lokenstein's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
fast-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? Yes
5.0
This was an amazing book. I picked it up because I heard there were quite a few queer characters in it, including a non binary main character, and indeed there were. But I wasn’t expecting the story to be so much about found families, about everything that is wrong in the prison system – or even in the punishment ideology, especially for young people, and especially in America. Of course this was written (and read) during the covid pandemic, and there are some obvious similarities, although this is still a work of fiction and not really talking about covid (for instance, the plague here has a near 100% death rate). This book broke my heart, but also healed it, and I cannot recommend it enough!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Death, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, and Terminal illness
Minor: Racism, Transphobia, and Sexual assault
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