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lovemydolphins's review against another edition
2.0
I feel like this book had so much potential. But instead, it just fell flat.
Each girl has her own winter break story that comes with resolution. While the stories weren't bad, I think that it was simply lacking any connection with the main series. No A notes, nothing. It's supposed to be from A's point of view though. I mean, that alone sounds interesting, right? I figured it would be an amazing perspective.
How wrong I was.
The stories are just told from a 3rd person perspective (like the regular books), with a little "letter" from A to the reader at the end of each section. The letters say things like "Emily was a naughty girl this year!" Nothing is actually done by A, in terms of revealing secrets or sabotage. And there's no A perspective. I was expecting the writing to be something along the lines of, "I followed Spencer until she reached the club. I positioned myself to get a good view of her from the trees. Then I got an idea. I threw a stick at her. She turned around, scared. I ran away with a giggle." Something kind of spy-like, you know?
Nope. Just a book of winter break stories. Not really any action.
Each girl has her own winter break story that comes with resolution. While the stories weren't bad, I think that it was simply lacking any connection with the main series. No A notes, nothing. It's supposed to be from A's point of view though. I mean, that alone sounds interesting, right? I figured it would be an amazing perspective.
How wrong I was.
The stories are just told from a 3rd person perspective (like the regular books), with a little "letter" from A to the reader at the end of each section. The letters say things like "Emily was a naughty girl this year!" Nothing is actually done by A, in terms of revealing secrets or sabotage. And there's no A perspective. I was expecting the writing to be something along the lines of, "I followed Spencer until she reached the club. I positioned myself to get a good view of her from the trees. Then I got an idea. I threw a stick at her. She turned around, scared. I ran away with a giggle." Something kind of spy-like, you know?
Nope. Just a book of winter break stories. Not really any action.
aalleia's review against another edition
2.0
Didn’t even know there were .5 books in the series! Only found out when I came across a Reddit post, which just so happened to be while I was reading the fourth book, so good timing LOL
Only reading about one of the girls’ lives made it a slightly less exciting read, considering the way the chapters were laid out
Overall, it’s pretty alright, glimpsing further into each girl’s life... just nothing really exciting. I guess this one was something like a bonus/filler book.
The use of notable characters for reference and addressing the actual characters is kinda cute, like Squidward and Humpty Dumpty!!
Character: 3/5
Plot: 2/5
Setting: 3/5
Style: 2.5/5
Theme & Symbolism: 2/5
Recommendation: 2/5
Overall: 2.4/5
Only reading about one of the girls’ lives made it a slightly less exciting read, considering the way the chapters were laid out
Overall, it’s pretty alright, glimpsing further into each girl’s life... just nothing really exciting. I guess this one was something like a bonus/filler book.
The use of notable characters for reference and addressing the actual characters is kinda cute, like Squidward and Humpty Dumpty!!
Character: 3/5
Plot: 2/5
Setting: 3/5
Style: 2.5/5
Theme & Symbolism: 2/5
Recommendation: 2/5
Overall: 2.4/5
lucyphilpott's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-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
3.5
sharonsm_28's review against another edition
3.0
This book contains for short stories about each of the liars. However, it did not engage me as the other books had. That is way I gave it a 3/5. Most of the stories was boring and did not connect with me. The only story I liked was Spencer. Maybe it is because it has humor and I love her character!
princesalorena's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
lzcvgdn's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
mjreutman's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
caitiep92's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
wonderofthepage's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
readingmissfroggy's review against another edition
3.0
Hanna's story - 5 stars
Hanna is one of the girls that I can kinda identify with (all girls have elements that I see in myself) and I therefore really like to read her POV. I liked her story and how she was dealing with things. She seems to have lost the most in the first four books and I'm curious to see what will happen next to her.
Emily's story - 4.5 stars
Emily is probably the character that I connect the least with but I found her story interesting nonetheless and a lot of fun! I also really love how it connected with Hanna's part even though they do not meet. The elves were also pretty cool and I totally get their point. I was also pleasantly surprised by Emily's family.
Aria's story - 3 stars
This is probably my least favourite one. I like Aria and her family but I did not like the romance in this one, it felt a bit over the top. I know that PLL books are always a bit over the top but this one was just a bit too much (I also felt like that with book #4). Because it was simply too much and Aria was acting a bit too dumb every now and then (she really seems to smart to be making some of these choices/not seeing certain things) I felt a bit annoyed at times.
Spencer's story - 3 stars
It was fun but not much different from what happened in the first four books. She and Melissa will like the same guy, hurt each other only to find out that the guy is a dick... The ending gave me some hope though, I hope that they are able to work things out in the next couple of books. Like Spencer said, together they are unbeatable.
Hanna is one of the girls that I can kinda identify with (all girls have elements that I see in myself) and I therefore really like to read her POV. I liked her story and how she was dealing with things. She seems to have lost the most in the first four books and I'm curious to see what will happen next to her.
Emily's story - 4.5 stars
Emily is probably the character that I connect the least with but I found her story interesting nonetheless and a lot of fun! I also really love how it connected with Hanna's part even though they do not meet. The elves were also pretty cool and I totally get their point. I was also pleasantly surprised by Emily's family.
Aria's story - 3 stars
This is probably my least favourite one. I like Aria and her family but I did not like the romance in this one, it felt a bit over the top. I know that PLL books are always a bit over the top but this one was just a bit too much (I also felt like that with book #4). Because it was simply too much and Aria was acting a bit too dumb every now and then (she really seems to smart to be making some of these choices/not seeing certain things) I felt a bit annoyed at times.
Spencer's story - 3 stars
It was fun but not much different from what happened in the first four books. She and Melissa will like the same guy, hurt each other only to find out that the guy is a dick... The ending gave me some hope though, I hope that they are able to work things out in the next couple of books. Like Spencer said, together they are unbeatable.