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couldbestephen's review
1.0
Reviews are not for authors. That being said, there’s a part of me hoping that Adam Kirsten reads this and understands what a horrifically bad book he wrote. This bland dystopian fails to deliver a compelling story and doesn’t have a message of its own to stand on. I do not recommend this novel and would actively warn people against reading it.
This novel was marketed as a YA thriller where “The Hunger Games” meets “The Handmaids Tale.” Do not be fooled. This book is not YA and you will see nothing that meaningfully resembles either book in Dr Kirstein’s novel. I have no idea where The Hunger Games comparison comes from. The Handmaids Tale shows up near the end of the book, when the author decides his book needed to be more misogynistic for absolutely no reason. New Haven is more like A Brave New World and 1984, if both of those novels were materially worse and offered no political commentary. The author does not address or deconstruct the deep misogyny (the female characters in this book are treated horrifically for no apparent reason other than shock value) and antisemitic tropes (a blood drinking evil shadow cabal runs New Haven) present in his book. The main point of conflict in this novel is that the authoritarian government, known as The Leadership, is bad and should therefore be overthrown. It’s so painfully bland and uninspired, you wonder why Dr Kirstein thought this story was worth putting on paper.
A reviewer on Amazon talked about how this work could have used an edit pass or two more before publishing to fix the typos and grammatical errors. I think Dr Kirstein needs to take several creative and general writing classes. The general prose feels like it was written by a middle school/high school fan-fiction author. Misplaced or missing commas run rampant. The author has very little idea of how write dialogue (please learn how to use quotation marks before publishing your novel). His characters are flat. The plot is so bland it hurts. As an avid reader and someone who studies English in college, this is a painfully bad read.
Dystopian novels work as “warnings for the future” because they are reexamining issues we currently face. The Hunger Games is about the dangers of turning trauma into entertainment and the cost of necessary revolutions. The Handmaids Tale cautions us against governments that make religious texts the cornerstone of their political system. This book has nothing. It’s empty. It wants to be a spiritual successor to 1984, but just because you have a big bad government that sees all doesn’t mean you have anything more than the world’s simplest take on what some of the greatest dystopian fiction has already said.
puravjha07's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.75
James discovers a wealth of long-kept secrets about the inner workings of this repressive regime on his journey with the Regiment. Sybil and James become entangled in a dangerous dance of resistance, love, and survival as James ventures farther into the heart of darkness. In this compelling story, "New Haven" examines the human spirit's resiliency in the face of oppression and manipulation by the government. While <a href="https://english.shabd.in/">reading this book</a>, you will learn about the social and personal culture of society.
Thanks for reading!!
Thanks for reading!!
flyawaytinker's review
challenging
dark
fast-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? It's complicated
2.75