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homosexual 's review for:
The City Beautiful
by Aden Polydoros
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for giving me an ARC! That doesn't affect my review in any way.
First: yes this is a 3 stars from me, but I legit think its just a me thing and not a book thing. I can tell a lot of the YA audience is already loving it, so obviously it just didn't click with me.
My favorite part of the book was probably Raizel and I wish we got more of her! I also did like the mystery element that is what is pushing the story forward throughout. Even though that is our main conflict it felt like the novel was split 50/50 between the plot and character growth for Alter. That isn't a bad thing! However I was hoping for more leaning on the mystery side and less on the character side.
Yes, there is queer romance in this, but I wouldn't go out to grab this JUST for the romance aspect. It isn't a major plot element, though it is quite clear that they are together. There are only a few scenes that I would call "romantic". This isn't a critique either, just a warning for those getting this. It IS mostly focused on the mystery/character as I stated. There is romance, but it is definitely like the C or D plot. Not the main focus.
Honestly where I think this wasn't a hit for me was pacing (and again the fact that I just don't think this worked for me). There were a few points where I felt like it had been awhile since the plot had gotten a push so certain parts did definitely feel much slower compared to the rest. Whereas for me, also the big climatic final chapters ALSO felt kinda sluggish to read. Maybe its just a me thing but I just wasn't getting as much OOMPF as I was hoping. Another issue is the fact the possession isn't explictly stated until the book is almost half over. That is a LONG time for a synopsis point to not be hit/addressed. Like yes we know something is amiss, but it felt so obvious because we as readers know what the problem is. And yet our main cast hadn't gotten to that point yet. I think part of it is just the length which made it feel like it took extra long. (The book is almost 500 pages so 40% is roughly 200 pages in, and we still hadn't gotten possession confirmation).
This was an entertaining and informative time, but I don't know if I'll read it again (actually, who knows maybe now that I am more aware of the plot focus I'd be able to enjoy it more???).
Definitely pick this up if you want to read historical fiction focused on Jewish characters, with a spooky mystery that also manages to hit on some heavy themes.
First: yes this is a 3 stars from me, but I legit think its just a me thing and not a book thing. I can tell a lot of the YA audience is already loving it, so obviously it just didn't click with me.
My favorite part of the book was probably Raizel and I wish we got more of her! I also did like the mystery element that is what is pushing the story forward throughout. Even though that is our main conflict it felt like the novel was split 50/50 between the plot and character growth for Alter. That isn't a bad thing! However I was hoping for more leaning on the mystery side and less on the character side.
Yes, there is queer romance in this, but I wouldn't go out to grab this JUST for the romance aspect. It isn't a major plot element, though it is quite clear that they are together. There are only a few scenes that I would call "romantic". This isn't a critique either, just a warning for those getting this. It IS mostly focused on the mystery/character as I stated. There is romance, but it is definitely like the C or D plot. Not the main focus.
Honestly where I think this wasn't a hit for me was pacing (and again the fact that I just don't think this worked for me). There were a few points where I felt like it had been awhile since the plot had gotten a push so certain parts did definitely feel much slower compared to the rest. Whereas for me, also the big climatic final chapters ALSO felt kinda sluggish to read. Maybe its just a me thing but I just wasn't getting as much OOMPF as I was hoping. Another issue is the fact the possession isn't explictly stated until the book is almost half over. That is a LONG time for a synopsis point to not be hit/addressed. Like yes we know something is amiss, but it felt so obvious because we as readers know what the problem is. And yet our main cast hadn't gotten to that point yet. I think part of it is just the length which made it feel like it took extra long. (The book is almost 500 pages so 40% is roughly 200 pages in, and we still hadn't gotten possession confirmation).
This was an entertaining and informative time, but I don't know if I'll read it again (actually, who knows maybe now that I am more aware of the plot focus I'd be able to enjoy it more???).
Definitely pick this up if you want to read historical fiction focused on Jewish characters, with a spooky mystery that also manages to hit on some heavy themes.