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    Stung
    Stung
    Stung
    Audiobook7 hours

    Stung

    Written by Bethany Wiggins

    Narrated by Nicole Poole

    3.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    Fiona doesn't remember going to sleep. But when she opens her eyes, she discovers her entire world has been altered-her house is abandoned and broken, and the entire neighborhood is barren and dead. Even stranger is the tattoo on her right wrist-a black oval with five marks on either side-that she doesn't remember getting but somehow knows she must cover at any cost.

    And she's right.

    When the honeybee population collapsed, a worldwide pandemic occurred and the government tried to bio-engineer a cure. Only the solution was deadlier than the original problem-the vaccination turned people into ferocious, deadly beasts who were branded as a warning to unvaccinated survivors. Key people needed to rebuild society are protected from disease and beasts inside a fortress-like wall. But Fiona has awakened branded, alone-and on the wrong side of the wall.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateSep 12, 2017
    ISBN9781541477414
    Author

    Bethany Wiggins

    BETHANY WIGGINS started writing on a dare and dove headfirst into the world of writerly madness. She enjoys getting her hands dirty in her garden, baking anything with copious amounts of chocolate, and watching lightning storms from her front porch. She lives in the desert with her husband, three quirky kids, and two very fluffy cats. Shifting is her first novel. www.bethanywiggins.com

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    Reviews for Stung

    3.5/5

    133 ratings26 reviews

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    • 3/5
      Fiona has awoken in a place that is instantly recognizable to her, but into a world that she has never known before and in a body that she has never seen before. Her last memory is of a thirteen year old self, but now she wakes to see an almost grown woman reflected back to her in the mirror. Years have passed and Fiona has no idea what has happened to her during that time, nor what happened to the desolate world she has awoken to. But more worrying is what has happened to her twin brother, that he has changed so much, now more monster than human and focused on her demise.The world has fallen apart and it is all because of the bees. The bees were dying and with them the crops that they pollinated, the animals that relied on those crops, and the humans who also began to starve. To save them all scientists created new bees, genetically modified bees whose stings were deadly, unfortunately to humans too. A cure to the bees was produced but with drastic side effects, those who didn't die changed. Those unaffected built a safe haven, a walled sanctuary, while monsters roamed the ruins of the city, and Fiona has awoken on the wrong side of the wall.Stung brings the bee flu virus to the word, devastating all life and changing the world as we know it. A hard and unfamiliar world of violence and death but one where hope may yet survive and love may still blossom. Outside the wall everyone, everything is a killer, within the wall it is not much safer. As one girl fights for her survival she carries with her more than just determination and strength, she carries hope and a cure. An intriguing start to this first novel filled with the stench of sewers, the blood of violence and the expectation of romance.
    • 4/5
      What would happen if all the bees died? Bethany Wiggins has built such a world in Stung and it’s scary. No bees, very little green life, more men than women, and “beasts,” people whose goal is to kill. Fo has woken up in this world with little memory beyond her name, age, (which isn’t accurate according to her body) and fear. I was quickly sucked into this story. I’ve had both boys and girls reading this book at the library. There is plenty of action and danger to help a boy overcome any squeamishness at the thought of a girl protagonist. Between dealing with the militias, rogue gangs, beasts/hives, and sewer dwelling “Fecs,” Fo regains enough memory to help fill in the background of the world, and have a too quick start of a romance with Bowen, a boy from her old neighborhood. Readers will certainly need Cured, because the epilogue sets up the next book in this duology.

      I’ve watched two of my students re-engage with books after reading this series, recommending Stung to their friends, and coming in for more to read. That’s winning in my world.
    • 3/5
      It was a quick little read. Probably closer to a 3 1/2 for me. I liked the world and actually found myself wishing the author had spent a lot more time in it.
    • 4/5
      What the world would look like if honeybees went extinct. Very fast-paced and suspenseful.
    • 4/5
      I don't remember going to sleep. All I remember is waking up here -- a place as familiar as my own face.
      At least, it should be.

      Fiona wakes up in her bedroom, but nothing is as it should be. Her room is filthy and seems like it has been neglected for a very long time. As she walks around her house, she realizes it has been abandoned. Her reflection looks like her older sister, like a woman. Last thing she remembers, she is thirteen. She has no idea what is going on when suddenly she hears a noise and is attacked by a man acting like a beast. She barely escapes with her life. And all of this happens in Chapter 1.

      We gradually learn that this world is barren & deserted and it is dangerous to be female. Fiona is constantly in danger and trying to figure out what happened to the world she remembers, what she needs to do to survive and who she can trust.

      I don't want to give anything away. I went into this book not really knowing what it was about and it swept me off my feet page 1, Chapter 1. I loved Fiona and found her character very believable. The fecs and the beasts were scary and dangerous. The premise of the story seemed possible. I even believed the attraction Fiona developed for the boy trying to save her. And there is no love triangle, which is a relief.

      I enjoyed this so much that I immediately stared reading the sequel. And I looked on the author's website to see if there would be any more, so I could know what I was getting myself into. Would I have to wait for book 3? Good news and Bad news. There are only two books in the series and the author isn't planning on writing more. This is good because I just finished the second book and loved it just as much. Bad because I really enjoyed reading them. But, it was a good place to end. The story was over. No need to push it too far. Not every story has to be a trilogy.

      Recommended to:
      Fans of dystopian stories, young adults and people (like me) who enjoy reading young adult novels. This one is worth reading.

      Note: This book is on the Sunshine State Young Readers Award nominee list for grades 6-8. We often have some of that list in our elementary school for 5th graders. This one has some sexual innuendo. It might go over 5th graders heads, but I will recommend to our librarian not to have this one in the elementary school.
    • 4/5
      I don't know if I liked this book because I was expecting utterly shit or if I liked it because it was good, but I found Stung an interesting read.I had some major issues with certain facts, like the way rape is almost looked as sometime men do because it's necessary and that they are not to be held at fault for their actions because they just "need" it. Even though a lot of reviews I read before reading the book said Fiona was and insufferable protagonist, I actually understood why she did so many stupid things. I mean, if I was 13 and suddenly woke up looking 17-20-ish, I wouldn't exactly act mature. And yes, when I was 13, most of the things I cared were boys, how I looked, and trying to not fail class, so I didn't expect Fiona to act like she knew everything. Also, keep in mind that not only is Fiona a 13-trapped-in-a-17-body, but she also doesn't remember much of what happened to the world, so she will act like nothing has changed (when you're used to something, you do that when scared, no?).With that said, Fiona DID do things that were so stupid I wanted to hit her, but nothing that made me hate her.The story was the most weak point, but I didn't particularly dislike it. I just feel like there was just so much more the author could do with both characters and story.
    • 2/5
      My 13 year old son recommend I read this. He said it was really good and sort of pushed it on me, so I read it. I was a little confused about what was going on, there is not really enough details or back ground to get the grasp of what is happening but I continued to read because I wanted to know what happened with the main characters and I wasn't disappointed with the ending it match where the story was going although I don't think I will continue the series...unless my son asks for it.
    • 4/5
      A clever dystopian thriller, gripping and intense.
    • 2/5
      I had a really hard time getting into this one and I almost didn't read it. It wasn't horrible, but it wasn't my thing. I didn't like the style of writing.

      That said, I would give the story itself 3 stars. I thought it was ok, and would definitely work for someone who doesn't want to read a huge book. I thought the "romance" part was a little forced, and I had a hard time really wanting to like the characters. It was confusing right up until the end when all of her memories came back. It seemed rushed and didn't flow well for me.

      Thanks to netgalley.com for allowing me access to the title.
    • 1/5
      Do not pass go, do not collect $200.

      The world has crumbled, and our main character, Fiona, doesn’t know why. She only remembers being 13-years-old, but when she looks around she realizes no one has lived in her house in years and that her reflection looks much easier than it should be. Eventually, she learns there was a bee flu and deadly bees and a bad vaccine and all sorts of things, and that this has pretty much led to a downfall of society as far as she knows it.

      Well, first of all, there is almost no world-building in Stung. We get a little background on Fiona’s life. Everything the reader gets to learn about the world in Stung comes from ONE televised interview that takes up two pages at most. It’s basic, but I will say that at least this part makes sense. It turns out the vaccine has turned many children into beasts–an unfortunate side effect–that can’t talk and don’t act like humans at all. The more doses a child has, the more beast-like and un-human they are. Fiona is a level 10, and shouldn’t be as human as she is. That’s the main mystery in the second half of the book, and by far the best part about Stung. Other than this minor world-building, though, there are still so many questions left.

      For one, there’s a large human trafficking ring because if a trafficker brings in a certain number of marked beasts or children, they’re paid in ounces of honey, which has become a most precious commodity. My question–WHY? The bees have gone extinct, so honey is valuable. Okay, that sort of makes sense. BUT many other plants and animals have gone extinct and have to be artificially grown. Since those would actually have some sort of nutritional and filling value, WHY is honey the most precious resource? You would think people might be able to sell it for money, but I don’t know because Stung never addresses this question.

      Towards the end of the book, there’s another case of logic I could not buy. Fiona has been given the vaccine for the bee flu for ten months–several years ago–when she was thirteen. The same vaccine that makes people beast apparently has healing qualities when taken in small doses, and so Fiona is instructed to. . . KISS someone to transfer trace amounts of the vaccine to him. Or so says the doctor:

      " You still carry trace amounts of the vaccine. It has certain advantages in very small doses, certain healing properties.” Doctor Grayson calmly explains. “If you can pass more of them on to Dreyden. . ."

      Okay, I do not claim to know much about science. But I have trouble buying the minute traces of the vaccine left over from five years ago can be passed on by kissing would actually help someone who was gravely injured.VACCINES DO NOT WORK LIKE THAT. It's beyond suspension of disbelief at this point. This type of logic comes up time and time again in Stung, from the way Fiona tries to pass for a boy to how the major world-building issues are addressed.

      Speaking of Fiona. . . why is she the main character? Oh right, because of something that happens to her. That’s another theme that comes up again and again. Fiona may be one of the most passive characters I’ve ever read. I seriously cannot think of a main character who actually had less of an outcome on the plot than Fiona. The one thing she does that really affects ANYTHING–besides just existing–makes everything worse in a big way. And the thing is, I can’t tell you anything about Fiona. She is a part of the story the plot happens to, and not a person who happens. She has no defining traits except she used to play piano. Is she friendly? Angry? tired? Caring? Ambitious? Daring? No clue. No personality.

      The only thing I know about Fiona is that she has the ability to fall in love within a day. She walks into a militia camp, recognizes someone from home, and falls in love. It’s insta-love on both sides, but at least in Dreyden/Bowen’s case, he nursed a crush on Fiona throughout her entire childhood. Which doesn’t make the insta-love okay, but at least more understandable. Fiona seems to just fall in love–or decide she’s in love–because he’s something from her old life. And once they’re together, it becomes mostly about their relationship, which I can’t buy because of the sexism and other problematic elements.

      Dreyden’s/Bowen’s nickname for Fiona? Fotard. It was a way to pick on Fiona as children and then becomes a pet name. It’s never said, but I can only assume that Fotard is Fiona retard. Is there really any other childhood insult? This is problematic and honestly, completely unnecessary. That entire problematic element could have just been deleted from the book. It’s small, but irksome. That, however, is nothing compared to the sexism.

      Men now outnumber women seven to one, which apparently means that all men are now incapable of looking at a woman without 1)raping her, 2)Selling her to gangs that will rape or trade her, or 3)Taking her for a bride to repopulate society. This is problematic in itself, with the idea that this would just be what happens in a post-apocalyptic world, but fine, I’ll buy into the idea it’s dangerous to be a woman. What really highlights the sexism, though, is Dreyden/Bowen. Since he’s the love interest, he’s clearly not like the other men. He’ll protect Fiona and would never hurt her(supposedly). This is great, right? Well, it would be, and it seems to be, until things like this happen(Fiona has just put on a dress since they’re hiding in an abandon hotel after cleaning up):

      “Fo, you’re not safe from me. I’m sorry. It’s just, if I let my guard drop, even for a second. . .” His cheeks flush bright pink and he takes a deep breath. “I won’t be able to keep my hands off you.”

      Sorry, you’ve just lost any sympathy as the love interest right there. This isn’t a one-time thing throughout the book. The romance in Stung is incredibly unhealthy because it is not between equals. Time and time again, Dreyden/Bowen orders Fiona around and she just takes it, without ever questioning anything. I definitely understand why a militia guard would fall into the role of giving orders in high-pressure crises, but this happens even in the quiet moments, when Dreyden and Fiona are just talking or hiding. This is another order he gives Fiona soon after he tells–not asks–tells–her to change out of the dress.

      "You always have my gun with you. And you always keep one bullet in the magazine. If you get caught, you use it. On yourself. Can you agree to that?”

      Look, the world of Stung is obviously dangerous. And while I don’t really take issue with Dreyden giving Fiona the gun in case she decides that death is better than whatever fate, that should be her choice. But because Dreyden can’t handle the thought, he tries to take the choice out of Fiona’s hands. While this isn’t the only time her orders her about, it’s the time I felt really showcased just how demanding he was.

      Later on, a doctor talks to Dreyden and Fiona and talks about Dreyden’s psych evaluation:

      "Based on your psych analysis, you have a soft spot for helping women."

      On it’s on, this sentence wouldn’t be a big deal. But based on the fact this comes after Dreyden has said all that other stuff, it makes me shudder. Helping other people, sure. But helping women, even though you tell Fiona you can’t control yourself around her when she’s wearing a dress? Dreyden is one of those characters who thinks he’s being better than all the other men in the book while still enabling the sexism himself.

      Stung had a good premise, but other than that, the story was just too problematic for me to ever invest. The overt sexism and insta-love puts this on the list of my least favorite books I’ve ever read.

    • 3/5
      Bethany Wiggins' teen dystopian thriller is currently doing fairly well in the U.S. book market, and I can see why. Stung has it all: romance, danger, horror, some elements of fantasy, and an adrenaline-rush of a plot. Stung is aimed at teen readers, but be warned that there is a lot of content that may be inappropriate and/or disturbing to young readers.While I can appreciate the gripping and suspenseful story, and while I do not consider myself a sensitive or easily offended reader, Stung did leave a bad taste in my mouth for the sole reason of the heroine's nickname.Fiona, or Fo, is frequently (and affectionately) called Fotard. At first, I was confused and figured, that this is 2014 and the novel is doing well. No way in hell would Wiggins use a word that is so uncomfortably close to the R-word. I was so convinced that this affectionate nickname couldn't possibly be a play on the R-word until someone else pointed it out. Glass shattered. This is disgusting.People will always find something about a book that offends them. Some people still won't tolerate these subjects when they are handled in a way to encourage readers to consider real issues. Fine. But it's a problem when the subject matter adds NO value and serves no purpose. It could have easily been cut from the book. Moreover, Fo is already a weak heroine who needs a man at her side to pull her out of dangerous situations. Does she really need to be useless AND show terrible self-esteem by choosing a boyfriend who essentially calls her the R-word? Fiona is officially worse than Bella Swan for setting an example for teen girls.Moving on...I did like how Wiggins explores the theme of gender in that it doesn't have to be strictly male and female. This was an interesting theme that played out through the character of Arrin. Arrin is a boy, pretending to be a girl, who is pretending to be a boy. Arrin's androgynous features and personality is something he uses as a survival technique by playing society's unfair gender-divide to his advantage. In the end, the mystery of Arrin's gender is moot. Looks can be deceiving, and anyone can be a murderous lunatic.Overall, the story is thrilling, and there's plenty of action, violence, and disturbing scenes to interest readers who aren't in it for the love story. I'm only giving Stung three stars, because while I can appreciate this book for all its positives, between Fo's nickname and the sad fact that there is not one admirable female character in this male-dominated society of violence, rape, and insanity, I'm tempted to rate it lower.I will be reading the sequel, Cured, and I'm interested to read anything else by Bethany Wiggins. She's a talented writer and deserves the acclaim she's getting with her highly anticipated Stung novels.3 Stars
    • 4/5
      Stung by Bethany Wiggins is a science fiction dystopian Sleeping Beauty "reimagining."Fiona wakes up and everything is faded in her abandoned home. The last thing she remembers is turning thirteen. Looking in the mirror, she is now much older than thirteen. What happened? She has a weird tattoo on her hand and something tells her to cover it. A beast comes ripping through the house and she runs away scared. When she is allowed to pass by a house protected by a family and their guns, the daughter Jacqui, gives her food, tells her to cut her hair off, and let her go after seeing she is unmarked. A group of men chase her and a young girl tells her to follow her if she wants to live. She's with Arrin for a short time and then is captured by the militia. The guardian of the militia puts her in manacles to protect the militia from a TEN. They are shocked a ten can talk and converse because most tens are violent beasts who kill. The guardian eventually recognizes her as his classmate who he always liked. He chooses to help her escape and try to get her help before she "turns." I liked the novel. You find out what happened while she was asleep and you feel for the characters. It was a page turner and was quite exciting. It'll sell well with the kids. The characters are interesting and you easily suspend disbelief.
    • 4/5
      I must be reading too many of this genre because I found myself wondering why every dystopian society degenerates into packs of wild gangs! But having said that, this is a good example of the genre - the story is tight, the scope is small enough to be done well, and the characters are likable. Even the things that seem to coincidental end up being explained which I liked.
    • 5/5
      This is a really good book! It is an apocalyptic themed book. It has a mix of romance and danger.
    • 3/5
      I recently served as the research assistant to a professor at my law school who wrote a comical presentation on zombies and tax law. So I know my zombies. And technically, this isn’t a zombie book. It’s more like 28 Days Later and the rage virus, really. Fast, crazed humans who feast on one another when they have the chance. Creepy stuff, no doubt. But zombie lit? Maybe. If we give it a broad definition.In Stung, our heroine Fiona Tarsis – known affectionately as Fo – finds herself waking up in her own bed. The problem is that this is not the same house she remembered and she is not the same person. When she last went to sleep everything was normal and she was thirteen years old. Now? The world is a veritable wasteland and filled with deadly, ravenous ‘beasts’ that were once human. And she is several years older with a strange tattoo with ten marks on her hand.Stung throws the reader into the action immediately as Fiona is forced to race from her home and flee into a drastically changed world. People like her – people with the ‘mark of the beast’ on their hands – are feared and they are all a bit crazy. The more marks the crazier they are… and ten is the most anyone can have. Eventually she is captured by the militia outside a walled city were only certain people are allowed to take refuge. She is reunited with an old neighbor – Bowen – who takes a chance on her and vows to protect her. Not just from the beasts that roam the world now but from others, too. See, in this world, women are a commodity and if he doesn’t protect her she’ll never live to see the safety of the city or the lab that seeks to experiment on her in order to find a cure. And while serving as some crazy scientists’ guinea pig doesn’t sound that doesn’t seem like the greatest future, in this world, it’s really the safest option.But even that might not be safe. It’s certainly an interesting angle that Wiggins took with this dystopian future. In Stung, the world has changed drastically and quickly. And it all began with the impending extension of the honey bees and science’s desires to stop it at all costs. Unfortunately the cost turned out to be higher than they ever anticipated. The virus that makes everyone go crazy is spread by the vaccine to a flu that was caused by the sting of genetically engineered honey bees. The plan was for them to survive and thrive to keep on pollinating. Unfortunately the pesticide they then used to kill the bees did just that – plus it killed most of the livestock, birds, and plants. Even some people. Viruses caused by vaccines aren’t new but the bee angle was a nice twist. It adds a little environmentalist flare to it all and gets kids thinking about the repercussions of genetic engineering.I do question, though, just how everything changed so quickly. The world that Wiggins describes is a far departure from our own. And we know from what Fiona remembers and what she looks like now that not that much time has passed.Anyway, it’s definitely a book worth reading. And I really like that it actually ended. A lot of YA books these days push really hard to leave things open for a sequel or are commissioned as a series (usually a trilogy). They live it open a bit for a sequel but it’s really just a small bit. The bulk of the story ends and there is a a good resolution. They could make a sequel but… I don’t know. We need more good standalone books these days.
    • 3/5
      Review to come. Stayed up til 4 am to finish! enjoyed reading it. Some things a little wonky, but I could go with it.
      *******
      2.5 Stars

      Okay, this review is a bit stream of consciousness, so it will probably be all over the place. I said I enjoyed reading it. This is true, although it's probably not for the reasons you think. I enjoyed reading it because I was interacting with the book in the way of talking to myself as I was reading. >.<

      I was torn between 2 stars and 3.5 stars, so I went with 2.5. Why the vast difference from 2 to 3.5, you ask? It's fair. I'm an adult reading a YA novel. Things that don't sit well with me as an adult are things that YAs may not think about. I mean, look at the Twilight series for example. Things we as adults pick out, teens did not see.

      At first, I found the story gripping. A young girl wakes in her own house, but it's falling apart, sun-bleached and dusty, nothing is as it seems. She can't remember her body changing, doesn't recognize herself in the mirror, etc. As the story progresses, it's very current with our concern today with the honeybees situation. It's a NOW kind of dystopia that only took FOUR YEARS to come into being. Amazing at how quickly humanity deteriorates into a US vs THEM as opposed to trying to help one another. Star Trek utopia this is not. As the food disappears and the men outpopulate the women, humanity reverts to this...medieval, brutality more and more and, of course, there is one power lord desperately trying to hold onto his power.

      A love story develops because...well, it just does. There's a brief convo explaining that he's crushed on her for years, but really, it comes off as more of a stockholm syndrome relationship. This is one of the things I didn't like.

      Another thing I wasn't fully on board with as the damn protagonist, Fiona. She's a damn twit. Okay okay okay okay - I KNOW. She's mentally still 13 years old and therefore thinking like a 13 year old, I guess. And she's been in a coma for 4 years so despite being 17, she's still 13 and hasn't a farking clue as to what is going on. But dammit...she was supposed to be a smart child. And where are your SURVIVAL INSTINCTS? I admit that at 13, I was booksmart, but naive, but you know...I was also trained in self-defense like she says she was, but she acts like such an IDIOT. First there's her captor, and within a day she's in love with him despite him being rough and mean to her at first. What?! Yeah. He falls asleep and she stares at his lips for hours. HOURS.

      (Spoilers ahead)

      And then there's the whole scene where she SHOOTS Dryden. She didn't look up to see the face of the person running up the stair well towards her?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME? You idiot. You knew he was outside and on the run, why wouldn't you LOOK? Ugh.

      Not to mention the whole role of women in the book. Yes there are fewer women. I think the author said the ratio of men to women are 8:1. Okay...and then the book says that women, especially if they're pretty like Fo/Fiona, are constantly at the risk of being raped when outside the wall. What?! And if they're INSIDE the wall, they're baby making factories to repopulate the world BECAUSE THAT IS OUR SOLE PURPOSE AS WOMEN. Oh, but only til we're 55 and then we're (all citizens) are either killed or tossed outside the wall to try and survive because you are now useless and serve no purpose.

      And is Fiona on drugs? She keeps drifting back to piano pieces and other fluff as opposed to how the hell she's going to find food for herself or get away from the militia or you know, survive. Then she and Dreyden are running for it, going rogue, and they end up staying an abandoned hotel (why would you go into one of those? Room after room after room of possible "beasts"?!), he makes her a bath by gathering toilet water for her while she's sleeping, finds her a suitcase full of clothes and the first thing she picks? A sundress. You're on the run for your life and you pick a sundress. /facepalm.

      Inside the walls, the legal age has been reduced to 15 years old for marriage. Dreyden makes the comment that he was uncomfortable looking at girls 12, 13, 14 years old as a future possible wife. Hellllloooooooooo pedobear! Lovely.

      There are more questions than answers and things that just made me scratch my head. Dreyden TELLS Fiona that there are no more bees, they used the pesticide and wiped them all out, and with it livestock, crops, and a ton of people. Soooo where does the honey come from? Is it a stockpile of the days before? Honey is bee vomit, basically. No bees, no bee vomit, no honey. Movement of Fo and Bowen aren't really clear to me, the movement transitions were a bit fuzzy. The science isn't fully fleshed out and the world just wasn't built clearly enough for me. Fecs live in the sewage tunnels, but inside the city they have running water and sewer, sooooo why is it spongy and nearly dried out? Why do people outside of the wall become so animalistic and yet expect to find a way to be allowed to live inside? Fancypants electromagnetic cuffs in only 4 years? Who is manufacturing this stuff when the people inside are supposed to get married, make babies, and that's it?

      In the end, Dreyden is excited to make an announcement by standing on the wall with the little metal mic in his mouth, announcing that a cure has been found. Fiona? She's worried about whether her broken pinky will heal enough for her to play the piano. WHY DOES SHE NOT GET IT?

      So yeah. I didn't like Fiona and found her vapid. I didn't connect with any of the characters or found the world wholly believable. This was such a good, current idea and a lot of the reactions of humanity were believable. Just not the lead characters.

      Now, trying to put myself into my teenage self's shoes: I would've liked it a lot more! I still would've questioned some of the things and balked at the description of women being forced into marriage at such young ages to have babies, etc., but I would've ignored the asshole captor is now my love interest and just focused on the fact that he IS the love interest and that they share a few sweet kisses. I would've been happy with the ending and viewed Fiona's thoughts as okay because there is a cure now and OBVIOUSLY the world is going to get better.

      I think the YA reader is more forgiving than the adult reader and would enjoy reading this without having the issues I did. It is readable in that there aren't awkward pauses and I DID want to continue reading to find out what is going to happen.

      Yeah. I can stand behind 2.5 stars. This was an okay read.
    • 4/5
      I really enjoyed the fact that we get to learn about what happened to the world along with the main character. Fiona doesn't remember anything about what happened to the world, and we don't know anything about it either. This way, instead of having the main character have paragraphs of exposition we get to learn about it in a natural way--watching Fiona's experiences and the short, simple explanations given by other characters.

      I also like the tie-in to current events. With the population of bees decreasing this seems like a plausable future outcome. A lot of dystopians rely on the idea that its a different time period therefore anything is possible.

      The romance is well written and nice, but nothing too special about it. The end was kind of boring and felt rather anti-climatic and kind of sudden. All I could think is "really? that's it?"

      It's pretty good though. Recommended for fans of dystopians and post-apocalyptic YA.
    • 5/5
      Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales.Quick & Dirty: This was an action packed dystopian novel with a great plot, sweet romance, fun characters, all set in an intriguing world.Opening Sentence: I don’t remember going to sleep.The Review:Fiona doesn’t remember going to sleep; her last memory was when she was 13 years old. She was happily living with her family. Her dad was retired from the air force, her older sister was in college, and her twin brother was one of her best friends. As she wakes up in her room, her house looks as if it has been abandoned for years. She has a strange tattoo on her right hand and she has no idea what has happened. She soon finds out that the world is very different from what she remembers. She seems to be much older than 13 years old, and her family is missing. The world has become overrun with beasts that use to be human. There was a vaccination that went terribly wrong and turned all its recipients into beasts. There are different levels of beasts depending on how long they got the vaccination; the highest level is a 10 because they got the vaccination for ten months. Level 10s are the strongest and most ferocious. The beasts have no humanity left in them, and they kill without hesitation.To protect the rest of the people, a walled city has been built and only those with the best of health and enough money have been allowed to reside in the city. Everyone else is left outside to fend for themselves. The militias guard the walls and any beasts that are captured are sent to the labs to be evaluated so a cure can be found. Fiona has the tattoo and she is a level 10, but she is totally normal. She has no systems that point to her being a beast. Everyone is terrified of her and she doesn’t understand why. As she tries to recover her memories about what happened to her she has to survive living outside the wall.I really liked Fiona. She grows a lot throughout the book. At first she is the total damsel in distress, but as time goes on she really starts to fight for herself and those she cares about. She is a little too trusting at times, but she tries to help others and do what’s right. She has a rough time with the situation she is in, but most of the time she stays positive. I felt that she was easy to connect with and I really enjoyed getting to know her.Dreyden Bowan is Fiona’s savior. They were neighbors growing up and he is now in the Militia. When she gets captured he is assigned to be her protector until they can hand her over to the lab. At first he doesn’t recognize her, and he is scared of her just like everyone else. In this new world girls are outnumbered 10 to 1 and it is very dangerous to be an unprotected female for obvious reasons. Bowan becomes her protector, friend, and eventually something more. When they were kids he would always tease her, and he was a funny sweet kid. Living in the modern world has hardened him, but he still has a soft spot for Fiona. He risks everything to protect her and keep her safe. I would definitely say that he is a swoon worthy boy and I totally loved him.This was a really great book. The idea was new and refreshing for a dystopian novel. The book flowed really well and I had a really hard time putting it down. I loved the romance; it developed slow and really sweet. The plot was full of drama, betrayal, action, romance, and suspense. I loved the characters and the story was amazing. This is the first book I have read by Bethany, but after this I will defiantly be reading more from her. I would highly recommend this book to anyone that like dystopian novels.Notable Scene:I roll onto my side, toward the beast, and whimper at what I see. A circle of militia, at least twenty thick, surround the beast and two other people. The militia have their Tasers and automatic weapons trained on the beast, following its every move.The beast’s muscles twitch and spasm from the electrical residue of the Tasers, but it doesn’t seem to care.Bowen, his hands raised, speaks soothing words to the beast as he slowly walks toward it. But the beast isn’t paying attention to him. It is looking at the third person trapped inside the armed circle of militia.Me.Its dark eyes, the irises overwhelmed with pupil, devour me.And there is nothing human about the way it stares. I am looking into the eyes of a wild animal. A very deadly, brawny wild animal. Bowen looks between the beast and me as if debating something. His jaw pulses, his body goes taut, and then, as if it pains him, he steps between the beast and me.“You move, you die,” he says to the beast, his voice no longer calm and soothing.The beast growls and fakes a lunge forward, but Bowen doesn’t budge. A deep, gravelly hum interrupts the silent night, growing slowly louder, like a jet tearing across the sky. And then the sound grates against the night, vibrating in my ears. It is coming from the beast’s mouth. It leaps forward and swats Bowen aside, ?inging him through the air. And then it is just the beast and me. It stares at me, lips pulled back from its stained teeth, drool coating its skin, eyes starved, as if it is about to devour a feast. Me.FTC Advisory: Walker Childrens/Bloomsbury provided me with a copy of Stung. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.
    • 5/5
      Stung grabbed my attention from the first sentence and didn’t let go. To say I loved it would be an understatement. Fiona wakes up in her own bedroom without knowing how she got there or even when she fell asleep. To add to her confusion, her room isn’t how she remembers it. It’s dirty, disheveled, and faded. Normally a waking character is a cliché writers avoid like the plague, but it works so well here as the reader is immediately pulled into the mystery of Fiona’s world. Unlike most dystopian novels, Stung takes place in the not so distant future instead of a century or two. Everything is different, yet the same, and I couldn’t help but feel the familiarity of this world within my own. The chain of events that lead to this society follow a logic, and incredibly scary, sequence. I loved Fiona’s voice. There’s an innocence to her that makes her feel like your little sister and you want to protect her. She’s so relatable and sweet. Then there’s Bowen… *sigh* That’s all I’m going to say about him. You’ll have to discover his awesomeness on your own. Overall, Stung is a fast-paced novel with great characters, solid writing, and a wonderful voice. In my opinion, Stung is even better than The Hunger Games.
    • 5/5
      Stung was awesome! One of the best books I’ve read in a while. It was fast paced with unexpected turns around each corner. I could not put it down and read it in two days. It’s set in Denver which was also kind of a neat little thing for me, since I live very near Denver. The storyline was spectacular and the characters were wonderful. And isn't the cover cool too?! I’m giving this one 5 big stinging smaks!
    • 4/5
      Fiona just woke up to an abandoned house, a desolate neighborhood and a strange tattoo on her hand. Oh, and there’s someone — someTHING — inside her house. Scrambling for safety, Fiona races to the deserted streets, searching for answers. It’s obvious that something is very off. The last she remembers, Fiona was only eleven-years-old, but now she is at least in her mid-teens. What happened to her? What happened to the world she once knew? Why are all of the people that are left in her city patrolling their homes with guns? Why are all of the girls disguising themselves as boys? What are those insanely fast creatures everyone is so afraid of? And what does the tattoo on her hand mean? Unsure of who she can trust, Fiona is thrown into this new dangerous world with little hope for survival. She soon learns the mark on her hand definitely means something — she is infected, and according to the mark she is very deadly. But, she doesn’t feel deadly. There are some who want her dead, and some who want to capture her. With no survival skills, no one on her side, and no clue as to what people may want from her, Fiona will have to think fast if she wants to keep her freedom — and more importantly — her life. When scientists try to reverse the possible extinction of bees, they create a new kind of bee whose sting is deadly. A vaccine is created that has undesirable effects, and eventually leads to the destruction of civilization. As with many dystopian novels, the setting is bleak. There are several classes — in this case it’s mainly those who live outside the wall and those who live safely inside. You also have the soldiers who patrol just outside the wall, hunting the infected, and the “Fecs” (people who have been infected but haven’t yet turned deadly). The world was well-described and fairly vivid. Fiona, the MC and narrator, was very well-developed. She had a childlike quality about her, but it was understandable seeing as how her last memory was from when she was eleven. Her fear and unease was palpable which added to the tension of the book. Arrin, a “Fec” who Fiona meets in the beginning of the book, is a creepy little thing. You never know if you can trust her or not. She gives Fiona survival tips, but these tips usually come with a price. The other lead character is Bowen, a soldier who Fiona realizes later on used to be a schoolmate and her neighbor. He’s really the only person Fiona connects with, but even that is hard to do when Bowen’s job is to eradicate the infected, and Fiona is, in fact, infected. There is a romance that develops between the two, and it wasn’t cringe-worthy. The fact that they knew each other before the outbreak staved off the dreaded insta-love. Ms. Wiggins has crafted a pulse-pounding, nail-biting dystopian thriller. The story moves along at breakneck speed, barely allowing you time to breathe between action scenes. The book begins with a bang and barely lets up. Still, she manages to give you plenty of information about the world and the circumstances. I never once felt confused. My only complaint was that some of the scenes/characters felt a bit recycled from other works, mainly the governor behind the wall. His personality was similar to that of the governor in The Walking Dead. Even his “cage matches” between the infected and those he deemed unworthy were similar to the before-mentioned series. Of course, you may not even catch this if you don’t watch that show or read the comics.Interesting characters, a pulse-pounding pace and an interesting concept make this one a must-read for fans of dystopian thrillers. I loved the idea that this all stemmed from the extinction of bees. Until I read this book, I didn’t realize what an impact bees have on our civilization. Let’s hope this never happens.
    • 4/5
      There is no cure for being stung.Fiona doesn’t remember going to sleep. But when she opens her eyes, she discovers her entire world has been altered—her house is abandoned and broken, and the entire neighborhood is barren and dead. Even stranger is the tattoo on her right hand—a black oval with five marks on either side—that she doesn’t remember getting but somehow knows she must cover at any cost. She’s right. [partial synopsis from Goodreads]Fiona's whole world is different -- even the body she finds herself in, while still her own, seems older. Outside everything is more dangerous, almost lifeless and certainly not as she remembered.Can she find out what the tattoo on her hand means, what's happened to the world and stay alive?Stung incorporates something that's part of our world to a lesser extent (at least now) but has, as far as I know, not yet been part of a novel: the death of bees. Fiona's sister was worried about the bees being on the endangered species list and talks of all that they can effect.While having a secure city behind a wall while the underprivileged live in a dystopian, crumbling world outside of it isn't particularly anything new, the way Wiggins approaches it is. How the city inside the wall is run is different and even why it's there. The 'why' those individuals need protecting is quite interesting and unique.It makes Fiona's story -- and that of the other main character -- a very compelling read. Discovering their stories, both past and present while they work together, and sometimes against each other, pulls you in. It's what the future may or may not hold for them that keeps a bit of suspense in the mix.The beginning of Stung is quite interesting. When Fiona wakes up with no memory of being the age she is or the world being as it is, the readers have no knowledge of why things are as they are, either. It takes more than a quarter of the novel (or reading some synopses) to find certain things out. Sometimes it's fun to have a leg up on the main character but here, while at times a bit frustrating, it was nice being on the same level as Fiona knowledge wise.Fiona and her counterpart work well together and in addition to bringing out parts of their past -- the memory-slash-flashbacks were a great addition - it brings out different elements of their personalities.Stung was different than I was expecting -- with the addition another character and the city along with what it housed -- and I liked it more than I expected.Rating: 8/10If you liked this book, you might also enjoy: Article 5 by Kristen Simmons and Black City by Elizabeth Richards
    • 3/5
      Due to copy and paste, formatting has been lost.Stung had all of the action that I would expect in a dystopian, but it was lacking in the character department. Even though I liked Fiona and Bowen, I felt like they were missing something. I think that I'll chalk Fiona up for memory loss-- it's kind of hard to have a good personality if you don't, well, know what you've been doing for the last four years. But Bowen doesn't have a very good excuse-- and it just seemed like they fell in love too quickly.In a book like this, though-- I think that was acceptable. The author focused more on the action, which was good. It was fast-paced, along with being believable for a dystopian world. As always, though, I have a few questions. Where are all the women? Even in the wall, they seem to be scarce. And it never explains why-- it's just put out their and kind of forgotten about."There is no cure for being stung."No one is ever stung. Let me let that sink in. The book really isn't about the possibility of being stung and the consequences. It's way after that. But telling you would involve revealing spoilers, so it's in the brackets if you wanna see it. **SPOILER**[They genetically modify the bees, because they're all dying out. Then the genetically modified bees kill the regular ones, and release a toxin into the air that causes a deadly flu. So they invent a vaccine for it, which causes all of the people injected with it to go psycho insane. Basically, the vaccine causes it, not the sting.]**SPOILER END**I gotta clarify something. I think that Fiona and Bowen were okay, but not desperately awesome, you know? I was rooting for them, and wondering where Fiona had come from. I was hoping that their romance would work out, even if it did happen in such a short time. But I'm an optimist, so I think this turned out fairly well.All in all, I liked Stung, but there were some things I just couldn't get into.
    • 4/5
      Review:When the bees of the world started dying off the Government scrambled to find a solution. They created a super bee of sorts meant to survive through the hardest conditions. Unfortunately they didn't realize until it was to late that the bees also were the cause of the super flu sweeping the globe. A vaccine was created and those children lucky enough to receive it were protected, safe, survivors.Flash forward 5 years... The tattoo on the back of the hand once a source of comfort now is a brand for those who must be feared, avoided and worst of all killed. Alone in the world and on the run Fiona must put her trust in one sworn to hunt her kind before its to late. I really enjoyed Stung it was different than I was expecting but in a good way. However, it did take the book awhile to find its footing. I felt the pacing was a bit slow and unorganized in the beginning. We get zero back story on what's going on and that felt a bit jarring. I like to think this was intentional as a way to sympathize with Fiona vs just poor writing. One of my biggest complaints concerning Stung has to be the lack of action during the beginning/middle of the book. I'm not going to lie, I found it a bit lackluster overall. I definitely struggled at times staying entertained during those scenes. Not enough to put the book down mind you but enough to let the mind wander. In my defense, You can only see a person in cuffs sitting around and hiding so much before it gets tiresome. Of course it did help move along the romantic elements of the story so that's a plus. It will be interesting to see in the second book whether things mature even more between Fiona and Bowen. Earth still needs repopulating after all.Once it becomes obvious what is going on and more back story revealed, I found Stung to be quite an enjoyable read. I was even surprised by some of the twists towards the end concerning Arriss and Fiona's brother Johnah. Overall, I did like Stung. I liked the world, the writing was decent and I actually really liked the characters in the end. Would I recommend this book? Yep, its definitely worth the read although I will warn that there is a pretty obvious cliffhanger. Let's just say, The series still needs a villain after all. Which is why I will be rating Stung by Bethany Wiggins ★★★★.
    • 5/5
      For some reason I am really into all of the covers for the books I'm ready. Most of them capture a character from the story along with a background that depicts an important plot point. Well, this book cover is different. It's an eerily intense cover and that is what makes it immediately eye catching. I love this cover because it standout against all the other books I've read and for some reason, I am tempted to say that this is by far my favorite cover so far. Simplicity in its beauty is by far the best. Stung by Bethany Wiggins is intense from the beginning, drawing the reader into the story of Fiona without any warning at all. It all starts in her childhood home and she can't remember anything beyond her thirteenth birthday which means she's forgotten what happened when the world suddenly turned upside down. Her room, her home, her body which now bears a strange mark on her hand... Nothing is what it was in her memories and she doesn't understand why. But the tension continues to rise when she sees her younger brother, who isn't so young anymore, has become some sort of monster. Now she must journey across the barren wasteland, hiding the mark from those she meets and hoping that maybe her sister's fate might have been different than her brother's. She finds herself face-to-face with a boy from her past when she is captured by the militia. Will she escape the hands of the people who seem desperate to kill her? Will she ever see her sister again? Why isn't she like her brother since everyone seems to be waiting for that to happen? What will be her fate at the hands of a boy who just might kill her as easily as he might save her?Now I am only going to talk about two people in particular, diving into their character like I typically do and then I will talk about the good guys versus the bad guys. So much of the story is entwined with secrets which I refuse to reveal because it's important that you read the story to understand how awesome these characters are. I won't pinpoint the bad guys because you won't know until the end and I won't praise specific good guys because, well, you'd have to read the story to truly appreciate the amazingness of this story. So here I am telling you to go read the book before I even complete my review. Now onto the great part part: my actual review.Fiona is the wonderfully amazing main character that I previously mentioned in my summary above. In the beginning, she is kind of an enigma, at least to me. She is an intense character that seems have so many secrets to her name, some of which she knows and most she seems clueless about. Not that I can blame her in the slightest. I think in some ways she was repressing the horrors of her past because it was easier that way. Sometimes the memories are the hardest part of our lives. I think her naivety to the situation she finds herself in is endearing instead of frustrating like I thought it would be. Instead of being content to just go through the motions, she is desperate to understand the world she finds herself in. She makes friends with the wrong people and because of that, she finds herself getting involved in worse and worse situations. The best quality she has is not appearing weak in the face of danger. Although people seem to think that it is a sign she is some monster, I think it's just easier to pretend that she isn't quivering on the inside.When Bowen was introduced, I wasn't sure what to think of him and apparently neither did Fiona. He appeared to be cocky, angry, and strong. He had a hard inside to go without his hard exterior. It seemed like he was nothing like the boy that she remembered from her childhood. Apparently this world has hardened him to the point that he isn't recognizable and she just hopes that maybe somewhere underneath all that ice there is something remembers her and remembers the world they used to be a part of. I think what truly showed his real character was when he discovered who Fiona was and it was like a switch had been flipped. He wanted to protect her from everyone even if it meant injuring himself, his resolve to remain disinterested fading as quickly as it came. He knows that Fiona isn't some monster and he is desperate to prove it, just as desperate as he is to keep her close to him. Without a doubt he is the love interest of this story and I think he defines sacrifice and selflessness. Why, oh why, must writers create such swoon worthy love interests? Anyway, he is a beautifully created character and it shows that the author took some care in fashioning such a perfect love interest for her main character.The lines blur a lot between good and bad, the saviors and the devils. It's hard to say exactly who is on what side until the last page of the story which is why I think I couldn't put the book down until I finished it completely. I really believed that one character was a good guy only to find out on the last page that that same character was really a bad guy in disguise. When I realized who the good guys were, I understood what made these characters hide themselves and why they were the greatest support for Fiona even when they couldn't be by her side. I fell in love with all of these characters and I learned to respect the bad guys even though they were bad. Some of the characters, I will warn, are really wolves in sheep's clothing and are hiding their true intentions. Nothing will surface until the end. Trust no one except Fiona. I love this story. It's an intense, beautiful, and epic novel that is a true example of a great author taking on a great story. So, go read it.
    • 4/5
      I loved that this book jumped right into the action. The rest of the story was actually really fast paced. Fiona is on the run and doesn't know who to trust in a world she has no memory of. The action is what made this a fast read and I read it pretty much straight through in one sitting (maybe stopping briefly for food).I loved the concept of the tattoo marking her as 'infected' and early on we learn that her mark signals people that she is among the deadliest of all the marked. I can't expand much more on how they were marked or 'infected' without giving away too much, but I will say that the explanation was interesting and I was satisfied with the science of it (or lack of science, depending on your personal preference for detailed scientific explanations).The romance between Fiona and Bowen didn't do much for me. I liked both characters and could see a bit of a spark between them but the constant action along with the tight time frame had me doubting the intensity of what they claim to feel. I would have been just as happy without the romance.