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3.09 AVERAGE
3.09 AVERAGE
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was good! Were the characters absolutely over the top and ridiculous? Yes. Definitely. The influencers were obnoxious, our main character, Rafi, was everything wrong with true crime folks with theory after theory and absolutely nothing to back it up. It cracked me up. Was it a bit too on the nose at times, sure, but it's YA, and I think this type of in your face satire is perfect for a younger audience.
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
fast-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
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Lord of the Fly Fest is a retelling with dark humor, and a heavy dose of satire of social media influences and celebrity culture. I had a fun time with the book, and the dialogue made me laugh out loud a couple of times. It was fast-paced and had a nice format, with Rafi’s podcast episodes sprinkled throughout the book. It’s also filled with easter eggs and references to the original Lord of the Flies, which were fun to try to pick out.
But I also felt it lacked some depth, and basically every character was really annoying. Which makes sense since the influencers are meant to be over the top and very insufferable. But it just got a bit frustrating after a while to read about. The only character I truly found sympathetic was River, and the story would have worked better if Rafi wasn’t just as annoying herself! She’s supposed to be the only “sane” person, but when she makes mistake after mistake she’s just as annoying and foolish as the others - just in a different way. The podcast aspect and mystery, as well as some of the humuor is what made the book enjoyable for me despite the less than appealing characters.
Satire can be very hard to get right. You want to get over the top to really exaggerate how ridiculous something is, but there’s a fine line between finding a nice balance and just being a bit too much. And, as with many types of humor, it is very hit or miss with people depending on their own humour as well as their understanding of the jokes. and some of the references were a little too on the nose to be fun and not just a bit cringe.
But this book has raised an interest in the author's earlier book, and since it’s a horror novel it will be a perfect read for October.
**Actual rating is 3.5 stars**
---
Thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
But I also felt it lacked some depth, and basically every character was really annoying. Which makes sense since the influencers are meant to be over the top and very insufferable. But it just got a bit frustrating after a while to read about. The only character I truly found sympathetic was River, and the story would have worked better if Rafi wasn’t just as annoying herself! She’s supposed to be the only “sane” person, but when she makes mistake after mistake she’s just as annoying and foolish as the others - just in a different way. The podcast aspect and mystery, as well as some of the humuor is what made the book enjoyable for me despite the less than appealing characters.
Satire can be very hard to get right. You want to get over the top to really exaggerate how ridiculous something is, but there’s a fine line between finding a nice balance and just being a bit too much. And, as with many types of humor, it is very hit or miss with people depending on their own humour as well as their understanding of the jokes. and some of the references were a little too on the nose to be fun and not just a bit cringe.
But this book has raised an interest in the author's earlier book, and since it’s a horror novel it will be a perfect read for October.
**Actual rating is 3.5 stars**
---
Thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Well, not bad.
Aside from the relentless roasting of influencers and internet celebrities (I have a sneaking suspicion I know who, aside from sharing a name with William Goulding's character, Jack is based on), I also appreciated the lesser-engaged-in art of roasting true crime podcasters, which I absolutely hate for all of the reasons addressed with Rafi in this book (conspiracy theories, making assumptions when they don't have all the facts, assuming they know everything about the case even though they're not a police officer and don't have access to that evidence...)
Yeah, not bad. Not a bad Lord of the Flies reimagining at all.
Aside from the relentless roasting of influencers and internet celebrities (I have a sneaking suspicion I know who, aside from sharing a name with William Goulding's character, Jack is based on), I also appreciated the lesser-engaged-in art of roasting true crime podcasters, which I absolutely hate for all of the reasons addressed with Rafi in this book (conspiracy theories, making assumptions when they don't have all the facts, assuming they know everything about the case even though they're not a police officer and don't have access to that evidence...)
Yeah, not bad. Not a bad Lord of the Flies reimagining at all.