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cboddie's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.0
HS & up
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Mass/school shootings, and Suicide attempt
audiobookingwithleah's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
彡 the vibes 彡
- ya horror/thriller
- magical realism/supernatural
- school shooting aftermath
- grief, guilt, & the power of secrets
Despite the heavy topics involved in this…it was engaging in a dark horror with ya and paranormal vibes kind of way. It had a bit of twist to it, even.
- Sophie Amoss was the perfect choice for a narrator on this one.
- Ratings score ⬗ 8/10
madsisreading's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
inkbunnie's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
lesseraliterary's review against another edition
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.5
2.5
eh. cool concept i just wish it had more oomph.
eh. cool concept i just wish it had more oomph.
th3list3n3r's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
annagwritesandreads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Note: There is discussion of School Shooting and Death in this novel. Check for all content warnings before reading.
General Description: Whitney can see a dark cloud over people when death is coming nearer to them. She used this power to save someone, but that someone ended up shooting multiple people at a school football game. Whitney has lived with the guilt of this alone, but now, someone knows her secret and is threatening to expose her to the world. Who is targeting her and can Whitney find out before her entire world crumbles?
The good:
- The concept was SO unique to me. I loved the idea of the skill of seeing these clouds, even thought that is a ton of responsibility. Quintessential speculative fiction in my opinion.
- I was actually okay with the lack of full explanation for why Whitney has this particular power. We stay in Whitney's true perspective and the point of the book is not to figure out the power, so I feel pretty content with the progression of the book, even if not all my questions were answered.
- I think the mystery and plot twists were fantastic. I was convinced I knew what would happen but I was wrong.
- Whitney character development was on point and I think she's a fantastic character.
The loss of 1 star:
- I don't know why I'm so picky on pacing lately, but it felt too slow, then too fast, and there was never a good rhythm that I could get into when reading it and kept me pretty disengaged at important parts of the book.
Overall, if you read the content warnings and can handle them, and are looking for a darker YA speculative novel, this is a great next pick
General Description: Whitney can see a dark cloud over people when death is coming nearer to them. She used this power to save someone, but that someone ended up shooting multiple people at a school football game. Whitney has lived with the guilt of this alone, but now, someone knows her secret and is threatening to expose her to the world. Who is targeting her and can Whitney find out before her entire world crumbles?
The good:
- The concept was SO unique to me. I loved the idea of the skill of seeing these clouds, even thought that is a ton of responsibility. Quintessential speculative fiction in my opinion.
- I was actually okay with the lack of full explanation for why Whitney has this particular power. We stay in Whitney's true perspective and the point of the book is not to figure out the power, so I feel pretty content with the progression of the book, even if not all my questions were answered.
- I think the mystery and plot twists were fantastic. I was convinced I knew what would happen but I was wrong.
- Whitney character development was on point and I think she's a fantastic character.
The loss of 1 star:
- I don't know why I'm so picky on pacing lately, but it felt too slow, then too fast, and there was never a good rhythm that I could get into when reading it and kept me pretty disengaged at important parts of the book.
Overall, if you read the content warnings and can handle them, and are looking for a darker YA speculative novel, this is a great next pick
cbookaddiction's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt and Mass/school shootings
trr51591's review against another edition
4.0
This book follows Whitney, a high schooler who has a secret: she can see death. When a dark cloud appears over someone, Whitney knows they're marked to die. The darker and larger the cloud, the more immediate the threat. Despite her grandma's warnings about interfering, Whitney can't resist saving people when she can. Until one day, a person she saves goes on to commit a school shooting. Whitney blames herself and resolves not to tell anyone about her role in the tragedy. But as the anniversary of the event approaches, she starts getting mysterious notes blackmailing her: tell the truth about her involvement, or her family and friends die.
This was a fun and fast-paced thriller with some good red herrings and a satisfying reveal---I did guess who was behind everything, but not the full motivation, so the AHA moment still got me. I liked Whitney but she suffers from the same issues a lot of YA thriller characters do: some extremely questionable decisions worthy of me texting my mother about to complain. I think that's a pitfall of the genre, though, and teenagers can be dumb, so. There were a couple of lines that took me out of the story with how awkwardly hard they were trying to sound Gen Z (ex. "I hope when I'm married my husband stans me like that.") but for the most part I enjoyed the writing.
I'm not usually a huge supernatural powers fan, but I really liked Whitney's. It was unique enough that I wanted to learn more about it, but it wasn't so strong of an ability that it made the plot ridiculous. Nothing more awkward than wondering why someone doesn't just fix a problem with their easily accessible magic. The moral questions and implications of her ability and fate were really interesting, and made for a story that was both compelling and also full of depth and nuance. If Whitney's not-fully-formed brain hadn't made me facepalm several times this concept could have been 5 stars for me, but overall I had a good time anyway! Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
millenialbookworm's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0