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3.15 AVERAGE
3.15 AVERAGE
I'm so confused on how to rate this???
Was this an objectively GOOD book? Not exactly.
Would I recommend this book to all of my friends? Probably not.
Is it one of my top picks for books I've read? Nah.
...But did I enjoy EVERY SECOND of reading it, despite the things that didn't make sense?
You better believe I did!
It may not be a literary classic in the making, but this was so much FUN. I was fully engaged & invested the whole time. Urban fantasy with a little creep factor. Quick & quirky. Lots of fun!
Was this an objectively GOOD book? Not exactly.
Would I recommend this book to all of my friends? Probably not.
Is it one of my top picks for books I've read? Nah.
...But did I enjoy EVERY SECOND of reading it, despite the things that didn't make sense?
You better believe I did!
It may not be a literary classic in the making, but this was so much FUN. I was fully engaged & invested the whole time. Urban fantasy with a little creep factor. Quick & quirky. Lots of fun!
Despite the high reviews for this one, I struggled through it and kept hoping for something to capture my attention. That didn't happen and I was left frustrated at the slow plot, instant love, and lack of intellectual characters.
This is a perfect example of telling instead of showing. We as the reader make connections and solve the riddles before the main character and her friends. It's tedious to read a story when I know all the answers before the 30% mark and am waiting well after the 80% mark for the main character to connect the dots.
Then there's the instant love between Hayden and her childhood BFF Shannon. Hayden left town when she was a child and despite exchanging a few sentences with Shannon upon her return, they're soon kissing. There wasn't an attraction. There wasn't a connection. There wasn't a foundation. In fact, the summary states that this is a strong female friendship novel, but the main characters are too wound up in their love interests to focus on their bond. This didn't need a romance; it contributed nothing to the story.
The part that did it for me was when Hayden's father's computer is beeping and flying off the charts with a specific reading warning of danger. Hayden knows she has a specific amount of time to grab her BFF and run out of town before tragedy strikes so what does she do? Take a nap.
Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.
This is a perfect example of telling instead of showing. We as the reader make connections and solve the riddles before the main character and her friends. It's tedious to read a story when I know all the answers before the 30% mark and am waiting well after the 80% mark for the main character to connect the dots.
Then there's the instant love between Hayden and her childhood BFF Shannon. Hayden left town when she was a child and despite exchanging a few sentences with Shannon upon her return, they're soon kissing. There wasn't an attraction. There wasn't a connection. There wasn't a foundation. In fact, the summary states that this is a strong female friendship novel, but the main characters are too wound up in their love interests to focus on their bond. This didn't need a romance; it contributed nothing to the story.
The part that did it for me was when Hayden's father's computer is beeping and flying off the charts with a specific reading warning of danger. Hayden knows she has a specific amount of time to grab her BFF and run out of town before tragedy strikes so what does she do? Take a nap.
Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.
I bought this off of ThriftBooks, and it was an ARC. I love the atmospheres Katya creates, and she has quickly become one of my favorite authors. Were there flaws? Sure. But I don’t care. Because the vibes were there.
I really enjoyed this book. The cover is beautiful but I also think that the world building in this is great. I really enjoyed the Science-y beginnings to the chapters and the fight between logic and paranormal.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book gave me serious Twilight vibes.
Look, I applaud the author for what - I think - she was trying to do. Crossing genres is difficult and the general idea behind the story is interesting. It's a shame that it just didn't come across successfully.
The plot was clunky and predictable, to the point where I started skimming during the climax of the story just to hurry up and finish it. The scientific aspects of the novel didn't really do anything for the story. Her dad had a doctorate and studied science, she was into physics, blood was examined, numerous chapters began with scientific definitions that vaguely related to what was occurring in the story at the time. That's about it. It just made for a repetitive series of scenes with Hayden refusing to entertain the magical aspects of her life that were literally happening right before her eyes... Also, the foreshadowing was as subtle as a pie to the face at times. It made no sense that Hayden would trust random people she just met who gave her things that 'supposedly' belonged to her mother, over the stuff LITERALLY WRITTEN BY HER MOTHER TO HER from a woman she's known for at least a decade.
The romance in this book, I could have done without. This is really where I got the Twilight vibes from. Your estranged childhood friend who's not only being kinda a dick to you and also acting like a weirdo is not someone you should be going gaga over. Hayden's near obsession with Shannon wasn't believable, neither was his interest in her. The background development for it just didn't feel realistic and their interaction were predominantly awkward and emotionally jarring. It just felt like it was underdeveloped and not explained properly a lot of the time. They just randomly start kissing and professing their willingness to follow one another and not leave the other behind. Shannon as a character is just so wildly underdeveloped that I couldn't believe anything he said and his motives made no sense a lot of the time.
I could go on, but let's just end with the ending itself. This book isn't currently confirmed as part of any kind of series, it's meant (in the authors' words) to be a stand alone. What was that ending? It wasn't an ending. It was a moment in the story where it just cut off. A personal peeve of mine is loose ends, so this book - just, no.
Overall, this book had so much potential that it just didn't live up to.
Look, I applaud the author for what - I think - she was trying to do. Crossing genres is difficult and the general idea behind the story is interesting. It's a shame that it just didn't come across successfully.
The plot was clunky and predictable, to the point where I started skimming during the climax of the story just to hurry up and finish it. The scientific aspects of the novel didn't really do anything for the story. Her dad had a doctorate and studied science, she was into physics, blood was examined, numerous chapters began with scientific definitions that vaguely related to what was occurring in the story at the time. That's about it. It just made for a repetitive series of scenes with Hayden refusing to entertain the magical aspects of her life that were literally happening right before her eyes... Also, the foreshadowing was as subtle as a pie to the face at times. It made no sense that Hayden would trust random people she just met who gave her things that 'supposedly' belonged to her mother, over the stuff LITERALLY WRITTEN BY HER MOTHER TO HER from a woman she's known for at least a decade.
The romance in this book, I could have done without. This is really where I got the Twilight vibes from. Your estranged childhood friend who's not only being kinda a dick to you and also acting like a weirdo is not someone you should be going gaga over. Hayden's near obsession with Shannon wasn't believable, neither was his interest in her. The background development for it just didn't feel realistic and their interaction were predominantly awkward and emotionally jarring. It just felt like it was underdeveloped and not explained properly a lot of the time. They just randomly start kissing and professing their willingness to follow one another and not leave the other behind. Shannon as a character is just so wildly underdeveloped that I couldn't believe anything he said and his motives made no sense a lot of the time.
I could go on, but let's just end with the ending itself. This book isn't currently confirmed as part of any kind of series, it's meant (in the authors' words) to be a stand alone. What was that ending? It wasn't an ending. It was a moment in the story where it just cut off. A personal peeve of mine is loose ends, so this book - just, no.
Overall, this book had so much potential that it just didn't live up to.
Sounds great but it didn't live up to my expectations. I wish it had been more macial, creepier, and more atmospheric. It felt more like an outline than a finished novel.
Full review: https://picturethisliteraturecom.wordpress.com/2019/02/19/what-the-woods-keep/
Full review: https://picturethisliteraturecom.wordpress.com/2019/02/19/what-the-woods-keep/
While imaginative and original for a first novel, the author’s characterization and writing style were weaker than expected. There were also quite a few grammatical errors and a VERY rushed ending that was frustrating and disjointed. The setting was intriguing and the mythology engaging, the delivery just could have benefited from better editing and deeper characters and dialogue. Meh.
Dark secrets, dangerous woods, and a damaged childhood. All critical elements for a great story. This YA fantasy thriller mixes the ingredients beautifully, adds spare, sharp prose and serves it all up in an excellent page-turner.
And I loved the snippets of science woven seamlessly into Hayden's thoughts.
Definitely worth reading.
And I loved the snippets of science woven seamlessly into Hayden's thoughts.
Definitely worth reading.
I was expecting a missing persons mystery. Instead I got a weird teen angsty pseudo mythological something I don’t even know what.