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mfbr233's review against another edition
2.0
I received a copy of this novel through the Goodreads First Reads program for free.
I enjoyed this trilogy at first, Willa Fox was the new girl in a small, rich town (because her artsy, mysterious, youg "mother" had a variety of business ventures that meant she had to move her and Willa all over the country) who was able to attend an extravagant private school. Soon, she realizes that the wealth is spread rather unfairly and decides to help the scholarship kids ala Robin Hood.
The novel was a bit stereotypical, I do admit, and some of Willa's character traits and actions aggravated me since they seemed I be poorly thought out.
The second novel was interesting, a quick read. There were several revelations about Willa's family's past and a few entertaining 'Hey, we're on the run' chapters.
The third novel was the worst.
I liked the plot, I enjoyed the premise, however, like many young adult novels, the mediocre writing aggravated me; if it wasn't a bad choice of words or a rash choice made by a character it was a too convenient issue arising to move the book forward.
I enjoyed this trilogy at first, Willa Fox was the new girl in a small, rich town (because her artsy, mysterious, youg "mother" had a variety of business ventures that meant she had to move her and Willa all over the country) who was able to attend an extravagant private school. Soon, she realizes that the wealth is spread rather unfairly and decides to help the scholarship kids ala Robin Hood.
The novel was a bit stereotypical, I do admit, and some of Willa's character traits and actions aggravated me since they seemed I be poorly thought out.
The second novel was interesting, a quick read. There were several revelations about Willa's family's past and a few entertaining 'Hey, we're on the run' chapters.
The third novel was the worst.
I liked the plot, I enjoyed the premise, however, like many young adult novels, the mediocre writing aggravated me; if it wasn't a bad choice of words or a rash choice made by a character it was a too convenient issue arising to move the book forward.
e_d_ivey's review against another edition
2.0
Thus ends a series that had so much potential but failed to deliver.
My attempt to finish books extends to series as well, so that's why I continued reading after the first book. Ludwig's idea for a modern Robin Hood did not quite register for me in the first installment, and the plot elaboration in the following two books felt like more of a chore to read than the excitement this genre promises. The books were not bad at all, and I did enjoy certain aspects of Ludwig's writing, but at times she attempted to install too much slang that didn't really work. Spoilers ahead:
In this last installment, Willa has finally caught up to her mother and realized she is her sister, leaving the last book to cover Willa's desire to find information on her real mother. With Aidan loyally helping her every step of the way, Willa still manages to find reasons to hold on to anger against him, failing to thank him for his support. She has people along the way, particularly a person who shows up only to fill the place in an awkwardly-forced love triangle, yet she still fails to convince readers that she deserves the help that lands in her lap. Don't get me wrong, I don't think people should be helped only if they deserve it, but at the conclusion of this final book, I feel that Willa's growth is not only minute, but fairly superficial especially in her dealing with the consequences of her actions. SPOILER: It was especially disappointing how she just let Aidan walk away from her while her suspiciously abrupt feelings for another sprouted up right at the end. It didn't work for me.
My attempt to finish books extends to series as well, so that's why I continued reading after the first book. Ludwig's idea for a modern Robin Hood did not quite register for me in the first installment, and the plot elaboration in the following two books felt like more of a chore to read than the excitement this genre promises. The books were not bad at all, and I did enjoy certain aspects of Ludwig's writing, but at times she attempted to install too much slang that didn't really work. Spoilers ahead:
In this last installment, Willa has finally caught up to her mother and realized she is her sister, leaving the last book to cover Willa's desire to find information on her real mother. With Aidan loyally helping her every step of the way, Willa still manages to find reasons to hold on to anger against him, failing to thank him for his support. She has people along the way, particularly a person who shows up only to fill the place in an awkwardly-forced love triangle, yet she still fails to convince readers that she deserves the help that lands in her lap. Don't get me wrong, I don't think people should be helped only if they deserve it, but at the conclusion of this final book, I feel that Willa's growth is not only minute, but fairly superficial especially in her dealing with the consequences of her actions. SPOILER: It was especially disappointing how she just let Aidan walk away from her while her suspiciously abrupt feelings for another sprouted up right at the end. It didn't work for me.
lpcoolgirl's review against another edition
5.0
Man, this was such an amazing book, different again from the other two, and yeah, we finally find out what Aidan did! That ending, oh! Really great, and I can't wait to read more by Elisa Ludwig!
bookishzelda's review against another edition
Pretty Wanted picks up where Pretty Sly leaves off, although it’s interesting how each book in the series focuses on it’s own part of the story. Put together they make the whole picture. In Pretty Wanted, Willa and Aidan are still on the run but are now trying to track down information on Willa’s mother. There is no way to avoid spoilers from the first books in this review, I just want to put that out there.
This leg of the series has us put on our crime solving thinking caps on. After Willa discovers that she has actually been raised by her older sister and not her mom, she heads to St. Louis to find out more about her real mom. Only to dive head first into a 15 year old murder case that has gone cold. With the help of Aidan and Tre she puts together pieces of the puzzle, which isn’t exactly the safest idea.
It’s so strange I don’t know if I have ever read a book with characters like this. Ones that I’m not exactly sure how I feel about them all the way through. I like Willa don’t get me wrong but sometimes her noble ideas almost have a selfish tinge to them. Even when she was helping out the girls at school as Sly Fox. She was doing it to make them feel good about themselves but also to get back at the Glitterati. It makes her interesting vigilante, a little on the flawed side. I actually like that about characters.Willa is also caring though and really feels like she needs to put the pieces of her mom’s death together to find some closure.
Aidan is kind of an immature but broken boy. He’s a mixture of bad and good for Willa. He really cares about her and has stuck with her through some sticky situations. He is also using her to escape his own problems as well though. Plus there is some shady business with him. Something about the two of them made me sad even when they were doing sweet or romantic things.
Tre of course is a good friend. He says things how they are and points out when Willa and Aidan are being idiots. Whether he is near or far though he is supportive.
The plot was pretty interesting but I really liked the ending. It was so different and not exactly what I was expecting! It was perfect in that way and a great wrap up to the series. Everything about this book just had a unique feel for me.
This leg of the series has us put on our crime solving thinking caps on. After Willa discovers that she has actually been raised by her older sister and not her mom, she heads to St. Louis to find out more about her real mom. Only to dive head first into a 15 year old murder case that has gone cold. With the help of Aidan and Tre she puts together pieces of the puzzle, which isn’t exactly the safest idea.
It’s so strange I don’t know if I have ever read a book with characters like this. Ones that I’m not exactly sure how I feel about them all the way through. I like Willa don’t get me wrong but sometimes her noble ideas almost have a selfish tinge to them. Even when she was helping out the girls at school as Sly Fox. She was doing it to make them feel good about themselves but also to get back at the Glitterati. It makes her interesting vigilante, a little on the flawed side. I actually like that about characters.Willa is also caring though and really feels like she needs to put the pieces of her mom’s death together to find some closure.
Aidan is kind of an immature but broken boy. He’s a mixture of bad and good for Willa. He really cares about her and has stuck with her through some sticky situations. He is also using her to escape his own problems as well though. Plus there is some shady business with him. Something about the two of them made me sad even when they were doing sweet or romantic things.
Tre of course is a good friend. He says things how they are and points out when Willa and Aidan are being idiots. Whether he is near or far though he is supportive.
The plot was pretty interesting but I really liked the ending. It was so different and not exactly what I was expecting! It was perfect in that way and a great wrap up to the series. Everything about this book just had a unique feel for me.
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