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halynah's review against another edition
4.0
Four solid stars. Interesting and offbeat, but the ending should have been better. Still, an interesting reading experience.
steph01924's review against another edition
4.0
Once I realized this was a retelling of Phantom of the Opera, I was sold. I love the play, but I've read the book only once, way back when, and the details are a bit fuzzy. I do remember the Phantom having this insane maze/room with mirrors everywhere and crazy lighting? Or a moving floor? It was something off-the-wall weird, I know that. So the Ghost's crazy spiders kind of reminded me of that, though I assume more of Fine's influence was the stage version.
Wen's world is hopeless, disgusting, and bleak, but it was an interesting one, and despite some common tropes, I sped along through this book very quickly (it also doesn't feel very long, so that helps). I would've been completely okay with it ending where it did, but I know there is a second book (and I think it's just a duology, thank god), and it's currently sitting in my Overdrive bookshelf from the library, so I'm going to read on and hope that we get a solid second half!
Wen's world is hopeless, disgusting, and bleak, but it was an interesting one, and despite some common tropes, I sped along through this book very quickly (it also doesn't feel very long, so that helps). I would've been completely okay with it ending where it did, but I know there is a second book (and I think it's just a duology, thank god), and it's currently sitting in my Overdrive bookshelf from the library, so I'm going to read on and hope that we get a solid second half!
tropic_anaaa's review against another edition
4.0
I totally thought I was going to get bored of this, but it was actually quite the opposite. It was a nice blend of the Industrial Revolution, racial prejudice, and weird mechanical stuff. Pretty weird, but I dig it! The characters actually made me feel something, and I'd be lying if I said I like most of them. I think that's nice though, not liking a character because it makes the book more real. Overall, I really liked it, though it dragged a bit in some places.
justlily's review against another edition
5.0
This book has many things that are freakin' awesome but I'm going to start with my personal favorite.
There's something you should know about me. When it comes to fictional men... I have a type. We're going to call it the Hawthorne Effect. The boys who, by all accounts, should be the most broken and worn down, the ones who carry the weight of the whole world on their shoulders and they do it by choice. The ones who protect anyone and everyone they deem weaker than them and expect nothing in return. Who pay their debts and believe in loyalty and honor. The ones who have all that rolled into the package of a factory worker or a miner or a soldier or some other job that kicks their asses on a daily basis but they do it with their heads held high anyway. It's my type. The unbreakable ones.
Melik is my type. Melik, in fact, is my fucking jam. All day, all day, this is the single best YA boy/couple I have read in years. Honestly, I cannot think of another that I like nearly as much since, again, the original Hawthorne. I am wildly in love with him and yes. Melik is everything.
Second super awesome thing. Hella kickass female heroine...who is a POC. Four for you, Sarah Fine. Wen is awesome and CAPABLE and independent and incredibly intelligent. She chooses to need Melik and Melik allows himself to need her. They lean on each other equally (with, granted, Wen doing most of the work.) All of this still wrapped up in a girl who likes to wear pretty dresses and shows due to respect to her father and is a secretary. This is feminism. Accepting and showing that Wen can be all of that because she so chooses. DID I SAY FOUR FOR YOU, SARAH FINE?!
Third awesome thing. I have never been a real big fan of steampunk before because I didn't understand it. The very few books I had tried of that genre really disappointed me and so I was like...what is the big deal?
This book is the big deal. I'm converted. Bless the light.
The worst part about this book is not even a complaint, truly. I cannot fault the author for writing the situations so well that they made me uncomfortable. But because of where Wen lives and the type of people in this place, there are a lot of times in this book where Wen is under serious threat of being raped. Maybe this is a spoiler but I think for trigger reasons it's a good one-- That thankfully never happens. But it does come up repeatedly and it does make your skin crawl.
Other than that I just truly enjoyed every single thing about this book and I cannot recommend it enough. Awesome, awesome read.
There's something you should know about me. When it comes to fictional men... I have a type. We're going to call it the Hawthorne Effect. The boys who, by all accounts, should be the most broken and worn down, the ones who carry the weight of the whole world on their shoulders and they do it by choice. The ones who protect anyone and everyone they deem weaker than them and expect nothing in return. Who pay their debts and believe in loyalty and honor. The ones who have all that rolled into the package of a factory worker or a miner or a soldier or some other job that kicks their asses on a daily basis but they do it with their heads held high anyway. It's my type. The unbreakable ones.
Melik is my type. Melik, in fact, is my fucking jam. All day, all day, this is the single best YA boy/couple I have read in years. Honestly, I cannot think of another that I like nearly as much since, again, the original Hawthorne. I am wildly in love with him and yes. Melik is everything.
Second super awesome thing. Hella kickass female heroine...who is a POC. Four for you, Sarah Fine. Wen is awesome and CAPABLE and independent and incredibly intelligent. She chooses to need Melik and Melik allows himself to need her. They lean on each other equally (with, granted, Wen doing most of the work.) All of this still wrapped up in a girl who likes to wear pretty dresses and shows due to respect to her father and is a secretary. This is feminism. Accepting and showing that Wen can be all of that because she so chooses. DID I SAY FOUR FOR YOU, SARAH FINE?!
Third awesome thing. I have never been a real big fan of steampunk before because I didn't understand it. The very few books I had tried of that genre really disappointed me and so I was like...what is the big deal?
This book is the big deal. I'm converted. Bless the light.
The worst part about this book is not even a complaint, truly. I cannot fault the author for writing the situations so well that they made me uncomfortable. But because of where Wen lives and the type of people in this place, there are a lot of times in this book where Wen is under serious threat of being raped. Maybe this is a spoiler but I think for trigger reasons it's a good one-- That thankfully never happens. But it does come up repeatedly and it does make your skin crawl.
Other than that I just truly enjoyed every single thing about this book and I cannot recommend it enough. Awesome, awesome read.
pantsreads's review against another edition
4.0
mellabella's review against another edition
3.0
The (short) prequel set this first book up nicely. We got a glimpse into Bo's mind in the novella. Bo is a complex character. "killed" when he was young. He's like a child in a almost grown mans body. We see things from Wen's point of view in this one. This YA book can fall under a few different genres, horror, romance, steampunk. It's a little of each. I have two qualms. Even in the prequel, it was never said exactly when the story is taking place. Two, the ending. I know there is at least one more in the series. Hopefully that will tie up loose ends.
3.5 stars. Once I got into it, I couldn't put it down.
3.5 stars. Once I got into it, I couldn't put it down.
ifalways's review against another edition
3.0
Actual Rating: 3.5
Interesting. I liked it mostly, just the ending felt purposely left open so that there could be a sequel. Honestly, it could have easily been wrapped up in this novel. There was no need for anything extra.
Interesting. I liked it mostly, just the ending felt purposely left open so that there could be a sequel. Honestly, it could have easily been wrapped up in this novel. There was no need for anything extra.
joyousreads132's review against another edition
2.0
If I have a Ghost living in the underbelly basement of my house (dear God, I really hope not) who grants wishes provided I give it an offering of sorts, I’d wish that I liked this book as much as everybody did. When a book left you apathetic towards the characters’ plights, you know it wasn’t a good read. Under normal circumstances, and given how this book ended, I would’ve been in a state of furor. All I said when I finally closed the book was, huh.
Much has been said about how wonderfully original this book is (Phantom of the Opera set in a slaughterhouse). And while I can appreciate that undertaking, it really came down to how very little I felt for Wen. She has a predisposition to carry the weight of the world on her shoulders. Admirable when warranted, irritating in copious amounts. Wen is a puzzling character. She’s shown so much potential to be a strong character, but it’s as if she never got there. She sympathized for the oppressed; sacrificed most of her priceless gowns to buy medicine and pay for the Noor’s debts; and with very little self-preservation, she defended the Noor against the prejudices of her fellowmen. And yet even with all these fine traits, I felt that all were nullified by her constant “woe-is-me” attitude.
The world Wen lived in is predominantly male; and with it comes the constant threat of being sexually assaulted. This is also the part where I thought Wen could’ve used a healthy dose of calcium in her backbones. She kept waiting for someone to save her; and sometimes, she was even expecting it. I understand the desperation of being in somebody else’s mercy, and the fact that she grew up relatively protected from the world she knew now. But I thought that this is where the author squandered the chance to empower her character. Instead, Wen was saved time and again by either Melik, the Ghost, or her father. She saved herself once…by using her feminine wiles and implying that she was another man’s property. Sigh.
In a manner of speaking, there is a love triangle here. And it shouldn’t come as a surprise to those who’d seen/read/heard of The Phantom of the Opera. For me to explain why a love triangle didn’t really exist would be to reveal the identity of the Ghost. So I’m just going to leave it at that. So we come to Melik, the Noor that Wen felt such a strong attraction to since day one. However, I felt impervious towards this pairing. No stirrings of fondness, even. None.
The one thing I felt a strong emotion for were the mechanical spiders; granted, that emotion was abhorrence. I felt as much repugnance for them as I did for the men who treated the women here as objects.
So I’m in a bit of a conundrum. My blogger friends, Alexa and Bethzaida loved this book. Me? Not so much. However, that’s two against one. So I think, you should put this review at the very, very, very back of your mind and give this book a chance anyway.
Much has been said about how wonderfully original this book is (Phantom of the Opera set in a slaughterhouse). And while I can appreciate that undertaking, it really came down to how very little I felt for Wen. She has a predisposition to carry the weight of the world on her shoulders. Admirable when warranted, irritating in copious amounts. Wen is a puzzling character. She’s shown so much potential to be a strong character, but it’s as if she never got there. She sympathized for the oppressed; sacrificed most of her priceless gowns to buy medicine and pay for the Noor’s debts; and with very little self-preservation, she defended the Noor against the prejudices of her fellowmen. And yet even with all these fine traits, I felt that all were nullified by her constant “woe-is-me” attitude.
The world Wen lived in is predominantly male; and with it comes the constant threat of being sexually assaulted. This is also the part where I thought Wen could’ve used a healthy dose of calcium in her backbones. She kept waiting for someone to save her; and sometimes, she was even expecting it. I understand the desperation of being in somebody else’s mercy, and the fact that she grew up relatively protected from the world she knew now. But I thought that this is where the author squandered the chance to empower her character. Instead, Wen was saved time and again by either Melik, the Ghost, or her father. She saved herself once…by using her feminine wiles and implying that she was another man’s property. Sigh.
In a manner of speaking, there is a love triangle here. And it shouldn’t come as a surprise to those who’d seen/read/heard of The Phantom of the Opera. For me to explain why a love triangle didn’t really exist would be to reveal the identity of the Ghost. So I’m just going to leave it at that. So we come to Melik, the Noor that Wen felt such a strong attraction to since day one. However, I felt impervious towards this pairing. No stirrings of fondness, even. None.
The one thing I felt a strong emotion for were the mechanical spiders; granted, that emotion was abhorrence. I felt as much repugnance for them as I did for the men who treated the women here as objects.
So I’m in a bit of a conundrum. My blogger friends, Alexa and Bethzaida loved this book. Me? Not so much. However, that’s two against one. So I think, you should put this review at the very, very, very back of your mind and give this book a chance anyway.
seeinghowitgoes's review against another edition
3.0
A retelling of Phantom of the Opera (if it was in a slaughterhouse, our heroine was the daughter of the medic on call, our hero the leader of the hated ethnic community, and our villain the Ghost of the factory).
Wen has gone from a life of love and luxury with her mother to a regimented colourless life in a factory after the death of her mother. Putting her embroidery skills to skin rather than cloth and subject to the insinuations of the factory manager after being assigned as his secretary. It's not much of a life, but things change when the Noors are brought into the factory and she meets their leader Melik.
There's a lushness to the storytelling, and that sense of uneasiness knowing the instability of the situation. The action and circumstances go rather over the top towards the end and I'm left with a feeling that I'd be ok if this was a standalone novel.
Wen has gone from a life of love and luxury with her mother to a regimented colourless life in a factory after the death of her mother. Putting her embroidery skills to skin rather than cloth and subject to the insinuations of the factory manager after being assigned as his secretary. It's not much of a life, but things change when the Noors are brought into the factory and she meets their leader Melik.
There's a lushness to the storytelling, and that sense of uneasiness knowing the instability of the situation. The action and circumstances go rather over the top towards the end and I'm left with a feeling that I'd be ok if this was a standalone novel.
booksandladders's review against another edition
4.0
Actual Rating: 3.5*
This one was a bit all over the place for me. It started out pretty strong, lost its legs a bit in the middle, but picked up again at the end. I did like that it was a pretty strict retelling rather than all the loose ones I've read this week, and while it was good, it wasn't great.
I really liked the characters and their interactions with one another. I thought Wen was really great and strong while still allowing herself the chance to grow and be vulnerable. I think it was great to see her grow as a character who started out very racist and changing her ways. I did like that there was prejudice and it was explained while still demonstrating this wasn't the correct way to be living. However it was weird to me that Wen didn't automatically assume the set up at the end since she had assumed so much of both Melik and the Ghost up until then, but that's fine.
I liked how this story played out and thought that generally the pacing was okay but there were some times that it felt slow. I think the problem is Phantom is kinda slow to begin with so any retellings are ALSO going to be slow. It's a great story though so I'm glad it was retold and given to a YA audience with characters you could actually root for.
I liked the writing style and genuinely enjoyed the length of the book -- I didn't feel like there was too much or too little of anything, so that was nice. I know it is a series but I'm meh about the tiny cliffhanger at the end.
I wasn't a huge fan of the way sex was discussed in this book but that's a whole other conversation. I felt like there was so much emphasis on it without explanation at the beginning and then it was just sort of come to be expected? Idk it was a bit confusing throughout and it made me feel like it was being used as a way to determine Good Guys vs Bad Guys so the reader would know who to root for.
I think this is a good retelling of Phantom of the Opera and I really enjoyed reading it. I did think it was slow in some parts but the characters made up for it. This is probably one of the better retellings I've read for #12DaysOfDiversity!
This one was a bit all over the place for me. It started out pretty strong, lost its legs a bit in the middle, but picked up again at the end. I did like that it was a pretty strict retelling rather than all the loose ones I've read this week, and while it was good, it wasn't great.
I really liked the characters and their interactions with one another. I thought Wen was really great and strong while still allowing herself the chance to grow and be vulnerable. I think it was great to see her grow as a character who started out very racist and changing her ways. I did like that there was prejudice and it was explained while still demonstrating this wasn't the correct way to be living. However it was weird to me that Wen didn't automatically assume the set up at the end since she had assumed so much of both Melik and the Ghost up until then, but that's fine.
I liked how this story played out and thought that generally the pacing was okay but there were some times that it felt slow. I think the problem is Phantom is kinda slow to begin with so any retellings are ALSO going to be slow. It's a great story though so I'm glad it was retold and given to a YA audience with characters you could actually root for.
I liked the writing style and genuinely enjoyed the length of the book -- I didn't feel like there was too much or too little of anything, so that was nice. I know it is a series but I'm meh about the tiny cliffhanger at the end.
I wasn't a huge fan of the way sex was discussed in this book but that's a whole other conversation. I felt like there was so much emphasis on it without explanation at the beginning and then it was just sort of come to be expected? Idk it was a bit confusing throughout and it made me feel like it was being used as a way to determine Good Guys vs Bad Guys so the reader would know who to root for.
I think this is a good retelling of Phantom of the Opera and I really enjoyed reading it. I did think it was slow in some parts but the characters made up for it. This is probably one of the better retellings I've read for #12DaysOfDiversity!