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mikaelaandherbooks's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Death, Grief, Murder, and Suicide
Minor: Sexual content
ajthequeen's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Fresh concept, predictable (but not too cheesy/lame) twists. Big horizon zero dawn vibes from the plotline. Id love to see a sequel following the immediate end of this book. Overall 3.75 stars. I liked the characters and i liked that they were complex and Kasey was Autistic (you can pry that out of my cold dead hands) but it was never really seen as a flaw and kasey came to love herself because of it. I liked that actinium wasnt a broody sad boy and that there was no huge romance plot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Bullying, Terminal illness, Death of parent, Cancer, Xenophobia, and War
Moderate: Classism, Cursing, Grief, and Colonisation
ghostlyprince's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, Abandonment, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Child death and Classism
eliame_03's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Grief, and Sexual content
awxiee's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I was confused most of the time. It is kinda boring at some parts, tho it became better during the revelation part.
the ending is open for interpretation. After finishing the book, I pondered for an hour about whether Cee went back to Kay or she just swam in the ocean for herself
the world-building is okay, although I would prefer it if it's more descriptive, because it was so confusing, especially at first.
I actually like the storyline, I will deffo think about this book in the future bc this type of story will stay in me,,, and the cover is so stunning! Absolutely one of my fav book cover ever <3
the world-building is okay, although I would prefer it if it's more descriptive, because it was so confusing, especially at first.
I actually like the storyline, I will deffo think about this book in the future bc this type of story will stay in me,,, and the cover is so stunning! Absolutely one of my fav book cover ever <3
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Vomit
f18's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Cancer, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Suicide, and Violence
Minor: Death of parent
bookcrushin's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This book is told out of sequence with wild twists and very cool science and futuristic ideals for saving the world and the people in it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Medical content, Medical trauma, and Cancer
Serious spoiler like end game spoiler:emily_mh's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Okay this book hit me quite hard which is the main reason why I've rated it so highly. It was confronting and haunting; whenever I finished a reading stint I had to stare into space for a bit and process what I had just read. It raised so many challenging questions, like how much personal freedom we can morally have in an environmental crisis, and who gets to decide who survives such a crisis. I was fascinated by how He envisioned the future of humanity, especially the solutions people made to reduce their carbon footprint. I also loved the sister relationship in this. They had such deep connection and love for one another.
I docked my rating half a star for two reasons. The first is that the writing could be very confusing from Kasey's perspective, both in terms of world-building and interpreting her personality. The pacing in this perspective also grew to be quite erratic. The second reason was the romance.I wish that Cee and Hero's relationship had been platonic. Or at least if it had to be romantic/sexual, I wish that their physical intimacy wasn't the reason why Cee's happiness spiked so high. Emotional connection provides happiness too, and more stable happiness that I feel that Kasey would have programmed for. In all honesty though, when a book impacts me the way this one did, reasons such as those aforementioned aren't enough to significantly affect the overall star rating, hence only a half-star dock.
I docked my rating half a star for two reasons. The first is that the writing could be very confusing from Kasey's perspective, both in terms of world-building and interpreting her personality. The pacing in this perspective also grew to be quite erratic. The second reason was the romance.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death, Suicide, Terminal illness, Cancer, and Violence
Moderate: Cursing, Grief, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Murder, Physical abuse, Gore, Body horror, Blood, and Self harm
Minor: Drug use, Excrement, Vomit, Racism, Sexual content, Confinement, Child death, Cannibalism, Alcohol, Gun violence, and Sexual violence
lilifane's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Uff, this is difficult.
I absolutely loved 2/3 of the book. It had everything I enjoy, and I didn't expect any of it to be honest. But then, the last third and especially the ending left me a little disappointed. But the more I think about this last third... the more I like aspects of it. And the more I think about the ending, the more I understand what it did... I think I actually like it now. I still think there are some things that could have been handled better to make it perfect for me.
But first, what I really really loved about this book:
The structure of the book, the two perspective, the way they related to each other. This was fantastic. Even up to the chapter numbers that were different for the two perspectives you follow and fit the story perfectly.
That being said, the first 2/3 of the book were totally confusing, and I LOVED it. I just loooove how I had to piece everything together on my own because the author definitely doesn't take you by the hand and lead you. Every time you think you know what is going on, another details is revealed the next chapter, and you have to adjust your thoughts and theories and your understanding of the world and the story. I think it is remarkable that everything makes sense in the end. That details you were confused about were actually hints you just didn't have enough information to decipher yet.
Then we have the setting, the world building and the atmosphere that I really liked. And here again, you are thrown into the world and have to piece it together from the information scattered throughout the chapters. This I found a little bit more difficult than piecing together the story. There were a lot of things about the world that were only hinted at, and I just had to accept this and hope it would be explained at some point or not be that important. And I personally enjoyed the moments when I understood an aspect of the world by connecting two dots. The two locations, the island and the city, were really great contrasts.
Lastly, the discussions about climate change, responsibilities of the individual but also of society as a whole, were super interesting and very much relevant. In addition to that, there were also discussions about what makes you you. Are your needs more important than the needs of others? Or what are you willing to sacrifice to save someone else? And who should be involved in this decision? So so so many interesting thoughts.
What I didn't like this much:
I think my main critique is the characters. Although I loved the premise, the two separated sisters and I loved the discussions about different relationships among the characters... I had a hard time understanding them. I spent a lot of time in their heads, witnessed their thoughts and struggles, but they still stayed distant. And so in the last third when most of the plot was revealed, the mysteries were uncovered, and it came down to the characters making decisions... I didn't relate to or feel for them. This could have been really emotional, but it wasn't. Which is kind of sad. This was mainly due to the way dialogues and thoughts were written in the last third. Even more than at the beginning, they were very vague and abstract, so I had a hard time following what was actually being said. There were these big ideas and questions about morality and identity. But for this, the small things that make you fall in love with characters were sacrificed along the way.
But I still enjoyed the reading process a lot and loved the majority of the book. And I think the story won't leave me that quickly because there is so much to think about. Which is really impressive and doesn't happen often.
But also, how beautiful is this cover and the end pages?!?!?!
I absolutely loved 2/3 of the book. It had everything I enjoy, and I didn't expect any of it to be honest. But then, the last third and especially the ending left me a little disappointed. But the more I think about this last third... the more I like aspects of it. And the more I think about the ending, the more I understand what it did... I think I actually like it now. I still think there are some things that could have been handled better to make it perfect for me.
But first, what I really really loved about this book:
The structure of the book, the two perspective, the way they related to each other. This was fantastic. Even up to the chapter numbers that were different for the two perspectives you follow and fit the story perfectly.
That being said, the first 2/3 of the book were totally confusing, and I LOVED it. I just loooove how I had to piece everything together on my own because the author definitely doesn't take you by the hand and lead you. Every time you think you know what is going on, another details is revealed the next chapter, and you have to adjust your thoughts and theories and your understanding of the world and the story. I think it is remarkable that everything makes sense in the end. That details you were confused about were actually hints you just didn't have enough information to decipher yet.
Then we have the setting, the world building and the atmosphere that I really liked. And here again, you are thrown into the world and have to piece it together from the information scattered throughout the chapters. This I found a little bit more difficult than piecing together the story. There were a lot of things about the world that were only hinted at, and I just had to accept this and hope it would be explained at some point or not be that important. And I personally enjoyed the moments when I understood an aspect of the world by connecting two dots. The two locations, the island and the city, were really great contrasts.
Lastly, the discussions about climate change, responsibilities of the individual but also of society as a whole, were super interesting and very much relevant. In addition to that, there were also discussions about what makes you you. Are your needs more important than the needs of others? Or what are you willing to sacrifice to save someone else? And who should be involved in this decision? So so so many interesting thoughts.
What I didn't like this much:
I think my main critique is the characters. Although I loved the premise, the two separated sisters and I loved the discussions about different relationships among the characters... I had a hard time understanding them. I spent a lot of time in their heads, witnessed their thoughts and struggles, but they still stayed distant. And so in the last third when most of the plot was revealed, the mysteries were uncovered, and it came down to the characters making decisions... I didn't relate to or feel for them. This could have been really emotional, but it wasn't. Which is kind of sad. This was mainly due to the way dialogues and thoughts were written in the last third. Even more than at the beginning, they were very vague and abstract, so I had a hard time following what was actually being said. There were these big ideas and questions about morality and identity. But for this, the small things that make you fall in love with characters were sacrificed along the way.
But I still enjoyed the reading process a lot and loved the majority of the book. And I think the story won't leave me that quickly because there is so much to think about. Which is really impressive and doesn't happen often.
But also, how beautiful is this cover and the end pages?!?!?!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Terminal illness, and Violence
Minor: Sexual content and Cancer
mo345's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
i couldn’t wait to finish this book only so i didn’t have to read it anymore. it was confusing, the characters were annoying, and the chapter breaks drove me mad. i get the desire for suspense but for gods sake you don’t need to have a chapter with only three sentences in it. the only thing i liked was that i didn’t see the plot twist coming.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content