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3.09 AVERAGE
3.09 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
3.5
I was charmed by this book. It's not the absolute greatest but it's not bad either. I was surprised by what I found in it, in a good way. It's a lot deeper than I was expecting.
Right off the bat, seeing the world Caden comes from and his thoughts, it comes off a lot darker than I thought it would. Underneath the YA Romance parody and cheesy tropes are real world issues and serious character. I loved Caden throughout the whole book. HIs thoughts and actions are more dynamic than the "static role" he is supposed to play. Seeing what he comes from, I felt sympathetic toward him. Seeing his thoughts change and evolve in regards to the LIC and Dyl made me sympathetic toward him. I think a book is successful, in part, as long as I connect and sympathize with the main character.
This book casually brings up things like self-esteem, self-doubt, anxiety, discovering sexuality, right vs wrong, and I think especially the stereotypes and tropes of hetero/homosexuality that become ingrained in society. This book points out heteronormativity in modern society, for example, and it's well done. I think the combination of Caden and Dyl's personal issues (self-esteem, anxiety) and the societal issues I mentioned were well done.
I also want to point out that a common critique of this book is the stilted and awkward dialogue. I agree that it is stilted and awkward sometimes, but this is only between Caden and the girl he is trying to win, Juliet. This is obviously to show how "fake" their relationship always had been from the start. Caden and Dyl's dialogue and interactions are SO much more genuine, because Caden's feelings for Dyl are actually real. I think that was a nice contrast.
On the whole, the writing in this book DOES come off a little immature, but it's totally a fresh and enjoyable story.
I was charmed by this book. It's not the absolute greatest but it's not bad either. I was surprised by what I found in it, in a good way. It's a lot deeper than I was expecting.
Right off the bat, seeing the world Caden comes from and his thoughts, it comes off a lot darker than I thought it would. Underneath the YA Romance parody and cheesy tropes are real world issues and serious character. I loved Caden throughout the whole book. HIs thoughts and actions are more dynamic than the "static role" he is supposed to play. Seeing what he comes from, I felt sympathetic toward him. Seeing his thoughts change and evolve in regards to the LIC and Dyl made me sympathetic toward him. I think a book is successful, in part, as long as I connect and sympathize with the main character.
This book casually brings up things like self-esteem, self-doubt, anxiety, discovering sexuality, right vs wrong, and I think especially the stereotypes and tropes of hetero/homosexuality that become ingrained in society. This book points out heteronormativity in modern society, for example, and it's well done. I think the combination of Caden and Dyl's personal issues (self-esteem, anxiety) and the societal issues I mentioned were well done.
I also want to point out that a common critique of this book is the stilted and awkward dialogue. I agree that it is stilted and awkward sometimes, but this is only between Caden and the girl he is trying to win, Juliet. This is obviously to show how "fake" their relationship always had been from the start. Caden and Dyl's dialogue and interactions are SO much more genuine, because Caden's feelings for Dyl are actually real. I think that was a nice contrast.
On the whole, the writing in this book DOES come off a little immature, but it's totally a fresh and enjoyable story.
I enjoyed this book! It was a quick YA read, with a unique voice. There were a couple of times throughout the book where I thought I figured out how it was going to end, but that was not the case. Dietrich opens a few doors, but things you think you can predict come and go and in the end, the story was very well told.
This book was fun. It had its ups and downs, but overall, it's an entertaining read.
My main critiques are that the love between the two main characters came across more lust and obsession. It was only at the very end that it felt more intimate.
It was also a bit too predictable, or maybe I've just read too many YA novels.
For light summer reading, it was a good fit.
My main critiques are that the love between the two main characters came across more lust and obsession. It was only at the very end that it felt more intimate.
It was also a bit too predictable, or maybe I've just read too many YA novels.
For light summer reading, it was a good fit.
3.5 stars
While I enjoyed the story and loved the concept, at times I found myself thinking, "omg why didn't the editor catch this?!" For example, when Caden meets Juliet's parents, the whole conversation throughout the chapter feels forced and unnatural. I felt incredibly awkward reading it, not because of the uncomfortable situation of meeting someone's parents, but because the writing was atrocious in that chapter.
There were other sections of the book like this, which pulled me away from the story. Overall I enjoyed it a lot, but feel it could have used fine-tuning.
While I enjoyed the story and loved the concept, at times I found myself thinking, "omg why didn't the editor catch this?!" For example, when Caden meets Juliet's parents, the whole conversation throughout the chapter feels forced and unnatural. I felt incredibly awkward reading it, not because of the uncomfortable situation of meeting someone's parents, but because the writing was atrocious in that chapter.
There were other sections of the book like this, which pulled me away from the story. Overall I enjoyed it a lot, but feel it could have used fine-tuning.
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt
This book had a great start, a twisting middle and a underdeveloped ending. I loved the premis and message of this story but in the end it fell short. I would have loved to seen more diverse dialogue from the characters and an epilogue that leaves me feeling like there was an ending to the story. The ends that were tied up were done loosely while others were left frayed. If this story was written with a bit more thoroughness I would have loved it.
Overall rating: 3.5
I enjoyed this book at the simplest level. It was intriguing, had a good romance which sprinkled with angst, but it was a quick read - one that didn’t take a lot of brain cells to complete.
I liked the dystopian-style context the book was set in. There was some exposition and explanation as to why the world is what it is, but it doesn’t take a lot of thought or consideration. You just blindly accept the premise and get on with the conflict.
I did really like the conflict. The stakes were high, and that’s something I will always enjoy when it comes to romance books.
I will continue to reread this book when I get bored, because it’s just one of those books for me. A quick read, delivering on thrilling conflict, but not so completely ground-breaking that it sweeps me off my feet.
I enjoyed this book at the simplest level. It was intriguing, had a good romance which sprinkled with angst, but it was a quick read - one that didn’t take a lot of brain cells to complete.
I liked the dystopian-style context the book was set in. There was some exposition and explanation as to why the world is what it is, but it doesn’t take a lot of thought or consideration. You just blindly accept the premise and get on with the conflict.
I did really like the conflict. The stakes were high, and that’s something I will always enjoy when it comes to romance books.
I will continue to reread this book when I get bored, because it’s just one of those books for me. A quick read, delivering on thrilling conflict, but not so completely ground-breaking that it sweeps me off my feet.