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A review by etinney
Reboot by Amy Tintera
3.0
3.25 out of 5 stars
I really need to stop being so harsh on YA dystopians. I am the one that keeps reading them.
In my attempt to clean out my TBR, I came across this book. I decided it was interesting enough and read it. It was exactly that: interesting enough.
Wren was an alright protagonist. Her status at the beginning made it very easy to see her progression throughout the book. Her development is a little unrealistic, however. She pretty instantly changes when a pretty boy smiles at her. Callum was sometimes a little too goofy and humorous for me. He was supposed to oppose Wren's character, but sometimes both of them proved to be caricatures. I did not think the relationship was really a problem until I remembered the time frame. It definitely was some insta-love.
The plot was alright to me. It stayed in the typical YA dystopian framework with the necessary changes to make it unique. I do wish the world had been explained more though. At one point, they mentioned something about a war ravaging the land and never mentioned it again. There is no real scientific explanation for the Reboots (I love when science explains things in dystopians, which is probably why I didn't hate Allegiant like everyone else). My biggest problem with YA dystopians is that the actions of the evil government are never explained. Often the things they do seem entirely unnecessary. This was not as bad as some others, but I do think the government is unusually cruel for no reason. The ending was extremely convenient and easy. I was waiting for something bad to happen to them during the big action scene at the end and besides a couple of hiccups, they were totally fine.
I listened to this on audiobook. The narrator was pretty easy to listen to, though there was nothing spectacular about it.
The one thing that was really great to me was the perspective on sex. It's like teenagers actually have sex in a safe and respectful manner. I like how it was treated as a norm in this book, and even though the main character didn't participate for a variety of reasons, she did not judge others. Also, there is a part where consent is explicitly a focus of the conversation and actually followed. I really hope other YA authors follow Tintera in this aspect. Teenagers have sex and that is a fact that should be mentioned more in YA without being preachy and judgmental. It did not detract from the story, and it did not make it unsuitable to read for younger YA. Healthy views of sex in YA should be more prevalent. Younger readers need to understand consent and healthy sexual relationships; this should not be taboo.
Overall, this book was entertaining. I will read the sequel because I am curious as to what happens, but I am not extremely eager about it.
I really need to stop being so harsh on YA dystopians. I am the one that keeps reading them.
In my attempt to clean out my TBR, I came across this book. I decided it was interesting enough and read it. It was exactly that: interesting enough.
Wren was an alright protagonist. Her status at the beginning made it very easy to see her progression throughout the book. Her development is a little unrealistic, however. She pretty instantly changes when a pretty boy smiles at her. Callum was sometimes a little too goofy and humorous for me. He was supposed to oppose Wren's character, but sometimes both of them proved to be caricatures. I did not think the relationship was really a problem until I remembered the time frame. It definitely was some insta-love.
The plot was alright to me. It stayed in the typical YA dystopian framework with the necessary changes to make it unique. I do wish the world had been explained more though. At one point, they mentioned something about a war ravaging the land and never mentioned it again. There is no real scientific explanation for the Reboots (I love when science explains things in dystopians, which is probably why I didn't hate Allegiant like everyone else). My biggest problem with YA dystopians is that the actions of the evil government are never explained. Often the things they do seem entirely unnecessary. This was not as bad as some others, but I do think the government is unusually cruel for no reason. The ending was extremely convenient and easy. I was waiting for something bad to happen to them during the big action scene at the end and besides a couple of hiccups, they were totally fine.
I listened to this on audiobook. The narrator was pretty easy to listen to, though there was nothing spectacular about it.
The one thing that was really great to me was the perspective on sex. It's like teenagers actually have sex in a safe and respectful manner. I like how it was treated as a norm in this book, and even though the main character didn't participate for a variety of reasons, she did not judge others. Also, there is a part where consent is explicitly a focus of the conversation and actually followed.
Spoiler
When Callum and Wren are close to having sex, he actually shows proper respect for her and understands that consent must be enthusiastic. He does not take advantage of her naivety on it or her apprehensive yes.Overall, this book was entertaining. I will read the sequel because I am curious as to what happens, but I am not extremely eager about it.