DNF Review: The Cage

The Cage by Megan Shepherd
Grade: DNF
Release date: May 26, 2015
This ARC was provided by Read Between the Lynes in exchange for an honest review.
Summary: When Cora Mason wakes in a desert, she doesn't know where she is or who put her there. As she explores, she finds an impossible mix of environments—tundra next to desert, farm next to jungle, and a strangely empty town cobbled together from different cultures—all watched over by eerie black windows. And she isn't alone.

Four other teenagers have also been taken: a beautiful model, a tattooed smuggler, a secretive genius, and an army brat who seems to know too much about Cora's past. None of them have a clue as to what happened, and all of them have secrets. As the unlikely group struggles for leadership, they slowly start to trust each other. But when their mysterious jailer—a handsome young guard called Cassian—appears, they realize that their captivity is more terrifying than they could ever imagine: Their captors aren't from Earth. And they have taken the five teenagers for an otherworldly zoo—where the exhibits are humans.

As a forbidden attraction develops between Cora and Cassian, she realizes that her best chance of escape might be in the arms of her own jailer—though that would mean leaving the others behind. Can Cora manage to save herself and her companions? And if so . . . what world lies beyond the walls of their cage?

When did I stop reading?: Chapter 33.
Why didn't I finish?: It wasn't really one thing in particular that made me stop about halfway through. I just finally gave up.

The Long(er) Review: I couldn't get into it. The plot was too weird for me. There was too much wandering, too much wondering, not enough getting things done. Plus, Cora was forming a weird attraction to Cassian and that definitely made me want to say, "Peace out!" None of the human characters were making rational decisions. The POV jumps didn't work for me. Mali was a fascinating character, since she was raised in such a different environment, but she didn't work well enough for me.

The Verdict: As someone who pretty much enjoyed Shepherd's The Madman's Daughter trilogy, this book was quite the letdown.