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jannenemarie's review against another edition
3.0
The author had a great idea, wonderful characters but left too many loose ends. In my opinion, she could have made this into 2 books and tied up the loose ends or shortened some things so the readers weren’t wondering what happened.
khoyt's review against another edition
4.0
Action, a touch of romance (so subtle), fantasy, a life or death race, this book has it all. Great read for middle school boys and girls alike.
kacie_marria's review against another edition
4.0
I was a little skeptical at first to read Crown of Oblivion by Julie Eshbaugh because I’ve heard her other books are not amazing and it seemed kind of similar to The Hunger Games, but I was surprised that I did actually like this one. It was action-packed, intense, and exciting.
Astrid Jael is an Outsider working as a surrogate to princess Renya to help pay off her family’s debt. If Renya steps out of line, it is Astrid who gets punished. After a tragic incident, Astrid is determined to enter the Race of Oblivion to win citizenship for her and her family. After the racers get drugged with the memory erasing Oblivion and put in the middle of nowhere outside the city, they have to follow a series of clues to lead them to the finish line. There is only one winner so people will do whatever it takes to win-even if that means killing.
I really liked Astrid’s character. She’s determined, strong, and loves her family. I also liked the setting of the book because it was described in a way where I could picture it very vividly. The political side of the book was also interesting and well-written and well-described. I found it very easy to follow what was happening in the book.
Overall, I liked Crown of Oblivion because of the setting, characters, and political aspect of the book.
Astrid Jael is an Outsider working as a surrogate to princess Renya to help pay off her family’s debt. If Renya steps out of line, it is Astrid who gets punished. After a tragic incident, Astrid is determined to enter the Race of Oblivion to win citizenship for her and her family. After the racers get drugged with the memory erasing Oblivion and put in the middle of nowhere outside the city, they have to follow a series of clues to lead them to the finish line. There is only one winner so people will do whatever it takes to win-even if that means killing.
I really liked Astrid’s character. She’s determined, strong, and loves her family. I also liked the setting of the book because it was described in a way where I could picture it very vividly. The political side of the book was also interesting and well-written and well-described. I found it very easy to follow what was happening in the book.
Overall, I liked Crown of Oblivion because of the setting, characters, and political aspect of the book.
brookthomson15's review
wannabe hunger games but super boring with no character definition.
melaniejallmanx's review against another edition
4.0
This was so so good, the minute I read the blurb I was hoping for a lot from this book and it really lived up to my expectations!
This is a fast paced book and I could barely put it down.
I loved how none of the characters were perfect they all had flaws which kept me so conflicted and questioning them but still interested in them all.
I would really love a prequel type book about Renya and the OLA
This is a fast paced book and I could barely put it down.
I loved how none of the characters were perfect they all had flaws which kept me so conflicted and questioning them but still interested in them all.
I would really love a prequel type book about Renya and the OLA
shannonxo's review against another edition
4.0
This book was such a whirlwind of constant action, plot twists and magic! If you're a fan of The Amazing Race or, dare I say it, The Hunger Games, then you'll absolutely enjoy this!
The world is a bit odd, but somehow works. There are corn fields and tornado threats, pick-up trucks, Ferris wheels, castles, kings and queens and duke and duchesses, knights It took me about a quarter of the way through before I could get an idea of what it is and then really started to enjoy the book. To save you the confusion when you start, think of it as an alternate reality version of the US Midwestern landscape set in the Dustbowl era. Once I figured that out, the whole world clicked into place and I read so much faster. The magic aspect was interesting. An Enchanted can either feel the emotions of others to anticipate their next moves, or they can inflict pain on others with their mind.
As you can tell, there is indeed a race that is the focal point of this story. And it holds back no punches. This book is go-go-go from almost the start, and again, it somehow works. Indentured workers enter the Oblivion Races in the hopes they will be brought up to equal status with the Enchanteds and be declared citizens. The catch is they are injected with a drug called Oblivion that wipes their memories. When they awake they know nothing of themselves, and have nothing but the first clue. They follow clue after clue, riddle after riddle, together or alone, to reach the end. Hopefully without dying of thirst or exposure along the way. Astrid teams up with Darius, against her best judgement. While I found Astrid to be badass as heck, I didn't think she came out all too clever in this when it came to figuring out the clues. I could absolutely poke a hundred holes in the amnesia aspect, and point out that it seems half of the racers have the ability of teleportation, but why? It was entertaining to say the least!
I think Oblivion's downfall was in its being a standalone. Don't get me wrong, I was thrilled when I learned it was. Thrilled. But there's a lot going on in this book. There is a lot of history, rebellion, backstory and such that it could have really benefited from that extra two hundred pages or so to properly give everything the attention it needed. Deserved even. The ending felt a bit rushed because of that, and I was a wee bit disappointed. There was so much more I wanted from the ending and several plot points throughout.
The world is a bit odd, but somehow works. There are corn fields and tornado threats, pick-up trucks, Ferris wheels, castles, kings and queens and duke and duchesses, knights It took me about a quarter of the way through before I could get an idea of what it is and then really started to enjoy the book. To save you the confusion when you start, think of it as an alternate reality version of the US Midwestern landscape set in the Dustbowl era. Once I figured that out, the whole world clicked into place and I read so much faster. The magic aspect was interesting. An Enchanted can either feel the emotions of others to anticipate their next moves, or they can inflict pain on others with their mind.
As you can tell, there is indeed a race that is the focal point of this story. And it holds back no punches. This book is go-go-go from almost the start, and again, it somehow works. Indentured workers enter the Oblivion Races in the hopes they will be brought up to equal status with the Enchanteds and be declared citizens. The catch is they are injected with a drug called Oblivion that wipes their memories. When they awake they know nothing of themselves, and have nothing but the first clue. They follow clue after clue, riddle after riddle, together or alone, to reach the end. Hopefully without dying of thirst or exposure along the way. Astrid teams up with Darius, against her best judgement. While I found Astrid to be badass as heck, I didn't think she came out all too clever in this when it came to figuring out the clues. I could absolutely poke a hundred holes in the amnesia aspect, and point out that it seems half of the racers have the ability of teleportation, but why? It was entertaining to say the least!
I think Oblivion's downfall was in its being a standalone. Don't get me wrong, I was thrilled when I learned it was. Thrilled. But there's a lot going on in this book. There is a lot of history, rebellion, backstory and such that it could have really benefited from that extra two hundred pages or so to properly give everything the attention it needed. Deserved even. The ending felt a bit rushed because of that, and I was a wee bit disappointed. There was so much more I wanted from the ending and several plot points throughout.
harrybowiequeen's review
5.0
I received a advanced readers edition of this book. After completing it, and loving it, I believe this book is a book everyone should pre-order.
heatherllama's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0