Scan barcode
A review by bookph1le
Outcast by Adrienne Kress
3.0
There was a lot I liked about this book, but I wasn't entirely over the moon about it because there were some weaker points to it as well. It was very refreshing to read something that had a voice so different from most contemporary YA, though, which was a big part of what I liked about the book. Some spoilers to follow.
One of the high points of the book for me is Riley. She's very different from the typical YA character in that when she claims to be socially awkward, she is socially awkward. She's also smart, spunky, and not afraid of speaking her mind, even when it gets her into trouble. I liked her spark a lot, and I liked that she was so flawed because she felt like a real human being. Even though she tries to do the right thing, Riley also has moments of pure selfishness, especially at the end, and that made me like her all the more. It's nice to read a YA book with a very feisty main character.
Though I liked Gabe, I wasn't over the moon about him. The bad boy thing has been overplayed in YA, in my opinion. Yes, there are depths to Gabe, but those were kind of stereotypical as well, in the bad-boy-seeking-redemption sense. I did like how things went at the end, though.
As with most YA, the parental involvement is pretty minimal here (and unbelievable at times--especially when it comes to the living arrangements), but Riley's mother does a few key things that I was very happy to see. When she calls Riley on her behavior late in the book, I wanted to stand up and cheer. Riley's feelings are serious and are treated in a serious way, but it was fantastic to see her mother help her gain some perspective, and it's sad that it's such a rare occurrence in the genre.
Most of my issues with the book stemmed from the pacing. I loved they style and found it refreshing, but there were things in the book that just felt too superfluous to me, like the scene at Lacy's pool party. I think the same amount could have been accomplished with fewer words. I liked what I read, but there were times when I wondered when the book was going to get to the point, and that tempers my enjoyment. I don't mind long books, but I need to feel like all the detail needs to be there, but I didn't get that sense from this book.
The biggest wild card about this book, I think, is the ending. I can see where it might enrage a lot of fans of the genre. I wasn't entirely happy with it, but then again I thought it was the most realistic ending I've read in a YA book--if you can call anything about a paranormal book like this realistic. It's not the ending I would have liked to see, but it was one that made sense to me. In fact, it made a lot of sense, and I admired where Kress chose to go with it because there's a good message embedded in that choice. However, the ending also left me unsatisfied because it felt like there were some things up in the air that I wanted resolved, and it makes me wonder if maybe there will be a sequel or something. The arc of this story is pretty well tied up, but there are some rather loose plot threads. I'm sometimes okay with an ending that's left open, but I found it unsatisfying in this book.
One of the high points of the book for me is Riley. She's very different from the typical YA character in that when she claims to be socially awkward, she is socially awkward. She's also smart, spunky, and not afraid of speaking her mind, even when it gets her into trouble. I liked her spark a lot, and I liked that she was so flawed because she felt like a real human being. Even though she tries to do the right thing, Riley also has moments of pure selfishness, especially at the end, and that made me like her all the more. It's nice to read a YA book with a very feisty main character.
Though I liked Gabe, I wasn't over the moon about him. The bad boy thing has been overplayed in YA, in my opinion. Yes, there are depths to Gabe, but those were kind of stereotypical as well, in the bad-boy-seeking-redemption sense. I did like how things went at the end, though.
As with most YA, the parental involvement is pretty minimal here (and unbelievable at times--especially when it comes to the living arrangements), but Riley's mother does a few key things that I was very happy to see. When she calls Riley on her behavior late in the book, I wanted to stand up and cheer. Riley's feelings are serious and are treated in a serious way, but it was fantastic to see her mother help her gain some perspective, and it's sad that it's such a rare occurrence in the genre.
Most of my issues with the book stemmed from the pacing. I loved they style and found it refreshing, but there were things in the book that just felt too superfluous to me, like the scene at Lacy's pool party. I think the same amount could have been accomplished with fewer words. I liked what I read, but there were times when I wondered when the book was going to get to the point, and that tempers my enjoyment. I don't mind long books, but I need to feel like all the detail needs to be there, but I didn't get that sense from this book.
The biggest wild card about this book, I think, is the ending. I can see where it might enrage a lot of fans of the genre. I wasn't entirely happy with it, but then again I thought it was the most realistic ending I've read in a YA book--if you can call anything about a paranormal book like this realistic. It's not the ending I would have liked to see, but it was one that made sense to me. In fact, it made a lot of sense, and I admired where Kress chose to go with it because there's a good message embedded in that choice. However, the ending also left me unsatisfied because it felt like there were some things up in the air that I wanted resolved, and it makes me wonder if maybe there will be a sequel or something. The arc of this story is pretty well tied up, but there are some rather loose plot threads. I'm sometimes okay with an ending that's left open, but I found it unsatisfying in this book.