Starters

Callie's parents are dead, killed when the Spore Wars wiped out everyone between the ages of twenty and sixty. Now she is living as a squatter with her sick little brother, Tyler, and her friend Michael. Her only option is Prime Destinations, a place in Beverly Hills, that hires teens to rent their bodies to Enders, seniors who want to be young again. Lissa Price has put together a compelling dystopian story about a girl who's just trying to survive- even if that means renting her body to icky old Enders.

"I know another building," Michael said. "Not far, twenty minutes."
Another building. Another cold, hard floor. Another temporary place to squat. Something inside me broke.
"Draw me a map." I fished in my sweatshirt pocket and pulled out the contract. I ripped off a quarter of it.
"Why?" Michael asked.
"I'll join you guys later." I handed the paper to Michael and he started drawing.
"Where're you going?" Tyler asked, his voice hoarse.
"I'm going to be gone for a day or two." I looked at Michael. "I know where to get some money."
Michael glanced up from his map. His eyes locked with mine. "Cal. You sure?"
I looked at Tyler's tired face, his sunken cheeks, his baggy eyes. The smoke had made his condition worse. If he went downhill and didn't make it, I would never forgive myself.
"No. But I'm going anyway."

When war broke out, so did a genocide spore. Even one fleck of the deadly yellow flakes can kill you. The oldest and the youngest got vaccinated first of the deadly spore, for being the most vulnerable. Ironically, they are now the only ones left. Though she hates the idea of old Enders controlling her body, Callie agrees to be a donor for Prime Destinations, desperate for the money that will keep her, Tyler, and Michael alive. But when the neurochip they place in Callie malfunctions, she wakes up in the life of her renter. Living in her mansion, driving her cars, and passing as Helena Winterhill's granddaughter.

The setting was really fascinating to relate and contrast with. Starters is our own world today; but huge differences. There's the places like Beverly Hills, that's the exact same. Clubs, salons, and jails, that are filled with Enders, and their grandchildren. Then there are the places that are considered 'ghetto'. Filled with Starters- kids under twenty- trying to survive as squatters, or trespassers. It was really interesting to be able to see how different things were. Everyone is either rich, or very, very poor.

I personally really enjoyed this book a lot. It's vaguely similar to The Host, and it was cool to compare the differences and similarities between the two. I think people who liked The Host and/or The Hunger Games would enjoy reading this captivating story. Lissa Price writes it in a way that makes you never want to stop, and then a huge gasping plot twist at the end, craving you for more, topped it off. Definitely a good- make that great- read.