Goodreads Blurb
When Sam's dad whisks him and his brother off to a remote beach town for the summer, he's all for it-- at first. Sam soon realizes, though, that this place is anything but ordinary. Time seems to slow down around here, and everywhere he looks, there are beautiful blond girls. Girls who seem inexplicably drawn to him.
Then Sam meets DeeDee, one of the Girls, and she's different from the others. Just as he starts to fall for her, she pulls away, leaving him more confused than ever. He knows that if he's going to get her back, he'll have to uncover the secret of this beach and the girls who live here.
Then Sam meets DeeDee, one of the Girls, and she's different from the others. Just as he starts to fall for her, she pulls away, leaving him more confused than ever. He knows that if he's going to get her back, he'll have to uncover the secret of this beach and the girls who live here.
Oh, it's case of the deceiving cover again. I mean, the cover was absolutely gorgeous and the synopsis was definitely intriguing! But the actual story was, I found, very different from what I expected.
So the first thing was the writing. It was a bit awkward sometimes and the cussing was...extreme. Every few sentences and almost every paragraph had a cuss word and it got super old super fast. The way it was written was also a bit awkward and while there was an air of mystery surrounding the story, it was also a bit obvious and a bit boring.
Also, *spoiler* the way to break the curse was also pretty messed up.
The plot also left a lot to be desired for. It didn't have any twists whatsoever and was actually pretty boring most of the time. It was nice to read, I guess. But what really disappointed me was that we never found out exactly what the girls were, and their parents...didn't make a whole lot of sense. We never went in depth with their situation, and since the book really sort of revolved around that, the story lacked. Also, very repetitive and there were a ton of things just suddenly popped out at you that made no sense whatsoever.
I was also a bit confused as to how DeeDee was really that different. The only reason she was "different" was because she'd rather read than party, but for all he knew, she was the only one he stumbled in on. It was coincidence after coincidence and it got super frustrating seeing DeeDee actually act like all the other Girls.
Sam was also pretty shallow--and oh my gosh the number of times I wanted to punch him are innumerable.
What I did like? The switching POVs. We got few glimpses into the supernatural world through this other POV which I can't reveal, and those were, by far, my favorite chapters. I did like Kristle though, despite her faults, and found her a strangely refreshing blunt kind of character, even if I did want to strangle her sometimes. (No, all the time)
Characters. Flat, obnoxious, disgusting, sex-crazed, etc.
The book sort of not really redeemed itself in the fact that it had a sort of impact on me and hit me as one of those raw kind of books. Maybe not beautiful, and maybe not gritty, but somewhere in-between. It's one of those books that you can sort of understand, not on a fictional level, but in the message the author was trying to send. But oh, it was so not worth the read.
But, ermm, if I may offer a sort of snarky version of this review? (I restrained. I'm sorry. But)
Okay, I really wanted to punch all the characters so many times for being idiotic, drug addicts, and so demeaning, especially the guys. It made me want to throw a brick at something, preferably something glass. So the way it was written was sometime pretty, and it did give a raw message, but still. The characters? The plot? Eh. Also, hello? Can we please get some closure? I possibly hate this, and sort of like it because of the rawness. I think. My feelings are mixed. So mixed. But seriously. Lots of drinking, mostly sex, lots of objectifying, and a lot a lot a lot of anti-feminism/females-are-only-good-for-certain-ahem-things.
Pages: 256
Genre: Supernatural
Series: Stand alone
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: May 21, 2013
Rating: Uh. No.


Bleggggh. I've been seeing so many 1 or 2 star ratings for this book, so you don't seem to be the only one. This book sounds uncomfortable, to say the least! Excessive cussing, awful characters, lots of sex, and anti-feminism?! That's a bit... Much for me. I'm so not picking this one up. Thanks for the honest review though, Nikki! :)
ReplyDeleteYuck, yuck, yuck. I've seen soo many negative reviews for this one I probably won't touch it with a ten-foot pole, but I'm glad there was at least a little part you liked. The plot and DeeDee does sound super weird, and I've heard a lot of things about that solution to the conflict.
ReplyDeleteFantastic, honest review!
I really can't believe how much cursing is in the novel. I hope there's a warning in there or something. It doesn't seem like it's young adult at all. Maybe it should be labeled adult literature or something... I don't know. Great review, Nikki. I've heard lots of interesting things about this one.
ReplyDelete