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A review by oashackelford
Breakup from Hell by Ann Dávila Cardinal
3.0
Mica is working in the bookstore when she meets the hottest guy she has ever seen in her life, and he is in the store looking for a book by her favorite author! And he seems interested in her! Her friends Zee, Barry and Rage all think that this guy seems to good to be true, and they might be right. Ever since Sam came to town weird things have been happening to Mica and her friends. But Sam is the most interesting thing ever to happen to Mica, even if her gut is telling her that something is off. Who listens to their guy anyways, he can't be that off right?
I thought this was an okay read, but I think that the book could have benefitted from a little more world building to make the big moments feel more earned. Mica and Zee spend a lot more time with Sam and learning about him than they do looking into their own families secrets, so towards the end of the book when they start learning their secrets those moments feel like explainers used to justify the action currently taking place rather than earned information that the characters learn how to use to their advantage. As a reader it is too hard to make accurate predictions about the characters because they don't know enough or find out enough information to tip the reader off in any direction, except, of course, for the big obvious twist in the book.
I just think that if the characters had the option to learn about and use the information given to them, instead of trying it out on the fly without knowing anything, then the book would have been better.
It seems like the author was trying to leave room for a sequel, but I think she would have been better served building up the world in this book a little bit better so that if there was a sequel I could have been more excited about it. It's not a bad read, but it also won't stay with me, and I probably won't read the next one, if she writes one.
I thought this was an okay read, but I think that the book could have benefitted from a little more world building to make the big moments feel more earned. Mica and Zee spend a lot more time with Sam and learning about him than they do looking into their own families secrets, so towards the end of the book when they start learning their secrets those moments feel like explainers used to justify the action currently taking place rather than earned information that the characters learn how to use to their advantage. As a reader it is too hard to make accurate predictions about the characters because they don't know enough or find out enough information to tip the reader off in any direction, except, of course, for the big obvious twist in the book.
I just think that if the characters had the option to learn about and use the information given to them, instead of trying it out on the fly without knowing anything, then the book would have been better.
It seems like the author was trying to leave room for a sequel, but I think she would have been better served building up the world in this book a little bit better so that if there was a sequel I could have been more excited about it. It's not a bad read, but it also won't stay with me, and I probably won't read the next one, if she writes one.