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A review by liz_ross
These Broken Stars by Meagan Spooner, Amie Kaufman
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
After reading this book I don't think I will ever let myself trust a pretty cover again. Well, I probably won't be able to stop myself from doing that - pretty covers are my weakness -, but this book made me wish I could.
I still can't believe that a book with such a pretty cover can be so, so bad. It's just... I can't even describe how bad it is. There's just not a single thing that can save this book. And this is said by someone that always tries to find at least one positive thing about every single book.
Let's see... The world? Typical science-fiction world. But it could have been interesting, you know? It had a lot of potential. But it wasn't developed at all. It was just a background for the characters to move and the story to be developed.
A story that is nothing but a romance, by the way. Every single thing that happens is meant to force Lilac and Tarver to get closer to each other. There's this whole world to be explored, all these unimaginable possibilities, all these dangers that could have showed up, all this discoveries that could have been made. And it's all ignored for the sake of romance. Nothing happened if it couldn't help Lilac and Tarver's relationship.
It gets to the point of having no action whatsover. Every single thing is an excuse for them to profess their 💫love💫 for each other. It's sappy, it's unbearable. It made me wish I could have my eyes removed just so I had an excuse to stop reading (because my stupid ass seems to have no idea what DNFing is and insists on finishing every single book, no matter how bad it is or how long it takes).
It could have been a great romance even if it's sappy, couldn't it? Well, it could. But it isn't. It starts with Tarver and Lilac hating each other for no good reason. Actually they seem to hate each other for no reason at all. Unless we can count Lilac's stupidity as an acceptable reason.
I mean, Lilac and Tarver meet and it feels like this whole thing will be instalove (which would most likely have been better, because worst than this would have been impossible). And then the authors seem to think, "Oh wait! Why shouldn't they hate each other before falling in love?!". And bam, out of nowhere and for no good reason, Lilac and Tarver hate each other and are making my reading experience misarable, because they do nothing but complain about each other. Eventually they start making peace and I found myself dealing with the unbearable sappy romance I was complaining about before.
And as I said, it could have been good. Just like the world, it had potential. If Lilac and Tarver could have found a reasonable explanation for hating each other and the plot was more than excuses for them to fall in love and then profess that love, this could have been great. I mean, two survivors who hate each other in an unknown planet, not sure what they could find or if there was any chance of them being rescued? IT COULD HAVE BEEN SO GOOD!!
Of course, it would also need characters that could be interesting on their own. Which doesn't happen either. Lilac is the sterotype of a rich girl who is not "like other girls". Tarver is another sterotype - the boy from a poor family who does something memorable and heroic but feels like he doesn't deserve the fame and praises he receives. The problem with sterotypes is that their personalities are sterotyped as well, making everything they do predictable. Along with that, they are also annoying as they do nothing but complaining about being stuck with each other.
After all this, I bet you are thinking that it can't get worse. Well, it can. And it did. You see, as I've already said I don't DNF books. So, there I was, still reading, believing there was no way it could get worse, my last brain cells still working begging me to stop. And finally I reach the last chapters. And WHAT THE FU-- HELL?! If the body was gone, if there was an explanation, if it could make just a little sense, I wouldn't have complained. But the body is there, there's no explanation, it makes no sense. The plot was destroyed for the sake of love. So was the ending. The book could have redeemed itself in the end. Instead it only got worse. Beyond any salvation. Whatever the Lilac in ending of the book is, it's wrong. Tarver seriously needs therapy. And I need a new set of brain cells, because the ones I had commited suicide after reading that.
Overall, one of my biggest regrets ever. There's just no salvation for this book. Nothing about it is developed enough or makes enough sense for this book to be interesting. And I am quite sure too many of my brain cells commited suicide while I was reading for me to ever fully recover from the experience.
I still can't believe that a book with such a pretty cover can be so, so bad. It's just... I can't even describe how bad it is. There's just not a single thing that can save this book. And this is said by someone that always tries to find at least one positive thing about every single book.
Let's see... The world? Typical science-fiction world. But it could have been interesting, you know? It had a lot of potential. But it wasn't developed at all. It was just a background for the characters to move and the story to be developed.
A story that is nothing but a romance, by the way. Every single thing that happens is meant to force Lilac and Tarver to get closer to each other. There's this whole world to be explored, all these unimaginable possibilities, all these dangers that could have showed up, all this discoveries that could have been made. And it's all ignored for the sake of romance. Nothing happened if it couldn't help Lilac and Tarver's relationship.
It gets to the point of having no action whatsover. Every single thing is an excuse for them to profess their 💫love💫 for each other. It's sappy, it's unbearable. It made me wish I could have my eyes removed just so I had an excuse to stop reading (because my stupid ass seems to have no idea what DNFing is and insists on finishing every single book, no matter how bad it is or how long it takes).
It could have been a great romance even if it's sappy, couldn't it? Well, it could. But it isn't. It starts with Tarver and Lilac hating each other for no good reason. Actually they seem to hate each other for no reason at all. Unless we can count Lilac's stupidity as an acceptable reason.
I mean, Lilac and Tarver meet and it feels like this whole thing will be instalove (which would most likely have been better, because worst than this would have been impossible). And then the authors seem to think, "Oh wait! Why shouldn't they hate each other before falling in love?!". And bam, out of nowhere and for no good reason, Lilac and Tarver hate each other and are making my reading experience misarable, because they do nothing but complain about each other. Eventually they start making peace and I found myself dealing with the unbearable sappy romance I was complaining about before.
And as I said, it could have been good. Just like the world, it had potential. If Lilac and Tarver could have found a reasonable explanation for hating each other and the plot was more than excuses for them to fall in love and then profess that love, this could have been great. I mean, two survivors who hate each other in an unknown planet, not sure what they could find or if there was any chance of them being rescued? IT COULD HAVE BEEN SO GOOD!!
Of course, it would also need characters that could be interesting on their own. Which doesn't happen either. Lilac is the sterotype of a rich girl who is not "like other girls". Tarver is another sterotype - the boy from a poor family who does something memorable and heroic but feels like he doesn't deserve the fame and praises he receives. The problem with sterotypes is that their personalities are sterotyped as well, making everything they do predictable. Along with that, they are also annoying as they do nothing but complaining about being stuck with each other.
After all this, I bet you are thinking that it can't get worse. Well, it can. And it did. You see, as I've already said I don't DNF books. So, there I was, still reading, believing there was no way it could get worse, my last brain cells still working begging me to stop. And finally I reach the last chapters. And WHAT THE FU-- HELL?! If the body was gone, if there was an explanation, if it could make just a little sense, I wouldn't have complained. But the body is there, there's no explanation, it makes no sense. The plot was destroyed for the sake of love. So was the ending. The book could have redeemed itself in the end. Instead it only got worse. Beyond any salvation. Whatever the Lilac in ending of the book is, it's wrong. Tarver seriously needs therapy. And I need a new set of brain cells, because the ones I had commited suicide after reading that.
Overall, one of my biggest regrets ever. There's just no salvation for this book. Nothing about it is developed enough or makes enough sense for this book to be interesting. And I am quite sure too many of my brain cells commited suicide while I was reading for me to ever fully recover from the experience.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Death of parent