigh, their are no points of real value. Well, I'm sure there MAY be themes in here (I guess), but the author just doesn't make the reader work for them because everything here is so surface level.

The book would only receive a single star, but I feel the second half of the book IS an improvement, and the revelation at the end is interesting, only the plot somewhat "erases" it from meaning anything much in the end. (Those who have read this probably get what I'm referring to.) That being said, this drudgery does somewhat remind me of when I read Fight Club years ago, annoying prose and all. The thing is, Fight Club had themes that you kind of had to work towards (and many people completely misinterpret to this day, which is hilarious) and has that superior movie version to fall back on. What does The Testing have? It's basically some lazy carbon copy of the Hunger Games someone wrote for a paycheck they didn't deserve that says tests suck.

However, I do want to reiterate my point about the simplistic prose. I don't think this is a good book, but I could see using this a springboard to introduce slightly younger than YA age readers to the genre. They probably won't realize how cliché everything here is and will judge it less harshly. Yes, there may be a few sentence enhancers here and there but all the violence seemed kind of tame to me (the one death may be troubling for some tho as it's self inflicted) and there's really next to no sexual content in here beyond the female lead kissing the male lead.

The bottom line is when you can't even make your failure funny, I think you should perhaps have to pay a fine for all the trees wasted for printing your supposedly thought-inspiring book.
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OpheliasOwn
VINE VOICE
5.0 out of 5 stars More Than Just a Hunger Games Knock Off!
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 26, 2013
Verified Purchase
The college admissions process can be grueling. Having everything you have done in your adolescence examined to determine your potential for future success is painful to even think about. But what if you attendance in a University was determined with a Testing that rivaled the Hunger Games? In Joelle Charbonneau's The Testing, a group of young adults face the ultimate college admissions process... one that comes down to life or death.

Cia Vale waits to hear if she has been chosen for the Testing, like all graduates. In order to go to University, you must be chosen by the government for the Testing, but no one knows the exact formula for being chosen. Since the Seven Stages war left most of the world a poisonous, charred wasteland, only the students with the most potential are chose for the Testing. And of those, only the best of the best are chosen to move onto University. The government can't waste resources on people who aren't going to find real solutions to their very dangerous problems, like how to grow crops in soil that has been bombed and still contains the poison of those terrifying days. When Cia is chosen for the Testing, she is thrilled, until her father tells her about his own nightmares of the Testing. While the testers wipe your memories of the Testing after they are finished, her father is proof that they can't take everything... even if you wished they had.

While Cia knows, thanks to her father's warnings, not to trust the other candidates, she can't help but be drawn to Tomas. They clearly have a lot in common, having come from the same colony, but their connection is more than that. As the tests begin, it becomes clear just how far the Testers are willing to go in order to weed out the unsavory candidates. Unfortunately for Cia and the others, their definition of unsavory doesn't exactly follow a moral or ethical code. The tests become more and more dangerous, but the final test is the one that will weed out the most candidates. The final test is the one they might not survive, if they have even survived this long. Cia and Tomas are safer if they work together, but can she trust him?

OK. Let's acknowledge the elephant in the room. If you have read the Hunger Games, you are going to see a LOT of similarities here. Not just the "every dystopia after Hunger Games is going to be compared to Hunger Games even if they have nothing in common" shtick. Nope. This book really is very similar, from the unwillingness to enter the contest/trial, to the kind mentor who guides the leading lady, to the "do I trust, do I not trust" the boy from your home town who was sent with you, to the other murderous, treacherous contestants. But there is the thing. Even with those incredibly obvious similarities and familiarity, this was still a really great story. Sometimes I get bogged down where there is too much "inspired by" going on in a new series, but this one was SO exciting and interesting that I didn't care where Charbonneau got her inspiration. I really, really liked this story a lot. The characters were interesting and surprising, the world is terrifying and mesmerizing at the same time, and the plot was fast-paced and well written. Truthfully? Whether you think you spy a Collins copy cat or not, you won't be able to deny the fact that you like this series just as much as Hunger Games! Truly, don't let the familiarity with the story bog you down. Just let Charbonneau work her magic and you won't be sorry.

This story is appropriate for anyone who read or watched the Hunger Games (sorry, but you can't deny they connection). It is also good for anyone interested in dystopias or post-apocalyptic stories. The content can be gruesome at times, especially if you are truly sensitive to any violence, but I don't think it is too gratuitous to preclude students from reading this series. I am sure there are enough people out there who will be disturbed by the violence and won't want to give this book to their children or students, but I promise you the message behind the violence is strong and anti-violent. This story will be perfect for any reluctant reader, and even though the protagonist is female, I think you will find a lot of male readers clamoring for the sequel once they give this story a shot. So don't let yourself be bogged down by the Panem similarities. Instead, look at this book with a clear mind and an open mind- one that will let you recognize it for the fabulous ride it will take you on.
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Sara
5.0 out of 5 stars This book will rekindle readers' love of the dystopian genre!
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 19, 2013
Vine Customer Review of Free Product( What's this? )Verified Purchase
I keep hearing people say that they're becoming burnt out on the dystopian genre... Well, let me tell you, Joelle Charbonneau's The Testing might just rekindle your love of the genre.

The Testing has been pitched as a must read for Hunger Games fans and does feel very similar... even the cover shares the same simplicity and a similar focal concept sure to catch the eye of HG fans. But I assure you, The Testing is not The Hunger Games. Charbonneau introduces readers to an entirely new dystopian society that, at least initially, feels quite safe, but turns out to have a much darker, sinister side than our heroine ever imagined.

The novel follows Cia, a mechanically gifted girl who has been chosen to participate in The Testing, which is a means of determining which individuals from various parts of the United Commonwealth will be able to continue their education at university and eventually become an important leader. Only a very small number of individuals are selected to compete in The Testing and most individuals know they will never be chosen, even if they dream of the honor. Cia hopes to be selected, like her father once was, but knows her chances are slim. When she learns that she, and three others from her district have earned a spot in the competition, she's amazed and incredibly proud - and is confused as to why her parents seem less than excited. Before she leaves for the capital, her father takes her aside and shares one of his deepest fears: that the testing is not the dream that it seems. He reveals to her that, while participants minds are wiped after they've completed the testing, he's been left with terrifying nightmares that he fears may be lingering memories rather than products of an overactive imagination. With this knowledge now lodged in her mind, Cia leaves for The Testing, anxious and guarded. She soon learns that her father was correct to fear The Testing and that she'll need to use everything in her to survive.

There is a romantic plot line within The Testing and, while it does contribute to the story, especially when considering the complications a romance can cause when an individual is unsure who can be trusted, it isn't the main focus of the novel. That is to say, this is not a love story, though it does contain one. In this way, it is much like The Hunger Games.

Some may wonder how like Cia is to THG's Katniss. While both heroines are strong and capable of taking care of themselves, Cia, in my opinion, is definitely more motivated by emotion than Katniss and is more naturally trusting and sympathetic. It always seemed to me that Katniss wasn't above manipulating or using others for her own gain when she knew they were emotionally attached to her (for example, Peeta); Cia, on the other hand, is more likely to be the one manipulated, not because she's weak, but because she feels deeply for others. There was never any point where I felt she was weak or unintelligent, though she does have weaknesses.

For the most part, The Testing had really great pacing and twists. Although, it did take me perhaps 50 pages or so to be completely hooked. It is around this point that Cia has reached the capital and has begun the testing... and then all hell breaks loose!

Whether you're a Hunger Games fan, a dystopian junkie, or just looking for a great, action packed read, The Testing is for you. Do not miss this book!
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Tusi Aulelei
5.0 out of 5 stars Chilling.
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 1, 2014
Verified Purchase
Suzy Wilson's review Apr 23, 2013
5 of 5 stars
bookshelves: dystopia, strong-female-protagonist
Read in April, 2013

I received a copy of this novel as an electronic Advance Reader Copy from NetGalley and Houghton Mifflin, in return for an honest review.

I liked it so much, when it came out in hardcover, I bought the book.

Honestly, I loved this book.

It is not difficult to see elements of other works in this novel. Like The Hunger Games and Divergent, The Testing is a post-apocalyptic dystopia - the world is rehabilitating, several generations after the bombs were dropped. Food is growing again; the water is being slowly cleaned and the badlands are being reclaimed from the radiation and mutations. Things are tough, but it is much better than it was.

Cia lives with her family in a small outpost, isolated from other communities. She lives in a large, apparently happy family invested in re-engineering order from the chaos. We pick up Cia's personal narrative at the point where she is about to graduate from high school. Bright, plucky and full of promise, Cia has hopes of following her father to University to continue and build on his legacy of research and service. However, places at the University are limited, and to gain entrance, suitable candidates are recruited from the various settlements to undergo the Testing - a series of entrance exams. Few from Cia's home community have been favoured with selection in recent years, and she is determined to break back amongst the chosen.

The novel follows Cia and three schoolmates chosen to represent their colony in the Testing. However, all is not as it seems. Cia's father, a graduate of the University, warns her on the eve of her departure, to trust no-one. Haunted still by nightmares, he shares with Cia what knowledge he retains of his own testing - including a warning that each successful candidate's memory is wiped at the end of their Testing. His fear is not of what he remembers, rather the nightmare of what he cannot. Like 1984's behindthink, it isn't what your conscious mind remembers that is the problem - it is the messages from the shadows that haunt your dreams.

Cia departs, and the Testing begins.

The story, while slow to start, gathers pace during the Testing. Like the candidates, I, as the reader, was shocked by the brutality of the Testing - not so much by the graphic descriptions of the challenges, but more the underlying horror of the choices and the realities experienced by the candidates. It isn't what Charbonneau draws for us with her words, rather what is left unspoken, unlit and subverted that speaks the loudest.

I found the novel compelling. The characters are finely drawn and complex. The world-building is achieved early and well, without superfluity. Cia is perhaps the only truly honest person in the book. Everyone else has something to hide. Cia's challenge is to learn to limit her trust in others, while remaining true to her own ideals, and staying alive. Without introducing too many spoilers, I really enjoyed the ending of the book. I think the unmasking of the final subterfuge is masterfully done and I can't wait to read the next instalment.
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Suzanne J. Kalish
5.0 out of 5 stars Very captivating!
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 11, 2022
Verified Purchase
The Testing is a dystopian trilogy of books written by Joelle Charbonneau.

Each year a few students are chosen from each colony to join The Testing. They will have to achieve many steps to prove that they are the perfect candidate for university. They have to show their leadership, mechanical, medical and biology skills since they are what the government needs to help revitalize their country, which was left completely destroyed and charred after The Seven Stages of War.

Cia Vale is one of them. She was eager to be chosen to participate in The Testing, as it was her lifelong dream but, when she arrives in Tosu city, where The Testing takes place, she realizes much too late that The Testing is not what it says to be…

I truly enjoyed this book, it was fun to read and you always want to know what happens next. The author keeps you hooked on the books from beginning to end and every book tells stories that although are united, have different moods. This makes this series very interesting and unique.

Cia is a great narrator to follow in this book. She is compassionate and headstrong, and a very intelligent young girl. It is Cia's compassion that makes her loveable to the reader. This is a character who cannot forget the value of friendship, of trust and of reliance upon others, no matter what she faces. She never leaves anyone behind. Her moral compass will polarize the readers to want her to succeed.

If you enjoyed reading other dystopian novels such as The Hunger Games or Divergent, you will love this series!
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Julie
5.0 out of 5 stars Hunger Games meets Divergent meets I Am Legend
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 18, 2014
Verified Purchase
When I review a book, I take notes like crazy. If it's on my Kindle, there are tons of highlights and notes everywhere and same goes with an actual book but it's post-its. I keep track of great passages or kick ass quotes and don't forget the critiques that I may have. But while reading The Testing, I only had one and I'll get to that later but the point is that I didn't have time to make notes. I had to force myself to slow down in order to enjoy this book. My mind really wanted to skim page after page just so that I could see how it ended.

The only note that I had about this book was "Hunger Games meets Divergent meets I Am Legend". And thinking back, I don't know for sure that this combo is correct. It's similar to Hunger Games because it involves our youth and the shaping of a new nation while crippling our country at the same time. And it's like Divergent because of the dystopian landscape ... can you imagine a war and weather ravaged earth? Well, you could if you read this book because the author described it perfectly. And lastly it's like the Will Smith movie, I Am Legend because ... well ... you'll have to find out that one on your own. As much as I want to tell you, you really need to read it for yourself! But I will tell you the similarities are not because of those creepy creatures in the movie ... no creepy creatures in this.

And that's it. That's all I have for you. I won't go on a long diatribe about the character development or descriptions. I don't have things that rubbed me the wrong way. And I don't have any weirdo descriptions for the book that I usually like using. The book is awesome. I actually read this about a month ago and I was waiting for those final feelings to set in about the book before I reviewed it ... but that never happened. I read The Testing then immediately read the next book in the series and I feel like I have one foot hanging off of a cliff and I don't know whether to take that step forward or to back up. I'm just hanging. I'm assuming that it will be that way until the third and final installment comes out this year.

I did love this book ... dare I say ... better than Divergent?!? I don't know. Some days I think that I liked it more than The Hunger Games and some days I don't ... same goes with Divergent. While they are so similar, they are vastly different. If you enjoyed The Hunger Games and Divergent, you'll enjoy this series. Hell, I think that just about everyone will enjoy this series. Even if it is $10 a book. It's worth it. I promise.
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L
VINE VOICE
3.0 out of 5 stars Mixed Bag
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 24, 2013
Verified Purchase
I’m a dystopian-apocalypse story junkie to the core, and I’ll give anything in that genre a try. I read The Hunger Games Trilogy in less than a week, and was (at one point) eagerly looking forward to the last book in the Divergent Trilogy.

So when I heard that The Testing was a combo of both of those (two of my favorites in this genre), I was very excited. I wasn’t expecting something new and amazing, but I was looking for a story that held me, and a character-driven plot with a dash of romance.

Sadly, The Testing wasn’t quite any of these things. First of all, I have to say that the author is a skilled writer. There were only a few slightly awkward sentences, and she was very readable (it took me about six hours to finish the whole book). She obviously put a lot of thought and effort into writing this, and I didn’t see it as riding on the coattails of Hunger Games, but more like ‘inspired by’, with some of her plot ideas being really clever.

As some other reviewers have pointed out, my main inability to immerse myself in the world set forth by Charbonneau was her summarization of events. Cia describes things very succinctly at times, but without enough detail. I felt as if I was being held at arms length from this world, when all I really wanted to do was be with Cia, feeling what she was feeling. By the time she got to a really traumatic event toward the end of the book, and was crying, I didn’t even feel sorry for her, because though I had supposedly walked hundreds of miles with her, I was left still trying to remember why I cared.

Granted, part of this isn’t the author’s fault. Some narrative devices work for some readers, some don’t. Apparently this one didn’t work for me. I also found Cia hard to relate to (once again, my own problem), so I can’t really downgrade the book for those things, but they were important and figured into my opinions on some level.

What really bugged me was her relationship with Tomas. At first he is introduced as if they barely know each other…but apparently they were also childhood friends…and now they’re kissing…and what just happened? He loves her? Romance subplot? I didn’t even know if I cared about him yet. I really wanted to like Tomas, but he felt like half a character, rooted to Cia for the romantic angle, but not developed. Cia claims he is really compassionate, yet the author does not show me any examples that make me believe this as little more than naivety. I was left thinking Cia had no idea what she was talking about.

There are, though, a couple areas where this book really shines. I loved the survival scenes where Cia is gathering wild plants and learning about her environment. The mutated animals were a fun addition, as were their ideas about transportation. The medical treatment portions were a little odd and one was (if I understood it correctly) not very medically sound, but I can suspend belief for that, it didn’t bother me that much.

Cia’s character also underwent some changes that are worth mentioning. I liked the scenes where we get to see strong Cia (like when the boys are fighting and she gets mad at them), but halfway through the book her ‘voice’ changed for about a chapter and a half (she started being more aggressive, using more swearing) and this would have worked, except it was abrupt and disappeared after a little bit, leaving me confused.

Overall, I’m hesitant to recommend this book because I walked away with very little to show for six hours of my life. I wasn’t expecting much more than a fun thrill ride, but I had a really hard time getting into this, and then the distance between me and even the main character made for very little fun. Will I read the next one? Maybe, if I remember I read this one when the second comes out next year, an iffy question, considering I really didn’t wonder about Cia or Tomas or anybody a few hours after finishing. According to the reviews a lot of people really liked this, so you might give it a try and enjoy it for what it offers if you like dystopias.
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Beth~YA Books Central
5.0 out of 5 stars Intense action and heart stopping romance!!! 5 stars!!!
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 2, 2013
Verified Purchase
The Testing...Where do I begin? I have read several reviews that state this book is similar to Hunger Games. OK yes it is similar in that it is a survival story where the candidates have to pass life or death situations in order to pass the tests YET it is sooooo different as well. The Testing is not only about surviving but also about instincts and smarts. There are so many twists that the main character has to "figure out." I was just completely enthralled by this story. It was everything you want in a Dystopian novel. It was full of intense situations, heart-wrenching romance, and die-hard action.

The main character Cia was so easy to relate to. She was a normal young girl just wanted to live her dreams. Her whole life she has wanted the chance to be a candidate for the Testing and to attend the University where she will become a leader for the commonwealth. This was her one chance to make a difference in her small colony that her family lives in, Five Lakes Colony. None of her other family have had the chance to partake in the Testing except her father.

Little does Cia know but the Testing is not what it seems. The Testing is nothing like what she dreams it is and what she has wanted to experience her whole life. She is immediately thrown into a world that shakes her to her core and causes her to fight for her life, literally. She goes into each "test" knowing that she may not make it and that the friends she has made along the way may not make it as well.

"Leaders are forced to kill all the time. Then they have to learn to live with the decisions they make. Just like I'm going to learn to live with mine."

As the story progresses Cia and Tomas (a young boy whom she grew up with) face disaster and treachery like you can't imagine and yet amongst all of this despair they begin a relationship. A relationship that helps both of them to fight and to want to survive each test. I love how their relationship is so powerful and how Tomas seems to love her unconditionally.

There are so many twists and turns in this story...I devoured this book in three days...I could not put this book down. I literally found myself in the story with the characters. I cannot wait to read the sequel to this book ....I can't wait to see what Cia has to deal with next...This book was truly incredible and Joelle Charbonneau has an amazing writing style. She developed these characters in such a way that you can relate to each decision they make and you really "feel" for them...I recommend this book to anyone who wants a good survival story with lots of mystery. SO GOOD!!!
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