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yvo_about_books's review against another edition
2.0
“It's important to remember that we all change each other's minds all the time. Any good story is a mind-altering substance.”
WARNING: it's another unpopular opinion review!!
I know that this isn't exactly my typical read, but I was pleasantly surprised by the first book back when I read it two years ago. I then discovered that the sequel fitted more than one 2024 challenge, and I decided to pick up A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor on a whim. I'm not sure if I was simply in the wrong reading mood or if this sequel is really quite different from the first book, but the fact is that I ended up struggling immensely with this story. I came close to DNFing more than once, and I kind of wish I had to be honest. Don't get me wrong, this series in general has a very interesting concept and the Carls were fascinating to read about. It was in the execution and plot structure where this story lost me... A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor uses a multiple POV structure on top of mixed media pieces inserted into the plot, and the result ended up being a bit of a muddled and chaotic mess. The plot jumps all over the place, and certain POVs are extremely tedious and slow down the pace a LOT. There was an overdose of focus on politics and social issues, and at times it felt more like propaganda rather than a YA sci-fi read. Seriously, I was bored to tears at times, and I caught myself skimreading more than once. The social media angle and virtual reality addiction was neat, but it kind of got buried under too many other elements to make a real impact. The plot itself was slowgoing with so much focus on the 'propaganda' part, and as a result the story dragged considerably and was simply way too overlong. I confess that I skimread most of the second half, and I kind of wish I had just DNFed it instead... There is no doubt that A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor and me REALLY didn't get along. That said, I seem to be in the minority, so it might just be my fickle reading mood acting up again.
Graphic: Death, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Body horror, Bullying, Classism, Xenophobia, Violence, Sexual content, Slavery, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Toxic friendship, Racism, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Fire/Fire injury, Cursing, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Addiction, Blood, Confinement, Grief, and Physical abuse
jerseynoonatic's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Fire/Fire injury, Kidnapping, Confinement, Gun violence, Addiction, Body horror, Cursing, and Vomit
cosmicwillow's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Kidnapping, Violence, and Death
gabngo's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Kidnapping, Police brutality, Racism, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail
karly_ackley's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Body horror and Addiction
Moderate: Dysphoria, Gore, Medical content, Murder, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Racism
tiny_artificer's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.5
Moderate: Vomit and Addiction
Minor: Gun violence and Racism
szote's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Moderate: Body horror, Addiction, and Violence
Minor: Kidnapping and Racism
saricostanzo's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Emotional abuse, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Forced institutionalization, Confinement, Cursing, Violence, Kidnapping, Blood, Classism, Gaslighting, Racism, Death, Gore, Grief, Mental illness, Murder, and Physical abuse
Minor: Suicide
dodecashedron's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
That was mostly because I didn't have the brain space for it. This is a story that always goes full speed ahead, never giving you time to breathe, which takes you in and drags you along hut also means you have to be available to deal with that.
I loved everyone in this book, but Maya is and always will be my love and is the reason I kept going.
I think this book proofs that scifi can take place in our time and our world. Things don't have to be alien to teach us something about ourselves. And things don't have to be exactly like us either.
I don't know if hopeful dystopian fiction was a genre that existed before Han wrote AART but with this book he certainly cemented it.
Graphic: Body horror and Kidnapping
Moderate: Addiction, Violence, and Medical trauma
Minor: Racism
arlingtonchamberofgay's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Confinement
Moderate: Violence, Racism, and Biphobia