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3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Could not hold my attention, story line started to struggle. Not interested in finishing the series.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I want to love this series. The depth to the characters and their relationships is intriguing and complex. But I’m just not feeling it. I’ll likely finish the series, but I don’t feel the need to jump right into the next book.
I feel like this series is the literary equivalent of stale Cheetos. You know they’re no good, you’re not deriving much enjoyment from them, and yet you keep partaking because they’re there. First book was by far the best, and even then I felt like I didn’t connect with the characters. Then the second book and this one had some plot points that made absolutely no sense. Like, Mare bargains with Maven so he takes her and lets the others go. . . But she is trapped along with everyone else when she offers that bargain, so why would he take a deal with someone who has no leverage? He could have just killed the rest and kept her anyway.
And it’s super unclear why Mare agrees to spread Maven’s propaganda. She’s all ‘he can’t hurt me now, I’m not scared to die’ and then merrily goes around spreading propaganda while claiming she hates it so much and doesn’t want to do it. But it never seems to cross her mind to just. . . Not? (It would have been much more compelling if Maven had had Samson whisper her to make her do it.)
Part of the problem might be that all the first person characters are the same person and I don’t really understand or like that person. The main character is Mare/Cameron/Evangeline/who cares because they have the exact same voice and perspective, which is that they are trapped by some mental construct and they spend a lot of time wishing they weren’t trapped while simultaneously doing absolutely nothing to change that construct or their circumstances, so it’s very hard to feel any empathy or understanding for them. I pushed through this book and I doubt I’ll read the fourth book because I just don’t care anymore.
I know this is a really harsh review, and I think some of that is because the story and the world had so much potential! I can just ignore a bad book that was only ever going to be a bad book, but a bad series that could have been really amazing is just a big bummer.
And it’s super unclear why Mare agrees to spread Maven’s propaganda. She’s all ‘he can’t hurt me now, I’m not scared to die’ and then merrily goes around spreading propaganda while claiming she hates it so much and doesn’t want to do it. But it never seems to cross her mind to just. . . Not? (It would have been much more compelling if Maven had had Samson whisper her to make her do it.)
Part of the problem might be that all the first person characters are the same person and I don’t really understand or like that person. The main character is Mare/Cameron/Evangeline/who cares because they have the exact same voice and perspective, which is that they are trapped by some mental construct and they spend a lot of time wishing they weren’t trapped while simultaneously doing absolutely nothing to change that construct or their circumstances, so it’s very hard to feel any empathy or understanding for them. I pushed through this book and I doubt I’ll read the fourth book because I just don’t care anymore.
I know this is a really harsh review, and I think some of that is because the story and the world had so much potential! I can just ignore a bad book that was only ever going to be a bad book, but a bad series that could have been really amazing is just a big bummer.
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
OMG - so thrilling! The stakes feel so much higher than in the second book. Aveyard’s writing is incredibly reflective during Mare's imprisonment; you really feel the slow, suffocating pace, almost like you’re trapped with her (I even caught myself thinking I needed a strict schedule just to get through it, lol). Then the second half hits, and it’s nonstop action - I genuinely struggled to put the book down when I had to sleep or get back to work.
This was the best yet and I can't wait for the finale! Mare's character continues to develop and show more layers, making the books more interesting to read as they go rather than getting stale.