After a long reading slump and break, I finally finished Silver Elite, and honestly, I’m a bit torn. It’s one of those heavily flawed-but-interesting, fast-paced reads that I got through without totally hating it!

Although it’s marketed as dystopian, it felt more like a steamy military romance filled with heavy tropes and a few too many plot holes. I liked the characters and the initial premise, but as a BIPOC reader, I couldn’t overlook how the conflict was brushed aside too easily—and the way race was handled (or mostly ignored). Descriptions like “dark-skinned” and “tanned” and references to the “darklands” at this stage are all red flags for me. And then there’s the falling-for-your-oppressor trope—it just doesn’t work for me in our current climate.

The world-building also didn’t quite hit the mark. It felt a bit choppy and lacked the depth and nuance of a strong dystopian setting. There wasn’t much political or social commentary, and when it was there, it was problematic! Also, a lot of it seemed to borrow heavily from The Hunger Games, Divergent, and the Shatter Me series. Some scenes felt almost copy-pasted!
And as much as the book advertises Wren as a badass FMC, she’s nothing like Katniss, Tris, or Juliette. Instead of leading a fight against an oppressive regime, she was mostly distracted by Cross’s chiseled jawline and abs.

That said, I still binged it and kind of enjoyed it! The was some element of the story that was addictive in a guilty-pleasure kind of way. Even when I was frustrated, I kept reading, mostly because I clearly switched off my brain for much of the book (it’s exam season and I listened to it on audio).

I do think it’s perfect for the typical steamy romantasy fans but not for those looking for quality or depth. (Think Fourth Wing without the dragons rather than The Hunger Games.)

I can see this becoming very popular but I’m dubious - something’s not right.

3.5 stars to 3.8 stars??
———

Update: I’ve recently heard so much discourse about the author using a pen name, and while I usually have no issue with pseudonyms, something about the expensive/polished PR push and lack of transparency feels a little off. Fingers crossed this isn’t a problematic author or celeb from my boycott list or AI.

Also, I started it as an ARC but took a break. I came back excited to continue, but I just couldn’t climb on the bandwagon. I believe reading is very subjective (and do see why some may have loved this book), but I do think the misleading and VERY questionable PR/ Booktok hype comparing it to HG, ruined it for me. I went in with high hopes as a dystopian fan looking for something to fill the void after Sunrise on the Reaping.

This book was really badly constructed with tons of loopholes & uncertainties in the world building. The book also had subliminal right-wing messaging throughout, including anti-intellectual messaging, anti-education messaging, pro-gun agendas & a strange inclusion of the male main character supporting the death penalty. Not for me thank you!

2.75 Stars

Fast-paced fun, but lacking originality and depth.

Silver Elite delivers classic dystopian vibes with a romantasy edge—secret factions, mind powers, a rebellion, and a brooding commander–recruit dynamic that checks every box for fans of the genre. Once the plot gets going (well past the halfway mark), the story becomes engaging, especially with the high-stakes action and morally gray worldbuilding.

But the book struggles with pacing, especially early on, and many of the plot twists are predictable. The romance, while marketed as slow burn, felt more like insta-lust with forced tension. Cross’s dialogue occasionally veers into cringey territory, and Wren’s development is underwhelming. Still, the premise is strong, and there’s enough here to keep readers turning the pages—especially those craving a nostalgic dystopian fix.

Not groundbreaking, but fun if you're in the mood for something tropey and dramatic.

Did Silver Elite feel like the Hunger Games, Divergent and Fourth Wing (minus the dragons) had all been mixed in a blender? Yes.

Did I eat it up anyway? 100%.

I enjoyed the world building, the banter between the friends and the development of the side characters (Kaine in particular), and while I saw some of the twists coming (Cross being Wolf), I didn’t pick up on others (Kaine being alive/in the resistance)

I’ll definitely be picking up the sequel.

Oooo this was fun! Think Divergent meets Hunger Games meets Fourth Wing. Its got everything you need to shape up to becoming a hit. The last few chapters left me with questions on the quite sudden high levels of trust/motivations of some of the characters but this is one i would've gone straight into book 2 immediately if i could've.

It's a bit more ya than adult fiction. A fascinating mix of dystopia and romantasy, an engrossing plot and a fascinating world building.
I'm on the edge but it's a good book
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Well isn’t this a fun one?

Silver Elite has been taking the world by storm, and it’s easy to see why. Its dystopian plot harkens back to the thrill of a genre many of us revelled in years ago, while expanding it beyond the basic “overthrow the government” recipe. I adore any story that plays with mind games/powers/manipulation, the theme adding an immediate sense of distrust that pairs perfectly with dystopia.

As for its romantasy selling points, it’s an easy storyline to fall into - though admittedly the weaker side to the novel for me. Don’t get me wrong, I fell for it. But it’s almost been fulfilled too quickly, and in a story taglined “trust no one” with constant betrayals and mind manipulation, it would’ve been fun to play with that uncertainty more and have a slower burn than seen. I’m intrigued to see how invested I remain through the series considering we already reaped the reward.

Still, it was easy for me to read this book in just over a day, the story proving no effort at all to sink into with its constant shift of focus to keep engaged. Bit by bit, we started to see this is just a small part of a much bigger world, and I’m excited to see its expansion in future books!

Silver Elite

I have enjoyed reading this book. It has made me laugh and grimace at times, I have felt for Wren, especially with the ordeal with her uncle and having to hide her powers, a significant fantasy trope we are all used to.

I found it interesting how she already had a connection to the scout leader in the past and already had a preconceived notion of him. Their sideways glance made me laugh, the knowing coming into the story.

The worldbuilding is EXCELLENT. It isn't necessarily that unique, but so many brilliant features give it so much depth. The storyline is addictive, and I was so HOOKED I read it in a day! There were so many twists and turns; although I guessed a few of them, I didn't care, as I loved it SO much. The ending I did NOT see coming!
For me, the characters steal the show. Wren is just badass—clever, tough, and reckless, but she's always entertaining. Her humour was spot on, and I smiled and laughed. Watching her handle everything that comes her way was such a ride.

Then there's Cross, who feels like a mix between Four from Divergent and Xaden from Fourth Wing. He's determined and ruthless, but has a soft side for the people he cares about. The romance between them was electric; the chemistry and banter were on fire, and wow, the steamy scenes were seriously hot!

"Silver Elite" blends humour and emotional depth while exploring familiar fantasy tropes. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys a story with strong character development and a bit of magical intrigue.

#SilverElite #BookReview #FantasyReads #Wren #CharacterDevelopment #Worldbuilding #MagicalIntrigue #BookRecommendation #AddictiveStoryline #HumorAndEmotion #YoungAdultFantasy #StrongFemaleProtagonist #RomanticTension #BookCommunity #ReadersOfInstagram #FantasyBookLovers #BookRecommendations #PageTurner #ReadingAddict

I hadn’t heard of this book when Del Rey sent it to me before YALC. The buzz began to pick up after YALC though.

I’m not going to address the speculation around this book in this review, instead I’m going to focus on the actual book.

As far as the plot itself goes it harkens back to the late naughties, early teens golden era of YA Dystopia and is clearly aimed at the readers who gobbled up those books but are now adults.

Wren is a likeable protagonist, raised by a rebel on the run having to hide her true mutant psychic powers and identity until an incident the sleepy little town she’s hiding in brings her and her Uncle Jim to the attention of the authorities.

Forced into becoming an elite special forces soldier for the government that would see all “abberant” mutants dead we follow her through training and her recruitment by the rebellion as an undercover operative within the special forces.

It’s fun to see Wren try to balance her loyalties as she inevitably becomes friends with members of her squad and battles her attraction to Cross, who just happens to be her command, who she just happens to fall over in Chapter one as she crashes through his bedroom and immediately banters with.

The story is pacy and has enough plot twists and reveals to keep the reader engaged and I definitely see many being emotionally gutted by certain deaths and gagged by later reveals.

Ultimately this is a fun, trope, that will hook those nostalgic for the Dystopia craze, whilst being spicy enough to attract new readers to the genre.

Tell a friend to tell a friend, the dystopian era is BAAAACCCCKKKK 😝

I know there’s some mixed reviews about this book, but I loved every second of it. This book transported me back to 2015 with all its dystopian nostalgia - oh the feels!

This book was a lot like divergent to me, though dare I say it, even better 🤭 There wasn’t tons of world building, but the crumbs that we did get - phenomenal. Normal people finding and killing people with supernatural abilities and an elite task force in charge of protecting the city by going on covert missions to find said modified people - I ate this up.

The side characters were all great in their own way, but our fmc and mc stole the show. Yes, Wren was impulsive at times but I loved her bravery and growing conflict with being friendly but having to hide her natural self. Cross was just so swoony, I mean this tough, badass captain who’s so soft and vulnerable towards Wren, I melted every time he came on the page 😮‍💨

This addictive book has me in an absolute chokehold so thank you so, so much delreyuk and netgalley for approving me for this e-arc 🖤 Silver Elite is available to read now.

An okay read that read more YAish to me. I would have liked more of a focus on the distopian aspects of the storyline but it was heavily romance focused. It was an overall good time.

One of my favourite reads of 2025 so far. I loved the dystopian setting and how insanely good the writing was that I could fully imagine every scene. The characters are incred, I was second guessing my theories throughout and GASPING at some of the revelations

MUST READ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4.25🌟 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘋𝘦𝘭 𝘙𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘈𝘙𝘊.

Can absolutely understand the buzz around this - it's very Divergent and Fourth Wing coded. A dystopian society where those with psychic powers are persecuted, it's a classic narrative of rebellion, high-stakes, shifting alliances and hidden identities. Our FMC (Wren) is secretly SUPER POWERFUL and a crack shot with a rifle - her uncle has done his best to keep her away from both sides of the growing conflict because one side would seek to use her for their own means, and the other would execute her on sight. She's become very adept at blending in and masking her powers - I LOVED that this felt earned by virtue of years of hard training (and not some natural affinity or something developed over a quick montage moment).

Despite her best efforts, Wren ends up being scouted for the Silver training block (the tippity top level of the military hierarchy) following a rather daring rescue that shows off her prowess with a gun, and is essentially thrown into an academy setting surrounded by enemies (non-Modded folk who'd want her dead if they knew what she was). Shenanigans ensue and through it all she ends up capturing the attention of Silver block's Captain (Cross). It's lust at first sight, but the internal conflict is real.

Now, weirdly enough (considering I'm usually a romance girly), I was wayyy more invested in the politicking and central plot than I was in the main couple. I can't deal with men growling and being oddly possessive when they're supposed to be... contemporary (human) men? Like sir pls calm down and get out of your feels. Cross is a walking sexual harassment lawsuit waiting to happen, but then to be fair Wren is probably just as bad. Aggressive flirting is clearly their thing, but I found it more uncomfortable than banterific (deffo a word).

I felt the plot began to crumble slightly in the third act (despite a fairly obvious plot twist still managing to give me goose bumps and FEELINGS) - a series of unfortunate events that didn't hold as much weight as they perhaps should have done? It's mostly Wren doing stupid shit and other characters cleaning up after her.

Anyways, I'm excited to see where this goes, because who doesn't love a story about dismantling fascist regimes?! Super interesting that the dystopian genre is back on the rise given everything going on in the world right now. Art mirrors life, right?

i know that some readers will adore this, and i love that for them. personally, i think it has been mis-marketed to jump on the wave of nostalgia following the resurgence of the hunger games. i'd love to see romantasy trends lean towards the development of the cool worlds and concepts in the backdrop, not just the tropey romance protagonists.

DNF at 41%

I have to start this “review” by confessing that I didn’t actually finish the book. In fact, I think this might be my first official DNF! I made it to about 41% before my will to continue simply evaporated.
Now, don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a bad book. It’s perfectly readable, in the same way that junk food is edible. I totally see the appeal if you're in the mood for a quick smutty escape into a world where half the population has magical powers, can read minds, and manipulate people, while the other half just wants them dead! There’s military school and hot enemy. And the fmc is definitely not like the other girls...
What really had me cackling, though, was the publisher’s and author’s insistence on comparing this to The Hunger Games and Divergent. That’s... bold.. They tried really hard to make it the next Fourth Wing but instead of a gripping dystopian world they promised, we get something that feels more like a dystopian Pinterest board. A vibe, not a genre.
As for the romance if you can even call it that.. just no. The minute the main couple showed up, I got ick. Insta lust is apparently the chosen trope here. Every time the MMC and FMC spoke, it was just sexual innuendo ping-pong. No depth, no chemistry—just horny banter and vacant stares. All vibes, no plot.

If you enjoyed the book, good for you! It simply wasn’t for me.

Thank you to Del Rey UK and NetGalley for the advance reader copy and a chance to read it early!

First of all, I would like to say thank you for the review copy, which was provided to me by the publisher. This fact does not in any way affect my personal opinion of this book. This post contains advertising and the rights for the book belong to the publisher.

Of course, is this only my personal opinion of the book and just because I give this rating to the book doesn’t mean, that everyone will have that opinion.

I think you have heard about this book by now, so I do not think it needs a big introduction. I do want to offer a little disclaimer first, though, because I saw some book bloggers getting accused: I was not paid to review this book. The publisher reached out to me in November last year, and I am so happy that they did because I really enjoyed the book.

It took me a hot second to get into the world, because certain words weren’t really explained, and the world-building was kinda loose at the start, but it got better once I read a few pages in one go. Overall, I enjoyed the writing style. I could really immerse myself in the story and felt with the characters.

Well, this brings me to the characters. The FMC is a strong-headed (and tbh sometimes really stupid) young woman with a „dark history“. She’s a badass. He is broody, dark and of course hot. Is this something unique and new? No! Is it an outstanding character dynamic that I’ve never read before? Also no! Did I eat it up? Yes! I can see why this book is compared to Fourth Wing because the character dynamics and the archetypes are reaaaaallly similar.

I know you want to know more about the love story, so here we go. They are enemies, but they also have the hots for each other from the first interaction. So more like „horny enemies“, if you get what I mean. I enjoyed the tension between both of them and can’t wait to read more about them in the next book!

Now comes the topic of the dystopian character of the book. It did not feel that dystopian to me, but the basics are there, and I think there is still some stuff to come. The plot was good, but only one of the big plot twists was really plot-twisting for me. It is obvious where the book takes a lot of inspiration from, and I wouldn’t say it’s Hunger Games – it’s definitely Divergent. If you loved the first Divergent MOVIE (yessss I mean the movie in this case), then grab this book!

Regarding the whole „Who’s behind the pen name“: I won’t say anything, because if it’s a pen name, I want to respect the privacy.

So why do I give 4.5 stars even tho I have a few critique points? I enjoyed my reading time very much. It got me out of a reading slump, and I was excited to go grab other books again, and that is a huge indicator for me.

Conclusion
If you loved Divergent, then go get this book!!

Thank you to Del Rey UK and NetGalley for the advance reader copy.

I think I should start by saying that I can imagine a lot of people enjoyed and will enjoy this book. Unfortunately I didn’t. I think that a lot of it felt like a bad regurgitation of other dystopian YA books except bundled together.

The FMC is quite possibly the least intelligent especially as she’s meant to be keeping herself a secret because she’ll be killed otherwise. Even knowing this she does a lot of stupid things in this book.

A lot of the characters felt flat and the romance could have been swapped with the FMC and any male character she encountered as apparently she found them all very attractive.

I think that dystopian books shouldn’t focus so much on adding ‘spice’, I understand that for some reason in the current book world that’s what sells books but it really doesn’t need to be focus.

Overall a disappointing read and a series I won’t be continuing.

Silver Elite is my new dystopian obsession.

I have heard so many amazing things about this book so I went into it with very high expectations.I am not a huge fan of The Hunger Games so I was a little concerned that this book wouldn't be for me, however, I absolutely fell in love with it.

One of my problems with dystopian books is that they have been extremely heavy and difficult to follow. I found Silver Elite to be easy to read and thought that the writing flowed beautifully, leaving me wanting more. I loved how prominent the romance was and that it was not overshadowed by the plot. Silver Elite felt very equal parts romance and plot, which romantasy fans like myself will absolutely adore.

Wren is such a badass FMC and she was such a joy to read about. She was such a strong character and I really loved her throughout. Her romance with Cross was my favourite thing about this book and they were so incredibly well matched.

Overall, Silver Elite is an easy five star read and I am beyond excited for the second installment.

The hype for this book is real! I was hooked and devoured it in just a few days. I found it easy to read and follow which is brilliant, as a lot of new dystopians now really feel tough to get through. I thought Wren was such an interesting character and although she made some very questionable decisions, I really enjoyed her storyline. I LOVED the romance as well, it was done so well and I'm intrigued to see how it continues in the next one...

DNF for me sadly.

I've tried a few times since receiving this arc to give it a fair shot (assuming it was a me issue), but I now just don't think this is for me.

I feel like this has a lot of promise, but I was just wasn't on board with the motivations of the characters, the dystopian elements didn't feel detailed enough and again I just couldn't engage with it.