A review by kristyndcruz
This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I wanted to read this book because I have always been interested in school shootings and understanding them. I was hoping this book would be such a good read because I haven’t seen any other books that revolve around this topic. However, this book was just okay. It wasn’t as good as I thought or hoped it would be. I understand  that it was an important topic and supposed to be like real life, but I wanted more of a book story with drama and plot twists. I didn’t really like the way this was written. I also wish there was a POV into the shooter’s mind. There were POVS of all the main characters, except the shooter. I wish there could have been at least one with his mindset. There wasn’t really any real explanation for why it happened and why e did it. It was exactly like real life, without any explanation sometimes, but I wish n this particular book there was. It would be perfect if you were looking for a story that is exactly like real life, but I think I was looking for a story. I also thought the characters were just okay. They each had their own complex backstory, but it wasn’t delved into enough. Thy also weren’t that loveable and I didn’t understand some of their problems and why they thought and acted the way they did.  I had only bonded to one specific character, which coincidentally was the only main character who died. Overall, I just expected more and didn’t really enjoy reading this book and they way t was written. I would recommend it for anyone who wants a true story that follows real life, but for anyone like me, I wouldn’t expect much.
“We’re more than our mistakes. We’re more than what people expect of us.”
“It doesn’t matter what comes mext as long as I keep moving forward.”
“Together we could be so strong, but the gun has made us individuals.”
“We’ll be stronger than our fear.”
“Some days you think you can’t go on because the only thing waiting for you is more despair. Some days you don’t want to go on because it’s easier to give up than to get hurt again.”
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