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angelica87's review against another edition
5.0
Would it be sacrilegious to say that I actually like Simon Snow better than Harry Potter? Because it might just be true.
I went into this story knowing a little about Simon and Baz and already loving them as characters. To see them and their world so fully fleshed out was awesome and I would really love if Rainbow went back and wrote the first seven years of Baz and Simons adventures because I want to know every detail!!
Told in alternating points of view, this is Rainbow Rowell’s take on the whole “Chosen One” story and I have got to say that despite (or maybe because of) all the similarities to Harry Potter, she has a unique and different take on what it means to be thought of as the Chosen One.
Without spoiling anything I have got to say that this story has various twists and turns, some of which I saw coming and some that I did not, and best of all the absolute reality of the ending got me right in the feels and makes me super excited to read the second book which is due out later this year.
So yeah. Five stars. It was just that good.
I went into this story knowing a little about Simon and Baz and already loving them as characters. To see them and their world so fully fleshed out was awesome and I would really love if Rainbow went back and wrote the first seven years of Baz and Simons adventures because I want to know every detail!!
Told in alternating points of view, this is Rainbow Rowell’s take on the whole “Chosen One” story and I have got to say that despite (or maybe because of) all the similarities to Harry Potter, she has a unique and different take on what it means to be thought of as the Chosen One.
Without spoiling anything I have got to say that this story has various twists and turns, some of which I saw coming and some that I did not, and best of all the absolute reality of the ending got me right in the feels and makes me super excited to read the second book which is due out later this year.
So yeah. Five stars. It was just that good.
skittles420's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Harry potter but it’s gray and understandable. Penelope is the best character and my beloved. Enemies to lovers, pining and angst.
barnfieldkatherine033's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
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
3.25
princessrobotiv's review against another edition
2.0
The romance was really adorable, but beyond that, I didn't feel connected to the story or characters in any meaningful way.
The execution was sloppy, a far cry from the tight, focused prose of Fangirl, and the plot was exactly as hectic as the last installment of a fake series (absent all previous installments) would be expected to be.
Yes, it was tremendously satisfying to see a Chosen One narrative with an LGBT protag. Especially when the word "gay" was actually used, multiple times (hallelujah!!!!)
But I think it was a mistake to believe that it could or should be handled with so many of the intentional connections to the Harry Potter series still intact.
It was like that tongue-in-cheek awareness present in Fangirl disappeared, and we were left with an author deluding herself into believing the story she'd created was now entirely separate from its original intent (i.e. a commentary on both fandom culture and the lack of diverse LGBT representation in mainstream YA lit). I went searching for some contextualization of this choice, but found nothing clarifying in the Author's Note. Clearly, this is meant to be Cath's magnus opus fanfic of the same name . . . and if it were a REAL fanfic of a REAL series, it'd be staggering. But it has to be one or the other to work: either it's totally original and you do the work to build the series from inception to end, or it's a fanfic within a work of fiction.
I'm not sure HOW I would have liked to see this executed, really, because I did enjoy Agatha's storyline and I'm glad to have experienced Baz and Simon's romance.
So . . . I guess . . . I'm glad I read it despite its flaws.
The execution was sloppy, a far cry from the tight, focused prose of Fangirl, and the plot was exactly as hectic as the last installment of a fake series (absent all previous installments) would be expected to be.
Yes, it was tremendously satisfying to see a Chosen One narrative with an LGBT protag. Especially when the word "gay" was actually used, multiple times (hallelujah!!!!)
But I think it was a mistake to believe that it could or should be handled with so many of the intentional connections to the Harry Potter series still intact.
It was like that tongue-in-cheek awareness present in Fangirl disappeared, and we were left with an author deluding herself into believing the story she'd created was now entirely separate from its original intent (i.e. a commentary on both fandom culture and the lack of diverse LGBT representation in mainstream YA lit). I went searching for some contextualization of this choice, but found nothing clarifying in the Author's Note. Clearly, this is meant to be Cath's magnus opus fanfic of the same name . . . and if it were a REAL fanfic of a REAL series, it'd be staggering. But it has to be one or the other to work: either it's totally original and you do the work to build the series from inception to end, or it's a fanfic within a work of fiction.
I'm not sure HOW I would have liked to see this executed, really, because I did enjoy Agatha's storyline and I'm glad to have experienced Baz and Simon's romance.
So . . . I guess . . . I'm glad I read it despite its flaws.
kirstenrose22's review against another edition
2.0
Oh, I wanted to like this. I love Rainbow and all her books. But this just did not work for me. Oh gods, I was so bored. And then a *few* things started happening, but I was forcing myself to move forward - because I just didn't care. So never mind. I'm done. *sigh*
whykimwhenyoucanseokjin's review against another edition
4.0
I finally read this after years of having it on my TBR and thank God I wasn't disappointed like I expected to be , because apparently I have no imagination since I never liked Harry Potter and this book has been promoted as the gay version of it, if all the Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter fanfics came to life.
Anyways it was a good read and didn't have any of the things I hated about the Harry Potter books (AKA the Fat phobia, transphobic author and me wanting to murder Harry with every page that went by because he's so annoying) so all in all it was unexpectedly fun and refreshing.
Anyways it was a good read and didn't have any of the things I hated about the Harry Potter books (AKA the Fat phobia, transphobic author and me wanting to murder Harry with every page that went by because he's so annoying) so all in all it was unexpectedly fun and refreshing.
apoptosisnecrosis's review against another edition
5.0
freaking loved it. was it perfect? probably not, but im not one to believe in such a thing. I just know that I enjoyed the hell out of it, was hardly able to put it down as I neared the end. I eagerly await the arrival of my preorder of Wayward Son.
kelleym31's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.25