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mbenzz's review against another edition
3.0
I loved this book in the beginning. I plowed through the first 50% in about a day. The latter half did slow down a bit, but it still held my interest. The ending though...what was that all about? There WAS no ending. It just...stopped. I HATE when authors do that, and I wish they'd knock it off. I don't know if they think they're being all deep and thought-provoking when they just leave everything unfinished, but they're not. It's annoying.
You take the time to read a book, get to know each character, follow them through life's ups and downs, whatever they may be, but then are left with nothing? Not cool. What happens to everyone?! Where did Laurie go? Did they let her live, or did they kill her and dump her somewhere? Did Tom ever meet up with Christina? What happens with Nora and Kevin? Do they raise the child together, or does she end up leaving as she planned? Did the law enforcement ever figure out who was murdering the Watchers, or did they just not care?
The only story that seemed to have a conclusion was Aimee's, and her's was a minor story, to begin with. I also had a really hard time believing Tom could do what he did at the end. It was completely out of character from the sweet, caring young man he'd been portrayed as throughout the book. And I really got tired of Nora always whining about how she was sick of people walking on eggshells around her, that she wished people would talk to her like a normal person instead of the damaged, mentally unstable woman they thought she was. Yet when someone actually does try and have a normal conversation with her (Kevin, when they were at dinner), she freaks out!
In the end, it felt like the author just got tired of writing, or that he had reached the desired length and just wrapped it up. It's a shame because the first half of the book was so good (which is why I'm giving it 3 stars). It moved at a nice pace and I really cared about the characters. Too bad Mr. Perrotta got lazy with the ending.
You take the time to read a book, get to know each character, follow them through life's ups and downs, whatever they may be, but then are left with nothing? Not cool. What happens to everyone?! Where did Laurie go? Did they let her live, or did they kill her and dump her somewhere? Did Tom ever meet up with Christina? What happens with Nora and Kevin? Do they raise the child together, or does she end up leaving as she planned? Did the law enforcement ever figure out who was murdering the Watchers, or did they just not care?
The only story that seemed to have a conclusion was Aimee's, and her's was a minor story, to begin with. I also had a really hard time believing Tom could do what he did at the end. It was completely out of character from the sweet, caring young man he'd been portrayed as throughout the book. And I really got tired of Nora always whining about how she was sick of people walking on eggshells around her, that she wished people would talk to her like a normal person instead of the damaged, mentally unstable woman they thought she was. Yet when someone actually does try and have a normal conversation with her (Kevin, when they were at dinner), she freaks out!
In the end, it felt like the author just got tired of writing, or that he had reached the desired length and just wrapped it up. It's a shame because the first half of the book was so good (which is why I'm giving it 3 stars). It moved at a nice pace and I really cared about the characters. Too bad Mr. Perrotta got lazy with the ending.
peaknit's review against another edition
3.0
I hope this couldn't happen, but was interesting to imagine. Well written.
kishma_'s review against another edition
2.0
This was extremely... underwhelming. I was intrigued at the beginning but that fizzled out pretty quickly. If it weren't for the audiobook on 2x speed, I might not have finished it. There were storylines I wish we saw more of and storylines I wish we spent less time on... All in all it was a "meh" book to me.
gillybourne's review against another edition
Fantastic world, took a while to get going
Loved the concept, the narrative, and the way of writing, but the plot took a little while to intrigue- and it hasn't got a satisfying end. Will there be a sequel?
Loved the concept, the narrative, and the way of writing, but the plot took a little while to intrigue- and it hasn't got a satisfying end. Will there be a sequel?
classicadg's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
marderosas's review against another edition
4.0
foi difícil separar as expectativas que tinha em relação ao livro, por já conhecer e amar a série da hbo. acabei um pouco frustrada por não ser tão aprofundado nas questões religiosas, mas depois de um tempo você se acostuma com a abordagem do tom perrotta e entende a intenção dele, e qual caminho ele está seguindo. acaba que é um livro bastante melancólico sobre pessoas lidando com esse trauma coletivo que é a partida repentina, seja das maneiras mais absurdas (todo o núcleo do tom e os cultos que ele encontra ao longo do caminho) ou de maneira mais familiar (a depressão da jill e sua jornada através do hedonismo adolescente em busca de algo que preencha esse vazio deixado pela mãe). eu escrevi algumas observações sobre a relação livro x série, e como elas se complementam: https://link.medium.com/bdLO8tcPtjb
geegeev's review against another edition
2.0
The premise is fascinating but the story went nowhere. Disappointing.
dphillips's review against another edition
4.0
This was a five star read for me until the end. The ending was like a climactic season finale with a bunch of cliff hangers & no answer to any of them in sight. That said, I'm still going to watch the tv show adaptation.