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chloeamcmahon's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
madelynskies's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
narteest's review against another edition
5.0
AS the final installment of this trilogy, I was partial to enjoying it. Like, very biased. And I did. I'm glad I picked up Defy the Stars. I'm glad I finished the sequel and now the third.
Good points: I like the way Claudia Gray tackles the moral questions about being human, having a soul, and the advent of cybernetics. I liked the relationship between Abel and Noemi. I like both Noemi and Abel, now that they have moved passed the difficult stages of adjusting to each other (way back in book 1). I like that even though Abel is arrogant about his abilities, he IS the only unique Mech, and he IS extremely good at most of what he does.
Bad points: Nothing really! Though, it does suck a lot to be Abel and the most wanted Mech in the universe (this results in a lot of repeated plot movers). Oh, and I'm still not sure what Cray looks like. Or Stronghold. No wait, Stronghold feels more self-described, but a more visual image would have been great.
Good points: I like the way Claudia Gray tackles the moral questions about being human, having a soul, and the advent of cybernetics. I liked the relationship between Abel and Noemi. I like both Noemi and Abel, now that they have moved passed the difficult stages of adjusting to each other (way back in book 1). I like that even though Abel is arrogant about his abilities, he IS the only unique Mech, and he IS extremely good at most of what he does.
Bad points: Nothing really! Though, it does suck a lot to be Abel and the most wanted Mech in the universe (this results in a lot of repeated plot movers). Oh, and I'm still not sure what Cray looks like. Or Stronghold. No wait, Stronghold feels more self-described, but a more visual image would have been great.
desertlover's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 STARS
This trilogy started out with a bang and went out with a whimper. I adore Abel/Noemi and feel they deserved a better finale. The story could have been delivered in two books instead of three as there is so much repetition and a painfully slow plot.
I don't regret reading the books, but they're not ones I'd recommend to friends either.
This trilogy started out with a bang and went out with a whimper. I adore Abel/Noemi and feel they deserved a better finale. The story could have been delivered in two books instead of three as there is so much repetition and a painfully slow plot.
I don't regret reading the books, but they're not ones I'd recommend to friends either.
lesserjoke's review against another edition
3.0
I still enjoy the debut of this sci-fi YA trilogy enough that it's fun to spend more time with the characters, but the action of the next two volumes feels far more rote by comparison. In this final book especially, our protagonists don't really seem to have a coherent throughline for what they're trying to accomplish, which significantly undercuts the tension. They and their enemies also unwittingly give one another what turns out to be major respective weapons, and I wish author Claudia Gray had made those moments feel more motivated. I would have liked greater interrogation of an issue with bodily autonomy and consent to medical intervention, too. Overall I'd say the novel works as an adequate conclusion to the series narrative, but it doesn't quite live up to the promise of its start.
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
eliajor's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
elvenrapier's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
bluejaybooks's review against another edition
4.0
edit 5/26/19 I've settled on a four star rating because, while I preferred other books in the series, the series still feels worth the read to me and I enjoyed it so much overall. Happy reading! :)
Post Reading This is a hard one to rate because I loved everything except for the last three chapters. The last three chapters are important.
Prereading When you want a book so badly you keep coming back to check the release date as if it will somehow change if you keep looking at it. Hint: it doesn't.
Post Reading This is a hard one to rate because I loved everything except for the last three chapters. The last three chapters are important.
Prereading When you want a book so badly you keep coming back to check the release date as if it will somehow change if you keep looking at it. Hint: it doesn't.
tatyanavogt's review against another edition
5.0
Okay, at this point I think it is safe to say that I loved this series. I loved the characters, the problems they faced the solutions they worked through, i loved the romance and the friendships. I just loved it.
I think the only thing that was a little off putting was the three or so times stuff that happened in the last books were explained. I don't think it happened during the second book and I don't think it was needed for this one. I would have preferred it being brought up in normal conversation and then perhaps talked about a little so as readers we could naturally remember without just being told about it. More than one word less than a paragraph type of thing. or just mentioned casually more than once so that if we didn't remember the first or second time we figured it out by the third. I dunno. It wasn't too bad but I did notice it.
Everything else about the book was great. (a little cheesy)
I think the only thing that was a little off putting was the three or so times stuff that happened in the last books were explained. I don't think it happened during the second book and I don't think it was needed for this one. I would have preferred it being brought up in normal conversation and then perhaps talked about a little so as readers we could naturally remember without just being told about it. More than one word less than a paragraph type of thing. or just mentioned casually more than once so that if we didn't remember the first or second time we figured it out by the third. I dunno. It wasn't too bad but I did notice it.
Everything else about the book was great. (a little cheesy)
mortaldivergence's review against another edition
4.0
I didn't quite love this one as much as the first 2, but I still really enjoyed this book! And overall I really loved this series! I really grew to love all the characters! I don't usually pick up sci-fi books that often, but I'm really glad I picked this series up!