Scan barcode
reading_aine's review against another edition
2.0
The premise was really interesting, which is why I picked up this book. However, it was much darker in a disturbing way than I expected. This book tackles some heavy themes -including death, PTSD, suicide and the sexual assault of a minor.
Pros:
- The book had good suspense. I tried to figure out exactly what had happened in Pierce's past.
Cons:
- The relationship between Pierce and John was not healthy. Also, neither of them were very likable characters.
- Pierce is the narrator of her book and continually inhabiting her head was extremely annoying.
Pros:
- The book had good suspense. I tried to figure out exactly what had happened in Pierce's past.
Cons:
- The relationship between Pierce and John was not healthy. Also, neither of them were very likable characters.
- Pierce is the narrator of her book and continually inhabiting her head was extremely annoying.
alyssaindira's review against another edition
2.0
*no spoilers were harmed in the making of this review*
"Persephone being kidnapped by Hades, the god of the dead and taken to live with him in the underworld was how the Greeks explained the changing of the seasons. It's what's known as an origin myth. What happened to me? That's no myth"
Hey guys, I finished Abandon (Abandon, #1)by Meg Cabot. I believed that I would enjoy this retelling of the whole Hades/Persephone dilemma, considering I've enjoyed several others novels centered around this. I totally expected to like Cabot's rendition as well. But I suppose that's the myth in my opinion. Now, don't get me wrong, it's an alright story. The writing was alright, not to jam packed with details, not to sparse. But, it was written in a strange way where some chapters were the present events, and some were describing past events. However, in the present storyline, it often alluded to events that happened in the past. Without giving any details about what actually occurred until it was covered in later chapters. So, it was kind of confusing, reading about the character referencing something that happened in the past in the present, without knowing why and how it truly influenced her present actions. Confused reading this? Yeah, that's how I felt. SO yeah, I was kind of lost for majority of the book. Wondering about past events than present happenings. Other than that, the writing was smooth to breeze through, if you dont mind being unsure of what your reading about. The storyline itself was well, dull ish? In my opinion, it is literally just about a girl trying to adjust to a new school and new life, while being stuck in her past life. Or maybe it wasnt dull, just slow? Or maybe I am just put out because it didnt contain that much action. Or maybe the real reason was because although it said it was suppose to have romance in this book, it kinda sucked. Majority of the relationship was hate, and being pushed away and clipped meetings or memories. Just glimpses. And the main character doesnt even realize that love could be a possibility until like, when its almost too late. SO, it was mainly a "hate" relationship, then boom! To love in zero seconds flat. I was very confused. I mean, they never had any chemistry or building or tension or any kind of loveish attraction. Until they did, out of no where. So yeah...that was a total bust. Besides that, we dont really get to know much about the MC personality, other than she is more like her father than her mother, and she is not scared anymore, blah blah blah. All very dry and dull and without flavor. And the main suppose love interest is practically just described as being moody. While his actions suggest that he is protective. That's about it. Until the end. Where he gets maybe one or two more character traits. Then the end of the book just like that. *coughs* I should remind you guys that all of this is just my opinion. Take it for what it is worth. Just because I didnt have the best of experiences reading this book, doesnt mean you wont. You guys might like this book, if you give it a shot. Which, is what I did. I tried this book. And it just didnt work out. For me. For you guys? Who knows. Alright, I think that's about all I can think to say about this book. As always, if you guys have any questions or comments, drop em below. Till next time. Bye.
"Persephone being kidnapped by Hades, the god of the dead and taken to live with him in the underworld was how the Greeks explained the changing of the seasons. It's what's known as an origin myth. What happened to me? That's no myth"
Hey guys, I finished Abandon (Abandon, #1)by Meg Cabot. I believed that I would enjoy this retelling of the whole Hades/Persephone dilemma, considering I've enjoyed several others novels centered around this. I totally expected to like Cabot's rendition as well. But I suppose that's the myth in my opinion. Now, don't get me wrong, it's an alright story. The writing was alright, not to jam packed with details, not to sparse. But, it was written in a strange way where some chapters were the present events, and some were describing past events. However, in the present storyline, it often alluded to events that happened in the past. Without giving any details about what actually occurred until it was covered in later chapters. So, it was kind of confusing, reading about the character referencing something that happened in the past in the present, without knowing why and how it truly influenced her present actions. Confused reading this? Yeah, that's how I felt. SO yeah, I was kind of lost for majority of the book. Wondering about past events than present happenings. Other than that, the writing was smooth to breeze through, if you dont mind being unsure of what your reading about. The storyline itself was well, dull ish? In my opinion, it is literally just about a girl trying to adjust to a new school and new life, while being stuck in her past life. Or maybe it wasnt dull, just slow? Or maybe I am just put out because it didnt contain that much action. Or maybe the real reason was because although it said it was suppose to have romance in this book, it kinda sucked. Majority of the relationship was hate, and being pushed away and clipped meetings or memories. Just glimpses. And the main character doesnt even realize that love could be a possibility until like, when its almost too late. SO, it was mainly a "hate" relationship, then boom! To love in zero seconds flat. I was very confused. I mean, they never had any chemistry or building or tension or any kind of loveish attraction. Until they did, out of no where. So yeah...that was a total bust. Besides that, we dont really get to know much about the MC personality, other than she is more like her father than her mother, and she is not scared anymore, blah blah blah. All very dry and dull and without flavor. And the main suppose love interest is practically just described as being moody. While his actions suggest that he is protective. That's about it. Until the end. Where he gets maybe one or two more character traits. Then the end of the book just like that. *coughs* I should remind you guys that all of this is just my opinion. Take it for what it is worth. Just because I didnt have the best of experiences reading this book, doesnt mean you wont. You guys might like this book, if you give it a shot. Which, is what I did. I tried this book. And it just didnt work out. For me. For you guys? Who knows. Alright, I think that's about all I can think to say about this book. As always, if you guys have any questions or comments, drop em below. Till next time. Bye.
shhchar's review against another edition
1.0
I swear this girl cried in this book more than I've cried in my life. Seriously, I'm supposed to root for a character who cries when faced with conflict?
John is one big creeper. I couldn't get over the fact that he changed her clothes on two occasions and then told her what to wear on another one. Does Pierce not have a mind of her own?
I tried to like this book, it had some redeeming aspects like the lore of the necklace -- but I couldn't get past how helpless and cliched the characters were.
John is one big creeper. I couldn't get over the fact that he changed her clothes on two occasions and then told her what to wear on another one. Does Pierce not have a mind of her own?
I tried to like this book, it had some redeeming aspects like the lore of the necklace -- but I couldn't get past how helpless and cliched the characters were.
stephxsu's review against another edition
3.0
ABANDON is the first book in Meg Cabot’s latest YA trilogy, a retelling of the Hades and Persephone Greek myth. Unfortunately, I have found myself less and less satisfied with Cabot’s books, and ABANDON, while marginally better than Cabot’s Airhead series, still uses too many of her usual writing techniques—little forward action, a heavy emphasis on flashback—to endear itself to me completely.
I like Pierce: she is, in my opinion, a little mellower than many of Cabot’s protagonists. And at the beginning of ABANDON I was reminded very much of earlier Meg Cabot books that I loved, such as All-American Girl. Pierce displays a sense of poise that may or may not be the result of her constant encounters with near-death experiences, but nevertheless is very appealing. I even have a tiny little crush on John, who’s protective but not overbearingly so, and really very sweet in his interest in Pierce.
It was the way the story was presented, however, that didn’t gel with me. Practically every other chapter is a flashback. Granted, they are very important flashbacks, explaining how Pierce first encountered John and showing her subsequent (unwanted, but lifesaving) encounters with him and the troubles he has caused for her. However, why does the story have to be presented half in flashback? Pierce’s backstory was so much more interesting than her present story of being the new student at her school, making new friends (or nemeses) of questionable characterization, and slowly uncovering her family’s very melodramatic secret. Why couldn’t the story simply be presented chronologically? I think it might’ve made for a more engaging read, instead of my being frustrated that, once again, Meg Cabot was resorting to cliff-hangery comments that are supposed to pique readers’ interest and have us reading frantically to figure out whatever happened, but instead feels like trickery, a manipulation of our emotions.
Overall, though, I think ABANDON will be a great read for younger readers, particularly those who have read much of Cabot’s books or other paranormal reads. It has an interesting pair of lead characters and decently good writing. I just couldn’t fully get behind the awkward story structure.
I like Pierce: she is, in my opinion, a little mellower than many of Cabot’s protagonists. And at the beginning of ABANDON I was reminded very much of earlier Meg Cabot books that I loved, such as All-American Girl. Pierce displays a sense of poise that may or may not be the result of her constant encounters with near-death experiences, but nevertheless is very appealing. I even have a tiny little crush on John, who’s protective but not overbearingly so, and really very sweet in his interest in Pierce.
It was the way the story was presented, however, that didn’t gel with me. Practically every other chapter is a flashback. Granted, they are very important flashbacks, explaining how Pierce first encountered John and showing her subsequent (unwanted, but lifesaving) encounters with him and the troubles he has caused for her. However, why does the story have to be presented half in flashback? Pierce’s backstory was so much more interesting than her present story of being the new student at her school, making new friends (or nemeses) of questionable characterization, and slowly uncovering her family’s very melodramatic secret. Why couldn’t the story simply be presented chronologically? I think it might’ve made for a more engaging read, instead of my being frustrated that, once again, Meg Cabot was resorting to cliff-hangery comments that are supposed to pique readers’ interest and have us reading frantically to figure out whatever happened, but instead feels like trickery, a manipulation of our emotions.
Overall, though, I think ABANDON will be a great read for younger readers, particularly those who have read much of Cabot’s books or other paranormal reads. It has an interesting pair of lead characters and decently good writing. I just couldn’t fully get behind the awkward story structure.
renatalynn's review against another edition
4.0
Fat easy to listen to book, looking forward to the next one.
ladytiara's review against another edition
3.0
Abandon's heroine Pierce Oliviera doesn't have the easiest life. Two years ago, she died and then came back from the dead, and everything has been wrong ever since. Her mother blames her father for her death, and they are in the midst of a messy divorce. There's a mysterious guy named John who is connected to her death and who shows up whenever things seem messiest in her life. Her mother has uprooted her to a small island in Florida, and Pierce is trying to start her life over again, but she's dealing with a lot of baggage and John is there once again.
Abandon is a bit hard to review. On the one hand, it's by the ever reliable Meg Cabot, and it has some good moments. But there were some flaws that got in the way of my enjoyment of the book.
The first half of the book is mostly flashbacks, gradually telling the story of how Pierce died and what went wrong after she came back. Sometimes I enjoy flashbacks, but in this case, the format didn't work for me because there were so many flashbacks that I didn't really feel connected to the characters in the present. When the action returned to the present, I didn't feel all that interested. Then there was a huge info dump that slowed down the pacing. However, once that was over, the book really picked up steam, and the last 100 pages were much better. At that point, I didn't want to put it down.
Pierce is a good main character, and I cared about her struggle to fix the mess that her life has become. The romance has potential, although there's a slightly creepy aspect to it (although it did feel less creepy toward the end of the book). Despite the flaws in this book, Cabot has laid a good foundation for her story, and I will definitely read the next book in the trilogy.
(I received a copy of this book from Amazon Vine.)
Abandon is a bit hard to review. On the one hand, it's by the ever reliable Meg Cabot, and it has some good moments. But there were some flaws that got in the way of my enjoyment of the book.
The first half of the book is mostly flashbacks, gradually telling the story of how Pierce died and what went wrong after she came back. Sometimes I enjoy flashbacks, but in this case, the format didn't work for me because there were so many flashbacks that I didn't really feel connected to the characters in the present. When the action returned to the present, I didn't feel all that interested. Then there was a huge info dump that slowed down the pacing. However, once that was over, the book really picked up steam, and the last 100 pages were much better. At that point, I didn't want to put it down.
Pierce is a good main character, and I cared about her struggle to fix the mess that her life has become. The romance has potential, although there's a slightly creepy aspect to it (although it did feel less creepy toward the end of the book). Despite the flaws in this book, Cabot has laid a good foundation for her story, and I will definitely read the next book in the trilogy.
(I received a copy of this book from Amazon Vine.)
ptothelo's review against another edition
2.0
Like the first book of a traditional trilogy, this one is just a lot of build up. There are interesting bits and I will be waiting to see where she takes it.
4saradouglas's review against another edition
1.0
This book was pretty awful. When I heard it would be a new take on the myth of Hades and Persephone I literally yelled "OMG YES!!" But.... yeah, it didn't live up to that excitement even a little. There's no chemistry between the characters at all. The guy shows up to save the girl a few times, but they don't really talk. The girl spends the whole book complaining about the guy but suddenly he confesses he loves her and she gets all teary and happy. Whatever. The writing was just horrible. Constant blatantly annoying foreshadowing and flashbacks. An actual quote: "My voice trailed off, because when I glanced up into his face, I saw that his mouth was pressed into a flat line… like the one my heart had gone into the day I'd fallen into his world." Absolute garbage!
good1kenz's review against another edition
5.0
Abandon was an absolutely fabulous book. It left me begging for more, can't wait to read the next one. Meg Cabot NEVER disappoints me!