I really wanted to like this book. The concept of a disease that may cause spontaneous combustion is incredibly interesting. But I could not get myself to like the main character. And I was bothered with bits and pieces of the writing style and plot.

TOPICS/SUBJECTS: This novel touches on a lot of different topics: disease, community, religion, government, family, and grief. But it seemed to only stay in the shallow depths of each one. I was left feeling like I wished more of the subjects had been explored in greater depth.

WRITING STYLE: Nothing to write home about. I was peeved by a few different quirks, such as the author's habit of pointing to various bits of pop culture as an attempt to breathe life into the main character and world. Unfortunately, this left me feeling as though the book would easily become dated, and got a few eye-rolls out of me. Some people may find the prospect of a young woman being obsessed with Mary Poppins to this extent ~~cute and/or relatable~~ but I did not. It was just cringey.

LIKEABILITY: The concept was awesome, the execution was okay, and the writing style was cringey at times. In summation, it was an average book that I wish was a little shorter.