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procrastiwriter's review
5.0
I wasn't sure what to expect when I first signed up to be an ARC reader of Headspace, but this book sucked me in on the very first line and never let me go!
Astra is a young woman who prefers reading to people and doesn't like to take risks. She's an unlikely (and unwilling) contestant in an alien game show taking the world and media by storm. Now, she's fighting for her life with the odds stacked against her - surrounded by people whose motives might not be as straightforward as they seem.
There are SO many elements in this story that make it feel frighteningly realistic: the social media hype, the fickle infatuation of the masses for their latest celebrities, and the motives and involvement of the government.
The fear and uncertainty are so tangible that they will keep you hanging on to the very end! I felt so involved and emotionally invested with these characters that I sat down after finishing this book and took several deep breaths to try processing What. On. Earth. had just happened.
J. D. Edwin is a phenomenal writer. I believed that in the first chapter, and I finished the last one absolutely sure of it. I used to be a voracious reader but fell out of the habit with the busyness of life post-graduation. As I've started to get back into reading, I've realized that there are some books, some writing styles, that have that extra something. It's hard to put my finger on it to describe it, but these books flow so smoothly - so thoroughly draw you in - that you won't realize you're reading words on paper anymore. Instead, they play before your mind's eye like a movie tailor-made for you.
Headspace is one of those books. It makes reading effortless, and I read the last 23 chapters in one night.
Was there anything I didn't like?
There are so many great things to love about this book that it makes me pause before mentioning anything I didn't like. But, there were a few things that I found a bit off-putting. Number 1 would be a romantic element in this book that I wasn't expecting. And no, this doesn't mean that I didn't appreciate this couple. They are cute, and I love them. It just moved really fast, and there's an "almost" scene that I didn't appreciate (but I also went into this book with zero romantic expectations, so that's on me).
Number 2 would be the language. There's more swearing than I appreciate, with terms like f*ck, d*ck, and wh*re being used frequently in the last two-thirds of this book. I tend to avoid books with this much (though it isn't inundated with them - so it's not as bad as I'm probably making this sound), but I kept reading, and in the end, I still loved this book.
I will still buy myself both a paperback and an audio copy once it's available on July 13th. Why? Because the swearing still made sense. It didn't detract enough from this book to make me not want to reread it or get my hands on the sequel as soon as possible - because I will. Most. Definitely. Be reading this again (and I need that sequel!
Astra is a young woman who prefers reading to people and doesn't like to take risks. She's an unlikely (and unwilling) contestant in an alien game show taking the world and media by storm. Now, she's fighting for her life with the odds stacked against her - surrounded by people whose motives might not be as straightforward as they seem.
There are SO many elements in this story that make it feel frighteningly realistic: the social media hype, the fickle infatuation of the masses for their latest celebrities, and the motives and involvement of the government.
The fear and uncertainty are so tangible that they will keep you hanging on to the very end! I felt so involved and emotionally invested with these characters that I sat down after finishing this book and took several deep breaths to try processing What. On. Earth. had just happened.
J. D. Edwin is a phenomenal writer. I believed that in the first chapter, and I finished the last one absolutely sure of it. I used to be a voracious reader but fell out of the habit with the busyness of life post-graduation. As I've started to get back into reading, I've realized that there are some books, some writing styles, that have that extra something. It's hard to put my finger on it to describe it, but these books flow so smoothly - so thoroughly draw you in - that you won't realize you're reading words on paper anymore. Instead, they play before your mind's eye like a movie tailor-made for you.
Headspace is one of those books. It makes reading effortless, and I read the last 23 chapters in one night.
Was there anything I didn't like?
There are so many great things to love about this book that it makes me pause before mentioning anything I didn't like. But, there were a few things that I found a bit off-putting. Number 1 would be a romantic element in this book that I wasn't expecting. And no, this doesn't mean that I didn't appreciate this couple. They are cute, and I love them. It just moved really fast, and there's an "almost" scene that I didn't appreciate (but I also went into this book with zero romantic expectations, so that's on me).
Number 2 would be the language. There's more swearing than I appreciate, with terms like f*ck, d*ck, and wh*re being used frequently in the last two-thirds of this book. I tend to avoid books with this much (though it isn't inundated with them - so it's not as bad as I'm probably making this sound), but I kept reading, and in the end, I still loved this book.
I will still buy myself both a paperback and an audio copy once it's available on July 13th. Why? Because the swearing still made sense. It didn't detract enough from this book to make me not want to reread it or get my hands on the sequel as soon as possible - because I will. Most. Definitely. Be reading this again (and I need that sequel!
liza's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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? Yes
4.5
Thank you so much to JD Edwin for the review copy of this book! I have to say as someone who does not read much science fiction, I was enamored with this novel.
The main character for this book, Donna Astra Ching who mainly goes by Astra, is going about her day to day life as a menacing orb is floating in the sky is choosing random people to compete in a widely broadcasted game show for survival. When Astra is chosen she has to discern who would as an ally and who would like to do whatever it taken to win including sabotaging others.
I also quite enjoyed the character development of the characters you least expected as well as the stories of the past contestants.
I greatly appreciated the romance being so minimal/light as well, there are so many things going on at points that also trying to embed a romance aspect in it would’ve ruined
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Violence, Confinement, Ableism, and Blood
Minor: Child death, Death of parent, Animal death, and Infertility
sksadge's review
5.0
Wow.
Thank you, J.D. Edwin, for the ARC and the opportunity to immerse myself in this new (chilling but mesmerizing?) world.
Such a great read! Once the action starts, it never stops. I couldn't put the book down once I reached the middle.
My emotions were all over the place; I was thrilled to be in the arena with the characters. I finished it a few days ago, and I am still thinking about it and what I would have done if...
Last point: I just love the author's work with the character Eleven: a fantastic job!
Now, I just have to wait and hope the second book won't take too long... ?
Thank you, J.D. Edwin, for the ARC and the opportunity to immerse myself in this new (chilling but mesmerizing?) world.
Such a great read! Once the action starts, it never stops. I couldn't put the book down once I reached the middle.
My emotions were all over the place; I was thrilled to be in the arena with the characters. I finished it a few days ago, and I am still thinking about it and what I would have done if...
Last point: I just love the author's work with the character Eleven: a fantastic job!
Now, I just have to wait and hope the second book won't take too long... ?
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