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bootlefish's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Death of parent, Dysphoria, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Gun violence and Violence
alidottie's review
4.0
This new series is very typical Ally Carter, but I didn't find Grace as likeable as her usual main characters. She is working through some major issues and since a lot of progress was made in this first book, she may grow on me in the future.
renuked's review
3.0
Ally Carter returns! And unsurprisingly, she arrives once again with an espionage filled novel with slightly reckless protagonists and cute boys. If I had read this in my preteens/younger teenage years, it would have been one of my favorite novels.
Carter has created "Embassy Row" a lovely street, filled with the gorgeous manors of diplomats and ruling heads of countries across the world. However, it's filled with national tensions, and one small misstep can erupt in war. Living here, we have the daring Grace - a girl prone to many disasters and a girl with a strange past. At a young age, she saw her mother murdered in front of her very eyes. The trauma still haunts her, and to this day she is searching for the killer.
“For the first time I realize how perilous peace can be. I appreciate the tightrope that my grandfather has spent his whole life trying to walk. And now, more than ever, I grow terrified that I'm going to make us all fall down.”
Grace was a lovable protagonist (most of Carter's protagonists are). However, if you've read her previous novels (Gallagher Girls, Heist Society), Grace doesn't stand out much. The characters become a little generic. Alexei (love interest) drifts in and out of the picture with nothing very special other than his lovely Russian accent. Noah (best friend) is cute, funny, and forgettable. Grace's other relationships are strained, but far more interesting such as her relationship with her grandfather, his assistant/wife?, and her ex-best friend.
Unfortunately, the plot also doesn't do much to set Grace apart. It's a mystery, of course, filled with riddles, secret passages, conspiracies, blah blah blah. It's all fun - but it wasn't quite enough to hold my attention. Again, it's perfect for younger girls, however it felt a little juvenile to me. This wouldn't have bothered me much if it hadn't felt like Carter was trying to be darker and aim at an older audience. Grace is haunted by her memories. She suffers panic attacks, has traumatic stress disorder, and has darkness shrouding her past. It's as if Carter was trying to add maturity, and depth, to her character, but was stunted by her own silly murder mystery plot.
Overall, it was a cute novel, and I really enjoyed it. I appreciated the darker vibe Ally Carter was trying to bring, especially because I did like the main protagonist. The setting was different from her other novels, but honestly, there wasn't anything that drew my attention and held it.
Review cross-posted to Eternal-Books.
Carter has created "Embassy Row" a lovely street, filled with the gorgeous manors of diplomats and ruling heads of countries across the world. However, it's filled with national tensions, and one small misstep can erupt in war. Living here, we have the daring Grace - a girl prone to many disasters and a girl with a strange past. At a young age, she saw her mother murdered in front of her very eyes. The trauma still haunts her, and to this day she is searching for the killer.
“For the first time I realize how perilous peace can be. I appreciate the tightrope that my grandfather has spent his whole life trying to walk. And now, more than ever, I grow terrified that I'm going to make us all fall down.”
Grace was a lovable protagonist (most of Carter's protagonists are). However, if you've read her previous novels (Gallagher Girls, Heist Society), Grace doesn't stand out much. The characters become a little generic. Alexei (love interest) drifts in and out of the picture with nothing very special other than his lovely Russian accent. Noah (best friend) is cute, funny, and forgettable. Grace's other relationships are strained, but far more interesting such as her relationship with her grandfather, his assistant/wife?, and her ex-best friend.
Unfortunately, the plot also doesn't do much to set Grace apart. It's a mystery, of course, filled with riddles, secret passages, conspiracies, blah blah blah. It's all fun - but it wasn't quite enough to hold my attention. Again, it's perfect for younger girls, however it felt a little juvenile to me. This wouldn't have bothered me much if it hadn't felt like Carter was trying to be darker and aim at an older audience. Grace is haunted by her memories. She suffers panic attacks, has traumatic stress disorder, and has darkness shrouding her past. It's as if Carter was trying to add maturity, and depth, to her character, but was stunted by her own silly murder mystery plot.
Overall, it was a cute novel, and I really enjoyed it. I appreciated the darker vibe Ally Carter was trying to bring, especially because I did like the main protagonist. The setting was different from her other novels, but honestly, there wasn't anything that drew my attention and held it.
Review cross-posted to Eternal-Books.
kvreadsandrecs's review
5.0
“Yes. I am to … and I quote … ‘keep Grace from killing herself or anyone else.’ Especially me. He was most emphatic about that last part.” -page 16
sarahlreadseverything's review against another edition
3.0
3.5. Loved the unreliable narrator, but found other aspects problematic.
shhchar's review
4.0
Initial thoughts:
This cover is interesting.
Review:
What can I say, Ally Carter has done it again. She's made a unique protagonist, Grace, battling against herself and sources that are trying to stop her.
All Fall Down takes place on Embassy Row in a fictional country. It deals with politics, the different masks that people wear, and of course, an underlying death/revenge story. Throughout the book, Grace has PTSD recollections of witnessing her mother's death. The book goes on to develop that "origin" story which is the thread that keeps it going.
Grace has replaced Cammie from Gallagher Girls as my second favorite Carter protagonist (Kat from Heist Society still takes #1.) I was hesitant going in that Grace would be a carbon copy of one or the other, but she had different characteristics and tendencies. Her psychological trauma is written very realistically and absolutely nothing about it was glorified.
The supporting characters in this novel were superb. I loved Noah from the second he marched in and declared himself best friend. Megan wasn't just a throwaway ex-friend character; she came into her own and had her own reasons for helping out. Rosie still remains a mystery that I hope will be further explained, but I love her nonetheless.
Alexei seemed rather undeveloped and absent for most of the book to deserve a spot in the book flap synopsis. Which may have been a good thing, because I feel like a strong love interest would have gotten in the way of Grace taking charge. There are still more books coming to remedy this fact. The other drawback to All Fall Down is that Carter's books are always very short and in large(r) print. I was hoping All Fall Down would have more to it, but I don't know why I was expecting that.
If you want an action-filled story with a strong female protagonist (and by strong I mean complex and multilayered, not just physically powerful) then read All Fall Down.
This cover is interesting.
Review:
What can I say, Ally Carter has done it again. She's made a unique protagonist, Grace, battling against herself and sources that are trying to stop her.
All Fall Down takes place on Embassy Row in a fictional country. It deals with politics, the different masks that people wear, and of course, an underlying death/revenge story. Throughout the book, Grace has PTSD recollections of witnessing her mother's death. The book goes on to develop that "origin" story which is the thread that keeps it going.
Grace has replaced Cammie from Gallagher Girls as my second favorite Carter protagonist (Kat from Heist Society still takes #1.) I was hesitant going in that Grace would be a carbon copy of one or the other, but she had different characteristics and tendencies. Her psychological trauma is written very realistically and absolutely nothing about it was glorified.
The supporting characters in this novel were superb. I loved Noah from the second he marched in and declared himself best friend. Megan wasn't just a throwaway ex-friend character; she came into her own and had her own reasons for helping out. Rosie still remains a mystery that I hope will be further explained, but I love her nonetheless.
Alexei seemed rather undeveloped and absent for most of the book to deserve a spot in the book flap synopsis. Which may have been a good thing, because I feel like a strong love interest would have gotten in the way of Grace taking charge. There are still more books coming to remedy this fact. The other drawback to All Fall Down is that Carter's books are always very short and in large(r) print. I was hoping All Fall Down would have more to it, but I don't know why I was expecting that.
If you want an action-filled story with a strong female protagonist (and by strong I mean complex and multilayered, not just physically powerful) then read All Fall Down.
themainjane's review
2.0
*2.5 stars
This book was not good. I started skimming through the end becuase I just wanted to get it over with. Most of the characters have little to no personality and I just didn't like the main character. I found her very annoying and bothersome. She very much has an "I'm not like other girls" personality and she just feels very outdated.
The plot itself was dry and I don't think much happened. Everything was also very predictable.
This book was not good. I started skimming through the end becuase I just wanted to get it over with. Most of the characters have little to no personality and I just didn't like the main character. I found her very annoying and bothersome. She very much has an "I'm not like other girls" personality and she just feels very outdated.
The plot itself was dry and I don't think much happened. Everything was also very predictable.
ladytiara's review
4.0
Ally Carter is known for the Gallagher Girls and Heist Society series, and All Fall Down is the first installment in a new series, Embassy Row. Like the earlier series, there’s a certain amount of suspension of disbelief needed, but if you can get past that, the book is quite enjoyable. The tone of this book is fairly serious, and it has more in common with the Heist Society series than with the more light-hearted Gallagher Girls books.
Sixteen-year-old Grace Blakely has been sent to live with her grandfather, the U.S. Ambassador to a fictional Mediterranean country named Adria. Three years ago, Grace’s mother died in a fire, and Grace is convinced that she was murdered by a man with a scar on his cheek. No one believes her, and she’s spent some time in an institution dealing with her issues. Grace is a loose cannon, and on her first day living at the embassy, she causes an international incident. Grace soon sees a man with a scar, and she becomes convinced that he is her mother’s killer. With the help of a motley band of embassy kids, she tries to uncover the truth about her mother’s death.
All Fall Down is an entertaining, fast-paced YA thriller. The plot is very engaging, and it’s filled with twists and turns. Just when I thought I had things figured out, it went in a completely different direction. Grace is an unreliable narrator, so you’re never sure of what’s real and what isn’t. Grace is a spirited heroine, and she’s determined to uncover the truth at any cost. This means she’s occasionally reckless, but this makes sense for her character; she’s desperate for the truth and she’ll do anything to find answers.
The ending is interesting; the central mystery is resolved, but it opens up many questions that will presumably be the plots for future books. I thought this was a good way to start the series; I don’t like it when the first book in a series doesn’t have some resolution and instead ends in a big cliffhanger. This ending felt right and makes me want to read the next book in the series.
I received an ARC from Amazon Vine.
Sixteen-year-old Grace Blakely has been sent to live with her grandfather, the U.S. Ambassador to a fictional Mediterranean country named Adria. Three years ago, Grace’s mother died in a fire, and Grace is convinced that she was murdered by a man with a scar on his cheek. No one believes her, and she’s spent some time in an institution dealing with her issues. Grace is a loose cannon, and on her first day living at the embassy, she causes an international incident. Grace soon sees a man with a scar, and she becomes convinced that he is her mother’s killer. With the help of a motley band of embassy kids, she tries to uncover the truth about her mother’s death.
All Fall Down is an entertaining, fast-paced YA thriller. The plot is very engaging, and it’s filled with twists and turns. Just when I thought I had things figured out, it went in a completely different direction. Grace is an unreliable narrator, so you’re never sure of what’s real and what isn’t. Grace is a spirited heroine, and she’s determined to uncover the truth at any cost. This means she’s occasionally reckless, but this makes sense for her character; she’s desperate for the truth and she’ll do anything to find answers.
The ending is interesting; the central mystery is resolved, but it opens up many questions that will presumably be the plots for future books. I thought this was a good way to start the series; I don’t like it when the first book in a series doesn’t have some resolution and instead ends in a big cliffhanger. This ending felt right and makes me want to read the next book in the series.
I received an ARC from Amazon Vine.