A review by rlisaacs
Gone by Lisa McMann
2.0
I actually finished this yesterday, but didn't want to type my review until I'd had time to think. After which, however, I am still not happy, and so I can feel I am giving you my honest opinion in the words that follow. (I apologize to the author in advance... but yeah.)
So, I did not enjoy this as much as I would've preferred to. This series as a whole had a, regrettably, Divergent Series effect for me. (Not as severe as that, because I hated the ending of Allegiant, and I was more just underwhelmed with the ending of this series).
I liked the first book, and I liked the second book. They were fairly the same for me. But I was constantly not happy with this book. And it was all Janie's fault. She was awesome in the first book, in my opinion. But by the end of book 2 (Fade), I thought she'd landed in a fairly stable spot. Both mentally and emotionally.
Spoilers To Follow!!!!: Don't read further if that will bother you.
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In the second book, Cabel annoyed me more, what with his inability to handle Janie being in danger and himself being in love with her. Their lack of communication in both these last books irks me to no end. But at the end Fade, they were happy and together, and Captain (that's the officer in charge of them and their cases, FYI) has told Janie that times have changed. Advancements have been made since Martha Stubbin wrote her little notebook, and Captain has connections that they can use to see about giving Janie a better future. And sure, maybe it will turn out that there is no cure, or no way to prevent Janie from a large part of her fate as a dream catcher. But still! At the end of book 2, I thought we were feeling all kinds of hopeful. I would've rather read a third book that saw her making schedules for clinics and trials, seeing special doctors, finding other catchers who had more answers. And all the while, maybe solve another case.
No dice. The third book sees Janie, almost from the start, suddenly deciding that her only solution is going to be isolating herself from everyone. EVERYONE. And I'm an introvert, so I get a little of that. I need my space sometimes. I like having time alone, to unwind and relax. But to completely isolate from, literally, everyone??? Forever???
I liked that we got to see who Janie's father was. I like that we figured out he was a dream catcher. And I like that Janie did figure out that there is no best path or solution for her being a dream catcher. Neither is great, both will end in a not great way, and it's just a matter of which you want to deal with. But again! Maybe there is another way, and the only reason we don't know about it is because Janie doesn't actually try to use the resources Captain talked about to try and discover that. (As you can tell, this part annoys me more than anything.) Janie isolates herself, keeps to herself, doesn't talk to anybody about what she's thinking, planning, or doing. And she never, even once, considers trying to see if Captain can schedule a visit with some doctor who can maybe find a way to help her. It's only mentioned briefly in book 2, but I would've so loved to see some expansion on that possibility. And instead, we got a book full of Janie being incredibly sorry for herself, being incredibly stupid (in my opinion), and a rather underwhelming ending.
I started this review off with three stars, but I don't think I realized just how irked I was until I started typing. We're dropping to a 2.5. I would've rather ended at book 2, Fade, if this was how book 3 was going to go. (Several reviews stated that when I read them too, but I thought I owed it to myself to finish the series. To anyone who hasn't read and is still wondering, end at Fade. That's my opinion. You will be happier with life if you do.)
Sorry for the spoilers (I did warn you). And sorry for the rant.
So, I did not enjoy this as much as I would've preferred to. This series as a whole had a, regrettably, Divergent Series effect for me. (Not as severe as that, because I hated the ending of Allegiant, and I was more just underwhelmed with the ending of this series).
I liked the first book, and I liked the second book. They were fairly the same for me. But I was constantly not happy with this book. And it was all Janie's fault. She was awesome in the first book, in my opinion. But by the end of book 2 (Fade), I thought she'd landed in a fairly stable spot. Both mentally and emotionally.
Spoilers To Follow!!!!: Don't read further if that will bother you.
-
-
-
-
-
In the second book, Cabel annoyed me more, what with his inability to handle Janie being in danger and himself being in love with her. Their lack of communication in both these last books irks me to no end. But at the end Fade, they were happy and together, and Captain (that's the officer in charge of them and their cases, FYI) has told Janie that times have changed. Advancements have been made since Martha Stubbin wrote her little notebook, and Captain has connections that they can use to see about giving Janie a better future. And sure, maybe it will turn out that there is no cure, or no way to prevent Janie from a large part of her fate as a dream catcher. But still! At the end of book 2, I thought we were feeling all kinds of hopeful. I would've rather read a third book that saw her making schedules for clinics and trials, seeing special doctors, finding other catchers who had more answers. And all the while, maybe solve another case.
No dice. The third book sees Janie, almost from the start, suddenly deciding that her only solution is going to be isolating herself from everyone. EVERYONE. And I'm an introvert, so I get a little of that. I need my space sometimes. I like having time alone, to unwind and relax. But to completely isolate from, literally, everyone??? Forever???
I liked that we got to see who Janie's father was. I like that we figured out he was a dream catcher. And I like that Janie did figure out that there is no best path or solution for her being a dream catcher. Neither is great, both will end in a not great way, and it's just a matter of which you want to deal with. But again! Maybe there is another way, and the only reason we don't know about it is because Janie doesn't actually try to use the resources Captain talked about to try and discover that. (As you can tell, this part annoys me more than anything.) Janie isolates herself, keeps to herself, doesn't talk to anybody about what she's thinking, planning, or doing. And she never, even once, considers trying to see if Captain can schedule a visit with some doctor who can maybe find a way to help her. It's only mentioned briefly in book 2, but I would've so loved to see some expansion on that possibility. And instead, we got a book full of Janie being incredibly sorry for herself, being incredibly stupid (in my opinion), and a rather underwhelming ending.
I started this review off with three stars, but I don't think I realized just how irked I was until I started typing. We're dropping to a 2.5. I would've rather ended at book 2, Fade, if this was how book 3 was going to go. (Several reviews stated that when I read them too, but I thought I owed it to myself to finish the series. To anyone who hasn't read and is still wondering, end at Fade. That's my opinion. You will be happier with life if you do.)
Sorry for the spoilers (I did warn you). And sorry for the rant.