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duntothewood's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
imzelfish's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
moondaisyy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.5
christiana's review
4.0
I really dug this. As soon as I finished it, I said "hmm!" out loud to myself, which I consider a good sign. I wish the book club titles for the school year weren't already set because there's so much good stuff to talk about in this one. How do you decide who to trust? When do you go with your emotions and when do you go with your head? What qualifies someone to be called Mom or Dad? How would you decide who needs to die and who can just be taken out for a bit? What are the best assassin gadgets ever (there are so many good ones in this book)?
This is for sure getting recommended out this year (I already book talked it on the spot at the high school when I was only halfway through)!
This is for sure getting recommended out this year (I already book talked it on the spot at the high school when I was only halfway through)!
kathlgpa's review against another edition
3.0
This was a decent read. The plot moved along quickly and was original enough that I couldn't predict what would happen. However, the characters were not complex enough for me to empathize with. I did like learning all the tricks Boy Nobody uses. I liked this book enough to finish it, but was not invested enough to continue the series.
(I received a free copy of this book for my honest review after winning Goodreads Giveaway)
(I received a free copy of this book for my honest review after winning Goodreads Giveaway)
nicolemhewitt's review against another edition
5.0
4.5/5 Stars
This review and many others can be found on my blog - Feed Your Fiction Addiction
I Am the Weapon turned out to be quite a surprise. Reading the synopsis, I figured I could tell basically what was going to happen: The boy assassin meets a girl who he falls for and makes him question himself and his mission. He ends up switching sides and protecting the girl and her father. And that wasn't too far off. Except that then it was. Really far off. I love being surprised!
The negatives:
(Almost) fell into clichés.
The beginning of this book followed all the clichés that I expected it to. Ben (Boy Nobody) is used to slipping into a new school and gaining the trust of his target quickly so that he can kill someone close to that target. When Ben is assigned to kill the mayor's daughter, he starts to feel conflicted. He's not used to having any feelings at all about his targets, but Sam is different somehow. Yep, there's the cliché. Of course, Sam, who never falls for anyone, also seems to fall for Ben. There's a tiny bit of a love triangle thrown in, but not really since there's never any question of who Ben is interested in (and everyone, including the "other" girl, knows it). It leaned toward instalove, and I especially wasn't sure why Sam was interested in Ben so quickly. Until it all made sense. And Zadoff did something unthinkable and broke through all those clichés ...
What I loved:
Ben.
Ben was a true antihero. The more I learned about how he found himself in The Program, the more I felt sorry for him, but he was still a cold blooded killer. That was proven right from the very beginning of the book. Regardless of how Ben had found himself in his situation, he had embraced it. He was a trained assassin who did his job well. When Ben started to question his life, I couldn't help but feel for him. I wanted him to break free from the mysterious Program, but I knew it wouldn't be simple.
The Program.
It was fascinating to learn the secrets of The Program as the book went on. We got an idea of how Ben had ended up in The Program and some of what they were all about, but there are still plenty more mysteries for future books. I can't wait to learn more!!
The action.
This book was a high action spy thriller. There were plenty of suspenseful scenes where Ben had to get himself out of trouble - his current assignment turns out to be far more complicated than he's used to! From the very first scene of the book, it captured my attention and didn't let it go!
The twists.
As I've already said, this book broke through the stereotypes in a MAJOR way. I honestly couldn't believe what eventually happened. I don't want to say anything else, but suffice it to say I was shocked and appalled and thrilled all at the same time!
I Am the Weapon was a suspenseful thriller with some real surprises! I can't wait to read the next book (which comes out in June). I highly recommend this one! 4.5/5 stars.
***Disclosure: This book was provided to me by NetGalley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given. All opinions are my own***
This review and many others can be found on my blog - Feed Your Fiction Addiction
I Am the Weapon turned out to be quite a surprise. Reading the synopsis, I figured I could tell basically what was going to happen: The boy assassin meets a girl who he falls for and makes him question himself and his mission. He ends up switching sides and protecting the girl and her father. And that wasn't too far off. Except that then it was. Really far off. I love being surprised!
The negatives:
(Almost) fell into clichés.
The beginning of this book followed all the clichés that I expected it to. Ben (Boy Nobody) is used to slipping into a new school and gaining the trust of his target quickly so that he can kill someone close to that target. When Ben is assigned to kill the mayor's daughter, he starts to feel conflicted. He's not used to having any feelings at all about his targets, but Sam is different somehow. Yep, there's the cliché. Of course, Sam, who never falls for anyone, also seems to fall for Ben. There's a tiny bit of a love triangle thrown in, but not really since there's never any question of who Ben is interested in (and everyone, including the "other" girl, knows it). It leaned toward instalove, and I especially wasn't sure why Sam was interested in Ben so quickly. Until it all made sense. And Zadoff did something unthinkable and broke through all those clichés ...
What I loved:
Ben.
Ben was a true antihero. The more I learned about how he found himself in The Program, the more I felt sorry for him, but he was still a cold blooded killer. That was proven right from the very beginning of the book. Regardless of how Ben had found himself in his situation, he had embraced it. He was a trained assassin who did his job well. When Ben started to question his life, I couldn't help but feel for him. I wanted him to break free from the mysterious Program, but I knew it wouldn't be simple.
The Program.
It was fascinating to learn the secrets of The Program as the book went on. We got an idea of how Ben had ended up in The Program and some of what they were all about, but there are still plenty more mysteries for future books. I can't wait to learn more!!
The action.
This book was a high action spy thriller. There were plenty of suspenseful scenes where Ben had to get himself out of trouble - his current assignment turns out to be far more complicated than he's used to! From the very first scene of the book, it captured my attention and didn't let it go!
The twists.
As I've already said, this book broke through the stereotypes in a MAJOR way. I honestly couldn't believe what eventually happened. I don't want to say anything else, but suffice it to say I was shocked and appalled and thrilled all at the same time!
I Am the Weapon was a suspenseful thriller with some real surprises! I can't wait to read the next book (which comes out in June). I highly recommend this one! 4.5/5 stars.
***Disclosure: This book was provided to me by NetGalley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given. All opinions are my own***
amber_weeb_reader's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
jwinchell's review against another edition
3.0
Choppy sentences, fast-moving narrative, quick interior snippets, lotsa technology--I knew this was a "high-low" but I am amazed that this YA suspense novel is a 450 Lexile. Much of the world building felt hollow to me, and I am suspicious that a film has already been commissioned. But those complaints reveal the limits of my readership. This will be a great title to have in the docket. It's a 2016 Abe Nominee.
dearestdorian's review against another edition
3.0
The Hit/Boy Nobody may be over 300 pages, but it's written in such a way that it's possible to fly through it in under a day.
If you're looking for something packed with adrenaline, which you don't need to think too hard about, and you'd like a story where necks get snapped, stuff blows up, and people lie through their teeth, this is a good one to pick up.
While the characters are somewhat lacking and this story can't exactly be praised for its portrayal of women, it's not terrible and is worth reading if you need your fix of action and adventure, but don't have the time or concentration to focus on something a bit heftier. The chapters are short (I felt at times they were too short), and the sentences snappy.
I'd compare it to [b:I Hunt Killers|7766027|I Hunt Killers (Jasper Dent, #1)|Barry Lyga|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1333289403s/7766027.jpg|10644152], though this has much less plot going on. Again, that's not a bad thing. It all depends on what you like, and what you're in the mood for.
If you're looking for something packed with adrenaline, which you don't need to think too hard about, and you'd like a story where necks get snapped, stuff blows up, and people lie through their teeth, this is a good one to pick up.
While the characters are somewhat lacking and this story can't exactly be praised for its portrayal of women, it's not terrible and is worth reading if you need your fix of action and adventure, but don't have the time or concentration to focus on something a bit heftier. The chapters are short (I felt at times they were too short), and the sentences snappy.
I'd compare it to [b:I Hunt Killers|7766027|I Hunt Killers (Jasper Dent, #1)|Barry Lyga|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1333289403s/7766027.jpg|10644152], though this has much less plot going on. Again, that's not a bad thing. It all depends on what you like, and what you're in the mood for.