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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
It's been three years since Sia Martinez's mother was deported and disappeared after trying to cross the Sonoran Desert. She knows her mom must be dead but she can't help but stare in the desert, hoping she'll walk out of it. What does appear from the desert, is a spaceship carrying her mom.
Suddenly she's in the middle of a government conspiracy involving aliens and missing migrants.
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The last book, I read for my YA lit. class and this book caused a little bit of controversy during class discussions. Overall I really enjoyed the prose, the characters and the small moments between characters.
The plot progression wasn't the best? It took 50% of the book to get to the scifi element that was hinted at in the synopsis and it just wasn't done well.
The characterization of most of the minor characters were well-done and I appreciate the depth to Rose's and Sia's friendship. I loved how she showed Sia's processing her SA trauma and the racism she experienced in her small rural town.
The end was just so rushed and I didn't care about the villain which is a little bit problematic. The conflicts I was invested in were the side plots and not the main plot.
It's an okay read with a lot of potential but not something I'm going to reread.
Suddenly she's in the middle of a government conspiracy involving aliens and missing migrants.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
The last book, I read for my YA lit. class and this book caused a little bit of controversy during class discussions. Overall I really enjoyed the prose, the characters and the small moments between characters.
The plot progression wasn't the best? It took 50% of the book to get to the scifi element that was hinted at in the synopsis and it just wasn't done well.
Spoiler
I'm confused about the aliens, how the blood thing works and Vasquez tried to explain it in text but it just was very flimsy. Also the ending about clones was just too weird and ruins the affect of her mom death. And that weird romance her mom had with that alien.The characterization of most of the minor characters were well-done and I appreciate the depth to Rose's and Sia's friendship. I loved how she showed Sia's processing her SA trauma and the racism she experienced in her small rural town.
The end was just so rushed and I didn't care about the villain which is a little bit problematic. The conflicts I was invested in were the side plots and not the main plot.
It's an okay read with a lot of potential but not something I'm going to reread.
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
*4.5
Not exactly what I expected....but amazing regardless. I walked into this book blindly, forgetting what the synopsis had foretold about the book. So when aliens and otherworldly natures arrived, I was admittedly confused. This book had amazing messages about racism, friendship, and family. I loved every page, from start to finish. There was adventure and excitement. The only reason this book isn't a complete five-star for me, however, was because of its abrupt ending. While I don't mind open-endings, there was still so much left of this book to be wrapped up. It also hinted at the prospect of a sequel....but I don't want to get my hopes up. Nonetheless, this was a wild and crazy story about aliens and love.
Not exactly what I expected....but amazing regardless. I walked into this book blindly, forgetting what the synopsis had foretold about the book. So when aliens and otherworldly natures arrived, I was admittedly confused. This book had amazing messages about racism, friendship, and family. I loved every page, from start to finish. There was adventure and excitement. The only reason this book isn't a complete five-star for me, however, was because of its abrupt ending. While I don't mind open-endings, there was still so much left of this book to be wrapped up. It also hinted at the prospect of a sequel....but I don't want to get my hopes up. Nonetheless, this was a wild and crazy story about aliens and love.
I appreciate the fresh perspective of this YA novel about a Mexican-American girl whose mother was deported and went missing and presumed dead trying to cross back into the country, but the story takes a sudden genre veer midway through into aliens and government conspiracies, and I haven't found the ensuing action to be nearly as satisfying. I also don't particularly care for the love interest, who goes from irritating to boring to a liar to forgiven in record time, with little beyond his looks to explain why the heroine even likes him in the first place. Far more interesting is the #ownvoices thread of indigenous folklore and communication with ancestors that winds throughout the tale, but overall I think this book just pulls in too many different directions.
[Content warning for sexual assault, PTSD, domestic abuse, and racism including slurs.]
--Subscribe at https://patreon.com/lesserjoke to support these reviews and weigh in on what I read next!--
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
[Content warning for sexual assault, PTSD, domestic abuse, and racism including slurs.]
--Subscribe at https://patreon.com/lesserjoke to support these reviews and weigh in on what I read next!--
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
I think this book had a great idea for a plot, and I think it needed more fine tuning to get the best story out of it. I enjoyed it for most part, and I am unlikely not reread it.
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
I thought it was an okay book. I understand that it is a YA novel but the dialogue bothers me so much, is this how authors see teenagers talk? Do they remember when they were teenagers?
Anyways, there were a lot of themes and issues that the author wanted to address, which I felt were valid at the same time addressing them in the middle of certain action sequences going on or in the middle of figuring stuff out was an emotional whiplash.
When the author got into the deeper themes in what was going on I really then enjoyed the story and what was happening.
Anyways, there were a lot of themes and issues that the author wanted to address, which I felt were valid at the same time addressing them in the middle of certain action sequences going on or in the middle of figuring stuff out was an emotional whiplash.
When the author got into the deeper themes in what was going on I really then enjoyed the story and what was happening.
This story has such a fascinating premise— Sia’s mom was deported about two years ago, and disappeared when she re-entered the United States, trying to cross the Sonoran Desert back to her family. When a UFO is seen in the desert and Sia’s mom makes an unexpected return, Sia and her friends uncover a secret government program in which undocumented immigrants are captured and used for experiments involving extraterrestrials.
The friendship and tension between Sia and Rose is well-done, and I wish the thoughtfulness of the first half of the novel had continued all the way through. Occasional appearances from Sia’s recently-deceased but still bossy abuela are also refreshing.
Unfortunately, what could have been a really solid science fiction story suffers from the author trying to cram too much in.
* There’s an allusion to sexual trauma that Sia experienced when she was 16. She and new boy Noah click very quickly, and (while I appreciate the sex-positivity) the speed with which he helps her overcome her fear of intimacy is pretty glibly handled.
* Speaking of Noah, he comes across very manic pixie dream boy. No nuance, insta-love, too good to be true.
* Several characters (Sheriff McGhee, Omar, Katia) border on caricatures.
* When Sia discovers her mother is still alive around the halfway point of the book, the story completely shifts gears into over-the-top action movie mode. It’s a jarring transition, and the dialog and plot become increasingly farfetched.
A good story, but it had the potential to be a great story.
Thanks to NetGalley and SimonPulse for the electronic arc.
The friendship and tension between Sia and Rose is well-done, and I wish the thoughtfulness of the first half of the novel had continued all the way through. Occasional appearances from Sia’s recently-deceased but still bossy abuela are also refreshing.
Unfortunately, what could have been a really solid science fiction story suffers from the author trying to cram too much in.
* There’s an allusion to sexual trauma that Sia experienced when she was 16. She and new boy Noah click very quickly, and (while I appreciate the sex-positivity) the speed with which he helps her overcome her fear of intimacy is pretty glibly handled.
* Speaking of Noah, he comes across very manic pixie dream boy. No nuance, insta-love, too good to be true.
* Several characters (Sheriff McGhee, Omar, Katia) border on caricatures.
* When Sia discovers her mother is still alive around the halfway point of the book, the story completely shifts gears into over-the-top action movie mode. It’s a jarring transition, and the dialog and plot become increasingly farfetched.
A good story, but it had the potential to be a great story.
Thanks to NetGalley and SimonPulse for the electronic arc.
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Death of parent
Idk I just couldn't it was boring and I hated the ml
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
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