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4.02 AVERAGE
4.02 AVERAGE
emotional
medium-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
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
i was SO excited for this book and felt like the first 20-50 pages had me hooked, and i guess the whole book kept me hooked, but god some of it was BAD.
respectfully, paz was one of the MOST frustrating characters ive ever read about. he was SO fucking annoying. i understand being an angsty, depressed teenager but good GOD. he was final boss of that trope.
he was always saying how he deserved to die or wanted to die or wanted to cut himself and would explicitly explain how/when he did cut himself MULTIPLE TIMES.
aside from that, alano & paz had a weird codependent relationship from the start. respectfully. i thought lesbians were the u-haulers.
i’ll obviously read the next book but i still have questions.
why the hell does alano have some super cool memory thing?? why’d we keep the death cast secret a secret til the very end and then just stop abruptly.
why’d we make alano have a psychiatric break at the end?
but also, i do like the political conversation of the book with the death guard. my thoughts are kind of jumbled in this review but ill be reading the next one. but pls don’t make it over 600 pages.
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-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
adventurous
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Suicidal thoughts
adventurous
dark
emotional
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:
Complicated
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
sad
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
This book absolutely crushes my soul, like all of Adam’s books do. He did an amazing job portraying how it can feel to be suicidal and to sh.
dark
emotional
tense
medium-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
I went in with high expectations considering it was tackling such heavy subject matters and providing more insight into life intertwined with the Death-Cast company. However, my expectations were exceeded by far by providing: (1) awareness of lesser discussed mental health disorders, (2) demonstrations of how healing is not linear, (3) a mixture of tense and sweet moments between the characters, especially when the people in Paz & Alano's lives meet. The complexity of relationships between friends and family ultimately left me wanting to love louder and bolder. The previous Death-Cast books have a lot of paths crossing, but in this book Silvera creates so much more depth that strengthens the themes present. The only thing that was challenging for me to grasp was a certain aspect in regards to learning more about Alano towards the end. There was a piece about him that required me to suspend my belief a little, but it did not affect the rating considering Death-Cast in itself is a concept I've bought into since the first book. Overall, this was a six star book! This is the first book this year that moved me in a way that broadens my perspective on how to love someone in need of professional help. NATIONAL SUICIDE & CRISIS LIFELINE: 988
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Mass/school shootings
Minor: Infertility, Miscarriage
slow-paced
Love Adam's other books but this felt too drawn out and slow. Also twists felt too hinted at and over-explained, so the ending was really obvious. Really hoping the next book is something closer to TBDATE in terms of pace and shock.
Too long. Very (arguably overly) detailed descriptions of self harm. Questionable portrayal of BPD. Repetitive at times. Absolutely absurd explanation for how Alano knows secret. Still enjoyed overall.