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yvo_about_books's review against another edition
2.0
“It's important to remember that we all change each other's minds all the time. Any good story is a mind-altering substance.”
WARNING: it's another unpopular opinion review!!
I know that this isn't exactly my typical read, but I was pleasantly surprised by the first book back when I read it two years ago. I then discovered that the sequel fitted more than one 2024 challenge, and I decided to pick up A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor on a whim. I'm not sure if I was simply in the wrong reading mood or if this sequel is really quite different from the first book, but the fact is that I ended up struggling immensely with this story. I came close to DNFing more than once, and I kind of wish I had to be honest. Don't get me wrong, this series in general has a very interesting concept and the Carls were fascinating to read about. It was in the execution and plot structure where this story lost me... A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor uses a multiple POV structure on top of mixed media pieces inserted into the plot, and the result ended up being a bit of a muddled and chaotic mess. The plot jumps all over the place, and certain POVs are extremely tedious and slow down the pace a LOT. There was an overdose of focus on politics and social issues, and at times it felt more like propaganda rather than a YA sci-fi read. Seriously, I was bored to tears at times, and I caught myself skimreading more than once. The social media angle and virtual reality addiction was neat, but it kind of got buried under too many other elements to make a real impact. The plot itself was slowgoing with so much focus on the 'propaganda' part, and as a result the story dragged considerably and was simply way too overlong. I confess that I skimread most of the second half, and I kind of wish I had just DNFed it instead... There is no doubt that A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor and me REALLY didn't get along. That said, I seem to be in the minority, so it might just be my fickle reading mood acting up again.
Graphic: Death, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Body horror, Bullying, Classism, Xenophobia, Violence, Sexual content, Slavery, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Toxic friendship, Racism, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Fire/Fire injury, Cursing, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Addiction, Blood, Confinement, Grief, and Physical abuse
chaoticnostalgia's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Vomit, Xenophobia, Sexism, Confinement, and Addiction
Moderate: Stalking and Blood
Minor: Alcohol, Sexual content, and Animal death
calamitywindpetal's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Confinement, Kidnapping, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Vomit, Sexism, and Death
adelal's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Confinement and Kidnapping
Moderate: Vomit and Gun violence
Minor: Gore, Racism, Sexism, Outing, and Biphobia
nixieba25f's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Blood, Confinement, Eating disorder, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Medical content, Racism, Sexism, Misogyny, Slavery, and Xenophobia
scruffie's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, and Violence
Moderate: Grief, Police brutality, Medical content, and Blood
Minor: Vomit, Death, Cursing, and Sexism
morganperks's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Confinement, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Medical content, and Violence
Moderate: Death and Grief
Minor: Racism and Sexism