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smartinez9's review against another edition
4.0
4 stars
Aftermath was layered and compelling, with multidimensional characters and authentic-feeling diversity. I realized reading this how seldom Muslim families are portrayed in YA where their being Muslim isn’t either the focus of the book or a token afterthought. Armstrong’s handling of the wake of a school shootings was also sensitive and didn’t feel gratuitous. Overall well-done. My only complaints were the sometimes infuriating incompetence/willful disbelief of the police force and vice principal, and Skye’s repeated attempts to pretend away danger. I don’t know what’s worse, being oblivious to the danger around you or knowing it’s there but refusing to look up or pick up a weapon or call for help because it’ll be embarrassing if you’re wrong.
Aftermath was layered and compelling, with multidimensional characters and authentic-feeling diversity. I realized reading this how seldom Muslim families are portrayed in YA where their being Muslim isn’t either the focus of the book or a token afterthought. Armstrong’s handling of the wake of a school shootings was also sensitive and didn’t feel gratuitous. Overall well-done. My only complaints were the sometimes infuriating incompetence/willful disbelief of the police force and vice principal, and Skye’s repeated attempts to pretend away danger. I don’t know what’s worse, being oblivious to the danger around you or knowing it’s there but refusing to look up or pick up a weapon or call for help because it’ll be embarrassing if you’re wrong.
thriller_chick's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
readerlatte's review against another edition
5.0
Reading this book was HARD being the mom of two girls in school with all of the shootings that have plagued the states the last few years made this book even harder to read. But I’m glad I did. This story gives a great message about perception, forgiveness, compassion, moving on, and acceptance.
The characters were wonderful and you could tell how much the author wanted you to really feel what Jesse and Skye went through. From the perspectives of one teen losing a brother to a shooter. And other loosing a brother because he was a shooter. It was two sides of the same coin and I felt so bad for both of these kids and their situation. It was an in-depth look at what families of both the shooting victims and the shooters family, whom are also victims, go through in the aftermath of such an event. And although this is a story of fiction it felt all too real.
Overall, this is a romance story but also one where a girl is just trying to move on with her life after a tragedy. Where she’s forced to face those who blame her for her brothers actions. Even though she isn’t to blame in any way. It’s about a boy who needs to stop living for his parents and start living for himself as well.
I did love ALL of the parts with Jesse’s mom was she is a force to be reckoned with and I love her so much!!
If you looking for a coming of age story as well as one with grief, love, and forgiveness with some major twists and turns. Check this one out.
Go Into This One Knowing: School Shooting, Death of Siblings, Bullies, Romance
The characters were wonderful and you could tell how much the author wanted you to really feel what Jesse and Skye went through. From the perspectives of one teen losing a brother to a shooter. And other loosing a brother because he was a shooter. It was two sides of the same coin and I felt so bad for both of these kids and their situation. It was an in-depth look at what families of both the shooting victims and the shooters family, whom are also victims, go through in the aftermath of such an event. And although this is a story of fiction it felt all too real.
Overall, this is a romance story but also one where a girl is just trying to move on with her life after a tragedy. Where she’s forced to face those who blame her for her brothers actions. Even though she isn’t to blame in any way. It’s about a boy who needs to stop living for his parents and start living for himself as well.
I did love ALL of the parts with Jesse’s mom was she is a force to be reckoned with and I love her so much!!
If you looking for a coming of age story as well as one with grief, love, and forgiveness with some major twists and turns. Check this one out.
Go Into This One Knowing: School Shooting, Death of Siblings, Bullies, Romance
k_lenn's review against another edition
3.0
2.5 stars. That wasn't what I was expecting and I'm disappointed.
The synopsis drew me in immediately. We always tend to view murderers as monsters who shouldn't be missed, but it's not as easy or simple as that. They had entire lives and loved ones before they did the unthinkable. We never hear about those innocent loved ones though, especially without projecting blame onto them. ("How did you not notice they were up to something?" "Couldn't you have stopped this?!")
The idea of a book that explores the thoughts of people who mourn for murderers while also acknowledging the horrific pain and terror they caused was really interesting. That kinda just goes out the window here, though. (Obviously not talking about the people who idolize murderers and mourn after the fact, but rather the people who loved them before they committed any crimes. Family members, childhood friends, etc.)
It's also kind of... out there and unbelievable. The adults are incapable of doing anything properly, the performance art installation is weird as hell, and I wrongly assumed the whole story would be less focused on the romance side of the story. But it's YA, so maybe I should have seen that coming.
Can't say it wasn't entertaining, though. I also can't help but assume "All Time Five" is the book's version of All Time Low, and I loved that.
The synopsis drew me in immediately. We always tend to view murderers as monsters who shouldn't be missed, but it's not as easy or simple as that. They had entire lives and loved ones before they did the unthinkable. We never hear about those innocent loved ones though, especially without projecting blame onto them. ("How did you not notice they were up to something?" "Couldn't you have stopped this?!")
The idea of a book that explores the thoughts of people who mourn for murderers while also acknowledging the horrific pain and terror they caused was really interesting. That kinda just goes out the window here, though. (Obviously not talking about the people who idolize murderers and mourn after the fact, but rather the people who loved them before they committed any crimes. Family members, childhood friends, etc.)
Spoiler
It becomes obvious pretty early on, but Skye isn't the sister of a school shooter. She's the sister of a victim. We get to see a bit of her mourning and feeling guilty for what her brother "did", but then he turns out to be a hero and the whole story just loses what made it so unique and interesting. We can't even see that complicated 'mourning a murderer' thing play out with Tiffany because she turns out to be a huge part of the plan.It's also kind of... out there and unbelievable. The adults are incapable of doing anything properly, the performance art installation is weird as hell, and I wrongly assumed the whole story would be less focused on the romance side of the story. But it's YA, so maybe I should have seen that coming.
Can't say it wasn't entertaining, though. I also can't help but assume "All Time Five" is the book's version of All Time Low, and I loved that.
rvmama's review against another edition
3.0
Well written. Very suspenseful. Good characters. Just really tired of school shootings being a plot device.
stacey332's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-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
5.0
vklover's review against another edition
slow-paced
3.75
1. The book moves really slowly for a mystery type book. I felt like things were just dragging.
2. The flap says Skye uncovers evidence that could clear her brothers name.... but like that portion of the book did not happen until page 272 and she did not discover it, spoiler: the police did? She was not investigating anything the entire book, she was mostly just being harassed and considering herself paranoid. The flap made it seem like she was a go getter looking to investigate the truth of the shooting but that was not at all the plot of the story until literally the last 100 pages. It's just a little misleading which is frustrating lol. Because the real point of the story was who is setting her up to look like a loon; her brothers role tends to be an after thought.
Probably wouldn't read the book again. Hoping the authors other books are better.
2. The flap says Skye uncovers evidence that could clear her brothers name.... but like that portion of the book did not happen until page 272 and she did not discover it, spoiler: the police did? She was not investigating anything the entire book, she was mostly just being harassed and considering herself paranoid. The flap made it seem like she was a go getter looking to investigate the truth of the shooting but that was not at all the plot of the story until literally the last 100 pages. It's just a little misleading which is frustrating lol. Because the real point of the story was who is setting her up to look like a loon; her brothers role tends to be an after thought.
Probably wouldn't read the book again. Hoping the authors other books are better.
blogginboutbooks's review against another edition
4.0
I've been enjoying Armstrong's Rockton trilogy for adults, so I decided to give her newest YA novel a try. AFTERMATH concerns a 16-year-old girl whose brother was shot by police during a school shooting in which he was alleged to be one of the shooters. After three years away, Skye returns to the town where the shooting took place and is immediately set upon by outraged teens who threaten her, bully her, and blame her for her brother's crimes. One even starts a petition to get Skye thrown out of the school. This didn't ring true to me -- after THREE years, would a bunch of high schoolers really care enough to be so vicious and cruel to the SISTER of a shooter? In a moderately-sized city, would people really recognize Skye on-sight as the SISTER of a shooter? I don't think so. If she had been accused of being a shooter but not convicted or something, THEN I could maybe see these events happening ... The premise, then, seemed implausible to me and the plot gets even more so as it goes on. Let's just say I had to seriously suspend my disbelief to get through this one.
That being said, AFTERMATH is definitely a compelling page turner. I couldn't put it down. Even though it got very far-fetched, I still wanted to know what was going to happen since I cared about the characters. Although I suspected who Skye's anonymous tormentor was, I wasn't absolutely sure until the end of the novel—there's nothing worse than a predictable thriller, so that was a nice surprise. All in all, then, I'd give AFTERMATH a B- for being engrossing and twisty, even if its premise wasn't convincing enough for me.
That being said, AFTERMATH is definitely a compelling page turner. I couldn't put it down. Even though it got very far-fetched, I still wanted to know what was going to happen since I cared about the characters. Although I suspected who Skye's anonymous tormentor was, I wasn't absolutely sure until the end of the novel—there's nothing worse than a predictable thriller, so that was a nice surprise. All in all, then, I'd give AFTERMATH a B- for being engrossing and twisty, even if its premise wasn't convincing enough for me.