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A review by mrsbooknerd
Flawed by Cecelia Ahern
4.0
Holy Smokes.
How naive I was... I selected this book for a bedtime read believing that it would be all flowers and true love and magic and life lessons. Essentially your standard Cecelia Ahern novel but with spotty teenagers instead of adults.
I started the book at 9.30, as soon as I climbed under the cool covers of my bed, hoping that I'd nod off with semi-boredom fairly soon. Yet, as the clock struck midnight, I was sitting upright, eyes wide, heart thundering and the covers long since forgotten as I read the last page.
I couldn't shut my mind down at all, thinking through all of the events and themes and trying to calm down my questions and emotions. Some of the events described and themes covered were difficult for me to read as an adult-adult, let alone all those unsuspecting young-adults. They left me feeling uncomfortable and disturbed, and yet I'd have punched anyone who tried to stop me reading.
I enjoyed the dystopian setting, despite it not being my usual 'thing'. The idea of punishment for moral impeachments was actually rather simplistic, but utterly thought-provoking. I certainly haven't stopped thinking about the novel since I finished it, and have been rabbiting on about it to anyone who would listen.
Did I like Celestine? Honestly, no. At least, not at the start. I can see the room for development and hope that the next novel turns her into the hero that she needs to be. However, in this novel, she was insipid and spiritless for the majority. She was far too obsessed with being perfect and having the perfect life. It was great to see her ruffled and to see her having to deal with life as the epitome of everything considered imperfect.
I found her narration often immature. She focused on the things important to a teenager, which makes sense because she was, but I wanted more. I didn't want her to focus on her little boyfriend. I wanted her to step up and take up the 'Flawed' baton. I wanted Celestine to be as adult as the events and themes covered in the novel.
Ahern had written a few words at the end of the book, stating that she thought of the idea for 'Flawed' while writing 'The Marble Collector', her last adult novel. I didn't like 'The Marble Collector' at all, yet usually devour Ahern novels. I now wonder if she was distracted while writing that novel and that is why she didn't give it her all. If so, I totally forgive her because if she was thinking up 'Flawed' it was worth it.
Can't wait for the next novel, and to see how Celestine develops and shapes the world.
How naive I was... I selected this book for a bedtime read believing that it would be all flowers and true love and magic and life lessons. Essentially your standard Cecelia Ahern novel but with spotty teenagers instead of adults.
I started the book at 9.30, as soon as I climbed under the cool covers of my bed, hoping that I'd nod off with semi-boredom fairly soon. Yet, as the clock struck midnight, I was sitting upright, eyes wide, heart thundering and the covers long since forgotten as I read the last page.
I couldn't shut my mind down at all, thinking through all of the events and themes and trying to calm down my questions and emotions. Some of the events described and themes covered were difficult for me to read as an adult-adult, let alone all those unsuspecting young-adults. They left me feeling uncomfortable and disturbed, and yet I'd have punched anyone who tried to stop me reading.
I enjoyed the dystopian setting, despite it not being my usual 'thing'. The idea of punishment for moral impeachments was actually rather simplistic, but utterly thought-provoking. I certainly haven't stopped thinking about the novel since I finished it, and have been rabbiting on about it to anyone who would listen.
Did I like Celestine? Honestly, no. At least, not at the start. I can see the room for development and hope that the next novel turns her into the hero that she needs to be. However, in this novel, she was insipid and spiritless for the majority. She was far too obsessed with being perfect and having the perfect life. It was great to see her ruffled and to see her having to deal with life as the epitome of everything considered imperfect.
I found her narration often immature. She focused on the things important to a teenager, which makes sense because she was, but I wanted more. I didn't want her to focus on her little boyfriend. I wanted her to step up and take up the 'Flawed' baton. I wanted Celestine to be as adult as the events and themes covered in the novel.
Ahern had written a few words at the end of the book, stating that she thought of the idea for 'Flawed' while writing 'The Marble Collector', her last adult novel. I didn't like 'The Marble Collector' at all, yet usually devour Ahern novels. I now wonder if she was distracted while writing that novel and that is why she didn't give it her all. If so, I totally forgive her because if she was thinking up 'Flawed' it was worth it.
Can't wait for the next novel, and to see how Celestine develops and shapes the world.