Scan barcode
butteredtoastinbed's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This was an absolutely gorgeous novel that I am so glad I read.
The characters were so layered, flawed and real and I felt so attached to them, and it felt so natural to go through their stories with them. The settings and imagery were also so prominent and added so much to the book, along with the twists that were extraordinary and kept me thoroughly engaged.
There are some aspects of the story that were confusing and would require a reread to fully understand, but I think that fits well with the story and would be rewarding if I did decide to reread.
Overall, the thing that stood out to me the most was the style in which the story was written. It was beautiful and unique and gave the narrators such a real and emotional voice. I don’t think that I will revisit this book again soon; not because I didn’t enjoy it, but because I feel the story needs time to settle in my head and is perfect exactly where it was left.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Death, and Death of parent
Minor: Blood
annavdn's review
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
A lesson in not judging a book by its cover. Although this book has a beautiful cover, this book was a big disappointment. I found myself falling asleep while reading the first half of the book. I really had to push myself to keep reading. The book became more interesting once Cee/Celia managed to set sail, and got suspenseful when Hero, her love interest, tried to kill her and she ties him up and kills him before he is revived, because he is also a bot and his purpose is to stop her who is believed to be the bot Cee . The chapters following made the preceding chapters where Cee/Celia was the narrator more understandable. That Cee/Celia died several years ago, and that the Cee/Celia we know is a bot created by her sister, Kasey/Kay, and that the words "Cee. Find Me." coming to her mind was a command that was programed into the bot that could pursue happiness and felt emotions, which is why Cee/Celia sought autonomy. Also, I don't really understand Kasey/Kay's motivation to put part of Cee/Celia's real brain into the bot only for her to tell bot Cee that she didn't regard her as a sister. Why give her the memories at all? Why let the bot feel sisterhood for Kay/Kasey when it wasn't reciprocated? It just seems cruel. And the only purpose of the bot, according to Kay/Kasey is to find out if Earth is habitable for humankind à la Eve in Pixar's Wall-E. It is also important to note that the bot identifies as Cee and she calls the human version of herself Celia.
Kasey appears to be autistic although it isn't explicitly stated in the book. However, she is a STEM prodigy, so even if she is neurodivergent, she falls into the genre of autistic character with savant syndrome. It's very cliché and savant syndrome in autistic people is quite rare. I also don't like how scientific advancement is their solution for climate change. Sometimes the solution is simple, which is coexisting with nature rather than trying to rule over it. When we think about areas with less pollution and more biodiversity (such as dark sky reserves or national parks) they are largely inhabited by native americans or indigenous people. That seems the way to go rather than the type of environmentalism that is centered in this book, which seems very imperialist. There was also a quote in chapter 37(?) that goes : "Would people ever willingly give up their freedoms for the good of others?" I found this quote to imply that the culture was individualist rather than collectivist, which is common in Western imperialist countries.
Romance was between Hero (who Celia/Cee initially tried to name Dmitri, Tristan, and Heath - Dmitri and Tristan being two characters who exist, but aren't important) and x Celia/Cee and between Antinium and Kasey/Kay. The romance was unnecessary and I think I would have rathered it not be included in the book at all. I am not certain what race the male love interests are, but I am under the assumption that they are both white, Hero especially due to the other names that Celia/Cee tried to give him along with the fact that he is mentioned to have blue eyes.Either way, both of the male love interests betray their counterparts, Antinium especially, whose goal is to get rid of all humanity (an eco-fascist philosophy). As a wasian, I just think it's tacky to see white love interests for Asian characters and I wish this was an interracial mix that was less prevalent in media. Unrelated to romance, the other characters that exist in this book are not super relevant, but none of the characters are developed.
Kasey appears to be autistic although it isn't explicitly stated in the book. However, she is a STEM prodigy, so even if she is neurodivergent, she falls into the genre of autistic character with savant syndrome. It's very cliché and savant syndrome in autistic people is quite rare. I also don't like how scientific advancement is their solution for climate change. Sometimes the solution is simple, which is coexisting with nature rather than trying to rule over it. When we think about areas with less pollution and more biodiversity (such as dark sky reserves or national parks) they are largely inhabited by native americans or indigenous people. That seems the way to go rather than the type of environmentalism that is centered in this book, which seems very imperialist. There was also a quote in chapter 37(?) that goes : "Would people ever willingly give up their freedoms for the good of others?" I found this quote to imply that the culture was individualist rather than collectivist, which is common in Western imperialist countries.
Romance was between Hero (who Celia/Cee initially tried to name Dmitri, Tristan, and Heath - Dmitri and Tristan being two characters who exist, but aren't important) and x Celia/Cee and between Antinium and Kasey/Kay. The romance was unnecessary and I think I would have rathered it not be included in the book at all. I am not certain what race the male love interests are, but I am under the assumption that they are both white, Hero especially due to the other names that Celia/Cee tried to give him along with the fact that he is mentioned to have blue eyes.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Suicide, Classism, Cursing, and Death
Minor: Acephobia/Arophobia
b00ks_d0gs's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness
Moderate: Suicide attempt and Death of parent
librarianlayla's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- 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
4.75
This book hurts. It hurt me so much. I adored it.
Slow to start but it does pick up pace and I found myself unable to put it down, finally finishing it at 2am.
It's raw and heartfelt and sad and tragic.
If you love stories based on familial bonds, on tackling environmental issues and discovering one's purpose in life - this book is for you. But prepare your heart to break.
Slow to start but it does pick up pace and I found myself unable to put it down, finally finishing it at 2am.
It's raw and heartfelt and sad and tragic.
If you love stories based on familial bonds, on tackling environmental issues and discovering one's purpose in life - this book is for you. But prepare your heart to break.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Vomit, Blood, and Cancer
mattiedancer's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Writing: 4⭐️/5
Solidly written with some truly beautiful sections. Lots of really great foreshadowing that you don’t necessarily realize until you look back on it. Parts of the story can be a bit jarring and confusing, though He mostly smooths these out quickly.
Characters: 4⭐️/5
Beautifully different characters with realistic flaws and goals. The end felt a bit forced onto the characters, rather than created by the characters. Some sacrifices for plot over characters.
Plot: 4.75⭐️/5
Superb plot. Everything felt wrapped up at the end, but not too neatly. Some good surprises that didn’t feel forced or fake.
Post-Reading Rating: 5⭐️/5
Amazing plot. Interesting, thoughtful, well-developed and thought out.
Final Rating: 4.5⭐️/5
Notes: Joan He definitely sacrificed a bit of characterization for plot. Feels like a gem of the genre, regardless.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcohol, Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, and Terminal illness
merle_bookdragon's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I read this book because it's one of two books I will write my MA thesis about. This was only my first read and I'm sure I will expand on an actual review once I have more insight.
So far I can tell that this is definitely a challenging book but I enjoyed the challenge! I must admit that I was confused for a long time of like *what was actually going on* behind all the mysterious events and statements but I think that is the point of the book. I also feel like I wouldn't have been near as invested if I knew the *plot twist* from the very beginning. This way I was SO curious of what was the explanation and I was truly shook because I did not see ANY of this coming. The book definitely did not end like I thought it would when I started reading.
At the moment I won't go into plot/spoilers but that will surely follow!
So far I can tell that this is definitely a challenging book but I enjoyed the challenge! I must admit that I was confused for a long time of like *what was actually going on* behind all the mysterious events and statements but I think that is the point of the book. I also feel like I wouldn't have been near as invested if I knew the *plot twist* from the very beginning. This way I was SO curious of what was the explanation and I was truly shook because I did not see ANY of this coming. The book definitely did not end like I thought it would when I started reading.
At the moment I won't go into plot/spoilers but that will surely follow!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Death of parent, and Violence
bookcrushin's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This book is told out of sequence with wild twists and very cool science and futuristic ideals for saving the world and the people in it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Medical content, Medical trauma, and Cancer
Serious spoiler like end game spoiler:jennamcclendon's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Okay, WOW. That was a WILD RIDE. Joan He KNOWS how to write a plot twist, and when I say this book was full of twists, I mean that it’s all back to back, continuous streams of “WTF”, sobbing over those moments of craving something so precious yet so impossible, and getting so excited and/or shocked have to put the book down. The middle of the story seemed the strongest to me. It may have just been me being stupid, but the beginning and end kind of confused me. In the beginning I was struggling to figure out transitions between past and present and how the timeline worked out (which is actually more complicated than you might think, but it makes more sense in the middle when things are revealed). There was also the struggle of figuring out what the heck happened to the world and why everything is the way it is in society and with the characters. In the end, I feel like some of their actions didn’t make a lot of sense, and I still had unanswered questions about the plot at the end about what was resolved or what wasn’t and why characters did what they did. I would have loved to rate this book higher especially with the writing and twists and concepts, but because it was so confusing and the ending didn’t really make a whole lot of sense, I went with a 3.5ish rating! Overall, though, I loved it. It reminded me a lot of The Loneliest Girl in the Universe, one of my favorites. If you like scifi, mystery, post-apocalyptic societies, and major plot twists that make you question your existence and make you feel a million emotions at once, I highly recommend!
A quote I liked:
A quote I liked:
“All we can do is live and feel as much as we can, to rebel against the life and feelings we can’t control.”
Content Warnings
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Suicide attempt
Minor: Vomit
nyoom's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Body horror, Cancer, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Sexual content, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Abandonment, Colonisation, and Gun violence
Minor: Ableism, Bullying, Excrement, and Racism
foreverinastory's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I'm a little sad this isn't sapphic bc that cover gives me girls in love vibes, but I did enjoy this. BUT WTF was that ending!?
I don't really know how to summarize this book. It's about sisters. It's about humanity. It's about the climate disaster that will eventually befall Earth. It's all these things and more. The ending and how everything tied together had me shocked and questioning. The ending is more of an open ended one and I am still unsure how I feel about it, but I don't think anything different would've worked here.
The Ones We're Meant to Find follows Cee and Kay/Kasey. Cee is trapped on a deserted island and trying to figure out a way off of it so she can find her sister. Kasey is grieving her sister, Celia, and her disappearance/death. When Kasey finds Celia's chip (basically stores all your info and memories), she is determined to understand what happened to her sister.
Cee's POV felt a lot like watching someone playing Sim's Castaway. It was very easy to get bored and I wasn't really invested in her POV until about halfway through. Kasey on the other hand was fascinating from the beginning. There were so many things going on and I kept wanting to know more. Kasey is a genius and there was something she did in the past she wasn't allowed to remember. But in her pursuit of her sister, she finds them again and with them the possible solution to the climate crisis.
There isn't any clear cut villain to me in this story. There are humans who've made bad decisions, and ones that made the best decision they could given the circumstances. I really liked how this whole book operates in the gray area of right and wrong. The overlying mystery of what the fuck was exactly happening kept my interest and helped with Cee's POV being slower at first.
The only thing I wish was different was that there were no queer characters. Kasey really struck me as someone on the Aspec, but none of that is canon so I am sad. Also look at that cover!!! Does that not scream sapphic vibes!? Because it does to me.
Rep: Asian coded female MCs, one MC seems autistic coded but I am not certain.
CWs: Abandonment, confinement, death, presumed death of sister, grief, attempted murder, racism, sexual content, suicide/suicide attempt--character is immortal, terminal illness--poisoning, toxic friendship, violence.
I don't really know how to summarize this book. It's about sisters. It's about humanity. It's about the climate disaster that will eventually befall Earth. It's all these things and more. The ending and how everything tied together had me shocked and questioning. The ending is more of an open ended one and I am still unsure how I feel about it, but I don't think anything different would've worked here.
The Ones We're Meant to Find follows Cee and Kay/Kasey. Cee is trapped on a deserted island and trying to figure out a way off of it so she can find her sister. Kasey is grieving her sister, Celia, and her disappearance/death. When Kasey finds Celia's chip (basically stores all your info and memories), she is determined to understand what happened to her sister.
Cee's POV felt a lot like watching someone playing Sim's Castaway. It was very easy to get bored and I wasn't really invested in her POV until about halfway through. Kasey on the other hand was fascinating from the beginning. There were so many things going on and I kept wanting to know more. Kasey is a genius and there was something she did in the past she wasn't allowed to remember. But in her pursuit of her sister, she finds them again and with them the possible solution to the climate crisis.
There isn't any clear cut villain to me in this story. There are humans who've made bad decisions, and ones that made the best decision they could given the circumstances. I really liked how this whole book operates in the gray area of right and wrong. The overlying mystery of what the fuck was exactly happening kept my interest and helped with Cee's POV being slower at first.
The only thing I wish was different was that there were no queer characters. Kasey really struck me as someone on the Aspec, but none of that is canon so I am sad. Also look at that cover!!! Does that not scream sapphic vibes!? Because it does to me.
Rep: Asian coded female MCs, one MC seems autistic coded but I am not certain.
CWs: Abandonment, confinement, death, presumed death of sister, grief, attempted murder, racism, sexual content, suicide/suicide attempt--character is immortal, terminal illness--poisoning, toxic friendship, violence.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Child death, Death, Grief, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Confinement, Murder, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, and Violence
Minor: Racism