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3.45 AVERAGE
3.45 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I finally cracked the code of my dry spell! It was all because of this one novel that just wasn’t vibing with me. I tried so hard not to DNF it, but once I admitted it wasn’t my jam, I breezed through another book and even started a new one. Feels amazing to be out of that reading slump!
Immoral Code by Lillian Clark sounded so promising — high school friends taking on an absentee rich dad’s bank account? Count me in… or so I thought. I never even found out how it ends, and honestly, that’s fine by me. The characters were so dull, and the story moved at a snail’s pace. Sometimes you just gotta let it go!
Actual heist could have been longer, but I'm a sucker for heists and found families. Each character had a pretty strong voice too, which I appreciated. It was fun and fast!
I really enjoyed this book. I love that they had charcters from a variety of backgrounds. The story line was superb and I could really identify with the charcters. I really found San and Nari to be my favorite charcters. Bellamy was the one I identified with. Her struggle was very real and is a huge problem within gmanynfamilies in America. The book can be for many different age levels. It was a great read.
actual rating: 2.5
Ok, things I liked about this book:
- teen heist!
- diverse cast including an ARO / ACE PROTAG!
- uh ...damn, is that really it?
Things I didn't like about this book:
- overly 'cute' dialogue that seemed to be trying way too hard
- not enough style difference between POVs = me forgetting whose chapter I am reading almost CONSTANTLY
- despite the one aro/ace protag there was a LOT of romance with the other characters
- definitely WAY more contemporary melodrama than action heist
- it's basically just teen Office Space. Like... Literally. Exactly. I thought the author might do something a bit different since she seemed AWARE that that was what she was writing but nope
I'm sure this book will be more interesting to actual teens, but while I appreciated what it was trying to do it just never quite got me completely onboard. There was way more talking the same thing over 20 times and worrying over consequences than I personally wanted. I just wanted a fun heist book and instead I got like ...an extended existential crisis x5? Decent for what it is but definitely not up my alley.
Ok, things I liked about this book:
- teen heist!
- diverse cast including an ARO / ACE PROTAG!
- uh ...damn, is that really it?
Things I didn't like about this book:
- overly 'cute' dialogue that seemed to be trying way too hard
- not enough style difference between POVs = me forgetting whose chapter I am reading almost CONSTANTLY
- despite the one aro/ace protag there was a LOT of romance with the other characters
- definitely WAY more contemporary melodrama than action heist
- it's basically just teen Office Space. Like... Literally. Exactly. I thought the author might do something a bit different since she seemed AWARE that that was what she was writing but nope
I'm sure this book will be more interesting to actual teens, but while I appreciated what it was trying to do it just never quite got me completely onboard. There was way more talking the same thing over 20 times and worrying over consequences than I personally wanted. I just wanted a fun heist book and instead I got like ...an extended existential crisis x5? Decent for what it is but definitely not up my alley.
What promised to be a heist story a la the Oceans movies fell flat for me. One of the five (5!) main characters isn't getting a scholarship to college because her rich deadbeat dad has too much money and won't help pay for her college, so her friends scheme to help her get the money she "rightfully" deserves so she can go to school.
1. There's a lot of willing suspense of disbelief in this story for a few reasons, not the least of which involves the fact that she could have talked to her school and gotten things taken care of that way. My sister was in the exact same situation and talked to her school and made sure they knew that our dad makes enough money to help with college but wasn't going to actually pay a dime, and they gave her the necessary financial aid.
2. The first part of this book, before we get to the actual heist, is an info dump. There are five main characters and they all have their back stories explained, which could be interesting but ends up getting in the way of the action of the story. Five main characters is a tough narration style to pull off, and I don't think this book achieved what it intended.
Some readers may enjoy the story nonetheless, and if the teens at my library were interested in this one I would certainly purchase it for them, but as it is I will probably pass.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through Netgalley for the purpose of review.
1. There's a lot of willing suspense of disbelief in this story for a few reasons, not the least of which involves the fact that she could have talked to her school and gotten things taken care of that way. My sister was in the exact same situation and talked to her school and made sure they knew that our dad makes enough money to help with college but wasn't going to actually pay a dime, and they gave her the necessary financial aid.
2. The first part of this book, before we get to the actual heist, is an info dump. There are five main characters and they all have their back stories explained, which could be interesting but ends up getting in the way of the action of the story. Five main characters is a tough narration style to pull off, and I don't think this book achieved what it intended.
Some readers may enjoy the story nonetheless, and if the teens at my library were interested in this one I would certainly purchase it for them, but as it is I will probably pass.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through Netgalley for the purpose of review.
This is a hell of a fun read. I'm a sucker for a good heist crew and plot, and the book has that and more--the buildup to the heist itself is spent mostly on the characters' friendship and college worries and dreams for the future and individual backgrounds. Each teen has an entertaining voice, too: Nari narrates in hyperbole, Bellamy in scientific facts, Keagan in run-on sentences, Santiago in idioms, Reese in colors. And one of the things I liked was how the characters *were* very much suburban teenagers, however audacious their goals. I'd rec this to fans of heists or high-school-life YA or both.
Felt all the POVs were too similar in tone. Liked the idea, the actual book less so.
Oceans meets the Breakfast Club.
Ready for a heist novel with unbelievable high stakes and action and realistic and well-rounded teen characters? Well, Lillian Clark’s Immoral Code hits it out of the park with excitement and characters that steal your heart. (Yeah, I know. Heist puns, ouch.)
Nari, Bellamy, Keagan, Santiago, and Reese are inseparable best friends who would, quite literally, do anything for each other. While wrapping up their senior year of high school, Bellamy is hit with the news that due to her absent father’s billionaire status, she gets zero financial aid from her dream school, MIT. So Nari, hacker and tech genius, hatches a plan to skim just a little money from Bellamy’s father’s bank accounts to help pay for MIT. But, for the plan to work, all five of the friends have a part to play, and they have to played perfectly.
Our cast of characters: Nari, the Mastermind, the backbone of the heist– without her, it’s not possible. Bellamy, the Right-Hand Woman, the motive behind the heist. Reese, the Distraction, our acearo sass-master, born to perform for the mission– complete with fake blood and screaming in public. Santiago, the Grease Man, the only one of the group that can pull-off looking older than just a teenager and the only one that can manage to stay relatively calm in this situation. And Keagan, the Driver, who is absolutely opposed to the illegal scheme, quite sure that they’ll all end up in jail, and tasked with getting everyone out as soon as he can.
Not only is the set-up for this novel great, written in alternating chapters so we get to hear from each of our five main characters, but the execution is pretty spot-on. It’s full of tech-lingo that sets up the heist, but also is grounded in realistic friendships and high school drama. Plus, it’s full of fun, time-passing language, like “Pixel fade to midmorning Sunday…” which gives you a distinct heist movie feel, while allowing the narrative to flow easily.
Clark crafted each character’s voice in a way that made them distinct and memorable– everyone had a purpose that drove the story forward, or stalled the narrative, but in a good way. Also, bonus points for diversity and LGBTQ+ representation that felt authentic and not just shoved in there to check a box.
This book is a fun one. It’s different from a lot of what’s popular in the YA genre right now, so it stands out a little bit more. It did feel like it was missing something that I couldn’t put my finger on, so I knocked it down a star, but it’s still an enjoyable ride.
4/5 Stars.
I received a free e-ARC of Immoral Code from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Ready for a heist novel with unbelievable high stakes and action and realistic and well-rounded teen characters? Well, Lillian Clark’s Immoral Code hits it out of the park with excitement and characters that steal your heart. (Yeah, I know. Heist puns, ouch.)
Nari, Bellamy, Keagan, Santiago, and Reese are inseparable best friends who would, quite literally, do anything for each other. While wrapping up their senior year of high school, Bellamy is hit with the news that due to her absent father’s billionaire status, she gets zero financial aid from her dream school, MIT. So Nari, hacker and tech genius, hatches a plan to skim just a little money from Bellamy’s father’s bank accounts to help pay for MIT. But, for the plan to work, all five of the friends have a part to play, and they have to played perfectly.
Our cast of characters: Nari, the Mastermind, the backbone of the heist– without her, it’s not possible. Bellamy, the Right-Hand Woman, the motive behind the heist. Reese, the Distraction, our acearo sass-master, born to perform for the mission– complete with fake blood and screaming in public. Santiago, the Grease Man, the only one of the group that can pull-off looking older than just a teenager and the only one that can manage to stay relatively calm in this situation. And Keagan, the Driver, who is absolutely opposed to the illegal scheme, quite sure that they’ll all end up in jail, and tasked with getting everyone out as soon as he can.
Not only is the set-up for this novel great, written in alternating chapters so we get to hear from each of our five main characters, but the execution is pretty spot-on. It’s full of tech-lingo that sets up the heist, but also is grounded in realistic friendships and high school drama. Plus, it’s full of fun, time-passing language, like “Pixel fade to midmorning Sunday…” which gives you a distinct heist movie feel, while allowing the narrative to flow easily.
Clark crafted each character’s voice in a way that made them distinct and memorable– everyone had a purpose that drove the story forward, or stalled the narrative, but in a good way. Also, bonus points for diversity and LGBTQ+ representation that felt authentic and not just shoved in there to check a box.
This book is a fun one. It’s different from a lot of what’s popular in the YA genre right now, so it stands out a little bit more. It did feel like it was missing something that I couldn’t put my finger on, so I knocked it down a star, but it’s still an enjoyable ride.
4/5 Stars.
I received a free e-ARC of Immoral Code from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I had the pleasure of reading this earlier in the year and I think you're all in for a treat.