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leonormsousa's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.0
REVIEW
Although I did enjoy the Divergent series, I have some mixed feelings towards it (especially the last book) and so I probably would have never picked up Chosen Ones was it not for Beatriz talking about it. It wasn’t even a favourite of hers but somehow, the way she talked about the book really got me invested in it. Since I’m a mood reader, being really invested means it took me about a year to buy it and then another year to finally get around to reading it 🙈. Anyway, this was just a big introduction so I can thank Beatriz for what was actually a great recommendation but also appreciate bookstagram for making me read books I probably never would.
Moving on to the book itself, I enjoyed it quite a lot: solid 4 stars for me. But even though I did enjoy it for what it was, I can’t help but think about how GOOOOOOD this book would be if, using the same starting point, it was more a sort of literary fiction. Does this make no sense? No?! Yeah, that sounds about right… But let me explain.
My absolute favourite part about this book was the characters. It’s not that the plot was not interesting but for me personally, it felt like an ok plot. But the characters… THE. CHA. RAC. TERS. I loved them and their dynamics. This book starts off as an exploration of trauma, unwanted fame and relationships, with a dash of misogyny and racism and I was living for it. Honestly, that was all I needed. And it’s not that I didn’t get it throughout the entire book; I did; it’s just that I kept wondering about what if there wasn’t another adventure or wtv for our main characters; what if we got the whole book to talk about trauma?! (Am I a masochist? Oh yes, oh yes!)
So, summarizing what I just wrote: I liked this book but it makes me slightly angry that it had so much potential to be much more than what it was but because it stuck to its fantasy genre, it didn’t. Obviously, this is not an anger directed at anyone (especially not the author, she did do a great job!), it’s more a frustration directed at the world itself.
Now that I’ve got that off my system and since this is getting quite big already, here are some short sentences with short opinions:
- very cool magic system/sci-fi world, would have been great if there was more space/time to exploit it.
- plot was slightly predictable
- liked the zombies
- would have liked to see Ines embark on the journey with the other Chosen Ones and not get left behind
- loved the approach on relationships, especially Matt-Sloane
- the Chicago depiction was pretty cool but for someone who’s not familiar with it, it got a bit confusing sometimes
- great perspective on “the chosen one” concept
- I might have a small crush on Sloane <3
And that’s it for today, folks! In general, I had a good time reading this and if there was a second book, I would definitely be reading it! Now I’m gonna go cry a bit because I can’t find fanart for these amazing characters 😥 And when I’m finished crying, I’m gonna start looking for books about trauma because apparently, that’s something I enjoy spending my time with 😝
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Kidnapping, Grief, Mental illness, and Violence
Moderate: Death, Murder, Gore, Chronic illness, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Addiction, Blood, Drug abuse, Suicide, and Torture
Minor: Cancer
nutm3g'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: Kidnapping, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Body horror, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and War
Moderate: Abandonment, Drug use, Dysphoria, Gore, Grief, Mental illness, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Eating disorder, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Genocide, Addiction, Child abuse, Confinement, Death of parent, and Drug abuse
Minor: Domestic abuse, Racism, and Religious bigotry
freyleong's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders
rachelgronbach's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.5
Moderate: Blood, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Grief
Minor: Addiction, Suicide, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, and Kidnapping
wiktoria88'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
4.25
Graphic: Mental illness and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Drug use, Cursing, and Suicide
foreverinastory'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
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Torture
truthaurdare'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
4.75
Graphic: Suicide, Violence, Gaslighting, Torture, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Mental illness, Grief, Genocide, and Death
jashanac's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I just really enjoyed the exploration of what it means to be a "chosen one", once the Big Bad is defeated and what the effects of that could be. And then the exploration of good versus evil in general - I liked what Veronica Roth did with that. It felt like a fresh take on it for me.
I am VERY curious about how things are going to pan out with the WILD ending... !
Graphic: Body horror, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Blood, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Cancer, Suicide, and Torture
thenovelmaura's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Unfortunately, the five chosen ones didn't really pan out because Roth had zero interest in writing about anyone who wasn't Sloane, who was basically described as a white supermodel. Despite the fact that we were given a slate of diverse heroes, including implied Black, Asian, and Latina (yes, implied, because this was never explicitly stated in the text) chosen ones, they were all given reasons to conveniently disappear from the narrative. I don't have a problem with Sloane being the main character, I just don't understand why this attempt at diversity was made when there was no follow-through.
It's hard to talk about the plot without spoilers, but I'll say it was slow at times. However, I was intrigued enough by the world-building that I didn't mind too much when the characters weren't actively progressing the story. I really enjoyed the ending and I think Roth did an excellent job tying all the threads of the narrative into a satisfying conclusion.
Graphic: Suicide, Death, Kidnapping, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, and Gore
Moderate: Torture, Drug use, and Addiction
the_wendybirb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
What I didn't like- The Twist (and how easily the hero accepts it.), The Prophecy and how muddled it got, The Motel Scene (unnecessary mention of sexy times at a dumb point in the plot), the Big Bad's memory reveal that doesn't mesh with what we know of the universe (I really hope we get more explanation in future books), supporting characters that are more props than people, a white/cis/(assumed) straight hero whose diverse friend group doesn't get a chance to shine (I'd like someone non-white/straight to be a kick-ass hero. [Also for the gay character to casually give someone a smooch.])
I'll seek out future books in the series, but I'm not expecting them to knock my socks off. I hope I'm proven wrong, because I love the worlds I've been introduced to.
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Kidnapping and Suicide
Minor: Drug use and Body horror
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