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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
adventurous
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
On the one hand, this was really engrossing. I really liked the way the time travel worked.
On the other hand, the whole thing takes place over the course of a single week and I felt that Alice accepted some things way too fast.
There was also an analogy on page 34 where Alice says she doesn't trust someone any more than she trusts a koala... then conflates koalas and drop bears. American authors, please leave the Australianisms for the Australians. (I honestly got so distracted by this and had to stop reading for a bit!)
On the other hand, the whole thing takes place over the course of a single week and I felt that Alice accepted some things way too fast.
There was also an analogy on page 34 where Alice says she doesn't trust someone any more than she trusts a koala... then conflates koalas and drop bears. American authors, please leave the Australianisms for the Australians. (I honestly got so distracted by this and had to stop reading for a bit!)
I picked this up as part of the Dragons & Tea Buddy Read. This a timely (and potentially triggering) story centered around Alice who must save the world from a virus that will wipe out 2/3 of the world's population.
The story includes time travel, so most of the story is set 10 years prior to the virus. This was a very fast paced book and I had to force myself to put the book down throughout the week to keep pace with the reading breakdown of the buddy read. It is a story centered around Alice's love of her family and friends. Her protective instincts kick in and takes on saving the future of the world.
I enjoyed the fast pace and the twists of the story. I will definitely be picking up more from Pintip Dunn.
The story includes time travel, so most of the story is set 10 years prior to the virus. This was a very fast paced book and I had to force myself to put the book down throughout the week to keep pace with the reading breakdown of the buddy read. It is a story centered around Alice's love of her family and friends. Her protective instincts kick in and takes on saving the future of the world.
I enjoyed the fast pace and the twists of the story. I will definitely be picking up more from Pintip Dunn.
I just decided to power through this and read this all today since I haven't been in the mood to read much this week and might get busy with school.
Overall, this book was okay. I don't know. It was just so... Meh? It's hard to get behind these teenagers being brilliant and science geeks when none of them talk like it. They're all very typical teenagers for the cream of the crop brilliant students.
I wanted to be pleased by the representation, but this book is such a mess in terms of actual character development and plot development that I just can't bring myself to be happy about the small good things about this book. Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book.
Edit:
I have lowered my rating to a one-star rating. After a lot of thought, I genuinely had to come back to this and say that I just can't give this book any points for what it did right. Were there some good things? Yes. One, it's really short. Two, Bandit. Three, all of the Asian culture and representation is amazing.
Those three things are not enough to make up for the fact that
I know the author was maybe trying to say something about self-sacrifice and the meaning of hope, but that's not what I got from it at all. And therefore, that makes me believe this book was poorly executed.
Overall, this book was okay. I don't know. It was just so... Meh? It's hard to get behind these teenagers being brilliant and science geeks when none of them talk like it. They're all very typical teenagers for the cream of the crop brilliant students.
Spoiler
Archie is probably the worst character in this book in terms of characterization. He has so little development that I genuinely didn't care about his big end of the book reveal or his reasoning. It was so INCEL-esque logic that it was a bit cringe-y honestly.I wanted to be pleased by the representation, but this book is such a mess in terms of actual character development and plot development that I just can't bring myself to be happy about the small good things about this book. Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book.
Edit:
I have lowered my rating to a one-star rating. After a lot of thought, I genuinely had to come back to this and say that I just can't give this book any points for what it did right. Were there some good things? Yes. One, it's really short. Two, Bandit. Three, all of the Asian culture and representation is amazing.
Those three things are not enough to make up for the fact that
Spoiler
this book ends with what I think is a really disgusting trope that the teen male character who blames everyone else for abandoning him and gets moody and throws a temper tantrum (and he did have at least one person genuinely abandon him, I'll give him that), is in reality the one who's making his own life miserable as he's the one that never makes an effort to reach out or be kind. Yes, let's all bend the world for the poor male who can't be bother with social niceties like eating dinner with his sister, or I don't know, just talking to people? I get social anxiety can be a bitch. I have it. I wouldn't end the world because I blame everyone else for my failings. And it's such a white/male perspective that the world should just work for you whether it's the girl you want liking you, or your sister always taking care of you and putting all her own wants and needs aside to be your constant caretaker, and so on. It's just an ugly sentiment and that ugly sentiment never gets addressed meaningfully. Instead, they make HIM the hero, and that magically fixes it. Ugh, no.I know the author was maybe trying to say something about self-sacrifice and the meaning of hope, but that's not what I got from it at all. And therefore, that makes me believe this book was poorly executed.
adventurous
challenging
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I struggle with this one and struggle with giving it such a low rating. I like time travel books and when done well, they make the story. The main characters are interesting and I especially was drawn to Bandit. However, the story just had to many flaws to forgive, and that sometimes is the problem when a time travel story doesn’t work. Too many bad assumptions are made making it inevitably a story that just didn’t work for me. With that said, I think I like this author, enough so that I will give another book a chance, fingers crossed.
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Wanted to read a page turner fiction. Loved the premise & tight background story - didn't like the protagonist's character & lack of any development - there's something severely wrong with 2-d characters where one dimension is how they seem & the 2nd dimension is the damage life has dealt them. It misses the point of romance/relationship building. It seems like today's young adult authors can't/don't write characters with anything beyond these dimensions. I miss the young adult fiction of the 2000s & earlier. This decade only seems to market/sell the stories, not write good ones.
I received a copy of Malice through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Malice is the latest novel from the mind of Pintip Dunn, though it is the first time I’ve read anything by this author. I’ve got to say, if this book is anything to go by, I’m impressed.
Timetravel, viruses, and a quest to save the human race. That is what you’ll find within these pages. These three genres are merged together by Dunn’s writing, resulting in an extraordinary and fast-paced read.
Alice knows that somebody in her life will someday – in the next ten years – kill two-thirds of the population. She doesn’t know who this person is…yet…but she knows she has to kill them before it’s too late. No sweat though, right? It’s not like the fate of the world is hanging on her hands.
Alice is what you’d call a goodie two shoes. She’s spent the majority of her life keeping herself going and taking care of her brother. She was not built for a world of high tension and stakes – or was she? This is a girl who quickly proves to be resilient, caring, and determined.
“Malice? Did the voice just call me Malice? That can’t be right. The evilest thing that Alice Sherman has done all year is make sure her brother’s fed.”
Warnings: The description for Malice should probably give you a good idea of some of what is in store. This novel covers a deadly (and slightly graphic) virus, which has naturally devastating results. Also covered are themes and subjects such as child illness and death, alongside some very serious mental health concerns.
Malice was simultaneously everything and nothing like what I expected. It was a thrilling read, from start to finish. One that I couldn’t put down. Or predict. I loved that about this novel. Actually, there’s a lot I enjoyed about it.
Alice’s quest sounds like a crazy one, doesn’t it? Having to hunt down a person without having the first clue of who is doing it. Having the stakes so high certainly didn’t hurt the matter (for us – less so for Alice). It’s the flip side of a dystopian novel – with that hovering just outside of possibility.
I know not everyone loves time travel, I myself tend to be very particular about its implementation. But I’ve got to say, I really enjoyed this particular interpretation. Even if it did break my reading flow, from time to time.
As far as the romantic subplot goes? I have to admit, that whole situation was shockingly sweet, and I’m actually quite glad it was included. It was a much needed humanizing and hopeful series of moments in what could have otherwise been a dark tale.
I’m not entirely sure how I feel about the revelation behind who it is. I’m trying to be careful in what I say here. Basically, I think I have concerns about their motive and reasoning? Maybe that’ll feel better with time. Everything else about this book was a lot of fun, so I won’t let it hold back my opinion.
Malice was a fun and entertaining read. One that I literally couldn’t put down. I finished the book in one sitting, though my stiff knees didn’t much appreciate it by the time I was done. Worth it! I’m looking forward to seeing what else Dunn has written, and will write.
For more reviews check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks
Malice is the latest novel from the mind of Pintip Dunn, though it is the first time I’ve read anything by this author. I’ve got to say, if this book is anything to go by, I’m impressed.
Timetravel, viruses, and a quest to save the human race. That is what you’ll find within these pages. These three genres are merged together by Dunn’s writing, resulting in an extraordinary and fast-paced read.
Alice knows that somebody in her life will someday – in the next ten years – kill two-thirds of the population. She doesn’t know who this person is…yet…but she knows she has to kill them before it’s too late. No sweat though, right? It’s not like the fate of the world is hanging on her hands.
Alice is what you’d call a goodie two shoes. She’s spent the majority of her life keeping herself going and taking care of her brother. She was not built for a world of high tension and stakes – or was she? This is a girl who quickly proves to be resilient, caring, and determined.
“Malice? Did the voice just call me Malice? That can’t be right. The evilest thing that Alice Sherman has done all year is make sure her brother’s fed.”
Warnings: The description for Malice should probably give you a good idea of some of what is in store. This novel covers a deadly (and slightly graphic) virus, which has naturally devastating results. Also covered are themes and subjects such as child illness and death, alongside some very serious mental health concerns.
Malice was simultaneously everything and nothing like what I expected. It was a thrilling read, from start to finish. One that I couldn’t put down. Or predict. I loved that about this novel. Actually, there’s a lot I enjoyed about it.
Alice’s quest sounds like a crazy one, doesn’t it? Having to hunt down a person without having the first clue of who is doing it. Having the stakes so high certainly didn’t hurt the matter (for us – less so for Alice). It’s the flip side of a dystopian novel – with that hovering just outside of possibility.
I know not everyone loves time travel, I myself tend to be very particular about its implementation. But I’ve got to say, I really enjoyed this particular interpretation. Even if it did break my reading flow, from time to time.
As far as the romantic subplot goes? I have to admit, that whole situation was shockingly sweet, and I’m actually quite glad it was included. It was a much needed humanizing and hopeful series of moments in what could have otherwise been a dark tale.
I’m not entirely sure how I feel about the revelation behind who it is. I’m trying to be careful in what I say here. Basically, I think I have concerns about their motive and reasoning? Maybe that’ll feel better with time. Everything else about this book was a lot of fun, so I won’t let it hold back my opinion.
Malice was a fun and entertaining read. One that I literally couldn’t put down. I finished the book in one sitting, though my stiff knees didn’t much appreciate it by the time I was done. Worth it! I’m looking forward to seeing what else Dunn has written, and will write.
For more reviews check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks
Listen, I will never get tired of Pintip Dunn books. I feel like a broken record sometimes because I say that so much but it's true. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I stumbled upon Forget Tomorrow way back when, and I instantly fell in love with Pintip's writing. At the time I had no prior knowledge of her two previous contemporary thrillers but I have since devoured them and the rest of her bibliography. If you asked me to recommend one of her books, I couldn't do it. There's no way I could pick just one. I do recommend starting with Forget Tomorrow, though.
Back to Malice; Malice is absolutely no exception. It's just as good and addictive. I have a problem putting down Pintip books so I may have read this in 2(ish) sittings even though I was going to buddyread it in sections.
I stumbled upon Forget Tomorrow way back when, and I instantly fell in love with Pintip's writing. At the time I had no prior knowledge of her two previous contemporary thrillers but I have since devoured them and the rest of her bibliography. If you asked me to recommend one of her books, I couldn't do it. There's no way I could pick just one. I do recommend starting with Forget Tomorrow, though.
Back to Malice; Malice is absolutely no exception. It's just as good and addictive. I have a problem putting down Pintip books so I may have read this in 2(ish) sittings even though I was going to buddyread it in sections.
LOVED this story! Pintip Dunn never ceases to amaze me with anything she creates. MALICE had me hooked right from the start; I couldn’t put this book down!
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book! All opinions are my own.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book! All opinions are my own.