zombiezami's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
3.0
When I was reading the first few chapters of this book, I thought I would like it a lot. The setup and worldbuilding were compeling.
However, by the end, I felt it was too tropey, too focused on romance, and relied too much on deus ex machina
However, by the end, I felt it was too tropey, too focused on romance, and relied too much on deus ex machina
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Violence, Genocide, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Blood, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Grief, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Cursing, and Child death
Moderate: War, Torture, Racism, Police brutality, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Sexual content
kt_timms's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
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
5.0
I chose this book as a challenge for myself, because I don’t often read sci-fi books (if at all) and I have to say it absolutely did not disappoint. The aliens vs. humans trope was clearly present throughout the book up until the very end. Dow’s take on aliens is really cool, because I do think “green” when I think about aliens, and for her to really relate the Ilori to humans in that they actually look really similar, I think that made this book even more enjoyable. The regularity of LGBTQ+ and non-binary characters, as well as ace acknowledgement/inclusion was extremely refreshing and definitely hit close to home for me. This book was filled with twists and turns that I didn’t expect, and I felt myself enveloped in the pages every single time I sat down to read. The “forbidden love” trope can be really cheesy at times, but Dow truly wrote this love story between an Ilori boy and a teenage human girl beautifully. I absolutely recommend this book to anyone who loves love, is looking to get into a new queer-inclusive story, or is drawn to a peculiar world of aliens and humans where arts and sciences are illegal written in a whole new way.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Panic attacks/disorders, and Alcoholism
eh1736's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: War, Racism, Alcoholism, Panic attacks/disorders, and Genocide
POC main character, demi-ace main character, nonbinary side character, chronic illness rep, anxiety rep_justagremlin_'s review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Alcoholism, and Medical trauma
caelinsullivan's review
adventurous
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders and Colonisation
Moderate: Racism, Violence, Physical abuse, and Kidnapping
vaniavela's review
adventurous
reflective
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Death, and Alcoholism
Moderate: Genocide
lena_loves_reading's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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? It's complicated
3.5
Rating this is hard... This book had so much potential but a lot of opportunities were missed and the ending was too wholesome and unrealistic in comparison to the rest of the book. This SciFi takes place after the Ilori alien invasion. The world was so sad and depressing, as humans are kept imprisoned while the Ilori were working on making them into mindless puppets and were already succeeding. We love some hopelessness. The pace was very slow at the beginning with lots of telling and no showing. In my opinion, the alien invasion should've been told in flashbacks.
However, I loved the characters and the rep! The mc is a biracial, demisexual biromantic teen with anxiety. AND A BOOK NERD (+ a rebel librarian)!! I got all of the YA references!! At one point she was thinking of Wylan and Jesper which immediately made me like this book so much more!
And Alien Boy was the cutest! There were so many music and book quotes in this book, which I loved. The romance was adorable!
I liked the thoughts about classism, discrimination and injustice before and after the invasion ("the aliens are threatening all of us but humans weren't that great either").
However, I loved the characters and the rep! The mc is a biracial, demisexual biromantic teen with anxiety. AND A BOOK NERD (+ a rebel librarian)!! I got all of the YA references!! At one point she was thinking of Wylan and Jesper which immediately made me like this book so much more!
And Alien Boy was the cutest! There were so many music and book quotes in this book, which I loved. The romance was adorable!
I liked the thoughts about classism, discrimination and injustice before and after the invasion ("the aliens are threatening all of us but humans weren't that great either").
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Death and Genocide
tina94's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Alcoholism, Mental illness, Confinement, and Excrement
Moderate: Abandonment, Blood, Colonisation, and War
Minor: Body shaming and Chronic illness
paperbrownies's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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? No
3.0
- lgbtqiap+, ya, sci-fi, dystopian, alien invasion, star crossed lovers trope, books and music, queer normative society, your favourite musician with thirteen grammys can be an alien, just saying
- f|m
- bi/pan oriented demiace fat mc with anxiety, possibly demiace love interest, bi/pan sc, nonbinary sc using they/them pronouns
cw: colonization, alcoholism, confinement, execution, vomitting, gun violence, blood, hp references, racism, panic attack, genocide
- f|m
- bi/pan oriented demiace fat mc with anxiety, possibly demiace love interest, bi/pan sc, nonbinary sc using they/them pronouns
cw: colonization, alcoholism, confinement, execution, vomitting, gun violence, blood, hp references, racism, panic attack, genocide
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Blood, Colonisation, Confinement, and Racism
Moderate: Genocide, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, and Vomit
reading_between_the_trees's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
For me, this was right book, right time. I needed an escape, and a fast-paced space alien invasion with spot-on social commentary and my favorite trope: fictional music so good you with it were real, was perfect.
I loved the pacing and the characters had some serious flaws that were balanced out by redeeming actions and dire circumstances. That made for an intriguing development of the central relationship. There was ace rep within the relationship too!
The best part of the book though was the secret library! It exactly what would happen if a bookworm went through an alien invasion, and I loved that! It was also such a creative way to have an intertextual conversation with other great books, namely The Hate U Give.
I definitely recommend this one, especially if you're looking for something fast-paced to pull you out of a reading slump.
I loved the pacing and the characters had some serious flaws that were balanced out by redeeming actions and dire circumstances. That made for an intriguing development of the central relationship. There was ace rep within the relationship too!
The best part of the book though was the secret library! It exactly what would happen if a bookworm went through an alien invasion, and I loved that! It was also such a creative way to have an intertextual conversation with other great books, namely The Hate U Give.
I definitely recommend this one, especially if you're looking for something fast-paced to pull you out of a reading slump.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Racism, Murder, Confinement, Violence, and Vomit