• Home
  • About
  • Policies
    • Privacy Policy
    • Copyright
    • Disclosure Policy
    • Republication Policy
    • Review Policy
  • Reviews
    • Sortable Archive
    • Reviews by Author
    • Reviews by Narrator
    • Reviews by SubGenre
    • Reviews by Series
    • Reviews by Year
  • Challenges
    • 2024 FINISHING THE SERIES READING CHALLENGE (Archived)
    • In Death Read-A-Long Challenge
  • Giveaways
  • Author Interviews & Guest Posts

A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog

ARC Review: ‘Keystone’ by Katie Delahanty

January 7, 2020

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Affiliate Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links you can use to purchase the book. If you buy the book using that link, A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog earns a small commission at no extra cost to you from any purchases made through these links. You can read the full disclosure underneath the Privacy Policy.

ARC Review: ‘Keystone’ by Katie Delahanty

Keystone

by Katie Delahanty
Published by Entangled: Teen on January 7, 2020
SubGenres: Young Adult Dystopian
Format: Paperback, ARC
Pages: 390
Add to Goodreads
Purchase at Amazon | Barnes & Noble
four-stars

When Ella Karman debuts on the Social Stock Exchange, she finds out life as a high-profile "Influencer" isn't what she expected. Everyone around her is consumed by their rankings, in creating the smoke and mirrors that make them the envy of the world.
But then Ella’s best friend betrays her, her rankings tank, and she loses—everything.
Leaving her old life behind, she joins Keystone, a secret school for thieves, where students are being trained to steal everything analog and original because something—or someone—is changing history to suit their needs.
Partnered with the annoyingly hot—and utterly impossible—Garrett Alexander, who has plenty of his own secrets, Ella is forced to return to the Influencer world, while unraveling a conspiracy that began decades ago.
One wrong move and she could lose everything—again.


I was excited to read Keystone by Katie Delahanty since the synopsis of the book intrigued me. It was something different from what I had been reading lately. It’s a Young Adult Dystopian, and it involves a world of everyone wanting to have the highest rankings as an ‘Influencer.’ Unfortunately, if you don’t keep up with your rankings or if you do something to have your rankings tank, then you may end up being Unrankable. It’s a world where I would not want to live in at all.

The female character in the story, Ella Karman, has been hidden from that world until her parents make her debut into it. She finds out right away that she can’t trust anyone when it comes to rankings, not even her closest friend, Deena. Deena ends up betraying Ella, and she has no one to turn to in the book until someone approaches her about a secret school. She’s invited to join the secret school called Keystone, which teaches thieves otherwise known as ‘Disconnects’ (Definition: ones that don’t want to be part of Rankings and want to preserve history) to steal everything analog and original history item. This way, they can protect these items in a Vault, instead of having them changed like the Influencers keep doing out in their world.

Ella is going to learn how to become one of those thieves, and she’s forced to partner up with the annoying but sexy Garrett Alexandar. Garrett was a mysterious character in the book, and I loved the banter between Ella and Garrett. Garrett is one annoying character, but he won me over on how he protected Ella throughout the story. Ella was confused by Garrett throughout it all, but I knew there was something secretive about why Garrett was all for having Ella as a partner. I loved how Katie weaved everything together with these two at the end.

This book reminded me of the movie The Goonies, and it even references it several times in the book. The Goonieshappens to be one of my favorite movies, and I love watching it every once in a while. I loved the idea of a school teaching about stealing original history items to preserve them in a world of a digital age where everything is about who has the highest-ranking and fake people. It reminds me of what is happening in today’s world. It’s all about rankings being high and who has the most likes and friends on the Internet.

There is so much I enjoyed about this story and how Katie Delahanty kept me turning the pages, but I don’t want to give anything away. If you enjoy Young Adult Dystopian books, then I recommend this book. It’s different, which is always a plus for me. The one thing that bothered me was the ending since it left me wanting more, and I was in shock with what happened between the main characters. I needed some answers, and I’m crossing my fingers; there are more books after this one. I need more of Ella’s adventures in this world that Katie Delahanty has created for her readers.

This post contains affiliate links you can use to purchase the book. If you buy the book using that link, I will receive a small commission from the sale. It will help sponsor future giveaways but costs you nothing extra. You can read the full disclosure underneath the Privacy Policy.


About Katie Delahanty

Katie lives in Los Angeles with her husband, pre-school-age twin daughters and toddler son. Growing up in Pittsburgh, she loved old movies and playing dress up, but never considered telling stories of her own. It wasn’t until she was asked to start a blog for the sleepwear company she worked for that she began to write. Not knowing what to say about lingerie, she decided to write a fictional serial about a girl who was chasing her dream of being a costume designer and fell in love with a rock star along the way. And that’s when Katie fell in love with storytelling. She’s been waking before dawn to write ever since.

Website | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
FranJessca
FranJessca
Owner/Reviewer at A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog
I guess I should type a bio here. I'm FranJessca, or Fran for short. I'm the owner/reviewer behind A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog. I've been reading and reviewing books on my blog since leaving the Navy in 2011, and I will keep doing it as long as possible. My favorite genres will always be Romance & Fantasy, and I read every subgenre underneath those two genres. (Sorry, not a fan of nonfiction, so don't try to convince me to read it.)
My obsession with reading started over 30+ years ago when I went to my first Scholastic Book Fair and found R.L. Stine's Fear Street series. Later, I came across Anne Rice's novels at my public library when I was fourteen when my obsession with vampires started. I was the girl who preferred to be a vampire over a princess any day. My husband says I would leave him a heartbeat for a vampire that looked like Spike or Angel (from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) or Damon Salvatore from The Vampire Diaries. (It's true, though, and he's accepted it.)
FranJessca
Latest posts by FranJessca (see all)
  • Book Blitz + Giveaway: ‘Intimate Secret’ by D.C. Stone - May 8, 2025
  • ARC Review: ‘Shield of Sparrows’ by Devney Perry - May 7, 2025
  • ARC Review: ‘Archangel’s Ascension’ by Nalini Singh - May 6, 2025

Share this post:

Share on X (Twitter) Share on Facebook Share on Pinterest Share on Email
4 Star ReviewsBook Read 2020Book Reviews 2020Katie Delahanty

About the Blogger

About the Blogger

My name is FranJessca. I wear many hats: I'm a Wife, Mom, Navy Veteran, Shy Introvert, Tattooed, Romance and Fantasy Reader, and Book Blogger.

Follow FranJessca

  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Bloglovin'
  • Amazon
  • Instagram
  • Goodreads

Currently Reading

Review: ‘Rebel Hawke’ by Gwyn McNamee

Books Reviewed in 2025

A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog has reviewed 53 books this year.

42%

May Reviews

  • Shield of Sparrows by Devney Perry
  • Archangel's Ascension by Nalini Singh
  • Wild Invitation by Nalini Singh
  • The Wind Weaver by Julie Johnson
  • Kiss of Snow by Nalini Singh

FTC Disclosure/Info

In accordance with the current FTC disclosure rules for bloggers & reviewers, the books you see reviewed on A Book Lovin’ Mama’s Blog are either purchased by me or procured from NetGalley, Edelweiss, directly from the author or publisher or PR company in an exchange for an honest review. I do not receive compensation of any kind for the reviews.

Purchases made through buy links (Amazon specifically) may result in a small commission, which helps support the blog and fund giveaways.

Please review the Policies above on the Menu Bar.

© 2012- 2025 A Book Lovin Mama's Blog, All Rights Reserved.

Site Design by JennJ Designs