katie_kat3210's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
kbranfield's review against another edition
3.0
In The Revenge by Hannah Jayne, an acrimonious break up between two teenagers puts one of the pair in danger after a retribution prank goes wrong.
Not so popular Tony Gardner cared deeply for his now ex-girlfriend, popular Hope Jensen, but after growing weary of her mean streak, he ended their relationship. She quickly retaliates despite their seemingly amicable split by embarrassing him in front of their classmates. In an attempt to get even with her, Tony signs her up for free samples and on line dating sites. He also makes an ill-fated decision to include Hope's address which he quickly regrets after she is abducted. However, Hope is well-known for her need to one up everyone which makes Tony believe she faked her kidnapping in order to teach him a lesson. The police and the media take Hope's disappearance very seriously and Tony immediately falls under a cloud of suspicion.
Tony's decision to put Hope's personal information on line is just the first of many ill-advised choices he makes. Despite his conviction that Hope has been kidnapped, a tiny seed of doubt sends him rushing headlong into stupidity where he then makes one mistake after mistake. Tony thrusts himself in the middle of the investigation even though he is WELL aware of the fact the police suspect he is behind her kidnapping. His judgment is severely lacking as Tony continues to act impulsively without giving any thought to how his negatively his actions will appear to the police and the media.
Hope's parents host a local television morning show and she is mostly ignored by them until they need her to help boost their ratings. She is quite popular despite being a mean girl who is quick to enact revenge on anyone who dares to cross her. Despite her reputation for vindictive behavior, would Hope really go so far as to fake her own kidnapping to get even with Tony for his latest salvo in the revenge wars?
Despite the unlikable characters and the somewhat over the top escalation of events, The Revenge is initially quite suspenseful. However, it does not take long for the tension surrounding Hope's disappearance to dissipate and although Hannah Jayne does throw in a completely unexpected plot twist, an eyebrow raising revelation late in the story is a little too ridiculous to believe. While all of the loose ends about Hope's disappearance are completely wrapped up, the novel's abrupt conclusion is a somewhat unsatisfying.
Not so popular Tony Gardner cared deeply for his now ex-girlfriend, popular Hope Jensen, but after growing weary of her mean streak, he ended their relationship. She quickly retaliates despite their seemingly amicable split by embarrassing him in front of their classmates. In an attempt to get even with her, Tony signs her up for free samples and on line dating sites. He also makes an ill-fated decision to include Hope's address which he quickly regrets after she is abducted. However, Hope is well-known for her need to one up everyone which makes Tony believe she faked her kidnapping in order to teach him a lesson. The police and the media take Hope's disappearance very seriously and Tony immediately falls under a cloud of suspicion.
Tony's decision to put Hope's personal information on line is just the first of many ill-advised choices he makes. Despite his conviction that Hope has been kidnapped, a tiny seed of doubt sends him rushing headlong into stupidity where he then makes one mistake after mistake. Tony thrusts himself in the middle of the investigation even though he is WELL aware of the fact the police suspect he is behind her kidnapping. His judgment is severely lacking as Tony continues to act impulsively without giving any thought to how his negatively his actions will appear to the police and the media.
Hope's parents host a local television morning show and she is mostly ignored by them until they need her to help boost their ratings. She is quite popular despite being a mean girl who is quick to enact revenge on anyone who dares to cross her. Despite her reputation for vindictive behavior, would Hope really go so far as to fake her own kidnapping to get even with Tony for his latest salvo in the revenge wars?
Despite the unlikable characters and the somewhat over the top escalation of events, The Revenge is initially quite suspenseful. However, it does not take long for the tension surrounding Hope's disappearance to dissipate and although Hannah Jayne does throw in a completely unexpected plot twist, an eyebrow raising revelation late in the story is a little too ridiculous to believe. While all of the loose ends about Hope's disappearance are completely wrapped up, the novel's abrupt conclusion is a somewhat unsatisfying.
leopard_113's review against another edition
4.0
This book was good. It's like a teenage version of Gone Girl. I didn't expect a couple of the twists but a couple I did.
Didn't overly like how the book ended. There was no story of rescuing, it kind of just ended and there was nothing about the people involved which I found to be disappointing especially since this book is a thriller which involved a kidnapping.
Didn't overly like how the book ended. There was no story of rescuing, it kind of just ended and there was nothing about the people involved which I found to be disappointing especially since this book is a thriller which involved a kidnapping.
l1brarygirl's review against another edition
2.0
*I received an electronic ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.
Not my favorite Hannah Jayne book. I expected more. I really hated the characters and didn't feel sorry for anyone. Good idea, poorly realized.
Not my favorite Hannah Jayne book. I expected more. I really hated the characters and didn't feel sorry for anyone. Good idea, poorly realized.
kaylaannsreads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Violence, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Murder, Physical abuse, and Stalking
tabaltazar's review against another edition
2.0
It started out strong, but toward the end the writing got a little sloppy (descriptions of people changing from the beginning, complete phrases repeating themselves from another character's dialogue), and the end was VERY unsatisfying. It was really fast-paced and hard to put down, though.
kimjunmyeon's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
nicolemccool's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
this was one of the worst books I’ve ever read and the fact I spent hard earned money on it makes me upset. It was slow in the beginning and somewhat picked up in the middle. And then at the end it gets to the point we all want it to and then just skips forward 3 weeks later or whatever and doesn’t go through the good part. DO NOT READ IT unless you want to be bothered and disappointed and unsatisfied
niluja's review against another edition
Advanced reader copy.
It was a great book. I felt it was quite slow at the start but at the beginning and just about few chapters before the end were intriguing. I wanted to know what happened to Everly and why she died but at the end she resulted back to Tony. Also, how her parents sold her out for fame. It was decent book. There could have been more character development esp with Everly and Tony and why she hated Hope but she died already.
It was a great book. I felt it was quite slow at the start but at the beginning and just about few chapters before the end were intriguing. I wanted to know what happened to Everly and why she died but at the end she resulted back to Tony. Also, how her parents sold her out for fame. It was decent book. There could have been more character development esp with Everly and Tony and why she hated Hope but she died already.
pocketsable's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.0
The Revenge is the story of Tony, a boy who just broke up with the most popular girl in school. Said girl, Hope, decides to get revenge for the breakup by humiliating him. Tony decides to get back by sending her personal information to all corners of the internet. However, one night he gets a call from Hope begging him to take down the information, only for it to get cut off. When Tony goes to her house, he finds nothing but her broken cellphone and the nagging suspicion that she's either getting her revenge or maybe, he caused something terrible to happen to her instead.
This is a quick, fast paced read. It's extremely suspenseful throughout and it never really slows down. Some twists you can see coming from a mile away, although the final twist is rather surprising and disturbing. There is a POV switch half way through the book which, to me, was frustrating at first. But makes more sense as the story progresses. We never really get a chance to learn much about these characters, which is disappointing. And the background characters dont even get any time to do anything but push the plot forward. However, Tony as our lead isn't a bad character. Hope, on the other hand, is a downright horrible character. Although, that's not to say you won't be hoping for her safe return by the end.
The biggest flaw about this book is the lack of an ending. There is no big showdown, no reuniting of characters, no explanations, no comeuppance for the bad guy... Nothing but the equivalence of the story hitting a brick wall. It ends with a very vague one page epilogue which feels wholeheartedly disappointing.
However, if you're looking for a really quick, fun read, this may be for you. I did enjoy the journey, I just wish the ending was better.
EDIT:
Upon reading other reviews of the books, I was not at all aware of the controversy, nor the whole comparisons to books like Gone Girl (mostly because I have not seen/read it and dont plan to do so). As such, being an outsider on these two factors I have a very different view of this book. That being that this was a basic, popcorn suspense novel with not much to it other than just being a quick read.
Although, from an outsider opinion, i'm slightly disturbed by the villagers-with-torches mentality going on in the reviews as this book didn't really do anything as near controversial as other books to warrant such a strong reaction.
This is a quick, fast paced read. It's extremely suspenseful throughout and it never really slows down. Some twists you can see coming from a mile away, although the final twist is rather surprising and disturbing. There is a POV switch half way through the book which, to me, was frustrating at first. But makes more sense as the story progresses. We never really get a chance to learn much about these characters, which is disappointing. And the background characters dont even get any time to do anything but push the plot forward. However, Tony as our lead isn't a bad character. Hope, on the other hand, is a downright horrible character. Although, that's not to say you won't be hoping for her safe return by the end.
The biggest flaw about this book is the lack of an ending. There is no big showdown, no reuniting of characters, no explanations, no comeuppance for the bad guy... Nothing but the equivalence of the story hitting a brick wall. It ends with a very vague one page epilogue which feels wholeheartedly disappointing.
However, if you're looking for a really quick, fun read, this may be for you. I did enjoy the journey, I just wish the ending was better.
EDIT:
Upon reading other reviews of the books, I was not at all aware of the controversy, nor the whole comparisons to books like Gone Girl (mostly because I have not seen/read it and dont plan to do so). As such, being an outsider on these two factors I have a very different view of this book. That being that this was a basic, popcorn suspense novel with not much to it other than just being a quick read.
Although, from an outsider opinion, i'm slightly disturbed by the villagers-with-torches mentality going on in the reviews as this book didn't really do anything as near controversial as other books to warrant such a strong reaction.