Scan barcode
A review by aliena_jackson
Rated by Melissa Grey
3.0
This book could have been really interesting. Unfortunately, the rating system wasn't well developed, plot points were left unfinished, and the character development feels half-baked at best.
I have so many questions about the rating system, the biggest one being, "How does this work?" It's never explained in the book. Who all can give you ratings? Is there a limit to the number of ratings you can give a person in one day? How long do you have to wait until you give someone another rating? Theoretically, since Javi is a pro gamer, he should have ratings from fans pouring in. But we never see this. We instead see him getting docked by the school librarian for having his phone out during class, recieve one from Noah as a sign of approval, and is paid in positive ones by the company he endorses, Panthera. At one point, Javi says that the ratings are more valuable than currency. But how? Obviously they allow you to get into nicer private hospitals and access fancier grocery stores, but other than that, how are they more valuable than currency? In a way, we see this partly threshed out by Cece's storyline, and we are told that if she is forced to switch to Jackson General Hospital, the quality of care she will recieve will not be up to the standards of Magnolia Children's. Obviously, Noah's father loses his job, and as such, his ratings dip. But how is he not concerned about the cost of healthcare? Even if he were ot get his ratings up, who's going to pay for Cece's care. Both of Noah's parents don't have jobs. And speaking of Noah's father losing his job, this leads us into what I really want to discuss. The unfinished plot points in this book.
Obviously, we need to discuss the fact that Noah's father lost his job. Why, you ask? Because the newspaper he worked at shut its doors despite the fact that it's subscriptions were at "an all time high" according to Noah's father. When questioned about this, he simply says, "The press is a dying medium." Or something along those lines. When Bex learns of this, she notes how peculiar it is that both the school and the local newspaper have been shuttered. Neither one reopens before the end of the book. Additonally, Javi offers to break into the Magnolia Children's Hospital so he can improve Noah's dad's rating, but he never actaully does it. He talks about it in the end, but no action is taken. The only way I could think that this is acceptabel is if this was meant to be a series? Nothing I've seen indicates that this book will be continued. When Headmaster Wood welcomes the six to the resistence, we don't really know anything about it.
In addition to the woefully underdeveloped plot points, I was also upset by how little exposure each character is given. The book rotates between the six characters in a cycle, and when something happens to one chacter, it feels rushed, because the last time you heard from them was SIX CHAPTERS AGO. Noah and Javi could have had a really interesting romance, if they hadn't started dating 72 hours after they met and confessed their deepest darkest secrets to each other within the first 24. It could have been really interesting to see how their ratings were affected as a result of their relationship, but it's never even mentioned.
This book feels underwhelming. It took me awhile to get through it, because I just got bored with most of the characters. Hana has an eating disorder and briefly mentions in the epilogue that she's going to see a specialist for eating disorders. Tamsin- what is she? What is her character supposed to be? And how does her mom afford to send her to Maplethorpe? Chase just- moves out of his abusive father's home and moves in with his secret girlfriend? What is happening. If this book wasn't so mediocre I would be outraged, but I'm too tired to pretend I care at this point. If you're reading this review and you haven't read the book, skip it. It's not worth the time.
I have so many questions about the rating system, the biggest one being, "How does this work?" It's never explained in the book. Who all can give you ratings? Is there a limit to the number of ratings you can give a person in one day? How long do you have to wait until you give someone another rating? Theoretically, since Javi is a pro gamer, he should have ratings from fans pouring in. But we never see this. We instead see him getting docked by the school librarian for having his phone out during class, recieve one from Noah as a sign of approval, and is paid in positive ones by the company he endorses, Panthera. At one point, Javi says that the ratings are more valuable than currency. But how? Obviously they allow you to get into nicer private hospitals and access fancier grocery stores, but other than that, how are they more valuable than currency? In a way, we see this partly threshed out by Cece's storyline, and we are told that if she is forced to switch to Jackson General Hospital, the quality of care she will recieve will not be up to the standards of Magnolia Children's. Obviously, Noah's father loses his job, and as such, his ratings dip. But how is he not concerned about the cost of healthcare? Even if he were ot get his ratings up, who's going to pay for Cece's care. Both of Noah's parents don't have jobs. And speaking of Noah's father losing his job, this leads us into what I really want to discuss. The unfinished plot points in this book.
Obviously, we need to discuss the fact that Noah's father lost his job. Why, you ask? Because the newspaper he worked at shut its doors despite the fact that it's subscriptions were at "an all time high" according to Noah's father. When questioned about this, he simply says, "The press is a dying medium." Or something along those lines. When Bex learns of this, she notes how peculiar it is that both the school and the local newspaper have been shuttered. Neither one reopens before the end of the book. Additonally, Javi offers to break into the Magnolia Children's Hospital so he can improve Noah's dad's rating, but he never actaully does it. He talks about it in the end, but no action is taken. The only way I could think that this is acceptabel is if this was meant to be a series? Nothing I've seen indicates that this book will be continued. When Headmaster Wood welcomes the six to the resistence, we don't really know anything about it.
In addition to the woefully underdeveloped plot points, I was also upset by how little exposure each character is given. The book rotates between the six characters in a cycle, and when something happens to one chacter, it feels rushed, because the last time you heard from them was SIX CHAPTERS AGO. Noah and Javi could have had a really interesting romance, if they hadn't started dating 72 hours after they met and confessed their deepest darkest secrets to each other within the first 24. It could have been really interesting to see how their ratings were affected as a result of their relationship, but it's never even mentioned.
This book feels underwhelming. It took me awhile to get through it, because I just got bored with most of the characters. Hana has an eating disorder and briefly mentions in the epilogue that she's going to see a specialist for eating disorders. Tamsin- what is she? What is her character supposed to be? And how does her mom afford to send her to Maplethorpe? Chase just- moves out of his abusive father's home and moves in with his secret girlfriend? What is happening. If this book wasn't so mediocre I would be outraged, but I'm too tired to pretend I care at this point. If you're reading this review and you haven't read the book, skip it. It's not worth the time.