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eleanorlow's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-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? No
5.0
cspacco's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
knittingchaos's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book! It is the best one Joe Hill has written so far. I completely lost myself in this world of fire & ash… I stayed up late reading it, I thought about it at work, I wondered how it was going to end, I wondered what I would do… I know that it will not be for everyone, (what book is?) but I gladly lost sleep so I could spend time in this post-apocalyptic world.
njdarkish's review against another edition
5.0
Coming off a reading high after finishing NOS4A2 I decided to take another dose of Joe Hill-- and was glad I did.
This story really had some umph. The concept of a disease that makes you burst into flames is pretty cool, but by the time the novelty of death by fire started wearing off I was waist-deep into the lives of compelling characters, fascinating abilities, and horrifying villains. This book has it all (but never feels like too much): a religious group turning into a cult, psychotic militia groups, an attempted-murder mystery, a medical thriller, love stories, and more. I was thrilled the whole time.
Plus, you know you're in for a good ride when at the halfway mark you're convinced there's no way things can get worse but have to because of how much of the book is left.
By the way, this one is worth picking up in audio, the reader is very good.
This story really had some umph. The concept of a disease that makes you burst into flames is pretty cool, but by the time the novelty of death by fire started wearing off I was waist-deep into the lives of compelling characters, fascinating abilities, and horrifying villains. This book has it all (but never feels like too much): a religious group turning into a cult, psychotic militia groups, an attempted-murder mystery, a medical thriller, love stories, and more. I was thrilled the whole time.
Plus, you know you're in for a good ride when at the halfway mark you're convinced there's no way things can get worse but have to because of how much of the book is left.
By the way, this one is worth picking up in audio, the reader is very good.
alicemaryblanks14's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
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? No
5.0
cleverkrowreads's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
yodamom's review against another edition
3.0
2.7 stars
I finally finished this ! I liked it (or did I) I am wavering. Dang it was too long, like a visit from my In-laws. My first thought when I finished it was "Finally" There was enough action, enough death and destruction, but it was too closed in. There were too few characters, too few places, the book stayed in one place too long for my taste. The story got stale, before 50%. Yes, the story moved forward but the circumstances, the people just "Baaa" (sorry that slipped out) yeh the sheep just followed slowly even when the wolf was drooling on their wool. I can't stand it when life/circumstances suck's, really down and nasty and people just go along with it. Harper, she was a either an idiot, or an angel trying to be the do good person, with sprinkles of fairy powder or a few times real guts and thinking.
I wasn't surprised by much in the story, I could see the answers way too early. Predictable. There was a person who was to be cast out of the flock, it was a mystery to all in the flock but not to this reader. I then spend the next few hundred of page following the bouncing ball through the cult's wacky ways.
The characters where lightly developed. We knew them, but I never felt that connection when the author develops them better. I didn't get to really know them out side of this time bubble story. This might not have seemed so important if the story had been shorter. The images, appearances of the characters were much better developed than they were. I wanted to continue knowing that person the image presented was amazing.
The end. The way it ended left me wondering, why I bothered spending all that time.
I finally finished this ! I liked it (or did I) I am wavering. Dang it was too long, like a visit from my In-laws. My first thought when I finished it was "Finally" There was enough action, enough death and destruction, but it was too closed in. There were too few characters, too few places, the book stayed in one place too long for my taste. The story got stale, before 50%. Yes, the story moved forward but the circumstances, the people just "Baaa" (sorry that slipped out) yeh the sheep just followed slowly even when the wolf was drooling on their wool. I can't stand it when life/circumstances suck's, really down and nasty and people just go along with it. Harper, she was a either an idiot, or an angel trying to be the do good person, with sprinkles of fairy powder or a few times real guts and thinking.
I wasn't surprised by much in the story, I could see the answers way too early. Predictable. There was a person who was to be cast out of the flock, it was a mystery to all in the flock but not to this reader. I then spend the next few hundred of page following the bouncing ball through the cult's wacky ways.
The characters where lightly developed. We knew them, but I never felt that connection when the author develops them better. I didn't get to really know them out side of this time bubble story. This might not have seemed so important if the story had been shorter. The images, appearances of the characters were much better developed than they were. I wanted to continue knowing that person the image presented was amazing.
The end. The way it ended left me wondering, why I bothered spending all that time.
minnaobrien's review
5.0
Joe Hill has become one of my favorite authors, full stop.
This novel perfectly combines a compelling and interesting story with - the reason I read novels in the first place - brilliant insights into the human condition. As with as of Hill's work, the characters are complex and fascinating. This is a great book; I recommend it highly.
The only thing thing that kept this book from perfection were some pacing problems. Unlike NOS4A2, Hill's other 700+ page book, there were sections wיere the book dragged just enough to make me less excited to pick it back up.
For audiobook listeners - First off, the audio format helps with a book this long. Kate Mulgrew, as always, gives a wonderful performance, and I enjoy seeing an author who is a fan of his narrator (check out the afterward of the NOS4A2 audiobook, its a treat), and enlists her for several projects. The only negative is, because Mulgrew is significantly older than the point-of-view character, I had trouble forming a picture of her at first.
This novel perfectly combines a compelling and interesting story with - the reason I read novels in the first place - brilliant insights into the human condition. As with as of Hill's work, the characters are complex and fascinating. This is a great book; I recommend it highly.
The only thing thing that kept this book from perfection were some pacing problems. Unlike NOS4A2, Hill's other 700+ page book, there were sections wיere the book dragged just enough to make me less excited to pick it back up.
For audiobook listeners - First off, the audio format helps with a book this long. Kate Mulgrew, as always, gives a wonderful performance, and I enjoy seeing an author who is a fan of his narrator (check out the afterward of the NOS4A2 audiobook, its a treat), and enlists her for several projects. The only negative is, because Mulgrew is significantly older than the point-of-view character, I had trouble forming a picture of her at first.
willjohnsonwork's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
sad
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
5.0
sparklepony503's review against another edition
4.0
This book started off promising and I enjoyed most of the book. There were a few elements that felt a little unfinished or didn't have a big payoff. Especially the ending. The ending was a bit of a let down and I actually had to reread it because I forgot that I had read it before going to bed. That's how anticlimactic the ending is.
I really liked "Carrying" and I thought it was a good set up for the rest of the book. It definitely built up the relationship between Harper and Jakob, making it easier to feel the affects of his betrayal to her and how far off the deep end he really gets. There are some things that never really are explained and probably could have been left out of the book. When John is sick towards the end and is hallucinating that he saw the Freightliner...I just felt like there could have been a bigger pay off from that.
I liked that Harper was an innocent, that she her natural bent is to think the best of people and that she wasn't necessarily jaded. There is a real move towards the anti-hero that is getting a little old and it was nice to see characters that are more or less good.
This book actually reminded me a lot of NOS42 and maybe Christine with a vehicle being one of the main focal points of the story. The freightliner bits in the story were actually really good and I did feel the menace from Jakob the times that the truck comes into play in the story.
Overall I thought it was an enjoyable read, there are parts that aren't fully satisfactory, like Harper and John's relationship, and the ending.
But there are other parts that do make the book worth it like the makeshift family that comes from the relationship between Nick, Harper and Allie.
I really liked "Carrying" and I thought it was a good set up for the rest of the book. It definitely built up the relationship between Harper and Jakob, making it easier to feel the affects of his betrayal to her and how far off the deep end he really gets. There are some things that never really are explained and probably could have been left out of the book. When John is sick towards the end and is hallucinating that he saw the Freightliner...I just felt like there could have been a bigger pay off from that.
I liked that Harper was an innocent, that she her natural bent is to think the best of people and that she wasn't necessarily jaded. There is a real move towards the anti-hero that is getting a little old and it was nice to see characters that are more or less good.
This book actually reminded me a lot of NOS42 and maybe Christine with a vehicle being one of the main focal points of the story. The freightliner bits in the story were actually really good and I did feel the menace from Jakob the times that the truck comes into play in the story.
Overall I thought it was an enjoyable read, there are parts that aren't fully satisfactory, like Harper and John's relationship, and the ending.
But there are other parts that do make the book worth it like the makeshift family that comes from the relationship between Nick, Harper and Allie.