Scan barcode
sam_hartwig's review against another edition
4.0
I have been waiting SO long to read this. I've heard all sorts of really amazing things about it and couldn't wait to find out what was in the basement. Unfortunately for me, the big secret of what was in the basement was spoiled by someone opening their BIG mouth! It would've been awesome not knowing and finding out through reading the story. I would never have guessed what was down there. ::grumble grumble::
Anywho, What I want to talk about is the actual book now. It was such a strange, but simple story. I wonder where the author got the idea from. (If anyone follows her or has read anything about it, please leave a comment, thanks!)
Now that I've read it, I don't think it's as awesome as I thought. Maybe I hyped it up too much or it could be that the mystery surrounding the book had been revealed to me. Either could be true, I still really enjoyed reading it and it was a nice short book with under 300 pages. Something else that let the book down a bit was the ending. I'm a little disappointed, it felt like what happened with Jones was a way to wrap up the story quickly and didn't need a lot of explaining. There was a good amount of romance and intrigue to keep me going, but not enough to get 5 stars.
Overall, a pleasant story with likable characters and an interesting twist. Worth the 4 stars and I will definitely try something else written by Gabrielle Williams
Also on my blog
Anywho, What I want to talk about is the actual book now. It was such a strange, but simple story. I wonder where the author got the idea from. (If anyone follows her or has read anything about it, please leave a comment, thanks!)
Now that I've read it, I don't think it's as awesome as I thought. Maybe I hyped it up too much or it could be that the mystery surrounding the book had been revealed to me. Either could be true, I still really enjoyed reading it and it was a nice short book with under 300 pages. Something else that let the book down a bit was the ending. I'm a little disappointed, it felt like what happened with Jones
Spoiler
he was shot at the end by police, they then blamed him for kidnapping the sisters and everything elseOverall, a pleasant story with likable characters and an interesting twist. Worth the 4 stars and I will definitely try something else written by Gabrielle Williams
Also on my blog
kyliedam94's review against another edition
5.0
Five teenagers and one dead guy.
A secret that Dodie and Coco's grandparents and parents have been hiding.
A road trip to Lavender Bay which is located in Sydney.
Sounds like an adventure!
A secret that Dodie and Coco's grandparents and parents have been hiding.
A road trip to Lavender Bay which is located in Sydney.
Sounds like an adventure!
snarkywench's review against another edition
4.0
The Reluctant Hallelujah is a lovely piece of writing by Gabrielle Williams. She effortlessly combines quirky yet grounded characters in situations that stretch the imagination yet feel very real. While this is a quest tale it also explores that interesting dynamic that can only exist between sisters, the notion of faith (in every version of the word) and being open to the world.
A motley crew of characters meet an unreal adventure with humour, awe and some action thrown into the mix. Full of heart, hope and chuckle worthy asides.
A motley crew of characters meet an unreal adventure with humour, awe and some action thrown into the mix. Full of heart, hope and chuckle worthy asides.
melbsreads's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Trigger warnings: disappearance of a parent, car accident, death of a friend, police shooting
I.......................... What in the actual FUCK did I just read?!
I picked this book up because between the cover and the blurb, I was getting cult vibes. And my students freaking LOVE books about cults, so I thought I'd check it out and potentially add it to the repertoire of recommendations. And then instead of a book about a cult (which, honestly, is my bad) I got.............Weekend at Bernie's but with Jesus??????
And it's infuriating because this captures Melbourne and the end of high school SO WELL in the early stages of the book. And then out of the blue, we get the dead (but still warm and not decayed) body of Jesus and we're roadtripping him to Sydney?!?!
I'm just... I'm very confused. I'm confused about how Williams came up with this idea in the first place, especially given that the protagonist and her family aren't religious. I'm confused about how this got published. I'm confused about why the hell the blurb and the cover feel so disconnected from the actual story. And I'm especially confused by the ending, which felt very..."So that happened! And now it's six months later tralala" somehow.
All in all, a baffling reading experience.
I.......................... What in the actual FUCK did I just read?!
I picked this book up because between the cover and the blurb, I was getting cult vibes. And my students freaking LOVE books about cults, so I thought I'd check it out and potentially add it to the repertoire of recommendations. And then instead of a book about a cult (which, honestly, is my bad) I got.............Weekend at Bernie's but with Jesus??????
And it's infuriating because this captures Melbourne and the end of high school SO WELL in the early stages of the book. And then out of the blue, we get the dead (but still warm and not decayed) body of Jesus and we're roadtripping him to Sydney?!?!
I'm just... I'm very confused. I'm confused about how Williams came up with this idea in the first place, especially given that the protagonist and her family aren't religious. I'm confused about how this got published. I'm confused about why the hell the blurb and the cover feel so disconnected from the actual story. And I'm especially confused by the ending, which felt very..."So that happened! And now it's six months later tralala" somehow.
All in all, a baffling reading experience.
romcm's review
2.0
Nah, I couldn't get into it. The concept was too weird for me, and the characters felt slightly flimsy.
anneweaver9's review
4.0
Really like the idea and beginning. Laughed out loud in many places. However, did not enjoy the ending as much. Too tidy and character's reaction seemed too light.
missusb21's review
5.0
Such a good read. The combination of humour, crazy and sad works beautifully.
So many good lines to quote. This is my favourite: 'The roads wound around like hairpins keeping the forest's hair out of its face' (p. 136)
Loved it.
So many good lines to quote. This is my favourite: 'The roads wound around like hairpins keeping the forest's hair out of its face' (p. 136)
Loved it.
snarkywench's review
4.0
The Reluctant Hallelujah is a lovely piece of writing by Gabrielle Williams. She effortlessly combines quirky yet grounded characters in situations that stretch the imagination yet feel very real. While this is a quest tale it also explores that interesting dynamic that can only exist between sisters, the notion of faith (in every version of the word) and being open to the world.
A motley crew of characters meet an unreal adventure with humour, awe and some action thrown into the mix. Full of heart, hope and chuckle worthy asides.
A motley crew of characters meet an unreal adventure with humour, awe and some action thrown into the mix. Full of heart, hope and chuckle worthy asides.