kappafrog's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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? Yes
3.25
This book started off so strong. Although it was a little hard to keep track of all the characters, I was really into the setting and the mystery to start off with. However, as the story went on, more problems arose for me. We spend a lot of time inside the main character's head, but she's very defined by other family members with much more strongly characterized interests and dreams than anything she expresses. She ends up being very indistinct as a result.
The book's frenetic pace was a little frustrating at times, as it led to characters repeatedly losing the opportunity to convey important information to each other.
In conclusion, this book had great potential but needed a lot of edits to get its point across better. I was left feeling anxious about all the unresolved plot holes.
The book's frenetic pace was a little frustrating at times, as it led to characters repeatedly losing the opportunity to convey important information to each other.
Spoiler
Then the ending had a lot of problems. I saw it coming from miles away that Wayne was going to be a tragic good guy instead of an evil one, but why was he leaving cryptic messages that said "I know"? That sinister action of his was never explained. The ramifications of the UFOs not being aliens at all could have been really interesting, but it was very rushed. Why do souls travel around in flying discs of gel? Why was Wayne taken away by the FBI?In conclusion, this book had great potential but needed a lot of edits to get its point across better. I was left feeling anxious about all the unresolved plot holes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Abandonment, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Death of parent, Medical trauma, Murder, Stalking, Violence, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Gun violence, Vomit, Blood, Body horror, and Medical content
Minor: Forced institutionalization, Suicidal thoughts, and Cancer
lizgriffinwords's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Stranger Things meets Arrival. Like We Were Liars, I hesitate to say anything lest I accidentally disclose a spoiler. Suffice it to say that this book showcases Emily Henry’s prowess far left field of her popular romance novels (which are also great, if VERY different), and I truly enjoyed this twisty story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Grief
Minor: Cursing and Body horror
theespressoedition's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Okay SO, I feel the need to preface this by saying that the narration of the audiobook had a lot to do with my lower rating. If I had read a physical copy of this book, I believe I would've enjoyed it a great deal more. In the future, I plan to do just that in order to see if it will change my opinion. Typically, I do read the physical books for SFF, but when I saw this as a free audiobook on Audible, I decided to go for it since it was already on my TBR. That was my own mistake, truthfully. It just made the story slightly unpleasant. The villains sounded laughable and I couldn't take them seriously, and the main character was breathy and almost airhead-ish, so needless to say, not a great listening experience. If you plan to pick this up, do yourself a favor and actually read it with your eyes if you have the ability to.
That being said, WOW, this is a massive leap from Emily Henry's contemporary romances! I added this book to my TBR in the first place because, in her author interviews and online events, she often mentions how this is the novel she's the proudest of. That immediately made me want to read it because I love seeing which books are an author's pride and joy.
I knew it would be different, because DUH, it's a sci-fi story reminiscent of Stranger Things, but I don't think I was prepared for the level of alien intensity. I mean, it's a whole "took over your body and gave you powers" kind of thing!
The plot as a whole was kind of interesting to me, but the more I read, the more I wanted to just know how it would end. It seemed like a really slow pace and I was expecting slightly more action from it. Towards the end, it delivered, for sure, but there was way more emphasis on the characters than the plot, which was unexpected.
Again, I would like to read this book in the future as a physical copy to see if maybe it grips me a little more. I'm hoping it was just the narration that threw me off, because I did see Henry's writing skills shine through, I just couldn't appreciate them in the way I wanted to.
That being said, WOW, this is a massive leap from Emily Henry's contemporary romances! I added this book to my TBR in the first place because, in her author interviews and online events, she often mentions how this is the novel she's the proudest of. That immediately made me want to read it because I love seeing which books are an author's pride and joy.
I knew it would be different, because DUH, it's a sci-fi story reminiscent of Stranger Things, but I don't think I was prepared for the level of alien intensity. I mean, it's a whole "took over your body and gave you powers" kind of thing!
The plot as a whole was kind of interesting to me, but the more I read, the more I wanted to just know how it would end. It seemed like a really slow pace and I was expecting slightly more action from it. Towards the end, it delivered, for sure, but there was way more emphasis on the characters than the plot, which was unexpected.
Again, I would like to read this book in the future as a physical copy to see if maybe it grips me a little more. I'm hoping it was just the narration that threw me off, because I did see Henry's writing skills shine through, I just couldn't appreciate them in the way I wanted to.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Kidnapping, and Violence
Moderate: Abandonment, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
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