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charsuss7's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
some parts of this feel very realistic. others…hm.
hanbart19's review against another edition
1.0
*CONTAINS SPOILERS*
When I first started this book, I was intrigued by the premise--a post-apocalyptic world covered in water, where the dead can be revived for 24 hours on the mysterious island Palindromena. A girl determined to find answers, who wants to know the truth about her parents' deaths.
Tempest Alerin chooses to revive her sister, Elysea, who she believes is responsible for their parents' deaths several years before. They embark on a journey to find their parents (who may not be dead after all), and are joined by Lor, an employee of the island with a dark past.
I wish I could say I enjoyed it.
It required a lot of suspension of belief, especially as a bio student. They can revive the dead, but only drowning victims? Other diseases (like 'crystal lung') are completely incurable. The revived are linked to a living person, a Warden, through bracelets connected to their heartbeats. Sure. Okay.
The characters themselves are what bothered me most, though. Tempest was insufferable. Her whole personality was being angry and full of grief, which may be understandable given her whole family is dead, but it got grating after a while. Surprise--they're not actually dead! So lighten up. Elysea didn't have much of a personality besides being a dancer. Lor was just weird. 90% of his chapters was self-loathing, and the other 10% was him drooling over how hot Tempest was, even though they were in a life-or-death situation. Read the room, bud.
The plot was supposed to be built on tension: a countdown heads each chapter, the clock ticking away to Elysea's second (and final) death. They had to be back on Palindromena before her 24 hours ran out, or else they would get caught (and someone--either Ely or Lor--would die). Yet, there wasn't a sense of urgency to any of their actions.
That said, time was a greater villain than anyone else in the novel. The Remorans, a band of pirates that boarded their boat, were nothing more than a nuisance. I expected more from a group that was rumored to be ruthless and cannibalistic. Nessandra, the leader at Palindromena, was a stronger contender: her unethical experiments on people, both living and dead, were horrific. The MCs' actions were a direct threat to her research, which she was supposedly very protective of, but she was totally apathetic when she found out Elysea had escaped. She even tried to help them save her son's life.
Ah, yes. Lor's tragic ending. What was the point of the last fifty pages if their rescue plan was doomed to fail? I found myself hoping he wouldn't survive, because it would have cheapened his sacrifice, not that I was overly impressed or surprised by it to begin with. Even still, it feels like a frustrating loose end, since his body can be preserved for years. Perhaps the author was laying grounds for a sequel..which I won't be reading.
Oh, well. Should've DNFed.
When I first started this book, I was intrigued by the premise--a post-apocalyptic world covered in water, where the dead can be revived for 24 hours on the mysterious island Palindromena. A girl determined to find answers, who wants to know the truth about her parents' deaths.
Tempest Alerin chooses to revive her sister, Elysea, who she believes is responsible for their parents' deaths several years before. They embark on a journey to find their parents (who may not be dead after all), and are joined by Lor, an employee of the island with a dark past.
I wish I could say I enjoyed it.
It required a lot of suspension of belief, especially as a bio student. They can revive the dead, but only drowning victims? Other diseases (like 'crystal lung') are completely incurable. The revived are linked to a living person, a Warden, through bracelets connected to their heartbeats. Sure. Okay.
The characters themselves are what bothered me most, though. Tempest was insufferable. Her whole personality was being angry and full of grief, which may be understandable given her whole family is dead, but it got grating after a while. Surprise--they're not actually dead! So lighten up. Elysea didn't have much of a personality besides being a dancer. Lor was just weird. 90% of his chapters was self-loathing, and the other 10% was him drooling over how hot Tempest was, even though they were in a life-or-death situation. Read the room, bud.
The plot was supposed to be built on tension: a countdown heads each chapter, the clock ticking away to Elysea's second (and final) death. They had to be back on Palindromena before her 24 hours ran out, or else they would get caught (and someone--either Ely or Lor--would die). Yet, there wasn't a sense of urgency to any of their actions.
That said, time was a greater villain than anyone else in the novel. The Remorans, a band of pirates that boarded their boat, were nothing more than a nuisance. I expected more from a group that was rumored to be ruthless and cannibalistic. Nessandra, the leader at Palindromena, was a stronger contender: her unethical experiments on people, both living and dead, were horrific. The MCs' actions were a direct threat to her research, which she was supposedly very protective of, but she was totally apathetic when she found out Elysea had escaped. She even tried to help them save her son's life.
Ah, yes. Lor's tragic ending. What was the point of the last fifty pages if their rescue plan was doomed to fail? I found myself hoping he wouldn't survive, because it would have cheapened his sacrifice, not that I was overly impressed or surprised by it to begin with. Even still, it feels like a frustrating loose end, since his body can be preserved for years. Perhaps the author was laying grounds for a sequel..which I won't be reading.
Oh, well. Should've DNFed.
amy_stoffels18's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
A totally unique world where those that have drowned can be brought back to life for a day. The plot keeps you on your toes, and the cover is stunning! It’s intricate and there’s a mystery to unravel, making it gripping, and at times, quite dark.
amybraunauthor's review against another edition
5.0
Hopefully my review be coherent because this story has me SHOOK. I love it, and it broke me. Where do I begin?
The concept is so imaginative and exciting. I was hooked from the first line, and the beautiful writing completely enraptured me.
The characters are complex. Tempest was hard to be close to, but the more I think on her, the more I understand her actions. Her sister is the sweetest, and Lor. LOR. That boy completely stole my heart to the last. They are all broken and grieving and healing and I never stopped rooting for them.
And this book is heavy. It’s deep and tragic and threw me in a huge book hangover. But I cared for it. It made me think, made me feel, carried an important message. If you’re looking for a story to completely snare you emotions, this is it. A must read!
The concept is so imaginative and exciting. I was hooked from the first line, and the beautiful writing completely enraptured me.
The characters are complex. Tempest was hard to be close to, but the more I think on her, the more I understand her actions. Her sister is the sweetest, and Lor. LOR. That boy completely stole my heart to the last. They are all broken and grieving and healing and I never stopped rooting for them.
And this book is heavy. It’s deep and tragic and threw me in a huge book hangover. But I cared for it. It made me think, made me feel, carried an important message. If you’re looking for a story to completely snare you emotions, this is it. A must read!
luciearan's review
3.0
Hodnocení: 3,5/5 ✩
Hodnocení YA titulů je pro mě občas tak trochu oříškem. Nejinak je tomu u této knihy. Ne snad, že by se mi nelíbila, je to taková milá oddechovka. Na druhou stranu, i když v pozadí příběhu poukazuje na současné i možné následné globální problémy, stále zůstává hodně na povrchu. Nejinak je pak na tom celkový děj, zápletka i vztahy. Kniha se sice čte dobře, děj je plynulý a ke konci příběh ještě nabírá spád. Přijde mi ale, že celkový potenciál a myšlenka knihy nejsou příliš využity. Od YA bych čekala hlubší náhled do celé problematiky. Kniha by, dle mého, mohla zaujmout hlavně čtenáře ve věku spodní cílové hranice tohoto žánru, těm starším pravděpodobně nebude mít, moc co nabídnout.
Hodnocení YA titulů je pro mě občas tak trochu oříškem. Nejinak je tomu u této knihy. Ne snad, že by se mi nelíbila, je to taková milá oddechovka. Na druhou stranu, i když v pozadí příběhu poukazuje na současné i možné následné globální problémy, stále zůstává hodně na povrchu. Nejinak je pak na tom celkový děj, zápletka i vztahy. Kniha se sice čte dobře, děj je plynulý a ke konci příběh ještě nabírá spád. Přijde mi ale, že celkový potenciál a myšlenka knihy nejsou příliš využity. Od YA bych čekala hlubší náhled do celé problematiky. Kniha by, dle mého, mohla zaujmout hlavně čtenáře ve věku spodní cílové hranice tohoto žánru, těm starším pravděpodobně nebude mít, moc co nabídnout.
lillanaa's review against another edition
3.0
This book was received as an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I went into this not really sure what exactly it was going to be. There's a lot of interesting teen media out there, but all of it generally feels very... Samey. It seems like everything's "chosen one" media, but this subverts that beautifully. Tempest and Elysea are both just... Teenagers. Trying their best. And while they're very good at what they do, and incredibly smart, they're not really special, which I'm oddly happy about.
This book, however, was... Interesting to me. It didn't pull punches, and the characters felt like actual characters. I wouldn't say I was a fan of everything that happened, there were a lot of parts that heavily dragged and things that seemed thrown in just because the writer thought it would be coll but never actually went anywhere.
All in all, not what I thought it would be. The writing was fine, but it was too ambitious. Things happened but then they... Didn't. If you like teen books, you'll probably like this. There was a bit of romance, but it felt forced, just like pretty well every other book of the genre.
I went into this not really sure what exactly it was going to be. There's a lot of interesting teen media out there, but all of it generally feels very... Samey. It seems like everything's "chosen one" media, but this subverts that beautifully. Tempest and Elysea are both just... Teenagers. Trying their best. And while they're very good at what they do, and incredibly smart, they're not really special, which I'm oddly happy about.
This book, however, was... Interesting to me. It didn't pull punches, and the characters felt like actual characters.
Spoiler
At first I thought Nessandra was going to be more of a "villain" type character than she turned out to be, but her impact was larger than expected as well.All in all, not what I thought it would be. The writing was fine, but it was too ambitious. Things happened but then they... Didn't. If you like teen books, you'll probably like this. There was a bit of romance, but it felt forced, just like pretty well every other book of the genre.
birdloveranne's review against another edition
4.0
Young adult angst aplenty, but I liked it well enough.
thebookishunicorn's review against another edition
4.0
Actual rating 3.5 stars
"To survive these twenty-four hours, I needed to become the storm, not succumb to it."
"To survive these twenty-four hours, I needed to become the storm, not succumb to it."
esshgee's review against another edition
3.0
Enjoyed the water based life in the Equinox, the concept behind Palindromena, and the travelling between places. The time countdown throughout the book added to the drama. But I felt the ending came around a bit quickly, not sure if it was to set up for a sequel?