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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
You can find this review and others like it at aravenclawlibraryx.wordpress.com
I’m really quite disappointed by this book. I truly thought it was going to be something different than what it was. I expected some truly thrilling dystopia or at the very least, some action/adventure but I didn’t get that at all. I had to go back and read the synopsis of this book because I write out my reviews and then type them out later. I couldn’t remember what this book was about. That’s how unremarkable this book was. I am not trying to be mean at all but when I don’t remember what a book is about and have to look it up, that is not a good sign.
One of my problems with this book was that I didn’t quite care of any of the characters. The main character, Jinx, was okay but I didn’t have any particular feelings for her. I didn’t bond with her even though she shared similar interests with me, such as being a gamer and interest in martial arts. She was just alright. *shrugs shoulders*
As for the other characters, they were meh. They were just there. They didn’t push the story forward. I couldn’t stand Mackenna, Jinx’s stepsister, for most of the book. She was whiny, nossy and very demanding along with being incredibly demeaning. She never listened to Jinx when it came to survival, even though Jinx clearly knew what she was talking about when it came to that. I was frustrated with her. The only positive about her was she was interested in politics, which you don’t see a lot of in young adults, especially for girls.
The political parties, Spark and Opposition, confused me and they were a big part of the plot of this book. I think the Opposition was bad but I really have no idea. I just got this big paragraph about the history of the Spark and Opposition. I didn’t retain much of it so during the whole book, I was pretty confused. It’s unfortunate because it would have been such a cool thing but when you info dump things like that, the reader isn’t going to get the information they need for the story to make sense.
One last thing that bugged me about this book was the potential love interest. I won’t say who it was is as to not spoil it for anybody wanting to read the book. Although, when I went to look up the synopsis of this book to do this review, the author herself named the love interest so I guess you all can find it on the Goodreads page if you truly want to know. But wow, did it feel incredibly forced. Jinx and the love interest had no real chemistry and barely knew each other. Why can’t there be a young adult action/adventure/dystopia book without a love interest? It’s so very tiring.
Okay, so overall, this wasn’t the worst book I’ve read but as you all could tell, I had a lot of problems with it. However, this book piqued my interest just enough that I might (and that’s a big miiiiiight) read the second book. I’m curious to know how it all will end. As for recommendations, if the problems I listed don’t bother you or they actually appeal to you (I won’t judge you, pinky promise), then have at it. Maybe this book will be right for you. It just wasn’t right for me.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Blood, Medical trauma
Trapped in a never ending series of catastrophes, Jinx and her siblings must rely on her father's prepper training to help get them to safety.
This is an odd one, and difficult to rate. Although on the surface there's nothing wrong with it, it's a perfectly good adventure story, the more I think about it, the more problems appear. For instance, when is it set? Presumably it's some way in the future; cars have autodrive and all the textbooks seem to be on tablets. The American parties have given way to The Opposition and The Spark with no hint of any other options. However, there are still books around, there doesn't seem to be any other especially impressive tech, and Mac needs "several tablets" to handle one class, rather than multitasking as we can nowadays.
I didn't think much of Jinx. Granted, things were going wrong everywhere she turned, but she was disdainful of Mac, who didn't have any of her training, for not reacting well in crisis, and even as her father's training and supplies repeatedly saved her life she was still complaining about them. I actually thought Mac had the better storyline, going from pampered to willing to do whatever it took.
I'll pick up the next book, because it's an interesting storyline and I like that it doesn't (quite) demonise preppers. I hope it clears things up a bit.
This is an odd one, and difficult to rate. Although on the surface there's nothing wrong with it, it's a perfectly good adventure story, the more I think about it, the more problems appear. For instance, when is it set? Presumably it's some way in the future; cars have autodrive and all the textbooks seem to be on tablets. The American parties have given way to The Opposition and The Spark with no hint of any other options. However, there are still books around, there doesn't seem to be any other especially impressive tech, and Mac needs "several tablets" to handle one class, rather than multitasking as we can nowadays.
I didn't think much of Jinx. Granted, things were going wrong everywhere she turned, but she was disdainful of Mac, who didn't have any of her training, for not reacting well in crisis, and even as her father's training and supplies repeatedly saved her life she was still complaining about them. I actually thought Mac had the better storyline, going from pampered to willing to do whatever it took.
I'll pick up the next book, because it's an interesting storyline and I like that it doesn't (quite) demonise preppers. I hope it clears things up a bit.