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maddie_can_read's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I loved the first novel in the series and felt like I couldn't put it down. I still enjoyed this novel but it did not feel as gripping as the first one did.
After about the 40% mark, I felt like it started to drag, get a bit convoluted, confusing, over-explained (but also some parts not explained enough). I feel like it's better to leave some mystery if the explanation is confusing/ murky/ not great. I think the difference between Shift and Wool might be because the first novel was originally a collection of several novellas combined? I think Shift would have benefited from being a lot shorter/ tighter. Shift just didn't fit together as nicely as Wool did.
I'm looking forward to seeing what Dust does to wrap things up.
The Jimmy/ Solo parts really reminded me of the Jimmy/Snowman character from Margaret Atwood's Oryx and Crake, but going into this detail about Jimmy made me wonder why Jimmy wasn't completely unhinged in the first novel when he met Juliette. He has been all by himself for 30 years.
I enjoyed the Donald/ Troy reveal but while interesting it wasn't surprising.
I wish the love between Donald and his wife had been more detailed/ believable because it didn't seem to make sense why Donald was so upset at loosing her (enough to kill) when it seemed like he was almost about to cheat on her at the beginning. I feel like I didn't understand why Donald was angry enough to kill, especially like the only ally/ person he liked from the before times. This was disappointing because I thought the depiction of romance in the first novel was pretty good.
I also wished we had seen more of the impact that murdering had on Donald and Jimmy. Especially Donald because he seemed so blase about it!
Also wished the Mission plotline had connected more? While I absolutely loved seeing the twist of them being reset, it felt like it should've connected more? Also did not get how they were reset.
After about the 40% mark, I felt like it started to drag, get a bit convoluted, confusing, over-explained (but also some parts not explained enough). I feel like it's better to leave some mystery if the explanation is confusing/ murky/ not great. I think the difference between Shift and Wool might be because the first novel was originally a collection of several novellas combined? I think Shift would have benefited from being a lot shorter/ tighter. Shift just didn't fit together as nicely as Wool did.
I'm looking forward to seeing what Dust does to wrap things up.
I enjoyed the Donald/ Troy reveal but while interesting it wasn't surprising.
I wish the love between Donald and his wife had been more detailed/ believable because it didn't seem to make sense why Donald was so upset at loosing her (enough to kill) when it seemed like he was almost about to cheat on her at the beginning. I feel like I didn't understand why Donald was angry enough to kill, especially like the only ally/ person he liked from the before times. This was disappointing because I thought the depiction of romance in the first novel was pretty good.
I also wished we had seen more of the impact that murdering had on Donald and Jimmy. Especially Donald because he seemed so blase about it!
Also wished the Mission plotline had connected more? While I absolutely loved seeing the twist of them being reset, it felt like it should've connected more? Also did not get how they were reset.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Suicide, and Violence
Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Excrement, Medical content, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual violence
lpdx's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
sophieamreacher's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Slow at times but intriguing, upsetting, and thought provoking. It will be interesting to see where book 3 goes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
theimposter's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, Medical content, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Suicide attempt, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic
monicalaurette's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
“Troy was tired of forgetting. He had decided to remember.”
I almost didn’t think this story was connected to Wool when I first read it. I was wondering almost the whole time how it all connected and if I would ever hear about Juliette again. But as the story went on I was enthralled again. I feel it’s a crime that I didn’t find this series when it first came out and I was still in such a large dystopian kick with my reading because I would have EATEN THIS UP back then. But hey better late than never to the party!
The jump between both different silos and different timelines and years was fun. Trying to figure out what was happening as the story went through to figure out who each person was and how they connected to the overall story of the underground silos. I got to know some people for just a moment and then just see how Silo 1 really works and what they do to keep order when it leaves.
“And so life was lived accidental. It was lived because he wasn’t brave enough to do anything else.”
Because the world building for the most part was already done, this was just extra building to describe how it all came to be - and I really enjoyed it and the journey that Donald went through to to learn what his role was at the beginning, to the lies becoming clear at the end to the true purpose of his involvement. I can’t wait to see what is going to happen when/if Juliette and him meet.
I’m giving this book 4.5 stars because I really liked this book, just not as much as I did for Wool. Also so many things happened and I was feeling like my neck was gonna snap from the whiplash which is okay but my neck hurts now.
“The world had grown as rusty as his memory of it.”
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Addiction, Infidelity, Mental illness, Death of parent, and Abandonment