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nickoliver's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This ended up being a bit disappointing towards the end, if I'm being honest. The atmosphere was pretty tense for the majority of the book and I didn't want to stop reading, but then the mystery got resolved in like ten pages. And I feel like there were some things that weren't wrapped up neatly enough, or wrapped up at all. That was bothersome.
I also really disliked the romance. In almost every scene with Carson, Sam was thirsting over him in some way or another, from the very first scene he was in. And I didn't understand why she constantly thought about him? She had amnesia, full-on hallucinations and a whole school that apparently hated her, and instead of focusing on those problems, she decided to be a bit brain-dead and just spent her time drooling over a boy. I did like Carson as a character, but I didn't really feel the chemistry between him and Sam.
I also found the writing in the romantic scenes to be really painfully corny; I actually ended up skim-reading some of those scenes. Sam pretty much waxed poetry about Carson, especially about his lips and his eyes, every chance she got. It got annoying very fast.
The book definitely would've been a lot better if there had been less of a romance; at times, I felt like this book was maybe 60% romance and 40% actual mystery. I would love to, just once, read a YA thriller/mystery that doesn't have romance in it, especially if the protagonist had amnesia.
The characters in this book I'm a bit on the fence about. I had some issues with Sam as a main character, not only because of the fact that she prioritised her love life way too much over literally everything else. It always took her so long to understand certain things. The fact that she used to be a bitch, for example. Literally everyone seemed to have stories about what a horrible person she used to be, and yet even after the millionth comment, she still kept reacting with utter bewilderment and a 'I said that? Are you sure? No way I could've said that, that was so mean!' She barely ever came to conclusions on her own, she always had to have others point things out for her. Plus, the way Armentrout wrote about her having to go to a therapist and having to go on meds rubbed me the wrong way; it was always seen as a negative thing and being described as something that only proved that she was crazy now.
I did find most of the other characters interesting. Many were extremely unlikeable and infuriating, and I strongly disliked how little Sam defended herself against their vitriol, but it made the story entertaining at times. Plus, they weren't meant to be liked, so I didn't find myself being angry that they weren't good people.
However, some characters were very one-dimensional; they were nothing but stereotypes. The mean girls, the douche-y boyfriend, the rich, snobby parents. There were so many privileged people in this story, it made me want to throw hands. The mean girls were also casually racist several times in this book, absolutely unprompted and also not being commented on by anyone? Everyone just accepted it? For example, Carson was called a "latin lover" at one point, and it made me feel gross, like they were fetishising him a bit. And none of it was challenged by the author. In any way, all these stereotypical characters had no real meat to them - they only acted within their respective roles, everything was very black-and-white.
I also felt a bit weird about the way amnesia was portrayed in this book. Especially the fact that Sam's personality did a 180 frustrated me. Armentrout wanted us to believe that Sam just went back to her roots- that she became the girl again she used to be before she met Cassie -, but she was a bitch for years ; you want to tell me amnesia is able to just erase all of that behaviour?
Throughout the book, Sam also had several hallucinations, and the way they were portrayed was so clichéd and ridiculous sometimes that I could barely take them seriously. So instead of making a scene tenser, they just made me crack up. Which probably wasn't the intended reaction.
It also really irked me that so many characters whose lives she made a living hell for a long time were so easily ready to accept her back into their circles. Especially Scott, Carson, and Julie - who Sam seemed to have despised for years - were way too okay with hanging out with her, without really thinking about her bitchy past self ever again. There was no real redemption arc for her, she was just conveniently a good person again.
Overall, though, like I said, I did find the story suspenseful. Most of the mystery had me intrigued, even if the climax was a bit disappointing. The characters were interesting, albeit a bit too stereotypical, and the way amnesia was portrayed was too unrealistic for me. Still, at the end of the day, it made for an entertaining read, for sure.
I also really disliked the romance. In almost every scene with Carson, Sam was thirsting over him in some way or another, from the very first scene he was in. And I didn't understand why she constantly thought about him? She had amnesia, full-on hallucinations and a whole school that apparently hated her, and instead of focusing on those problems, she decided to be a bit brain-dead and just spent her time drooling over a boy. I did like Carson as a character, but I didn't really feel the chemistry between him and Sam.
I also found the writing in the romantic scenes to be really painfully corny; I actually ended up skim-reading some of those scenes. Sam pretty much waxed poetry about Carson, especially about his lips and his eyes, every chance she got. It got annoying very fast.
The book definitely would've been a lot better if there had been less of a romance; at times, I felt like this book was maybe 60% romance and 40% actual mystery. I would love to, just once, read a YA thriller/mystery that doesn't have romance in it, especially if the protagonist had amnesia.
The characters in this book I'm a bit on the fence about. I had some issues with Sam as a main character, not only because of the fact that she prioritised her love life way too much over literally everything else. It always took her so long to understand certain things. The fact that she used to be a bitch, for example. Literally everyone seemed to have stories about what a horrible person she used to be, and yet even after the millionth comment, she still kept reacting with utter bewilderment and a 'I said that? Are you sure? No way I could've said that, that was so mean!' She barely ever came to conclusions on her own, she always had to have others point things out for her. Plus, the way Armentrout wrote about her having to go to a therapist and having to go on meds rubbed me the wrong way; it was always seen as a negative thing and being described as something that only proved that she was crazy now.
I did find most of the other characters interesting. Many were extremely unlikeable and infuriating, and I strongly disliked how little Sam defended herself against their vitriol, but it made the story entertaining at times. Plus, they weren't meant to be liked, so I didn't find myself being angry that they weren't good people.
However, some characters were very one-dimensional; they were nothing but stereotypes. The mean girls, the douche-y boyfriend, the rich, snobby parents. There were so many privileged people in this story, it made me want to throw hands. The mean girls were also casually racist several times in this book, absolutely unprompted and also not being commented on by anyone? Everyone just accepted it? For example, Carson was called a "latin lover" at one point, and it made me feel gross, like they were fetishising him a bit. And none of it was challenged by the author. In any way, all these stereotypical characters had no real meat to them - they only acted within their respective roles, everything was very black-and-white.
I also felt a bit weird about the way amnesia was portrayed in this book. Especially the fact that Sam's personality did a 180 frustrated me. Armentrout wanted us to believe that Sam just went back to her roots- that she became the girl again she used to be before she met Cassie -, but she was a bitch for years ; you want to tell me amnesia is able to just erase all of that behaviour?
Throughout the book, Sam also had several hallucinations, and the way they were portrayed was so clichéd and ridiculous sometimes that I could barely take them seriously. So instead of making a scene tenser, they just made me crack up. Which probably wasn't the intended reaction.
It also really irked me that so many characters whose lives she made a living hell for a long time were so easily ready to accept her back into their circles. Especially Scott, Carson, and Julie - who Sam seemed to have despised for years - were way too okay with hanging out with her, without really thinking about her bitchy past self ever again. There was no real redemption arc for her, she was just conveniently a good person again.
Overall, though, like I said, I did find the story suspenseful. Most of the mystery had me intrigued, even if the climax was a bit disappointing. The characters were interesting, albeit a bit too stereotypical, and the way amnesia was portrayed was too unrealistic for me. Still, at the end of the day, it made for an entertaining read, for sure.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Gun violence and Grief
Minor: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Homophobia, and Racism
Also obvious CW for amnesia, and also a CW for taking a picture of someone doing a sexual act without their consent and sending it out (wasn't sure what to tag this as)