The Sophisticates Series by Christine Manzari

Being a Sophisticate of the Program seems like it'd be a pretty sweet deal: a little genetic alteration and anyone can be smarter, faster, and stronger. It's a dream come true. All you have to give up is your freedom. Cleo is a Sophisticate and she has a bright future in the Program. But she has a secret. When she gets upset, bad things happen. Explosive things. Things she can't control. When her secret is discovered, she's sent to the Academy to train in the military branch of the Program... moreBeing a Sophisticate of the Program seems like it'd be a pretty sweet deal: a little genetic alteration and anyone can be smarter, faster, and stronger. It's a dream come true. All you have to give up is your freedom. Cleo is a Sophisticate and she has a bright future in the Program. But she has a secret. When she gets upset, bad things happen. Explosive things. Things she can't control. When her secret is discovered, she's sent to the Academy to train in the military branch of the Program. She's destined to be a human weapon in the war that's been going on since Wormwood occurred nearly 30 years ago. She soon learns that although her ability is unique, there are others like her -- other Sophisticates with lethal skills and odd code names like Archerfish and Mimic Octopus. Immersed in a dangerous game of supernatural powers and dubious motives, Cleo doesn't know who to trust. Ozzy, the annoyingly attractive cadet who has perfect aim in weapons class and deviant lips behind closed doors, begs her not to use her powers. He's the golden boy of the Program, but can she trust him? Or will she find herself a target, caught in his crosshairs? less

The Others are out there. Somewhere. And the Program wants the Deviant Dozen to find them. As a member of the Dozen, Cleo is still learning to master her deviation and she’s not having much luck. With the ability to cause explosions with just a thought, losing control always results in fiery disaster, making Cleo feel like a monster. She vows to ignore the urge to use her deviation and reclaim her humanity... moreThe Others are out there. Somewhere. And the Program wants the Deviant Dozen to find them. As a member of the Dozen, Cleo is still learning to master her deviation and she’s not having much luck. With the ability to cause explosions with just a thought, losing control always results in fiery disaster, making Cleo feel like a monster. She vows to ignore the urge to use her deviation and reclaim her humanity. But when terrible things start to happen at the Academy and Cleo is blamed for actions and events she doesn’t remember, she fears that the monster is taking over and she is becoming the dangerous weapon the Program created her to be. The one bright spot in Cleo’s life is Ozzy, the cocky Sophisticate with perfect aim who makes her heart race. But it seems whenever things start to heat up between them, Ozzy is sent away on another secret mission, and Cleo is left alone to ponder their relationship and deal with the aftermath of the accusations made against her. As the evidence against Cleo becomes more compelling and her closest friends turn against her, she finds her own conviction waning as she wonders if she really is as innocent as she wants to believe. And Cleo isn’t the only one struggling. Ozzy has always defined himself by his perfect aim and superior deviant skills, but after failed missions and bad choices, he realizes he can no longer trust his skills—or himself. Caught in a storm of shocking allegations and harsh punishments, will Cleo’s conviction finally break her? less

The hunted have become the hunters. Cleo finally has the freedom that she's always craved, but it's come at a terrible price--the Program wants to terminate the Deviant Dozen and now she and her friends are on the run. To make matters worse, she's finally learned to use her deviation--except when she's around Ozzy. Even an innocent touch or kiss can cause her skills to spiral out of control... moreThe hunted have become the hunters. Cleo finally has the freedom that she's always craved, but it's come at a terrible price--the Program wants to terminate the Deviant Dozen and now she and her friends are on the run. To make matters worse, she's finally learned to use her deviation--except when she's around Ozzy. Even an innocent touch or kiss can cause her skills to spiral out of control. He's the last person she'd ever want to hurt, but he's also the one in the most danger if she can't learn to master her skills and emotions. Ozzy's duty has always been to protect the Dozen, but now he must make the difficult choice between laying low to stay safe or starting an all-out war so that the Dozen can truly be free. He knows that if they have any chance of outsmarting the Program, they'll have to look for help in unlikely places--even if that means trusting their enemies. Rune and the Others have always been anonymous, hiding in the shadows as they carried out acts of terror and revenge. That all changed the moment the Program discovered they existed. To survive, Rune and the Others will be forced to make an alliance that is just as likely to kill them as it is to save them. Program officials are determined to erase their mistakes, but when they terrorize innocent civilians and Sophisticates in an effort to flush out the Dozen, they discover a harsh truth--the weapons they created are fighting back. less

After a terrorist attack that caused more than 29 million deaths in the US, the government created the Sophisticates—genetically modified children designed to become the perfect soldiers. The Sophisticates were given abilities that made them faster, smarter, and stronger. The only thing they weren’t given was freedom. But is anything ever truly perfect?Seventeen-year-old Cleo has been a Sophisticate her entire life... moreAfter a terrorist attack that caused more than 29 million deaths in the US, the government created the Sophisticates—genetically modified children designed to become the perfect soldiers. The Sophisticates were given abilities that made them faster, smarter, and stronger. The only thing they weren’t given was freedom. But is anything ever truly perfect?Seventeen-year-old Cleo has been a Sophisticate her entire life. When she begins to exhibit the ability to cause things to explode with merely a thought, she’s sent to the Academy to develop her deviation. She soon learns that there are other Sophisticates like her, Deviants with lethal skills. Immersed in a deadly game of supernatural powers and dubious motives, Cleo doesn’t know who to trust. Ozzy, the golden boy of the Sophisticates program, insists that Cleo should abandon training her deviation. His fierce interest in Cleo only makes her more determined to avoid him.As Cleo is pulled deeper into her role as a human weapon, all she truly wants is to be free, but there's more danger than she ever realized. There are some things that even the government doesn’t know and when the mistakes of the past are revealed and the Deviants start fighting back, no one is safe.Fans of X-men and The Darkest Minds will enjoy this dystopian trilogy. less