Review : Mila 2.0 by Debra Driza

Summary (from Goodreads)

Title : Mila 2.0 (Mila 2.0 #1)
Author : Debra Driza
Publication Date : March 12th 2013
Publisher : Katherine Tegen Books
Goodreads - The Book Depository

Mila 2.0 is the first book in an electrifying sci-fi thriller series about a teenage girl who discovers that she is an experiment in artificial intelligence.

Mila was never meant to learn the truth about her identity. She was a girl living with her mother in a small Minnesota town. She was supposed to forget her past —that she was built in a secret computer science lab and programmed to do things real people would never do.

Now she has no choice but to run—from the dangerous operatives who want her terminated because she knows too much and from a mysterious group that wants to capture her alive and unlock her advanced technology. However, what Mila’s becoming is beyond anyone’s imagination, including her own, and it just might save her life.

Mila 2.0 is Debra Driza’s bold debut and the first book in a Bourne Identity-style trilogy that combines heart-pounding action with a riveting exploration of what it really means to be human. Fans of I Am Number Four will love Mila for who she is and what she longs to be—and a cliffhanger ending will leave them breathlessly awaiting the sequel.

Personal Thoughts

Mila 2.0 was one of my most anticipated reads of 2013. The promise of an action-packed book about an android (AN ANDROID!) lured me in. While I wouldn't say that the book blew me away, I thought it was a solid debut and I feel like the series will turn into one of the best series out there.

For an android, Mila has very humane characteristics. Well, that's because she is completely unaware of the fact that she is an android. I will admit that Mila was not a character I connected with right upon meeting her. It took me some time to be able to completely immerse myself in her head. More specifically, I was able to do so when the truth about who she really was came to light. To be honest, I thought she was a dull character at first, but then, she became incredibly alive. Mila experienced a spectrum of emotions, ranging from utter sadness to raging fury, when it dawned on her that every memory of the past she possessed was not real, but had been planted in her head. Her emotions felt realistic and almost tangible to me. I feel like I would react in a very similar way if I found out that I was an android. I also loved that she was completely devoted to her mother, the woman who took care of her, and that she would do anything, even endanger her own life, to protect her even though her mother had lied to her. Over the course of the book, Mila went from a boring character, to an emotional being to finally becoming a kick-ass character who wasn't afraid to fight or run. All that being said, I felt like the secondary characters were rather underdeveloped. However, that is most probably due to the fact that there was no room for the them to develop since most of the plot line revolved around Mila and her mother being chased.

As far as the plot goes, I will admit that it wasn't exactly original or new in the YA sci-fi genre. It was still an exciting and adrenaline-rush giving kind of book for me. Admittedly, the first 20% of the book was boring according to me. Nothing interest-piquing occured. Most of it involved a gorgeous new guy coming to school, said hot-guy flirting incessantly with Mila, and a bitch fight between Mila and her so-called best fried over the hot-guy. Completely bored me. As soon as Mila and her mother run away though, things got a lot more intense and action-packed, which is exactly what I needed from this book. I felt like the reader did not get to see enough of the evilness of the villain. Hopefully, the next book will provide more insight into his character. This book was also lacking in romance, not that it's a bad thing, but I know some people need romance in their YA books. There is a love interest hinted at, Hunter, but him and Mila did not really get much time to interact. However, he was a constant presence in Mila's mind which I found very strange. Their new romance almost felt instant because of that. I personally think that this is one book that could have survived without a romance. By the time the book ended, there were many unanswered questions, which frustrated me a little, but at least it did not end in a dreadful cliffhanger.

If Mila 2.0 bores you in the first couple of chapters because of its cliched nature, stick with it because this is one book where things do get better. There are a few departments where Mila 2.0 needs some work, but overall this was a satisfying read for me. Hopefully, it will be for you too!

Rating

Cover : 4/5
Plot : 3/5
Characters : 3/5
Writing : 4/5

**Overall rating : 3.5/5**

Big thanks to HarperTeen and Edelweiss for the e-ARC of Mila 2.0.