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riinahahko's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
celtic67's review against another edition
4.0
This book was a great read. A end of world the thriller that will no doubt be compared to his father;s book The Stand. But Joe has his own voice.
This is a sprawling tale , with myriad characters and story lines . A tale of alliances forged, broken and realigned. Throughout this tale of apocalyptic devastation the hope of the human spirit shines through.
Well written, with well rounded characters that draw the reader into an adventure that enthrals and grips. A book I would recommend and urge you to read. Thanks to the publishers and Lovereadingfor the ARC.
This is a sprawling tale , with myriad characters and story lines . A tale of alliances forged, broken and realigned. Throughout this tale of apocalyptic devastation the hope of the human spirit shines through.
Well written, with well rounded characters that draw the reader into an adventure that enthrals and grips. A book I would recommend and urge you to read. Thanks to the publishers and Lovereadingfor the ARC.
emrodav's review against another edition
1.0
Abandoned at about 25%.
I don’t know. This book just didn’t work for me. I was a big fan of NOS4A2, which is also super long and weird, but this just wasn’t engaging. At a certain point, I realized I didn’t really cared what happened. 🤷♀️
I don’t know. This book just didn’t work for me. I was a big fan of NOS4A2, which is also super long and weird, but this just wasn’t engaging. At a certain point, I realized I didn’t really cared what happened. 🤷♀️
offbrandmusclemilk's review against another edition
5.0
totally not what I was expecting, but the story was fantastic. I could have gone without all the pop culture references because I love a bit of time ambiguity in novels, and I rolled my eyes pretty hard when he referenced christmasland near the end, but overall it was another great book from Joe Hill
hollsbooks's review
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.75
indogswetrust's review against another edition
5.0
Really fantastic
The character development and story line is great. I had trouble putting it down, you get so immersed in the story. Highly recommend this book.
The character development and story line is great. I had trouble putting it down, you get so immersed in the story. Highly recommend this book.
peterkeep's review against another edition
3.0
Somewhere in between 3 and 3.5 stars.
Overall, I liked it. It's a long saga about a woman surviving a world filled with a new disease resulting in spontaneous combustion, which is cool. It's got a good premise, and the writing is good. I liked the full use of the omniscient narrator - it was like a non-comedic Arrested Development, where Ron Howard corrects characters..."We're finally going to get out of this mess!" says a chatacter, only for Joe Hill to but in: "They won't."
For a horror/thriller, there weren't a huge amount of twists, and the ones that were there were laid out pretty clearly for the most part. I'm ok with that, but I would have liked to have been on my toes a bit more. Similarly, it was a long book with a lot of opportunity to create some tense, scary scenes, but there weren't as many as I would have liked. The slower scenes in between were fine, but I was itching for something to keep my nerves up. Oh well.
Another thing on the length: it seemed like there was a small identity crisis going on - I had a hard time figuring out what this story was going to be. Is it an apocalyptic survival? A creepy cult story? A mystery? A fantasy (complete with superpowers)? It almost felt like as soon as one of these was exhausted, we just switch to some other plot event that changes the style of the book. I'm fine that, but it was a bit overdone.
I'm glad I read it still, but these gripes are keeping this one floating around a 3.5/5 for me.
Overall, I liked it. It's a long saga about a woman surviving a world filled with a new disease resulting in spontaneous combustion, which is cool. It's got a good premise, and the writing is good. I liked the full use of the omniscient narrator - it was like a non-comedic Arrested Development, where Ron Howard corrects characters..."We're finally going to get out of this mess!" says a chatacter, only for Joe Hill to but in: "They won't."
For a horror/thriller, there weren't a huge amount of twists, and the ones that were there were laid out pretty clearly for the most part. I'm ok with that, but I would have liked to have been on my toes a bit more. Similarly, it was a long book with a lot of opportunity to create some tense, scary scenes, but there weren't as many as I would have liked. The slower scenes in between were fine, but I was itching for something to keep my nerves up. Oh well.
Another thing on the length: it seemed like there was a small identity crisis going on - I had a hard time figuring out what this story was going to be. Is it an apocalyptic survival? A creepy cult story? A mystery? A fantasy (complete with superpowers)? It almost felt like as soon as one of these was exhausted, we just switch to some other plot event that changes the style of the book. I'm fine that, but it was a bit overdone.
I'm glad I read it still, but these gripes are keeping this one floating around a 3.5/5 for me.
amy123456789's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.5