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3.19 AVERAGE
3.19 AVERAGE
I will read anything that was written by Adam Silvera. I love his writing and have been enjoying his other books. However, this book was a letdown for me.
PLOT
I was super hype about this book when I knew it was a fantasy book with a gay main character. Plus point, there were a lot of queer side characters as well as people of color. What took me by surprise was that it also touches topics like body image and self-esteem. The diversity in this book was so on point. But the sad thing was the world-building is super confusing. Right into the book, I was thrown with words like Celestials, Spell Walkers, Blood Casters, and Specters. It took me a while and reading back and fore to understand what were all these labels are about. I’m still not entirely sure what are Spell Walker and Blood Casters. But for now, I’m able to differentiate what is a Celestial and a Specter. So Celestials are people with power, whereas Specters are people who drink Celestial blood or magical creatures for powers.
There were some political issues among humans and Celestial after the so-called Blackout event. The Blackout event was mentioned a lot of time, but no further explanation on what’s it was totally about and how severe was the impact for both parties. All I knew was that after that, humans wanted to get rid of Celestial, and one of the side characters was desperately trying to prove her parent’s innocence.
But the confusing part was when the Specter entered the picture. It seems like now Human, Celestials, and Specters are all fighting for a different war. The Celestials were fighting against Specter, and Humans were fighting against Celestials. Out from nowhere, the Specters were alliancing with the Human. I’m so lost! Blood alchemy was also thrown to us and, of course, magical creatures such as Phoenixes and Hydra too. Sadly, there was no further explanation of them. For now, we only knew there were different types of Phoenixes.
So apparently, our gay and low confident main character was the “Chosen One” to save the world or bring balance back to the world. He was also a reincarnation of someone famous who started all this chaos; I don’t exactly remember who it was. He got caught into a fight with a Specter and realized he got power too. That instant, he became an internet sensation, and everyone was super hype about him.
He was then brought back to the Celestials’ hideout because someone was hunting for him, and they all started giving him training so that he was prepared to do whatever comes after that. Now at this point, the world-building is pretty bad, and so I thought maybe the plot would get better. It didn’t get better. The pacing was a little out of place — a lot of scenes that I believe were irrelevant to the plot. If you were expecting something epic to happen, well, it didn’t, except for the twist at the end which I see it coming.
CHARACTERS
Emil
Emil is the opposite of his brother. He is this low self-esteem and whinny teen. I was waiting for his character development, but I guess it will not be in this book. He is the chosen one, but so far he isn’t behaving like one (I don’t have a problem with that because we got a series to see him grow). Emil also got this soft and loving side which I like at first but because of these traits, he can be very naïve too. It was unrealistic that he suddenly trusted a stranger/enemy so easily and helping that person to feel at home when that person was held captive in their hideout. Also, during their battle with the Specters, he doesn’t want to hurt anybody (which is totally understandable) but it was mentioned at the wrong moments (people were trying so hard to kill him and yet he still doesn’t want to hurt them).
He needs to sort of priorities too. I can’t believe he just left the Gravesend phoenix on the roof and ran off to find Ness. Like for real? People are hunting for that creature and you just left it there. I facepalm so hard when the villain took the Gravesend phoenix away.
Brighton
Brighton was this annoying and self-centered person who was addicted to fame. He was always with his camera to record anything epic and editing video to upload to his Youtube Channel. I knew social media is a big thing right now. But somehow it was so annoying to read about it here. I don’t have anything against Brighton being a Youtuber, but seeing him running in danger to get footage for his channel is just off-putting. And I don’t understand how the Celestials agree to bring him along on the entire mission. Dude, the Celestials are fighting with people with powers too. For a human to be there documenting everything is just so dangerous and weird.
Another thing was that Brighton never seems to shut up about his followers and views. Like I get it but stop it because I don’t care! I knew Brighton was a power-hungry person, so the ending wasn’t shocking to me. He was a very complex character, but I could not deny his love for his brother.
Maribelle
God, she is annoying! If you wanted to kill somebody, then just do it. Stop creating small talk with your enemy! And when the person escaped, stop blaming other people for that. Argh!
Luna
She was the villain that wanted power so badly. For some reason, she managed to gather a lot of Specters to be her followers and assist her in whatever her plan was. It wasn’t explained why she was such a frightful character. I just assumed she was because the Specters all seem to be scared of her. She is full of mystery. I’m not sure why she is the way she is and why she is doing all these things. We never truly understand her motive, just knowing that she might be psychotic because she murdered both of her parents when she was really young.
Prudencia
She is Emil and Brighton’s best friend. I don’t think I will remember her if it wasn’t the sudden revelation of her being a Celestial.
Ness
Who was this guy again? I think he was the senator’s son if I’m not mistaken. I only remember him because I’m getting a feeling that he might be the love interest for Emil.
I don’t remember the name of the other side characters. I only remember there was a healer among the Celestial group, and that’s all.
OVERALL
I’m not too excited about the next book, but I’m biased. It’s Adam Silvera, so I guess I might still read it? I hope that the next one will be better.
QUOTES THAT I LIKE
"War makes us do things we didn’t know we were capable of. We’ve shown compassion, but we’ve also had to become violent to stay alive. To try and win."
"I’ll be a soldier, but I’m not a murderer."
PLOT
I was super hype about this book when I knew it was a fantasy book with a gay main character. Plus point, there were a lot of queer side characters as well as people of color. What took me by surprise was that it also touches topics like body image and self-esteem. The diversity in this book was so on point. But the sad thing was the world-building is super confusing. Right into the book, I was thrown with words like Celestials, Spell Walkers, Blood Casters, and Specters. It took me a while and reading back and fore to understand what were all these labels are about. I’m still not entirely sure what are Spell Walker and Blood Casters. But for now, I’m able to differentiate what is a Celestial and a Specter. So Celestials are people with power, whereas Specters are people who drink Celestial blood or magical creatures for powers.
There were some political issues among humans and Celestial after the so-called Blackout event. The Blackout event was mentioned a lot of time, but no further explanation on what’s it was totally about and how severe was the impact for both parties. All I knew was that after that, humans wanted to get rid of Celestial, and one of the side characters was desperately trying to prove her parent’s innocence.
But the confusing part was when the Specter entered the picture. It seems like now Human, Celestials, and Specters are all fighting for a different war. The Celestials were fighting against Specter, and Humans were fighting against Celestials. Out from nowhere, the Specters were alliancing with the Human. I’m so lost! Blood alchemy was also thrown to us and, of course, magical creatures such as Phoenixes and Hydra too. Sadly, there was no further explanation of them. For now, we only knew there were different types of Phoenixes.
So apparently, our gay and low confident main character was the “Chosen One” to save the world or bring balance back to the world. He was also a reincarnation of someone famous who started all this chaos; I don’t exactly remember who it was. He got caught into a fight with a Specter and realized he got power too. That instant, he became an internet sensation, and everyone was super hype about him.
He was then brought back to the Celestials’ hideout because someone was hunting for him, and they all started giving him training so that he was prepared to do whatever comes after that. Now at this point, the world-building is pretty bad, and so I thought maybe the plot would get better. It didn’t get better. The pacing was a little out of place — a lot of scenes that I believe were irrelevant to the plot. If you were expecting something epic to happen, well, it didn’t, except for the twist at the end which I see it coming.
CHARACTERS
Emil
Emil is the opposite of his brother. He is this low self-esteem and whinny teen. I was waiting for his character development, but I guess it will not be in this book. He is the chosen one, but so far he isn’t behaving like one (I don’t have a problem with that because we got a series to see him grow). Emil also got this soft and loving side which I like at first but because of these traits, he can be very naïve too. It was unrealistic that he suddenly trusted a stranger/enemy so easily and helping that person to feel at home when that person was held captive in their hideout. Also, during their battle with the Specters, he doesn’t want to hurt anybody (which is totally understandable) but it was mentioned at the wrong moments (people were trying so hard to kill him and yet he still doesn’t want to hurt them).
He needs to sort of priorities too. I can’t believe he just left the Gravesend phoenix on the roof and ran off to find Ness. Like for real? People are hunting for that creature and you just left it there. I facepalm so hard when the villain took the Gravesend phoenix away.
Brighton
Brighton was this annoying and self-centered person who was addicted to fame. He was always with his camera to record anything epic and editing video to upload to his Youtube Channel. I knew social media is a big thing right now. But somehow it was so annoying to read about it here. I don’t have anything against Brighton being a Youtuber, but seeing him running in danger to get footage for his channel is just off-putting. And I don’t understand how the Celestials agree to bring him along on the entire mission. Dude, the Celestials are fighting with people with powers too. For a human to be there documenting everything is just so dangerous and weird.
Another thing was that Brighton never seems to shut up about his followers and views. Like I get it but stop it because I don’t care! I knew Brighton was a power-hungry person, so the ending wasn’t shocking to me. He was a very complex character, but I could not deny his love for his brother.
Maribelle
God, she is annoying! If you wanted to kill somebody, then just do it. Stop creating small talk with your enemy! And when the person escaped, stop blaming other people for that. Argh!
Luna
She was the villain that wanted power so badly. For some reason, she managed to gather a lot of Specters to be her followers and assist her in whatever her plan was. It wasn’t explained why she was such a frightful character. I just assumed she was because the Specters all seem to be scared of her. She is full of mystery. I’m not sure why she is the way she is and why she is doing all these things. We never truly understand her motive, just knowing that she might be psychotic because she murdered both of her parents when she was really young.
Prudencia
She is Emil and Brighton’s best friend. I don’t think I will remember her if it wasn’t the sudden revelation of her being a Celestial.
Ness
Who was this guy again? I think he was the senator’s son if I’m not mistaken. I only remember him because I’m getting a feeling that he might be the love interest for Emil.
I don’t remember the name of the other side characters. I only remember there was a healer among the Celestial group, and that’s all.
OVERALL
I’m not too excited about the next book, but I’m biased. It’s Adam Silvera, so I guess I might still read it? I hope that the next one will be better.
QUOTES THAT I LIKE
"War makes us do things we didn’t know we were capable of. We’ve shown compassion, but we’ve also had to become violent to stay alive. To try and win."
"I’ll be a soldier, but I’m not a murderer."
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I got bored and didn’t want to continue. It was too YA for me and not have enough character development.
WHAT THE HELL IS WITH THAT ENDING SILVERA??? SERIOUSLY.
Okay so I have thoughts. I was very much looking forward to this book. I mean, it's Adam Silvera. So when Cait (Paper Fury) asked for a buddy read, I didn't hesitate! And whew, it was a wild ride.
First let me say what I wasn't a big fan of. The worldbuilding and magic system were a bit confusing and left me with a lot of questions. Like where are all the adults? It took me a while to get into it. But once I did... I also felt like there should have only been 2 POV's?
Second, I am huge trash for brother stories and fierce brotherly bonds and Emil and Brighton were definitely the stars of this book. You get a soft Hufflepuff and an ambitious Slytherin and their bond is so fierce and protective and gahhh. I absolutely loved them. And I also have a soft spot for Ness. Just saying.
But THAT ENDING. It left me gasping out loud and blurt out a series of strange noises because WHY END IT THERE OMG. Now I HAVE to read book 2. Why do I not have it yet?
All in all, it wasn't perfect, but it's still a solidly good fantasy with a gay MC and brotherly bonds that make my heart sing. So go forth and read it!
Okay so I have thoughts. I was very much looking forward to this book. I mean, it's Adam Silvera. So when Cait (Paper Fury) asked for a buddy read, I didn't hesitate! And whew, it was a wild ride.
First let me say what I wasn't a big fan of. The worldbuilding and magic system were a bit confusing and left me with a lot of questions. Like where are all the adults? It took me a while to get into it. But once I did... I also felt like there should have only been 2 POV's?
Second, I am huge trash for brother stories and fierce brotherly bonds and Emil and Brighton were definitely the stars of this book. You get a soft Hufflepuff and an ambitious Slytherin and their bond is so fierce and protective and gahhh. I absolutely loved them. And I also have a soft spot for Ness. Just saying.
But THAT ENDING. It left me gasping out loud and blurt out a series of strange noises because WHY END IT THERE OMG. Now I HAVE to read book 2. Why do I not have it yet?
All in all, it wasn't perfect, but it's still a solidly good fantasy with a gay MC and brotherly bonds that make my heart sing. So go forth and read it!
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
inspiring
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
E-galley provided by Edelweiss and Epic Reads in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and quotations are based off an uncorrected proof.
“I’m dead set on living my one life right, but I can’t say the same for my brother.”
Adam Silvera has been talking about this book forever! Now that I’ve finally finished it, I can see why this has felt like such a big deal. Basically, it is a big deal. It’s definitely my favorite Adam Silvera book and I cannot wait to see what comes next, yes in the series, but also just with Adam Silvera.
Infinity Son is about two brothers, Emil and Brighton, who have grown up in a New York filled with superheros. Emil and Brighton dreamed about that kinda stuff when they were younger, but it’s never lost its shine for Brighton. Now, as both brothers are pulled into the grand war of their heroes, they struggle to stay safe, stay together, and try their best to figure their way through.
The heart of this book lies with Emil, for me. I found him really interesting in a number of ways, above all I loved how loyal he was to his brother. He is truly concerned with making sure his family is okay first before making decisions about the world at large. Everyone was constantly getting on his case fore being “naive” when in my opinion he was just being a good person? Bunch a jerks.
On that subject, no, I did not like Spell Walkers. But in a way, that’s what’s so great about them? There’s this constant trope of “group of rag tag heroes” in fantasy and the idea is that they’ll always to the right thing for the greater good. But this book takes that idea and really shows how flawed it is.That’s kind of the brilliance of this book in general, it takes all these classic hero tropes and puts them in conditions where a reader can see all the flaws and uses that to re-write a classic “chosen one” story.
Silvera also does this by using Emil’s identities, he’s openly gay and Latino, which is not a character you see everyday, especially in superheros. In a sense, Emil is an anti-hero that is so heroic, it serves to bring down the entire idea of heroism. Which is so cool! And he’s also really genuine, like all the time. He’s earnest and he definitely suffers from caring too much.
Brighton was also a great character for this. I didn’t love him and from the start I didn’t trust his ambition. He’s a slytherin, I’m a slytherin, I know his type. But he tries so hard to be good in this book and that struggle and angst made him a great narrator with a distinct voice and it also made the book complex and captivating.
The last character that I want to talk about is Ness, because he’s my favorite. I love a bad guy who really wants to do good things for good reasons and is only given a series of bad choices. I didn’t expect to actually like Ness when I first met him, but his personality was so edged and pessimistic that I was enthralled by his chapters. Once he met Emil, I was done for. I need more scenes with them together!!! I love their dynamic so much! I need all angst, all the time!
The world created also merits mentioning. I really love this world in which superheros exists and are both loved and hated, but also the elements of fantasy and fantastical creatures. It felt different and unique. The book doesn’t really hold your hand in introducing any of this stuff and I was pretty confused at times, but all my questions eventually got answered by the end of it. I feel like I have a decently solid understanding of how the world works, but I can see how people would get confused while reading.
TL;DR: Don’t miss out on this mind-blowing series! It’s a stunning combination of X-Men, Carry On, with a lot of fire bird talk! It’s compelling, thrilling, and the ending will leave you in pieces!
“I’m dead set on living my one life right, but I can’t say the same for my brother.”
Adam Silvera has been talking about this book forever! Now that I’ve finally finished it, I can see why this has felt like such a big deal. Basically, it is a big deal. It’s definitely my favorite Adam Silvera book and I cannot wait to see what comes next, yes in the series, but also just with Adam Silvera.
Infinity Son is about two brothers, Emil and Brighton, who have grown up in a New York filled with superheros. Emil and Brighton dreamed about that kinda stuff when they were younger, but it’s never lost its shine for Brighton. Now, as both brothers are pulled into the grand war of their heroes, they struggle to stay safe, stay together, and try their best to figure their way through.
The heart of this book lies with Emil, for me. I found him really interesting in a number of ways, above all I loved how loyal he was to his brother. He is truly concerned with making sure his family is okay first before making decisions about the world at large. Everyone was constantly getting on his case fore being “naive” when in my opinion he was just being a good person? Bunch a jerks.
On that subject, no, I did not like Spell Walkers. But in a way, that’s what’s so great about them? There’s this constant trope of “group of rag tag heroes” in fantasy and the idea is that they’ll always to the right thing for the greater good. But this book takes that idea and really shows how flawed it is.That’s kind of the brilliance of this book in general, it takes all these classic hero tropes and puts them in conditions where a reader can see all the flaws and uses that to re-write a classic “chosen one” story.
Silvera also does this by using Emil’s identities, he’s openly gay and Latino, which is not a character you see everyday, especially in superheros. In a sense, Emil is an anti-hero that is so heroic, it serves to bring down the entire idea of heroism. Which is so cool! And he’s also really genuine, like all the time. He’s earnest and he definitely suffers from caring too much.
Brighton was also a great character for this. I didn’t love him and from the start I didn’t trust his ambition. He’s a slytherin, I’m a slytherin, I know his type. But he tries so hard to be good in this book and that struggle and angst made him a great narrator with a distinct voice and it also made the book complex and captivating.
The last character that I want to talk about is Ness, because he’s my favorite. I love a bad guy who really wants to do good things for good reasons and is only given a series of bad choices. I didn’t expect to actually like Ness when I first met him, but his personality was so edged and pessimistic that I was enthralled by his chapters. Once he met Emil, I was done for. I need more scenes with them together!!! I love their dynamic so much! I need all angst, all the time!
The world created also merits mentioning. I really love this world in which superheros exists and are both loved and hated, but also the elements of fantasy and fantastical creatures. It felt different and unique. The book doesn’t really hold your hand in introducing any of this stuff and I was pretty confused at times, but all my questions eventually got answered by the end of it. I feel like I have a decently solid understanding of how the world works, but I can see how people would get confused while reading.
TL;DR: Don’t miss out on this mind-blowing series! It’s a stunning combination of X-Men, Carry On, with a lot of fire bird talk! It’s compelling, thrilling, and the ending will leave you in pieces!
***I received this ARC as a bookseller and am providing an honest review. These are my thoughts and mine alone. I'm not a professional reviewer, publisher, or author. This is just an honest review of a passionate reader who loves Silvera's writing.***
For the first time reading one of Adam Silvera's books, I'm... Disappointed. This book just doesn't feel like his writing at all. I appreciate what he was trying to do, and I was SO stoke to finally have an LGBTQ fantasy novel. But... This just fell flatn
; too much was crammed into 350 pages.
Everything was glossed over, major events were rushed, characters weren't fleshed out the way they have been in his other books... It made it really hard to care about Emil, the protagonist, and everyone else.
I feel like to many things were being juggled at once. And the ending doesn't feel like an ending at all. There's no real climax (or what's supposed to be the climax is rushed) and what's meant to be a cliffhanger just... Isn't. Then there is the issue of world building--which is non-existant. You're thrown into this world with little to no explanation of its inhabitants (humans, creatures, and celestial alike). When it comes to the 'Blackout', which is meant to be this book defining event, you learn nothing about it. It's mentioned dozens times, but no one actually says what it really is, what happened, and why it's screwed over the Celestials so bad. You get a brief understanding when your introduced to June later in the novel, but it's not nearly comprehensive enough for me to definitively say I know why the Blackout is so important.
The way Silvera handles the LGBTQ protagonist in this book is just weird. Like Emil being gay is used more as a selling point for this 'inclusive fantasy' rather than it being an actual character trait. It's thrown out there at the weirdest moments and totally glossed over. Like you need occasional reminders that the protagonist is queer. At one point I actually found myself surprised that Emil hadn't randomly mused about his sexuality in quite a few pages. Then literally on the next page, there it was. Inserted in the strangest context just to raise a flag and remind the reader that this is an LGBTQ fantasy.
Honestly... It feels like this is a first book rather than a fourth or fifth by an author.
Overall, I'm just really disappointed. But I have faith. Silvera is an amazing author, and I really hope the second book blows away the first. The premise is interesting, with fantasy creatures and magical powers being a part of every day common life. (Funko Pops are mentioned quite a few times through out the novel.) I think it could really be a good series if it just had more of the voice I've come to expect from Silvera's work.
For the first time reading one of Adam Silvera's books, I'm... Disappointed. This book just doesn't feel like his writing at all. I appreciate what he was trying to do, and I was SO stoke to finally have an LGBTQ fantasy novel. But... This just fell flatn
; too much was crammed into 350 pages.
Everything was glossed over, major events were rushed, characters weren't fleshed out the way they have been in his other books... It made it really hard to care about Emil, the protagonist, and everyone else.
I feel like to many things were being juggled at once. And the ending doesn't feel like an ending at all. There's no real climax (or what's supposed to be the climax is rushed) and what's meant to be a cliffhanger just... Isn't. Then there is the issue of world building--which is non-existant. You're thrown into this world with little to no explanation of its inhabitants (humans, creatures, and celestial alike). When it comes to the 'Blackout', which is meant to be this book defining event, you learn nothing about it. It's mentioned dozens times, but no one actually says what it really is, what happened, and why it's screwed over the Celestials so bad. You get a brief understanding when your introduced to June later in the novel, but it's not nearly comprehensive enough for me to definitively say I know why the Blackout is so important.
The way Silvera handles the LGBTQ protagonist in this book is just weird. Like Emil being gay is used more as a selling point for this 'inclusive fantasy' rather than it being an actual character trait. It's thrown out there at the weirdest moments and totally glossed over. Like you need occasional reminders that the protagonist is queer. At one point I actually found myself surprised that Emil hadn't randomly mused about his sexuality in quite a few pages. Then literally on the next page, there it was. Inserted in the strangest context just to raise a flag and remind the reader that this is an LGBTQ fantasy.
Honestly... It feels like this is a first book rather than a fourth or fifth by an author.
Overall, I'm just really disappointed. But I have faith. Silvera is an amazing author, and I really hope the second book blows away the first. The premise is interesting, with fantasy creatures and magical powers being a part of every day common life. (Funko Pops are mentioned quite a few times through out the novel.) I think it could really be a good series if it just had more of the voice I've come to expect from Silvera's work.
First DNF ever. This book was just confusing from the start, and I didn’t come to love any of the characters involved, and I got just over 8 whole chapters in. I will admit, the Phoenix differentiation was a cool aspect, but I just found this book hard to follow and jumpy and did not amount to a reading experience I was enjoying. I want to give Adam Silvera another go with, say, ‘they both die at the end’ or another well loved book by him, but this one just did not do anything for me, which is disappointing.
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes