Goodreads Summary:
In the series debut The Testing, sixteen-year-old Cia Vale was chosen by the United Commonwealth government as one of the best and brightest graduates of all the colonies . . . a promising leader in the effort to revitalize postwar civilization.
In Independent Study, Cia is a freshman at the University in Tosu City with her hometown sweetheart, Tomas—and though the government has tried to erase her memory of the brutal horrors of The Testing, Cia remembers. Her attempts to expose the ugly truth behind the government’s murderous programs put her—and her loved ones—in a world of danger. But the future of the Commonwealth depends on her.
My Initial Thoughts:
Honestly? I was freaking out. The Testing left off with a HUGE cliffhanger that I didn’t know where this was going. I didn’t bring my hopes up just in case it wasn’t as good as The Testing. Sometimes sequels can be disappointing.
Review:
Oh Boy. Oh Boy. Oh Boy. I’m so giddy because this book surpassed my expectations. I’m internally jumping up and down right now. I’m really starting to like Cia. The development of her character was awesome and we also got to finally know what happened to Zendra and Tomas. Dun Dun Duuuuuun! I’m not going to tell you guys, so go read the book if you haven’t.
Independent Study did not fall into the sequel slump category (or is it the sophomore category? I forget). It felt as an equal to the first book. Great sequel. The action, The politics, The Action (yes, I had to say that again) and The never ending tests. It was all brilliant! I started reading around 9 or 10 pm and finished it at 1am. I couldn’t even fall asleep because it had my blood pumping and the adrenaline rushing through my body.
I know a lot of people don’t like The Testing Trilogy because it has a few similar qualities to THG. I think being compared to THG is an honor and shouldn’t be a turn off if you’re planning on reading the book. Marketing is a tricky business and sometimes the marketing team of the publishing companies take risks and say stuff like “The Next Hunger Games” because they are trying to say, “Guys this is good and has some of the same traits as THG so if you liked THG you might just like this one too!” Sometimes slogans like these do get overused (I’m looking at Twilight and how it gave vampires a VERY negative light.)
Overall, read this book and read this series. It’s amazing!
The Talking Bookworm 
Now I want to read this one again xD I keep putting it off because I know I’ll need Graduation Day right after! But Zendra was the mystery I really needed to figure out… Okay maybe after TMI and Cress 😉