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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
I’m not sure what I was expecting from this new series, but while I did like it, I wasn’t exactly blown away. I really enjoyed the Divergent series (right up until that last book, anyway), and was intrigued with the billing of Chosen Ones as an ‘adult’ book about a group of 5 heroes, ten years after they apparently saved the world as teenagers.
The book is actually a whole lot more than what the blurb lets on: much of it takes place in an alternate-dimension Chicago, and this world is full of magic. Nothing is quite as it appears, and the whole concept is very original.
Roth’s writing is strong, and the plot is clearly developed. The book is very compelling at the beginning, but there is quite a lull in the action towards the middle. Fortunately, things pick up again near the end, which is really quite brilliant. No cliffhangers, but I’m definitely down for a second book.
From the blurb, you would think that the book is about all of the 5 heroes… but really it’s about Sloane. One of the 5 dies near the beginning, another is nearly absent from the rest of the book, and the other two are peripheral at best. I’m not sure if the next book will deal more with the other ‘chosen ones,’ but I would love more development of those characters. For much of the book, I didn’t like Sloane very much, and she felt a lot like a YA character trapped in an adult character’s body, but she grew on me. Esther and Mox are really fun characters, but again, I would love more about them. This is really a 3 1/2 star book for me.
The book is actually a whole lot more than what the blurb lets on: much of it takes place in an alternate-dimension Chicago, and this world is full of magic. Nothing is quite as it appears, and the whole concept is very original.
Roth’s writing is strong, and the plot is clearly developed. The book is very compelling at the beginning, but there is quite a lull in the action towards the middle. Fortunately, things pick up again near the end, which is really quite brilliant. No cliffhangers, but I’m definitely down for a second book.
From the blurb, you would think that the book is about all of the 5 heroes… but really it’s about Sloane. One of the 5 dies near the beginning, another is nearly absent from the rest of the book, and the other two are peripheral at best. I’m not sure if the next book will deal more with the other ‘chosen ones,’ but I would love more development of those characters. For much of the book, I didn’t like Sloane very much, and she felt a lot like a YA character trapped in an adult character’s body, but she grew on me. Esther and Mox are really fun characters, but again, I would love more about them. This is really a 3 1/2 star book for me.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
10 years ago, Sloane and her friends did something amazing. After years and years of fear and pain, after battling and losing to their enemy they were finally victorious and the Dark One finally was defeated. Sloane feels like she is the only one who has not moved on. Its not that she isn't trying to move on but its hard with the PTSD and the paparazzi. She just wants to live her life in peace. Then tragedy strikes again and the world she finds herself in completely changes. There's a new dark force to battle, a new person in charge of Sloane's life. This time, though, Sloane isn't a child and she is going to make her own decisions. Will she save the world again? Will she go dark? Will she finally find herself able to cope with the choices and events of 10 years ago?
I really enjoyed this book and I'm definitely reading the next one, assuming there will be one.
I really enjoyed this book and I'm definitely reading the next one, assuming there will be one.
https://book-bucket.com/2020/05/27/chosen-ones-by-veronica-roth/
This is a genre I particularly like when it is written for adults, but despite being marketed as the author's first adult fantasy this still felt like a YA novel due to the short, simple paragraphs, dialogue and fast pacing. It also had the feel of a sequel despite being the first book in a series.
I really enjoyed the premise of a group of adults who achieved hero status in their teens and ten years later are struggling with the consequences of their experiences. Between them they suffer from PTSD, addiction, anxiety and trust issues. The first part of the book deals with this aspect of their lives. Sloane in particular is complex and fascinating. I would have liked to see a lot more of Albie's character, as he and Sloane were the most affected by previous events due to a shared trauma.
The story slowed down a little for me at the start of the second part, but then picked up the pace again quickly, introducing us to two more characters: the mysterious and charismatic Mox, and Ziva who - like Albie - I would have liked to know more about. Once I hit Part Three I couldn't put the book down!
The storyline itself was interesting and I enjoyed seeing the twists that went into the character development of the main players. I'm looking forward to seeing how the development continues in the next book.
https://book-bucket.com/2020/05/27/chosen-ones-by-veronica-roth/
This is a genre I particularly like when it is written for adults, but despite being marketed as the author's first adult fantasy this still felt like a YA novel due to the short, simple paragraphs, dialogue and fast pacing. It also had the feel of a sequel despite being the first book in a series.
I really enjoyed the premise of a group of adults who achieved hero status in their teens and ten years later are struggling with the consequences of their experiences. Between them they suffer from PTSD, addiction, anxiety and trust issues. The first part of the book deals with this aspect of their lives. Sloane in particular is complex and fascinating. I would have liked to see a lot more of Albie's character, as he and Sloane were the most affected by previous events due to a shared trauma.
The story slowed down a little for me at the start of the second part, but then picked up the pace again quickly, introducing us to two more characters: the mysterious and charismatic Mox, and Ziva who - like Albie - I would have liked to know more about. Once I hit Part Three I couldn't put the book down!
The storyline itself was interesting and I enjoyed seeing the twists that went into the character development of the main players. I'm looking forward to seeing how the development continues in the next book.
https://book-bucket.com/2020/05/27/chosen-ones-by-veronica-roth/
Started reading this on a whim, not sure why since I disliked the Divergent series anyway, but I suppose I was intrigued by the premise of the sequel of what happens to the Chosen Ones after they've defeated the Big Bad. I thought this was going to be more of a deconstruction of this type of narrative, maybe a subversion of all the cliche stories in this direction, like maybe in the end it's revealed the government lied to them all along or something.
But nope, the angle of following these people (POV of main character Sloan, one of the Chosen Ones) who had been made famous and been essentially child soldiers, how they deal with trauma and PTSD and trying to live life after their "peak", all shifted after the Part 1 introduction. The world portrayed was already so adherent to the cliches of comic book movie premises and everything, so full of holes to be poked with logic, that it already seemed like a parody- I suppose I'd forgotten that this is how YA type fantasy/apocalyptic stories sound like (another issue, later).
Part 2 instead deviated from exploring the world after the defeat of evil, into an entire alternate universe. There's magic with breathing and whistling and siphoning nonsense, complete with more descriptions of architecture and differences in the Chicago skyline, and long descriptions of costumes that Hunger Games started as a running THING, then just a bunch of filler that was supposed to be interesting world building but just fell flat. I really wasn't interested in this other world and the blathering about the core of magic being intent was just unsound to me as the core of this world. Most of the time passed in this section consisted of Sloan and the other two Matt and Esther just being trained and told about the world, then Sloan being suspicious and finding out new truths in pieces, anyways. It really dragged.
By the time Part 3 rolled around, with the shocking reveal of the Big Bad Resurrected and everything, the story just turned into the urban fantasy/scifi/apocalyptic-lite premise that was completely uninteresting, and there was just nothing novel or well-done to hold the story together for me. Maybe I was also skim reading trying to finish this faster, or maybe I'm just dumb, but a lot of the mumbo jumbo was confusing or unclear to me- who exactly Nero/The Dark One was, what his motivations were with all the Chosen Ones summoned, what his plan with Mox was then killing the army, what he was doing why he held the fabric of the two worlds together, why exactly the Needle was the all-important artifact and how exactly Sloan did the combining of worlds thing, etc. Even just the idea of how far this reaches- like if maybe because Sloan subconsciously hates, for example, the Indian Ocean, would this combined world would just not have it now? What if she hated North Korea and in this combined universe, the whole Korean peninsula and people just didn't exist?
A lot of this world is baffling to me; how prophecies are taken seriously with government agencies propping up all this, what exactly the other Chosen Ones even did, what Matt even did to be the Main Chosen One, why the world would accept that some villain tearing up ONLY the continental U.S. who has caused millions of deaths is just presumed dead but body never recovered, and a bunch of TEENS are celebrated mythical prophesied beings, in this MODERN world set in our society? The mixture of this being urban/ parallel universe fantasy with magic, but also sci-fi with all the time travel and parallel universe, with a heaping of apocalyptic vibe, REALLY didn't mix for me.
This also did not feel like an adult fantasy book at all, I was surprised that the characters' ages were all almost thirty. They all sounded and talked and thought like teenagers, basically this was still a YA book in all aspects. Sloan's whole romance with Matt was clumsy, and I was confused as to how Mox was now the new love interest. The skill and sophistication and complexity that I expected from the premise and the idea of Veronica Roth writing adult stuff now, is just not here. I just never rubbed well with Veronica Roth's writing I guess, and this did not prove the exception. This actually reminds me of The Host in terms of reading experience for me but opposite, because I remember enjoying reading that at the time.
But nope, the angle of following these people (POV of main character Sloan, one of the Chosen Ones) who had been made famous and been essentially child soldiers, how they deal with trauma and PTSD and trying to live life after their "peak", all shifted after the Part 1 introduction. The world portrayed was already so adherent to the cliches of comic book movie premises and everything, so full of holes to be poked with logic, that it already seemed like a parody- I suppose I'd forgotten that this is how YA type fantasy/apocalyptic stories sound like (another issue, later).
Part 2 instead deviated from exploring the world after the defeat of evil, into an entire alternate universe. There's magic with breathing and whistling and siphoning nonsense, complete with more descriptions of architecture and differences in the Chicago skyline, and long descriptions of costumes that Hunger Games started as a running THING, then just a bunch of filler that was supposed to be interesting world building but just fell flat. I really wasn't interested in this other world and the blathering about the core of magic being intent was just unsound to me as the core of this world. Most of the time passed in this section consisted of Sloan and the other two Matt and Esther just being trained and told about the world, then Sloan being suspicious and finding out new truths in pieces, anyways. It really dragged.
By the time Part 3 rolled around, with the shocking reveal of the Big Bad Resurrected and everything, the story just turned into the urban fantasy/scifi/apocalyptic-lite premise that was completely uninteresting, and there was just nothing novel or well-done to hold the story together for me. Maybe I was also skim reading trying to finish this faster, or maybe I'm just dumb, but a lot of the mumbo jumbo was confusing or unclear to me- who exactly Nero/The Dark One was, what his motivations were with all the Chosen Ones summoned, what his plan with Mox was then killing the army, what he was doing why he held the fabric of the two worlds together, why exactly the Needle was the all-important artifact and how exactly Sloan did the combining of worlds thing, etc. Even just the idea of how far this reaches- like if maybe because Sloan subconsciously hates, for example, the Indian Ocean, would this combined world would just not have it now? What if she hated North Korea and in this combined universe, the whole Korean peninsula and people just didn't exist?
A lot of this world is baffling to me; how prophecies are taken seriously with government agencies propping up all this, what exactly the other Chosen Ones even did, what Matt even did to be the Main Chosen One, why the world would accept that some villain tearing up ONLY the continental U.S. who has caused millions of deaths is just presumed dead but body never recovered, and a bunch of TEENS are celebrated mythical prophesied beings, in this MODERN world set in our society? The mixture of this being urban/ parallel universe fantasy with magic, but also sci-fi with all the time travel and parallel universe, with a heaping of apocalyptic vibe, REALLY didn't mix for me.
This also did not feel like an adult fantasy book at all, I was surprised that the characters' ages were all almost thirty. They all sounded and talked and thought like teenagers, basically this was still a YA book in all aspects. Sloan's whole romance with Matt was clumsy, and I was confused as to how Mox was now the new love interest. The skill and sophistication and complexity that I expected from the premise and the idea of Veronica Roth writing adult stuff now, is just not here. I just never rubbed well with Veronica Roth's writing I guess, and this did not prove the exception. This actually reminds me of The Host in terms of reading experience for me but opposite, because I remember enjoying reading that at the time.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love Veronica Roths' writing - usually - but this one didn't work for me. I would give it a 3.5 stars, if that were possible.
I felt like a few of the twists and turns were manufactured in desperation. I wanted to love this book, but didn't. Even at the end, I wasn't sure I really had a good understanding of some of the characters and their motivations.
However, if you like super-powered reads, anything by Veronica Roth, and heroes who put others above themselves, you may really love this book.
I felt like a few of the twists and turns were manufactured in desperation. I wanted to love this book, but didn't. Even at the end, I wasn't sure I really had a good understanding of some of the characters and their motivations.
However, if you like super-powered reads, anything by Veronica Roth, and heroes who put others above themselves, you may really love this book.
3.5/5.
Honestamente, lo empecé sin saber bien de qué se trataba y admito que me sorprendió la idea detrás, creo que no fue el mejor desarrollo de ella. Sin embargo, lo pasé muy bien leyéndolo.
Diez años atrás Sloane, Matt, Esther, Ines y Albie, the Chosen Ones, salvaron a la tierra del Dark One. Todos fueron elegidos por una profecía y entrenados para pelear con este enemigo. Los años han pasado y se está celebrando el décimo aniversario del fin de the Dark One. Sin embargo, la vida no es como Sloane pensó que sería. Carga con el peso de las cosas que hizo para sobrevivir y el mundo no es amable con una mujer que no sonríe a las cámaras.
Hay algo más, que es de lo que de verdad trata el libro, pero como no se rebela hasta el final de la primera parte no lo mencionaré. La primera parte puede ser lenta para algunos, pero la verdad es que me la devoré, para mí fue muy divertido ver este mundo con los elegidos que ganaron pero años después. Me gustó mucho la idea y cómo cada uno encontraba una forma de lidiar con su nueva vida.
Es interesante la forma en que retrata a Sloane, que si bien admito no es mi protagonista femenina favorita, me gustó. El libro parte con una nota sobre ella en la que el periodista la simplifica físicamente y dice que quiere acostarse con ella porque no le cae bien, molesto porque ella no sonríe o porque no es una persona cálida. Además de lo increíblemente machista, también es real, porque de las mujeres famosas se espera cierta cosa específica y si no calzan en el molde las llaman bitchs. Eso sucede con Sloane, es una heroína que no quiere sacarse fotos o andar dando autógrafos, solo quiere que la dejen en paz. Ahora, más adelante tiene unos momentos irracionales que me chocaron un poco e hicieron que recordara a Tris, pero dentro de todo me gustó.
Me gustó que este grupo de elegidos se mantuviera unido como familia y la relación entre ellos. En especial con personajes como Esther, que podría haber sido por completo insoportable, pero ella y Sloane lograban un equilibrio interesante. Sobre Matt, la verdad es que ni siquiera puedo decir realmente por qué no me cae bien. Es ese perfil de persona correcta, que sabe ganarse a las personas, que es un líder, que suena humilde, pero en el fondo sabe que es una buena persona y que es bueno en todo. No es que sea malo tampoco, sin embargo, para mí resultaba insufrible.
En la segunda parte la historia decae un poco porque se vuelve mucho más descriptiva, estamos en otro entorno y la autora pasa mucho tiempo describiendo cómo funciona todo, cómo se ve, cómo es en comparación a lo que nosotros conocemos y así. Podría haber sido mucho más interesante, y dentro de todo lo fue, solo que considerando lo emocionada que estaba leyendo el inicio decaí un poco en esta parte. El tema de los siphon fue confuso, creo que lo entendí al final, pero sigue siendo extraño de procesar en mi mente.
Como dije al principio, hay un tema en este libro que si bien es interesante, sobre todo con lo que podría haber salido al mezclarlo con el tema de los elegidos, no fue tan maravilloso como podría haber sido en mi mente. Quizá por eso decayó mi atención en la segunda parte. Además, varios de los giros eran predecibles, salvo uno que sí que me sorprendió.
Una vez que se desenreda toda la historia no fue lo que esperaba, aún así me gustó. Puede que hubiese esperado algo más espectacular, no tan simple como me dio la sensación que fue. Quizá una parte de mí no terminó de hacer cuadrar bien todo, lo admito, porque la explicación fue rápida y dentro de flashbacks y yo solo quería saber qué iba a pasar. Considerando lo lento que fue todo hasta ese momento, y no lo digo en el mal sentido, el final del libro se sintió demasiado acelerado.
El final del libro queda en un punto interesante, aunque la parte más importante de la trama haya cerrado. No sé cómo va a continuar o qué puede hacerse dado el final, pero tengo ganas de saber cómo será.
Honestamente, lo empecé sin saber bien de qué se trataba y admito que me sorprendió la idea detrás, creo que no fue el mejor desarrollo de ella. Sin embargo, lo pasé muy bien leyéndolo.
Diez años atrás Sloane, Matt, Esther, Ines y Albie, the Chosen Ones, salvaron a la tierra del Dark One. Todos fueron elegidos por una profecía y entrenados para pelear con este enemigo. Los años han pasado y se está celebrando el décimo aniversario del fin de the Dark One. Sin embargo, la vida no es como Sloane pensó que sería. Carga con el peso de las cosas que hizo para sobrevivir y el mundo no es amable con una mujer que no sonríe a las cámaras.
Hay algo más, que es de lo que de verdad trata el libro, pero como no se rebela hasta el final de la primera parte no lo mencionaré. La primera parte puede ser lenta para algunos, pero la verdad es que me la devoré, para mí fue muy divertido ver este mundo con los elegidos que ganaron pero años después. Me gustó mucho la idea y cómo cada uno encontraba una forma de lidiar con su nueva vida.
Es interesante la forma en que retrata a Sloane, que si bien admito no es mi protagonista femenina favorita, me gustó. El libro parte con una nota sobre ella en la que el periodista la simplifica físicamente y dice que quiere acostarse con ella porque no le cae bien, molesto porque ella no sonríe o porque no es una persona cálida. Además de lo increíblemente machista, también es real, porque de las mujeres famosas se espera cierta cosa específica y si no calzan en el molde las llaman bitchs. Eso sucede con Sloane, es una heroína que no quiere sacarse fotos o andar dando autógrafos, solo quiere que la dejen en paz. Ahora, más adelante tiene unos momentos irracionales que me chocaron un poco e hicieron que recordara a Tris, pero dentro de todo me gustó.
Me gustó que este grupo de elegidos se mantuviera unido como familia y la relación entre ellos. En especial con personajes como Esther, que podría haber sido por completo insoportable, pero ella y Sloane lograban un equilibrio interesante. Sobre Matt, la verdad es que ni siquiera puedo decir realmente por qué no me cae bien. Es ese perfil de persona correcta, que sabe ganarse a las personas, que es un líder, que suena humilde, pero en el fondo sabe que es una buena persona y que es bueno en todo. No es que sea malo tampoco, sin embargo, para mí resultaba insufrible.
En la segunda parte la historia decae un poco porque se vuelve mucho más descriptiva, estamos en otro entorno y la autora pasa mucho tiempo describiendo cómo funciona todo, cómo se ve, cómo es en comparación a lo que nosotros conocemos y así. Podría haber sido mucho más interesante, y dentro de todo lo fue, solo que considerando lo emocionada que estaba leyendo el inicio decaí un poco en esta parte. El tema de los siphon fue confuso, creo que lo entendí al final, pero sigue siendo extraño de procesar en mi mente.
Como dije al principio, hay un tema en este libro que si bien es interesante, sobre todo con lo que podría haber salido al mezclarlo con el tema de los elegidos, no fue tan maravilloso como podría haber sido en mi mente. Quizá por eso decayó mi atención en la segunda parte. Además, varios de los giros eran predecibles, salvo uno que sí que me sorprendió.
Una vez que se desenreda toda la historia no fue lo que esperaba, aún así me gustó. Puede que hubiese esperado algo más espectacular, no tan simple como me dio la sensación que fue. Quizá una parte de mí no terminó de hacer cuadrar bien todo, lo admito, porque la explicación fue rápida y dentro de flashbacks y yo solo quería saber qué iba a pasar. Considerando lo lento que fue todo hasta ese momento, y no lo digo en el mal sentido, el final del libro se sintió demasiado acelerado.
El final del libro queda en un punto interesante, aunque la parte más importante de la trama haya cerrado. No sé cómo va a continuar o qué puede hacerse dado el final, pero tengo ganas de saber cómo será.
Initially, Chosen Ones seeks to answer the question so frequently left unanswered by popular YA fantasy and sci-fi – what happens to the hero(es) after they're done saving the world?
The book focuses on prickly Sloane, who doesn't enjoy the fame being "Chosen" has brought her. She's struggling to fit into the image that's been thrust upon her and feels isolated, even when with the four other Chosen Ones who saved the world with her ten years ago.
I picked up this book because I was interested in the premise promised by the synopsis. And while it does touch on the challenges that come with being in the spotlight from a young age and how the Chosen Ones deal with trauma years after they saved the world, these issues ended up playing a smaller role in the book than I expected.
I also found the first half of the book to be rather slow. Between that and feeling like it wasn't delivering on the points that initially drew me to it, I was pretty sure this was going to end up being a solid three-star review.
However, the plot really picked up in the second half of the book. An interesting cast of characters comes into play, there are some unexpected twists, and you get to watch Sloane finally figure out what it is she wants out of life after spending years having that dictated for her by prophecies and public expectations.
I also really enjoyed the way Roth wove excerpts from fictional articles and books between the chapters. They both contributed to the suspense of the plot and made for a really interesting and unique world-building strategy.
Overall, I felt Chosen Ones redeemed itself by the end and thoroughly enjoyed it once I got into the thick of Part 2.
The book focuses on prickly Sloane, who doesn't enjoy the fame being "Chosen" has brought her. She's struggling to fit into the image that's been thrust upon her and feels isolated, even when with the four other Chosen Ones who saved the world with her ten years ago.
I picked up this book because I was interested in the premise promised by the synopsis. And while it does touch on the challenges that come with being in the spotlight from a young age and how the Chosen Ones deal with trauma years after they saved the world, these issues ended up playing a smaller role in the book than I expected.
I also found the first half of the book to be rather slow. Between that and feeling like it wasn't delivering on the points that initially drew me to it, I was pretty sure this was going to end up being a solid three-star review.
However, the plot really picked up in the second half of the book. An interesting cast of characters comes into play, there are some unexpected twists, and you get to watch Sloane finally figure out what it is she wants out of life after spending years having that dictated for her by prophecies and public expectations.
I also really enjoyed the way Roth wove excerpts from fictional articles and books between the chapters. They both contributed to the suspense of the plot and made for a really interesting and unique world-building strategy.
Overall, I felt Chosen Ones redeemed itself by the end and thoroughly enjoyed it once I got into the thick of Part 2.
It could be due to the fact that I was reading multiple books at one time, the writing style/format, or maybe I just wasn't in the mood for it when I first started but this book took some getting used too.
It was an interesting concept. Who wouldn't want to know what happens to the "chosen ones" after the big bad has been defeated and how do they handle their life after? Our main character is Sloane and she is definitely left dealing with some trauma. She is flawed, morally gray, and this story's saving grace. I don't know if I would have been half as invested in this story if it was told from Matt or Esther's perspectives.
I wasn't a big fan of the "interruptions" to the story. At the end of almost every chapter there were news articles, journal entries, interviews, memos, etc....At times I found those completely interrupted the flow of the story (at least for me) and brought things to a screeching halt. I found myself skimming (sometimes skipping) these to get back to the main story. I understand why they were there and they do help lead up to the big revelations later but I just wasn't a fan.
Being from Illinois and living here my whole life I love that Roths stories often take place in or around Chicago. It would be nice to get a change of scenery every once in awhile though.
I continue to enjoy Roth's works and I look forward to any more books in this world and/or with these characters.
It was an interesting concept. Who wouldn't want to know what happens to the "chosen ones" after the big bad has been defeated and how do they handle their life after? Our main character is Sloane and she is definitely left dealing with some trauma. She is flawed, morally gray, and this story's saving grace. I don't know if I would have been half as invested in this story if it was told from Matt or Esther's perspectives.
I wasn't a big fan of the "interruptions" to the story. At the end of almost every chapter there were news articles, journal entries, interviews, memos, etc....At times I found those completely interrupted the flow of the story (at least for me) and brought things to a screeching halt. I found myself skimming (sometimes skipping) these to get back to the main story. I understand why they were there and they do help lead up to the big revelations later but I just wasn't a fan.
Being from Illinois and living here my whole life I love that Roths stories often take place in or around Chicago. It would be nice to get a change of scenery every once in awhile though.
I continue to enjoy Roth's works and I look forward to any more books in this world and/or with these characters.