Title: The Treatment
Author: Suzanne Young
Pub Date: April 29th, 2014
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Page Count: 352
Author: Suzanne Young
Pub Date: April 29th, 2014
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Page Count: 352
Can Sloane and James survive the lies and secrets surrounding them, or will The Program claim them in the end? Find out in this sequel to The Program, which Publishers Weekly called “chilling and suspenseful.”
How do you stop an epidemic?
Sloane and James are on the run after barely surviving the suicide epidemic and The Program. But they’re not out of danger. Huge pieces of their memories are still missing, and although Sloane and James have found their way back to each other, The Program isn’t ready to let them go.
Escaping with a group of troubled rebels, Sloane and James will have to figure out who they can trust, and how to take down The Program. But for as far as they’ve come, there’s still a lot Sloane and James can’t remember. The key to unlocking their past lies with the Treatment—a pill that can bring back forgotten memories, but at a high cost. And there’s only one dose.
Ultimately when the stakes are at their highest, can Sloane and James survive the many lies and secrets surrounding them, or will The Program claim them in the end?
Buy Links
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My Thoughts
The Treatment is the conclusion to the duology that started with the Program. If you haven't seen my review of The Program, all the information you need is the fact that my rating was ∞ stars. I didn't expect this book to be that either and thank goodness, because if my expectations were that high, I would be terribly let down.
The first book was the introduction to a fresh idea and it was just so heartbreakingly beautiful. This book was the continuation of the idea but it didn't receive the same rating because it's a continuation. All the fresh ideas were already told and being developed in this book.
Sloane, James and a couple new characters are on the run from The Program. The Program is aware that they're "sick" or that they're on the run and are trying to track them down. I love the progression of the story and the new element of The Treatment. Basically, The Program takes away memories and The Treatment counteracts that and brings them back. I love this concept because The Program was meant to take away memories of all the pain the patients had. Using the Treatment to bring them back was only good if the patient could handle them.
"Ignorance is Bliss." I got a taste of this idea in the first book but it's so much more explored in the second, especially with The Treatment being dominant in the story. The idea is that maybe having The Treatment is a bad idea because it could cause patients to relapse back into their suicidal tendencies.
I wasn't very into the ending. This is a story about a lot of loss and the HEA, everything is peachy ending was not for me. I didn't like how fast it all concluded and how easy it seemed. It felt rushed to me and even though it was good closure, I wasn't very into what I think is a bit of a cop out ending.
I still think the writing was consistent. It was beautifully heartbreaking like the first one and reminded me of what I loved in the series. I really connected with all the characters and their experiences. And God, you guys, this book made me feel so much and I just can't even. Granted, it didn't make me cry but while the characters described their experiences with suicide, I had to put my iPod (kindle app) down a few times. Maybe it wasn't the same as the first book because it's a continuation of the same concept going deeper into more diverse topics, but it was pretty good.
I'm the kind of person who believes the sequel is never as good as the original. That is, unless the original has potential but was executed in a way that was amateur. This book was interesting to read because it explained things that weren't explained in the first book and fixed plot holes but I wasn't blown away by it like I was in the first book.
Overall, this was a sequel that lived up to its potential and I'm very sad to let it go. I really hope there are more books as heartbreakingly beautiful as this one.
I wasn't very into the ending. This is a story about a lot of loss and the HEA, everything is peachy ending was not for me. I didn't like how fast it all concluded and how easy it seemed. It felt rushed to me and even though it was good closure, I wasn't very into what I think is a bit of a cop out ending.
I still think the writing was consistent. It was beautifully heartbreaking like the first one and reminded me of what I loved in the series. I really connected with all the characters and their experiences. And God, you guys, this book made me feel so much and I just can't even. Granted, it didn't make me cry but while the characters described their experiences with suicide, I had to put my iPod (kindle app) down a few times. Maybe it wasn't the same as the first book because it's a continuation of the same concept going deeper into more diverse topics, but it was pretty good.
I'm the kind of person who believes the sequel is never as good as the original. That is, unless the original has potential but was executed in a way that was amateur. This book was interesting to read because it explained things that weren't explained in the first book and fixed plot holes but I wasn't blown away by it like I was in the first book.
Overall, this was a sequel that lived up to its potential and I'm very sad to let it go. I really hope there are more books as heartbreakingly beautiful as this one.
Author Info
Originally from New York, Suzanne Young moved to Arizona to pursue her dream of not freezing to death. She currently resides in Tempe, where she teaches high school English. When not writing obsessively, Suzanne can be found searching her own tragic memories for inspiration.
Suzanne is the author of several books for teens, including THE PROGRAM, A NEED SO BEAUTIFUL, and A WANT SO WICKED. Friend her on Facebook or follow her on Twitter @suzanne_young.
I have to say that I agree with you about the ending. In fact I was left kind of confused at the end. I flipped my Kindle to see if there were any more pages. I felt it was a little too rushed. I felt like it wrapped up too quickly. There was this big emotional showdown and then BAM everything is perfect again(?) I wanted to learn more about Realm and his ending. He was one of the most complicated characters in this book( in my opinion). Dallas too. I felt she deserved more of an ending. Sloane & James were predictable. I knew from book one that they would end up together. Although for awhile there I was kind of hopeful the book with throw a wrench into my plans. Not that I wanted to see them broken up, but I wanted the book to not have a predictable ending for their characters.
ReplyDeleteThe bad stuff aside, I agree that this story was beautiful, thought-provoking, heartbreaking, and gave me hope all of the same time.
I had told the author during the Twitter party that Sloan gave me hope and inspiration when I was going through a bad time. Back in the fall. I was diagnosed as hypothyroid and have been suffering from severe panic attacks. Panicattack are the norm for me to be quite honest. There are sometimes when I feel that I can't go on another day, but after I read book one in the series I realize that I could go on because I do go on. Each day. I Fight to make it the best life ever. Sometimes I fail, but not always. It's life, you know?
Amazing how one or two books can impact people the way this story has.