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btwnprintedpgs's Reviews (1.3k)
I actually thought I had reviewed this months ago when I read it in January. I didn’t apparently though.
I couldn’t love this book. There was so much that happened, but at the same time, I felt like nothing did. I’m used to the action-packed, suspenseful, mysterious plots that usually come with Ally Carter’s book. This one was trying too hard to do the whole PTSD thing. Grace has been traumatized by her mother’s death, or murder as she remembers it, but has been traumatized even more by the people around her telling her to let it go and that it was a mistake, not murder. Due to this, the whole book was like going around in circles – her screaming it was murder, her being told it wasn’t, her investigating on her own, and her again being told that nothing happened, and around in a circle it went. It felt empty, almost.
There was a lot of telling, and very little showing in this book, to the point where I couldn’t connect with any of the characters. Grace was a frazzled mess, and had very few concrete thoughts, and when she did, it was an obsessive focus; Noah was entertaining and cute, but that was all I could say about him; Rosie was fun, but I know basically nothing about her; and I can’t even remember the other partner in crime’s name – just that her skills and appearance were a little too convenient in line with Grace’s “clue-finding”.
Admittedly, the highlight was the end. It was not what I had expected, and it was enough to make me not totally hate the book. While this book could have had more action and more allure to it, I can see why some things were done as they were. Grace’s adventures are mundane, because she is mundane. She too far in her own world, even prior to her mother’s death, and she can’t seem to realize that she’s not like Cami or Kat – she has no training or skill in really anything except causing problems, jumping to conclusions, and diving in head first into brick walls and dead ends. In the end, I felt sorry for her, but prior to that, it was hard to get through internal complaints and frustrations. That may seem unsympathetic because no one wants to hear that someone with a mental health problem is being told to just be “fine”, but at the same time, it was a little extreme, everything she did, and it was her impulsiveness that annoyed me more than her thirst for the truth.
This book, overall, was not the quality that I’m used to from Ally Carter. It didn’t catch my attention as well, it didn’t draw me in, or keep me glued to the pages. It actually took me two weeks to finish this book, because I didn’t have an itch to run back to it everyday.
I enjoyed some of the twists of the story, but this story didn’t have the same connection and flow that all of her other books had. If I had to say one thing, it’s that I wish this had been another Heist novel instead of a new series.
Plot: 3.5/5
Characters: 3/5
World Building: 4/5
Writing: 4/5
Cover: 4.5/5
Overall: 3.5/5
GoodReads Rating: 3.79/5
ARC obtained via Scholastic Press in exchange for an honest review.
I couldn’t love this book. There was so much that happened, but at the same time, I felt like nothing did. I’m used to the action-packed, suspenseful, mysterious plots that usually come with Ally Carter’s book. This one was trying too hard to do the whole PTSD thing. Grace has been traumatized by her mother’s death, or murder as she remembers it, but has been traumatized even more by the people around her telling her to let it go and that it was a mistake, not murder. Due to this, the whole book was like going around in circles – her screaming it was murder, her being told it wasn’t, her investigating on her own, and her again being told that nothing happened, and around in a circle it went. It felt empty, almost.
There was a lot of telling, and very little showing in this book, to the point where I couldn’t connect with any of the characters. Grace was a frazzled mess, and had very few concrete thoughts, and when she did, it was an obsessive focus; Noah was entertaining and cute, but that was all I could say about him; Rosie was fun, but I know basically nothing about her; and I can’t even remember the other partner in crime’s name – just that her skills and appearance were a little too convenient in line with Grace’s “clue-finding”.
Admittedly, the highlight was the end. It was not what I had expected, and it was enough to make me not totally hate the book. While this book could have had more action and more allure to it, I can see why some things were done as they were. Grace’s adventures are mundane, because she is mundane. She too far in her own world, even prior to her mother’s death, and she can’t seem to realize that she’s not like Cami or Kat – she has no training or skill in really anything except causing problems, jumping to conclusions, and diving in head first into brick walls and dead ends. In the end, I felt sorry for her, but prior to that, it was hard to get through internal complaints and frustrations. That may seem unsympathetic because no one wants to hear that someone with a mental health problem is being told to just be “fine”, but at the same time, it was a little extreme, everything she did, and it was her impulsiveness that annoyed me more than her thirst for the truth.
This book, overall, was not the quality that I’m used to from Ally Carter. It didn’t catch my attention as well, it didn’t draw me in, or keep me glued to the pages. It actually took me two weeks to finish this book, because I didn’t have an itch to run back to it everyday.
I enjoyed some of the twists of the story, but this story didn’t have the same connection and flow that all of her other books had. If I had to say one thing, it’s that I wish this had been another Heist novel instead of a new series.
Plot: 3.5/5
Characters: 3/5
World Building: 4/5
Writing: 4/5
Cover: 4.5/5
Overall: 3.5/5
GoodReads Rating: 3.79/5
ARC obtained via Scholastic Press in exchange for an honest review.
Let's be real, our first thought at the end of the day wasn't, "Wait, what about the Watchers?!" When the final credits rolled for Buffy the Vampire Slayer, we were wondering whether she'd be back in Angel, how we'd get over Spike's sacrifice, and where all these slayer-powered girls will go from here.
Slayer takes place two months after the apocalyptic fight in Sunnydale and the question no one was asking is answered - are the Watchers okay?
When we meet MC Nina, it doesn't seem like it. The Hellmouth is gone, but so is all the magic - what held together a lot of the old traditions for the Watchers. Now they have books that are more paperweight than educational, and Nina, a failed watcher turned makeshift nurse who can't speed heal to everyone's dismay. However, when Nina comes into her Slayer powers after a Hellhound attack, Nina finds herself questioning her identity as a healer and Watcher.
I really liked Nina as an MC, and I think her character development was done really well. She makes a few mistakes, she gets herself in trouble, but I think the whole Slayer thing is something that she grows into. That being said, Nina hasn't had the best childhood - she witnessed the Watchers' fall, the magic die; lived through her father's passing, the neglect of her mother; and found herself an outcast when she wasn't allowed to take the Watchers test. Nina dwells a lot on these things throughout the book - time and time again coming back to them. She dreams about it, she complains about it in the narrative, she's jealous of her sister because of it, and it becomes this whole thing that you just start skimming over every time she thinks about it. I'm not faulting her for dwelling on it, and I'm not mad that this is what made her who she is, but it was just too much too many times - it started bogging down the story and taking away from the areas of the story I wanted more of.
The world building is well done - Nina paints us a clear picture of the Watchers' current living situation, as well as the cities she ends up visiting. Even her dreams are vividly described and I really liked that I got to dive deep into the world with the narration.
The action - when there was action - was good, like so good. It made me exceptionally happy and it was what kept me pushing through the book. Nina's not a natural fighter - so seeing her train, and jump into action was a lot of fun. The last 100 pages got me so fired up. I was so mad when the book just ended and I realized I had to wait for the next one.
All in all, Slayer is a good starting point for this series - it has the necessary character development, a clear and immersive world, and a lot of demony action that fires you right up and throws you back into the world of Hellmouths and Slayers. I won't lie and say that I wish there had been a little more action and a little less moping, but it was definitely something that contributed to the character development. I'm so ready for the next book, because that end got me shook. Nina is going to be a bomb Slayer is all I'm saying.
Plot: 3/5
Characters: 4/5
World Building: 4/5
Writing: 4/5
Pacing: 3/5
Overall: 3/5
GoodReads Rating: 3.78/5
eARC obtained via Simon and Schuster Canada and Simon Pulse via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
-review by Between Printed Pages
Slayer takes place two months after the apocalyptic fight in Sunnydale and the question no one was asking is answered - are the Watchers okay?
When we meet MC Nina, it doesn't seem like it. The Hellmouth is gone, but so is all the magic - what held together a lot of the old traditions for the Watchers. Now they have books that are more paperweight than educational, and Nina, a failed watcher turned makeshift nurse who can't speed heal to everyone's dismay. However, when Nina comes into her Slayer powers after a Hellhound attack, Nina finds herself questioning her identity as a healer and Watcher.
I really liked Nina as an MC, and I think her character development was done really well. She makes a few mistakes, she gets herself in trouble, but I think the whole Slayer thing is something that she grows into. That being said, Nina hasn't had the best childhood - she witnessed the Watchers' fall, the magic die; lived through her father's passing, the neglect of her mother; and found herself an outcast when she wasn't allowed to take the Watchers test. Nina dwells a lot on these things throughout the book - time and time again coming back to them. She dreams about it, she complains about it in the narrative, she's jealous of her sister because of it, and it becomes this whole thing that you just start skimming over every time she thinks about it. I'm not faulting her for dwelling on it, and I'm not mad that this is what made her who she is, but it was just too much too many times - it started bogging down the story and taking away from the areas of the story I wanted more of.
The world building is well done - Nina paints us a clear picture of the Watchers' current living situation, as well as the cities she ends up visiting. Even her dreams are vividly described and I really liked that I got to dive deep into the world with the narration.
The action - when there was action - was good, like so good. It made me exceptionally happy and it was what kept me pushing through the book. Nina's not a natural fighter - so seeing her train, and jump into action was a lot of fun. The last 100 pages got me so fired up. I was so mad when the book just ended and I realized I had to wait for the next one.
All in all, Slayer is a good starting point for this series - it has the necessary character development, a clear and immersive world, and a lot of demony action that fires you right up and throws you back into the world of Hellmouths and Slayers. I won't lie and say that I wish there had been a little more action and a little less moping, but it was definitely something that contributed to the character development. I'm so ready for the next book, because that end got me shook. Nina is going to be a bomb Slayer is all I'm saying.
Plot: 3/5
Characters: 4/5
World Building: 4/5
Writing: 4/5
Pacing: 3/5
Overall: 3/5
GoodReads Rating: 3.78/5
eARC obtained via Simon and Schuster Canada and Simon Pulse via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
-review by Between Printed Pages