lindzebird's review against another edition
3.0
Got it free, was “egh”. Reminds me of twilight, unreal teenage love affair completely unrealistic.
hazelstaybookish's review against another edition
4.0
Originally posted at Stay Bookish
Let me start by saying that Plus One is a great addition to the many books in the young adult community and I’m so thankful that I got the opportunity to read it! This novel, I think, is really unique and pretty impressive once you give it a chance. It’s hard not to admire the way Elizabeth Fama has crafted her characters- you can’t help but grow attached to them.
Don’t forget you want me.
I won’t lie. I did have a few apprehensions. Several actually. The first was that I had a hard time getting myself into the story. I kept putting it down because I felt so sluggish reading the early chapters. It took me so long to pickup with the actual pace. However, when I finally clicked with the characters, I excitedly rushed through the book. Another reservation of mine, which may or may not explain why the book started out so slowly for me, was that I felt thrown into the middle of things. I didn’t read the synopsis (I admit that I was swayed by the beautiful cover,) so I had no clue what Plus One was going to be about. I felt blindsided by terminologies like “Smudge” and “Ray”, which turned out to be a kind of categorical system where in the former are only allowed to be outside at night and the latter during the day. The author does give a brief background to how this interesting community of day-dwellers and night-dwellers came to be, but I feel like it could’ve been made more vivid and detailed. I really wished I was able to comprehend much more from this alternate reality because it sounded incredibly interesting.
Four hundred billion suns spiralling through space together. Our solar system just one grain on that galactic carousel. The carousel itself a speck in the cosmos. And here I am in this small clearing, on the surface of the earth, as transient and unnoticed to the universe.. It’s too much to comprehend up there, too enormous, and I’ so small when it’s on top of me. It frightens me, like I’m being crushed.
The characters were a strong point in Plus One which is probably why I still highly liked the book despite my previously-stated misgivings. The heroine of the story, Sol Le Couer, had so much feist in her! She is extremely candid, more than just a bit rude, considerably impulsive and hotheaded, and never holds back. Sol is a Smudge and her kind are considered the lower class compared to Rays who are the elite of the society. She feels the discrimination that Smudges are supposedly ‘morons’ who are stuck as manual laborers, completely insubordinate to Rays, who are mostly made of professionals living comfortable lifestyles. However, she uses this fact to her advantage, to appear as if she doesn’t know any better, when in fact she does. Sol is incredibly smart, actually, and you could see that by the way she schemes plans to kidnap her niece. Even if it makes her a criminal, she’d do it so she could bring her brother’s daughter to her dying grandfather. I loved the way Sol cared so much for her Poppu. There is a lot of focus on family and parental figures were very much present in Plus One which is another reason why I thought it was a great read.
D’Arcy was like a planet to my meteor. The gravitational pull was similar to a hurtling sensation. My body needed to collide with his. And, the universe be praised, this planet welcomed the impact.
In the grand scheme of Sol’s niece-kidnapping plans, a fake injury leads her to meet D’Arcy Benoit, a medical apprentice at the hospital. I was surprised by how D’Arcy, or Day Boy, as Sol likes to call him, made me swoon so very much. Book boyfriend alert!!!!! Anyway, D’Arcy is a Ray, leading Sol to be quite hostile towards him, but he turns out to be not so typical after all. The two are very different but their unlikely partnership was projected well! I like how the romance remained in the background at first- there was that subtlety that made things build-up. When I think about the time frame of the book though, things did develop pretty quickly between Sol and D’Arcy, but given their shared experiences, I felt there was enough foundation in their relationship. Aside from Sol and D’Arcy, the rest of the characters were notable and I feel that they made the story such a complex one. It’s the way these characters were intertwined and connected, as if they’re stars crashing against each other in a big galaxy-all significant and crucial to how the story works out, and that made the plot and the story work as a whole.
I knew you were the most remarkable person I’d ever met.
I probably didn’t do justice with just exactly how much I liked this book so just to make it clear: I was really fond of Plus One. I had some issues but I think the book turned out to be quite better than I expected. I have a penchant for books that are refreshing and original, especially when they’re also character-driven. This was my first time reading Elizabeth Fama and I can say with a certainty that I’ll be looking forward to reading more from her.
Let me start by saying that Plus One is a great addition to the many books in the young adult community and I’m so thankful that I got the opportunity to read it! This novel, I think, is really unique and pretty impressive once you give it a chance. It’s hard not to admire the way Elizabeth Fama has crafted her characters- you can’t help but grow attached to them.
Don’t forget you want me.
I won’t lie. I did have a few apprehensions. Several actually. The first was that I had a hard time getting myself into the story. I kept putting it down because I felt so sluggish reading the early chapters. It took me so long to pickup with the actual pace. However, when I finally clicked with the characters, I excitedly rushed through the book. Another reservation of mine, which may or may not explain why the book started out so slowly for me, was that I felt thrown into the middle of things. I didn’t read the synopsis (I admit that I was swayed by the beautiful cover,) so I had no clue what Plus One was going to be about. I felt blindsided by terminologies like “Smudge” and “Ray”, which turned out to be a kind of categorical system where in the former are only allowed to be outside at night and the latter during the day. The author does give a brief background to how this interesting community of day-dwellers and night-dwellers came to be, but I feel like it could’ve been made more vivid and detailed. I really wished I was able to comprehend much more from this alternate reality because it sounded incredibly interesting.
Four hundred billion suns spiralling through space together. Our solar system just one grain on that galactic carousel. The carousel itself a speck in the cosmos. And here I am in this small clearing, on the surface of the earth, as transient and unnoticed to the universe.. It’s too much to comprehend up there, too enormous, and I’ so small when it’s on top of me. It frightens me, like I’m being crushed.
The characters were a strong point in Plus One which is probably why I still highly liked the book despite my previously-stated misgivings. The heroine of the story, Sol Le Couer, had so much feist in her! She is extremely candid, more than just a bit rude, considerably impulsive and hotheaded, and never holds back. Sol is a Smudge and her kind are considered the lower class compared to Rays who are the elite of the society. She feels the discrimination that Smudges are supposedly ‘morons’ who are stuck as manual laborers, completely insubordinate to Rays, who are mostly made of professionals living comfortable lifestyles. However, she uses this fact to her advantage, to appear as if she doesn’t know any better, when in fact she does. Sol is incredibly smart, actually, and you could see that by the way she schemes plans to kidnap her niece. Even if it makes her a criminal, she’d do it so she could bring her brother’s daughter to her dying grandfather. I loved the way Sol cared so much for her Poppu. There is a lot of focus on family and parental figures were very much present in Plus One which is another reason why I thought it was a great read.
D’Arcy was like a planet to my meteor. The gravitational pull was similar to a hurtling sensation. My body needed to collide with his. And, the universe be praised, this planet welcomed the impact.
In the grand scheme of Sol’s niece-kidnapping plans, a fake injury leads her to meet D’Arcy Benoit, a medical apprentice at the hospital. I was surprised by how D’Arcy, or Day Boy, as Sol likes to call him, made me swoon so very much. Book boyfriend alert!!!!! Anyway, D’Arcy is a Ray, leading Sol to be quite hostile towards him, but he turns out to be not so typical after all. The two are very different but their unlikely partnership was projected well! I like how the romance remained in the background at first- there was that subtlety that made things build-up. When I think about the time frame of the book though, things did develop pretty quickly between Sol and D’Arcy, but given their shared experiences, I felt there was enough foundation in their relationship. Aside from Sol and D’Arcy, the rest of the characters were notable and I feel that they made the story such a complex one. It’s the way these characters were intertwined and connected, as if they’re stars crashing against each other in a big galaxy-all significant and crucial to how the story works out, and that made the plot and the story work as a whole.
I knew you were the most remarkable person I’d ever met.
I probably didn’t do justice with just exactly how much I liked this book so just to make it clear: I was really fond of Plus One. I had some issues but I think the book turned out to be quite better than I expected. I have a penchant for books that are refreshing and original, especially when they’re also character-driven. This was my first time reading Elizabeth Fama and I can say with a certainty that I’ll be looking forward to reading more from her.
saracorise's review against another edition
4.0
I have been seeing a lot of buzz regarding Plus One for a few months now. Loads of people are talking about it. So, naturally, I was curious about it. I even requested it from Netgalley (I was denied). So, I was very excited when I was sent an ebook copy to review from Raincoast books.
One of my new years resolutions, regarding my reading habits, had been to come out of my comfort zone and read more fantasy/dystopian/post-apocalyptic novels. Plus One fits right into that resolution, and I was excited to see what the story brought me. However, I am not sure what I would categorize Elizabeth Fama's most recent novel... maybe alternate reality.
In the Plus One version of the world, society is split into two, there are day dwellers (Rays) and night dwellers (Smudges), they are completely separated, the two groups do not really interact with one another and there are enforced curfews. The story follows Sol, and Sol lives in the night. She however gets caught up in this grand conspiracy that takes her on a crazy adventure with D'Arcy (who is a Ray).
I am going to jump in and say that I loved this book. It was so good. I really really liked the characters. Every single one of them. I loved Sol. She was feisty and sarcastic, but incredibly intelligent. She's a headstrong girl and is guided by her emotions. This really resonated with me, it's how I am 90% of the time. Sol's reactions are direct responses to how she is feeling. Which makes her a bit of a time bomb, you never know what she's going to say or do. And then we have D'Arcy. Who is basically the complete opposite of Sol. He's completely logical, and analyses everything. He doesn't let his emotions get in the way of things. That's not to say he isn't emotional. He is. D'Arcy is sweet, so sweet. And as the novel develops, we get to see him become a bit more vulnerable.
A secondary character in Plus One that I liked was, Jean, D'Arcy's dad. He was very accepting. His son brought him a whooper of a mess and he just went with it, tried to problem solve like he saw that sort of thing all the time. He thought outside the box, I liked that. I also liked that he, as a parent, had a role in the story. A lot of YA novels these days are missing parental figures. As in, parents have no idea what their kid is up to. Not in this story.
I also really liked how the relationship between Sol and D'Arcy matured. It was slow and easy. Sol didn't really like him in the beginning, I wasn't sure I liked him. So much so, that I wasn't sure if he was the second protagonist. I thought for sure she was going to meet someone else. But things started to make sense once you got to know him a bit more, once his motives were flushed out a bit more. Fama did a good job of that. She was able to develop Sol and D'Arcy's story without revealing to much, and without making it seem hokey.
Really, I can say the same thing for the whole story. You really have to let go of your sense of reality to read Plus One, but that's what makes it fun. The plot moves along at a fantastic pace, I never felt bored or annoyed with the story, and I never felt like it wasn't going anywhere. Things were revealed when they needed to be, Fama never kept you guessing for long- that was nice.
The only thing that bugged me about this book, and it might be a biggie for some: The ending. Plus One is a stand alone novel. WHAT?!??! No way. There are so many things left hanging. Okay, everything is sort of wrapped up, but more in a- let's prepare you for a second book, but let's not leave it at a cliff hanger- kind of way. I was grumpy when I found out that there was no sequel in mind. It's funny, because some books are series/trilogies when they really don't need to be, while this one could be, and would be a great series/trilogy, but it's not. I was not impressed.
Overall, I loved Plus One, I loved the characters and they way they grew throughout the story, I loved the plot, I found it unique and interesting, I just really did not like the ending. I thought it was a cop out, and it really made me wonder whether I want to read more by Elizabeth Fama, no matter how much I enjoyed the rest of the book. I do not like, nor appreciate bittersweet, ambiguous endings.
~Happy Reading Everyone!
Find this review and more, on my blog Just Another Story
One of my new years resolutions, regarding my reading habits, had been to come out of my comfort zone and read more fantasy/dystopian/post-apocalyptic novels. Plus One fits right into that resolution, and I was excited to see what the story brought me. However, I am not sure what I would categorize Elizabeth Fama's most recent novel... maybe alternate reality.
In the Plus One version of the world, society is split into two, there are day dwellers (Rays) and night dwellers (Smudges), they are completely separated, the two groups do not really interact with one another and there are enforced curfews. The story follows Sol, and Sol lives in the night. She however gets caught up in this grand conspiracy that takes her on a crazy adventure with D'Arcy (who is a Ray).
I am going to jump in and say that I loved this book. It was so good. I really really liked the characters. Every single one of them. I loved Sol. She was feisty and sarcastic, but incredibly intelligent. She's a headstrong girl and is guided by her emotions. This really resonated with me, it's how I am 90% of the time. Sol's reactions are direct responses to how she is feeling. Which makes her a bit of a time bomb, you never know what she's going to say or do. And then we have D'Arcy. Who is basically the complete opposite of Sol. He's completely logical, and analyses everything. He doesn't let his emotions get in the way of things. That's not to say he isn't emotional. He is. D'Arcy is sweet, so sweet. And as the novel develops, we get to see him become a bit more vulnerable.
A secondary character in Plus One that I liked was, Jean, D'Arcy's dad. He was very accepting. His son brought him a whooper of a mess and he just went with it, tried to problem solve like he saw that sort of thing all the time. He thought outside the box, I liked that. I also liked that he, as a parent, had a role in the story. A lot of YA novels these days are missing parental figures. As in, parents have no idea what their kid is up to. Not in this story.
I also really liked how the relationship between Sol and D'Arcy matured. It was slow and easy. Sol didn't really like him in the beginning, I wasn't sure I liked him. So much so, that I wasn't sure if he was the second protagonist. I thought for sure she was going to meet someone else. But things started to make sense once you got to know him a bit more, once his motives were flushed out a bit more. Fama did a good job of that. She was able to develop Sol and D'Arcy's story without revealing to much, and without making it seem hokey.
Really, I can say the same thing for the whole story. You really have to let go of your sense of reality to read Plus One, but that's what makes it fun. The plot moves along at a fantastic pace, I never felt bored or annoyed with the story, and I never felt like it wasn't going anywhere. Things were revealed when they needed to be, Fama never kept you guessing for long- that was nice.
The only thing that bugged me about this book, and it might be a biggie for some: The ending. Plus One is a stand alone novel. WHAT?!??! No way. There are so many things left hanging. Okay, everything is sort of wrapped up, but more in a- let's prepare you for a second book, but let's not leave it at a cliff hanger- kind of way. I was grumpy when I found out that there was no sequel in mind. It's funny, because some books are series/trilogies when they really don't need to be, while this one could be, and would be a great series/trilogy, but it's not. I was not impressed.
Overall, I loved Plus One, I loved the characters and they way they grew throughout the story, I loved the plot, I found it unique and interesting, I just really did not like the ending. I thought it was a cop out, and it really made me wonder whether I want to read more by Elizabeth Fama, no matter how much I enjoyed the rest of the book. I do not like, nor appreciate bittersweet, ambiguous endings.
~Happy Reading Everyone!
Find this review and more, on my blog Just Another Story
bookfessional's review against another edition
2.0
Reviewed by: Rabid Reads
LOTS of dystopians flooding the YA market these days.
That doesn’t particularly bother me, but as is true when a market is flooded with anything, I’ve had to become more selective in deciding which dystopians to actually read. I needed to create a method of separating the wheat from the the chaff, the silver from the dross, the smart and fresh and original dystopians from the bored and stale and copycat dystopians.
It hasn’t been easy or even 100% accurate, but I have saved myself a multitude of tears and recriminations by following these three simple rules:
1. Avoid dystopians with direct and obvious comparisons to The Hunger Games.
2. If it’s part of a series, wait for book 2′s reviews before committing.
3. Dystopians featuring supernatural or SFF elements are typically safer choices (for me anyway) than straight-up dystopians or post-apocalyptic dystopians (I don’t have a survivalist bone in my body).
So when I heard speculation that Elizabeth Fama’s Plus One was loosely based on a retelling of George MacDonald’s The Day Boy and the Night Girl, I jumped on it. It’s no secret that I love fairy tales and retellings of fairy tales, and the fact that Plus One was potentially based on such an obscure fairy tale only further sold it b/c I like obscure.
BUT . . . as it turns out, some ideas don’t work very well for dystopians, so whether or not Plus One is based on a fairy tale or an entirely new endeavor becomes irrelevant b/c it just doesn’t make sense.
What doesn’t make sense?
Lots of things. The idea that people could feasibly be separated into two groups that were subjected to curfews based on whether they were “smudges” who were supposed to be active during night hours, or “rays” who were supposed to be active during day hours. And this was a totally arbitrary separation that was perpetuated by any new offspring being automatically assigned the same designation as the parents.
Not genetics. Not abilities.
Just because.
And yes, about 30% in you were given a reason for the original separation, and I guess I could sort of make sense of it, HOWEVER there was absolutely no legitimate reason to continue the policy after the situation resolved itself. Which it did around 80 years ago.
ALSO—by “night” hours and “day” hours I mean two, equal twelve-hour shifts. But according to the book smudges lived in darkness and rays lived in sunlight and never the twain shall meet . . .
Except days are longer in the summer, and nights are longer in the winter . . .
AND the equality of the original separation made it difficult to believe that over such a short period of time, the smudges became so persecuted by the rays. The wacky separation thing started as one whole, divided equally into halves. But less than 100 years later, one half of the population completely subjugated the other? When the subjugated half was, for nebulous reasons, more numerous?
Sorry. Don’t buy it.
And seriously . . . what was with all the baby-snatching? It was kind of silly.
BUT despite the holes in the world-building and traveshamockery of Soleil’s “plan,” there were immensely enjoyable parts to Plus One. Just b/c I knew immediately where Fama was going with the “desk buddies” part of the plot, doesn’t change the fact that it was lovely when Soleil and D’arcy finally figured it out. And as impulsive and adolescent as Soleil could be, I still found her to be both wildly entertaining and lovable. And D’arcy was just wonderful. The characters and their relationships were the clear strengths of this novel and they made this a somewhat enjoyable read all on their own.
It all felt kind of rushed though. With the seemingly unfixable holes in the world-building, I’m not sorry this was a standalone, but the ending was somewhat unresolved—the kind of ending where you’re left with all the possibilities, and it’s up to you to decide what happens after that last page. Sometimes that can feel hopeful, but Soleil was such a resolutely pessimistic character that it was hard to do that here. You know what you want to happen, but it seems highly unlikely that it will.
So if you’re the kind of reader who is more about connecting with the characters so that you feel something, and you like a slow-build before getting to the action, you’ll probably love Plus One. But if you’re a hardcore lover of pristine, noncontradictory worlds, I’d pass. As much as I loved Soleil and D’arcy, and a few other characters besides, I ultimately couldn't get past my own lack of belief in their situations. But as I’ve said before, every reader is different, and my imagination isn’t what it used to be. You might have no trouble at all accepting the world of smudges and rays. If it sounds interesting to you, try it out and tell me what you think. Maybe if you’re convincing enough, I’ll believe in it too *wink*
LOTS of dystopians flooding the YA market these days.
That doesn’t particularly bother me, but as is true when a market is flooded with anything, I’ve had to become more selective in deciding which dystopians to actually read. I needed to create a method of separating the wheat from the the chaff, the silver from the dross, the smart and fresh and original dystopians from the bored and stale and copycat dystopians.
It hasn’t been easy or even 100% accurate, but I have saved myself a multitude of tears and recriminations by following these three simple rules:
1. Avoid dystopians with direct and obvious comparisons to The Hunger Games.
2. If it’s part of a series, wait for book 2′s reviews before committing.
3. Dystopians featuring supernatural or SFF elements are typically safer choices (for me anyway) than straight-up dystopians or post-apocalyptic dystopians (I don’t have a survivalist bone in my body).
So when I heard speculation that Elizabeth Fama’s Plus One was loosely based on a retelling of George MacDonald’s The Day Boy and the Night Girl, I jumped on it. It’s no secret that I love fairy tales and retellings of fairy tales, and the fact that Plus One was potentially based on such an obscure fairy tale only further sold it b/c I like obscure.
BUT . . . as it turns out, some ideas don’t work very well for dystopians, so whether or not Plus One is based on a fairy tale or an entirely new endeavor becomes irrelevant b/c it just doesn’t make sense.
What doesn’t make sense?
Lots of things. The idea that people could feasibly be separated into two groups that were subjected to curfews based on whether they were “smudges” who were supposed to be active during night hours, or “rays” who were supposed to be active during day hours. And this was a totally arbitrary separation that was perpetuated by any new offspring being automatically assigned the same designation as the parents.
Not genetics. Not abilities.
Just because.
And yes, about 30% in you were given a reason for the original separation, and I guess I could sort of make sense of it, HOWEVER there was absolutely no legitimate reason to continue the policy after the situation resolved itself. Which it did around 80 years ago.
ALSO—by “night” hours and “day” hours I mean two, equal twelve-hour shifts. But according to the book smudges lived in darkness and rays lived in sunlight and never the twain shall meet . . .
Except days are longer in the summer, and nights are longer in the winter . . .
AND the equality of the original separation made it difficult to believe that over such a short period of time, the smudges became so persecuted by the rays. The wacky separation thing started as one whole, divided equally into halves. But less than 100 years later, one half of the population completely subjugated the other? When the subjugated half was, for nebulous reasons, more numerous?
Sorry. Don’t buy it.
And seriously . . . what was with all the baby-snatching? It was kind of silly.
BUT despite the holes in the world-building and traveshamockery of Soleil’s “plan,” there were immensely enjoyable parts to Plus One. Just b/c I knew immediately where Fama was going with the “desk buddies” part of the plot, doesn’t change the fact that it was lovely when Soleil and D’arcy finally figured it out. And as impulsive and adolescent as Soleil could be, I still found her to be both wildly entertaining and lovable. And D’arcy was just wonderful. The characters and their relationships were the clear strengths of this novel and they made this a somewhat enjoyable read all on their own.
It all felt kind of rushed though. With the seemingly unfixable holes in the world-building, I’m not sorry this was a standalone, but the ending was somewhat unresolved—the kind of ending where you’re left with all the possibilities, and it’s up to you to decide what happens after that last page. Sometimes that can feel hopeful, but Soleil was such a resolutely pessimistic character that it was hard to do that here. You know what you want to happen, but it seems highly unlikely that it will.
So if you’re the kind of reader who is more about connecting with the characters so that you feel something, and you like a slow-build before getting to the action, you’ll probably love Plus One. But if you’re a hardcore lover of pristine, noncontradictory worlds, I’d pass. As much as I loved Soleil and D’arcy, and a few other characters besides, I ultimately couldn't get past my own lack of belief in their situations. But as I’ve said before, every reader is different, and my imagination isn’t what it used to be. You might have no trouble at all accepting the world of smudges and rays. If it sounds interesting to you, try it out and tell me what you think. Maybe if you’re convincing enough, I’ll believe in it too *wink*
pantsreads's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting idea, and the world building was good, but I would have liked there to be more to the conspiracy.
Check out my full review at Forever Young Adult.
Check out my full review at Forever Young Adult.
inkphoenix13's review against another edition
3.0
Actual rating: 3.5 stars - good, just not what I was expecting. Beautiful cover though!
artsyreadergirl's review against another edition
1.0
Can we just take a second and look at that cover!? HELLO, Lovely! I was super excited to read Plus One as soon as I read the synopsis, and was even MORE excited when I saw the cover! I tend to really love dystopias, and I also love romantic thrillers, which the book’s synopsis claims that this is. I suppose I was thinking of super super thrillery romantic thrillers like Victoria Holt or Daphne Du Maurier, because I was not thrilled with Plus One.
1. I’m saying this immediately, because it was probably the biggest issue I had with Plus One. It’s not a romantic thriller. It’s not suspenseful, and I didn’t feel like it was terribly romantic either. I mean, I guess there are some more tense moments when you’re wondering how these characters are going to get themselves out of the pickle they’ve gotten themselves into… but I never found myself holding my breath or gripping the edge of my seat. I think I probably just set my expectations too high.
2. Going along with the lack of thrill, I really did not feel the romance either. We’ve got two characters here, a day dweller/Ray named D’Arcy and a a night dweller/Smudge named Sol. Sol’s brother was promoted to a Ray because of his amazing technological skills. He got married, had a baby, and Sol wants nothing more than to let her grandfather, still a Smudge, see his great-grandchild. So she formulates a dangerous plan to kidnap her niece from the hospital and bring him to her grandfather. But she kidnaps the wrong child. D’Arcy, is a medical intern in the hospital who figured out what’s going on, but feels compelled to save/help Sol instead of turn her in to the authorities.
This is where I struggled. WHY would D’Arcy risk his career and his life to help a girl he does not know AT ALL to kidnap a child from his post in the hospital? I mean, any medical professional in their right mind, you would think, is against endangering their patients and allowing them to be harmed. ESPECIALLY if that professional does not even KNOW the person who is breaking the rules/law.
3. In addition to this romance confusion, what aunt will deliberately put her niece in danger to bring her to her blind grandfather? I mean, this baby is brand new! And she is running around on a hot day carrying this baby in her sweatshirt, dodging bullets. She could feel the baby’s sweat on her skin. When she got it home, she put it in a kitchen drawer and then ignored its cries of hunger, pain, discomfort, and what have you. This is horrible! If she loved this niece so much, why would she put it in such grave danger? And I can’t think of a grandfather anywhere who would condone such acts. Did she not care at all about the baby’s parents or the baby itself? This book is centered around a plot that is dependent on the fact that Sol is incredibly dumb and selfish.
4. I wasn’t really a fan of any of the characters, just because they were making such dumb and pointless decisions. And since the romance wasn’t there, I just did not care.
In addition to Sol and D’Arcy, we are introduced to this rogue group of day and night dwellers (basically they’re out whenever they want to be), with extreme clothing and make-up. One of them is being sexually abused, which really bothered me. I really dislike reading about stuff like that. I never connected with any of these people, and the link they shared with Sol and her family bugged me. I’m not sure why. Things just got really political.
5. The world is never really explained. We’ve got a caste system and all these social rules, but I never knew the why’s and the how’s of it all! These details could have enriched the story so much more.
All in all, I pretty much know I am in the minority here. I’ve seen many raving reviews for this book, and I really don’t understand why. I did not believe the romance, and I was so confused by the plot itself. Because of these reasons, I had a hard time caring and even finishing the book, which is quite disappointing.
Find this review and many more at That Artsy Reader Girl!
1. I’m saying this immediately, because it was probably the biggest issue I had with Plus One. It’s not a romantic thriller. It’s not suspenseful, and I didn’t feel like it was terribly romantic either. I mean, I guess there are some more tense moments when you’re wondering how these characters are going to get themselves out of the pickle they’ve gotten themselves into… but I never found myself holding my breath or gripping the edge of my seat. I think I probably just set my expectations too high.
2. Going along with the lack of thrill, I really did not feel the romance either. We’ve got two characters here, a day dweller/Ray named D’Arcy and a a night dweller/Smudge named Sol. Sol’s brother was promoted to a Ray because of his amazing technological skills. He got married, had a baby, and Sol wants nothing more than to let her grandfather, still a Smudge, see his great-grandchild. So she formulates a dangerous plan to kidnap her niece from the hospital and bring him to her grandfather. But she kidnaps the wrong child. D’Arcy, is a medical intern in the hospital who figured out what’s going on, but feels compelled to save/help Sol instead of turn her in to the authorities.
This is where I struggled. WHY would D’Arcy risk his career and his life to help a girl he does not know AT ALL to kidnap a child from his post in the hospital? I mean, any medical professional in their right mind, you would think, is against endangering their patients and allowing them to be harmed. ESPECIALLY if that professional does not even KNOW the person who is breaking the rules/law.
3. In addition to this romance confusion, what aunt will deliberately put her niece in danger to bring her to her blind grandfather? I mean, this baby is brand new! And she is running around on a hot day carrying this baby in her sweatshirt, dodging bullets. She could feel the baby’s sweat on her skin. When she got it home, she put it in a kitchen drawer and then ignored its cries of hunger, pain, discomfort, and what have you. This is horrible! If she loved this niece so much, why would she put it in such grave danger? And I can’t think of a grandfather anywhere who would condone such acts. Did she not care at all about the baby’s parents or the baby itself? This book is centered around a plot that is dependent on the fact that Sol is incredibly dumb and selfish.
4. I wasn’t really a fan of any of the characters, just because they were making such dumb and pointless decisions. And since the romance wasn’t there, I just did not care.
In addition to Sol and D’Arcy, we are introduced to this rogue group of day and night dwellers (basically they’re out whenever they want to be), with extreme clothing and make-up. One of them is being sexually abused, which really bothered me. I really dislike reading about stuff like that. I never connected with any of these people, and the link they shared with Sol and her family bugged me. I’m not sure why. Things just got really political.
5. The world is never really explained. We’ve got a caste system and all these social rules, but I never knew the why’s and the how’s of it all! These details could have enriched the story so much more.
All in all, I pretty much know I am in the minority here. I’ve seen many raving reviews for this book, and I really don’t understand why. I did not believe the romance, and I was so confused by the plot itself. Because of these reasons, I had a hard time caring and even finishing the book, which is quite disappointing.
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zoemig's review against another edition
Elizabeth Fama's first novel in ten years, Monstrous Beauty, was easily one of my 2012 favourites so I was incredibly excited when I learned she had a new release coming out, and I picked up Plus One almost right away. In terms of storyline itself, like her previous book about mermaids, the concept of Plus One wasn't the most exciting or innovative. It's the story of a boy and a girl one of whom is a night dweller, and one who works during the day, in a future America that has been strictly divided into day and night classes. When the night girl, Sol, tries to kidnap her newborn day niece to bring her to meet her dying grandfather, she is caught by a boy, D'Arcy, who soon becomes the only one she can trust, and maybe love.
The alternative history behind Plus One is interesting, and just as with Monstrous Beauty it is seamlessly incorporated into the storyline so that enough is known for the world to make sense without bogging down the plot. There's lots of action but it doesn't take away from the emotion. Sol is a bit of a stubborn, emotional, character, but as a reader I really felt her passion. In many ways D'Arcy is the opposite, analytical and patient. However there was a predictable element to their connection I don't want to spoil, but which I felt was too cheesy and convenient and took away from it.
As excellent as world-building seemed, there were some issues when you think about too much, but while I was reading I was plenty distracted by an exciting plot and writing that was very easy and engaging to read. However, it was definitely the characters that made Plus One memorable, and although Sol's plan is a bit ridiculous at times, it just seems so perfectly impulsive and emotional and her. Fama's most recent novel isn't flawless, but it definitely reminded me why her novels are so much fun to read and why I will definitely be picking up whatever she writes next.
The alternative history behind Plus One is interesting, and just as with Monstrous Beauty it is seamlessly incorporated into the storyline so that enough is known for the world to make sense without bogging down the plot. There's lots of action but it doesn't take away from the emotion. Sol is a bit of a stubborn, emotional, character, but as a reader I really felt her passion. In many ways D'Arcy is the opposite, analytical and patient. However there was a predictable element to their connection I don't want to spoil, but which I felt was too cheesy and convenient and took away from it.
As excellent as world-building seemed, there were some issues when you think about too much, but while I was reading I was plenty distracted by an exciting plot and writing that was very easy and engaging to read. However, it was definitely the characters that made Plus One memorable, and although Sol's plan is a bit ridiculous at times, it just seems so perfectly impulsive and emotional and her. Fama's most recent novel isn't flawless, but it definitely reminded me why her novels are so much fun to read and why I will definitely be picking up whatever she writes next.