meetmeinmalkovich's review against another edition
2.0
Was this as good as the first one? Not really.
It felt kind of detached and, as with the first of the series, had some major plot holes and missing details that I wished had been formed. The ending threw me for a loop, I will say that. I didn't expect it. Not the whole Conor bit (for those who have read and will understand that statement) but the very end, in what seemed like an epilogue of sorts from Aoife's perspective. I literally widened my eyes at that whole last chapter. And quite honestly, the first book made Nessa's character feel more believable. This one not so much. I was really tied on how to rate this and ended up going from three to two stars because it left me with more questions and an emptier feeling than I had hoped for. The first book pulled me in, flaws and all. But this one just fell so short.
It felt kind of detached and, as with the first of the series, had some major plot holes and missing details that I wished had been formed. The ending threw me for a loop, I will say that. I didn't expect it. Not the whole Conor bit (for those who have read and will understand that statement) but the very end, in what seemed like an epilogue of sorts from Aoife's perspective. I literally widened my eyes at that whole last chapter. And quite honestly, the first book made Nessa's character feel more believable. This one not so much. I was really tied on how to rate this and ended up going from three to two stars because it left me with more questions and an emptier feeling than I had hoped for. The first book pulled me in, flaws and all. But this one just fell so short.
rissasreading's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed this one a little bit more than the first however I found it to be VERY slow. The action doesn't pick up until the book is almost over. There's more violence in this one and definitely isn't light to read. I think it's an interesting sequel and a cool story with an interesting ending. However I feel like I'm left wanting more.
hoosgracie's review against another edition
4.0
The follow-up to the Call finds our heros from the first book in unexpected places and the Sidhe invading Ireland. This was a good second book, which completed the story.
vminton706's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
4.5
I was blown away by this duo-ology I have never read a YA book with so much vicious gore and cruelty and it doesn’t skimp on descriptions! No one, absolutely no one, is safe in these books and I LOVED IT! I could not give a higher recommendation for both these novels and am about to see if this author has written anything else…. I am so sad these books are over I haven’t had a book hangover in a long time but i sure have one now! GO READ THESE!
0aava0's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
4.0
A quick entertaining read
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, and Violence
sadhbh_15's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
breedawnwriter's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I have mixed feelings about this book.
The Good:
I loved it because it has some of my favorite themes. Surviving and never giving up are truly at the heart of this novel. Nessa’s persistence in the face of overwhelming—and fatal—odds inspired me. I love that she somehow always finds a way to keep going, to keep trying, to take one more step even when the very ground beneath her is quaking.
This also extends to Anto and Aoife. These two carry so much of the story on their shoulders, and they handle it with such care. There were many moments with Anto that drove me crazy (and no, I won’t be elaborating because spoilers), but I forgive him for being an idiot because of his heart. He loves with every part of him—just as I suppose we all did at fourteen. Aoife also shined in this book. She had a bit of a backseat roll in The Call, but here she takes the reigns and comes into her own. She knows why she is fighting, and that reason is so special to me: Not to win, but to simply make a difference to someone.
We all want to make a difference. We all want to make a splash and be remembered for doing the right thing. This theme envelops the latter-half of the novel and gently reminds us all about why we have to keep fighting the battle, even if we know we won’t win the war.
The Not-So-Good:
I expected more.
The Call was unputdownable. The Invasion was more…putdownable. I think it was simply too long without enough reason to be so long. The pacing was way too slow for 80% of the book, and then the ending wrapped up way too fast. (I also wish the author had done some sort of epilogue to tell us what happened to a couple of characters.)
Overall, it’s a decent read, if you really liked The Call and wanted more. But, if you were satisfied with the ending of The Call, I’d recommend treating it as a stand-alone.
Similarly to The Call, there is extreme body horror, gore, and torture. Please read trigger warnings/content warnings before reading if you are at all sensitive to these things!
Content warnings: Ableism, alcohol, blood, body horror, bullying, cannibalism (mentioned/considered), death, fire/fire injury, genocide, gore, grief, gun violence, injury/injury detail, murder, physical abuse, sexual content (two characters have sex, but it isn’t shown on-page. It only shows kissing and “ripping off clothes”), suicidal thoughts, torture (a character’s fingers are broken and the scene is graphic. If you are sensitive to bones breaking/being crushed, proceed with caution. There are other forms of torture, but this was the most disturbing one for me.), violence, vomit, and war.
The Good:
I loved it because it has some of my favorite themes. Surviving and never giving up are truly at the heart of this novel. Nessa’s persistence in the face of overwhelming—and fatal—odds inspired me. I love that she somehow always finds a way to keep going, to keep trying, to take one more step even when the very ground beneath her is quaking.
This also extends to Anto and Aoife. These two carry so much of the story on their shoulders, and they handle it with such care. There were many moments with Anto that drove me crazy (and no, I won’t be elaborating because spoilers), but I forgive him for being an idiot because of his heart. He loves with every part of him—just as I suppose we all did at fourteen. Aoife also shined in this book. She had a bit of a backseat roll in The Call, but here she takes the reigns and comes into her own. She knows why she is fighting, and that reason is so special to me: Not to win, but to simply make a difference to someone.
We all want to make a difference. We all want to make a splash and be remembered for doing the right thing. This theme envelops the latter-half of the novel and gently reminds us all about why we have to keep fighting the battle, even if we know we won’t win the war.
The Not-So-Good:
I expected more.
The Call was unputdownable. The Invasion was more…putdownable. I think it was simply too long without enough reason to be so long. The pacing was way too slow for 80% of the book, and then the ending wrapped up way too fast. (I also wish the author had done some sort of epilogue to tell us what happened to a couple of characters.)
Overall, it’s a decent read, if you really liked The Call and wanted more. But, if you were satisfied with the ending of The Call, I’d recommend treating it as a stand-alone.
Similarly to The Call, there is extreme body horror, gore, and torture. Please read trigger warnings/content warnings before reading if you are at all sensitive to these things!
Content warnings: Ableism, alcohol, blood, body horror, bullying, cannibalism (mentioned/considered), death, fire/fire injury, genocide, gore, grief, gun violence, injury/injury detail, murder, physical abuse, sexual content (two characters have sex, but it isn’t shown on-page. It only shows kissing and “ripping off clothes”), suicidal thoughts, torture (a character’s fingers are broken and the scene is graphic. If you are sensitive to bones breaking/being crushed, proceed with caution. There are other forms of torture, but this was the most disturbing one for me.), violence, vomit, and war.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Violence, Grief, War, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Torture, Blood, Body horror, and Murder
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Ableism, and Sexual content
Minor: Alcohol, Cannibalism, and Vomit
Similarly to The Call, there is extreme body horror, gore, and torture. There are also detailed scenes of bones crunching/breaking. Two characters have sex, but it isn’t shown on-page (some kissing and “ripping off clothes”).leathehatless's review against another edition
3.0
I felt it was a strong conclusion to the series, but it still had its issues.
The narrative went from one extreme to the other. The beginning was confusing and dragged a while and then the finale was to fast and I felt there was a lot that was glossed over.
There was a very interesting comments about the loss of local values and culture to value others and war. Unfortunately, they felt short. They were just hints in the midst of repetitive descriptions of gore. The book, when sometimes isn't necessary, chooses shock value instead of a more in dept conversation about important topics. And I think it could have done it, since most of the world-building was done in the first book.
The multiple POV's didn't work as well as the first book. In the first book they served a better purpose and they created more tension to the plot but on this one I felt they broke the pace. I couldn't connect with the characters on the second book and honestly Anto was a dull perspective to follow. The events were interesting but he felt flat. Nessa was a more powerful protagonist and was put on the back for no reason.
Overall, I think the rating is a 3,75. I think if you liked the first book you will probably enjoy this one.
The narrative went from one extreme to the other. The beginning was confusing and dragged a while and then the finale was to fast and I felt there was a lot that was glossed over.
There was a very interesting comments about the loss of local values and culture to value others and war. Unfortunately, they felt short. They were just hints in the midst of repetitive descriptions of gore. The book, when sometimes isn't necessary, chooses shock value instead of a more in dept conversation about important topics. And I think it could have done it, since most of the world-building was done in the first book.
The multiple POV's didn't work as well as the first book. In the first book they served a better purpose and they created more tension to the plot but on this one I felt they broke the pace. I couldn't connect with the characters on the second book and honestly Anto was a dull perspective to follow. The events were interesting but he felt flat. Nessa was a more powerful protagonist and was put on the back for no reason.
Overall, I think the rating is a 3,75. I think if you liked the first book you will probably enjoy this one.