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ricksilva's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This starts out as kind of a Rapture-scenario: People vanish in an instant. In this case, everyone over the age of 14. But as the story develops, it turns out that the effect is localized, not worldwide, and the town of (lovely) Perdido Beach, California, is cut off from the world by an impenetrable barrier. So, really, it's Under the Dome. With kids. With superpowers. Oh, and mutant animals, because why not?
The setup is perhaps a bit overcomplicated, but the author does a nice job of working through the implications of all of this stuff happening at once. There are bullies who take over, only to get displaced by yet-more-evil bullies (we know they're more evil because these are private school bullies from the local boarding school for entitled troublemakers). The bullies soon become full-on comic book villains, complete with imperilment of the heroes' friends and loved ones, scheming and infighting, and the occasional good guy proclaiming that "it's a trap!"
Reluctant hero Sam and smart-girl Astrid take a long time to decide to fight back against the bullies, and they really have a hard time getting anything resembling a win, although they do somewhat pull things together in the climactic bit. Nobody is really all that competent at what they are trying to do, which is part of the point, since they're all just a bunch of middle school kids.
Really, what saves the story are some of the minor characters who mostly stay out of the fighting, but instead work hard to make sure the younger kids are taken care of and that everyone gets fed. I'd read an entire novel about Albert, the kid who, in the midst of the vanishing of all adults and the apparent collapse of civilization, takes it upon himself to keep the town's McDonald's up and running. This guy was the real hero of this story. More Albert, please.
Which we might get, because the book ends with the initial battle over, but without all that much resolved.
The setup is perhaps a bit overcomplicated, but the author does a nice job of working through the implications of all of this stuff happening at once. There are bullies who take over, only to get displaced by yet-more-evil bullies (we know they're more evil because these are private school bullies from the local boarding school for entitled troublemakers). The bullies soon become full-on comic book villains, complete with imperilment of the heroes' friends and loved ones, scheming and infighting, and the occasional good guy proclaiming that "it's a trap!"
Reluctant hero Sam and smart-girl Astrid take a long time to decide to fight back against the bullies, and they really have a hard time getting anything resembling a win, although they do somewhat pull things together in the climactic bit. Nobody is really all that competent at what they are trying to do, which is part of the point, since they're all just a bunch of middle school kids.
Really, what saves the story are some of the minor characters who mostly stay out of the fighting, but instead work hard to make sure the younger kids are taken care of and that everyone gets fed. I'd read an entire novel about Albert, the kid who, in the midst of the vanishing of all adults and the apparent collapse of civilization, takes it upon himself to keep the town's McDonald's up and running. This guy was the real hero of this story. More Albert, please.
Which we might get, because the book ends with the initial battle over, but without all that much resolved.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Torture, Bullying, and Violence
Moderate: Eating disorder and Child death
loz1327's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Child death, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Murder, and Racial slurs
villainessreads's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
My biggest gripe is how the characters of Edilio and Pete were handled. Quinn is openly and blatantly racist against Edilio and he's not really punished for it. He's still a "good guy" at the end. There's no narrative pushback for calling Edilio a slur like there is for Pete's slurs. I kept reading, but it never stopped being uncomfortable. I don't know how the author is normally a great ally and failed to see how horrible it would be for a PoC to read how Edilio was treated by the narrative. He's practically their housekeeper: cleans up their mess but never gets any narrative credit for his contributions.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Eating disorder, Ableism, Body horror, Gore, Racism, Alcohol, Mass/school shootings, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Xenophobia, Torture, Racial slurs, Child death, Blood, Gun violence, and Death
b0redn0w's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I 100% repressed everything in this book when I first read it as a kid. Way darker than I remember. Still very enjoyable. The content POV switches with no warning are very jarring.
Overall a good start. Can’t wait to see what happens next.
Overall a good start. Can’t wait to see what happens next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Xenophobia, Violence, Eating disorder, Mental illness, and Sexual harassment
abyanismangil's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Child death, and Injury/Injury detail
0pen_b00ks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Child death, Bullying, Body shaming, Gun violence, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Vomit, Violence, Eating disorder, Body horror, Blood, Racism, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Gore, and Car accident
Moderate: Alcoholism and Animal death
iinavarro's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
This book surprised me in a lot of ways. I found it through someone’s offhand reference on Twitter; they compared it to Hunger Games and Divergent as a YA dystopian book series that has good potential for TV adaptation. In many ways, that’s true (I think it would make a great TV series), but in other ways it reminded me much more of a Stephen King, Lovecraftian horror novel. With some tightening up, I think the series has a lot of potential and I’m excited to read the next one!
Summary: One day, everyone over the age of 14 disappears suddenly. Set in a small beach town, down the coast from a nuclear power plant (uh-oh), the remaining kids work together to survive, navigate emerging power struggles, and make sense of their new world.
What I liked: Overall, the book is well paced and manages the number of characters expertly. There are upwards of 15 named characters and I was impressed that it was easy to differentiate and keep track of them. The description of action, strategy, and ultimately fighting, was also very well done. There were parts of the story that were so cinematic and engaging, I was reminded a lot of IT and Stranger Things. I love how realistic and dark the story gets; it’s a promising premise that I feel pays off with the characters making increasingly terrifying decisions.
What I wish was better: the character growth and complexity was fairly shallow but this may be the result of having so many of them. I felt like the main character, Sam, was a fairly straightforward, overpowered hero and the antagonist was blandly power hungry. Some of the supporting characters, particularly Lana, Jack, and Howard, were better fleshed out in terms of strengths and weaknesses. That said, I think the setting and circumstances give everyone a lot of room for growth and it’ll be interesting to see how they evolve in future books.
Possible triggers: Ableism, the R-word— this book was written in 2009 so the language surrounding neurodivergence and autism specifically is fairly dated. While it’s certainly believable that the characters would say and think the things they do, I still didn’t feel the autistic character (Little Pete) was portrayed very authentically. His description reminded me more of what people think autism is (doesn’t notice other people, doesn’t show affection, hyper focused on preferences) rather than how they actually behave and respond. I know the public’s understanding of autism has grown exponentially in the last decade, so I can certainly suspend my disbelief, but I do hope this character gets stronger development in future books.
Summary: One day, everyone over the age of 14 disappears suddenly. Set in a small beach town, down the coast from a nuclear power plant (uh-oh), the remaining kids work together to survive, navigate emerging power struggles, and make sense of their new world.
What I liked: Overall, the book is well paced and manages the number of characters expertly. There are upwards of 15 named characters and I was impressed that it was easy to differentiate and keep track of them. The description of action, strategy, and ultimately fighting, was also very well done. There were parts of the story that were so cinematic and engaging, I was reminded a lot of IT and Stranger Things. I love how realistic and dark the story gets; it’s a promising premise that I feel pays off with the characters making increasingly terrifying decisions.
What I wish was better: the character growth and complexity was fairly shallow but this may be the result of having so many of them. I felt like the main character, Sam, was a fairly straightforward, overpowered hero and the antagonist was blandly power hungry. Some of the supporting characters, particularly Lana, Jack, and Howard, were better fleshed out in terms of strengths and weaknesses. That said, I think the setting and circumstances give everyone a lot of room for growth and it’ll be interesting to see how they evolve in future books.
Possible triggers: Ableism, the R-word— this book was written in 2009 so the language surrounding neurodivergence and autism specifically is fairly dated. While it’s certainly believable that the characters would say and think the things they do, I still didn’t feel the autistic character (Little Pete) was portrayed very authentically. His description reminded me more of what people think autism is (doesn’t notice other people, doesn’t show affection, hyper focused on preferences) rather than how they actually behave and respond. I know the public’s understanding of autism has grown exponentially in the last decade, so I can certainly suspend my disbelief, but I do hope this character gets stronger development in future books.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Ableism, and Child death
dustspectre's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Ableism, and Child death
Moderate: Racism
thegr1mreader's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Racism, Child death, and Death
Moderate: Child death, Racism, Xenophobia, and Ableism
sophiejessica415's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Bullying, Child death, Death, and Ableism
Moderate: Eating disorder