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booksandwhimsy's review
5.0
The Elementals is a book that just fills you up. I'm rereading it just to savor Block's words because of course the first time I read it I rushed and read and read until I was at the last page way too soon. This is a book for anyone who has a best friend, who enjoys the possiblity of magic, and loves lush descriptive worlds like the one Francesca Lia Block creates.
katrinky's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
3.0
I didn't love this book but I read it in gulps because it is so full of dread I had to resolve it. It's more mature than other FLB books, but I knew we were still deeply in her usual shenanigans when the mom tells the daughter at the beginning "I hope a man loves you someday as much as I love you," which is Not Great on several levels and encapsulates what made me love these books as a teen (romantic love is WAY better than dumb mom's!!) and why they'll probably never be for me again.
lindacbugg's review
I did 84 pages and then gave up. I feel sad because I love her but I just didn't feel it. Usually I feel it right from the very first page but nothing.....
lovelyjanelle13's review
3.0
To sum up this book in one word: weird. The language, the twists and turns, the ending. At some points I was definitely questioning what I was reading, but was enticed to keep reading it all the way through.
pagesplotsandpints's review
3.0
3.5 stars
Thank you to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book for review.
Well this was quite different than what I was expecting so I'm not really sure quite how to review it. It's a very different kind of book - part mystery, part horror, part magical-realism - and despite how uncharacteristic it is of my usual reads, I really was sucked in until the very end. I will say that Block does a great job of keeping the reader curious regarding what happened to Jeni, what will happen to Ariel and her new band of misfit friends, and also what will happen with her mother.
That being said, as much as I was entranced, it was more like I simply couldn't tear myself away, but definitely more in a messed-up kind of way. It was actually kind of sad for me to read because here we see Ariel, starting college at 17 (I'm guessing she had a late birthday) and she is so purely innocent. Never even having kissed a boy (although I'll stay kissing your best girl friend is still weird to me - never understood where those story lines come in), no drugs, no alcohol - and we just see her entire innocence ruined throughout her stay in college. True, I guess it could be said that she never would have been in that position if Jeni hadn't gone missing and her mother hadn't had cancer - but even still, I'd like to say that I wouldn't have gone through any kind of course of action like that if I had been in the same position.
I think the biggest message I took away from this story is how much more college-age is "coming of age" versus high school and young adult. Once you're away from your family, your home, every comfort that you once had, I'd say you're that much more vulnerable to try new things, find new dangers, and seek more excitement. When you're shaping your life yourself and taking these chances on your own, I think that's a time where you change so much more than in what I'd say is the more traditionally thought of "coming of age" range in high school.
Thank you to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book for review.
Well this was quite different than what I was expecting so I'm not really sure quite how to review it. It's a very different kind of book - part mystery, part horror, part magical-realism - and despite how uncharacteristic it is of my usual reads, I really was sucked in until the very end. I will say that Block does a great job of keeping the reader curious regarding what happened to Jeni, what will happen to Ariel and her new band of misfit friends, and also what will happen with her mother.
That being said, as much as I was entranced, it was more like I simply couldn't tear myself away, but definitely more in a messed-up kind of way. It was actually kind of sad for me to read because here we see Ariel, starting college at 17 (I'm guessing she had a late birthday) and she is so purely innocent. Never even having kissed a boy (although I'll stay kissing your best girl friend is still weird to me - never understood where those story lines come in), no drugs, no alcohol - and we just see her entire innocence ruined throughout her stay in college. True, I guess it could be said that she never would have been in that position if Jeni hadn't gone missing and her mother hadn't had cancer - but even still, I'd like to say that I wouldn't have gone through any kind of course of action like that if I had been in the same position.
I think the biggest message I took away from this story is how much more college-age is "coming of age" versus high school and young adult. Once you're away from your family, your home, every comfort that you once had, I'd say you're that much more vulnerable to try new things, find new dangers, and seek more excitement. When you're shaping your life yourself and taking these chances on your own, I think that's a time where you change so much more than in what I'd say is the more traditionally thought of "coming of age" range in high school.
disasterchick's review
3.0
I liked the book enough to finish reading it, but was really not impressed by it. I found it to be quite strange, and so many things I didn't quite understand. It was suppose to be magical? Ariel's parents push her way, yet, are willing to have her around when she comes back? She is the weird girl constantly searching for her best friend, doesn't really try to fit it, and becomes obsessed with this small group of people.
dreamofbookspines's review
5.0
This was a beautiful surprise. While much of her language choices and imagery remains the same, this stands out from Block's more recent books in my opinion. The story is much more developed using less flowery prose, and you really get to know the character, not just their deepest secrets. Ariel is a wonderful narrator, and you build a great deal of empathy with her as she grows. The way the loss of her best friend Jeni is written got me sobbing unexpectedly. As retellings of fairytales go, this is on the more coherent end of them, in that you're not overwhelmed by Block's typically lush prose. For people who complain about this in her other books, I think you'll find it to be far less of a problem in this one. (Personally I like the lush prose, but that's not super-relevant at this point.) Very much loved this book, quickly to my favorites list.
anthers's review
3.0
I was in two minds about The Elementals the whole way through. Taken on its own, the prose was lovely and vibrant and surreal. It is reminiscent of an old-style fairy tale, and this is reflected in the constant references to fairy tales and fae in the text.
On the other hand, the book is seriously limited by the tone and slipshod plot. This is a book marketed for adults that keeps slipping accidentally into reading like a YA book. Examples include the portrayal of college life at Berkley being full of high school style cliques and a roommate leaving a used sanitary item on the protagonist's bed, the descriptions of sex being something that would be unpleasant at best in actuality, and the implications that the ultimate villain of the story's behavior is due to her ~spooky~ mental illness. The big twist reveal also felt clumsy and unearned. It wanted to be a neat disposal of the main conflict to the protagonists new relationship and the resolution to the main conflict at the same time, but it managed to be neither.
I read it to the end but it didn't particularly grab me either. 2.5/5 stars rounded up.
On the other hand, the book is seriously limited by the tone and slipshod plot. This is a book marketed for adults that keeps slipping accidentally into reading like a YA book. Examples include the portrayal of college life at Berkley being full of high school style cliques and a roommate leaving a used sanitary item on the protagonist's bed, the descriptions of sex being something that would be unpleasant at best in actuality, and the implications that the ultimate villain of the story's behavior is due to her ~spooky~ mental illness. The big twist reveal also felt clumsy and unearned. It wanted to be a neat disposal of the main conflict to the protagonists new relationship and the resolution to the main conflict at the same time, but it managed to be neither.
I read it to the end but it didn't particularly grab me either. 2.5/5 stars rounded up.
sarahpyt's review
3.0
A bit slow so that might be a bit of a drag for some but still enjoyable. one of the best books by Block that I've seen in a while.
jrmrf's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Drug use, and Cancer
Moderate: Child death, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting
Minor: Body shaming