A review by looseleafellie
Project Dandelion by Heather Carson
3.0
Project Dandelion is about a group of teens who get placed in a nuclear fallout shelter and have to work out how to cooperate to survive. The second I saw the concept, I went, “Muahahahaha, I hope these kids go full Lord of the Flies on me!” I’m pleased to say that they went at least halfway Lord of the Flies on me. Okay, they didn’t murder anyone, but the book only takes place over the span of two weeks so I reckon it was only a matter of time.
I really loved the main character, Katrina — she had a very specific goal that involved getting out of the shelter ASAP, which gave her a delightfully morally gray edge in a group where everyone is expected to cooperate. The contrast between those who wanted to stay and those who wanted to leave got starker and starker throughout the story, but it was never entirely clear who was right. Yes! Give me that sweet moral ambiguity!
There’s one main thing that I unfortunately wasn’t so keen on, and that was the origins of the relationship between Katrina and the love interest, James. My pet peeve in fiction is instalove, and their relationship developed a little too fast for my taste. I mean, I get it — the story only lasts for two weeks — but I like what I like, and what I like is SLOW BURN.
Overall, this was a short, fast read that brought up some really interesting philosophical dilemmas — and got me out of my reading slump!
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the author.
I really loved the main character, Katrina — she had a very specific goal that involved getting out of the shelter ASAP, which gave her a delightfully morally gray edge in a group where everyone is expected to cooperate. The contrast between those who wanted to stay and those who wanted to leave got starker and starker throughout the story, but it was never entirely clear who was right. Yes! Give me that sweet moral ambiguity!
There’s one main thing that I unfortunately wasn’t so keen on, and that was the origins of the relationship between Katrina and the love interest, James. My pet peeve in fiction is instalove, and their relationship developed a little too fast for my taste. I mean, I get it — the story only lasts for two weeks — but I like what I like, and what I like is SLOW BURN.
Overall, this was a short, fast read that brought up some really interesting philosophical dilemmas — and got me out of my reading slump!
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the author.