A review by charmaineac
Kids of Appetite by David Arnold

1.0

This book was just... too pretentious for me. The lead up was kind of long-winded. The Kids of Appetite didn't resonate with me. They were a wandering bunch of misfits, and I can't even comprehend a childhood/young-adulthood like theirs. In some ways, they lived admirably. But at other times, I was kinda over their schtick. Does that make me a bad person?

I also don't think the link between the two deaths was all that significant. In fact, they felt like two very separate incidents. One could argue that the second would have happened regardless of whether the first did. They probably would have been better off — no "hat for evidence," no DNA on the antlers... but everything else still could have happened.

Also, I found it hard to suspend my disbelief with a lot of these characters. The diner situation was kind of ridiculous. And what was up with Vic's mother? Why would she waste so much money waiting somewhere with no cell service? If she knew what Vic was up to, and considering she was in contact with the police, wouldn't it have made 10x more sense if the police went searching for this missing child? Especially since she pretty much knew what he was planning to do, but couldn't catch up to him in time. Rationally, how would Vic even make his way from Hackensack to Manhattan? Her actions really didn't make much sense.

A lot of the characters didn't have many redeeming qualities to them. I wish we got some closure on Frank's kids, who seemed just awful. And I felt uncomfortable with the Coco storyline. I know we "don't have to know," but it still felt like such a loose end.