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A review by sarahannkateri
Pinned by Sharon G. Flake
2.0
Adonis is an ultra-smart, ultra-motivated teenager, loved by all of his teachers and destined for greatness despite being in a wheelchair. Autumn is his total opposite - a skilled athlete who can barely read and who makes her teachers despair. Despite their differences, Autumn is convinced that she loves Adonis, and she's going to make him fall for her too, no matter how much work it takes...
I liked The Skin I'm In by Flake, but did not think this was very good at all. Adonis was a ridiculously conceited jerk, and Autumn was an insane stalker, so it was hard to empathize with or root for either of them. The Peaches/Adonis being cousins subplot could have been interesting and given Adonis depth, but it fell flat. Autumn's struggles with reading and math were the only things that really felt authentic and fleshed out, and I wish the book had focused more on that and less on her crush on Adonis.
The writing had some real problems too, which I found strange for such an established writer. Adonis's internal monologue was stilted and robotic, and the way events were presented was incredibly unclear (not just when Flake was writing in Autumn's voice either...) I had to re-read multiple passages to understand what had just happened. As far as Adonis goes, there could be a really great book written about someone with a disability who overcompensates by trying to be perfect at everything & holding everyone else to incredibly high standards, but this isn't that book.
I guess some teen girls might like this, but it won't be my first choice to recommend.
I liked The Skin I'm In by Flake, but did not think this was very good at all. Adonis was a ridiculously conceited jerk, and Autumn was an insane stalker, so it was hard to empathize with or root for either of them. The Peaches/Adonis being cousins subplot could have been interesting and given Adonis depth, but it fell flat. Autumn's struggles with reading and math were the only things that really felt authentic and fleshed out, and I wish the book had focused more on that and less on her crush on Adonis.
The writing had some real problems too, which I found strange for such an established writer. Adonis's internal monologue was stilted and robotic, and the way events were presented was incredibly unclear (not just when Flake was writing in Autumn's voice either...) I had to re-read multiple passages to understand what had just happened. As far as Adonis goes, there could be a really great book written about someone with a disability who overcompensates by trying to be perfect at everything & holding everyone else to incredibly high standards, but this isn't that book.
I guess some teen girls might like this, but it won't be my first choice to recommend.