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A review by bmg20
The Way We Fall by Megan Crewe
3.0
“Most people think the scariest thing is knowing that you’re going to die. It’s not. It’s knowing you might have to watch every single person you’ve ever loved – or even liked – waste away while you just stand there.”
There was something extremely enjoyable about this novel that I loved from the very start but unfortunately resulted in a mediocre overall opinion. The writing pace was very slow and detailed which reminded me a lot of The Age of Miracles (which I loved). I enjoy a slow build-up every now and then just as long as the climax is well worth it (which... hmm... what climax?). The writing style was at times difficult to grasp as it's written in the form of journal entries/letters to a friend that Kaelyn no longer speaks to; a friend left the island before the virus came to be.
I loved the storyline for one reason alone: the possibility that something like this could truly happen was terrifying. The symptoms of the virus were described so well that when one of the infected had an itch that just wouldn't go away I found myself feeling it too (at which point I had to take an immediate break and go walk outside). Something happened though around 60% when I came to the realization that the slow-paced and lack of build-up didn't appear to actually be leading to anything. And then there was the 'big revelation' as to why some people were surviving and some weren't... I was hoping for a bit more interesting of a reason. So I started losing interest. Life slowly kept getting worse but life went on, there was a predictable group of people that began doing anything they could to make others lives miserable... it was definitely lacking.
Other Random Issues
*I can't remember a YA I've read, ever, that didn't include a romance. (I'm sure I have but I really can't think of one off the top of my head). But in this particular case I felt it was completely unnecessary and really should have been left out for the better.
*So Kaelyn was able to review all of these medical records and determine the correlation between all the survivors. Maybe she's a genius (although considering she's 16 and only taking high school Algebra I'd have to say no). It was all incredibly far-fetched that she could figure out a way to save the human race but in moments of crisis is constantly forgetting to WEAR THE DAMN FACE MASK.
*And uh... birds?
*All this talk about self-defense training and I don't see a single kimora or choke hold. Lame.
There was something extremely enjoyable about this novel that I loved from the very start but unfortunately resulted in a mediocre overall opinion. The writing pace was very slow and detailed which reminded me a lot of The Age of Miracles (which I loved). I enjoy a slow build-up every now and then just as long as the climax is well worth it (which... hmm... what climax?). The writing style was at times difficult to grasp as it's written in the form of journal entries/letters to a friend that Kaelyn no longer speaks to; a friend left the island before the virus came to be.
I loved the storyline for one reason alone: the possibility that something like this could truly happen was terrifying. The symptoms of the virus were described so well that when one of the infected had an itch that just wouldn't go away I found myself feeling it too (at which point I had to take an immediate break and go walk outside). Something happened though around 60% when I came to the realization that the slow-paced and lack of build-up didn't appear to actually be leading to anything. And then there was the 'big revelation' as to why some people were surviving and some weren't... I was hoping for a bit more interesting of a reason. So I started losing interest. Life slowly kept getting worse but life went on, there was a predictable group of people that began doing anything they could to make others lives miserable... it was definitely lacking.
Other Random Issues
*I can't remember a YA I've read, ever, that didn't include a romance. (I'm sure I have but I really can't think of one off the top of my head). But in this particular case I felt it was completely unnecessary and really should have been left out for the better.
*So Kaelyn was able to review all of these medical records and determine the correlation between all the survivors. Maybe she's a genius (although considering she's 16 and only taking high school Algebra I'd have to say no). It was all incredibly far-fetched that she could figure out a way to save the human race but in moments of crisis is constantly forgetting to WEAR THE DAMN FACE MASK.
*And uh... birds?
Spoiler
How in the hell can a bird completely change your mind about throwing yourself off a cliff? That made no sense. And was kinda dumb.*All this talk about self-defense training and I don't see a single kimora or choke hold. Lame.