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3.42 AVERAGE
3.42 AVERAGE
**** I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review ****
Time of death: 10:22PM - 72%
First of all, this is the most gorgeous cover I've seen in a while. It really makes you want to know what it's all about.
I tried. I really did. The story started off strong for me. I loved Tenley and was intrigued by what was happening to her and why she was locked up. But then terms are being thrown at me with zero explanation. It seemed like the author thought I was IN the book and already knew the meaning of things. The world-building is confusing and not all that clear. Is this futuristic? Is this present day with minor changes? Honestly, I still don't know.
Cell phones are attached to ears? Gas is obsolete, replaced by energy charges? I guess. But you don't learn these things until later on in the story, and they're mentioned almost like an afterthought. "Oh, by the way, forgot to mention..."
So, anyway, Tenley is in an asylum. She was sent by her parents in order to choose her Everlife realm - Myriad or Troika. They are complete opposites and basically always at war; they are always working to get important people to commit to their side. Her parents want her to choose their realm, Myriad. She can't decide. Prynne Asylum is meant to be used to torture and force the choices on undecided children. Yes, that's right. The parents sign them up for this... As crazy as it sounds, this was my favorite part of the book. It's a shame it was merely a setup for the rest of this story. It's here we meet Archer and Killian. Both were sent from their respective realms to woo Tenley to their side.
I assumed this would be a love triangle. Nope. I was supposed to be all Swoony Pants over the "Irish" lad, Killian. But there's literally NOTHING exciting/special/standout about him. His character is very dull. He, IMO, lacks any personality. But Tenley feels connected, never felt this way about anyone, knows he feels it, too, BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH. On the other hand, ARCHER! So not dull. And his friends truly made the story more enjoyable. Had it been MY choice - Troika all the way.
Which brings me to my biggest issue with this book. Her choice. Well, her lack of a choice. On and on and on she goes. Wasting time. She's supposed to be this hugely important person, and can't even make a decision which shouldn't be too hard. It should be something you know and feel. Then, every time she was close to choosing, something ridiculous would happen, and again it's on the backburner. And Tenley? Started out strong and went downhill FAST. Her inner dialogue was not only annoying, but changed as the story progressed. "Bitch gonna get cut!" No. Stop it. You're not really that much of a bad ass, Indecisive Nancy.
The story just keeps repeating over and over. I'm sure there's a buildup to something. This is a series after all. But I don't want to spend anymore time finding out what it is. In the end, there probably won't be just two realms. There will be a happy medium, and the world will be at peace. YAY! But right now, I'm not sure if I plan to continue the story to find out. Maybe someday I'll go back to this and see if I'm right. For now, I'll pass.
Time of death: 10:22PM - 72%
First of all, this is the most gorgeous cover I've seen in a while. It really makes you want to know what it's all about.
I tried. I really did. The story started off strong for me. I loved Tenley and was intrigued by what was happening to her and why she was locked up. But then terms are being thrown at me with zero explanation. It seemed like the author thought I was IN the book and already knew the meaning of things. The world-building is confusing and not all that clear. Is this futuristic? Is this present day with minor changes? Honestly, I still don't know.
Cell phones are attached to ears? Gas is obsolete, replaced by energy charges? I guess. But you don't learn these things until later on in the story, and they're mentioned almost like an afterthought. "Oh, by the way, forgot to mention..."
So, anyway, Tenley is in an asylum. She was sent by her parents in order to choose her Everlife realm - Myriad or Troika. They are complete opposites and basically always at war; they are always working to get important people to commit to their side. Her parents want her to choose their realm, Myriad. She can't decide. Prynne Asylum is meant to be used to torture and force the choices on undecided children. Yes, that's right. The parents sign them up for this... As crazy as it sounds, this was my favorite part of the book. It's a shame it was merely a setup for the rest of this story. It's here we meet Archer and Killian. Both were sent from their respective realms to woo Tenley to their side.
I assumed this would be a love triangle. Nope. I was supposed to be all Swoony Pants over the "Irish" lad, Killian. But there's literally NOTHING exciting/special/standout about him. His character is very dull. He, IMO, lacks any personality. But Tenley feels connected, never felt this way about anyone, knows he feels it, too, BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH. On the other hand, ARCHER! So not dull. And his friends truly made the story more enjoyable. Had it been MY choice - Troika all the way.
Which brings me to my biggest issue with this book. Her choice. Well, her lack of a choice. On and on and on she goes. Wasting time. She's supposed to be this hugely important person, and can't even make a decision which shouldn't be too hard. It should be something you know and feel. Then, every time she was close to choosing, something ridiculous would happen, and again it's on the backburner. And Tenley? Started out strong and went downhill FAST. Her inner dialogue was not only annoying, but changed as the story progressed. "Bitch gonna get cut!" No. Stop it. You're not really that much of a bad ass, Indecisive Nancy.
The story just keeps repeating over and over. I'm sure there's a buildup to something. This is a series after all. But I don't want to spend anymore time finding out what it is. In the end, there probably won't be just two realms. There will be a happy medium, and the world will be at peace. YAY! But right now, I'm not sure if I plan to continue the story to find out. Maybe someday I'll go back to this and see if I'm right. For now, I'll pass.
It really took me some time to get into this book, but I'm so glad I stuck it out and finished it.
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
16 year old me would be traumatised. Overall, it was too dramatic for me. Too much happened too quick and there were some real cliches haha. Ending was not bad though, there was some real character development in the last five chapters.
I gave it 3.5 stars
There were a few things that I didn't love, but I enjoyed FIRSTLIFE and plan to read more.
Tenley is extremely strong willed and stubborn. I personally thought her decision was obvious early on, yet she was still unwilling to choose a side—even when it cost lives— until it was almost too late. She just didn't want to pull the trigger JUST IN CASE she was wrong or in case her decision was too influenced by others. Unfortunately the way she argues with herself was one of the things I didn't totally love about FIRSTLIFE. It was annoying and took up a lot of the book. On another note, I thought she grew a lot from the beginning of the book and I loved the way she was willing to help others even at her own expense. Lets talk about her parents for a second. I wanted to jump into the book and strangle Ten's parents. Her father is just a grade A douche, but her mom seems to really love her and yet she let her be tortured. I could never imagine a mother letting her child go through what Tenley was put through with her parents blessing.
The romance was a bit blah for me. There is a love triangle involved in FIRSTLIFE, but thankfully one of the prospects becomes more of a big brother/best friend pretty early on which makes it a little more bearable. I was looking for more romance out of the other prospect though. Ten can't really trust him because she knows he wants her to join his 'side', but I still wanted more out of it.
The world is by far my favorite thing about FIRSTLIFE. There is so much involved and the author did a great job of bringing it to life for me. There is a lot of action and danger involved in Ten's journey to choose a side. You never knew what would be thrown at her and her allies and it made for some great suspense. I am very interested in seeing what will happen next.
* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
There were a few things that I didn't love, but I enjoyed FIRSTLIFE and plan to read more.
Tenley is extremely strong willed and stubborn. I personally thought her decision was obvious early on, yet she was still unwilling to choose a side—even when it cost lives— until it was almost too late. She just didn't want to pull the trigger JUST IN CASE she was wrong or in case her decision was too influenced by others. Unfortunately the way she argues with herself was one of the things I didn't totally love about FIRSTLIFE. It was annoying and took up a lot of the book. On another note, I thought she grew a lot from the beginning of the book and I loved the way she was willing to help others even at her own expense. Lets talk about her parents for a second. I wanted to jump into the book and strangle Ten's parents. Her father is just a grade A douche, but her mom seems to really love her and yet she let her be tortured. I could never imagine a mother letting her child go through what Tenley was put through with her parents blessing.
The romance was a bit blah for me. There is a love triangle involved in FIRSTLIFE, but thankfully one of the prospects becomes more of a big brother/best friend pretty early on which makes it a little more bearable. I was looking for more romance out of the other prospect though. Ten can't really trust him because she knows he wants her to join his 'side', but I still wanted more out of it.
The world is by far my favorite thing about FIRSTLIFE. There is so much involved and the author did a great job of bringing it to life for me. There is a lot of action and danger involved in Ten's journey to choose a side. You never knew what would be thrown at her and her allies and it made for some great suspense. I am very interested in seeing what will happen next.
* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Ik heb dit boek gelezen omdat een vriendin mij dit aanraadde.. maar ik kwam niet verder dan blz 160.
Om te beginnen , begint het verschrikkelijk verwarrend, random e-mails en daarna lees je vanuit de ogen van de hoofdrolspeelster.
Er zitten her en der grove grappen tussen maar voor mij werden ze steeds flauwer. Ik ga expres dingen niet quoten of copy pasten zodat iemand dit zelf kan lezen.
Verder werd het mij echt teveel toen er stukken kwamen over sex met patienten, verkrachtingen of zelfs seksuele intimidatie toespelingen. Het kan aan mij liggen maar voor mij is dat altijd zo onnodig. Manier van schrijven is leuk maar het boek is te grof voor mij. Om die reden ben ik gestopt met lezen.
Om te beginnen , begint het verschrikkelijk verwarrend, random e-mails en daarna lees je vanuit de ogen van de hoofdrolspeelster.
Er zitten her en der grove grappen tussen maar voor mij werden ze steeds flauwer. Ik ga expres dingen niet quoten of copy pasten zodat iemand dit zelf kan lezen.
Verder werd het mij echt teveel toen er stukken kwamen over sex met patienten, verkrachtingen of zelfs seksuele intimidatie toespelingen. Het kan aan mij liggen maar voor mij is dat altijd zo onnodig. Manier van schrijven is leuk maar het boek is te grof voor mij. Om die reden ben ik gestopt met lezen.
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
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