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3.9 AVERAGE
3.9 AVERAGE
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Poorly written, simplistic, flat, unsubtle, and completely detached from reality. There were some compelling plot points, but Korn lacks the skill (and maybe understanding) to have developed them.
With Yours for the Taking, I found the writing weak but the concept wild enough to entertain. This book has the same weaknesses but with an uninspired premise.
Note: This is a sequel, not a companion novel. You may feel lost if you haven't read Yours for the Taking.
TW: child sexual abuse. In the beginning, a side character mentions their experience being abused as a child which serves as one of two incidents that drive a main character’s story forward. The side character never returns and it doesn’t come up again in a meaningful way .
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship
Minor: Child abuse, Deadnaming, Incest, Pedophilia, Transphobia, Forced institutionalization
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This book is frustratingly simple. The way technology and “hacking” is incorporated - fingers flying over keys, someone yelling “I’m in”. The way people with non-liberal political views are painted - dumb, lifeless, yielding, as if the only ones thinking and moving are the progressive leftists. The way the government are mustache twirling villains offing scientists and stifling climate science because…depopulation? Vibes? It doesn’t make sense and the author doesn’t try to make it make sense. The book tells a mildly dramatic story that is thankfully over quickly but leaves us with nothing, no message, nothing we can apply to the real climate change and political divides we deal with. It’s like the author took a quick glance at humanity and scribbled this out without thinking deeply about how people become what they are, end up doing what they do. It could have been good, but she just didn't try hard enough, I guess.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault
dark
sad
medium-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
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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:
No
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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
While The Shutouts is definitely a sequel, it deals with a completely different aspect of society as the Yours for the Taking. The storylines alternate between Kelly Green in 2041 and more familiar characters in 2081, living in a climate change dystopia. I enjoyed this book even more than Yours for the Taking. Living in a world destroyed by dangerous storms was interesting, and the story carried hope that was encouraging and inspiring.
adventurous
emotional
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:
Complicated
Adult dystopian fiction has a hard balance to strike these days — when the world is feeling particularly apocalyptic already, there needs to be a resonance and a message that goes beyond world-building just for world-building's sake. (Otherwise, I feel like I'm reading fanfiction about our imminent reality.) Gabrielle Korn nailed it, and managed to tiptoe the line between grave forewarning and hopefulness.
There were a few times that I felt like I was being bonked over the head a little too firmly with the "climate destruction is happening in front of our eyes" points via character monologues, but maybe that's just my own feeling because I already think about climate change all the time!!
There were a few times that I felt like I was being bonked over the head a little too firmly with the "climate destruction is happening in front of our eyes" points via character monologues, but maybe that's just my own feeling because I already think about climate change all the time!!
I was really excited to read this prequel/sequel after YOURS FOR THE TAKING but didn't find it as compelling. I think what I really liked about YFTT was the commentary on white feminism and that felt lacking in this novel. Glad to see more diversity in queer rep though.
adventurous
dark
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
sooo the entire time I was reading this I felt like I was missing something. (who is Jacqueline? what does she do? who is Shelby? who is July? what is Inside? why do I keep getting all of the characters confused?)
well apparently, this is a sequel when the synopsis just says "set in the same world of 'yours for the taking.'" labelling this as a sequel when it 100% is would be very helpful for the reader to not feel lost when reading and would therefore lead to better reviews/ratings as I'm not the only one who had this same issue.
this was a quick easy read and it was fine. I just felt like I was waiting the whole book for something to happen, even when I was 70% in. I liked the book and enjoyed reading it but it wasn't perfect.
pros:
- lgbt+ rep: bi, pan, non-binary, trans, lesbian (I really like how these sexualities were actually labeled in the book to provide representation and we got to see what sex is like for each of these characters)
- realistic view on soon-to-come climate change and politics
- lots of women main characters
cons:
- reads like (cringe, bad) YA
- this book is not marketed as a sequel and should be if that is relevant to the story!!
things that bothered me:
- all the characters talk like they just discovered the F word for the first time
- the author loves to show you something but then tell you the obvious right after, just to make sure that you got what she was trying to say (even though it was obvious)
- the decisions the characters make do not really make any sense
- the part where a character breaks their leg and can walk on it again within A MONTH. I guess it was a tiny leg break
- woman forces herself to be in a poly relationship even when she doesn't want to be and has to pretend to be happy and gaslight herself then writes to her daughter "I wish you could find a love like this" lol sis what???? (again, the characters make decisions that don't really make sense)
this quote took me out: "the sunlight was turning Max's sweat into golden nectar as it dripped down the sides of their face. Camilla wanted to become a hummingbird and sip it." lmaoooooooo there's actually a lot of quotes in this book that turn a beautiful moment gross, like comparing the moon to a toenail clipping??? bye
I also felt like there was so much left to be wrapped up at the end that there could easily be a third book.
well apparently, this is a sequel when the synopsis just says "set in the same world of 'yours for the taking.'" labelling this as a sequel when it 100% is would be very helpful for the reader to not feel lost when reading and would therefore lead to better reviews/ratings as I'm not the only one who had this same issue.
this was a quick easy read and it was fine. I just felt like I was waiting the whole book for something to happen, even when I was 70% in. I liked the book and enjoyed reading it but it wasn't perfect.
pros:
- lgbt+ rep: bi, pan, non-binary, trans, lesbian (I really like how these sexualities were actually labeled in the book to provide representation and we got to see what sex is like for each of these characters)
- realistic view on soon-to-come climate change and politics
- lots of women main characters
cons:
- reads like (cringe, bad) YA
- this book is not marketed as a sequel and should be if that is relevant to the story!!
things that bothered me:
- all the characters talk like they just discovered the F word for the first time
- the author loves to show you something but then tell you the obvious right after, just to make sure that you got what she was trying to say (even though it was obvious)
- the decisions the characters make do not really make any sense
- the part where a character breaks their leg and can walk on it again within A MONTH. I guess it was a tiny leg break
- woman forces herself to be in a poly relationship even when she doesn't want to be and has to pretend to be happy and gaslight herself then writes to her daughter "I wish you could find a love like this" lol sis what???? (again, the characters make decisions that don't really make sense)
this quote took me out: "the sunlight was turning Max's sweat into golden nectar as it dripped down the sides of their face. Camilla wanted to become a hummingbird and sip it." lmaoooooooo there's actually a lot of quotes in this book that turn a beautiful moment gross, like comparing the moon to a toenail clipping??? bye
I also felt like there was so much left to be wrapped up at the end that there could easily be a third book.