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gggina13's review against another edition
4.0
I wouldn’t call Magpie an anti-hero in the slightest. She is just a miserable girl who stops feeling anything and wants to hurt anyone who hurt her. She’s like a lot of teenage girls except she actually has the tools to make her wishes come true. I remember feeling exactly like Magpie did at that age, having gone through similar things. This is a revenge story that doesn’t glorify revenge and I think that’s important for people who feel the same as Magpie to read. There’s so much about this book I really enjoyed. The trans character was so well done and I was so happy to just find a trans character in a story, as the quasi-love interest of a cis-hetero girl no doubt, without it being mentioned in the synopsis or the pitch of the book. The way Magpie’s feelings were portrayed was so realistic. Her preoccupation with her anger kept her from accepting any love or attention. I docked a star because I didn’t completely connect to the ending and maybe I connected to Magpie too much because I was just mad at her for not feeling anything. Regardless, this book was definitely worth the read.
tess1209's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
5.0
addictedtofiction's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
cosmicjess's review against another edition
4.0
well that was the angry, not-at-all apologetic book i didn't think i needed until i had it.
idk i really loved this and there's no way in hell for me to look at this book objectively. yeah, the ending kinda stick well for me but i totally understand it. whimsical, hard to read, a hint of fantasy, a wonderful mix.
content warnings/TW: sexual assault, semi-graphic rape, alcoholism, talk of suicide, slut-shaming
idk i really loved this and there's no way in hell for me to look at this book objectively. yeah, the ending kinda stick well for me but i totally understand it. whimsical, hard to read, a hint of fantasy, a wonderful mix.
content warnings/TW: sexual assault, semi-graphic rape, alcoholism, talk of suicide, slut-shaming
kayladbruns's review against another edition
3.0
“Your despair made Near. You felt so deeply, and for so long, that your very sadness grew limbs and walked away from you.”
What did I just read? Is this considered Magical Realism? The overall aspect of Near still confuses me. Despite confused, what I can’t deny is that Leno has a way with words. She has a way of weaving words together that hit you hard and make you think.
What I think was a downfall for me was the majority of the characters. Magpie, Allison, and her parents. Even her sister. I didn’t like them, but maybe that was the point. Life isn’t pretty and neither were the actions of these characters.
This book talks about some difficult topics. So be sure that you are in a good headspace for it. I was surprised by the length went to in this book concerning these topics. It made the book come off real and will resonate with so many teens who are going through some of the same issues.
While I don’t think this book will be for everyone, I highly recommend that people give it a try. It mixes reality and hard issues.
TW: Suicide, sexual assault, alcoholism
I received an ARC via The NOVL for an honest review. The Quote was taken from an ARC and is subject to change upon publication.
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What did I just read? Is this considered Magical Realism? The overall aspect of Near still confuses me. Despite confused, what I can’t deny is that Leno has a way with words. She has a way of weaving words together that hit you hard and make you think.
What I think was a downfall for me was the majority of the characters. Magpie, Allison, and her parents. Even her sister. I didn’t like them, but maybe that was the point. Life isn’t pretty and neither were the actions of these characters.
This book talks about some difficult topics. So be sure that you are in a good headspace for it. I was surprised by the length went to in this book concerning these topics. It made the book come off real and will resonate with so many teens who are going through some of the same issues.
While I don’t think this book will be for everyone, I highly recommend that people give it a try. It mixes reality and hard issues.
TW: Suicide, sexual assault, alcoholism
I received an ARC via The NOVL for an honest review. The Quote was taken from an ARC and is subject to change upon publication.
Blog | Instagram | Twitter
moorealexa's review against another edition
4.0
this was... very weird. but, i liked it!! really love Katrina Leno's writing style.
crswit16's review against another edition
3.0
Creepy and unsettling, but an intriguing read nonetheless.
allforthetomb's review against another edition
1.0
one star is for ben and the other star is for clare, who were the main reasons why i finished this book despite them not showing up as often as i would’ve liked.
jhsc's review against another edition
4.0
i don't think i've ever rooted for someone sm while also being deeply concerned for and scared of them all at once. some of the writing in the first half felt annoyingly melodramatic and like things my middle school self would have written, but then i remembered that the mc literally is a young teenager going through an incredibly large amount of shit and i just hate my middle school self. so i kept listening and i'm glad i did.
allison was so interesting to me! i wanted to know more about her and their previous friendship, but i'm also satisfied with the interaction they did have - i think that was my favorite part (and also when hither was introduced).
on a related note, i liked the ending. i won't pretend i understood everything, but i liked the sort of parallel and the promise of another confrontation, maybe final this time.
allison was so interesting to me! i wanted to know more about her and their previous friendship, but i'm also satisfied with the interaction they did have - i think that was my favorite part (and also when hither was introduced).
on a related note, i liked the ending. i won't pretend i understood everything, but i liked the sort of parallel and the promise of another confrontation, maybe final this time.
handahbear's review against another edition
3.0
I have so many feelings about this one, and I honestly still don't know how I feel about it. There were elements that I really liked, but there were also some elements that I didn't, and I'm not sure whether that scale tips more towards enjoyment or dislike (thus the 3 star rating).
As usual, let's start with the good:
I am loving YA horror as a genre. I think it's fantastic that more and more of it is being written, and I love that a lot of the concepts for it are either a. very original or b. great re-workings of classic horror scenarios. You Must Not Miss did a little bit of both: part wonderful original concept of a world both like and unlike our own created by Magpie and part fresh take on classic revenge horror.
The characters were very diverse, and I really appreciate representation, especially in YA lit. For the most part, the dialogue felt natural, and didn't throw me out of the book.
I felt for Magpie, and thought she walked the line between being a realistic teenager and being a good protagonist well.
I appreciate that Magpie's trauma wasn't something that could just magically be healed by having a nice boy love her. This is such a common trope in YA that really irks me a lot (and, let's be honest, it's also really heavily present in adult fiction as well), and it would have been easy to fall into it. Making the choice to take the plot in a different direction was, I think, the right one, and I'm glad that Leno did.
Now, let's move on to some things that I didn't love:
Near didn't feel like it was utilized to its full potential. I was so interested in the town and what Magpie might be able to do in it, and it was never fully realized as a concept. It felt more like a plot device than like a central pillar of the plot.
Magpie's revenge felt like it went from 0 to 60, and while this did contribute to the horror categorization, it felt too fast and it was too rushed through for it to have the emotional impact that it could have.
There was no explanation for why certain pivotal plot points at the end of the novel happened, and the ending, while appropriate for a horror novel, didn't necessarily feel like it fit with where the novel had been heading up to that point. Until then, I felt like there was a good through line of "You cannot let your desire for revenge rule your life, because it prevents you from actually healing and addressing what happened to you in a way that serves you well, rather than in a way that only keeps taking from you and hurting you further" and then...we kind of abandoned that.
There were a few other, more nit-picky things that I didn't love about the novel, but I'll let those go for now.
I'll still check out Leno's other books, because I'm still interested, but I'm hoping they're different enough from this one that I'll find more to like in them.
As usual, let's start with the good:
I am loving YA horror as a genre. I think it's fantastic that more and more of it is being written, and I love that a lot of the concepts for it are either a. very original or b. great re-workings of classic horror scenarios. You Must Not Miss did a little bit of both: part wonderful original concept of a world both like and unlike our own created by Magpie and part fresh take on classic revenge horror.
The characters were very diverse, and I really appreciate representation, especially in YA lit. For the most part, the dialogue felt natural, and didn't throw me out of the book.
I felt for Magpie, and thought she walked the line between being a realistic teenager and being a good protagonist well.
I appreciate that Magpie's trauma wasn't something that could just magically be healed by having a nice boy love her. This is such a common trope in YA that really irks me a lot (and, let's be honest, it's also really heavily present in adult fiction as well), and it would have been easy to fall into it. Making the choice to take the plot in a different direction was, I think, the right one, and I'm glad that Leno did.
Now, let's move on to some things that I didn't love:
Near didn't feel like it was utilized to its full potential. I was so interested in the town and what Magpie might be able to do in it, and it was never fully realized as a concept. It felt more like a plot device than like a central pillar of the plot.
Magpie's revenge felt like it went from 0 to 60, and while this did contribute to the horror categorization, it felt too fast and it was too rushed through for it to have the emotional impact that it could have.
There was no explanation for why certain pivotal plot points at the end of the novel happened, and the ending, while appropriate for a horror novel, didn't necessarily feel like it fit with where the novel had been heading up to that point. Until then, I felt like there was a good through line of "You cannot let your desire for revenge rule your life, because it prevents you from actually healing and addressing what happened to you in a way that serves you well, rather than in a way that only keeps taking from you and hurting you further" and then...we kind of abandoned that.
There were a few other, more nit-picky things that I didn't love about the novel, but I'll let those go for now.
I'll still check out Leno's other books, because I'm still interested, but I'm hoping they're different enough from this one that I'll find more to like in them.