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nicowill's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
befsk's review against another edition
2.0
I can understand why some people might like this book but I am definitely not one of those people. It was too... Pleased with itself. Too ready to make hipster/nerdy references. The characters were too obnoxious, too random.
I think random is probably the best word to describe the book. I've never been a fan of random. I'm just not sure what I'm supposed to have 'got' from forcing myself to trudge through this one. And despite only supposedly being just over 300 pages, it was a real slog. We'd get going on something interesting and then we'd shift focus and I'd be left disillusioned and uninterested all over again. Being children went on too long. Being friends went on too long. Being not friends went on too long.
Random: Patricia's sister being an animal torturer. Random: the guy who was made of uncontrollable nature and couldn't leave his bookstore. Random: the fate (or purpose in the first place) of Mr Rose.
Bizarre book that I just could not immerse myself in, which is odd because the writing itself wasn't terrible. It was the lack of characters I could relate to or even like, it was the plot that staggered around drunk, it was the - now I think about it - utterly garbage dialogue.
Honestly, maybe if I hadn't read this so soon after reading Armada by Ernest Cline, I might not have disliked it so much, but the writing in this reminded me of Cline's writing to a small degree, mostly the smug references to things I either didn't grasp because they're not of my generation or because they're referencing something unexplained in the context of the book. I hate that. Why do sci-fi writers do this? It's jarring.
I think random is probably the best word to describe the book. I've never been a fan of random. I'm just not sure what I'm supposed to have 'got' from forcing myself to trudge through this one. And despite only supposedly being just over 300 pages, it was a real slog. We'd get going on something interesting and then we'd shift focus and I'd be left disillusioned and uninterested all over again. Being children went on too long. Being friends went on too long. Being not friends went on too long.
Random: Patricia's sister being an animal torturer. Random: the guy who was made of uncontrollable nature and couldn't leave his bookstore. Random: the fate (or purpose in the first place) of Mr Rose.
Bizarre book that I just could not immerse myself in, which is odd because the writing itself wasn't terrible. It was the lack of characters I could relate to or even like, it was the plot that staggered around drunk, it was the - now I think about it - utterly garbage dialogue.
Honestly, maybe if I hadn't read this so soon after reading Armada by Ernest Cline, I might not have disliked it so much, but the writing in this reminded me of Cline's writing to a small degree, mostly the smug references to things I either didn't grasp because they're not of my generation or because they're referencing something unexplained in the context of the book. I hate that. Why do sci-fi writers do this? It's jarring.
pfreeland's review against another edition
3.0
Magic vs technology. Started out well but meandered along in the middle and really fell over at the end. Shame really because the characters were great and the story seemed interesting for a while.
juliabittorf's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
katken's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
amlynch's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
appledaxh's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
willowwitch's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
rthr's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
regina_184's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
1.75
This book has a really interesting plot but honestly I was left disappointed. The beginning of the book seemed a little too lighthearted with funny plot lines regarding the cheesecake factory. Then the book became very depressing and I almost stopped reading around page 150. But then the theme changed again and it became interesting as the characters became adults. Although the last 3rd of the book is better, I still didn't enjoy the constant change of tone.
Regarding the actual plot I think a lot of the most interesting parts of the book ( witchcraft and technological improvements) are overshadowed and left me wanting more.
Focusing on the writing quality, I found it odd that the characters live in the US but sometimes use phrases from the UK like 'wanker', so it distracted me from the plot and took away from the story.
Overall, not a terrible book but I disliked the ending and felt like a lot of the best aspects of the book were glossed over, so I don't think I would recommend this.
Regarding the actual plot I think a lot of the most interesting parts of the book ( witchcraft and technological improvements) are overshadowed and left me wanting more.
Focusing on the writing quality, I found it odd that the characters live in the US but sometimes use phrases from the UK like 'wanker', so it distracted me from the plot and took away from the story.
Overall, not a terrible book but I disliked the ending and felt like a lot of the best aspects of the book were glossed over, so I don't think I would recommend this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying