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3.45 AVERAGE
3.45 AVERAGE
trigger warning
hunting humans, being hunted, suicide, bullying, being abandoned by your mother, racism
Greer, a scholarship pupil at an old, prestigous school, doesn't really get on with her posh classmates - which is why the invitation for a long weekend at an estate comes as a surprise. Hoping to make friends she accepts, not knowing that she's going to be the entertainment.
From the beginning, it's quite clear that you can't really trust anybody. Everything, every gesture, every word, every look, is done on purpose, and very ambivalent. You've got nothing concrete because they've been doing this for quite some time and perfected their technique.
Things that might look as a nice touch from far away are revealed to be parts of a very controlled environment.
It all leads up to the revelation that humans are going to be hunted, and it's not just a bunch of psychotic teenagers, but a whole cult behind that.
No surprises there. You know what's going to happen, and you hope that the protagonist will survive and grow. Make friends, if possible.
The weirdness of being somewhere you've never been before, of not knowing the customs despite being in the country you grew up in, is taken to the extremes and works quite well, apart from some casual racism that really threw me off. In the narration, not uttered by one of the fictional assholes.
Apart from that, quick and easy read, which I managed despite the looming migraine.
Greer, a scholarship pupil at an old, prestigous school, doesn't really get on with her posh classmates - which is why the invitation for a long weekend at an estate comes as a surprise. Hoping to make friends she accepts, not knowing that she's going to be the entertainment.
From the beginning, it's quite clear that you can't really trust anybody. Everything, every gesture, every word, every look, is done on purpose, and very ambivalent. You've got nothing concrete because they've been doing this for quite some time and perfected their technique.
Things that might look as a nice touch from far away are revealed to be parts of a very controlled environment.
It all leads up to the revelation that
No surprises there. You know what's going to happen, and you hope that the protagonist will survive and grow. Make friends, if possible.
The weirdness of being somewhere you've never been before, of not knowing the customs despite being in the country you grew up in, is taken to the extremes and works quite well, apart from some casual racism that really threw me off. In the narration, not uttered by one of the fictional assholes.
Apart from that, quick and easy read, which I managed despite the looming migraine.
I went into this book not sure what to expect.
What I got was a fast-paced, tightly-plotted novel with ~real~ villains and commentary on modern day Britain.
Greer was a great heroine. She was realistic-achingly so-especially as she laments how badly she wants to fit in at STAGS. Her relationship with her Dad was so important to her character; even if her constant film references got grating after a while.
Nel and Shafeen were great supporting characters. Both had great development and I found myself rooting for them individually. I did have a particular soft spot for Nel and Greer's new found friendship.
Onto the Medievals. I loved Henry--he was both parts charming and deadly. The others? As generic as anything. You could change their names at any point and it wouldn't make a difference.
Though the best part of the book was huntin, shootin & fishin. The slowing building tension that things weren't quite right. How Nel was hunted by dogs, cornered, Shafeen shot in broad daylight, and Greer hunted in the lake... Brilliant.
While the reason for hunting the trio was basic (ooh they're not like us) I enjoyed the concept of the school being a cult.
I also liked they didn't hide away from the bullying and racism-in Shafeen's case- and put it to the fore front of the narrative. Even though Nel was rich-and more medieval-she was still ridiculed as she was from the 'wrong sort' of money. Shafeen is racially abused-and almost killed- because of his skin colour. It shows that while many believe Britain is very inclusive there is still deep rooted problems happening.
On another thread, Henry was a great villain. While he was twisted, he truly believed he was doing the greater good, which I think makes for a more complex villain. He made ~some~ good points about social media and tech today, but obviously went wayyy too far.
I think the ending was both great and not. I liked our heroes covering everything up, and making the school more inclusive so there would be no more Medievals.
It did sort of cheapen the ending that the headmaster was head of the cult, and the games were still continuing.
I know this was for the purpose of a sequel, but I liked this as a stand alone, and I will not be reading the sequel, as much as I enjoyed this.
What I got was a fast-paced, tightly-plotted novel with ~real~ villains and commentary on modern day Britain.
Greer was a great heroine. She was realistic-achingly so-especially as she laments how badly she wants to fit in at STAGS. Her relationship with her Dad was so important to her character; even if her constant film references got grating after a while.
Nel and Shafeen were great supporting characters. Both had great development and I found myself rooting for them individually. I did have a particular soft spot for Nel and Greer's new found friendship.
Onto the Medievals. I loved Henry--he was both parts charming and deadly. The others? As generic as anything. You could change their names at any point and it wouldn't make a difference.
Though the best part of the book was huntin, shootin & fishin. The slowing building tension that things weren't quite right. How Nel was hunted by dogs, cornered, Shafeen shot in broad daylight, and Greer hunted in the lake... Brilliant.
While the reason for hunting the trio was basic (ooh they're not like us) I enjoyed the concept of the school being a cult.
I also liked they didn't hide away from the bullying and racism-in Shafeen's case- and put it to the fore front of the narrative. Even though Nel was rich-and more medieval-she was still ridiculed as she was from the 'wrong sort' of money. Shafeen is racially abused-and almost killed- because of his skin colour. It shows that while many believe Britain is very inclusive there is still deep rooted problems happening.
On another thread, Henry was a great villain. While he was twisted, he truly believed he was doing the greater good, which I think makes for a more complex villain. He made ~some~ good points about social media and tech today, but obviously went wayyy too far.
I think the ending was both great and not. I liked our heroes covering everything up, and making the school more inclusive so there would be no more Medievals.
It did sort of cheapen the ending that the headmaster was head of the cult, and the games were still continuing.
I know this was for the purpose of a sequel, but I liked this as a stand alone, and I will not be reading the sequel, as much as I enjoyed this.
4.5 actual
I LOVED THAT OMG. ALSO I NEED A SEQUEL. OR A MOVIE. ONE OF THE TWO.
I LOVED THAT OMG. ALSO I NEED A SEQUEL. OR A MOVIE. ONE OF THE TWO.
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This almost got a 2-star review but got upgraded to 3 solely because of the last three pages which kind of redeem the rest. S.T.A.G.S. proved to be an extremely frustrating experience for me because the book's plot and premise are incredibly clever, yet it repeatedly falls short. I really wanted to sympathize with Greer, the protagonist, but on some occasions she's so insufferably naive and foolish that it turned out to be pretty hard. Many strands of the plot are rushed and not presented subtly enough to elicit a real emotion, whether anguish or romantic excitement, on my part.
All in all, a pleasing read. Not nearly as thrilling as it ought to (and could) be, though.
All in all, a pleasing read. Not nearly as thrilling as it ought to (and could) be, though.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Really loved the book but the big reveal at the end turned out to be different than I expected. Still enjoyed it and I'm looking forward to the sequel!
really struggled with the writing, found it far too hard to read
https://superfluousreading.wordpress.com/2019/06/14/s-t-a-g-s-s-t-a-g-s-1-by-m-a-bennett/
The first sentence of S.T.A.G.S. captures your attention, drawing you in instantly. The rest of the book, however… Leaves a lot to be desired.
After the bombshell that is ‘I think I might be a murderer’ Bennett leaves the reader in what is supposed to be suspense. The idea is to have you hanging off the edge of your seat dying to know just what happened to make the main character open with such a line. The story, however, does not deliver. The majority of S.T.A.G.S. is spent describing the painfully posh boarding school and cast of characters who refer to themselves as the Medievals. There’s lots of time spent killing animals and namedropping films, but not a whole lot spent on actually thrilling you. Greer – the grating film buff main character – reminds you, every now and then, that someone died but then quickly goes back to comparing the wallpaper to that in Pride and Prejudice, and you don’t find out just what happened at Longcross Hall until the book is mostly over. By which point it’s too little too late and all your excitement has long since gone.
The meandering plot isn’t helped by the writing, either, which I can only describe as odd. Each chapter starts with a single sentence paragraph, making everything feel a bit unpolished and essay like. It’s almost as if each single line is acting as an introduction to the chapter, outlining what will be discussed in the following pages. And then there are all the film references that will mean nothing to you unless you’ve seen them all but are guaranteed to be annoying either way.
Add to this a cast of characters you can’t really connect too and S.T.A.G.S. shapes up to be quite a disappointing read. You never really get to know anyone other than Greer, but even she isn’t fully fleshed out and easy to understand or relate to. All the information is there – what she looks like, the fact that she’s a film fanatic, she lives with her dad – but the emotions are just… not there. The highlights of the book are, without a doubt, Shafeen and Nel, but again – they’re written in a way that makes connecting to them difficult as they’re so flat and clearly stuck on the page. If the characters had jumped out at me more, I think I would have enjoyed this a lot more.
The epilogue, however, does improve things. After the final few chapters where there’s talk of change and wanting to move on only no real action to do so from Greer, the epilogue delivers a delicious twist that leaves the ending open. For your own interpretation and perhaps a sequel, though I don’t think the story warrants one. Just when you think you have everyone figured out a spanner is thrown in the works and you close the book with even more questions. A clever move by Bennett, as it lifts the entire book.
Overall though, I can’t help but feel deceived and let down by S.T.A.G.S. What I expected to be a grisly, bloody thriller really was anything but. Not necessarily a bad read, just not what it promised.
After the bombshell that is ‘I think I might be a murderer’ Bennett leaves the reader in what is supposed to be suspense. The idea is to have you hanging off the edge of your seat dying to know just what happened to make the main character open with such a line. The story, however, does not deliver. The majority of S.T.A.G.S. is spent describing the painfully posh boarding school and cast of characters who refer to themselves as the Medievals. There’s lots of time spent killing animals and namedropping films, but not a whole lot spent on actually thrilling you. Greer – the grating film buff main character – reminds you, every now and then, that someone died but then quickly goes back to comparing the wallpaper to that in Pride and Prejudice, and you don’t find out just what happened at Longcross Hall until the book is mostly over. By which point it’s too little too late and all your excitement has long since gone.
The meandering plot isn’t helped by the writing, either, which I can only describe as odd. Each chapter starts with a single sentence paragraph, making everything feel a bit unpolished and essay like. It’s almost as if each single line is acting as an introduction to the chapter, outlining what will be discussed in the following pages. And then there are all the film references that will mean nothing to you unless you’ve seen them all but are guaranteed to be annoying either way.
Add to this a cast of characters you can’t really connect too and S.T.A.G.S. shapes up to be quite a disappointing read. You never really get to know anyone other than Greer, but even she isn’t fully fleshed out and easy to understand or relate to. All the information is there – what she looks like, the fact that she’s a film fanatic, she lives with her dad – but the emotions are just… not there. The highlights of the book are, without a doubt, Shafeen and Nel, but again – they’re written in a way that makes connecting to them difficult as they’re so flat and clearly stuck on the page. If the characters had jumped out at me more, I think I would have enjoyed this a lot more.
The epilogue, however, does improve things. After the final few chapters where there’s talk of change and wanting to move on only no real action to do so from Greer, the epilogue delivers a delicious twist that leaves the ending open. For your own interpretation and perhaps a sequel, though I don’t think the story warrants one. Just when you think you have everyone figured out a spanner is thrown in the works and you close the book with even more questions. A clever move by Bennett, as it lifts the entire book.
Overall though, I can’t help but feel deceived and let down by S.T.A.G.S. What I expected to be a grisly, bloody thriller really was anything but. Not necessarily a bad read, just not what it promised.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Basically, I wasn’t keen on the snobby people being racist. I felt it could’ve been left out. You can be snobby and not racist. It just seemed really weird, idk? Maybe out of place? I didn’t feel it was necessary, anyway. I was not comfortable with those parts, the way poc were spoken about just didn’t sit right with me. Maybe that’s my own interpretation.
However, a tense and surprising read. I did enjoy it. It was very YA, but good to be back in a boarding school setting. Not been there since reading a Jacqueline Wilson book. Very eerie at times. Held your interest. My favourite parts were film references. They made me chuckle.
However, a tense and surprising read. I did enjoy it. It was very YA, but good to be back in a boarding school setting. Not been there since reading a Jacqueline Wilson book. Very eerie at times. Held your interest. My favourite parts were film references. They made me chuckle.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide, Blood, Murder