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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Personal Score: B+
Critical Score: B
I’m more hesitant in my scores for this book than the previous two. I’m stuck between thinking it’s stronger and weaker than 3.5 stars.
This is not nearly as bad as it should have been given the widespread criticism that it’s boring. It’s not boring at all. I think the issue is that it lacks the tests of the prior two books, and it stands on its own less than them. Really, Graduation Day is a part two to Independent Study. It sort of feels like we are just dragging out the plot of the previous book. And if you don’t care about assassinations, then yes, this book would be a bore.
I do care about the plot, but it’s sort of ludicrous. There are as many plot holes in this book as in Independent Study, even if the ending does explain some lingering inconsistencies in the world-building. Plot elements big and small throughout the book are so implausible that it feels borderline silly, but the plot is entertaining enough to keep its head about water. For me, at least! I don’t have high expectations from a puppy YA dystopian thriller, even though it is dealing with lofty themes of ethics and governance. Charbonneau manages to ask some stimulating questions about leadership without coming across as preachy or dumb. This is by no means some strong political allegory; I’m just saying it’s smart enough to lend the story some gravity. (Smart in raising useful political questions, not in executing a super logical plot.)
What I’m hung up on is the ending. It feels suspiciously neat and tidy, though that could just be me adjusting to the series being over. Also, there are some annoying conventions at play, like the villain sitting down to reveal his whole agenda, the MC’s sibling we don’t know or care much about dying as if we’ll be emotionally crushed, and of course the expected twist that everything’s been a sort of setup for the MC. It’s all there, fulfilling the genre conventions a bit too predictably. But I’m not that upset about this because the series came out when these conventions were still sort of fresh.
Now, about those big reveals surrounding Barnes and the President (whose name is so dumb that I won’t write it out).
It took me a second to wrap my head around this complicated resolution. I guess it makes sense? I guess I’m good with it? The more I think about it, the more I like it. We have some big questions lying around, like Symon’s intentions, but I’m not really invested enough to investigate further.
That’s not exactly the reaction you want from an epic conclusion, but that’s what I’ve got.
Last note; the title is a stretch. I feel like she decided on Graduation Day before completing the book, then kept it because she liked it even though it only applies metaphorically and is not addressed enough in the book to fit.
Personal Score: B+
Critical Score: B
I’m more hesitant in my scores for this book than the previous two. I’m stuck between thinking it’s stronger and weaker than 3.5 stars.
This is not nearly as bad as it should have been given the widespread criticism that it’s boring. It’s not boring at all. I think the issue is that it lacks the tests of the prior two books, and it stands on its own less than them. Really, Graduation Day is a part two to Independent Study. It sort of feels like we are just dragging out the plot of the previous book. And if you don’t care about assassinations, then yes, this book would be a bore.
I do care about the plot, but it’s sort of ludicrous. There are as many plot holes in this book as in Independent Study, even if the ending does explain some lingering inconsistencies in the world-building. Plot elements big and small throughout the book are so implausible that it feels borderline silly, but the plot is entertaining enough to keep its head about water. For me, at least! I don’t have high expectations from a puppy YA dystopian thriller, even though it is dealing with lofty themes of ethics and governance. Charbonneau manages to ask some stimulating questions about leadership without coming across as preachy or dumb. This is by no means some strong political allegory; I’m just saying it’s smart enough to lend the story some gravity. (Smart in raising useful political questions, not in executing a super logical plot.)
What I’m hung up on is the ending. It feels suspiciously neat and tidy, though that could just be me adjusting to the series being over. Also, there are some annoying conventions at play, like the villain sitting down to reveal his whole agenda, the MC’s sibling we don’t know or care much about dying as if we’ll be emotionally crushed, and of course the expected twist that everything’s been a sort of setup for the MC. It’s all there, fulfilling the genre conventions a bit too predictably. But I’m not that upset about this because the series came out when these conventions were still sort of fresh.
Now, about those big reveals surrounding Barnes and the President (whose name is so dumb that I won’t write it out).
It took me a second to wrap my head around this complicated resolution. I guess it makes sense? I guess I’m good with it? The more I think about it, the more I like it. We have some big questions lying around, like Symon’s intentions, but I’m not really invested enough to investigate further.
That’s not exactly the reaction you want from an epic conclusion, but that’s what I’ve got.
Last note; the title is a stretch. I feel like she decided on Graduation Day before completing the book, then kept it because she liked it even though it only applies metaphorically and is not addressed enough in the book to fit.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
tense
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
For a trilogy that started out with such action packed scenes, the third and final book ended it all with such a let down. I had a hard time putting the first two books down, needing to know more about how the events would play out, then I waited 3 excruciating long days for my library to have this ready, only in the end to take 5 days to read it, needing to put it down multiple times out of sheer boredom.
Normally, I hate putting down books that I'm halfway through reading, especially if it's the end to such a good series, but if I had known it would have ended as such I would have stopped at the second book.
Normally, I hate putting down books that I'm halfway through reading, especially if it's the end to such a good series, but if I had known it would have ended as such I would have stopped at the second book.
adventurous
dark
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The end of this trilogy couldn't have been better. This is beyond amazing!
Joelle Charbonneau- Graduation Day
391 pages
This one didn’t resonate as well as the previous two. It was still good, it was just missing something the other ones seemed to possess. One of my biggest complaints is lack of a solid conclusion. There are some answers, but not enough. Since this is the last book of the series, I shouldn’t feel like I waiting for another book. The intensity is there though.
Cia and Tomas go through a lot in this book. They have to make a lot of hard choices, and attempt to figure out who can be trusted. Some of their friends will surprise you (both good and bad). It seems like everything was moving along at a good pace. I wonder if the reason it doesn’t sit right with me is the ending. I’ve been wondering if Charbonneau created too many twists and surprises and wasn’t able to efficiently rein them in at the end.
Overall the series was really good and definitely worth the read. The flaws I found with this book, while annoying, wouldn’t cause me to reconsider recommending it.
Rating:
♥♥♥♥
For more reviews, click ,here!
391 pages
This one didn’t resonate as well as the previous two. It was still good, it was just missing something the other ones seemed to possess. One of my biggest complaints is lack of a solid conclusion. There are some answers, but not enough. Since this is the last book of the series, I shouldn’t feel like I waiting for another book. The intensity is there though.
Cia and Tomas go through a lot in this book. They have to make a lot of hard choices, and attempt to figure out who can be trusted. Some of their friends will surprise you (both good and bad). It seems like everything was moving along at a good pace. I wonder if the reason it doesn’t sit right with me is the ending. I’ve been wondering if Charbonneau created too many twists and surprises and wasn’t able to efficiently rein them in at the end.
Overall the series was really good and definitely worth the read. The flaws I found with this book, while annoying, wouldn’t cause me to reconsider recommending it.
Rating:
♥♥♥♥
For more reviews, click ,here!
adventurous
challenging
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated