A review by essjay
The Fallout by Kristy Acevedo

2.0

I think part of why both of these books bothered me so much is that they seem to be coming from a place of privilege and entitlement without ever really acknowledging it. Alex (and everyone else we meet) has a very black and white way of thinking about the situation, with zero nuance or room for error. And I guess maybe it's not meant to be read this way, since

SIDEKICK says they completed their mission to save Alex,

but by

returning to our Earth with the technology instead of destroying it, and creating a new "meritocracy," are they not just the beginning of the cycle they've just worked so hard to end?

Idk, overall there was just an awful lot about this duology that didn't work for me. Both books could have been improved greatly if some of the pacing issues were worked out. In both, not a whole lot happened for 75-80% (just so much wheel-spinning), only for an "explosive conclusion" that goes exactly nowhere. 

Bleh.