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A review by valpyre
Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger
Did not finish book. Stopped at 65%.
looking through the other books in the series it really is like, damn, mediocre books stay getting nice book covers
caveat i'm def not the target audience for this book but i don't think that disqualifies me from criticizing it
i honestly really wanted to like the MC of this book but she was written as such a mary sue it just completely put me off. it was so frustrating bc she had inherently good qualities that i really enjoyed reading about and tween struggles that i think younger readers could relate to. there was also an underlying current of grief that i thought added depth to her character and those around her that pleasantly surprised me, but not much more than that. to
overall, the worldbuilding of the super special and magical fantasy world was poorly executed and not compelling -- the book smugglers review of this book articulates this much better than i can.
i also found it really awkward how often it was pointed out/hinted that the boys at school (specifically her close-ish friends) were crushing on her -- it was so repetitive and discomfiting. this, of course, came along with all the other girls at school disliking her because of that.
i really tried to give this book a shot but i never found more redeeming qualities in it, and having had a peek at reviews of the other books in the series, i don't think i'm missing out on much. good for the author, get your bag, i guess.
caveat i'm def not the target audience for this book but i don't think that disqualifies me from criticizing it
i honestly really wanted to like the MC of this book but she was written as such a mary sue it just completely put me off. it was so frustrating bc she had inherently good qualities that i really enjoyed reading about and tween struggles that i think younger readers could relate to. there was also an underlying current of grief that i thought added depth to her character and those around her that pleasantly surprised me, but not much more than that. to
overall, the worldbuilding of the super special and magical fantasy world was poorly executed and not compelling -- the book smugglers review of this book articulates this much better than i can.
i also found it really awkward how often it was pointed out/hinted that the boys at school (specifically her close-ish friends) were crushing on her -- it was so repetitive and discomfiting. this, of course, came along with all the other girls at school disliking her because of that.
i really tried to give this book a shot but i never found more redeeming qualities in it, and having had a peek at reviews of the other books in the series, i don't think i'm missing out on much. good for the author, get your bag, i guess.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief