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maggies's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A quick travel read - YA take on The Truman Show with slightly more peril and slightly less humor, maybe? V enjoyable and entertaining for losing the hours on buses and planes
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, and Terminal illness
Minor: Gun violence
amibo's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Child death, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Terminal illness, Grief, Car accident, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Abandonment
Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, and Child abuse
Minor: Gun violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
sunsetcity's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I was initially excited to read this book for the "Truman Show" like plot and, while it did deliver in that aspect, I found some parts of the plot fell a little short for me. In this novel, we follow Jess, a typical teen in the 1990s, living an average life. She has a good group of friends, a normal family and a crush on her childhood best friend. Things start to turn upside when a strange object falls out of her friend's backpack one day and no one can explain what it was. The people around all start acting weird and Jess gets the feeling that her small town may not be exactly as it seems.
This book falls in the same vein as "The Truman Show" and I really enjoyed that aspect of it. Seeing Jess slowly figure out was happening and seeing her world expand was really interesting to read about. I also, as a 90s kid myself, enjoyed all the 90s references (although it hurt me a little to hear it referred to as retro). But I wish we had stayed in that part of the book a little longer. I was really into the pacing and story progression at the beginning, but I think the second half lost me. Some of the plot points were a little too convenient and things just seemed to be happening without much explanation. I also wish there was maybe one more chapter to help wrap the story up better.
Characterwise, I didn't really connect with any of the characters. I felt that we got to know Jess, but most of the other characters we only learned about at a surface level. To some extent, that was the point of some of these characters, but the more major ones (like Kips or Sarah), I felt we could have learned more about who they were both in and out of the set. I also didn't love the romance in this book, as it did develop super quickly.
Overall, this was an easy and entertaining read full of 90s nostalgia.
This book falls in the same vein as "The Truman Show" and I really enjoyed that aspect of it. Seeing Jess slowly figure out was happening and seeing her world expand was really interesting to read about. I also, as a 90s kid myself, enjoyed all the 90s references (although it hurt me a little to hear it referred to as retro). But I wish we had stayed in that part of the book a little longer. I was really into the pacing and story progression at the beginning, but I think the second half lost me. Some of the plot points were a little too convenient and things just seemed to be happening without much explanation. I also wish there was maybe one more chapter to help wrap the story up better.
Characterwise, I didn't really connect with any of the characters. I felt that we got to know Jess, but most of the other characters we only learned about at a surface level. To some extent, that was the point of some of these characters, but the more major ones (like Kips or Sarah), I felt we could have learned more about who they were both in and out of the set. I also didn't love the romance in this book, as it did develop super quickly.
Overall, this was an easy and entertaining read full of 90s nostalgia.
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, and Cursing
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