A review by nickyfox13
Panic by Lauren Oliver

4.0

I'm a little biased in regard of my feelings for Lauren Oliver and her writing, because the four books I've read of hers have become favorites of mine. As a result, I've come to expect good things from her.

This novel is from the dual points of view of two teenagers, Dodge and Heather, as they participate in town-wide game called Panic. The purpose of the game is for judges to set frightening, panic-inducing (hence the name) events; the winner is the person who beats every event and survives until the end, receiving prize money near the end. Although I found the premise to be interesting, it took me a while to become fully immerse myself into the story. There was something about the pacing I disliked. I found the pacing to be strange in how it moved forward, for lack of a more concrete description. However, when the plot picked up and the pacing found its footing, I was so immersed that I couldn't put it down. I'm not sure how I liked the dual points of view. Not because I dislike multiple viewpoints, but because I feel like the characters didn't get equal screentime to narrate and I would've liked to have seen more equality in terms of how much time they got to narrate. The end was exciting, and ended on a strong note. I'm glad this is a standalone novel (for now), because Dodge and Heather's plotlines were tied up pretty well and I feel like there's not much else to say that could take another novel. Throughout the novel, I wondered what the timeline was and if it took place in the present because there's a sense of modernity that implies it takes place in the present day, but it could easily take place somewhere in an alternate universe; despite my curiosity for clarification, I don't think knowing the exact time would've improved the book.