Reviews

This book started by being one I had to sit and pay attention to. I speed read, and that wasn’t applicable here. And then like with video games it felt like I was immersed and then it was over. Every character felt real. They had flaws and there was miscommunication and you wanted to shake characters and say “give them a break!” Or “be more generous” . But you never stop reading. There were parts I reread because they were heart wrenching (Act 7) and ones that I just pushed through (Act 9). I’m not a gamer by any means but I appreciated how well this encapsulated the feeling of gaming. And in the end you are both satisfied with the conclusion and waiting anxiously to continue the game.

Content Warnings

sylvestra's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Content Warnings

cherylzzzz's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring reflective sad tense 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? N/A

5.0

hanhob's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring reflective sad fast-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? Yes

5.0

I read AJ Fikrey back in high school and was intrigued to read the latest from Zevin. I enjoyed the book immensely, I think there was a lot of really poignant commentary about human nature and the relationships we have with one another.

I’ve seen criticism about the toxicity of the characters and some of abuse they suffered that was never fully “addressed” or resolved. I found a lot of these themes to be true to real life and don’t think it takes away from the book.

I will say, I think Zevin has a bit of a penchant for melodrama.

Spoiler

There was suicide and death in AJ Fikrey and suicide and death feature heavily in this book as well.

It feels almost a disservice to call this repeated theme melodramatic, since Zevin writes it so compellingly and heart-wrenchingly, but it did give me a little bit of a pause as it felt unnecessarily cruel. But hey, such is life.

As I said, I loved the book. I can see why it wouldn’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but I think it‘s the best book I’ve read in a long time.

Content Warnings

clairebonneau's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Loved this book - my fav read of the year so far!

jsandy's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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