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Reviews

Cytonic Review

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on Cytonic Review

*SPOILERS AHEAD*

Spensa’s life as a Defiant Defense Force pilot has been far from ordinary. She proved herself one of the best starfighters in the human enclave of Detritus and she saved her people from extermination at the hands of the Krell—the enigmatic alien species that has been holding them captive for decades. What’s more, she traveled light-years from home as an undercover spy to infiltrate the Superiority, where she learned of the galaxy beyond her small, desolate planet home. She faced down a Delver and saw something eerily familiar about it. And maybe, if she’s able to figure out what she is, she could be more than just another pilot in this unfolding war. She could save the galaxy.

I liked that again we have a new setting that we get to explore throughout the course of the book. I found myself a little disoriented for the first 100 pages or so simply because I had a hard time understanding how the Nowhere worked and the concept of the different fragments. Once I got my head around it and was settled into the story it was easier to comprehend what was happening.

I don’t think that Spensa has evolved all that much in this book. Sure she gets a better grasp on her cytonic abilities but she’s pretty much the same character that we’ve seen in the rest of the series. At the end she does have a little bit of an epiphany when she has to choose what path she is going to take next but other than that she didn’t really do anything that overly captivated me.

All of the other characters carried the plot in this book in my opinion. I was definitely more fascinated by Chet and who he actually was and his background being in the Nowhere for so long apparently. The manner in which he is introduced was entertaining and I liked learning about how his abilities differ to Spensa and how he helps her navigate through the Nowhere. M Bot we learn is much more integral to the plot than what I was anticipating. A super entertaining character however the constant talk about emotions and feels and asking Spensa to explain things annoyed me a bit, it was just too repetitive.

Repetitive overall is the word for this book. I had hoped it would be more action packed and adventurous than what it was. I was disappointed to be honest with the story overall. I was expecting crazy hijinks, twists upon twists and revelations to come out at every turn but this just felt like a filler book. Sure we are given a few little twists and new characters and a new setting but overall I didn’t really feel like I needed to know this story before Spensa comes back to the somewhere and reunites with her crew back on Detritus.

⭐️3/5 stars entertaining yet disappointing

Reviews

Skyward Flights Review

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on Skyward Flights Review

I realised before I got stuck into Cytonic that I needed to catch up with the two novellas that take place between Starsight and Cytonic and then there’s a third novella after. I sped through the first two novellas and figured I would just post two short reviews in one!

Sunreach – I had quite forgotten about Spensa’s flight team back on Detritus because for the most part the series revolves around Spensa and her adventures. But I like the fact that we’re taken back and given different perspectives and we can see what these other characters are dealing with while. We were given short little interludes in Starsight about Jorgen finding the other Taynix with Gran Gran and I really enjoyed how in this novella we get to see them figure out that they are actually the hyperdrives. I also really enjoyed the rescue mission to Sunreach and just how fast paced and action packed it was. There were definitely some revelations and twists and I feel like this just added so much needed depth and context to the series. ⭐️4/5 stars

ReDawn – For ReDawn I thought it was definitely a necessary decision to have a novella from the point of view of one of the aliens and Alanik has been a pretty integral part of this series so it was nice to get to see things from her perspective. She is another Cytonic who has a different grasp on the abilities so it was interesting to see how she uses her powers in comparison to Spensa or even Jorgen with his limited knowledge. I liked the fact that we have a different setting as well on ReDawn and how we get to learn about a different race of being and how they govern themselves. It was a just a little a hard to visualise a lot of the fighting scenes in the air, that whole sequence was a bit chaotic and confusing. I really enjoyed seeing how all the pilots have bonded with the Taynix and how they are able to utilise them throughout their flights and integrate them into all of their plans. ⭐️3/5 stars

These novellas have definitely drawn me back into this series and has me reinvested in the storyline and eager to find out what will happen next and what is going on with Spensa in the Nowhere!

Reviews

Velvet Was the Night Review

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on Velvet Was the Night Review

Mexico in the 1970s is a dangerous country, even for Maite, a secretary who spends her life seeking the romance found in cheap comic books and ignoring the activists protesting around the city. When her next-door neighbour, the beautiful art student Leonora, disappears under suspicious circumstances, Maite finds herself searching for the missing woman—and journeying deeper into Leonora’s secret life of student radicals and dissidents.

I don’t quite know how I feel about Maite yet. She is very down on herself and her lifestyle yet won’t take the steps to make them better. She knows she can apply to other jobs and yet the notion that work could be fun doesn’t even cross her mind. She complains about her appearance and her clothes yet won’t actively try and make things any better, it’s quite frustrating to read honestly.

Elvis was kind of in the same boat as Maite. Unsatisfied and unsure about what he wants to do with his life. At least he wasn’t constantly complaining about everything like Maite was but he was still just not that interesting a character to follow.

I was invested in finding out what happened to Lenora and the way Maite was pulled into this world by chance. But when the plot unfolds and we find out what happened and why Lenora was hiding it wasn’t all that surprising or inspired I feel.

I didn’t really care about the political climate to be totally honest and that was such an integral part of the story so it really set me up for failure from the start. I didn’t read the description before starting this book and typically historical fiction or books surrounding politics don’t interest me so this was a learning experience for me.

⭐️2/5 stars I was bored and uninterested…

Reviews

The Final Girl Support Group Review

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on The Final Girl Support Group Review

*SOME SPOILERS AHEAD*

Lynnette Tarkington is a real-life final girl who survived a massacre twenty-two years ago, and it has defined every day of her life since. And she’s not alone. For more than a decade she’s been meeting with five other actual final girls and their therapist in a support group for those who survived the unthinkable, putting their lives back together, piece by piece. That is until one of the women misses a meeting and Lynnette’s worst fears are realized–someone knows about the group and is determined to take their lives apart again, piece by piece.

Lynette as our main character felt like a realistic portrayal of a victim. Had I have lived through the same situation she has I don’t know how I would of coped so her mannerisms and ultra awareness gave the book depth for me. I of course think she went too far in her quest to find out ‘who’ is trying to kill them and came across as a little out of touch but in the end her experience as a final girl is what pulled her through.

It was a little difficult to differentiate between all of the women. I kept forgetting who was who and how what happened to each of them. We are definitely given a back story on each of them and where they have ended up now but this was glossed over too quickly for me to feel a connection to any of them.

There was a steady build up of anticipation and mystery surrounding who was trying to kill them all, but in the end everything just felt a little rushed. I needed more of an explanation as to why that person decided to go ahead and kill all of these final girls. What motivated them to groom their accomplice and put together this elaborate plan and kill so many people.

In the end this was very entertaining and thrilling. I thought it was a pretty quick read and the twists and reveals definitely kept me engaged. I think I was expecting a lot more blood and gore though. Just being told about all of the horrifying things that happened to these women instead of being in that moment was a little anticlimactic for me. The majority of the story was just Lynette on the run and brainstorming who was behind everything, there wasn’t very much action until right at the very end.

⭐️3/5 stars I was expecting more…

Reviews

Sharp Objects Review

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on Sharp Objects Review

*SOME SPOILERS*

When two girls are abducted and killed in Missouri, journalist Camille Preaker is sent back to her home town to report on the crimes. Long-haunted by a childhood tragedy and estranged from her mother for years, Camille suddenly finds herself installed once again in her family’s mansion, reacquainting herself with her distant mother and the half-sister she barely knows – a precocious 13-year-old who holds a disquieting grip on the town.

I love the premise of this book, having Camille return to her home town after years to report about the two murdered children. We learn about the setting through Camille’s memory and how she compares to how it is now. There is already that mystery surrounding why Camille left in the first place and why she doesn’t speak to her mother.

I have to say I found myself at times being sympathetic towards Camille but I can’t say I actually liked her as a character. I think she was at times a little problematic and she really should of recused herself from the story from the beginning. She knew it would be triggering to come back to town and she definitely unravels and makes some strange decisions.

I absolutely hated Adora and Amma but I can say that’s a positive for Gillian Flynn for making me have a reaction to the characters she’s written. The over sexualised nature of Amma and the casualness she exudes whenever she is being nasty or inappropriate was horrifying. I just wish Camille would of exerted some form of authority over her and told her what she was doing was bad which I feel she’s never been told in her life. Adora on the other hand was just unnerving and weird.

I enjoyed the fact that there is the overarching mystery surrounding the girls murdered and I found the way Camille uncovered it to be entertaining for sure. The way the plot unravels and we start to have more a clear picture as to who the murderer was very intriguing. I had my suspicions from the start and the misdirect was a great touch but I was eventually correct.

⭐️3/5 stars Shocking and twisted!