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ahadjiantoniou's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
julesjoulesjewels's review against another edition
2.0
This book was a disappointment, especially because I did genuinely like [b:This Savage Song|40642172|This Savage Song (Monsters of Verity, #1)|Victoria Schwab|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1529942103s/40642172.jpg|42855493]. While I felt that TSS moved along at a pretty decent clip, ODD was a slog - a 510-page crawl through a story that probably only needed 250 (if that). I could have forgiven the glacial pace if Schwab had used some of that downtime exploring characters and relationships, but all of her attempts at doing so fell flat: the antagonists were one-dimensional and boring, and Kate Harker, my favorite character in TSS, has gone from a dynamic character with a lot to wrestle with to a one-note YA Female Lead, whose only traits are Being Tough and Caring About the Male Protagonist.
Schwab also didn't use the excess of pages to give readers a reason to really care about the novel's central conflict. In TSS, Schwab does a good job of giving you reasons to care about August and Kate, and though the obstacles she throws their way might have larger ramifications for Verity as a whole, we are primarily concerned with how they affect our endearing protagonists. ODD falls short in this way, because not only have these protagonists been flattened, but very little effort has been made to connect the book's wider conflict to the protagonists' personal lives. It's like we're supposed to care whether or not they save the day "just because," but we don't live in Verity and these events don't affect us at all, so we need a better reason than that to follow along.
Ultimately, the whole thing ends up feeling like a Monster of the Week episode from one of the later seasons of Supernatural. Sure, they fought the Big Bad, but did they grow or change or learn anything about themselves along the way? Unfortunately, no, not really.
Schwab does know how to write an overwrought death scene, though, so I'll kick her an extra star for that. I am, after all, a sucker for melodrama.
Schwab also didn't use the excess of pages to give readers a reason to really care about the novel's central conflict. In TSS, Schwab does a good job of giving you reasons to care about August and Kate, and though the obstacles she throws their way might have larger ramifications for Verity as a whole, we are primarily concerned with how they affect our endearing protagonists. ODD falls short in this way, because not only have these protagonists been flattened, but very little effort has been made to connect the book's wider conflict to the protagonists' personal lives. It's like we're supposed to care whether or not they save the day "just because," but we don't live in Verity and these events don't affect us at all, so we need a better reason than that to follow along.
Ultimately, the whole thing ends up feeling like a Monster of the Week episode from one of the later seasons of Supernatural. Sure, they fought the Big Bad, but did they grow or change or learn anything about themselves along the way? Unfortunately, no, not really.
Schwab does know how to write an overwrought death scene, though, so I'll kick her an extra star for that. I am, after all, a sucker for melodrama.
idreamofallthebooks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
vix_b's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
leschroniques_delea's review against another edition
4.0
Tout comme le premier tome j’ai beaucoup aimé ma lecture même si le tome 1 reste un peu au dessus de celui-ci.
J’ai adoré retrouvé les personnages et les redécouvrir sous une autre facette. Kate et August ont tous les deux étaient marqués par les événements du premier tome et tentent de survivre chacun à leur façon.
J’ai quand même trouvé certains moments lents où on tournait en rond mais à d’autres moments c’était mieux rythmés.
Je ne m’attendais pas forcément à cette fin mais je l’ai trouvé très précipitée, tout s’enchaîne en très peu de pages et j’ai l’impression que la fin a été bâclée.
Cette duologie restera une très bonne lecture et je suis contente de l’avoir découverte cette année.
J’ai adoré retrouvé les personnages et les redécouvrir sous une autre facette. Kate et August ont tous les deux étaient marqués par les événements du premier tome et tentent de survivre chacun à leur façon.
J’ai quand même trouvé certains moments lents où on tournait en rond mais à d’autres moments c’était mieux rythmés.
Je ne m’attendais pas forcément à cette fin mais je l’ai trouvé très précipitée, tout s’enchaîne en très peu de pages et j’ai l’impression que la fin a été bâclée.
Cette duologie restera une très bonne lecture et je suis contente de l’avoir découverte cette année.
fictional_wanderlust's review against another edition
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
heatherllama's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5