Reviews with content warning for Kidnapping - The One

I brought this book on vacation and it proved a good beach read - short chapters from different character’s POV that ended in mini-cliffhangers. While it was a real page turner, I was having more fun with family and too tired to read at night so didn’t finish it until I got home. The book had a Black Mirror-esque vibe, leaving the characters and the reader feeling wary and to heed, “be careful what you wish for.” I didn’t feel the choices some of the characters (namely

Spoiler

Ellie, Sally, and Amy

) made in the end felt accurate to their previous depictions, which brought my rating down.

Content Warnings

chityty's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

I loved this book and it’s slow descent into seemingly madness.

What starts as stories of biologically destined loves begins to turn into some more thought provoking. Something darker.

And it gets darker still.

John Marrs’ reads like an episode of Black Mirror and with that comes both the hope and the destruction that new technology can have on a society. I finished the book not knowing if I wanted DNA Matches to be real or if the scenarios presented were enough of a deterrent. I’ll be thinking of this book and it’s message for a while.

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nadia's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

This book wins points because, despite the clunky, amateur-seeming, writing, and cringe dialogue and asides (which sometimes felt a little sexist), I was curious to see how pretty much all of the different storylines played out. There were a couple of good surprises packed into this. Some things were rather too convenient, but that can be hard to avoid with books of this style!

Content Warnings