ninetalevixen's reviews
2011 reviews

I didn't want the protagonist's name to be a warning sign - while "unique" names might signal a special-snowflake protagonist, they just as often don't signal anything at all - in this case my initial suspicions were correct. Demonstrated a lot of the tropes and devices I dislike in teen chick-lit.

Initially seemed a little pretentious/arrogant but actually turned out to be pretty good. I actually related, more or less, and it held my interest throughout.

Started off okay, but then it got all holier-than-thou/judgy, even homophobic at the reveal; it dealt with controversial topics quite poorly.

1.5 stars.

I was hooked pretty effectively by the beginning and some of the scientific ideas, though to be honest I expected more emphasis on time travel and less "oh yeah all of us have random mystical talents"; conceptually the science was interesting but didn't seem very plausible.

A lot of the analogies/"witty" remarks didn't make sense to me, and I had a really hard time relating to (and even, sometimes, liking) Emerson. I'm just not a huge fan of "we have this paranormal *connection* through our powers but we can't be together :(" and it seems unlikely that two best friends - even if they're guys! - would so suddenly be at odds over a girl. Bro code, man. Speaking of which, I was definitely disappointed that the other girls - Lily, Dru - didn't play much of a role at all, even knowing that the storyline revolved exclusively around Emerson.

Spoiler

And don't even get me started on the part where Michael dies and Emerson sulks despite already having told there's a chance to bring him back - I'm sure we all saw it coming from a mile away.

2.5 stars.

Overall kind of a frivolous read, with an airheaded boy-crazy protagonist, but at least that outcome was unexpected and surprisingly satisfying.

Definitely an interesting premise, and the plot was thoroughly developed - I must admit, though, I got a little bored somewhere in the middle.

Though there was a LOT of popularity/boy drama (which I'm not super into, as a person) the plot was intense and suspenseful enough to see my interest through to the end.

It's never a good sign when the protagonist comes off as a self-centered, self-diagnosed special snowflake, but yay for character development and actual plot.

Some really intriguing ideas, but sometimes I had trouble just following the basic plot. I wasn't a huge fan of the writing style, and the ending seemed to drag.