khairun_atika's review against another edition
3.0
This is the tragic story of the mismatched couple who "shares" a soul, Micah and Janie. Janie and Micah. They are inspiring and dynamic and explosive and unstoppable. But their friendship is also a secret. It does not help that Janie has a boyfriend and Micah truly loves her, and is the only one who truly understands her. Janie is a vibrant young girl with big dreams and big ideas, and big plans that could either be pranks or wonderful surprises for the people she loves. And Micah is with her for every adventure. This is sort of reminiscent of Paper Towns by John Green. Except Janie wishes so much to be found and loved and appreciated, and this is where the world ends for her - Janie was both bullied and worshipped by her peers, and she struggles to find herself, with Micah quietly reaching out to her. Zhang's writing is beautifully poetic and poignant, albeit the slightly scattered plot. Still, this is a truly engaging and heartbreaking story.
bexcody's review against another edition
5.0
This book made me cry so much!!! It was so beautifully written in the way the time and perspective changes. I was so captivated and didn’t want to put it down!
madsmreads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
fatimareadsbooks's review against another edition
3.0
Thanks to HarperCollins for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way impacted my views & opinions below.
This is the first Amy Zhang book I’ve ever picked up. All I could say is that it was so-so. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the writing but… I can’t say the same about the story itself. I tend to usually steer clear of books with poetic or nonlinear prose because I feel like the writing kind of takes away from the reader’s ability to connect with the story. I don’t know, maybe it’s just the books that I’ve read, but so far, I haven’t encountered a single book written in nonlinear prose that still left me able to empathize with the characters and their story. (Except for [b:We Were Liars|16143347|We Were Liars|E. Lockhart|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1402749479s/16143347.jpg|21975829]).
Let me tell you, when I started reading this book, I was confused for 35% of it. That was probably because of Micah. He didn’t even know what was going on around him and his forgetfulness made him a very unreliable narrator. Janie, on the other hand, was a bit more of a complex character. She was sweet and naïve, yes, but she was also rude to people and obnoxious. She has so many personality traits that her character gave me a whiplash sometimes. However, the extremes of her personality were very compelling to read about. Her fairytale fantasies were whimsical and quirky which I think contrasted with Micah’s bleak grayness. Even though I couldn’t connect with either of them, it was interesting to read about their downward spiral and the toxicity of their relationship with each other and other people.
What bothered me about this story was the way Janie treated Micah. Micah would do anything for Janie, which she was quite aware of, and Janie used that to manipulate him. Why did she tell him she loved him and then date other people? Why did she ignore him at school but talk to him outside it? Janie practically had Micah at her beck-and-call and he was too spineless to do something about it. In a weird/sick way, it was fascinating watching all of this unfold.
The main factor that irked me about this book was its predictability. It was obvious where the story was going, which made it lack a sense of urgency. The inability to connect with any of the characters contributed to that, too. Yes, Janie and Micah were two very emotional narrators but it was just very difficult to devote myself to their story. Also, was it just me or was the ending extremely lacking? So many loose ends, unanswered questions and zero impact. When I finished the book, it was less of an “oh damn” moment and more of an “oh okay” moment.
There are so many conflicting emotions about this book. The writing was magnificent and outstanding, but the story itself failed to pull me in. The unreliable narrators were very hard to connect with and the story was predictable. I adored the writing but disliked the story. The struggle is real. I won’t be dissuaded by this book, though. I’ve heard tons of good things about Amy Zhang’s [b:Falling into Place|18163646|Falling into Place|Amy Zhang|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1393613084s/18163646.jpg|25526485] so I will definitely be giving that shot!
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This is the first Amy Zhang book I’ve ever picked up. All I could say is that it was so-so. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the writing but… I can’t say the same about the story itself. I tend to usually steer clear of books with poetic or nonlinear prose because I feel like the writing kind of takes away from the reader’s ability to connect with the story. I don’t know, maybe it’s just the books that I’ve read, but so far, I haven’t encountered a single book written in nonlinear prose that still left me able to empathize with the characters and their story. (Except for [b:We Were Liars|16143347|We Were Liars|E. Lockhart|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1402749479s/16143347.jpg|21975829]).
Let me tell you, when I started reading this book, I was confused for 35% of it. That was probably because of Micah. He didn’t even know what was going on around him and his forgetfulness made him a very unreliable narrator. Janie, on the other hand, was a bit more of a complex character. She was sweet and naïve, yes, but she was also rude to people and obnoxious. She has so many personality traits that her character gave me a whiplash sometimes. However, the extremes of her personality were very compelling to read about. Her fairytale fantasies were whimsical and quirky which I think contrasted with Micah’s bleak grayness. Even though I couldn’t connect with either of them, it was interesting to read about their downward spiral and the toxicity of their relationship with each other and other people.
What bothered me about this story was the way Janie treated Micah. Micah would do anything for Janie, which she was quite aware of, and Janie used that to manipulate him. Why did she tell him she loved him and then date other people? Why did she ignore him at school but talk to him outside it? Janie practically had Micah at her beck-and-call and he was too spineless to do something about it. In a weird/sick way, it was fascinating watching all of this unfold.
The main factor that irked me about this book was its predictability. It was obvious where the story was going, which made it lack a sense of urgency. The inability to connect with any of the characters contributed to that, too. Yes, Janie and Micah were two very emotional narrators but it was just very difficult to devote myself to their story. Also, was it just me or was the ending extremely lacking? So many loose ends, unanswered questions and zero impact. When I finished the book, it was less of an “oh damn” moment and more of an “oh okay” moment.
There are so many conflicting emotions about this book. The writing was magnificent and outstanding, but the story itself failed to pull me in. The unreliable narrators were very hard to connect with and the story was predictable. I adored the writing but disliked the story. The struggle is real. I won’t be dissuaded by this book, though. I’ve heard tons of good things about Amy Zhang’s [b:Falling into Place|18163646|Falling into Place|Amy Zhang|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1393613084s/18163646.jpg|25526485] so I will definitely be giving that shot!
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sanmeow's review against another edition
janie and micah are best friends and supposedly opposites. the author throws in a completely nonsensical and triggering plot twist. micah is very confused. that's the plot. and i hated it!
janie was an irritating character. she's supposed to be charming but that simply isn't, based on my impression. she likes art and nature and whatnot. janie and micah do not act like friends at all. micah is in love with her and janie spends all her time leading him on and pretty much attempting to ruin his life for whatever reason. they have completely unnatural conversations in which janie seems to be unable not to start manipulating micah in the most insane ways.
since the plot wasn't going anywhere, the author decided to we move on with the plot and then, the second micah stands up for himself and tells janie that she's being a horrible person to him,
i'm so serious, i have no idea what was going through the author's head when writing this. and the rest of the book is just micah being blamed for everything under the sun. absolutely terrible. no idea what the message is supposed to be here. the way this author handled sexual assault is absolutely disgusting. wouldn't recommend this to literally anyone ever.
janie was an irritating character. she's supposed to be charming but that simply isn't, based on my impression. she likes art and nature and whatnot. janie and micah do not act like friends at all. micah is in love with her and janie spends all her time leading him on and pretty much attempting to ruin his life for whatever reason. they have completely unnatural conversations in which janie seems to be unable not to start manipulating micah in the most insane ways.
since the plot wasn't going anywhere, the author decided to
Spoiler
use sexual assault as a way to progress the story. it made me feel very uncomfortable.Spoiler
she takes her own life.i'm so serious, i have no idea what was going through the author's head when writing this. and the rest of the book is just micah being blamed for everything under the sun. absolutely terrible. no idea what the message is supposed to be here. the way this author handled sexual assault is absolutely disgusting. wouldn't recommend this to literally anyone ever.
leslielikesthings's review against another edition
3.0
Good writing and a non-linear storytelling style, which is totally my jam. However the emotional resolutions felt rushed and didn't really work for me. It dealt with important themes, and if I was less aware of the issues already I think I would have found them more powerful. I'm older than the intended audience though, and I think it might have been more impactful if the concepts were newer to me. (Staying vague to avoid spoilers.)
ficklefever's review against another edition
3.0
WHOA yeah definitely was not expecting that particular plot point to happen, but it definitely went there
very enjoyable writing style — makes me want to read FALLING INTO PLACE even more than i already did, if only because i was left feeling kind of unsatisfied with the characters in this novel. like individually i loved janie and micah but when they're together they're just AWFUL with each other and i couldn't connect with their weird pseudo-ultra-friendship at all?? if you're gonna go the whole "everything is shitty, let's be shitty together" route, you need to make the relationship somewhat likable overall
but still a great, fast read that i breezed through for the mystery elements of it & the stellar writing
very enjoyable writing style — makes me want to read FALLING INTO PLACE even more than i already did, if only because i was left feeling kind of unsatisfied with the characters in this novel. like individually i loved janie and micah but when they're together they're just AWFUL with each other and i couldn't connect with their weird pseudo-ultra-friendship at all?? if you're gonna go the whole "everything is shitty, let's be shitty together" route, you need to make the relationship somewhat likable overall
but still a great, fast read that i breezed through for the mystery elements of it & the stellar writing
andreafiggy's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Spoiler
The biggest part of the book that you're searching for is that Janie is dead, Janie set the house fire, and Micah had absolutely nothing to do with either things. Okay? I figured that out very, very early on; I'm not feeling a groundbreaking change.Zhang's writing style was, without a doubt, the biggest thing drawing me through this book. Though her imagery and character movements did sometimes feel subpar, the ideas and themes as a whole felt really interesting and beautiful. Not to mention the journal pages throughout the book – EXTREMELY creative. The plot, too, though rather easy to figure out from the jump (and I can always entertain a book that has a familiar plot line or set of tropes), was a well-written reflection on young minds and desperations.
Besides that, I finished this book not liking a single character. (Maybe the English teacher.) Not a single one of them received any sort of closure or comeuppance.
Spoiler
Micah, for instance, recovered his memory and just. Decides to go to Nepal? Which doesn't deviate him from the person that Janie pulled around? He just takes up her dream? And I can understand Ander not receiving his punishment – hear, hear, to modern day justice – but Piper, who watched a girl get raped, gets her confession included in a very strange page and a half of her showing up out of nowhere and slapping Micah. Janie, perhaps, feels like the one who received the most well-rounded conclusion, but by the time you get to it, I can't even like her character very much to feel as much sympathy as I wish I had.It's Thirteen Reasons Why with a sunshine-girl-meets-introvert-sad-guy trope, and I wish it had been handled a bit better.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide, Suicide attempt, Death, Sexual harassment, Bullying, Rape, and Sexual assault
Minor: Death of parent
sc104906's review against another edition
1.0
Micah wakes up in a hospital and has severe memory problems. His best friends house has burnt down and many people have gotten hurt, but he has no idea why. The police keep questioning his involvement and his friend/family, Dewey, won't give him any answers. Where is Janie Vivien? What happened that night?
Janie Vivien hates her parents money and their new house. She loves Virginia Woolf quotes, art, and living life to the fullest. Her perspective describes the relationship between her and Micah and the events leading up to the tragic bonfire.
I just can't. This book was like a sub-par imitation of Looking for Alaska. Janie has the excitement and drive to live life, but no actual direction. This character is not likable and presents herself as being smarter than she is. The overwhelming amount of inside jokes between the friends detracts from the story and I just didn't care to figure it out. Crazy amount of cursing going on in this book.
Janie Vivien hates her parents money and their new house. She loves Virginia Woolf quotes, art, and living life to the fullest. Her perspective describes the relationship between her and Micah and the events leading up to the tragic bonfire.
I just can't. This book was like a sub-par imitation of Looking for Alaska. Janie has the excitement and drive to live life, but no actual direction. This character is not likable and presents herself as being smarter than she is. The overwhelming amount of inside jokes between the friends detracts from the story and I just didn't care to figure it out. Crazy amount of cursing going on in this book.
bryonycostello's review against another edition
3.0
I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
This book may be unsuitable for people under 17 years of age due to its use of sexual content, drug and alcohol use, and/or violence.
This review was originally posted on my blog, Of Literature & Lipstick.
Okay…I have conflicting opinions on Amy Zhang’s second novel. I adored her first, Falling Into Place, and quite enjoyed the premise of This Is Where the World Ends, but unfortunately I was left disappointed.
I ENJOYED THE FOLLOWING ELEMENTS…
* Amy Zhang’s writing is incredible. It creates a whimsical feeling, one as though you are floating on clouds made of marshmallows. She is incredible talented. She has a distinctive style of writing which I appreciate in authors.
* Her descriptions of settings and characters are super realistic.
* The atmosphere of the writing and storyline is akin to The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson which is a novel that I really enjoyed.
* Dewey’s character reminded me of Ronan from The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater. I love Ronan’s character despite his flaws and issues, so I had an appreciation for Dewey despite not overly enjoying him.
Okay, that doesn’t seem like a lot, but hear me out – her writing is truly something magical.
I DIDN’T ENJOY…
* The fact that Janie seemed like another Margo Roth-Spiegleman from Paper Towns. Both Janie and Margo are interesting, but they’re not particularly nice people. They’re manipulative and expect people to do as they please with next to nothing in return. They ignore their “best friend” or the boy they love in school and treating them with no respect.
* It’s okay for authors to have one writing style and stick to writing what they know/what they write best, but for me this was way too similar in feel and storyline to Falling Into Place.
* The formatting is confusing at times. This book is written in a non-linear form, which is fine if it’s formatted correctly. While “before” and “after” are labelled at the beginning of the chapter, it is often unclear immediately as to whether Janie or Micah is narrating the said chapter as they have very similar voices and all of the chapters are written in present tense/first person.
* Janie and Micah go on ninja-like espionage’s much like Q and Margo in Paper Towns. It sometimes felt as though I was reading a retelling of Paper Towns.
*
* The ending was too quick and clean for a book full of so many complications and emotions.
Amy Zhang is without a doubt a talented writer, and I’d love to read some of her future work if it was a different type of story. Ultimately for me though, This Is Where the World Ends was just too similar to several other stories that it didn’t stick out or feel like anything special.
This book may be unsuitable for people under 17 years of age due to its use of sexual content, drug and alcohol use, and/or violence.
This review was originally posted on my blog, Of Literature & Lipstick.
Okay…I have conflicting opinions on Amy Zhang’s second novel. I adored her first, Falling Into Place, and quite enjoyed the premise of This Is Where the World Ends, but unfortunately I was left disappointed.
I ENJOYED THE FOLLOWING ELEMENTS…
* Amy Zhang’s writing is incredible. It creates a whimsical feeling, one as though you are floating on clouds made of marshmallows. She is incredible talented. She has a distinctive style of writing which I appreciate in authors.
* Her descriptions of settings and characters are super realistic.
* The atmosphere of the writing and storyline is akin to The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson which is a novel that I really enjoyed.
* Dewey’s character reminded me of Ronan from The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater. I love Ronan’s character despite his flaws and issues, so I had an appreciation for Dewey despite not overly enjoying him.
Okay, that doesn’t seem like a lot, but hear me out – her writing is truly something magical.
I DIDN’T ENJOY…
* The fact that Janie seemed like another Margo Roth-Spiegleman from Paper Towns. Both Janie and Margo are interesting, but they’re not particularly nice people. They’re manipulative and expect people to do as they please with next to nothing in return. They ignore their “best friend” or the boy they love in school and treating them with no respect.
* It’s okay for authors to have one writing style and stick to writing what they know/what they write best, but for me this was way too similar in feel and storyline to Falling Into Place.
* The formatting is confusing at times. This book is written in a non-linear form, which is fine if it’s formatted correctly. While “before” and “after” are labelled at the beginning of the chapter, it is often unclear immediately as to whether Janie or Micah is narrating the said chapter as they have very similar voices and all of the chapters are written in present tense/first person.
* Janie and Micah go on ninja-like espionage’s much like Q and Margo in Paper Towns. It sometimes felt as though I was reading a retelling of Paper Towns.
*
Spoiler
Janie was raped. I don’t like the way that Amy Zhang wrote about rape. It was written as though it wasn’t a major deal despite Janie clearly not coping with the rape. The rape is what triggered her to set her house on fire and then drown herself.* The ending was too quick and clean for a book full of so many complications and emotions.
Amy Zhang is without a doubt a talented writer, and I’d love to read some of her future work if it was a different type of story. Ultimately for me though, This Is Where the World Ends was just too similar to several other stories that it didn’t stick out or feel like anything special.