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A review by theknightswhosaybook
Planet Adyn by M.L. Wang
4.0
I'll be honest, I didn't go into this book expecting to love it. The blurb just didn't grab me, so I wouldn't have started reading it at all if not for the recommendation of a friend whose opinions I trust. And this book is now another reason why I trust those opinions.
Joan has spent her entire life teaching herself to pass as ordinary — hiding her superhuman strength, practicing her supernatural abilities in secret, making herself practically invisible at school and to her disappointing parents. She thought she was alone with her strange powers. But when Daniel and his father move into her small, dull town and immediately brighten it up, Joan realizes she's not the only one who can do things that should be impossible… and somewhere, there are answers to why she's like this.
I'm a sucker for friendship stories over romance stories. I loved Joan and Daniel, and the relationship between Daniel and his fathereven with that terrible thing the author did to us in the end! . And while the book was a little slow to grab my attention, once it got me interested in how Joan figured out her powers I was hooked. All the world building we got of Duna, even while still on Earth, was fascinating, and I'm very excited for the second book to come out and bring us deeper into this world (and I want answers to that cliffhanger!).
But that brings us to the things that denied this book a full five stars. I wish it stood on its own as a story a little more. It's a fascinating exposition, but still just an exposition. We learn a lot about Duna and Joan's powers that I assume we'll need for the next book, but not a lot about what happened in this one. Most of the answers are as hidden from us as they are to Joan and Daniel, and while that's a brilliant way to make us sympathize and share their frustration, it's still…. you know, frustrating. It was more dialogue and explanation than plot. Again, I enjoyed all that, but to me it seems like part one of a two part book, not an entire book. (Which will bother me less once the second book is actually available, I'm sure)
Also, a few notes about the age of the characters: Joan is thirteen, so we can assume her classmates are in that range too… yet there are dramatic breakup scenes between kids in her classes specifically described, and one girl who's always described as aggressively flirting with whoever is in the scene. Maybe I'm the one mixing up ages here, but I think the author forgot she put her main character in middle school for a moment there. I mean, thirteen-year-olds haven't had much time to form on-and-off-again relationships have they? (…have they?)
Well. Those things aside. I enjoyed this book, and I think you would too.
Joan has spent her entire life teaching herself to pass as ordinary — hiding her superhuman strength, practicing her supernatural abilities in secret, making herself practically invisible at school and to her disappointing parents. She thought she was alone with her strange powers. But when Daniel and his father move into her small, dull town and immediately brighten it up, Joan realizes she's not the only one who can do things that should be impossible… and somewhere, there are answers to why she's like this.
I'm a sucker for friendship stories over romance stories. I loved Joan and Daniel, and the relationship between Daniel and his father
But that brings us to the things that denied this book a full five stars. I wish it stood on its own as a story a little more. It's a fascinating exposition, but still just an exposition. We learn a lot about Duna and Joan's powers that I assume we'll need for the next book, but not a lot about what happened in this one. Most of the answers are as hidden from us as they are to Joan and Daniel, and while that's a brilliant way to make us sympathize and share their frustration, it's still…. you know, frustrating. It was more dialogue and explanation than plot. Again, I enjoyed all that, but to me it seems like part one of a two part book, not an entire book. (Which will bother me less once the second book is actually available, I'm sure)
Also, a few notes about the age of the characters: Joan is thirteen, so we can assume her classmates are in that range too… yet there are dramatic breakup scenes between kids in her classes specifically described, and one girl who's always described as aggressively flirting with whoever is in the scene. Maybe I'm the one mixing up ages here, but I think the author forgot she put her main character in middle school for a moment there. I mean, thirteen-year-olds haven't had much time to form on-and-off-again relationships have they? (…have they?)
Well. Those things aside. I enjoyed this book, and I think you would too.