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3.27 AVERAGE
3.27 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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:
Complicated
I really loved Dent's debut, so I had high hopes for this book. I am, unfortunately, extremely disappointed. Mara is such an annoying protagonist. She's selfish and illogical. I found the astrology themes throughout the book irritating because they were simultaneously too enforced and too flimsy. The side plot of saving the lido felt like an afterthought, as did Mara's relationship with her family and Charlie, but the romance elements weren't particularly strong either. Ash was an okay character, but I felt that the characterisation throughout the whole novel was very weak. Overall, not terribly impressed.
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
no sex?? and a really unlikeable main character for the first three quarters of the book. could have been higher if they at least included some sex but otherwise I did like the ending
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Setup was an incredibly frustrating novel. I hated the main character so much. And it’s not necessarily the book’s fault altogether, since my biggest pet peeve in people (and definitely main characters) are people who somehow believe there are signs that guide them and refuse to make actual decisions in life because they keep wanting to be guided by the universe. (If y’all have seen my review of Eat Pray Love, you know how much it infuriates me.) Ultimately, Mara is immature, selfish, and horrible. The fact that she’s supposed to be 31 made me want to scream and hurl the book. I don’t know that I’d have completely forgiven her if she was 18-20, but it would have made way more sense and I wouldn’t have been quite as frustrated with her immaturity. With any other kind of main character down on their luck and in need of a life redo, The Setup would have been super cute, but Mara’s stalker ish obsession with a random cellist and her insistence that it is her destiny made this book absolutely not my cup of tea. The rest of the romance was cute and I liked the other characters, so I just wish that Mara was either 10 years younger or she just had some other conflict or reason not to see what was right in front of her. Her being obsessed with her horoscope was simply not for me.
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
lighthearted
The last chapter saved this book. Having an unlikeable sole narrator was an immediate turn off but seeing her growth allowed for an easier read
funny
hopeful
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