Review 156. Debra Driza – Mila 2.0

Title: Mila 2.0.
Author: Debra Driza.
Pages: 480.
Published: March 12th 2013 by Katherine Tegen Books.
Sort: Part one of “Mila 2.0”
Source: Netgalley & Publisher.

Mila was never meant to learn the truth about her identity. She was a girl living with her mother in a small Minnesota town. She was supposed to forget her past—that she was built in a secret computer science lab and programmed to do things real people would never do. Now she has no choice but to run—from the dangerous operatives who want her terminated because she knows too much and from a mysterious group that wants to capture her alive and unlock her advanced technology. However, what Mila’s becoming is beyond anyone’s imagination, including her own, and it just might save her life.

Rating:

I feel misled. This is what the blurb also says:

”Mila 2.0 is the first book in an electrifying sci-fi thriller series about a teenage girl who discovers that she is an experiment in artificial intelligence. A bold debut and the first book in a Bourne Identity-style trilogy that combines heart-pounding action with a riveting exploration of what it really means to be human.”

I think even Disney gave me more heart-pounding action. This story isn’t a thrilling debut about an android. It’s about a whiny, angsty girl who happens to be a android, but she has more feelings than the average teenager. Hardly anything happens except for running, some fighting and a lot of crying. There were so many situations where I wanted to slam my head against a wall. I’ll walk you through:

The story starts after Mila and her mother moved to a small Minnesota town after her father’s death. She has made some questionable friends and she is trying to find a way to deal with her grief and her strange memories. When Mila is wounded in an accident, she finds out that her mother is actually the scientist who helped to create her. She is an artificial intelligent and they are on the run for the company. She has far too many feelings for just an android, so her mother stole her to give her a normal life. And that is where my annoyance starts. Mila does nothing else than complaining, whining and crying over how unfair her life is. When a new, hot guy called Hunter shows interest in her, she is all over him. He is her cure, they have a special connection and blablab. I don’t get his part in this story and it felt forced. This middle part was so boring and I kept wondering: where is the kick ass android I was hoping for?

When Mila and her mother are discovered, they try to run away. Mila wants to know more about the company, but every time Nicole (mother) tries to tell something, Mila becomes mad. She starts to scream “that it’s not the time to talk about it” and a couple of pages later she is complaining that Nicole is holding back information? She also insists that she isn’t her mother, but she keeps calling her ‘mom’. There were many inconsistencies I didn’t buy.

And WHAT THE HELL Mila. The first thing she’s worried about when they are on the run is that she is leaving Hunter behind.. Are. You. Kidding. Me? You just found out that there are people out there who want to capture you and you worry about a guy you met a few days ago? She is pretty stupid for an android. When they are finally captured and Nicole tells her to hide her emotions, what do you think she does? YEAH. She talks about her emotions all the freaking time. Great way to keep them from killing you.

This story had enough potential, but it was so disappointing. I don’t think I will be reading the next book. I honestly don’t care what is going to happen to Mila.