popthebutterfly's review against another edition
3.0
Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Before Takeoff
Author: Adi Alsaid
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 3/5
Diversity: Latinx MC, French Thai Switz character, Black characters, Buddhist character, Asian character, Latinx queen character
Recommended For...: young adult readers, thriller, romance, contemporary, magical realism
Publication Date: June 7, 2022
Genre: YA Thriller Romance
Age Relevance: 15+ (cursing, terrorism, deportation, cancer, racism, sexual content, panic attack, religion, HP content, romance, death)
Explanation of Above: There is some cursing in the book. There are mentions of terrorism, deportation, cancer, and racism. There is some sexual content and romance mentioned in the book and some slightly shown. There is a panic attack shown in the book. There is religion that is mentioned very briefly in the book. There is death shown in the book. There is one HP mention in the book.
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Pages: 336
Synopsis: James and Michelle find themselves in the Atlanta airport on a layover. They couldn't be more different, but seemingly interminable delays draw them both to a mysterious flashing green light--and each other.
Where James is passive, Michelle is anything but. And she quickly discovers that the flashing green light is actually... a button. Which she presses. Which may or may not unwittingly break the rules of the universe--at least as those rules apply to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta.
Before they can figure up from down, strange, impossible things start happening: snowstorms form inside the B terminal; jungles sprout up in the C terminal; and earthquakes split the ground apart in between. And no matter how hard they try, it seems no one can find a way in or out of the airport. James and Michelle team up to find their families and either escape the airport, or put an end to its chaos--before it's too late.
Review: Overall, this book was interesting. The book is set in the Atlanta airport and if there wasn’t COVID in the air I’d go there and read this book to experience everything firsthand. The book is an interesting case study on how people would handle unexpected or cataclysmic events. The world building was good and the story keeps you on your toes for sure. I’d say that I liked the premise of the book and what it was wanting to offer to me.
However, I had a lot of negatives about this book. The book is weirdly told and it’s very clearly not very well plotted. The character descriptions are lazy, it took me until the near the end of the book that the MC was Latinx, and not well formed. There is a part in the book where a queer character, of unknown age but is clearly older because they work for TSA, is crushing on a freshly 18 year old girl and it gives all the ick vibes but also gives the impression that the queer character is acting that way because they’re queer, which is a no go during Pride month. The only reason I’m not 1 starring this book is because I feel like that was an oversight considering the overall writing of the book. The writing is just bad and this book is not a fun read. I also hated the HP reference in this book and, since this is 2022 and the HP author’s transphobic nature is widely known, there is no excuse for it and a point has been deducted from the book’s rating overall.
Verdict: It’s good, but there’s so many issues that I think a few more rough drafts and rounds of editing could solve.
Book: Before Takeoff
Author: Adi Alsaid
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 3/5
Diversity: Latinx MC, French Thai Switz character, Black characters, Buddhist character, Asian character, Latinx queen character
Recommended For...: young adult readers, thriller, romance, contemporary, magical realism
Publication Date: June 7, 2022
Genre: YA Thriller Romance
Age Relevance: 15+ (cursing, terrorism, deportation, cancer, racism, sexual content, panic attack, religion, HP content, romance, death)
Explanation of Above: There is some cursing in the book. There are mentions of terrorism, deportation, cancer, and racism. There is some sexual content and romance mentioned in the book and some slightly shown. There is a panic attack shown in the book. There is religion that is mentioned very briefly in the book. There is death shown in the book. There is one HP mention in the book.
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Pages: 336
Synopsis: James and Michelle find themselves in the Atlanta airport on a layover. They couldn't be more different, but seemingly interminable delays draw them both to a mysterious flashing green light--and each other.
Where James is passive, Michelle is anything but. And she quickly discovers that the flashing green light is actually... a button. Which she presses. Which may or may not unwittingly break the rules of the universe--at least as those rules apply to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta.
Before they can figure up from down, strange, impossible things start happening: snowstorms form inside the B terminal; jungles sprout up in the C terminal; and earthquakes split the ground apart in between. And no matter how hard they try, it seems no one can find a way in or out of the airport. James and Michelle team up to find their families and either escape the airport, or put an end to its chaos--before it's too late.
Review: Overall, this book was interesting. The book is set in the Atlanta airport and if there wasn’t COVID in the air I’d go there and read this book to experience everything firsthand. The book is an interesting case study on how people would handle unexpected or cataclysmic events. The world building was good and the story keeps you on your toes for sure. I’d say that I liked the premise of the book and what it was wanting to offer to me.
However, I had a lot of negatives about this book. The book is weirdly told and it’s very clearly not very well plotted. The character descriptions are lazy, it took me until the near the end of the book that the MC was Latinx, and not well formed. There is a part in the book where a queer character, of unknown age but is clearly older because they work for TSA, is crushing on a freshly 18 year old girl and it gives all the ick vibes but also gives the impression that the queer character is acting that way because they’re queer, which is a no go during Pride month. The only reason I’m not 1 starring this book is because I feel like that was an oversight considering the overall writing of the book. The writing is just bad and this book is not a fun read. I also hated the HP reference in this book and, since this is 2022 and the HP author’s transphobic nature is widely known, there is no excuse for it and a point has been deducted from the book’s rating overall.
Verdict: It’s good, but there’s so many issues that I think a few more rough drafts and rounds of editing could solve.
strangled_stardust's review
It was boring! As much as the summary seemed interesting enough I found the story... lacking.
The characters are flushed out too soon and worldbuilding seems a little confusing. The writing is.. different? An odd sort of perspective. Most of all, I'm less than halfway through and already wondering how on EARTH this story has 200+ pages more. Simply.. not interested or invested enough to know. (Even the "mystery" set up at the beginning wasn't enough to keep me going)
I had this in my tbr for around 2+ years and am finally dropping it without regret.
The characters are flushed out too soon and worldbuilding seems a little confusing. The writing is.. different? An odd sort of perspective. Most of all, I'm less than halfway through and already wondering how on EARTH this story has 200+ pages more. Simply.. not interested or invested enough to know. (Even the "mystery" set up at the beginning wasn't enough to keep me going)
I had this in my tbr for around 2+ years and am finally dropping it without regret.
shilten_k's review
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
aymster's review against another edition
3.0
It was interesting at the beginning. It was a story I wanted to enjoy. Eventually I had to convince myself to plow through it because it just wasn’t making sense anymore. It tried too hard to create drama that was just unbelievable. I was ok with the early unreal phenomenon, but it just went too far.
shxlby98's review against another edition
1.0
This was an odd little book. Don’t get me wrong I love odd little books but this missed the mark for me.
It was just too odd and the narration did not work for this book. It was just too much.
Nothing really happened in the book and it was very anticlimactic
It was just too odd and the narration did not work for this book. It was just too much.
Nothing really happened in the book and it was very anticlimactic
rebecca_w28's review
adventurous
hopeful
sad
tense
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
At the start, this book was confusing because the points of view kept jumping around but as I read a few more pages, I was able to catch on to the second person pov and then I was really hooked on the book from then on
darnfeinbookthoughts's review
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
story_sanctuary's review against another edition
5.0
This is only the second book I've ever read by Adi Alsaid, but of the two, this one is my favorite. I felt like the point of view always switched at exactly the right moments, just when I needed to know something or when it heightened the tension. I love that!
I also loved both the main characters: Michelle and James. I loved the snippets of their lives outside the airport that we got to see and the way they were with each other. I loved the way the minor characters played into the story-- especially Michelle's mom and Rosa.
It's been at least a week since I finished reading the book, and I'm still thinking about a lot of the moments in it. I definitely need my friends to read this one so I have more people to talk with about it. Ha!
Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions my own.
I also loved both the main characters: Michelle and James. I loved the snippets of their lives outside the airport that we got to see and the way they were with each other. I loved the way the minor characters played into the story-- especially Michelle's mom and Rosa.
It's been at least a week since I finished reading the book, and I'm still thinking about a lot of the moments in it. I definitely need my friends to read this one so I have more people to talk with about it. Ha!
Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions my own.
taylorretter's review
emotional
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? No
3.25
ljg765's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0