Skinned (Gripping Trilogy Series #1)

Reviewed by Sarah Bean the Green Bean Teen Queen for TeensReadToo.com

Lia Kahn was perfect. She had a perfect life, perfect friends, and a perfect boyfriend. She was popular and beautiful and everyone wanted to be with her and know her -- until the accident changed everything.

When Lia is in a fatal car accident, she finds herself awake in the hospital. She should be dead, but she knows she's alive. She can't feel her body, but she knows it's there. Lia has become the latest patient in the "download process" -- a way to download your memories and brain functions into a computer-based body that is made to look and act human. Lia is angry about the download process. She doesn't want to be a "skinner" -- the awful nickname for download recipients. But she also isn't ready to give up on her life.

Being a skinner isn't easy, though. Groups of people have rallied against the download process, calling it unethical and saying the skinners are without a soul. Lia's friends seem to have turned on her and her boyfriend can't stand to be near her anymore. She's Lia, but she's not the same Lia, and she's not sure how to handle her new life.

Add in the mysterious group of skinners that Lia encounters, plus humans that would do anything to be part of the download process, and Lia isn't sure anymore what exactly it means to be human.

SKINNED presents an interesting look at what really makes us us. Are we human when we have flesh and blood, or is it our memories that make us who we are? Can we ever have the same life again? An interesting and engaging look at medical ethics and humanity, SKINNED is the beginning of a new trilogy.

5 out of 7 people found this review helpful.

Very Good Book

This book was very good. I started it and finished it in one day. Simalir to the Uglies trilogy (show below). I really enjoyed this book. It kept me reading, turning the pages and I didn't want it to end. I can't wait until the other books come out!!!

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

OMG! Best book EVER!

WHEN IS THE SEQUAL COMMING OUT! i AM TIRED OF WAITING! GRR..... I LOVE THIS BOOK.... GO BUY IT NOW!

2 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

Dark, Depressing, Futuristic Sci-fi Book (Reviewed by TheBookworm)

Skinned by Robin Wasserman*
Publication Date: September 2008
Not Rated

Skinned was a dark, depressing, futuristic sci-fi book told through a unfortunate anger/sad stricken use-to-be popular ¿dead¿ girl. I got half way through it, but I didn¿t finish it. Life has enough depressing, wearing things, why do I want to read books like that to?

This book is set in futuristic times with new, interesting gadgets and was sometimes confusing because of it. For people who wish to read this book you should be aware of unnecessary, inappropriate sexual content included.

It was unbelievable how unfair, unjust, and almost horrible Lia¿s predicament was. There was so much betrayal, stereotyping, unjustness, and cruel speculation I couldn¿t even imagine the humiliation, hurt, anger, sadness that weighed Lia¿s heart down. The book is fiction, not even real, but it felt like a cloud was over me while reading it. So strong were the emotions/atmosphere that the person reading it felt the hurtful hailstones of hatred thrown at the main character.

This has no literary importance, but I absolutely love the size of the book. It¿s bigger than pocket-sized, but smaller than a normal novel. It¿s stoutness, makes it easy to fit in your hands. Wish all books were this size!

Skinned was a depressing, heavy read that I would suggest to sci-fi readers.

Date Reviewed: October 29th, 2008

2 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

IT ROCKS

this book rocks!! It's so real and at the end it makes you hungry for more!!!

2 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

ALL I COULD THINK ABOUT!!!! Very thought provoking and amazingly written!!!

This book contradicts every page onto itself, leaving you wondering which side your really on! Which by the way is a GREAT thing! If youve read as many books as me then youll know how excelent of an author Robin Wasserman is!!!!! All these other reviews tell you all about the book so i wont go into details. But this book has great futuristic details, good character forming, interesting concepts, betrayal, adventure, and a million other amazing concepts.
IF YOU LIKED THIS BOOK THESE ARE MUST READS....
The Adoration of Jenna Fox
The Fox Inheritance
The Uglies Series
~Million Reads
P.s. trying out different names!!!!!!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A futuristic day of age with many new ideas... Not bad.

The book gets many points for originality. How many times have I heard of clothing changing colors, a device playing music according to moods, and acquiring a new, mechanical body? None.

Lia's dead.. her self-driven car crashed. Her body was beyond repair, so her father requests a procedure be taken so she can live a life, even if it is in a fake skinned mechanical body.

Lia has trouble adjusting after the procedure.Her life is a mess. Her sister hates her, making her already messy life even more hectic and depressing.

Only Auden,an outcast that hasn't adapted to the new ways of life, reaches out to her..

Okay, no more or I'll spoil it. (:

So, good book in all. Took too long to get going, and even the ending, sad and thrilling as it was, didn't motivate me to read Crashed.
If you liked Meyer's Host and Westerfield's Uglies series, this a unique futuristic teen book you will surely enjoy.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

wow...

Okay so i bought this book in spite of The host. I loved that book so i decided to try out another sci-fi... bad idea. not only did i really not like this book, but i couldn't even finish it. i normally read the whole book even if i don't like it just to see if anything interesting happens, but not with Skinned. If you want to read a good book, i don't recomend this book, but thats my opinion.

1 out of 6 people found this review helpful.

Disappointment.

I was really looking forward to reading this book, but it was a total let down. I was even on a waiting list for a month at my library! I know that it's going to be a trilogy so that's probably why this story never went anywhere.

It was very difficult to read. Her writing style just didn't appeal to me. It didn't flow. The main character was stuck up and annoying. Her sister is horrible. This book is very depressing. All the girl does is complain the ENTIRE time.

I highly doubt that I will read the sequels when they come out. This book was just too forgettable. I won't even remember what happened by then. I loOove series. I like full stories, but I think that this will be the first that I refuse to finish.

The concept for the story was very intriguing. It had a lot of potential, but unfortunatly feel flat. If you like the idea/plot concept behind this story (brain transplants) then I recommend "Airhead" by Meg Cabot. She has the same basic concept but it is much much better!! The sequel to the Meg Cabot book comes out soon. Just something to think about.

1 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

Amazing Book

I received this book from a free book club and was somewhat fearful as to if I would enjoy it or not because I am not into the sci-phi types of books. However, once I started reading it I could not put it down! I thought it was an amazing book that was extremely well written. It was easy to follow and thrilling, I highly recommend this book to ANYONE!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Skinned

I read this book and it is not for readers under 13 I think personally. I am under that and that is why I am warning parents. It talks about sex and things like that. Some can handle it but others can't help giggling about it. If you like tragic things with twists and turns at every corner then read this and you will be surprised. I loved it and I can't wait for the next in the series. :)

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

From start to finish, Skinned is an incredible experience. I rea

From start to finish, Skinned is an incredible experience. I read the whole thing in one sitting and didn’t regret one minute of it.

Robin Wasserman has written a book about an all-too-realistic dystopian future where governments are virtually non-existent, ruled by a president that takes trips to rehab every few weeks. In this sort of world, there are only the very poor (who have nothing) and the very rich (who have everything).

Lia Kahn, the seventeen-year-old protagonist of the book, is of the latter category. She, along with her moneyed teenager friends spend every waking moment not in school partying and indulging in debauchery. Sex is a casual commodity for these minors. Personally I could have done without all that, but given the deterioration of society it’s a logical inevitability.

Once she’s a “skinner”, her previous life vanishes in the blink of an eye. I found Lia’s gradual distancing herself from friends and family heartbreaking; I was gripping the book so tightly from the unfairness of it all, which was basically the entire book. But Lia’s transformation doesn’t affect just her, and I like how the private battles of her families and friends were explored and have to come to terms with.

What I found curious is the constant reasonings Lia monologues in her head, trying to convince herself of one idea but—if you read between the lines—always knowing she’s in the complete opposite. Both sides of the issue is explored and the use of reverse psychology might be seen as contrived but worked effectively here.

As it happens, Skinned deals with a lot of issues; disability, life, stereotypes, bullying and a host of others. When you’re not reading it, you’re wondering what you would have done, who would you be, what it would be like if you were in Lia’s shoes.

Overall Skinned is a magnificent book that makes you think for days and maybe weeks afterward. I’d recommend this book to anyone who likes YA dystopian.

good but has issues

starts slow and the main character is pretty whiny but other than that i enjoyed it. but fix the cover it's skinned not frozen!!!

Definitely recommended!

So, when I first saw this book (I don't know when), I thought that it looked kind of creepy and possibly slightly boring. But OMG, when I started reading this, I was instantly hooked. I'm very picky about books, and if I'm not captured from the first page, I don't bother reading them. But the way Robin sets up the story makes you wonder what actually will happen. It's set in the future, how far I'm not sure but, it really makes you think it's not to far from the present day. The plot is excellent and is never boring. The characters are detailed, but they seem to lack a final finesse. Overall, the book is amazing!!!! I definitly recommend this!

Starts slow, but ends well

It's kinda hard to understand what's going on in the beginning of this book, and most of the first half is spent on Lia's recovery and thoughts about how much she hates everyone. After you get past that, the book picks up pace. Lia is a little annoying througout the book, but the characters are well developed and the story is very good.

What an interesting read!

I absolutely devoured this book (and Crashed)! Robin Wasserman knows how to create a truly unique story that keeps you biting your nails, wondering "What will happen to Lia next?" Lia is a very complex character and that's saying a lot these days, considering every teen book has shallow characters. After I finished Skinned and Crashed (I just ordered Wired and can't wait), my mind was whirling with the possibilities that Wasserman brought up in her book. That's another thing that teen books usually lack that Wasserman accomplished: Skinned makes you think. I loved it and hope more people will find the beauty in Wasserman's work. Go mechs!! Boo orgs!!!

awesome

great book

Awesome dystopian genre addition!

Where was this series when I was on the bout of Ugly (Scott Westerfeld) madness last year?
Do you like teens, machines, living forever? Then Robin Wasserman's series has it all for you.
The thought behind this book is somewhat along the lines of: in the futuristic reality where immortality is a machine away, are you really choosing that future? or is someone doing it for you?
Regret.
One day after and accident Lia was mentally transferred to a new body. With it comes a whole host of problems, loss of friends, family, society, and an influx of Lifers- mech hating religious zealots.
The book moves through loss, denial, anger, revelation, and strengths portraying a youth who lost her choices, was forced into immortality and the life she left that basically does not want her anymore. What will happen? Where will she go? Now what?
When you are forced to loose everything, what do you have left?

I loved this book, I cannot wait to pick up the next two books and see what happens.

Didn't finish

I had picked this book up and thought it sounded good. I was wrong. It is not that great. The characters didn't seem that real and it was written badly not as in grammar mistakes oor anything but it didn't make you feel like you were in the story really. I tried picking it up later but i couldn't finish it again. It was not my type of book. There was no romance no nothing really it was about a girl taling about how her life is so bad ever since an accident. It was really not that interesting to me.

Skinned Book Review

When I had to stop reading, I was extremely upset. Skinned was extremely addictive, not to mention well written and unforgettable. Lia's emotions are expressed in much detail, and her situation feels so realistic that I found myself believing it. Robin Wasserman made the future seem so real! This was one of the books that made me feel for the character and in this scenario, pity and sympathy for Lia. I felt like I knew what she was thinking all the time, and that it was what I was thinking. Overall, Skinned is a great, well-written book that I highly recommended.