You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.51 AVERAGE
3.51 AVERAGE
I received a free ARC of this book from the publisher in return for an honest review.
Girls + guns = so much to love.
Right?
Well, unfortunately, in the case of Gunslinger Girl, not so much. I only read the first ten chapters (the first 92 pages of the ARC), and that was more than enough for me.
What I read of Gunslinger Girl left me feeling emotions than ran the gamut from delightfully pleased to groaning in frustration. The good? The Western style shown through as clearly as it did in Vengeance Road, and it sucked me in from the very first couple of sentences. I was rooting for this book, but it started showing its weaknesses fairly quickly.
There's not a lot of depth to the writing, and it suffers further because the author chose to tell the story instead of showing it to her readers. The third person narration skims the top of the surface of everything and when that happens it sounds a bit robotic after a while. Plot elements felt like they were checked off of a list of cliches, or like a lightly filled in paint-by-numbers illustration. Pity's family, best friend, and the people in her commune were all nothing more than incredibly flat character tropes that I couldn't bring myself to feel the way about them that I probably would have if they'd had a little more dimension. Even further on in the book the characters were so one-dimensional that their lack of depth led me to skimming the pages, and I am not a skimmer by nature. That alone was a sign that this book and I were not going to be together for very long. On the rare occasions that I do skim, I make an effort to go back and properly re-read whatever I glossed over. With Gunslinger Girl, though, I just couldn't be bothered.
Flat characterization was made more frustrating by the fact that the setting isn't clearly explained while the reader is shoved into the plot from the get-go. The United States as we know it no longer exists thanks to a civil war, but that happened after much of the world was affected by bio-terrorism. People live in communes, cities, or drift from place to place, but it is all tightly regulated by the powers in charge. Society is lopsided due to a shortage of women, so women are prized for their fertility - bartered between communes with some degrees of illegality, but they can still hold dangerous jobs like being commune guards, or other jobs like mechanics. There was a lot going on, but none of it was really developed by the time I stopped reading, and it only served to leave me more confused the further I read.
Pity herself was a large reason for why I stopped reading this almost a quarter of the way through. She was boring, to put it bluntly. She's billed as the best sharpshooter in the West, but the first time we see her with guns in her hands her thoughts tell the reader that she's only ever shot at cans before and she has a panic attack when the time comes to aim at other humans. The next time she's given a chance to demonstrate her capabilities, it's over in the span of a few quick sentences and the event isn't even described to the reader aside from the noise of the firing guns. If I'm to believe that she's the best sharpshooter around, I need to see her in action, don't just tell me she is. (This is something done excellently in Rebel of the Sands.) Pity's also a bit of an idiot, as demonstrated most clearly when it comes to how she acquires her guns.
But the biggest deal-breaker for me with this book was that it kept making me think of other entertainment media that the book had common elements with. I don't know if this book was inspired by a good many other story arcs, or if it was simply trying to do too much at once, but the result just made me want to ditch the book and spend my time on those stories that did it better. I've mentioned two all ready - Vengeance Road and Rebel of the Sands, but it also brought to mind, in no particular order: The Handmaiden's Tale (which I haven't even read!), Blade Runner, Mad Max, The Hunger Games, Gypsy, and The Godfather.
Ultimately, Gunslinger Girl had a lot of promise, but it failed to deliver.
Girls + guns = so much to love.
Right?
Well, unfortunately, in the case of Gunslinger Girl, not so much. I only read the first ten chapters (the first 92 pages of the ARC), and that was more than enough for me.
What I read of Gunslinger Girl left me feeling emotions than ran the gamut from delightfully pleased to groaning in frustration. The good? The Western style shown through as clearly as it did in Vengeance Road, and it sucked me in from the very first couple of sentences. I was rooting for this book, but it started showing its weaknesses fairly quickly.
There's not a lot of depth to the writing, and it suffers further because the author chose to tell the story instead of showing it to her readers. The third person narration skims the top of the surface of everything and when that happens it sounds a bit robotic after a while. Plot elements felt like they were checked off of a list of cliches, or like a lightly filled in paint-by-numbers illustration. Pity's family, best friend, and the people in her commune were all nothing more than incredibly flat character tropes that I couldn't bring myself to feel the way about them that I probably would have if they'd had a little more dimension. Even further on in the book the characters were so one-dimensional that their lack of depth led me to skimming the pages, and I am not a skimmer by nature. That alone was a sign that this book and I were not going to be together for very long. On the rare occasions that I do skim, I make an effort to go back and properly re-read whatever I glossed over. With Gunslinger Girl, though, I just couldn't be bothered.
Flat characterization was made more frustrating by the fact that the setting isn't clearly explained while the reader is shoved into the plot from the get-go. The United States as we know it no longer exists thanks to a civil war, but that happened after much of the world was affected by bio-terrorism. People live in communes, cities, or drift from place to place, but it is all tightly regulated by the powers in charge. Society is lopsided due to a shortage of women, so women are prized for their fertility - bartered between communes with some degrees of illegality, but they can still hold dangerous jobs like being commune guards, or other jobs like mechanics. There was a lot going on, but none of it was really developed by the time I stopped reading, and it only served to leave me more confused the further I read.
Pity herself was a large reason for why I stopped reading this almost a quarter of the way through. She was boring, to put it bluntly. She's billed as the best sharpshooter in the West, but the first time we see her with guns in her hands her thoughts tell the reader that she's only ever shot at cans before and she has a panic attack when the time comes to aim at other humans. The next time she's given a chance to demonstrate her capabilities, it's over in the span of a few quick sentences and the event isn't even described to the reader aside from the noise of the firing guns. If I'm to believe that she's the best sharpshooter around, I need to see her in action, don't just tell me she is. (This is something done excellently in Rebel of the Sands.) Pity's also a bit of an idiot, as demonstrated most clearly when it comes to how she acquires her guns.
But the biggest deal-breaker for me with this book was that it kept making me think of other entertainment media that the book had common elements with. I don't know if this book was inspired by a good many other story arcs, or if it was simply trying to do too much at once, but the result just made me want to ditch the book and spend my time on those stories that did it better. I've mentioned two all ready - Vengeance Road and Rebel of the Sands, but it also brought to mind, in no particular order: The Handmaiden's Tale (which I haven't even read!), Blade Runner, Mad Max, The Hunger Games, Gypsy, and The Godfather.
Ultimately, Gunslinger Girl had a lot of promise, but it failed to deliver.
A captivating book from start to finish. A must read for anyone interested in dystopian novels, with a Western flare for added spice. The main character was well developed and the supporting characters did well to move the plot along. Nothing seemed forced; everything fell into place at just the right time. I was not sure what I was getting myself int when I picked up this book, but it was definitely more entertaining that anything you would see at the theatre!
It's more a 3,5/5 ... I was really excited about this story but it didn't click with me.
I didn't understand everything I have to admit... and I wasn't attracted by the Western vibe of the book.
I still enjoyed reading it don't get me wrong, and will gladly read Lyndsay Ely next book =)
I didn't understand everything I have to admit... and I wasn't attracted by the Western vibe of the book.
I still enjoyed reading it don't get me wrong, and will gladly read Lyndsay Ely next book =)
The characters in this book really came alive for me. Pity, Max, Olivia, and all their friends have solid backgrounds sketched out throughout the story. Their strong personalities come dripping through the pages as they live daily life in Cessation. Speaking of which, this is one of those novels that carves the setting out as practically a character in itself with Cessation and Casimir being pivotal to the plot from day one of Pity’s journey.
Westerns are not typically “my thing”, but the way Ely spun the near-future western story left me quickly turning page after page. I needed to know what would happen next in the lawless (or not) world Pity stumbles around in. I’d love a sequel to know what becomes of the cast next and even a glimpse at the world before and/or during the big war.
Westerns are not typically “my thing”, but the way Ely spun the near-future western story left me quickly turning page after page. I needed to know what would happen next in the lawless (or not) world Pity stumbles around in. I’d love a sequel to know what becomes of the cast next and even a glimpse at the world before and/or during the big war.
adventurous
fast-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
This was a fun wild west shootout-type story. But my favorite read ever, but it was a fun ride. I appreciated that the main character wasn't the best at everything, and had room to grow.
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
adventurous
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
- I received a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. -
For most of this, I thought I’d give it about a 2.9 but by the time I got to the end, I’d say I give it more like a 3.4. The jump in stars came from what a wily villain Patrick Sheridan turned out to be, even though I knew from the get-go that something was off with him. Mainly what I liked about this book was the setting. The blend of futuristic dystopia and the Wild Wild West really appealed to me; although I wish there had been more to the Wild West element. The whole concept of Cessation and the Theatre were interesting to read and felt very vibrant in my mind. But, as with so many books, the sour note was the characters. It was impossible to take Pity seriously as a hardened sharpshooting badass type when she was so whiny, naive, and incapable of pulling the damn trigger when she needed to. (Also the name “Pity” honestly annoyed me so much throughout the entire book. There’s no better nickname than that?) I did really enjoy the twists and turns, political scheming, and utter betrayals that surfaced toward the end, but Pity failed to ever grow a pair like I kept hoping she would, and I found almost everyone in Cessation to be incredibly unlikable. Especially Selene. It was painful to read Pity being so gullible and easily led and coerced by people like Sheridan and Selene. The only character I actually liked was Siena Bond, the bounty hunter. This story had a lot of potential, and I think if Pity had just been less of a pain, I would have rated it higher.
For most of this, I thought I’d give it about a 2.9 but by the time I got to the end, I’d say I give it more like a 3.4. The jump in stars came from what a wily villain Patrick Sheridan turned out to be, even though I knew from the get-go that something was off with him. Mainly what I liked about this book was the setting. The blend of futuristic dystopia and the Wild Wild West really appealed to me; although I wish there had been more to the Wild West element. The whole concept of Cessation and the Theatre were interesting to read and felt very vibrant in my mind. But, as with so many books, the sour note was the characters. It was impossible to take Pity seriously as a hardened sharpshooting badass type when she was so whiny, naive, and incapable of pulling the damn trigger when she needed to. (Also the name “Pity” honestly annoyed me so much throughout the entire book. There’s no better nickname than that?) I did really enjoy the twists and turns, political scheming, and utter betrayals that surfaced toward the end, but Pity failed to ever grow a pair like I kept hoping she would, and I found almost everyone in Cessation to be incredibly unlikable. Especially Selene. It was painful to read Pity being so gullible and easily led and coerced by people like Sheridan and Selene. The only character I actually liked was Siena Bond, the bounty hunter. This story had a lot of potential, and I think if Pity had just been less of a pain, I would have rated it higher.
In this steampunk dystopian world, Pity Jones escapes her abusive family and impending bad marriage to go west. She meets up with a group, who offers her a new opportunity to earn her own way by showing off her shooting skills in a variety show. There is a hard underbelly to this new world that Pity must learn to navigate quickly. In meeting new people, Pity must determine who is friend or foe and if the guy she likes is trustworthy.
I loved this novel. It was full of adventure. It was fun, interesting and unique. I hope there are more books in this world.
I loved this novel. It was full of adventure. It was fun, interesting and unique. I hope there are more books in this world.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This was a truly hallowing book that suprisingly turned dark and had an unexpected last half of the book. The cover does not do the story justice.