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izzys_internet_bookshelf's review
3.0
3/5
This book was so different. While I was reading it, the story reminded me of when I was stuck at my house during a bad flood. So it kind of pulled some anxious memories back. This has to be one of the first times a book has done that to me. I usually don’t read books with natural disasters because of my personal experience with them. Other then that the characters in the book were written well. I could feel the emotions these characters had. They reminded me of what it was like.
This book was so different. While I was reading it, the story reminded me of when I was stuck at my house during a bad flood. So it kind of pulled some anxious memories back. This has to be one of the first times a book has done that to me. I usually don’t read books with natural disasters because of my personal experience with them. Other then that the characters in the book were written well. I could feel the emotions these characters had. They reminded me of what it was like.
gggina13's review
5.0
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a chance to read this early (even though I'm late)
This was like, really fucking good. I, without really noticing, picked up two survival stories in a row. I just finished Alone by Megan E. Freeman, about a girl who has to keep living in her town, and in her house(s, her parents were divorced) after the whole town gets carted away by the government. This is nothing like that. This story comes out swinging - about two chapters in, while our main character Ruby is at a laundromat trying to get someone to buy her beer, a huge earthquake hits. "The Big One", in fact, the one that Californians are warned about their whole lives. She and a boy named Charlie are quite literally trapped in the building, pinned by tables and dryers and all kinds of rubble and debris.
It's tense and emotional, and really well-paced. The story begins in the laundromat on the day of the earthquake, but follows Ruby through the following days and whatever happens after. Ruby forms connections and spends a lot of time reflecting on her "normal" life and the things she thought were so important.
As much as realism hurts in survival stories, there's a good amount of realism in this one. Things absolutely do not always go the way you, as a reader, want them to. But there's also unexpected goodness in the story.
Boiled down to it, this is just a disaster story about a girl; it's one that will make you tense up, make your heart race, and maybe even make you cry. I wish this had more hype because I really thought it was well-done.
This was like, really fucking good. I, without really noticing, picked up two survival stories in a row. I just finished Alone by Megan E. Freeman, about a girl who has to keep living in her town, and in her house(s, her parents were divorced) after the whole town gets carted away by the government. This is nothing like that. This story comes out swinging - about two chapters in, while our main character Ruby is at a laundromat trying to get someone to buy her beer, a huge earthquake hits. "The Big One", in fact, the one that Californians are warned about their whole lives. She and a boy named Charlie are quite literally trapped in the building, pinned by tables and dryers and all kinds of rubble and debris.
It's tense and emotional, and really well-paced. The story begins in the laundromat on the day of the earthquake, but follows Ruby through the following days and whatever happens after. Ruby forms connections and spends a lot of time reflecting on her "normal" life and the things she thought were so important.
As much as realism hurts in survival stories, there's a good amount of realism in this one. Things absolutely do not always go the way you, as a reader, want them to. But there's also unexpected goodness in the story.
Boiled down to it, this is just a disaster story about a girl; it's one that will make you tense up, make your heart race, and maybe even make you cry. I wish this had more hype because I really thought it was well-done.
nikkid810's review
3.0
This was a good story of survival and friendship along with all its challenges. My only complaint is that it was a bit slow. The book centers around a natural disaster, so, for the majority of the first half of the book, the characters are stuck and all character development is done through reminiscing and dialogue. Which is fine, I think I just went into the book expecting something different, so that may be on me.
katevaliant's review
5.0
Ruby is struggling with issues in her personal life she wants to forget, and so she skips water polo practice to go to a nearby laundromat where she hopes someone older can be convinced to buy her some beer. At the laundromat she meets Charlie, a college dropout dealing with demons of his own. When a large earthquake hits, “the big one” that everyone has been waiting for, they wind up trapped together in the laundromat. They keep each other company, forming a bond as they confess their worries and regrets to each other. But as the hours pass by they begin to worry they won’t make it out alive.
This book tackles everything from complicated friendships and family changes to the fight to survive in the aftermath of an earthquake. There are a lot of emotional moments, and the story handles the heavier elements well. It also takes on learning to find hope in the wake of tragedy and the aftershocks that continue emotionally after such a traumatic event and the loss of loved ones. While this is a survival story, this is more about the characters and emotional journey of such an event that brings people together rather than tense action.
This book tackles everything from complicated friendships and family changes to the fight to survive in the aftermath of an earthquake. There are a lot of emotional moments, and the story handles the heavier elements well. It also takes on learning to find hope in the wake of tragedy and the aftershocks that continue emotionally after such a traumatic event and the loss of loved ones. While this is a survival story, this is more about the characters and emotional journey of such an event that brings people together rather than tense action.
vibesbymarissa's review
5.0
After Shocks by Marisa Reichardt is incredible!
This book is very fast paced, in the first chapter we get a glimpse into Ruby’s family life and after a fight with her mother she finds herself in a laundromat, trying to work up the courage to ask this preppy nerdy guy to buy her beer... That nerdy guy turns out to be a life saver! Charlie is an amazing character and Ruby and Charlie talk and share pieces of their lives with each other while stuck in the Rubble. Reichardt implements many lessons into her book, to always appreciate the little things in life, to tell your friends and family that you love them, to fight and stay strong. Reichardt also spotlights alcoholism and drinking, in Ruby’s bestfriend and even incorporates it into Charlie’s story. This story teaches so many lessons and is so emotional! I love this book!
This book is very fast paced, in the first chapter we get a glimpse into Ruby’s family life and after a fight with her mother she finds herself in a laundromat, trying to work up the courage to ask this preppy nerdy guy to buy her beer... That nerdy guy turns out to be a life saver! Charlie is an amazing character and Ruby and Charlie talk and share pieces of their lives with each other while stuck in the Rubble. Reichardt implements many lessons into her book, to always appreciate the little things in life, to tell your friends and family that you love them, to fight and stay strong. Reichardt also spotlights alcoholism and drinking, in Ruby’s bestfriend and even incorporates it into Charlie’s story. This story teaches so many lessons and is so emotional! I love this book!
cbking1's review
emotional
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? It's complicated
4.5
Great book! More emotional than I anticipated, but beautifully written story.