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adamwilson's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
ciuli's review against another edition
3.0
3/5
(disclaimer: I read this book ages ago but procrastinated writing the review until today, so what you're reading is basically what I was able to extrapolate from my notes)
Okay, before starting my review, I just want to share my personal opinion. The whole time I was reading this book I was kind of waiting for something utterly shitty or nonsense to happen for me to want to give this book a 1-star rating. Before starting it I had seen a few reviews from people who had read ARCs , and let me just say that they were less than flattering. Having seen those I was prepared for the worst read of my life and in the end I just.. Didn't? I tried to understand those ratings, and I'm genuinely not judging anyone's opinions because everyone is free to think whatever they want. But I mean, I have read so many books that are waaay worse than this one. I really don't get the harsh treatment. I think it was probably due to the huge hype that surrounded the release of this book, I believe people were expecting a masterpiece and found themselves being underwhelmed.
My main issue with this book was the world building, we were thrown into this world and given names about different species and abilities without any explanation whatsoever was definitely confusing at first. There are many characters and magical beings being introduced in the first part and it was difficult to keep track of everything while, especially while listening to it on audio. Also, while I'm already talking about the audio book version, I truly disliked Maribelle's voice actress. Out of all the voices who read the audio book, her voice actress was literally emotionless. She read her chapters as if she was reading a grocery list. A person very close to Maribelle died and it felt like she had gotten out of the hair salon with a messed up hair-do.
Emil is my baby. He was such an unlikely hero that he managed to be the realest of them all. Who would throw themselves at war without being scared of hurting someone or being hurt? Or worse, because during war it's kill or be killed. He was thrown out there because he had developed powers he didn't want and didn't want to fight. There is always this 'chosen-one' scenario going on in fantasy books, and he was suddenly expected to be the one to solve the war overnight.
I'm curious about the second book and I'm going to read it, hoping it will be given more importance to details and world building.
(disclaimer: I read this book ages ago but procrastinated writing the review until today, so what you're reading is basically what I was able to extrapolate from my notes)
Okay, before starting my review, I just want to share my personal opinion. The whole time I was reading this book I was kind of waiting for something utterly shitty or nonsense to happen for me to want to give this book a 1-star rating. Before starting it I had seen a few reviews from people who had read ARCs , and let me just say that they were less than flattering. Having seen those I was prepared for the worst read of my life and in the end I just.. Didn't? I tried to understand those ratings, and I'm genuinely not judging anyone's opinions because everyone is free to think whatever they want. But I mean, I have read so many books that are waaay worse than this one. I really don't get the harsh treatment. I think it was probably due to the huge hype that surrounded the release of this book, I believe people were expecting a masterpiece and found themselves being underwhelmed.
My main issue with this book was the world building, we were thrown into this world and given names about different species and abilities without any explanation whatsoever was definitely confusing at first. There are many characters and magical beings being introduced in the first part and it was difficult to keep track of everything while, especially while listening to it on audio. Also, while I'm already talking about the audio book version, I truly disliked Maribelle's voice actress. Out of all the voices who read the audio book, her voice actress was literally emotionless. She read her chapters as if she was reading a grocery list. A person very close to Maribelle died and it felt like she had gotten out of the hair salon with a messed up hair-do.
Emil is my baby. He was such an unlikely hero that he managed to be the realest of them all. Who would throw themselves at war without being scared of hurting someone or being hurt? Or worse, because during war it's kill or be killed. He was thrown out there because he had developed powers he didn't want and didn't want to fight. There is always this 'chosen-one' scenario going on in fantasy books, and he was suddenly expected to be the one to solve the war overnight.
I'm curious about the second book and I'm going to read it, hoping it will be given more importance to details and world building.
emmas_reads_'s review against another edition
2.0
There was no worldbuilding in this book. It’s like we were expected to know everything going into it. I wish, but that’s not how it works. Most, if not all the characters were bland and forgettable, with Brighton being one, if not the only one, with real flaws.
That said, there were some good things about this book. It tackles body issues and diversity pretty okay. But there were a lot of technical things with this story that just makes it an objectively okay fantasy.
That said, there were some good things about this book. It tackles body issues and diversity pretty okay. But there were a lot of technical things with this story that just makes it an objectively okay fantasy.
blurrypetals's review against another edition
1.0
I didn't think it was possible for Adam Silvera to do a bad, but oof, did he do a bad. I genuinely was not prepared for the possibility that he might be capable of writing something this boring, irritating, lame, and confusing as this. I am baffled by the poor quality of writing.
All of Silvera's previous books are on my Favorite Favorites of All Time Forever shelf and, leading up to its release date yesterday, I fully expected this to be joining.
Instead I was met with a strange, unwelcoming cliché of a story with unlikable characters, annoying and complicated lore, choppy and jarring pacing, and a plot that pretended like it was going somewhere when, in fact, it was going nowhere and it certainly wasn't going to be interesting about it.
I'm truly heartbroken to be writing these things about Silvera's work, though, honestly. I am such a huge fan of his and his writings on pain, depression, and love have eased my own struggles with those things, but this was empty, boring, annoying, and I expect so very much more from Silvera. Even if the plot was shitty, I had at least expected to like the characters, but past Emil and Ness being okay, everyone else, especially Brighton―ugh―was insufferable.
If you love this, more power to you, but, reviewing the front page of reviews here on Goodreads, it looks like a lot of people agree with me for once. I was starting to feel crazy, since I hated Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell, Wolfsong by T.J. Klune, and The Fever King by Victoria Lee and I felt very much like an island in my complete and total disdain for them. It's nice to be validated by the masses on this one.
Seriously, I wish you much, much better luck next time, Adam. You are better than this book, you are capable of more. I am so disappointed in this book and I hope to forget it as soon as I possibly can. Just...yikes. Big yikes.
All of Silvera's previous books are on my Favorite Favorites of All Time Forever shelf and, leading up to its release date yesterday, I fully expected this to be joining.
Instead I was met with a strange, unwelcoming cliché of a story with unlikable characters, annoying and complicated lore, choppy and jarring pacing, and a plot that pretended like it was going somewhere when, in fact, it was going nowhere and it certainly wasn't going to be interesting about it.
I'm truly heartbroken to be writing these things about Silvera's work, though, honestly. I am such a huge fan of his and his writings on pain, depression, and love have eased my own struggles with those things, but this was empty, boring, annoying, and I expect so very much more from Silvera. Even if the plot was shitty, I had at least expected to like the characters, but past Emil and Ness being okay, everyone else, especially Brighton―ugh―was insufferable.
If you love this, more power to you, but, reviewing the front page of reviews here on Goodreads, it looks like a lot of people agree with me for once. I was starting to feel crazy, since I hated Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell, Wolfsong by T.J. Klune, and The Fever King by Victoria Lee and I felt very much like an island in my complete and total disdain for them. It's nice to be validated by the masses on this one.
Seriously, I wish you much, much better luck next time, Adam. You are better than this book, you are capable of more. I am so disappointed in this book and I hope to forget it as soon as I possibly can. Just...yikes. Big yikes.
smateer73's review against another edition
4.0
I liked this book, I definitely love the queer representation and all the characters are complex and nuanced in their own right. The action is exciting and the twists are well written, and the fantasy merges flawlessly with modern society. I would give it about a 3.5 overall, as it was good, but somewhere it lacks the gripping storyline I feel like it should have, perhaps due to the writing style?
mierke's review against another edition
Op zich vond ik de wereld wel interessant, maar beide jongens waren op hun eigen manier mateloos irritant.
noorandbooks's review against another edition
4.0
OH MY GOD THAT ENDING BANGS HEAD AGAINST THE WALL I'M RUNNING TO MY LIBRARY RIGHT NOW TO GET THE NEXT BOOK
The first half of the book was rather slow for me but once it picked it, oh it picked me up. A lot of the book is all over the place, messy, and confusing, and funnily enough, that's what I love about it - but I'm biased and I love convoluted lore (I'm a Kingdom Hearts fan, I'm used to this).
A lot of character names were thrown at the beginning and it took me a while before I figured out who they were and they grew on to me.
Emil was a very fun character to read because I was either sympathizing with him or screaming at him - same with Brighton! I kept switching between who's side I'm on and it was so fun to be so torn between them.
Maybe I'm biased because I adore Silvera's work? But I'm not dissapointed but I AM BANGING MY HEAD AGAINST THE WALL... onto the next book!
The first half of the book was rather slow for me but once it picked it, oh it picked me up. A lot of the book is all over the place, messy, and confusing, and funnily enough, that's what I love about it - but I'm biased and I love convoluted lore (I'm a Kingdom Hearts fan, I'm used to this).
A lot of character names were thrown at the beginning and it took me a while before I figured out who they were and they grew on to me.
Emil was a very fun character to read because I was either sympathizing with him or screaming at him - same with Brighton! I kept switching between who's side I'm on and it was so fun to be so torn between them.
Maybe I'm biased because I adore Silvera's work? But I'm not dissapointed but I AM BANGING MY HEAD AGAINST THE WALL... onto the next book!
eesh25's review against another edition
DNF (read approximately half)
Okay, how sure are we that Adam Silvera wrote this book? More importantly, how sure are we that he wrote it recently? Because it feels like he dug out a draft from ten years ago and handed it to his editor.
I've read all of Silvera's books (there's only five of them so far), and I've liked them all. And even in his first book, More Happy Than Not, while the prose wasn't great, it was decent. And I have no idea what went wrong. Did Silvera forget how to write? Or was this a choice? Because I'm wondering if, in shifting away from the contemporary genre, he decided that he needed to tone down on the emotion. And that somehow, "tone down" turned into removing emotion entirely.
The story follows two brothers, Emil and Brighton. The setting is urban fantasy, and it's a world in which there are magical creatures (dragons, phoenixes), and people who develop magical abilities around the age of eighteen. These people are Celestials. But we also have Blood Casters, who hurt and use endangered magical creatures to give themselves powers. Plus, there's a group of celestials called Spell Walkers who are fighting against the Blood Casters.
Emil and Brighton, initially, have no part in this fight. Well, other than Brighton's obsession with the Spell Walkers. He's been hoping that he'll get powers when he turns eighteen. Instead, it's Emil who gets them. But his powers are different from any other Celestial's. They're the kind that only Blood Casters can have. And somehow, that means he has to be on the run? I'm not entirely sure why Emil can't just live a normal life like any other Celestial or Blood Caster does. The world-building in this very insufficient. You get a lot of info-dump scenes, but none of the info is useful. Let me give you an example.
There's a chapter near the beginning of the book in a museum. Emil spends quite a bit of time telling us about different species of phoenixes and their characteristics. And it has nothing to do with the plot. Especially since no one's going to remember any of it. But more important things like the fucking law when it comes to celestials or blood casters, or even the killing of magical creatures, there's nothing given.
Also, some things make no sense. There's a police-like group that goes around killing both celestials and blood casters for vague reasons. But there's also a politician who fully supports celestials. The motivations of the Spell Walkers are weak. And I have no clue what the Blood Casters even want. Other than powers. There's also a bunch of characters, but none of them have a personality that can't be summed up in a few words. The prose is mostly dialogue. And the book jumps from scene to scene like it just wants to get them over with.
Finally, the YouTube stuff...
Look, I love YouTube as much as the next person. And I agree that YouTubers have influence. But to make half the story about Brighton's YouTube channel... I know this is a book about teenagers, but come on! No one fucking cares about Brighton's obsession with becoming YouTube famous!
Overall, this book was a let-down in so many ways. It felt like a book written by someone who wanted to see himself represented in some of his favourite books and was more caught up in that wish than the book itself. And yeah, there are going to be Harry Potter comparisons. But many HP fans seem to think any book with magic is ripping off their precious series and... That's not a mess I wanna be involved in.
I really wanted to be able to finish this book, but nothing about it worked for me. Still, I hold hope that the sequel will be better. Fingers crossed?
Okay, how sure are we that Adam Silvera wrote this book? More importantly, how sure are we that he wrote it recently? Because it feels like he dug out a draft from ten years ago and handed it to his editor.
I've read all of Silvera's books (there's only five of them so far), and I've liked them all. And even in his first book, More Happy Than Not, while the prose wasn't great, it was decent. And I have no idea what went wrong. Did Silvera forget how to write? Or was this a choice? Because I'm wondering if, in shifting away from the contemporary genre, he decided that he needed to tone down on the emotion. And that somehow, "tone down" turned into removing emotion entirely.
The story follows two brothers, Emil and Brighton. The setting is urban fantasy, and it's a world in which there are magical creatures (dragons, phoenixes), and people who develop magical abilities around the age of eighteen. These people are Celestials. But we also have Blood Casters, who hurt and use endangered magical creatures to give themselves powers. Plus, there's a group of celestials called Spell Walkers who are fighting against the Blood Casters.
Emil and Brighton, initially, have no part in this fight. Well, other than Brighton's obsession with the Spell Walkers. He's been hoping that he'll get powers when he turns eighteen. Instead, it's Emil who gets them. But his powers are different from any other Celestial's. They're the kind that only Blood Casters can have. And somehow, that means he has to be on the run? I'm not entirely sure why Emil can't just live a normal life like any other Celestial or Blood Caster does. The world-building in this very insufficient. You get a lot of info-dump scenes, but none of the info is useful. Let me give you an example.
There's a chapter near the beginning of the book in a museum. Emil spends quite a bit of time telling us about different species of phoenixes and their characteristics. And it has nothing to do with the plot. Especially since no one's going to remember any of it. But more important things like the fucking law when it comes to celestials or blood casters, or even the killing of magical creatures, there's nothing given.
Also, some things make no sense. There's a police-like group that goes around killing both celestials and blood casters for vague reasons. But there's also a politician who fully supports celestials. The motivations of the Spell Walkers are weak. And I have no clue what the Blood Casters even want. Other than powers. There's also a bunch of characters, but none of them have a personality that can't be summed up in a few words. The prose is mostly dialogue. And the book jumps from scene to scene like it just wants to get them over with.
Finally, the YouTube stuff...
Look, I love YouTube as much as the next person. And I agree that YouTubers have influence. But to make half the story about Brighton's YouTube channel... I know this is a book about teenagers, but come on! No one fucking cares about Brighton's obsession with becoming YouTube famous!
Overall, this book was a let-down in so many ways. It felt like a book written by someone who wanted to see himself represented in some of his favourite books and was more caught up in that wish than the book itself. And yeah, there are going to be Harry Potter comparisons. But many HP fans seem to think any book with magic is ripping off their precious series and... That's not a mess I wanna be involved in.
I really wanted to be able to finish this book, but nothing about it worked for me. Still, I hold hope that the sequel will be better. Fingers crossed?
nikkireadsstuff's review against another edition
2.0
Maybe it’s because I listened to the audio and may have been distracted...but I’m still a little confused. I enjoyed the magical aspect of this book but still have no idea what a Specter, Blood Caster, or Celestial is. I don’t think I fully understand this world because it wasn’t set up well enough or consistently throughout the book. And I’m also not quite sure how I feel about the social media motif in this book. It felt a bit lame and almost like Silvera tried too hard?
All in all...anytime there’s magical creatures (PHOENIXES) and powers and action/adventure, I’ll probably give it a try. This one was kind of a stretch for me though.
All in all...anytime there’s magical creatures (PHOENIXES) and powers and action/adventure, I’ll probably give it a try. This one was kind of a stretch for me though.
karrama's review against another edition
3.0
Superheros are a theme I'll read any day, and I'm willing to stay up all night following Adam Silvera's characters, so reading Infinity Son was an auto-buy for me. A slow start and difficulty relating to the concerns of one of the point of view characters kept me from getting into the story right off. I stayed for the love of Adam Silvera's clever words and a trust in where the story is heading. I'll read the next, though I'm not feeling the characters the way I normally do in his novels.