Scan barcode
A review by elizalicart
The Institute by Kayla Howarth
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
Howarth's style is, in my opinion, the opposite of immersive. Throughout the story, I felt trapped in a featureless void. The majority of the story was told, rarely shown, with lengthy periods of introspection and unimaginative descriptions of the physical world and whoever or whatever is in it.
Ignoring the writing, the premise held promise. The story is set in a post-pandemic Australia, where citizens are developing sometimes dangerous powers, and need to be contained and monitored by the Institute for the safety of themselves and the population at large. These people are labelled "Defective." Allira, the MC, has never quite trusted the Institute, least of all because her family and her Defective brother have been hiding in plain sight all her life—until Allira accidentally draws unwanted attention their way.
Unfortunately, the handling of the plot and the story's structure wasted a lot of the promise the premise held. The story began with a prologue which would have been better suited as a simple memory tucked somewhere into Chapter One. But the early chapters themselves felt dull, not for the lack of action but for the handling of the action. The characters also felt one-dimensional and inconsistent. It was not until roughly halfway through that the story revealed itself to be interesting enough to somewhat hook me. But before I knew it, it was quite suddenly over on a cliffhanger that jumped out of nowhere. There was no rising action, no climax, and no clear direction for the story to go.
If Howarth were to pull this book and try again, revamping the structure and giving her writing some flavour, The Institute has the capacity to be a great book (and series). But as it stands, I can't be confident that the next books won't have the same weaknesses to let the story down.
Ignoring the writing, the premise held promise. The story is set in a post-pandemic Australia, where citizens are developing sometimes dangerous powers, and need to be contained and monitored by the Institute for the safety of themselves and the population at large. These people are labelled "Defective." Allira, the MC, has never quite trusted the Institute, least of all because her family and her Defective brother have been hiding in plain sight all her life—until Allira accidentally draws unwanted attention their way.
Unfortunately, the handling of the plot and the story's structure wasted a lot of the promise the premise held. The story began with a prologue which would have been better suited as a simple memory tucked somewhere into Chapter One. But the early chapters themselves felt dull, not for the lack of action but for the handling of the action. The characters also felt one-dimensional and inconsistent. It was not until roughly halfway through that the story revealed itself to be interesting enough to somewhat hook me. But before I knew it, it was quite suddenly over on a cliffhanger that jumped out of nowhere. There was no rising action, no climax, and no clear direction for the story to go.
If Howarth were to pull this book and try again, revamping the structure and giving her writing some flavour, The Institute has the capacity to be a great book (and series). But as it stands, I can't be confident that the next books won't have the same weaknesses to let the story down.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Torture