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A review by mishmashedmagic
The Spaceship Next Door by Gene Doucette
5.0
This book. Where to begin with this book. Honestly, this is absolutely everything that I ever wanted in a Sci-Fi novel that I didn't know I wanted. But let's start from the beginning. From the first page, I was immediately reminded of J.K. Rowling's humor. Now that is not to say that this book will read like a Harry Potter book, or that it's the exact same sort of humor, but Mr. Doucette has a unique writing wit that is just such a pleasure to read. The kind of humor that has you giggling under your breath. Constantly. I admit, there were times that it became almost a tiny bit repetitive but, for me, it never got to a point where it started taking away from the story. I was too busy giggling.
The story does not start off action packed (minus the part where, you know, A SPACESHIP LANDS ON EARTH), but that's okay because it really gave me a chance to get to know the characters. The main character is Annie, and she is by far one of my favorite characters of all time. Annie is sixteen, and what I appreciated most of all is that she is my kind of sixteen year old. She's not one of those girls that has half the town's boys pining after her while she's clueless, she's not 'endearingly' awkward, she's not angsty or whiny or any of that. She's witty, sarcastic, strong-willed and overall just wonderfully personable, which I haven't seen a lot in female lead characters. She's the kind of girl you really want to be friends with. (To be honest, for the first couple chapters I kept picturing Annie as a fourteen-year-old. I knew that she was sixteen, but I think I'm so used to reading about sixteen-year-olds talking and behaving so much older than they actually are that when someone in book actually acts like a sixteen-year-old, it throws me off).
But Annie is just the tip of the iceberg. There are so many unique, well-developed characters in this book, and you get to hear a little of everyone's backstory. No one feels like a plot device, and I love how little tidbits of information are tied into the book in just a perfect way. By the time the action started picking up, I felt like maybe I was a resident of Sorrow Falls as well.
Speaking of action, right around the halfway point of the book things really begin to pick up. It's like a snowball effect, really. Something small happens which builds into something bigger and bigger and before you know it it's 1a.m. and you really should be getting some sleep because your son is in a phase where he likes to wake up at 5:30 in the morning but you can't because holy-cow-what's-going-to-happen-next? (Okay maybe that 5:30 wake-up part is just me, but you get the point). I don't want to give anything away which is why I'm being so vague but the action picks up, gains momentum and then steadies out (in a good way) for the final couple chapters of the book.
I also loved the ending. It didn't feel rushed, or cliche or incomplete (I'm looking at you, Mr. Dashner), although there were one or two minor characters I felt were forgotten towards the end.
All in all, I cannot stop gushing about this book and I'm planning on picking up a physical copy for my bookshelf (I wish it came in hardcover!). If you like solid, well developed characters, witty, sarcastic humor and a complete story from beginning to end then you have to pick up this book. In my eyes, it's perfect.
The story does not start off action packed (minus the part where, you know, A SPACESHIP LANDS ON EARTH), but that's okay because it really gave me a chance to get to know the characters. The main character is Annie, and she is by far one of my favorite characters of all time. Annie is sixteen, and what I appreciated most of all is that she is my kind of sixteen year old. She's not one of those girls that has half the town's boys pining after her while she's clueless, she's not 'endearingly' awkward, she's not angsty or whiny or any of that. She's witty, sarcastic, strong-willed and overall just wonderfully personable, which I haven't seen a lot in female lead characters. She's the kind of girl you really want to be friends with. (To be honest, for the first couple chapters I kept picturing Annie as a fourteen-year-old. I knew that she was sixteen, but I think I'm so used to reading about sixteen-year-olds talking and behaving so much older than they actually are that when someone in book actually acts like a sixteen-year-old, it throws me off).
But Annie is just the tip of the iceberg. There are so many unique, well-developed characters in this book, and you get to hear a little of everyone's backstory. No one feels like a plot device, and I love how little tidbits of information are tied into the book in just a perfect way. By the time the action started picking up, I felt like maybe I was a resident of Sorrow Falls as well.
Speaking of action, right around the halfway point of the book things really begin to pick up. It's like a snowball effect, really. Something small happens which builds into something bigger and bigger and before you know it it's 1a.m. and you really should be getting some sleep because your son is in a phase where he likes to wake up at 5:30 in the morning but you can't because holy-cow-what's-going-to-happen-next? (Okay maybe that 5:30 wake-up part is just me, but you get the point). I don't want to give anything away which is why I'm being so vague but the action picks up, gains momentum and then steadies out (in a good way) for the final couple chapters of the book.
I also loved the ending. It didn't feel rushed, or cliche or incomplete (I'm looking at you, Mr. Dashner), although there were one or two minor characters I felt were forgotten towards the end.
All in all, I cannot stop gushing about this book and I'm planning on picking up a physical copy for my bookshelf (I wish it came in hardcover!). If you like solid, well developed characters, witty, sarcastic humor and a complete story from beginning to end then you have to pick up this book. In my eyes, it's perfect.