Defying Gravity - Glee

The Marked
Delcroix Academy, Book 2

Author: Inara Scott
Pages: 312
ARC Acquired from: Hyperion via NetGalley

Description from Goodreads:
In her second semester at a boarding school for teenagers with special powers, Dancia Lewis faces danger from both inside and outside of Delcroix Academy.

All of her life, Dancia Lewis has wanted to use her powers for good. And now that she’s learned the truth about Delcroix Academy—and herself—she may just get the chance. But being part of Delcroix’s top secret Program isn’t anything like Dancia expected. She has to ask herself: what happens to the Talented kids who refuse to pledge their loyalty to the Program? And why did her friend Jack run away rather than join? Dancia’s adorable boyfriend Cam insists they need the help of every Talented student to defend Delcroix from dangerous enemies outside their gates. But Dancia has to wonder: what if Delcroix’s most frightening enemies come from within?

First Sentence: "'The world around us is fraught with danger.'"

Review:
The second installment in the Delcroix Academy series has definitely convinced me that this series is inspired almost wholly by the X-Men. There was a quote partway through when Cam's explaining what The Program does, and it's so obvious that Delcroix is Xavier's school for gifted children, being attacked by guys with comparable powers. That said, I love stories about people with superpowers, so this didn't detract too much from the story for me.

Unfortunately, even more than in book one, I do not like Cam. He's too perfect, which seems to mean lacking personality. I mean, this guy doesn't seem to have a sense of humor or be interested in anything besides Delcroix. Other than the fact that he's super duper hot, I really don't see why Dancia's so into him. Unless, as I personally fear, he's manipulating her with his persuasive abilities. Even if he's not, this is what I've thought about him from the beginning of book one, so I really can't not be creeped out by their relationship. It's not even that I ship her with Jack; she really should find someone else that's neither of them. Too bad since the book is largely about her relationship with Cam.

Speaking of creepy, Mr. Judan freaks me the hell out. He has way too much power over everyone, with his power of persuasion. Seriously, I don't think anyone can have persuasion powers and not go full-on power hungry. I mean, at one point, it says that if Judan wants a student to leave Delcroiz, he can get the parent(s) a new job. What the heck? He has too much power if he can just have people transferred like that!

The best part of this series, which I shamefully neglected to mention in my first review, remains Dancia's grandma. She is one of the spunkiest 78 year old women ever. She's such a feminist and loves giving people a hard time just for fun. I love that she gave Dancia a hard time for not fighting back and letting her boyfriend protect her. Grandma makes me smile. Both of my favorite quotes from this series have been grandma's work.

Book two cements this series as a fun, action-packed ride. Although I'm not blown away, I have every intention of continuing on with the series, because they're so fun to read.

Rating: 3/5

Favorite Quote: "'I don't care what kind of grades they give you at Delcroix. I wanted you to go there so you'd have a chance to learn how to use your gifts, and be confident enough to fight for what you believe in.'"

"Something has changed within me
Something is not the same
I'm through with playing by the rules
Of someone else's game
Too late for second-guessing
Too late to go back to sleep
It's time to trust my instincts
Close my eyes... and leap!

It's time to try
Defying gravity
I think I'll try
Defying gravity
Kiss me goodbye
I am defying gravity
And you wont bring me down!

I'm through accepting limits
'cause someone says they're so
Some things I cannot change
But till I try, I'll never know!
Too long I've been afraid of
Losing love I guess I've lost
Well, if that's love
It comes at much too high a cost!"