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leesuh's review
2.0
MAYBE 2.5 stars.
I went into The Innocents with basically no insight to the story whatsoever. I knew it’s Young Adult Contemporary, so you can imagine the type of thing I was expecting (summer romance, school troubles, family troubles, maybe an accident or something). While there is some of that in this book, it’s completely different from what I had thought it would be. Maybe if I hadn’t have reserved any expectations for it I wouldn’t have been disappointed or disgruntled. (Obviously.)
The story itself was interesting enough, I guess… if a million and one things about it were changed. It seemed extremely melodramatic more than once, like a soap opera, and by the end I was calling bullshit. Not that I completely hated the book. I kept reading and that says something, but I started disliking it more and more as I went along. The author’s writing leaves something to be desired and I have some woes with a particular character.
I hate Alice, the main character (one of them, at least). She’s so annoying. She’s paranoid, self-centered, nosy, and prone to make assumptions that are often incorrect. Not little assumptions like “You ate the last cookie!”, but big ones like “You killed XYZ!”. I’ll admit, sometimes she is correct in her Sherlock Holmes stories, but she’s so quick to assume things that I feel like I never got on board with her because she was always just being crazy again. Speaking of which, I sort of hope she does turn out to have some sort of mental illness, because her actions and the way she thinks are too unwarranted.
Alice’s character would be pretty interesting if it was the author’s motive to have her seem crazy, but the thing is: I’m not entirely sure that’s what Lili Peloquin meant to do. That, I’m sure is one of my biggest problems with the whole novel. Is the author purposely weaving this crazy shit together because it’s how Alice is seeing things, or is she (the author) just trying too hard and failing? The whole time I was reading I was thinking about reading the next book to get some sort of explanation, but I’m not positive I want to spend my time on this story anymore. Alas.
Also, about the author’s writing style: There are so many inconsistencies in the grammar and style of writing in this book. From point of view problems to the use of commas in place of the word “and”, it was sometimes extremely annoying. Usually grammar mistakes can be passed by and forgotten, but I feel like if they confuse the reader at all the author and/or the editor should have caught them, and when they don’t it reflects on them as lazy and sloppy. This is the case with The Innocents. And while I didn’t quit the book because of the problems, I do look down on it more than I would have had there been less wrong.
For the most part, I don’t think I’ll ever read this book again and I’m unsure if I’ll even give the second book in the series a try. You may like it, I don’t know, but the story was trying too hard and I just couldn’t enjoy it.
ETA: I know this review seems pretty harsh on the book, and I suppose you're probably right. It wasn't the worst book I ever read, nor was it the best. I don't want you to feel like you shouldn't read the book just because I didn't like it. You may love it, I don't know. Everything written in this and all of my reviews is my opinion and I hope it won't ever keep you from giving a book a try if you feel like reading it. And take what I say with a grain of salt because my views on books (and life in general) are never static. (:
I went into The Innocents with basically no insight to the story whatsoever. I knew it’s Young Adult Contemporary, so you can imagine the type of thing I was expecting (summer romance, school troubles, family troubles, maybe an accident or something). While there is some of that in this book, it’s completely different from what I had thought it would be. Maybe if I hadn’t have reserved any expectations for it I wouldn’t have been disappointed or disgruntled. (Obviously.)
The story itself was interesting enough, I guess… if a million and one things about it were changed. It seemed extremely melodramatic more than once, like a soap opera, and by the end I was calling bullshit. Not that I completely hated the book. I kept reading and that says something, but I started disliking it more and more as I went along. The author’s writing leaves something to be desired and I have some woes with a particular character.
I hate Alice, the main character (one of them, at least). She’s so annoying. She’s paranoid, self-centered, nosy, and prone to make assumptions that are often incorrect. Not little assumptions like “You ate the last cookie!”, but big ones like “You killed XYZ!”. I’ll admit, sometimes she is correct in her Sherlock Holmes stories, but she’s so quick to assume things that I feel like I never got on board with her because she was always just being crazy again. Speaking of which, I sort of hope she does turn out to have some sort of mental illness, because her actions and the way she thinks are too unwarranted.
Alice’s character would be pretty interesting if it was the author’s motive to have her seem crazy, but the thing is: I’m not entirely sure that’s what Lili Peloquin meant to do. That, I’m sure is one of my biggest problems with the whole novel. Is the author purposely weaving this crazy shit together because it’s how Alice is seeing things, or is she (the author) just trying too hard and failing? The whole time I was reading I was thinking about reading the next book to get some sort of explanation, but I’m not positive I want to spend my time on this story anymore. Alas.
Also, about the author’s writing style: There are so many inconsistencies in the grammar and style of writing in this book. From point of view problems to the use of commas in place of the word “and”, it was sometimes extremely annoying. Usually grammar mistakes can be passed by and forgotten, but I feel like if they confuse the reader at all the author and/or the editor should have caught them, and when they don’t it reflects on them as lazy and sloppy. This is the case with The Innocents. And while I didn’t quit the book because of the problems, I do look down on it more than I would have had there been less wrong.
For the most part, I don’t think I’ll ever read this book again and I’m unsure if I’ll even give the second book in the series a try. You may like it, I don’t know, but the story was trying too hard and I just couldn’t enjoy it.
ETA: I know this review seems pretty harsh on the book, and I suppose you're probably right. It wasn't the worst book I ever read, nor was it the best. I don't want you to feel like you shouldn't read the book just because I didn't like it. You may love it, I don't know. Everything written in this and all of my reviews is my opinion and I hope it won't ever keep you from giving a book a try if you feel like reading it. And take what I say with a grain of salt because my views on books (and life in general) are never static. (:
heyitstay19's review
3.0
I liked this book. I didn't LOVE it though. It started kind of slow and I wasn't really into the way it was formatted (narrators aren't my favorite plus there wasn't a lot of breaks in the spacing). The characters were almost like able. I don't think the title really fits the book. I was expecting more a murder mystery vibe or some kind of illegal activity(which there wasn't). I came across this book on a whim for only two dollars so I didn't know much about it until I started reading. I will be reading the second book. If you're looking for an average book and like to read then I would recommend.
mayris88's review
3.0
Didn't like the fact that Charlie is a spoiled bitch. I mean, I wasn't so fond of Alice either, cause I just didn't get WHY she has to go after Tommy. I think I'd be a little creeped out and put off after so many people telling me the resemblance she has with a death girl. Like, I don't know, be more careful or something.
But back to Charlie, dude, if your sister is telling you about her suspicions, maybe you should try to at least take her a bit more seriously or be more considerate of her feelings. The sad thing is that Charlie only cares about herself.
To be honest, I didn't enjoy most of the book till the last few chapters, when everything starts to unravel. And I wasn't very keen on reading the next installment, but now I wanna know what's gonna happen and how much the truth will affect their family.
But back to Charlie, dude, if your sister is telling you about her suspicions, maybe you should try to at least take her a bit more seriously or be more considerate of her feelings. The sad thing is that Charlie only cares about herself.
To be honest, I didn't enjoy most of the book till the last few chapters, when everything starts to unravel. And I wasn't very keen on reading the next installment, but now I wanna know what's gonna happen and how much the truth will affect their family.
emilymahar's review
4.0
From the moment I heard about this book I knew that I had to check it out! I really enjoyed this book, and I liked how it was different from the books that I normally read.
The story was filled with lots of family and relationship drama. I liked how there were so many characters because it kept you guessing about what really happened to the characters before Charlie and Alice arrived in Serenity Point. Along with all of the drama Alice is trying to find out the truth about the reason why her step-father's daughter, Camilla's death. When you put everything together you get a great drama! (I could see this becoming a TV show.) The only reason that this was a 4 star book for me was because I had some of the happenings figured out before they actually happened.
Out of the two sisters, Charlie and Alice, I found myself liking Alice and her story better than Charlie. Although Charlie was fun to read about, she was a bit too wild for my liking. I did like their love interests, but again I liked Alice's better. Charlie's was a little complicated but deep down I could tell that he was a decent guy. As of right now.
Overall, I am excited for the next book in the series as it left me wanting to know what happens next in this great drama!
The story was filled with lots of family and relationship drama. I liked how there were so many characters because it kept you guessing about what really happened to the characters before Charlie and Alice arrived in Serenity Point. Along with all of the drama Alice is trying to find out the truth about the reason why her step-father's daughter, Camilla's death. When you put everything together you get a great drama! (I could see this becoming a TV show.) The only reason that this was a 4 star book for me was because I had some of the happenings figured out before they actually happened.
Out of the two sisters, Charlie and Alice, I found myself liking Alice and her story better than Charlie. Although Charlie was fun to read about, she was a bit too wild for my liking. I did like their love interests, but again I liked Alice's better. Charlie's was a little complicated but deep down I could tell that he was a decent guy. As of right now.
Overall, I am excited for the next book in the series as it left me wanting to know what happens next in this great drama!
rhi_g's review
2.0
I've had this book on my shelves for years, just waiting to be picked up. I can honestly say that I'm glad I finally did even if my rating is so low. There's nothing particularly remarkable about the story or plot, but the writing is so smooth and the book is short enough that it makes it easy to fly through this book in one day. The major downfall of this novel is that it's painfully predictable. I had guessed the "big twist" by page 10. The foreshadowing is so heavy that it justs makes the reveal feel like a statement rather than a twist. Besides, most of the characters don't seem to have big reactions to the information either. It leaves the book feeling rather pointless and dull.
queenblife's review against another edition
2.0
I did not like this book as much as I thought I would. It literally took me MONTHS to get through it. The beginning started off interesting and then it seemed to take forever to get somewhere. When the story line finally started getting good the book was over and I was back where it started. Blah. Same yourself some time and pick a different book.
tangledinwordsandyarn's review
4.0
Started out a bit slow, but was good. A cross between "Gossip Girl" and "Northanger Abbey". Looking forward to the next book in the series.
kristareadsalot88's review against another edition
4.0
I absolutely enjoyed this book from beginning to end. It had reminded me of The Lying Game and Pretty Little Liars. So many secrets, I can't wait to read more.