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thenonmouse's review against another edition
dark
reflective
tense
medium-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
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Toxic friendship
Minor: Forced institutionalization and Suicidal thoughts
literaryliaisons's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Violence
howlinglibraries's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
My greatest sin and my greatest achievement are the same. I told a story.
And Then I Woke Up feels like a difficult title to rate and review, because it was a difficult title to form a solid opinion on. I am absolutely enthralled by the concept of this story, and loved the narrative voice and the storytelling style, yet something didn't quite click for me throughout the bulk of the novella. I think this story suffers from repetition more than anything else, as it is an extremely character-focused story with very little action (though it has a decent depth of plot). That said, I did enjoy our narrator as a storyteller very much, so I suppose the book's flaws are also its qualities, in a sense (can you see now why I'm struggling to rate and review this?).
And Then I Woke Up is a zombie story of sorts, but told from the perspective of someone who has been "cured" — and these definitely aren't your average zombies. There isn't much to say without running the risk of spoilers, but I was fascinated by the entire premise that Devlin came up with and its social commentary on the way people view and spread information and "truth" in the modern age. The last 20% or so of the novella was phenomenal and I loved watching things unfold, so I'm very happy that I kept going through the more boring elements of the middle.
While And Then I Woke Up didn't fully captivate me, there was something about it that I think will stick with me for a while, and I'm extremely interested in future releases from this author. If you enjoy post-apocalyptic stories with a twist and a healthy (but not overly on-the-nose) commentary on some of the uglier sides of humanity, I highly recommend checking it out!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Gore, Violence, and Mental illness
Moderate: Child death
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