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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
starts strong
Popsugar 2020: A book about or involving social media
2.5/5
This brought out the worst in me. I feel angry and hateful and I can't do anything right now except being annoyed.
The internet is great but it's also the most awful thing that ever happened. Something monumental will happen through the internet and ruin our lives at some point. Influencers aren't intellectual people and no one should blindly follow them. And...?
This is nothing new, people always say that all the time. What is the point of this exactly? I know books don't have to have a raison d'etre, but this was pointlessly disturbing. Bad stuff happens in this book to the point it'll need a big trigger-warning but it'll spoil the twists. However, none of these awful things lead to anything, no character development happens. The characters are bland and dull and they remain bland and dull even after going through and/or causing horrible things. So what's the point?
I love modern dystopia so much, anything based on current risks gets me invested in it and worried after finishing. This didn't. This just made me angry and a little annoyed at the world and gave me nothing to remember it by.
2.5/5
This brought out the worst in me. I feel angry and hateful and I can't do anything right now except being annoyed.
The internet is great but it's also the most awful thing that ever happened. Something monumental will happen through the internet and ruin our lives at some point. Influencers aren't intellectual people and no one should blindly follow them. And...?
This is nothing new, people always say that all the time. What is the point of this exactly? I know books don't have to have a raison d'etre, but this was pointlessly disturbing. Bad stuff happens in this book to the point it'll need a big trigger-warning but it'll spoil the twists. However, none of these awful things lead to anything, no character development happens. The characters are bland and dull and they remain bland and dull even after going through and/or causing horrible things. So what's the point?
I love modern dystopia so much, anything based on current risks gets me invested in it and worried after finishing. This didn't. This just made me angry and a little annoyed at the world and gave me nothing to remember it by.
What a ride. A book as captivating as the fraught social media/influencer landscape it talks about. Having read "The atomospherians" and peaked into "wayward" I feel like we're at the beginning of a new wave, where female protagonists break the mold, with the backdrop of the tr0mp-years pushing them ahead.
This way, the second timeline doesn't even feel science fiction, just a little of the beaten path. The medicated Marlow might as well be a child-star of the 2010s, with a conservatorship instead of living in a sealed of community under constant watch, the difference isn't even a stretch.
It's the breezy tone, the at times sardonic dialogue and the true to life sheer tediousness of everything between the reality-star-president and a pandemic wiping out the life we know.
This way, the second timeline doesn't even feel science fiction, just a little of the beaten path. The medicated Marlow might as well be a child-star of the 2010s, with a conservatorship instead of living in a sealed of community under constant watch, the difference isn't even a stretch.
It's the breezy tone, the at times sardonic dialogue and the true to life sheer tediousness of everything between the reality-star-president and a pandemic wiping out the life we know.
In another time and place, this book would easily be four stars, so don’t let your eyes quickly gloss over my three star rating and somehow give you the false impression that this book is just average. Also, never mind. Let’s continue...
Here’s the deal, friends. And we’re all friends, aren’t we? And we’ve been practicing social distance long before that was a thing. We’re all way ahead of our time, aren’t we, Goodreads? Anyway,
I ended a sentence we a comma, or I broke a sentence into another paragraph. Either way, I don’t care enough to fix it.
I started this audiobook back when things were relatively normal. What is normal anymore? Sitting at home playing video games and reading books. Watching comforting television programs. Playing basketball with the kids. Cooking meals from Hello Fresh and warming up the leftovers the next day. Not getting a haircut. Wearing a hat more often. Considering bringing back the caveman look. It’s been way too long.
I listened to this story on the way to and from work, at work, like a normally do. Then, working from home went from a nice perk of my job to a mandatory thing. I didn’t, I mean I couldn’t listen to audio books or podcasts the same way. There were other things going on around the house. There wasn’t a commute. So it took me way too long to finish this.
I really liked it though, but I was so ready to be done reading it. I didn’t give it a fair shot to be better than I know it is. The whole concept of social media followers and fame and influence mixed up into a science fiction time bending tale was awesome. The writing was sharp and witty. You should definitely read it if the plot strikes a chord with you at all. It’s better than I’m rating it.
I mean, what the hell else are you going to do? Read this funny sci-fi romcom fictional tale and take your mind off things for a while. It’s a good option right now. I may revisit it again down the road so I can truly appreciate it more than I did this time around.
I really need a haircut, man.
Here’s the deal, friends. And we’re all friends, aren’t we? And we’ve been practicing social distance long before that was a thing. We’re all way ahead of our time, aren’t we, Goodreads? Anyway,
I ended a sentence we a comma, or I broke a sentence into another paragraph. Either way, I don’t care enough to fix it.
I started this audiobook back when things were relatively normal. What is normal anymore? Sitting at home playing video games and reading books. Watching comforting television programs. Playing basketball with the kids. Cooking meals from Hello Fresh and warming up the leftovers the next day. Not getting a haircut. Wearing a hat more often. Considering bringing back the caveman look. It’s been way too long.
I listened to this story on the way to and from work, at work, like a normally do. Then, working from home went from a nice perk of my job to a mandatory thing. I didn’t, I mean I couldn’t listen to audio books or podcasts the same way. There were other things going on around the house. There wasn’t a commute. So it took me way too long to finish this.
I really liked it though, but I was so ready to be done reading it. I didn’t give it a fair shot to be better than I know it is. The whole concept of social media followers and fame and influence mixed up into a science fiction time bending tale was awesome. The writing was sharp and witty. You should definitely read it if the plot strikes a chord with you at all. It’s better than I’m rating it.
I mean, what the hell else are you going to do? Read this funny sci-fi romcom fictional tale and take your mind off things for a while. It’s a good option right now. I may revisit it again down the road so I can truly appreciate it more than I did this time around.
I really need a haircut, man.
3.5 stars. No doubt the future is difficult to write about - to imagine something so different from today, but believable in the next 30 years. Kudos to Angelo for attempting it, but it took a while to get into and to understand her vision, especially since the book goes back and forth between Marlow in 2051 and Orla in 2015. The second half was more enjoyable than the first for me after a slow build.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3.5 A fun cautionary tale. I know that sounds like an oxymoron, but that's the best way I can think to describe this book. It's smart social commentary on reality tv, social media, "influencers", fame, the invasion of tech in our lives, and how willingly we surrender our privacy on the altar of being perpetually connected. A solid original debut novel.
This book is very timely in that it covers the pitfalls and dangers of social media, internet fame, and lack of privacy online. But it felt too long and by about halfway through I just wanted to find out what happened and be done with it. I liked the idea of this book but I think it ended up just having TOO MANY ideas. 2 1/2 stars rounded up.
Thank you to NetGalley and Graydon House for the advanced copy.
Thank you to NetGalley and Graydon House for the advanced copy.
The alternating between characters and timelines was a little difficult, but overall this book was a fun and thought-provoking read. I was, however, disappointed by the ending. I felt that it was way too abrupt. Kind of like hitting a brick wall.