Panic by Lauren Oliver

Title: Panic
Author: Lauren Oliver
Pages: 408

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. 

The idea of Panic was very unique to me and I  enjoyed it. 

My Rating:
✰✰✰✰1/2

Overall, I think this book was very enjoying and was a thrill ride; it was a quick fun read.

The idea of Panic and the challenges really was what drove this book. The challenges were intense, some were crazy, and it was all very fun to read about. 
The plot was very interesting and I did enjoy reading about what they were going through. Somethings were quite  suspenseful. The stakes were pretty high since it was $67,000 on the line.

As far as characters go, I  liked Heather's character because she seemed realistic and not the classic short, small, protagonist. I loved Bishop. He was so protective and I loved their relationship together. Bishop was definitely my favorite character. 

I liked how different yet similar Dodge's  and Heather's life were. Their reasons for participating in Panic were pretty different too. I really liked Dodge's determination on getting revenge and how he acted towards his sister protectively, showed that. I liked Dodge's character and his flaws made him quite likeable. Dodge's family and Heather's family were very realistic. I actually loved the character of Heather's mom, even though she was an awful person. 
For both protagonists, they both wanted to be able to escape from everything, including the game itself.

I think the dual perspective was great and I liked how Dodge's and Heather's  story intertwined nicely. It was fresh to see that the the two people from which the perspectives was being told was not a couple, unlike many other books. Lauren Oliver has a very nice way of weaving stories together.

Nat seemed pretty sketchy to me but her character made sense, although she is not my favorite. 
For some reason, this book did not feel like a contemporary. It felt too action packed and almost like a dystopian, which I liked.
Overall, I recommend this book for everyone. It was fairly quick and very enjoyable.

Discussing specific points (Spoilers):

I actually didn't think Bishop was a judge until I saw the scenes where Dodge thought that he looked too serious and stressed. I think that was one of the best parts of the story. 
Out of all of the challenges, (jumping off a cliff into water, walking across water tanks on a plank, stealing something from a crazy man's house, staying inside a haunted burning house, and the car swerving joust,)
My favorite is the Joust and the burning house. I think those were the most fun parts to read.

It made me sad when Dodge realized that Nat didn't like him. In my opinion, I thought Dodge deserved someone better than Nat. There were many points in the story I just wanted Bishop and Heather to confess their feelings.

I did like the ending, but wish it was longer. The tiger appearing at the end was great, and speaking about them, I loved Anne and thought the tigers were very cool. Because of Anne, Heather was able to learn that she wanted to become a veterinarian.