We shall start with the things that made this book enjoyable.
What I Liked:
The setting was fabulous. I mean, who wouldn't want to be reading about a Colombian beach and jungle and such? I don't think I have ever read a book set in Colombia before, maybe even anywhere in South America, so this was fun! And the atmosphere was written quite convincingly, too. The adventure piece of the book was definitely exciting. I was very curious as to what was going to happen, who was going to survive. I love a survival book, and this one definitely delivered to that end. It was fast-paced (it took place in the span of 100 hours, after all!) and was definitely compulsively readable, from an entertainment standpoint. There were some twists that I absolutely did not see coming. And I liked that aspect of it- especially toward the end of the book, when the suspense was at a high point.
What I Didn't:
Oh, these characters are complete asshats. Most of them, anyway. Spoiled, rude, rich, completely selfish asshats. And I don't think I am even adequately describing them, but I am trying to keep the profanities to a minimum? Trust that I yelled tons at them while I read the book. Along with a lot of "why are you all the actual worst people ever?" And look, I get that sometimes characters are not the best, and maybe that is part of the story, but they were hard to stomach. And even harder to care about the fate of. I did have some feelings for Maddie. She was less... rude than the rest, though she was still kind of judgmental. But then, so I was I, so could I blame Maddie? No. Which brings me to my next gripe: If you are in the middle of a hostage situation in a damn foreign jungle, maybe you cool it with the drama? I understand that they are teens but... I was also a teen. And I promise, I would not be worried about who was hooking up with who at what bar if I were a hostage. I would be 100% concerned with not getting shot. Hookups can come later. If there was a later. Because I would be a hostage. Some of the outcomes seemed a little... convenient. Or unbelievable. Some were both. Still entertaining, but required some suspension of disbelief that I wasn't always able to muster.
Will I Continue the Series?
Possibly. I am moderately curious to see what happens, and hoping for some character growth. I won't be sprinting to get it, but yeah, I'd give it another shot.
Bottom Line:
While it was definitely exciting and entertaining, it was hard to overlook all the issues I had.
This book was a bit different than I expected. I don't know what I expected exactly, but something a little more thriller-like, a little more mysterious. But really, this is mostly a story of Darcy's journey, and the obstacles she has to overcome.
I liked how strong Darcy was, and how important family was to her, too. But sometimes I wasn't really connecting to her, which was tough, but I liked her determination a lot. Her family was extremely close- her aunt and cousin even living on the same land. And sometimes that made for some family troubles, but they were fiercely protective of each other, which I really liked.
The story follows Darcy through a difficult summer. She's working a very hard, physically laborious job, all while trying to overcome some really nasty and unfair rumors. There is a lot of slut-shaming being thrown Darcy's way, and it is not okay. Then there's the disappearance of a former friend, and the town is quite focused on that, of course.
And then... there's a beauty pageant. And honestly, I am not really even sure why this needs to be a thing? Maybe it is so we can see that Nell is capable of things that her mom refuses to let her do? But as a side character, who the reader already knows is capable, I don't see how this changes anything. Meanwhile, at work and socially, Darcy is facing harassment from a horrible dude. It was just... a lot of different stuff going on, and I kind of wished it was whittled down just a bit.
Bottom Line: I liked that Darcy was given a chance to change and grow and discover, but I don't know that she needed all these storylines in which to do so. Had one or two been cut out, the focus on the others probably would have made me a bit more connected to the book.
It is future/dystopian, but a really fresh take. I liked the medical aspect a lot, and I liked that it focused on distorting the brain. Because frankly, that is so fascinating in a creepy "oh crap I hope this kind of thing doesn't actually happen" way. But it feels plausible. Okay, maybe not this exact situation obviously, but some form of awful medical control. Look, I have read a ton of dystopian and future-set books, and this felt very original to me, so I think that says quite a bit! The formatting is unique! I love me some unique formatting. This is done through Lauren's journal entries, her sister's footnotes (which were probably my fave!), and clinical session transcripts. The journal entries worked really well because the reader got to know Lauren quite well through them, so she didn't seem so abstract. And the other bits filled in some things that Lauren wasn't privy to. Speaking of Lauren, it was impossible to not feel for her. I mean, brain surgeries? Not knowing who to trust? Not knowing what is happening to your own body? That is a lot for one person to handle, especially a young person. And most especially a young person who has spent her whole life completely oblivious to the truth of the world around her. The possibility of an unreliable narrator. Was Lauren reliable? I am not telling you, and I myself was unsure for so long. Which made the book that much more high stakes. Because as much as Lauren doesn't know who to trust throughout the book, neither do we as the reader. It was fast paced and engaging. I flew through the book, not only because I was invested in the outcome, but just because there were constantly new twists and discoveries. Plus, the formatting made for a really enjoyable read as well.
I think the only thing that I wasn't a huge fan of was that I did have some trouble believing the whole "not understanding sarcasm/lies" part- because I don't really know if that is how the brain works? But alas, it was easy enough to get over once I got into the book!
Bottom Line:
A great fresh take on future/dystopian novels, from the plot to the formatting. It was engaging and entertaining, and a definite win for me! ...more
This was a quick book, and an entertaining read, though I don't think the plot was particularly groundbreaking. I loved the Australian setting and the sense of adventure. It was a super fast moving book and a quick read, and while I didn't completely feel connected to the characters, I liked them enough to be invested in the story and the outcome for the characters.
This book follows the path of quite a few survival/dystopians, so it isn't completely fresh, but the setting and some of the situations the characters face are unique so it feels a bit different. I'm definitely curious to find out what happens next, so I plan on reading the sequel.
Bottom Line: If you're a fan of dystopian, you'd probably enjoy this. It's quick and entertaining, if not completely novel.
The space adventure was certainly fun, and I liked learning about the Shadow, and the power- and destruction- it had over the people of space. The book was a bit slow to start, but then I became invested in the characters, the plot, even the politics of the universe. But then the excitement started to fade a bit again for me. There was a lot of unnecessary information, and I often found myself skimming a bit and not really missing anything. I felt like the pace could have been picked up, certain scenes could have been cut shorter or eliminated, and the story would have been the same- and more readable, certainly.
Will I Continue the Series? Maybe. I did like the characters enough to want to know what happens next, but I also don't know if I can deal with another long-winded book.
Bottom Line: While I enjoyed the characters and the story, I often found myself succumbing to periods of boredom.
I... have no idea what to make of this book. This may be one of the hardest reviews I have written. I feel bad because I want to say more, and I feel like this review won't even be helpful, but I am going to do my best. Here are some things I can tell you about my experience with this book:
It's very dark, and quite twisted. The title doesn't lie, this is not going to give you a case of the chuckles. I read this book in one day, which means I was unable to put it down. This is a rarity for me, so it says a lot about the author's ability to lure a reader in, for sure! I was/am/always will be kind of confused? Like- I get most of the story, I do. But I am not wholly sure of everything, and I am kind of a more concrete thinker and I want someone to tell me, firmly, what the hell happened. No seriously, this was messed up. In a mostly good way. I think.
Bottom Line:
If you like books that don't shy away from the dark stuff, and that also may leave your mind reeling a bit, this is the book for you. Mindy's writing is on point as always, and the book is absolutely addictive. I'm just not sure I know what even happened.
But things... they didn't go as I had hoped? Okay. Look. It wasn't all bad. So let's start with the things I liked!
I did get more Fowler and Luna, yay! I shipped them so much in the first book, so I was happy that there is more shipping to be had. It's quite a fast read. I was done in no time, and it was really readable- I wanted to get to the end to know what happened. So for sheer entertainment value, it gets points from me.
There were... problems though. Things like...
The dialogue felt a mess. It was... stunted, if that makes sense. Robotic, perhaps. And Fowler kept talking about Luna's "taste", and I started to get pretty freaked out. Once, twice, even three times, I could handle. But dude was talking about "tasting her" every three seconds. And like, they were disgusting- had been fighting for their lives and stuff? She even talked about being covered in slime and such. So this was not an appealing visual. At all. [image][image] And for just so long, they both kept saying the same thing over. And over. And over. Like, okay, I got it the first forty-seven times you declared that emotion. It was exhausting. A lot of the things that happened were quite predictable throughout the book. Especially once it got going, and you could see where the plot was headed. The ending was such an anticlimactic, out of left field disaster. Look, I didn't even dislike it, per se. But it was... random. And incredibly easy. Too easy. And if we had taken like, 1/100th of the time that Fowler spent "tasting" Luna on a better ending... well I think it could have been much more believable and reasonable.
Bottom Line:
This is hard, because it really was not the best sequel. And if I were being wholly objective, it is probably a disaster. However, I tend to rate with my heart, as we know, and I did find enjoyability in it. So it wasn't all bad. Just... mostly.
Oh, where to begin with this one? Well. It's a retelling of Sleeping Beauty, but it doesn't feel like a straight-up retelling which I really liked. I liked when things are more loosely based as opposed to a carbon copy, and this was definitely its own story. It focuses on two sisters, Isabelle (Isbe) and Aurora. I really loved Isbe, she was my favorite character I think. Basically, in the beginning of the story, things in the kingdom all go to hell, and Isbe runs away and Aurora ends up... well, I don't even know where. But she isn't in the world she knew.
Their sisterly bond is awesome, they're both desperate to get back to each other. Isbe risks her life over and over again just to try to save Aurora. Though, be warned, there is a potential love... I don't even know, there's a lot of people involved. Like, it's not a 5-person situation, but it's maybe two triangles? But I don't know if that's how it'll play out, but if that stuff bugs you... heads up. It didn't bother me, but what did bother me was that their were so many "misunderstandings" within the potential relationships. Which is one of my least favorite tropes, and it happened a lot, honestly. But, there was also some enjoyable banter involved, so that was a plus.
There were faeries. I didn't fully understand their world, but I think those questions will likely be answered in the next book. What we did learn of their world was mainly info-dumpy, but at least I started to know some stuff. Parts of the book were slow, and I did struggle with it at times. But I also was invested enough to want to know what would become of Isbe and Aurora, so I kept going.
Will I Read the Next Book: Eh, probably. This one ends with unanswered questions, and I like to have answers.
Bottom Line: While this is a unique story, I felt a little lost at times, and a little bored at others. But, I did like the characters enough to want to know their fates. ...more
The world is incredibly bleak and dire, and I love it. Throughout the series, this world is portrayed as a real downer. Everything is a mess, and somehow everyone is worse. It's post-apocalyptic so you know it's not exactly going to be sunshine and flowers, but it's just a real disaster. The author also does a great job of making the atmosphere feel very desperate. While the main premise of everyone being born with a twin does require a bit of suspension of disbelief, the author built the world well, and it makes for a very compelling storyline. In so many cases, characters' biggest enemies are also their womb-mates. In addition, when one twin dies, the other does too, which complicates things even further. Basically, the relationships make the stakes even higher- in the midst of an already very high stakes world. There is a lot of gray morality in the characters' lives. There are so many awful decisions to be made. They basically run the gamut of bad to worse, and there is basically never a "right" or "good" choice. It's all trying to figure out what is the least of the evils. There are just enough small glimmers of hope scattered throughout the series that it makes it bearable. Most of the characters were great, especially the main character. Cass goes through so much in the course of the series, she changes in so many ways, while still holding strong to her core values. The groups of people she meets along the way are equally as multifaceted, and add quite a bit to the story.
The Not as Good:
The book (and the series) did move a bit slowly at times. This is probably the biggest gripe for me overall in the series, there were times that things felt a little draggy. But, then the action would pick up and things would be okay again. Pacing was a bit off throughout for me. I was kind of overwhelmed with more minor characters at times. As the series progresses, a lot of people are added to the mix, and especially between books two and three, I had a hard time remembering everyone (or remembering who was important enough to need to be remembered). Okay, the main reason I am giving this book a lower rating than the other two? I hated the ending. Hated, loathed, entirely raged against. I honestly think this is going to be the kind that people either love or hate- I hated it. I'm going to put this in spoiler tags, though I won't actually spoil it- I just know some people like to be completely in the dark about endings, and some people want to know. So for the want-to-knows: (view spoiler)[I felt like the way things ended kind of negated a lot of the development that some of the characters, including Cass (especially Cass, tbh) had gone through. (hide spoiler)]
Bottom Line: A solid series, which I think would have stayed in the 3.5-4.0 star range had I detested the ending a little less. Definitely bleak, so if you're looking for a darker book with a good cast of characters, this series could be for you! But beware of occasional slowness if you're not a fan....more
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