The Gender Game by Bella Forrest Narrator: Rebecca Soler, Zachary Webber
Series: The Gender Game #1
Published by CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform on September 9th 2016
Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins
Pages: 416
Format: Audiobook
Goodreads
A toxic river divides nineteen-year-old Violet Bates's world by gender. Women rule the East. Men rule the West. Welcome to the lands of Matrus and Patrus. Ever since the disappearance of her beloved younger brother, Violet's life has been consumed by an anger she struggles to control. Already a prisoner to her own nation, now she has been sentenced to death for her crimes. But one decision could save her life. To enter the kingdom of Patrus, where men rule and women submit. Everything about the patriarchy is dangerous for a rebellious girl like Violet. She cannot break the rules if she wishes to stay alive. But abiding by rules has never been Violet's strong suit. When she's thrust into more danger than she could have ever predicted, Violet is forced to sacrifice many things in the forbidden kingdom ... including forbidden love. In a world divided by gender, only the strongest survive...
Julie’s Review:
The premise drew me in and also the sale (it was less than $5 for both the ebook and audio versions), so I grabbed The Gender Game right away.
Overall? Yea I liked it. I liked Violet a lot, a chica with some rage issues but who wouldn’t be with the life she’s lived. She’s in Matrus, a country run by women where boys who are “spirited” are marked and carted away (or worse?). And on the other side of the river? Patrus, where the opposite is true. Violet’s little brother was taken away and she hasn’t seen him in many years. So when she has three strikes against her for accidentally murdering 3 different women (who picked fights with her to be fair, she’s just the better fighter), she’s facing certain execution but is given a chance to do a covert job for her country.
This is where it kind of got weird for me. So there’s this object apparently Patrus stole from Matrus, and they want her to steal it back. So she goes undercover as a spouse of a Patrus dude and they have this whole heist planned. But, she struggles with having to appear subservient and gets herself in trouble. Again and again. The heist thing was odd to me. I guess they picked her because she’s a great fighter and is resourceful? Timing was right? No clue why she had to be the special snowflake here. The lead up to the heist was her getting close to someone who they needed to frame in order for Matrus not to be blamed. But what happens when a strong-willed girl has to befriend a brooding man? No surprise there.
The heist itself and the bombshell at the end were thrilling and fast-paced and really got me excited to know what was going on and what will happen next. How will both countries react when the dust settles? I kind of want to know. Enough to maybe get the next book. I also want more of our brooding dude man. Hope he makes it through the ordeal and we see more of him.
One thing that totally made this book for me though is the narrator. The audiobook narrator is spunky and her voice is awesome. The intonations, the sass, loved it! Plus there’s a quick cameo in the end by Zachary Webber reading a letter, so that was a fun surprise. We’re fans of his at Chapter Break.
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