Want by Cindy Pon
Release Date: June 13, 2017
My Rating: 4.5 stars
Summary: Jason Zhou survives in a divided society where the elite use their wealth to buy longer lives. The rich wear special suits that protect them from the pollution and viruses that plague the city, while those without suffer illness and early deaths. Frustrated by his city’s corruption and still grieving the loss of his mother, who died as a result of it, Zhou is determined to change things, no matter the cost.
With the help of his friends, Zhou infiltrates the lives of the wealthy in hopes of destroying the international Jin Corporation from within. Jin Corp not only manufactures the special suits the rich rely on, but they may also be manufacturing the pollution that makes them necessary.
Yet the deeper Zhou delves into this new world of excess and wealth, the more muddled his plans become. And against his better judgment, Zhou finds himself falling for Daiyu, the daughter of Jin Corp’s CEO. Can Zhou save his city without compromising who he is or destroying his own heart?
Want by Cindy Pon lived up to the hype! I was pulled in by the first chapter, and the rest of the book did not disappoint. If you like Leigh Bardugo's Six of Crows, you'll love this book.
Set in a futuristic Taipei, Want shows a world where pollution has gotten out of hand; of course, the rich don't care because they have the money for the special suits that can keep them healthy. Meanwhile, most of the population has to suffer in the unhealthy environment, getting sick and dying earlier. Jason Zhou and his friends want to call attention to the issue by making the rich live like the poor do: without their suits. They attempt to accomplish this by infiltrating Jin Corp, the company that manufactures the suits. Zhou himself poses as a wealthy man to get closer to Daiyu, the daughter of the CEO of Jin Corp. And he does get closer, but maybe a little too close...
Cindy Pon does a great job introducing us to this world. She describes the setting in extreme details but without overdoing it. The writing is so strong; usually I get confused in sci-fi novels, but Pon writes everything clearly and succinctly. Also, the plot is so thrilling and entertaining. It pulls you in as soon as you read the first chapter, and when the book ends, you'll be left wanting more.
I loved all of the characters; the found family trope is strong in this book :'). And the whole cast is Asian, most being Taiwanese, but Filipino and Indian side-characters. We really need more books with diverse casts, especially POC leads. I loved the romance too! Besides the main characters, there's a side wlw romance that was really cute.
The only problem I had was with the length of the book. I think there's going to be a sequel (maybe unofficial right now? idk), but I feel like this book was really short. That's the reason I rounded down for goodreads purposes; we didn't really get the time to become attached to the characters. I still loved the book though.
Seriously, just read this book. A YA book with an entirely POC cast with romance and not set in the United States? Practically unheard of. If you loved the found family trope and the heists in Six of Crows, you'll find it (and love it) again in Cindy Pon's Want.
About the Author: Cindy Pon is the author of Silver Phoenix (Greenwillow), which was named one of the Top Ten Fantasy and Science Fiction Books for Youth by the American Library Association’s Booklist, and one of 2009′s best Fantasy, Science Fiction and Horror by VOYA. Her most recent duology Serpentine and Sacrifice (Month9Books) were both Junior Library Guild selections and received starred reviews from Kirkus and School Library Journal. WANT (Simon Pulse), also a Junior Library Guild selection, is a near-future thriller set in Taipei releasing June 13th. RUSE, the sequel, is slated for spring 2019. She is the co-founder of Diversity in YA with Malinda Lo and on the advisory board of We Need Diverse Books. Cindy is also a Chinese brush painting student of over a decade.
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