A review by kyarabereading
Spontaneous by Aaron Starmer

dark emotional funny inspiring fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I can’t find the right words to describe this book, but if I had to describe it in a few words, I would use these: addicting, funny, and honest. This book does a good job of showing how the world would react to a situation like this, who/what they would try to blame, and how quickly things would spin out of control. The book is very dark and morbid, but I think Starmer does a pretty good job of balancing it out with the sense of humor displayed in the book.

The characters, their relationships and the choices they make seem pretty realistic (all things considered) and it made me feel very immersed into the world Starmer created. Starmer captures the reality of being a teenager in modern times pretty well. (At times, it can be cringy, but what book about teenagers isn’t?) The characters aren’t perfect - they make mistakes, they say and do dumb shit, they do drugs, they drink, they have sex, they do whatever it is teenagers do. And I appreciated seeing that sort of honesty and reality represented on paper. 

I will say that the narrating style isn’t for everybody, but over time I grew to love it. It felt like Mara is telling me all the juicy details of the happenings of her hometown, taking me along for the ride. It’s very conversational, which is not something I’m used to, but I liked how Mara described people and her surroundings. It was cool seeing the world through her eyes, and I couldn’t imagine the book being written any other way.

Spontaneous is fun. It’s imperfect. It’s tragic. It’s real - in a way that I didn’t expect, might I add. I dont think it will be everyone’s cup of tea, but I enjoyed reading it! 
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