A review by annaparente
Instant Karma, by Marissa Meyer
4.0
One of my favorite parts of this book were the characters. That is really where Marissa Meyer shines, and I think that is how she was able to write a decent contemporary novel-- even though the plotting and occasionally info-dumping writing style was reminiscent of a fantasy or sci-fi.
I also have been reading some reviews complaining about how unlikeable Prudence was in the beginning despite that being the point of the book, but I found her really relatable. Driven, judgmental, overachieving. Freaking out over anything less than an A. Having a twin brother and three additional siblings (side note on that, the chaos of a five-kid household was on point. I wish we got more scenes with Pru's whole family together). The other characters were great too. Quint was wonderful, and Jude and Ari, while side characters, were very well-developed.
I don't think the budget for this book was very large. I'm pretty sure it was only published because Marissa Meyer wanted o try writing a contemporary, and she's popular enough that her publisher knew it would sell. This isn't a bad thing-- it was a pretty good book as a whole, and I'm all for authors dipping their toes into new genres-- but there are a couple things I would like to point out.
1) The inside cover says Prudence's last name is Daniels, but throughout the entire book they say her last name is Barnett. A small mistake, but it seems like a pretty big oversight considering Marissa Meyer's popularity.
2) The first five chapters or so felt like one cliche rom-com trope after another. I don't know if this was intentional or not, and I don't read a ton of romance so it was actually kind of fun for me to read, but some other people may have been upset by it. The book did move away from the cliche after the beginning.
I think that's pretty much it. Maybe it's just because I know Marissa Meyer usually writes fantasy and sci-fi, but something about the writing made it clear she wasn't as proficient in this genre. Overall, this was a fun, fluffy read, and I would recommend if that's what you're looking for.
I also have been reading some reviews complaining about how unlikeable Prudence was in the beginning despite that being the point of the book, but I found her really relatable. Driven, judgmental, overachieving. Freaking out over anything less than an A. Having a twin brother and three additional siblings (side note on that, the chaos of a five-kid household was on point. I wish we got more scenes with Pru's whole family together). The other characters were great too. Quint was wonderful, and Jude and Ari, while side characters, were very well-developed.
I don't think the budget for this book was very large. I'm pretty sure it was only published because Marissa Meyer wanted o try writing a contemporary, and she's popular enough that her publisher knew it would sell. This isn't a bad thing-- it was a pretty good book as a whole, and I'm all for authors dipping their toes into new genres-- but there are a couple things I would like to point out.
1) The inside cover says Prudence's last name is Daniels, but throughout the entire book they say her last name is Barnett. A small mistake, but it seems like a pretty big oversight considering Marissa Meyer's popularity.
2) The first five chapters or so felt like one cliche rom-com trope after another. I don't know if this was intentional or not, and I don't read a ton of romance so it was actually kind of fun for me to read, but some other people may have been upset by it. The book did move away from the cliche after the beginning.
I think that's pretty much it. Maybe it's just because I know Marissa Meyer usually writes fantasy and sci-fi, but something about the writing made it clear she wasn't as proficient in this genre. Overall, this was a fun, fluffy read, and I would recommend if that's what you're looking for.