Reviews

Blackwater by Jeannette Arroyo, Ren Graham

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emilybordelovewrites's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious

jtjacks20's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Content Warnings

thepetitepunk's review

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3.0

Thank you to the publisher for sending me a finished copy in exchange for an honest review.

screaming because i accidentally deleted my original review

This was a quick, easy read—definitely manageable to breeze through in one go. I liked the art style and appreciated the diverse cast of characters. However, I think what fell flat for me was the execution. I did not have a strong grasp of the plot and I had a hard time understanding the relationship between the characters. Still, it was a fun read. I just felt like some parts weren’t fleshed out enough and therefore left the reader with too many questions, or at least not a satisfying amount of background.

✧ ✧ ✧

≪reading 31 books for 31 days of july≫
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╰┈➤ 2. convenience store woman by sayaka murata
╰┈➤ 3. shout by laurie halse anderson
╰┈➤ 4. lemon by kwon yeo-sun
╰┈➤ 5. here the whole time by vitor martins
╰┈➤ 6. i’m still here: black dignity in a world made for whiteness by austin channing brown
╰┈➤ 7. the worst kind of want by liska jacobs
╰┈➤ 8. come as you are by emily nagoski
╰┈➤ 9. the swimmers by julie otsuka
╰┈➤ 10. fables: book one by bill willingham
╰┈➤ 11. the wild robot by peter brown
╰┈➤ 12. red to the bone by jacqueline woodson
╰┈➤ 13. afterlife by julia alvarez
╰┈➤ 14. no one is too small to make a difference by greta thunberg
╰┈➤ 15. ring shout by p. djèlí clark
╰┈➤ 16. a psalm for the wild-built by becky chambers
╰┈➤ 17. reasons to stay alive by matt haig
╰┈➤ 18. reminders of him by colleen hoover
╰┈➤ 19. binti by nnedi okorafor
╰┈➤ 20. the everything i have lost by sylvia zéleny
╰┈➤ 21. blackwater by jeannette arroyo and ren graham

kelsiereads15's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

Set in the town of Blackwater, Maine, two boys fall for each other as they dig for clues to a paranormal mystery. Tony Price is a popular high school track star and occasional delinquent aching for his dad's attention and approval.

I have a lot of complaints regarding Blackwater:

Why no color?
The relationship had no depth
No resolution between Tony & Biff
Eli’s “mistake” with the inhaler not being fully addressed
Not understanding Eli’s issues (in a wheelchair, in a hospital, not fully explained)
Tony’s dad & Eli’s mom being complete jerks for unknown reasons
The town not being really haunted

The plot felt rushed and because of that a lot of the more important elements of the characters and the story felt incomplete. Sometimes the visuals can make up for the lack of storytelling but in this case they didn’t. It failed to create a cohesive and engaging story and I’m sad about it.

ella_reads_books's review

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adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

4.25

laura_sackton's review

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Wow, I did not care about a single person in this book even a little bit?
What a bizarre and boring plot. No emotional depth whatsoever!
Werewolves for what reason?
Obviously not for me but could totally be for you, just not what iIm into at at the moment at all.