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bluebeereads's review against another edition
3.0
Istyria book blog ~ B's world of enchanted books
Sigh. That’s about all I can do now. And it’s not a really good one. It’s not a bad one either. It’s meh. Did I expect to much? Yeah, I think I did. I expected an awesome book like The Fault In Our Stars. And while it had some aspects of that one, Zac and Mia left me a bit disappointed.
Zac and Mia is about, obviously, Zac and Mia. Zac has leukemia and is in the hospital for the hundredth time now. One day a new patient moves into the room next to him, Lady Gaga music blaring throughout the ward from her room. Unexpectedly they become friends and go through their time at the hospital and afterwards together.
Don’t get me wrong! I did like this book!It wasn’t bad, it really wasn’t. I just expected too much. I loved Zac. He was so sweet and caring and selfless. But stubborn too. And a typical guy sometimes. I liked Mia, but I didn’t feel connected to her. Not like with Zac. The rest of the characters were the same. There wasn’t much to them. I think that’s the thing that went wrong with this book. The writing wasn’t bad and the story itself was okay. It’s just the characters that fell a bit flat to me.
The story wasn’t bad. For me it was a bit boring. Almost nothing really happens in this book. I expected a big shocking thing at the end like always with these kind of books, but even that was not that big and I kind of predicted it. So yeah, it was a bit predictable at times. Still, whenever I put down the book for a minute, I felt compelled to finish it. I just wanted to know what happened next. It may be a bit boring and predictable, it did pull me in and never really let me go.
So in the end Zac and Mia was a pretty good book. Was it The Fault In Our Stars meets Eleanor & Park? Not quite. I was a bit disappointed, but I just expected too much from this. If you liked The Fault In Our Stars, I do suggest you give this a try. It’s not up in the same league as TFIOS, but it’s still good.
patty_creatively_bookish's review against another edition
3.0
Verhaal: 3/5
Karakters: 3/5
Schrijfstijl: 3/5
Papier/audio? Papier.
Herlezen: Misschien ooit.
Karakters: 3/5
Schrijfstijl: 3/5
Papier/audio? Papier.
Herlezen: Misschien ooit.
trisha_thomas's review against another edition
3.0
"I'm the least brave of everyone. I never signed up for this war. Leukemia conscripted me"
I really wanted to love this one but something held me back.
Mia. I just wasn't a fan of her.
I also didn't buy their one connection really tying them together so closely and so much.
I think a huge part was also the comparison to Fault in our Stars. No one should compare the two. They are apples and oranges, dealing with telling the story of cancer in very different ways.
I really wanted to love this one but something held me back.
Mia. I just wasn't a fan of her.
Spoiler
she was selfish and awful at least 90% of the book. And you never understand why she and her mom yelled like they did or why she chose to ignore the cancer until they had to remove her footI also didn't buy their one connection really tying them together so closely and so much.
I think a huge part was also the comparison to Fault in our Stars. No one should compare the two. They are apples and oranges, dealing with telling the story of cancer in very different ways.
maggiemaggio's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
I haven't read The Fault in Our Stars. I felt like I had to get that out there before I review this book. Yes, The Fault in Our Stars is obviously the cancer book, but cancer is a big topic that, as Zac frequently reminds us, affects one out of two people worldwide so I'm personally of the mind that the world, even the YA world, can handle more than one (or two or three) cancer books.
I'm glad I got that off my chest. Zac and Mia is a complicated book for me. When I first started reading I definitely wasn't sold on the story. At the beginning it's pretty much just Zac, stuck in an isolation room, with his mother and a rotating cast of hospital staff. He's had a bone marrow transplant and he has to be in a germ-free environment for a number of days (I think it was 50) before his new marrow is making enough white blood cells to be able to combat pathogens. That sucked. It sucked for Zac and it sucked for me reading it (obviously it sucked more for Zac). Even though Zac is funny and charming and geeky and optimistic it was still a struggle to feel so stuck and alone. And yes, that is how Zac felt, but still, it dragged and for a while I wasn't sure if I would be able to keep reading.
Even after Mia moved in next door to Zac the story was still a struggle. Since Zac can't go talk to Mia and Mia can't come in to talk to Zac they communicate by knocking on the wall between their rooms (neither knows morse code so it's not terribly effective) and through a few slightly confusing notes passed between by the nurses. Eventually they become friends on Facebook but even their chats there are stilted and not exactly thrilling. Mia has osteosarcoma in her ankle and Zac looks at her as being incredibly lucky even though Mia, who's always been a bit of a party girl, feels anything but.
The story is divided into three parts, the first is solely from Zac's perspective, the middle from Zac and Mia's alternating perspectives, and the final only from Mia's perspective. Even though I had a difficult time getting into the story it was still very well written and I was intrigued by Zac's voice. Once we get to know Mia in the middle part I was slightly taken aback. By the time we meet her she's busted out of the hospital and run away from home. She's lying and stealing and isn't a particularly empathetic character. If Zac and Mia reminded me of any book it would be Side Effects May Vary. Mia's anger, terrible decisions, and general unlikability reminded me a lot of Alice in that book, although overall Zac and Mia isn't quite on the level of Side Effects May Vary.
Once the switch to alternating between Zac and Mia's perspectives I was more drawn into the story. It never fully clicked, but at least with Mia, even if she was a huge rhymes-with-witch (though I liked her), things were happening. Much of the story still happened in Mia and Zac's heads and I did wish for more action and more talking, but I did come to enjoy and was interested in the story a lot more than I was for the first third.
As I was reading I kept going back and skimming Goodreads reviews because I wanted some hint of what happened at the end of the story. Did they both die? Did one of them die? I didn't even care who may or may not have died, I just wanted to know because I felt like I needed a better take on the overall tone of the book. As I was skimming those reviews I came across one (a negative one) that noted that the story isn't a romance. Up until that point (and I was probably more than halfway through by this time) I hadn't even noticed that it wasn't a romance and I loved that. Guys and girls can be friends and although there was some attraction of Zac to Mia and Mia wanting him to find her attractive because that's how she's used to finding validation, there was no kissing or romance in the book.
As implied above I kept playing out different scenarios for how the book would end. Lots of different things went through my mind, but what actually happened was a surprise to me and I really enjoyed that. It was also a really fitting ending given the tone of the story and I was left with the pleasant feeling that Zac and Mia were both given their due.
Bottom Line: Even though the beginning dragged and I wish the rest had had a little more action and conversation, I still enjoyed reading Zac and Mia. It's one of those books that, even with my issues, makes me look forward to seeing what A.J. Betts does next because the concept, characterization, and overall way the story played out were all really strong.
I received an electronic review copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss (thank you!). All opinions are my own.
This review first appeared on my blog.
I haven't read The Fault in Our Stars. I felt like I had to get that out there before I review this book. Yes, The Fault in Our Stars is obviously the cancer book, but cancer is a big topic that, as Zac frequently reminds us, affects one out of two people worldwide so I'm personally of the mind that the world, even the YA world, can handle more than one (or two or three) cancer books.
I'm glad I got that off my chest. Zac and Mia is a complicated book for me. When I first started reading I definitely wasn't sold on the story. At the beginning it's pretty much just Zac, stuck in an isolation room, with his mother and a rotating cast of hospital staff. He's had a bone marrow transplant and he has to be in a germ-free environment for a number of days (I think it was 50) before his new marrow is making enough white blood cells to be able to combat pathogens. That sucked. It sucked for Zac and it sucked for me reading it (obviously it sucked more for Zac). Even though Zac is funny and charming and geeky and optimistic it was still a struggle to feel so stuck and alone. And yes, that is how Zac felt, but still, it dragged and for a while I wasn't sure if I would be able to keep reading.
Even after Mia moved in next door to Zac the story was still a struggle. Since Zac can't go talk to Mia and Mia can't come in to talk to Zac they communicate by knocking on the wall between their rooms (neither knows morse code so it's not terribly effective) and through a few slightly confusing notes passed between by the nurses. Eventually they become friends on Facebook but even their chats there are stilted and not exactly thrilling. Mia has osteosarcoma in her ankle and Zac looks at her as being incredibly lucky even though Mia, who's always been a bit of a party girl, feels anything but.
The story is divided into three parts, the first is solely from Zac's perspective, the middle from Zac and Mia's alternating perspectives, and the final only from Mia's perspective. Even though I had a difficult time getting into the story it was still very well written and I was intrigued by Zac's voice. Once we get to know Mia in the middle part I was slightly taken aback. By the time we meet her she's busted out of the hospital and run away from home. She's lying and stealing and isn't a particularly empathetic character. If Zac and Mia reminded me of any book it would be Side Effects May Vary. Mia's anger, terrible decisions, and general unlikability reminded me a lot of Alice in that book, although overall Zac and Mia isn't quite on the level of Side Effects May Vary.
Once the switch to alternating between Zac and Mia's perspectives I was more drawn into the story. It never fully clicked, but at least with Mia, even if she was a huge rhymes-with-witch (though I liked her), things were happening. Much of the story still happened in Mia and Zac's heads and I did wish for more action and more talking, but I did come to enjoy and was interested in the story a lot more than I was for the first third.
As I was reading I kept going back and skimming Goodreads reviews because I wanted some hint of what happened at the end of the story. Did they both die? Did one of them die? I didn't even care who may or may not have died, I just wanted to know because I felt like I needed a better take on the overall tone of the book. As I was skimming those reviews I came across one (a negative one) that noted that the story isn't a romance. Up until that point (and I was probably more than halfway through by this time) I hadn't even noticed that it wasn't a romance and I loved that. Guys and girls can be friends and although there was some attraction of Zac to Mia and Mia wanting him to find her attractive because that's how she's used to finding validation, there was no kissing or romance in the book.
As implied above I kept playing out different scenarios for how the book would end. Lots of different things went through my mind, but what actually happened was a surprise to me and I really enjoyed that. It was also a really fitting ending given the tone of the story and I was left with the pleasant feeling that Zac and Mia were both given their due.
Bottom Line: Even though the beginning dragged and I wish the rest had had a little more action and conversation, I still enjoyed reading Zac and Mia. It's one of those books that, even with my issues, makes me look forward to seeing what A.J. Betts does next because the concept, characterization, and overall way the story played out were all really strong.
I received an electronic review copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss (thank you!). All opinions are my own.
This review first appeared on my blog.
babyskillet's review against another edition
Due back at the library. I feel like I’ve tried to read this book before. It was good just not completely gripping of my attention.
hall852's review against another edition
3.0
really liked this book but i didn't like the ending because you don't find out if Zac is cancer free after he get cancer for the second (or was it third time?) also the author didn't give any info on when Zac when he gets cancer again because it just talks about mia and how she is dealing with her mom
inabookishworld29's review against another edition
3.0
Beautiful story, but I missed a "big moment"...
The ending wasn't what I expected.
The ending wasn't what I expected.
rebeccalm's review against another edition
3.0
This is a cute story about a strange and exciting relationship that comes to two people when they need it most. The story has a similar premise to The Fault in Our Stars, but I loved how these two characters were so different from each other. It felt real, and there are some darker moments when each character is feeling their most vulnerable and scared. But, all in all, it's a great story of growing up and learning the bigger meaning of life and figuring out just how you want to live it...on your own terms.
angelreads's review against another edition
4.0
I received an e-copy of Zac and Mia by A.J Betts from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Children's Book Group in exchange for an honest review. This is no way has influenced my opinion on the book.
Zac and Mia is an absolutely stunning and heart gripping novel that will pull your heart into pieces. Zac and Mia is not your typical YA novel. There is something about it that separates it from other novels that I have read before. I cannot really pick what it is but it just makes the novel so much better.
Zac’s very witty and in saying that I would love to have him as a best friend, there is something about his character that always put a smile on my face. Zac has a beautiful nature and it complements Mia’s wild and most of the time irritating characteristics. Mia is an interesting character, she is well, very immature and selfish but I cannot really blame her, with everything that has happened in her life furthermore everything happening in her life in the moments of the book.
I'm the least brave of everyone. I never signed up for this war. Leukaemia conscripted me, the fucker
I don’t know how many times I shed tears for both Zac and Mia, the way that Zac is unconditionally loving and would do pretty much anything for everyone else. The friendship that builds between these two is absolutely beautiful.
A.J Betts is a remarkable writer that is able to capture so many emotions. The character development of both Zac and Mia is something. The reader is able to see and understand both Zac and Mia changing and some of it for the better.
Zac and Mia is heartbreaking, uplifting and moving. The adventures of finding out what life really is and what your life is worth is explored throughout Zac and Mia. Both Zac and Mia are both incredibly young but have been so much and A.J Betts understand and does this so well.
Zac and Mia is an absolutely stunning and heart gripping novel that will pull your heart into pieces. Zac and Mia is not your typical YA novel. There is something about it that separates it from other novels that I have read before. I cannot really pick what it is but it just makes the novel so much better.
Zac’s very witty and in saying that I would love to have him as a best friend, there is something about his character that always put a smile on my face. Zac has a beautiful nature and it complements Mia’s wild and most of the time irritating characteristics. Mia is an interesting character, she is well, very immature and selfish but I cannot really blame her, with everything that has happened in her life furthermore everything happening in her life in the moments of the book.
I'm the least brave of everyone. I never signed up for this war. Leukaemia conscripted me, the fucker
I don’t know how many times I shed tears for both Zac and Mia, the way that Zac is unconditionally loving and would do pretty much anything for everyone else. The friendship that builds between these two is absolutely beautiful.
A.J Betts is a remarkable writer that is able to capture so many emotions. The character development of both Zac and Mia is something. The reader is able to see and understand both Zac and Mia changing and some of it for the better.
Zac and Mia is heartbreaking, uplifting and moving. The adventures of finding out what life really is and what your life is worth is explored throughout Zac and Mia. Both Zac and Mia are both incredibly young but have been so much and A.J Betts understand and does this so well.
loveathena98's review against another edition
4.0
I think that this book was a slightly better version of The Fault in Our Stars minus all of the metaphors. Mia was a tad bit angsty for my taste, and seemed underdeveloped, but it was an alright book.