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booksums 's review for:
The Night Olivia Fell
by Christina McDonald
It’s difficult to decide whether or not I liked The Night Olivia Fell. Kind of. I think I just wanted to keep reading to confirm my own theories about Olivia’s fall, most of which were based on very obvious cues that sort of ruined the element of surprise. The mystery itself was simple, so it wasn’t difficult to piece together what would be revealed at the end of the book. This was disappointing because there was little shock value at all, and it made reading feel a bit tedious. There were some elements of the story that I wasn’t expecting, but they weren’t gratifying enough to be worth it and were just a bit cliche.
Apart from the plot, the characters were also just okay. Abi or Abigail Knight, Olivia’s mother, was probably my favourite, solely because of how well her character was developed throughout the story. She isn’t exactly likeable, but her motivations as a mother in the situation she was in were understandable (in some ways, at least). Though that isn’t to say that I liked her character or that it was well-written or well-developed, it was just miles ahead of the rest. The other characters weren’t treated as well as she was, not even her daughter Olivia, whose story the novel explores through a dual lens of her past and her mother’s present experiences. Her character was just as unlikeable, unfortunately. Even more so for characters like Madison, Tyler and Derek, who played significant roles throughout the entire story. These characters felt very one-dimensional, and their development, both as individuals and figures in Olivia’s life, was lacking. All of this, paired with the predictable plot (and lack thereof) along with the awkward dialogue, made The Night Olivia Fell pretty unremarkable.
The book itself wasn’t awful, which is why I gave it two stars instead of one, but I don’t think I’ll be reading any of the author’s other works anytime soon.
Apart from the plot, the characters were also just okay. Abi or Abigail Knight, Olivia’s mother, was probably my favourite, solely because of how well her character was developed throughout the story. She isn’t exactly likeable, but her motivations as a mother in the situation she was in were understandable (in some ways, at least). Though that isn’t to say that I liked her character or that it was well-written or well-developed, it was just miles ahead of the rest. The other characters weren’t treated as well as she was, not even her daughter Olivia, whose story the novel explores through a dual lens of her past and her mother’s present experiences. Her character was just as unlikeable, unfortunately. Even more so for characters like Madison, Tyler and Derek, who played significant roles throughout the entire story. These characters felt very one-dimensional, and their development, both as individuals and figures in Olivia’s life, was lacking. All of this, paired with the predictable plot (and lack thereof) along with the awkward dialogue, made The Night Olivia Fell pretty unremarkable.
The book itself wasn’t awful, which is why I gave it two stars instead of one, but I don’t think I’ll be reading any of the author’s other works anytime soon.