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skye_parker1's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Child death, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, and Violence
Minor: Gun violence
karina19_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Cursing, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, and Violence
Minor: Sexual content, Homophobia, and Religious bigotry
azileotulp's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Anyway... wow. This book wrecked me. I knew it would, just like the first one did, but my goodness. I'll just start off with the things I liked... which was basically everything? I think the biggest criticisms I've seen for this book and the first one are that there's no plot to them, which has never bothered me. I love a character-driven book, especially when the characters are as great as these. Valentino and Orion are adorable and work great together. I loved their dynamic.
I loved all the connections to the previous book too. I tried to find a list of all of them, but sadly haven't been able to. I did keep the first book near me at all times while reading this one just so I could try to find them.
I liked a lot of the side stories too.
Even though that was an issue for me, it didn't really take away from my enjoyment too much. There were, however, two things that prevented this book from being perfect. One, the slang. Oh my goodness, I had the same problem in the first book too. I don't know if it's just really bad at first and gradually gets better throughout the book, or if I just got so used to it from how often it was used in the beginning. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate slang in books, but I do hate it in this book. At times, it feels like it was written by a 60-year-old trying to be hip and trendy, even though the actual author is pretty young. Really, that's my biggest problem with the book. I cringed far too often reading some of this. The only other thing I didn't enjoy was the slow start. When I read the first book, I was instantly attached to Mateo, seeing a lot of myself in him, and Rufus grew on me fairly quickly. While reading this book, I don't think I truly cared for Valentino or Orion that much until I was almost halfway through the book. I can't really explain why didn't work for me at first, but they just didn't.
Even though I have my issues, I still can't say how much I enjoyed this book. I don't think I'll ever be okay again, but I said the same thing after I read the first book. (Yes, I keep bringing up the first book, but cut me some slack. I'm still mourning.) If you're looking for a book with a grand plot and adventure, this isn't for you. But if you want to see some gays fall in love before tragedy strikes (not a spoiler, you read the title), then you've come to the right place.
Graphic: Chronic illness, Terminal illness, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Grief, Homophobia, Medical content, Death, Domestic abuse, Murder, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Car accident, Death of parent, Blood, and Violence
Minor: Alcohol, Sexual content, Child abuse, Suicide, and Infidelity
- Both of Orion's parents died in the 9/11 attacks. This is mentioned frequently.rockyourwrldd's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Violence and Domestic abuse
thequillhand's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Death, Murder, Domestic abuse, Violence, Gun violence, and Death of parent
tvintrs's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
The book follows two young men in New York who meet for the first time on the eve of Death Cast's first day running
I really enjoyed the concept of Death-Cast and the legal and ethical implications it would have on the world, and was interesting to see how it impacted the fate of Valentino at the end. I do, however, wish we as an audience had come to know more about the workings of the company. Perhaps this is explored in a later book, or perhaps it is left as a mystery, either way the concept was an interesting read.
Ultimately, I feel as though for me this was a 3 star read. It was quick and easy, but I struggled at times with the dialogue of the younger characters (perhaps just as I am not American so the slang/nicknames at times just felt too foreign or forced (O-Bro particuarly)) which was a little grating. I also felt it was a little rushed and didn't fully invest in the relationship between Orion and Valentino, not helped I think by the fact I found Orion to be not a super likeable character - I'm not sure why. The ending I feel should have left more of an impact, but I didn't feel it myself. Other than being happy for Gloria's newfound hopeful freedom, anyway. I feel like it would have a better impact on a younger audience and do feel the themes in the book are very worth exploring. I look forward to reading more of Adam Silvera's writing in this universe.
Moderate: Death of parent, Gun violence, Violence, Death, and Chronic illness
Minor: Homophobia
starstrays's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Graphic: Terminal illness and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gun violence, Homophobia, and Violence
deardionysus's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Violence, Death, and Gun violence
Moderate: Toxic relationship
fpcat99's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Death of parent, Gun violence, Terminal illness, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Physical abuse, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, and Murder
clovetra's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
now i will start this off by saying out of the two currently published books in the death-cast series, this one is the best. ill be real tho and say its not by much.
ill say that i find silvera's writing style a bit... repetitive? not saying its shit because it very much is not shit!! its just not something i prefer
like every so often an inspirational phrase like "im going to live my life, even if i die" or some shit is said and i want to put the book down from annoyance.
help this sounds so mean I DONT MEAN IT TO ðŸ˜
i will say orion & valentino are cute, and the added suspense surrounding the validity of death-cast is a nice added feature! i found with the other book in this series, i did not find myself experiencing any tension because you knew the main characters were going to die. i liked the added concern regarding if death-cast is legit or not! i mean it kind of was in vain and i knew that deep down but its fine i was delulu.
what else? most characters felt shallow to me, but i will say i did love love love gloria's story. valentino & orion i was a bit meh on.... but i liked seeing joaquin as well.
i don't know i think im not the target audience for this book. and that's ok! not every book is made for every reader! i held out hope that me not liking [book:They Both Die at the End|33385229] was isolated to that story and my feelings didn't extend to silvera's other stories, but sadly it did :(
i could see myself reading the third instalment of this series, but other than that sadly i don't think i'd enjoy his other works. to me, they read quite surface level, are repetitive & i find the tone and pacing quite uncomfortable. for me.
i hate writing negative reviews
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Terminal illness, Death, Murder, Medical content, and Violence
Moderate: Death of parent, Homophobia, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Blood