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A review by me_alley
Zero Stars, Do Not Recommend by MJ Wassmer
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
"Zero Stars, Do Not Recommend" by @wassmerwrites is my surprise book of August. My surprise book is a book that is charmingly not at all what I expected based on title, cover, description, or some combination of the three. The cover and title at first glance suggested "contemporary romance/chick lit" to me, and I'm not sure either is a good representation of the delightful and engaging story within.
The first sentence is "Dan Foster was on his fifth Miller lite when the sun exploded. Or maybe his sixth."
The setting is a resort in the Bahamas, an island of only 1000 people. The resort, brand new, has 3 levels of accommodation, building A (the most luxurious) to building C (the most affordable). Because the sun explodes, I have to categorize this book -at least tangentially- as sci-fi, although being that the setting is so remote, the science itself is not explained at all. We know what the characters know, which is not much. The majority of the characters that we follow are "building B" - the sandwich between the haves and the have nots. This opens up a beautiful story of classism, vulnerability, relationships, capitalism and groupthink. It is romantic (a bit), mystery, dramatic, and an ensemble character study. I also LOVE when a book is able to incorporate one of my favorite themes- that the power group (i.e. men, white people, fit people) is also hurt by culture-power systems (i.e. patriarchy, racism, fatphobia). It hurts the non-power group more, but it isn't good for the group in power, either.
At no point in the story did I feel like I knew what was going to happen next. Not to belabor this point, but- as someone who reads 2 books per day on average- do you know how hard it is to surprise me? Mission accomplished.
This is one of the funniest books I have read this year- the audiobook version is extremely well acted and easy to follow. I also was emotional at the loss of certain characters. If I were a high school English teacher, I would put this book on the curriculum.
Thanks to #netgalley and @bookmarked for the Audiobook ARC. Book to be released August 6, 2024.
The first sentence is "Dan Foster was on his fifth Miller lite when the sun exploded. Or maybe his sixth."
The setting is a resort in the Bahamas, an island of only 1000 people. The resort, brand new, has 3 levels of accommodation, building A (the most luxurious) to building C (the most affordable). Because the sun explodes, I have to categorize this book -at least tangentially- as sci-fi, although being that the setting is so remote, the science itself is not explained at all. We know what the characters know, which is not much. The majority of the characters that we follow are "building B" - the sandwich between the haves and the have nots. This opens up a beautiful story of classism, vulnerability, relationships, capitalism and groupthink. It is romantic (a bit), mystery, dramatic, and an ensemble character study. I also LOVE when a book is able to incorporate one of my favorite themes- that the power group (i.e. men, white people, fit people) is also hurt by culture-power systems (i.e. patriarchy, racism, fatphobia). It hurts the non-power group more, but it isn't good for the group in power, either.
At no point in the story did I feel like I knew what was going to happen next. Not to belabor this point, but- as someone who reads 2 books per day on average- do you know how hard it is to surprise me? Mission accomplished.
This is one of the funniest books I have read this year- the audiobook version is extremely well acted and easy to follow. I also was emotional at the loss of certain characters. If I were a high school English teacher, I would put this book on the curriculum.
Thanks to #netgalley and @bookmarked for the Audiobook ARC. Book to be released August 6, 2024.