Panic by Lauren Oliver

Panic,  by Lauren Oliver
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary
Rating: 2/5 stars

Panic began as so many things do in Carp, a dead-end town of 12,000 people in the middle of nowhere: because it was summer, and there was nothing else to do.
Heather never thought she would compete in Panic, a legendary game played by graduating seniors, where the stakes are high and the payoff is even higher. She’d never thought of herself as fearless, the kind of person who would fight to stand out. But when she finds something, and someone, to fight for, she will discover that she is braver than she ever thought.
Dodge has never been afraid of Panic. His secret will fuel him, and get him all the way through the game, he’s sure of it. But what he doesn't know is that he’s not the only one with a secret. Everyone has something to play for.
For Heather and Dodge, the game will bring new alliances, unexpected revelations, and the possibility of first love for each of them—and the knowledge that sometimes the very things we fear are those we need the most.

Review:

• Please note that this is a contemporary fiction novel. This is no whatsoever a dystopian or science-fiction romance. I didn't read the summary clearly and thought that I was in for a dystopian read. Hah, silly me.
• Also, please note that this isn't anything like Lauren Oliver's other novels. This is her first contemporary novel, and I feel that she did a bad job writing it. It missed so much, and the characters sucked, as well as the plot.
• We normally never get to read books about games and illegal stuff that teenagers perform. Panic is probably the first of its kind that I've ever touched and I feel that it had a beautiful concept, don't get me wrong. I love the whole idea. You never get to see this happen in reality even though this is a contemporary novel. Winning 60 grand can change everyone's life in too many different situations, and Lauren Oliver has definitely created a book that to be able to understand fully, you must think outside the box to find the real meaning of the whole story.
• I like books that cause me to think a lot, and this was one of the best that I've read in that case. 
• Now, the complaining and blabbing. The characters were absolutely horrible. I hated the protagonists, Heather and Dodge. Even though the author wanted some sort of romance between them, I didn't see any resemblance or connections. They were just dull people who tried to be superior and heroic, but that would never happen anyways. I didn't see any importance in the supporting characters like Nat, at all, so don't get me started on them.
• The book was so good in the beginning. It was so mysterious, but I did have a problem because I didn't know anything about where they were and what the game was and why they decided to play it. We just found out about their families and what the previous winners of the game decided to use the $ for.
• Afterwards, it slowly got worse. The author put too many complications at once and I got confused. What was the point of this fiasco? I don't really know.
• I can already tell that this book won't be a bestseller, and if it is, people will regret picking it up, except for the deep story inside.