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A review by daytimebelle
Montello High: School of Gangsters by Shiela May Familaran
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
I have to say, this book is just okay, which makes sense considering it was written back in 2013 (if I’m not mistaken). Honestly, I probably would have loved it when I was a 14-year-old girl who spent all her free time devouring Wattpad stories.
I didn’t go into it expecting something amazing, especially knowing when it was written, but I did have high hopes for the main character—Summer Leondale. She’s supposed to be this cool, badass girl, and while she certainly had the potential to be that, I feel like it wasn’t fully realized. At times, I could relate to her, but more often than not, she was just so frustrating. I really wanted to see the ‘cool’ girl everyone keeps talking about, but instead, she came off as more cringe-worthy than anything else.
And then there’s Tyler. I seriously can’t stand it when authors give a character a traumatic backstory, make them suffer emotionally throughout the entire book, only to kill them off in the end. It feels like unnecessary emotional manipulation, and it’s a personal pet peeve of mine.
Many of the characters in this book are pretty insensitive, but I understand that this might be a reflection of the time it was written. While I didn’t love the book, I didn’t hate it either. It’s just not my cup of tea.
That said, I’m still planning to read the next book, so here’s hoping it’s better!
I didn’t go into it expecting something amazing, especially knowing when it was written, but I did have high hopes for the main character—Summer Leondale. She’s supposed to be this cool, badass girl, and while she certainly had the potential to be that, I feel like it wasn’t fully realized. At times, I could relate to her, but more often than not, she was just so frustrating. I really wanted to see the ‘cool’ girl everyone keeps talking about, but instead, she came off as more cringe-worthy than anything else.
And then there’s Tyler. I seriously can’t stand it when authors give a character a traumatic backstory, make them suffer emotionally throughout the entire book, only to kill them off in the end. It feels like unnecessary emotional manipulation, and it’s a personal pet peeve of mine.
Many of the characters in this book are pretty insensitive, but I understand that this might be a reflection of the time it was written. While I didn’t love the book, I didn’t hate it either. It’s just not my cup of tea.
That said, I’m still planning to read the next book, so here’s hoping it’s better!