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annasbookishbrew's review
4.0
4.5 Stars
In a small town somewhere in the US:
Inside a classroom, a boy goes crazy, attacking a classmate and then a teacher.
That day, two people die.
Lucy, tormented by the traumatic experiences she had witnessed during class, noticed something that no one else saw. This makes her doubt that everything was a "normal" violent act. A few days later, at a party, the events escalate and with them Lucy's whole world changes in an instant.
------ SPOILERS------------
This book was a wild ride! I firstly didn't expect the level of violence in the book. When I received it I thought it would be YA and as far as I know many people believe that. It definitely isn't! The violent scenes are extremely explicit and nothing for a weak stomach. But - I appreciate that the book went there. It didn't hide any gruesome details and made the story so much more real.
What I thought about the story in general:
The story reminded me a little of - The Troop - , not because what actually happened but because of the writing style. (mind you: I read the troop in german and the loop in english). We follow the story from Lucys perspective and I really liked her as a character. She had to deal with abuse & being left alone in her family home and later being bullied at school. Her trauma is very visible and we learn about her PTSD along the way as it get's triggered quite often. We also experience a conflict of emotions with her. She has a lot of anger inside her, but at the same time she is a very rational thinking individual that wants to hurt nobody. And this is what made her really interesting when certain situations unfolded because I wasn't sure wether Lucy would do something stupid or not.
The concept was very interesting. I love SciFi Horror Storylines and IMTECH at the center was a company I was intrigued in from the start. Not gonna lie, the story went over my head a few times so I was happy that Steve joined the bunch at some point that explained everything scientific for dummies (a.k.a me).
The use of a conspiracy podcast was super smart and I loved this aspect because it made the story more real. The podcast host was also written so realistically. I felt like hearing the podcast for real and loved that feeling.
The friendship with the boys, especially bucket. LOVED IT! I want to read more books with a male female friendship like this one. Bucket was such a sensible, smart person and his banter with Lucy was great.
And then THE END: Like wow!
It was beautifully written and so freaking crazy / sad. I didn't trust Brewer from the beginning but I learned to really like him and he was a very powerful ally at the end I was so glad Lucy had.
Why not 5 stars
As mentioned, some scenes went way over my head. I really didn't understand all aspects of IMTECHs product, why they couldn't intervene earlier and where did they get it from. Maybe the reader shouldn't know everything but I wanted more I guess.
Also some scenes I found to be quite boring. In the middle of the book when Lucy was driving in a car for like 30 pages. It just didn't grip me and I also couldn't see how a lot of it was benefitial for the story.
In a small town somewhere in the US:
Inside a classroom, a boy goes crazy, attacking a classmate and then a teacher.
That day, two people die.
Lucy, tormented by the traumatic experiences she had witnessed during class, noticed something that no one else saw. This makes her doubt that everything was a "normal" violent act. A few days later, at a party, the events escalate and with them Lucy's whole world changes in an instant.
------ SPOILERS------------
This book was a wild ride! I firstly didn't expect the level of violence in the book. When I received it I thought it would be YA and as far as I know many people believe that. It definitely isn't! The violent scenes are extremely explicit and nothing for a weak stomach. But - I appreciate that the book went there. It didn't hide any gruesome details and made the story so much more real.
What I thought about the story in general:
The story reminded me a little of - The Troop - , not because what actually happened but because of the writing style. (mind you: I read the troop in german and the loop in english). We follow the story from Lucys perspective and I really liked her as a character. She had to deal with abuse & being left alone in her family home and later being bullied at school. Her trauma is very visible and we learn about her PTSD along the way as it get's triggered quite often. We also experience a conflict of emotions with her. She has a lot of anger inside her, but at the same time she is a very rational thinking individual that wants to hurt nobody. And this is what made her really interesting when certain situations unfolded because I wasn't sure wether Lucy would do something stupid or not.
The concept was very interesting. I love SciFi Horror Storylines and IMTECH at the center was a company I was intrigued in from the start. Not gonna lie, the story went over my head a few times so I was happy that Steve joined the bunch at some point that explained everything scientific for dummies (a.k.a me).
The use of a conspiracy podcast was super smart and I loved this aspect because it made the story more real. The podcast host was also written so realistically. I felt like hearing the podcast for real and loved that feeling.
The friendship with the boys, especially bucket. LOVED IT! I want to read more books with a male female friendship like this one. Bucket was such a sensible, smart person and his banter with Lucy was great.
And then THE END: Like wow!
It was beautifully written and so freaking crazy / sad. I didn't trust Brewer from the beginning but I learned to really like him and he was a very powerful ally at the end I was so glad Lucy had.
Why not 5 stars
As mentioned, some scenes went way over my head. I really didn't understand all aspects of IMTECHs product, why they couldn't intervene earlier and where did they get it from. Maybe the reader shouldn't know everything but I wanted more I guess.
Also some scenes I found to be quite boring. In the middle of the book when Lucy was driving in a car for like 30 pages. It just didn't grip me and I also couldn't see how a lot of it was benefitial for the story.
mboyette252's review
5.0
Beat book I’ve read all year! I know that comes with a heavy toll, but this book did it for me. Execution was top notch, there were moments that I felt my own chest tighten, and the ending was beautiful. I have not been able to say I liked the ending this year but to one other book. Take that for what it means to you.
beytwice's review against another edition
4.0
Comparing The Loop to Stranger Things is entirely a discredit to both parties — aside from the 'teens fighting unknown entity in a kooky town' trope at a very superficial level, I didn't feel any strong connection in atsmophere or narrative between the two. This read more as if Michael Crichton and David Cronenberg had a book baby; biotech meets body horror in a weird pandemic-like disaster that just spirals to unknown grounds. I loved the directions The Loop was unafraid to go in (cemetery car chase sequences, emotional cords being struck, and killer octopi?!) and my only real critique is the lengthy sections of exposition that I feel could have been divulged in a smoother and smarter manner. The ending however was absolutely killer and I loved the writing style as a whole! A very easy book to reread and annotate entire passages throughout.
inkdrinker19's review
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
shadowhelm's review against another edition
3.0
I am giving this book 3 stars and that is generous and only because I liked the first half of the novel. I enjoyed the setup and the "kind of" zombie premise but the book went absolutely nowhere with any of its promising themes. It goes into wealth disparity and race issues but pretty much abandons all of that by about the middle of the book and it becomes a run-of-the-mill story about trying to save the world from a corporate spawned biological menace. I had hoped the ending would go somewhere interesting but it absolutely did not.
Overall the book is a quick read and enjoyable enough while you are in it but by the end there really instantly anything worth recomm ending it.
Overall the book is a quick read and enjoyable enough while you are in it but by the end there really instantly anything worth recomm ending it.
amybaird's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Blood, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing, Drug use, and Death of parent
tankgrrl1344's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
ktjawrites's review
5.0
While The Loop uses “Stranger Things meets World War Z” and “Stranger Things meets Rogue One” to appeal to a casual audience, both comparisons wildly undersell the horrifying thrill-ride you’ll take through Turner Falls.
aaronlindsey's review
3.0
3.5 Stars.
This was a fun ride.
On an episode of Books in the Freezer, Stephen Graham Jones described YA horror as adult novels with all the boring stuff removed. Until I heard that, I didn't even give YA novels a chance. I've been reading for 50 years! I've read all of Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy, and David Foster Wallace! I couldn't enjoy a "Young" Adult novel any more than I would enjoy the next Disney movie (and I don't even watch movies, or TV).
But then I heard Jones's comment and thought I would give it a try.
And I DID enjoy this one!
On a side note, I've ordered Clown in a Cornfield and am really looking forward to it. :)
This was a fun ride.
On an episode of Books in the Freezer, Stephen Graham Jones described YA horror as adult novels with all the boring stuff removed. Until I heard that, I didn't even give YA novels a chance. I've been reading for 50 years! I've read all of Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy, and David Foster Wallace! I couldn't enjoy a "Young" Adult novel any more than I would enjoy the next Disney movie (and I don't even watch movies, or TV).
But then I heard Jones's comment and thought I would give it a try.
And I DID enjoy this one!
On a side note, I've ordered Clown in a Cornfield and am really looking forward to it. :)