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apaloniasantana's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
The Fandom is a fun twist on young adult dystopia. Instead of the narrator telling the reader about the dystopian universe, the reader is learning about it along with the narrator. This book follows Violet and her journey trying to set things right and save her friends and family. Violet thinks she's going to have a normal trip to London Comic-Con but a freak accident transports Violet, her two best friends, Katie and Alice, and her brother, Nate into the fictional world of her favorite dystopian novel, The Gallows Dance. The four of them have to rely on their knowledge of the book and film adaptation to try to survive in the world, however, their entrance into the world set the story so far off track and now parts of the plot are changing. They have to stick together and try to get the story to end the way it was meant to, but they're soon made to face the grim reality of living in a dystopian world.
Violet is challenged by being placed in the leading role and having to lead a resistance in this fiction world. She is put through situations where she has to choose between her fictional life and her real one. After being swept up in her new reality she's finding it difficult to deal with her friend Alice and Katie, as well as care for her brother Nate, and it feels like everything she tries to do keeps failing.
The Gallows Dance, the fictional dystopian book/film in this book, is very reminiscent of The Hunger Games. There are two types of people in this world, the Gems, and the Imps. The Gems are the most attractive and wealthy of the population, often said to be "perfect," much like those of the Capitol in The Hunger Games. While the Imps are seen as the lowest of society, much like District 12 in The Hunger Games. The character Violet replaces, named Rose, seems to follow the typical young adult dystopian female lead model as seen with Katniss (The Hunger Games), and Tris (Divergent). She's strong, leads the rebellion, and falls in love while doing it. The love interest, Willow, is a Gem and it's his relationship with Rose that plays a key role in starting the rebellion, which Rose pays the price for. The Gallows Dance is an event in the book in which Imps are chosen by the government to be hanged for various crimes, it's an event that the Gems are said to love (wealthy people enjoying other citizen's death, a common dystopian theme) and is done at the border where the city splits between the Gems and the Imps. The dystopian aspect of this book is nothing new, but the excitement comes from the idea of being an outsider forced into this universe and the struggles that would cause.
Overall, I enjoyed this book but the dystopian aspect, in my option, was lacking some originality. The plot of the book as a whole a spectacular idea, and I enjoyed the highlight of the struggles someone from this world would have in a dystopian world. Also, since the location of this book was London this dystopian world was not based on the United States. Most of the recent popular dystopias have been (loosely) based on the United States, so it was refreshing to read about a new location and how a dystopian world would affect London.
Violet is challenged by being placed in the leading role and having to lead a resistance in this fiction world. She is put through situations where she has to choose between her fictional life and her real one. After being swept up in her new reality she's finding it difficult to deal with her friend Alice and Katie, as well as care for her brother Nate, and it feels like everything she tries to do keeps failing.
The Gallows Dance, the fictional dystopian book/film in this book, is very reminiscent of The Hunger Games. There are two types of people in this world, the Gems, and the Imps. The Gems are the most attractive and wealthy of the population, often said to be "perfect," much like those of the Capitol in The Hunger Games. While the Imps are seen as the lowest of society, much like District 12 in The Hunger Games. The character Violet replaces, named Rose, seems to follow the typical young adult dystopian female lead model as seen with Katniss (The Hunger Games), and Tris (Divergent). She's strong, leads the rebellion, and falls in love while doing it. The love interest, Willow, is a Gem and it's his relationship with Rose that plays a key role in starting the rebellion, which Rose pays the price for. The Gallows Dance is an event in the book in which Imps are chosen by the government to be hanged for various crimes, it's an event that the Gems are said to love (wealthy people enjoying other citizen's death, a common dystopian theme) and is done at the border where the city splits between the Gems and the Imps. The dystopian aspect of this book is nothing new, but the excitement comes from the idea of being an outsider forced into this universe and the struggles that would cause.
Overall, I enjoyed this book but the dystopian aspect, in my option, was lacking some originality. The plot of the book as a whole a spectacular idea, and I enjoyed the highlight of the struggles someone from this world would have in a dystopian world. Also, since the location of this book was London this dystopian world was not based on the United States. Most of the recent popular dystopias have been (loosely) based on the United States, so it was refreshing to read about a new location and how a dystopian world would affect London.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
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