Book Review: The Rule of One by Ashley and Leslie Saunders

Goodreads Summary: 
In their world, telling the truth has become the most dangerous crime of all.

In the near-future United States, a one-child policy is ruthlessly enforced. Everyone follows the Rule of One. But Ava Goodwin, daughter of the head of the Texas Family Planning Division, has a secret—one her mother died to keep and her father has helped to hide for her entire life.

She has an identical twin sister, Mira.

For eighteen years Ava and Mira have lived as one, trading places day after day, maintaining an interchangeable existence down to the most telling detail. But when their charade is exposed, their worst nightmare begins. Now they must leave behind the father they love and fight for their lives.

Branded as traitors, hunted as fugitives, and pushed to discover just how far they’ll go in order to stay alive, Ava and Mira rush headlong into a terrifying unknown.
Goodreads Rating: 3.78 stars with over 7,800 ratings
Genre Listing: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Dystopia, Fiction
Goodreads Challenge: 20/50
2019 Reading Challenge: #18 A book with a number in the title ( For the full challenge visit here.)

Book Review:

Woohoo! I got to finish two books in a week, and I wasn't even reading them at the same time! I started The Rule of One by Ashley and Leslie Saunders right after finishing The Blue Period, because frankly, I needed a pallet cleanser. The fact that it filled something on level two of the challenge was just a bonus. 

The Rule of One was a very refreshing read. It's just under 300 pages, and it moves very fast. It alternates between Ava and Mira, twin sisters. In their world, due to a climate issue and over-population, families are limited to one child, hence "The Rule of One." Obviously, because of this law, they can't be out in the open about being twins. Like many post-apocalyptic stories, citizens are microchipped, and their every move is tracked. Ava is the microchipped twin and Mira is the second born, aka the secret, no one knows about. The girls are raised by their father and take turns being Ava. 

I thought this was a fascinating and original premise. I think a lot of books tackle the limited child rule, but I feel like the secret child is usually kept at home the entire time. I liked that the girls switched off and perfected the art of being completely identical. It also made me feel really sorry for Mira because she doesn't really get to have her own identity. When it's her turn, she has to pretend to be her sister. I think this made me really drawn to the twins.

I'll be honest, this book actually scared me a little. The situations that created Mira and Ava's world felt so plausible and so current. I highlighted a ton of quotes in this one, so if you're on Goodreads send me a friend request and check those out. A lot of what I highlighted is what gave me chills. I won't get too political or whatever with the quotes, but one example is about 75% through the book. "The United States was once the most idolized superpower in the world. Our power lay in our equality, our liberty, and our democracy of the common people.," Rayla says, her quiet words emanating strength, drawing Ava even closer. " And look what we've become." I'm not sure if this will work, but feel free to check out the rest of my highlights here.

I have to give a ton of kudos to Ashley and Leslie Saunders with The Rule of One. I can't remember the last time I read a young adult book that did not have romance. You read that right. There is no romance. It's two young women fighting for their right to survive. This makes me so freaking happy. Nothing will kill a book quicker for me than misplaced romance for the sake of having romance. 

I think my most significant issues with The Rule of One is the transitions and the background story. These are minor annoyances, but the whole time reading I felt like the story transitioned weird. I'm not really sure how to explain it, but it was like scenes were cut short in some places. I would have also liked to have gotten more of a background story. We understand that their mom is dead, but I'm not sure if she was murdered for having twins or died in childbirth. I get the impression it's the former, but I don't know that it outright says in the book. The girls are also really good at survival skills, and it doesn't seem natural to me. It's such a small thing, really. Yes, they had to be good at surviving and not getting detected, but because their father worked for the government, they still seemed to have a pretty sheltered life. They are really good at school and studying to be doctors, but I don't know that what they've had to do thus far translates into the knowledge they had about surviving. It would have been interesting to know if their father like made some game with them to help teach them, knowing they'd need it someday.

Overall, I  loved this, and as soon as I finished, it started reading the second book, The Rule of Many. I think that Divergent fans would really like The Rule of One. It reminded me a lot of the series while I was reading it.