DNF at 92 percent. You know a book's boring me when I cant even read the last 8 percent of it. Honestly, I feel kind of bad for how much I didn't likeDNF at 92 percent. You know a book's boring me when I cant even read the last 8 percent of it. Honestly, I feel kind of bad for how much I didn't like this? But I was so so bored. And the antagonist was so incredibly obvious that it made me question how dense Meadows thinks the average reader is.
I do see how this could be enjoyable for someone of different tastes, but for me this was immensely disappointing....more
I'd been really excited for this since I loved A Dowry of Blood, but this... did nothing for me.I'd been really excited for this since I loved A Dowry of Blood, but this... did nothing for me....more
im glad i didnt buy this one tbh it was... a let down. their kids are not interesting, their older selves are just there to be Dads, the plot isnt neaim glad i didnt buy this one tbh it was... a let down. their kids are not interesting, their older selves are just there to be Dads, the plot isnt nearly as compelling... sad....more
This was perfectly...fine. I think this would have worked better as a fanfic, something light and silly where the characters are Extra Oblivious and wThis was perfectly...fine. I think this would have worked better as a fanfic, something light and silly where the characters are Extra Oblivious and worldbuilding doesn't really matter. As an original work though, this is kind of a miss for me. I didn't care that much about the characters, the worldbuilding was nonexistant, and the plot was tenuously held together by the main characters refusing to just talk to each other.
This wasn't a terrible book to read, like I said it's very light and silly, but I wish I hadn't actually spent money on it. (I actually bought three FT Lukens books before I had bother reading any of them and I'm regretting that now.)...more
i mean it wholehwartedly when i say this book has changed me. sometimes i look at my average rating here on goodreads and think i am too picky to lovei mean it wholehwartedly when i say this book has changed me. sometimes i look at my average rating here on goodreads and think i am too picky to love reading this much, but then i read something so exquisite that all of the lackluster books become worth it. i am so eternally grateful to past me for finishing dark rise despite how slow it was in the first half. i am going to be thinking about this book constantly until the next comes out....more
halfway in, i thought this would be a strained 4 stars. as it continued, it lowered to 3 stars. but the ending makes me so angry i bothered reading thhalfway in, i thought this would be a strained 4 stars. as it continued, it lowered to 3 stars. but the ending makes me so angry i bothered reading this. it sells itself as a cute romcom but they don't even end up together. it's unbelievably frustrating to go on this whole journey of crest learning that all humans aren't terrible and them falling in love and getting not one but TWO opportunities for them to be together only for them to both say no. like why am i here what was the point who the hell writes a fake dating trope that ends in nobody actually dating?
and this doesn't even begin to cover my other problems with the book. the deus ex machinas, the overly convenient plot points, the lowkey biphobia ('hearts not parts'), the overt horniness of the characters, the bestie being an awful and selfish friend, etc. geez, i wish i could return this one to the store......more
life is too short to read boring books. i was really looking forward to this but i should know by now to stop basing my hopes on the goodreads averagelife is too short to read boring books. i was really looking forward to this but i should know by now to stop basing my hopes on the goodreads average rating....more
if you think you would enjoy a book of a bunch of people puttering around in space doing fuck all, then this is the one for you. if you actually enjoyif you think you would enjoy a book of a bunch of people puttering around in space doing fuck all, then this is the one for you. if you actually enjoy a plot, you will not find it here....more
Well, it was pretty boring to have a book that revolved around Harvey's love for Sabrina but I guess it's my fault for picking up a prequel novel. I lWell, it was pretty boring to have a book that revolved around Harvey's love for Sabrina but I guess it's my fault for picking up a prequel novel. I liked the looks into the other character's perspectives and Ambrose and Sabrina's relationship and somehow came out of this kinda shipping Tommy and Ambrose? Didn't see that one coming....more
The parts about this that I enjoyed, I enjoyed a lot. The found family / friendships were great and I loved Hap. But the first 35 percent was really hThe parts about this that I enjoyed, I enjoyed a lot. The found family / friendships were great and I loved Hap. But the first 35 percent was really hard to get through—which I am not surprised about with this author—and the overt sexualization of some of the robots was just. . weird imo....more
This book has no audience. By that I mean that it's far too juvenile for adults but far too information heavy for kids. I can see what it's trying to dThis book has no audience. By that I mean that it's far too juvenile for adults but far too information heavy for kids. I can see what it's trying to do and be, but it fails at it pretty badly. I'm all for books that teach kids about different identities and how to be supportive, empathetic, and open, but this reads almost like an "information vending machine" (to quote a character in the book).
A lot of the book, and it's barely-there plot, serve to teach kids about different identities and parts of the lgbtq community, but in a very heavy handed way. So much of the book is just dedicated to either Bailey or the adults explaining things. It's not interesting and I don't see how it could ever hold the attention of a middle grader.
The characters mostly felt like devices rather than people because of this, and almost none of their dialogue or interactions came off as being true to life. Bailey was far too educated and well spoken for an eleven year old, able to provide succinct counter-arguments to bigotry in ways I cannot see any of my nieces or nephews doing. Alternatively, Annabelle is super naive and needs things to be explained to her constantly (obviously, we needed a character to press the buttons on the vending machine). And the rest of kids in class, sans one, were basically perfect baby liberals who were super excited to talk about diversity and minorities and presented as if they'd all grown up in some utopic society where everyone is very accepting and kids didn't absorb their parents' or society's bigotry in any way. (Also... why was Seattle being described so much like a Gay Utopia? I promise homophobes are everywhere lol.)
The author also seemed to want to address problems within the lgbtq community itself (namely, that some trans people think being nb isn't real or valid), but couldn't explore that in a way that felt real due to the book being aimed at children. The father, who is trans, does not really have a good reason for his ideology and is ultimately weak in his convictions despite supposedly holding them for years. I think there is a lot of issues within the lgbtq community that should be addressed, but with the nuance that they deserve.
I think the only things I could say I liked about this book was the intention and the way they dealt with Annabelle's crush—I liked that she was able to be honest with her friend about it and that the story didn't paint a kid's feelings as either less important or deeply serious.