Rating: ★★
Audience: YA Dystopian Romance
Length: 353 pages
Author: Rebecca Ihim
Publisher: DEEP Publishing
Release Date: April 28th, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

You must learn to think, act, and look like everyone else or face death.

Fitting in at school just went to a whole other level.

What do you do when all your thoughts are being measured to make sure you are a common copy of everyone? What do you do when you are graded on how common you are? Your future depends on your ability to conform.

Enrolled in a 22nd-century elite school where being common is celebrated, eighteen-year-old prodigy―Shantavia Lerogaski―is seen as a threat because she is too intelligent. When her sister goes missing, she must sacrifice everything, including her intelligence, to discover the shocking truth about The Commons and save her sister before it is too late.

Despite being valedictorian, Shantavia was supposed to take a gap year, living a peaceful life free from expectations. Now, her sister has gone missing from the elite college that controls the entire world―The Commons. Now, she must find a way to enroll.

Upon arrival at the highly technologized and guarded school, Shantavia begins a series of six inhumane, deathly tests in the six study zones of The Commons. If she does not complete these tests, she will be eliminated. But eliminated to where? She doesn’t know; in fact, no student does.

Things get even more complicated when Shantavia’s fate falls into the hands of the most formidable and powerful Patron, Pesh.

She is unsure if he is a friend or foe so she must fight her dangerous attraction to him—and question everyone, including her closest friends, or risk losing everything.

Can anyone be trusted in such a system? Can Shantavia even trust herself? Will she fall for Pesh? Will she fall for someone else even more ruthless? Will he be her ruin? Or will she find a way to expose The Commons and save everyone that’s dear to her?

Enemies, lovers, betrayals, suspense, and a dash of wit and steamy tension. Enter into the highly addictive and wildly imaginative world of The Commons, where the only way to survive is to be Common.

Thank you to the published for a gifted copy.

!!!!!!!

You may wonder why there’s exclamation points as my review starter this time, it’s because WHY WERE THERE SO MANY EXCLAMATION POINTS IN THIS BOOK. For heavens sakes even when a character said they were whispering it was with *!*. And things like “Runnnnn!!!!” alongside other variations throughout.

And the quote that sent me? “His tongue grabbed my neck.” I’m sorry, WHAT. There were multiple lines like this too?? The kiss scenes were incredibly cringy and honestly the love interest seemed to be a red flag.

I was legitimately intrigued at the beginning with the idea of The Commons. I’m kind of in a dystopian mood so I thought this would fit the bill. I WAS WRONG.

This ended up being a hate read (which I haven’t done in a hot minute). I’m just flabbergasted about many of the plot choices in this book.

Overall audience notes:

• NA Dystopian Romance
• Language: low
• Romance: make-outs
• Violence: moderate
• Content warnings: brief mention of rape (a side character), assault, near death experiences

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