Right off the bat, I want to start this review by saying that I’ve been very interested in checking out Lauren Roberts' Powerless series for a long time now. After having read the first book in the series, I’m so glad I did. I loved the first book, and it left me feeling really eager to read the rest of the series. That being said, here are my thoughts on Powerless (the book).
The fact that Powerless is written primarily from both Paedyn (Pae) Grey and Prince Kai’s points of view is a major strength of this book. Lauren Roberts did a great job of developing both Paedyn and Kai as characters throughout the book. I also thought that Roberts did an excellent job of developing Paedyn and Kai’s blossoming romantic relationship in this book, and I’m looking forward to seeing where Roberts takes things with them as the series continues.
That being said, one major complaint that I have about the book is that I felt like Kitt definitely could have benefited from having some more character development in the book. I felt like he was featured throughout the book in Kai’s chapters and some of Paedyn’s chapters, and then suddenly, when Roberts wrote the epilogue from Kitt’s point of view, it ultimately came across as being rather random to me in an incredibly jarring way that I kind of got even more emotional whiplash from the ending of the book, because Roberts decided to write the epilogue from Kitt’s point of view when there aren’t any other chapters in the book written from Kitt’s point of view. The epilogue really left me wondering if there are going to be any additional chapters that are written from Kitt’s point of view in the other books in the Powerless series. At this point, that’s something that I would be very interested in seeing in the books that follow this one.
Roberts’ success with developing the other contestants in the Purging Trials was somewhat hit or miss, as far as I’m concerned. Except for Blaire, I ultimately found the other contestants to be rather forgettable. Maybe it’s just me, but when Lenny was first introduced as Paedyn’s Imperial, who stands outside the door in the palace, a part of me was really expecting Lenny to end up betraying Paedyn later on in the book, so I was very surprised when it was revealed that Lenny was a part of the resistance that’s working to fight against the injustice that’s being done to people who are Ordinaries (People who don’t have abilities). I suppose there could still always be some twist with Lenny betraying Paedyn later on in the Powerless series, but I’m glad that, at least when it comes to the first book in the series, my prediction about Lenny being a villain ended up being wrong.
The overall pacing of the book's plot is pretty good, as far as I’m concerned. Going into the book, I have to admit that a big part of me was at least a little worried that the book might suffer from pacing issues depending on how well executed the writing for the Purging Trials was throughout the book. Ultimately, the fact that Powerless is a very character-driven story, combined with the fact that the book is full of compelling characters, made it so that the story could hold my attention from beginning to end.
While I’ve only read the first book in Roberts’ Powerless series so far, I suppose there’s still plenty of time in the series for me to be proven wrong about this in the other books; but I was happy that Roberts didn’t have some plot twist in the book where it’s revealed that Paedyn does have powers of some kind after all, or she there would have been a twist of some kind where Paedyn somehow gains some abilities after all. I’ve already read quite a few fantasy series, especially quite a few YA fantasy series, that have featured that kind of twist, to the point that I think it could practically be considered a writing cliché if Roberts were to do anything like that, so I was thrilled to see that Roberts didn’t go that route with the series, at least not in this book. I’m going to be severely disappointed if Paedyn ends up getting powers of some kind later on in the series because I feel like it could potentially really diminish what Roberts wrote for the dedication for the first book in the series, which I love. For anybody who doesn’t have a copy of Powerless (The Book), here’s what Roberts wrote for the book’s dedication: “For every girl who has ever felt powerless”.
I honestly really love that Roberts chose to do that for the first book in the Powerless series’ dedication. Even though I’m a guy, and maybe this will sound very strange to some people, it resonates with me in so many ways because there have been countless times throughout my lifetime when I’ve felt completely powerless over my own life for one reason or another.
I felt like the world-building was pretty well executed in this book for the most part, especially since this is only the first book in the series. While I do think that a couple of the different kinds of powers that the various characters in the book possess lacked a little bit of originality and seemed rather cliché, such as Kitt having the power of fire, I thought that Roberts did an excellent job of coming up with some pretty interesting and unique powers/abilities; even when it came to the much more minor characters, such as Tealah, a mundane who can project what other people are saying like a microphone by putting her hand on them. Tealah used her ability during interviews with Paedyn and the other contestants competing in the Purging Trials. That being said, I think that the book really could have benefited from Roberts further exploring the period of the Plague when some people experienced it, and either got the Plague, or they didn’t. I know that some people might potentially see it as nothing more than a “cash grab”, but depending on how well she were to execute it, I would love to see Roberts write another book or novella in the Powerless series that takes place during the time of the Plague. Otherwise, at times I felt there were quite a few times throughout the book where Roberts breaks the whole “show, don’t tell” rule of writing when it came it to giving the readers backstory about the Plague; especially during the scene where Paedyn finds out that it was Kai, and not the king who had killed her father like she had always believed.
I loved the whole twist about it being revealed that it was Kai, and not Kai’s father (the king), who had killed Paedyn’s father like she had always believed. Not only that, Paedyn’s father was the first person Kai ever killed as a part of his father’s training to be the kingdom of Ilya’s next Enforcer. I felt like that revelation helped add some compelling complexity to Roberts’ writing for the book, which I had already really been enjoying before that was even revealed because I think it showcases the idea that a person’s memories and what they believe to be true unfortunately might not always be completely accurate; and I think that can make for some truly compelling storytelling going forward, if it’s handled well. I’m very excited to see what else Roberts does with that whole revelation as the Powerless series continues!
All things considered, Powerless serves as an excellent start to Lauren Roberts’ Powerless series. While there’s a lot to love about this book, it’s not without its weaknesses. Some of the supporting characters in this book, namely many of the Purging Trials contestants, definitely could have benefited from at least a little bit of character development. Ultimately, I would say that Powerless’ strengths outweigh its weaknesses, and I’m very excited to continue reading the rest of the series.
That being said, my final score for Powerless is 8 out of 10.
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