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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
I absolutely loved the 90s nostalgia! The cover alone is fantastic, along with all of the period references like the flannel, the POGS!!!!, the music, the OJ Simpson car chase…so much fun.
If you like very slow, creepy burns, this may be a good read for you. I just found it to move a little too slowly without enough of a reward at the end. It could benefit from some tighter editing and losing about 100 pages, but the premise and the story itself is great. I really enjoyed the mixed media throughout, which broke up some of the length. The story itself just got bogged down a lot.
If you like very slow, creepy burns, this may be a good read for you. I just found it to move a little too slowly without enough of a reward at the end. It could benefit from some tighter editing and losing about 100 pages, but the premise and the story itself is great. I really enjoyed the mixed media throughout, which broke up some of the length. The story itself just got bogged down a lot.
This has been on my to-read list for awhile. There were several attempts to get into it, but I never felt pulled in and would put it back on the shelf for later. I finally decided to sit down and actually get through this book. Success!
It started off a little slow at first, but I eventually became invested in finding out Willow's sons secret and why everyone on the island lived in the past. The references to the 90's wasn't as fun as I'd hoped it be, but I was reminded that Skip-Its was a thing! I felt that the story dragged on a little too much and it was hard to relate to some of the main characters, aside from Lily, Harper, and some of the others on the island.
I did really enjoy how the story wrapped up and ended. The visuals were great and pretty spooky! Juliano did a good job of tying up all the loose ends so that the story felt truly complete. I also really enjoyed the mixed media throughout the story. This wasn't a bad read at all, but I felt that some parts of the story were a little flat.
It started off a little slow at first, but I eventually became invested in finding out Willow's sons secret and why everyone on the island lived in the past. The references to the 90's wasn't as fun as I'd hoped it be, but I was reminded that Skip-Its was a thing! I felt that the story dragged on a little too much and it was hard to relate to some of the main characters, aside from Lily, Harper, and some of the others on the island.
I did really enjoy how the story wrapped up and ended. The visuals were great and pretty spooky! Juliano did a good job of tying up all the loose ends so that the story felt truly complete. I also really enjoyed the mixed media throughout the story. This wasn't a bad read at all, but I felt that some parts of the story were a little flat.
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This was a thrilling book to read. Clifford Island is a somewhat isolated island that no one seems to know much about and also seems to be “stuck” in 1994, more specifically in a Groundhog Day sort of way. Only these people are aware of why they are repeating the day. Or at least some of them are. The ones that remember the “Dead Eleven.”
I love a book that comes off as telling the reader a true story and this book’s prologue is just that and “a note to the reader”. What a great start to the story! Told via found documents (letters, interviews, text messages) and re-enactments, this was such an engaging story. Since it’s “found documents” the chapters are pretty short and the suspense gradually increases as the story progresses. This book took a different turn than I was expecting but it was still wholly unique, captivating, and a fully bingeable read. There’s mystery surrounding Willow’s disappearance, the island, and her son’s death, intrigue with the residents of the island and why they are they way they are, its atmospheric and nostalgic with tidbits from the ‘90s, and there’s an eeriness throughout that remains until the end. My least favorite parts were in the present with mostly just Harper for some reason but still this was such a fun story to read and a well done debut! I’ll definitely be interested to see what else Jimmy Juliano can write. If you like mixed media narration, spooky isolated island mysteries, and nostalgic ‘90s vibes, you’ll want to pick this one up!
4.5 stars
I love a book that comes off as telling the reader a true story and this book’s prologue is just that and “a note to the reader”. What a great start to the story! Told via found documents (letters, interviews, text messages) and re-enactments, this was such an engaging story. Since it’s “found documents” the chapters are pretty short and the suspense gradually increases as the story progresses. This book took a different turn than I was expecting but it was still wholly unique, captivating, and a fully bingeable read. There’s mystery surrounding Willow’s disappearance, the island, and her son’s death, intrigue with the residents of the island and why they are they way they are, its atmospheric and nostalgic with tidbits from the ‘90s, and there’s an eeriness throughout that remains until the end. My least favorite parts were in the present with mostly just Harper for some reason but still this was such a fun story to read and a well done debut! I’ll definitely be interested to see what else Jimmy Juliano can write. If you like mixed media narration, spooky isolated island mysteries, and nostalgic ‘90s vibes, you’ll want to pick this one up!
4.5 stars
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is definitely going to be on my list for best 2024 reads. I loved this story! It reminded me of Pet Semetary with a cult vibe. So so good!
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot