DNF @ pg.95 I just didn’t/couldn’t get it.

I was enjoying this book to about the 50% mark. I felt that, although slow, it was building up pretty nicely to something good. However, then it truly starts to feel too repetitive and it comes obvious that the predictions I made in the first 10% of the book is what actually happened. Everything really happens in the last three chapters and wraps up far too nice and tidy. I want to give Sager another shot even though I keep reading some really strongly worded reviews about his books lmao.

1 star because this was a fast read, but oh my god it still feel too long. Worst narrator that is given far too much backstory and characters that are arguably even worse? Complete nonsense and it just felt like the Michaelides was thinking "ohhh I got them now!" every other chapter. 

Put this down and decided to read something else and come back to it. Well I've come back and after reading two more pages I've realized I truly do not care. This is partially my fault because I went in expecting more contemporary and romance (I wanted to give romance genre a shot), but it turned out to be slightly more fantastical (and it's really not all that fantasy) than I expected. The story feels lost and the use of the main character's SA experience feels disingenuous. 

I was enjoying myself up to about 25% of the book and then I was wondering if maybe I wasn't vibing with the characters. A little over 50% I knew that this was just poorly executed. Felt like the author had an idea of what they wanted the end to be and then just worked backwards because so much of it was like "oh really? ... okay then I guess?" Too many liberties were taken even for a vaguely sci-fi, futuristic future and also honestly kinda of tone deaf writing throughout. 2 stars purely because it had be hooked enough to read it through in one day. 

I don't know if M.L. Rio's writing is for me. The way certain passages are written, as if to further drive me into the atmosphere of the situation, ended up making me roll my eyes. 

I was interested with this story from the first 20 or so pages, but as it developed it quickly lost me. Despite being a super short read, a little over 100 pages, this felt like it took forever for me to get through. Many others have said it before, but this is a story where truly nothing happens in the end. I think the ending would have had a much bigger payoff had the reader been giving more time to actually care and learn about these characters. The concept of the story just doesn't play well with it being a novella and I think had it gone a much more stereotypical way it would have been a much more enjoyable to read. 

Ultimately, I was just left craving a cigarette. 

Wow ... I can't lie, I laughed so hard throughout this whole book and for that it deserves at least one star. That little twist in the last two pages was actually pretty good lmao. Other than that this book was truly the epitome of a "popcorn" read; just totally ridiculous all around.

ETA: Okay actually thinking it over that twist was NOT good lmao. It really makes no sense when you stop and think about it, but if you don't stop and think about it then the twist is good

The -0.25 comes from the few clunky parts in this book where it feels like things just happened a tad too conveniently. As well as one of the characters, Zee, being slightly too one dimensional when I think it would have benefited the story much more to have spent some time exploring Zee's as well. And lasting because the very last chapter just didn't feel right to be and I wish had not been added. 

Aside from that ... holy shit! I never had plans to read this book, I had this completely different understanding of what it was even about. However, one tiktok later and I placed a hold at my library. From the very first page, I was hooked! The way Akbar writes, his poetic writing just flows through every line. I love how the meaning of Martyr seems to change within in the last chapter and creates this beautiful conclusion. Haven't cried while reading a book in a very long time, but wow I had to keep taking breaks while reading this because it would become too much all at once. Absolutely stunning piece of work.

I don't think this book was necessarily bad; it fits well within its genre. Obviously having to ignore some really far fetched things that happen like teenagers going into what would be a dangerous situation in real life and having nothing bad happen. The characters weren't memorable and the mystery itself was pretty easy to catch onto.

Overall, it was an okay read and it did help me get out of reading slump. I might pick up the second book if I find myself bored. 

This has been on my shelves for far too long. I'm happy to finally get to remove it, but oh my god was this so bad. The only reason I didn't DNF was because this was extremely easy and fast to read, but there were definitely moments where I had to question if I wanted to continue.

This book lacks a cohesive plot, actual good/likable characters, a sense of realism, and pacing. At times I forgot that this was all taking place over ONE year. The amount of things that kept happening and the amount of things that were CONVENIENTLY happening like ... what in the wattpad? Also that ending completely threw me in for a loop I cannot believe that was actually read and approved by ANYONE!

Anyway, I wasn't planning for this to be my first official read of the year, but I lost my copy of Battle Royale. 😞