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3.29 AVERAGE
3.29 AVERAGE
ahhhh it sucks so bad when you don’t end up loving a book you were so excited for
- so little thoughts so much time
- I was v excited for this book and I think that my expectations were perhaps was a little too high because in the end I was very disappointed
- this book is pitched as a thriller but it was not thrilling in the slightest
- I did not care for a single character in this book - tomorrow I will not remember their names or any sort of defining characteristic
- the characters were ultimately forgettable and honestly unlikable
- none of the friendships felt real - I know that that’s sort of a point that the book is making but still, i don’t see how or why any of these people even like each other (I would argue that they really don’t) - theyre banding together and calling each other best friends but all of its very surface level, there is no development to any of the relationships at all
- I get that this is a YA book, but I have read and loved many ya books and I would argue that this book sounds too young/juvenile - this book has a darker theme and it’s set when the characters are around 17yrs old but the voice in the book sounds too young
- I feel like I wasnt surprised by anything that happened - most of the reveals were very predictable
- the final reveal was just a little ridiculous in my opinion and it significantly took away from the story
- none of the secrets were... idk something that I cared about? I think it was more the way that these life changing secrets are revealed and then people whisper about it for a chapter and then nobody cares anymore and the cycle repeats - there just wasn’t any weight to anything
- Nancy’s “romance” side plot was just not it - I really thought we were beyond that trope and I don’t know what it’s doing in this book - maybe it’ll be addressed in book 2 Idk
- in the end the concept of this book is great, the execution not so much
- I loved the fact that we had an all Asian main cast
- I love the concept of the incredible pressure being placed on young kids to perform etc and how these kids are expected to achieve and maintain perfection at any cost and I loved the discussion of it being different for children of immigrants because they have paid for this opportunity in blood sweat and tears and of how immigrant children are shouldering their parents dreams more than their own - but the problem is that this book only touches on these ideas - there is no in depth discussion
- in the end I am disappointed by this book - there was a hell of a lot of potential here for a truly amazing story
- so little thoughts so much time
- I was v excited for this book and I think that my expectations were perhaps was a little too high because in the end I was very disappointed
- this book is pitched as a thriller but it was not thrilling in the slightest
- I did not care for a single character in this book - tomorrow I will not remember their names or any sort of defining characteristic
- the characters were ultimately forgettable and honestly unlikable
- none of the friendships felt real - I know that that’s sort of a point that the book is making but still, i don’t see how or why any of these people even like each other (I would argue that they really don’t) - theyre banding together and calling each other best friends but all of its very surface level, there is no development to any of the relationships at all
- I get that this is a YA book, but I have read and loved many ya books and I would argue that this book sounds too young/juvenile - this book has a darker theme and it’s set when the characters are around 17yrs old but the voice in the book sounds too young
- I feel like I wasnt surprised by anything that happened - most of the reveals were very predictable
- the final reveal was just a little ridiculous in my opinion and it significantly took away from the story
- none of the secrets were... idk something that I cared about? I think it was more the way that these life changing secrets are revealed and then people whisper about it for a chapter and then nobody cares anymore and the cycle repeats - there just wasn’t any weight to anything
- Nancy’s “romance” side plot was just not it - I really thought we were beyond that trope and I don’t know what it’s doing in this book - maybe it’ll be addressed in book 2 Idk
- in the end the concept of this book is great, the execution not so much
- I loved the fact that we had an all Asian main cast
- I love the concept of the incredible pressure being placed on young kids to perform etc and how these kids are expected to achieve and maintain perfection at any cost and I loved the discussion of it being different for children of immigrants because they have paid for this opportunity in blood sweat and tears and of how immigrant children are shouldering their parents dreams more than their own - but the problem is that this book only touches on these ideas - there is no in depth discussion
- in the end I am disappointed by this book - there was a hell of a lot of potential here for a truly amazing story
3.5 Stars
Very much a popcorn read in terms of the plot, a quick and entertaining book albeit with a pretty unbelievable conclusion to the mystery. What I liked most was the exploration of the toxic friendship between main character Nancy and victim Jamie, and the different experiences of immigrant families. The weird teacher-student relationship icked me out a lot but I liked how Nancy switched up the power dynamics at the end
Spoiler
(still deeply icky but in a "two can play at this game" way which is more fun).If you enjoy the Karen M. McManus books, you'll probably enjoy this!
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
this book… god i need the second one right now. i really loved it idk what else to say i can’t be simpler than that. even when i predicted most of the plot it was still satisfying to read. can’t wait for the next one!
The killer literally made no sense? There was no build up and the fact that she was just living among them and no one realized just confused me. I liked the PLL/Gossip Girl aspects but the twist could have been built up a lot more so it actually made sense.
This started off decent and was a fast read but the ending was dumb as heck.
I really enjoyed the atmosphere of the school and the concept of the book. That being said, I found some of the characters somewhat one-dimensional (even with their secrets) and found the main character too immoral for my taste.
We all know how much I love dark academia, but I do have an issue with how white the genre is. Because of that, I had really been looking forward to How We Fall Apart. Unfortunately, for me, it just fell so flat. I felt that the story had no nuance. The book is told in Nancy’s POV, but I felt like I knew nothing about her, her friends or even why they were friends. I didn’t spend any time theorizing about who “The Proctor” was, which really is the most disappointing thing for me in a mystery novel. If I’m not invested enough to try to theorize, something is definitely off. While I do appreciate dark academia stories being told by and about people of color, this one just did not work for me at all.