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staceyjade92 's review for:
Avery
by Charlotte McConaghy
I read this book after hearing it highly recommended by my sister. It could be that I just enjoy disagreeing with her but it appears I'm more likely to find flaws after someone else has said how much they loved a book.
The concept of the story was interesting and I did enjoy the tension in the first half as the 2 main characters, Ava and Ambrose, got to know each other. I looked forward to seeing how Ambrose would react to the revelation that his new friend was actually a woman, but it seemed that all too soon the pair were declaring their love for each other. What happened to the slow build up? It was confusing how fast their feelings changed from hatred, to love, to anger and back again. Running away only to have him catch up and take her in his arms, enough times for it to feel repetitive.
Unfortunately there were also moments where details were glossed over and I was distracted from what I was reading wondering how something was able to come about.
{The following contains spoilers}
For example, when they were staying in the Kayan village on the prison isle, Ambrose was kept in his room, fed gruel and had guards stationed outside. These people didn't trust him, yet when he and Ava visited the temple, he just happened to have his sword still on him and came close to killing the warder with no consequence? There were many other inconsistencies, all of which stopped me from being able to relate to the characters or care overly much what happened to them.
Everything just seemed a little too easy to be believable. The unexpected twist at the end of the book that resulted in a character death felt rushed rather than shocking. How convenient that there was a poison in existence that everyone but the royal family will fall victim to upon smelling it... If something so large hinges on that fact, perhaps it should have been mentioned prior to this part of the story.
Overall it wasn't a terrible book or I wouldn't have finished it. This is one of those stories where it's probably best not to overthink the minor details, just enjoy the story for a bit of light reading and the different character point of views.
Will I read the rest of the series? Yes most likely.
Would I recommend it? Probably not for everyone.
The concept of the story was interesting and I did enjoy the tension in the first half as the 2 main characters, Ava and Ambrose, got to know each other. I looked forward to seeing how Ambrose would react to the revelation that his new friend was actually a woman, but it seemed that all too soon the pair were declaring their love for each other. What happened to the slow build up? It was confusing how fast their feelings changed from hatred, to love, to anger and back again. Running away only to have him catch up and take her in his arms, enough times for it to feel repetitive.
Unfortunately there were also moments where details were glossed over and I was distracted from what I was reading wondering how something was able to come about.
{The following contains spoilers}
For example, when they were staying in the Kayan village on the prison isle, Ambrose was kept in his room, fed gruel and had guards stationed outside. These people didn't trust him, yet when he and Ava visited the temple, he just happened to have his sword still on him and came close to killing the warder with no consequence? There were many other inconsistencies, all of which stopped me from being able to relate to the characters or care overly much what happened to them.
Everything just seemed a little too easy to be believable. The unexpected twist at the end of the book that resulted in a character death felt rushed rather than shocking. How convenient that there was a poison in existence that everyone but the royal family will fall victim to upon smelling it... If something so large hinges on that fact, perhaps it should have been mentioned prior to this part of the story.
Overall it wasn't a terrible book or I wouldn't have finished it. This is one of those stories where it's probably best not to overthink the minor details, just enjoy the story for a bit of light reading and the different character point of views.
Will I read the rest of the series? Yes most likely.
Would I recommend it? Probably not for everyone.