Starters by Lissa Price | Book Review

(My one and only gripe about the book is this cover.  This is supposed to be Callie, who is 16 and has two same-colored eyes.  This chick has two different colored eyes and looks about 12.  Oh well, the book was great.  I can get over the cover.)

Starters takes place in an undated future time, after an event called The Spore Wars takes place.  During the Spore Wars, everyone between the ages of 20 and 60 was wiped out, killed, when the Pacific Rim countries bombed America with biological weapons.  Just as we do now with pneumonia vaccines, the youngest and oldest members of society were targeted first for vaccines.  Now there's only kids and the elderly.  And the elderly aren't all behaving very well....

All children & teens must either by "claimed" by an elderly relative and under their care, or must be in an institution.  They can't work or support themselves.  Callie is living a fugitive's life, squatting in abandoned buildings with her younger brother, Trevor, and her friend, Matt.  She and Matt can't work; they're underage.

Until Callie hears about Prime Destinations.  A place where she can allow her body to be "rented" by an "Ender" (senior citizen).  Her body; their brain.  And then a BIG payout.  But, of course, things never go as planned.  (That wouldn't make for an exciting book!)

I loved loved loved Starters and can't wait to read Enders!  I've read some really mixed reviews, but I'm going to shout out my love for Starters:  this was a great read.  Yeah, it's not really deep and it's not terribly long, but it was GOOD.  And it's one that you could give to a younger teen, because it's clean (of romance and kissing) or an older teen, because there's action and it poses all these great questions about society and how we view teens vs. how we view the elderly.  Another great thing about Starters:  no cliff-hanger ending.  You could read Starters and be done and be ok.  I, of course, am going to read Enders because I loved Starters so much.  :)