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bezarue's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I think this book was maybe a bit too cerebral for me. But at the same time, I couldn't work out what it was trying to get at. I'm not so sure it made sense.
hmcreading's review
emotional
mysterious
slow-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
3.0
mikaclapson's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
radiojupiter's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- 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? It's complicated
4.0
patchworkbunny's review against another edition
4.0
Spare and Found Parts is a Frankenstein story at heart, but not the kind you might expect. Nell has spent her life with a background ticking, her heart is clockwork and she lives with a scar from chin to sternum. She knows the unnatural sound of her heart is off-putting and she fears no one will ever truly understand her. When a mannequin hand washes up on the shore, she gets the idea to build a boy to be her companion.
In Nell's world computers are blamed for ruining the world, although it doesn't go into the specifics; we were probably starting wars on social media... Disease has left much of the population with missing limbs and this is where Nell's genius father comes in. He created prosthetics, so close to the banned robotics of the past, but allowed due to their immense contribution to society.
There's some great, subtle world-building such as the giant statue that is giving people purpose, jobs created for the sake of jobs. It's hinted that those with less debilitating disabilities are expected to work to create food. They are assessed and sent to The Pasture if they are fit and strong. Those with ideas on how to benefit society can present their Contribution and be allowed to stay in the city if accepted.
Poor, naive Nell decides her robot boy can be her Contribution. In a society that hates computers! Bless her, she thinks adding a human appearance will mean no one's afraid of her creation. I really did have my doubts about Nell's methods, but these things are eventually addressed and don't just happen by magic.
It's a slow book with not much drama but I enjoyed Sarah's writing style. I didn't feel like Nell was going to change the world, it's more about her discovery of the world that came before her and the fallibility of parents. She did seem a little younger than most young adult protagonists too.
The narrative changes between third person and second person, which I think can work when you find out who the narrator is and who they are meant to be speaking to. However it seemed like the second person was at least two different people. So when I thought it was the robot it could have worked but there were other bits that were just confusing.
Review copy provided by publisher.
In Nell's world computers are blamed for ruining the world, although it doesn't go into the specifics; we were probably starting wars on social media... Disease has left much of the population with missing limbs and this is where Nell's genius father comes in. He created prosthetics, so close to the banned robotics of the past, but allowed due to their immense contribution to society.
There's some great, subtle world-building such as the giant statue that is giving people purpose, jobs created for the sake of jobs. It's hinted that those with less debilitating disabilities are expected to work to create food. They are assessed and sent to The Pasture if they are fit and strong. Those with ideas on how to benefit society can present their Contribution and be allowed to stay in the city if accepted.
Poor, naive Nell decides her robot boy can be her Contribution. In a society that hates computers! Bless her, she thinks adding a human appearance will mean no one's afraid of her creation. I really did have my doubts about Nell's methods, but these things are eventually addressed and don't just happen by magic.
It's a slow book with not much drama but I enjoyed Sarah's writing style. I didn't feel like Nell was going to change the world, it's more about her discovery of the world that came before her and the fallibility of parents. She did seem a little younger than most young adult protagonists too.
The narrative changes between third person and second person, which I think can work when you find out who the narrator is and who they are meant to be speaking to. However it seemed like the second person was at least two different people. So when I thought it was the robot it could have worked but there were other bits that were just confusing.
Review copy provided by publisher.
xanadupassenger's review
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Unravelled a bit at the end - felt like the author didn't know what to do with it. Also the character of the dead sister was completely ignored, no idea why she was even mentioned.
ameserole's review against another edition
2.0
It's weird that this book as been sitting on my bookshelf for a while now and I'm just getting to it.
In Spare and Found Parts, you will meet Nell Crane. She is an outsider who doesn't really fit in anywhere. Kind of like Belle - in a way. The only reason I saw her that way was because her dad was a tinkering inventor. Plus Belle (sort of) struggles to fit in with people but then finds her person in the Beast.
Enter Oliver. No, he's not the Beast in my eyes because he gave off strong Gaston vibes. He's in love with Nell and just wants her to see him in the same light. Just to make things even more awkward, I sort of liked them but not in a romantic way at all. I think it just has to do with the atmosphere mostly because of the world they lived in.
I definitely had a lot of questions throughout this but with each little twist I kind of got confused at the same time. It also doesn't help that the pace overall was so freaking slow for me. And yes, I'm talking about the audiobook. I'm sure I would feel the same if I dove into my physical book of it but who knows.
In the end, it was an interesting retelling and had potential to be pretty great in my eyes. It just sort of fell flat for me.
In Spare and Found Parts, you will meet Nell Crane. She is an outsider who doesn't really fit in anywhere. Kind of like Belle - in a way. The only reason I saw her that way was because her dad was a tinkering inventor. Plus Belle (sort of) struggles to fit in with people but then finds her person in the Beast.
Enter Oliver. No, he's not the Beast in my eyes because he gave off strong Gaston vibes. He's in love with Nell and just wants her to see him in the same light. Just to make things even more awkward, I sort of liked them but not in a romantic way at all. I think it just has to do with the atmosphere mostly because of the world they lived in.
I definitely had a lot of questions throughout this but with each little twist I kind of got confused at the same time. It also doesn't help that the pace overall was so freaking slow for me. And yes, I'm talking about the audiobook. I'm sure I would feel the same if I dove into my physical book of it but who knows.
In the end, it was an interesting retelling and had potential to be pretty great in my eyes. It just sort of fell flat for me.
theangrystackrat's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
nelsey's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
2.5
this book had such a promising premise but in the end the story just wasn’t executed the way it could’ve been. it seemed every characters sole purpose was to be there (or be useful) for that very last “big reveal!!” scene. the whole book was so monotonous and nothing really happened, leading me to become extremely bored and honestly a little sick of the story. this was the most “eh” i’ve felt about a book and i can’t really say i enjoyed it