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A review by bethanymiller415
100 Hours by Rachel Vincent
3.0
Rich girl Genesis and her cousins Maddie and Ryan are kidnapped while vacationing with friends in Columbia. Genesis’s father is the owner of a shipping empire, and it becomes clear that at least some of the kidnappers are interested in something more than ransom money. As their kidnappers’ intentions become clear, Genesis realizes that if the they convince her father to meet their demands, many more people could die as a result.
The first quarter of the book involves a lot of drinking, hooking up, and petty fighting among the teens. Genesis and her boyfriend Holden have a toxic relationship that “does not conform to standard norms and boundaries” and involves the two of them frequently hooking up with other people. Genesis and her friends are your basic horrible rich Americans. After being taken hostage Genesis thinks, “I’m supposed to have the next eighty-five years or so to extend my youth with every designer cream and elective procedure money can buy. I’m supposed to change the world and look great doing it, then die in my sleep when I’m one hundred and four, surrounded by humanitarian plaques, design awards and people who can’t bear to think of the world without me in it.”
Though their fathers were brothers, Maddie and Ryan’s father is dead and the family is not as wealthy as Genesis’s. Genesis’s father paid for Ryan to go to rehab and for Maddie to get an insulin pump to better manage her diabetes. Maddie is the uptight good girl who looks down her nose at the excesses of Genesis and her friends. The relationship between the cousins is fraught with resentment and jealousy. The character development in this first part of the book is extensive, yet many of the characters feel like they came straight out of central casting.
When the group gets kidnapped, the action begins and Vincent’s storytelling is actually pretty good once the characters actually have something to do. Genesis’s development from a spoiled brat to a person who cares about the fate of strangers is a bit implausible, but the twists and turns of the plot are enough to keep readers turning the pages. When Maddie and Genesis split up, their alternating perspectives help move the story along and ratchet up the suspense. A word of warning to readers, this book has a sequel. The ending is a cliffhanger that will leave you with many more questions than answers.
Grades: 9-12
Characterization: Mediocre
Literary Merit: Good
Recommendation: Optional Purchase
The first quarter of the book involves a lot of drinking, hooking up, and petty fighting among the teens. Genesis and her boyfriend Holden have a toxic relationship that “does not conform to standard norms and boundaries” and involves the two of them frequently hooking up with other people. Genesis and her friends are your basic horrible rich Americans. After being taken hostage Genesis thinks, “I’m supposed to have the next eighty-five years or so to extend my youth with every designer cream and elective procedure money can buy. I’m supposed to change the world and look great doing it, then die in my sleep when I’m one hundred and four, surrounded by humanitarian plaques, design awards and people who can’t bear to think of the world without me in it.”
Though their fathers were brothers, Maddie and Ryan’s father is dead and the family is not as wealthy as Genesis’s. Genesis’s father paid for Ryan to go to rehab and for Maddie to get an insulin pump to better manage her diabetes. Maddie is the uptight good girl who looks down her nose at the excesses of Genesis and her friends. The relationship between the cousins is fraught with resentment and jealousy. The character development in this first part of the book is extensive, yet many of the characters feel like they came straight out of central casting.
When the group gets kidnapped, the action begins and Vincent’s storytelling is actually pretty good once the characters actually have something to do. Genesis’s development from a spoiled brat to a person who cares about the fate of strangers is a bit implausible, but the twists and turns of the plot are enough to keep readers turning the pages. When Maddie and Genesis split up, their alternating perspectives help move the story along and ratchet up the suspense. A word of warning to readers, this book has a sequel. The ending is a cliffhanger that will leave you with many more questions than answers.
Grades: 9-12
Characterization: Mediocre
Literary Merit: Good
Recommendation: Optional Purchase