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asienerbrown's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Confinement
ska1224's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, Child death, Confinement, and Death of parent
clpaige's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement and Death
hello_lovely13's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Ableism and Death
dolores_madil's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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? No
4.75
I love this book for the main message but also the under messages I was able to pick up as an adult. I also loved as a writer the message of storytelling and how it is apart of who we are. I defiantly think this is a upper middle grade though I also don't read many middle but it tackles some thought concepts.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Religious bigotry, Gaslighting, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Chronic illness, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, and Medical content
Moderate: Slavery, Genocide, and Racism
crizzle's review
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
2.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement and Toxic relationship
Minor: Vomit, Drug use, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, and Genocide
tinytrashqueen's review
adventurous
dark
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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Confinement
abrdoodle's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I feel weird about giving this book a rating because I'm not the target audience; I'm in my twenties. I decided to read this book in the first place just because the premise seemed so interesting and, let's be real, the cover is beautiful. I'll give my thoughts anyway, but prospective readers should definitely defer to reviews of middle graders.
What started as a really exciting premise and intriguing first section of the book ended up leading to a plateau that remained relatively consistent until the pop of the conclusion. After waking up, I thought Petra's time aboard the ship was not very interesting, and her plans were not very complex or thrillingly executed. I just think there was a lot more room for Higuera to raise the stakes and give Petra exciting plot points to cover.
I liked the twist with her family! I also liked how complex of a villain Nyla was. Villains are so much more interesting when you can see their point of view and understand why they want to accomplish a specific goal. I certainly did not agree with her 100%, but I think there's something to be said for the utilitarian idea of maximizing the wellbeing of the greatest number of people. There's some interesting philosophical debate to be had here about utilitarianism vs free will and individuality.
Overall, not a bad book! Petra made for a strong and compassionate main character. I wish there had been more planet exploration, more of a showdown with the Collective, and more action for Petra in general. However, I still think it's a sweet story with nice themes of love, bravery, and preserving and honoring your culture.
What started as a really exciting premise and intriguing first section of the book ended up leading to a plateau that remained relatively consistent until the pop of the conclusion. After waking up, I thought Petra's time aboard the ship was not very interesting, and her plans were not very complex or thrillingly executed. I just think there was a lot more room for Higuera to raise the stakes and give Petra exciting plot points to cover.
I liked the twist with her family! I also liked how complex of a villain Nyla was. Villains are so much more interesting when you can see their point of view and understand why they want to accomplish a specific goal. I certainly did not agree with her 100%, but I think there's something to be said for the utilitarian idea of maximizing the wellbeing of the greatest number of people. There's some interesting philosophical debate to be had here about utilitarianism vs free will and individuality.
Overall, not a bad book! Petra made for a strong and compassionate main character. I wish there had been more planet exploration, more of a showdown with the Collective, and more action for Petra in general. However, I still think it's a sweet story with nice themes of love, bravery, and preserving and honoring your culture.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Confinement
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Death, and Murder
Minor: Body horror
kalehouse's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
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? No
4.0
(audio book)
i really enjoyed! definitely middle grade but still very entertaining. sci-fi/dystopian future with child(ren) as protags.
i really enjoyed! definitely middle grade but still very entertaining. sci-fi/dystopian future with child(ren) as protags.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Grief, Death of parent, and Confinement
Moderate: Chronic illness and Medical content
a_ab's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Maybe even 4.5*s. This is a great book about the ultimate truth that no noble goal can ever be reached through ugly methods.
There were elements I found clunky and too convenient and the writing seemed rough in patches - like awkward translations or rough draft passages that slipped through the editorial reviews.
This book gave me a very nostalgic feeling - it reminded me of the early 20th century literature I read in college - utopian cautionary tales and the stories about the dangers of complacent uniformity.
The saddest part about this book, which is already full of sadness and grief, is that it is as relevant and necessary today as similar stories were nearly 100 years ago.
There were elements I found clunky and too convenient and the writing seemed rough in patches - like awkward translations or rough draft passages that slipped through the editorial reviews.
This book gave me a very nostalgic feeling - it reminded me of the early 20th century literature I read in college - utopian cautionary tales and the stories about the dangers of complacent uniformity.
The saddest part about this book, which is already full of sadness and grief, is that it is as relevant and necessary today as similar stories were nearly 100 years ago.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Confinement, Death of parent, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Genocide and Murder
Minor: Vomit