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A review by iam
Arctic Wild by Annabeth Albert
4.0
Arctic Wild is very much an Annabeth Albert book, with which I mean it's the exact same formula I've seen from this author before. If [b:Arctic Sun|42354665|Arctic Sun (Frozen Hearts, #1)|Annabeth Albert|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1549648632s/42354665.jpg|66003456] and [b:Rough Terrain|41121276|Rough Terrain (Out of Uniform #7)|Annabeth Albert|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1538585079s/41121276.jpg|64243038] had a book child, this would be it, minus the military character background.
Which isn't to say Arctic Wild was boring - I enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed those other two books - it was just predictable in how the story would be structured and when key events would occur.
Content warnings include: plane crash, stuck in wilderness, fear of flying, heavy injuries from the crash (multiple fractures, character spends rest of the book in casts and a wheelchair,) one character is a workaholic, antagonistic parent; mentions of more heavy injury leading to disability, death of parents and brief custody battle.
I enjoyed reading this for the most part. I loved corporate lawyer and workaholic Reuben's transformation from reluctance, only doing the trip to prove that he can, and wanting to constantly check his phone for emails, to genuinely enjoying himself, falling in love with Alaska, overcoming his fears and reconnecting with his daughter.
Toby, the pilot and tour guide assigned to Reuben's trip, doesn't have quite such a nice arc. He starts out pretty even keeled, and even when his life gets turned upside down he mostly keeps his cool and ability to work his charm. It's only when his family and how the accident affects them comes into play that he crumbles.
What I didn't like was the conflict (though luckily it was rather short and resolved quickly.) It's strongly connected to Toby's dad, who I disliked. He's not a hateful or malicious character, but his pride and suspiciousness of outsiders was off-putting, especially with how he tries to push these sentiments onto his son.
On the flipside I adored the rest of the plot around the protagonist's families. There's Nell, Toby's youngest sister (with a few appearances of his other sister Hannah) and especially Amelia, Reuben's daughter, was a delight. I loved Amelia both as a character (and wasn't that like looking back at parts of myself when I was a teen!) and how her relationship with both Toby and Reuben develops. I really liked how she wasn't reduced to a stereotype, like the little princess or the tough-cool-girl like protagonist's kids are often handled: instead she was a complex character with a lot of quirks, flaws and many different interests.
There was a lovely little side plot about Toby connecting with Amelia by teaching her about his Native Alaskan, specifically Athabaskan, heritage, just like his mother used to teach him.
Something that stood out to me and that I strongly disliked was how a character saying "I'm not interested in relationships" was immediately met with "I bet you'll change your mind someday." This happened two times, with the characters not wanting relationships being two different ones and the one replying the same in both scenes. In the second instance it's at least followed up with the admittance that nothing is wrong with not wanting relationships, but it still grated.
That also made it weird that Toby, who definitely says he's not interesting in a relationship, then obviously ends up in one.... while his previous disinterest is never really mentioned again.
The romance plot still works and I mostly liked it, though I wish there had been a bit more explicit conversation around it from time to time.
I received an ARC and reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
Which isn't to say Arctic Wild was boring - I enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed those other two books - it was just predictable in how the story would be structured and when key events would occur.
Content warnings include: plane crash, stuck in wilderness, fear of flying, heavy injuries from the crash (multiple fractures, character spends rest of the book in casts and a wheelchair,) one character is a workaholic, antagonistic parent; mentions of more heavy injury leading to disability, death of parents and brief custody battle.
I enjoyed reading this for the most part. I loved corporate lawyer and workaholic Reuben's transformation from reluctance, only doing the trip to prove that he can, and wanting to constantly check his phone for emails, to genuinely enjoying himself, falling in love with Alaska, overcoming his fears and reconnecting with his daughter.
Toby, the pilot and tour guide assigned to Reuben's trip, doesn't have quite such a nice arc. He starts out pretty even keeled, and even when his life gets turned upside down he mostly keeps his cool and ability to work his charm. It's only when his family and how the accident affects them comes into play that he crumbles.
What I didn't like was the conflict (though luckily it was rather short and resolved quickly.) It's strongly connected to Toby's dad, who I disliked. He's not a hateful or malicious character, but his pride and suspiciousness of outsiders was off-putting, especially with how he tries to push these sentiments onto his son.
On the flipside I adored the rest of the plot around the protagonist's families. There's Nell, Toby's youngest sister (with a few appearances of his other sister Hannah) and especially Amelia, Reuben's daughter, was a delight. I loved Amelia both as a character (and wasn't that like looking back at parts of myself when I was a teen!) and how her relationship with both Toby and Reuben develops. I really liked how she wasn't reduced to a stereotype, like the little princess or the tough-cool-girl like protagonist's kids are often handled: instead she was a complex character with a lot of quirks, flaws and many different interests.
There was a lovely little side plot about Toby connecting with Amelia by teaching her about his Native Alaskan, specifically Athabaskan, heritage, just like his mother used to teach him.
Something that stood out to me and that I strongly disliked was how a character saying "I'm not interested in relationships" was immediately met with "I bet you'll change your mind someday." This happened two times, with the characters not wanting relationships being two different ones and the one replying the same in both scenes. In the second instance it's at least followed up with the admittance that nothing is wrong with not wanting relationships, but it still grated.
That also made it weird that Toby, who definitely says he's not interesting in a relationship, then obviously ends up in one.... while his previous disinterest is never really mentioned again.
The romance plot still works and I mostly liked it, though I wish there had been a bit more explicit conversation around it from time to time.
I received an ARC and reviewed honestly and voluntarily.