Loving the series.

I loved the first book and I loved this sequel. This is one of those books that makes me want to finish it in one sitting, but I force myself to savour it knowing how much more enjoyable it will be to make it last. I love Ben and Arthur. Their friends are incredible. Everyone has grown since the first book, yet still have so much growing up to do. At the end of the day, everyone is just trying to do their best. This book made me laugh, melt from heartwarming moments, and gasp at unexpected and difficult situations. Silvera and Albertalli delivered yet another LGBT classic!

Just when I thought the first book couldn’t possibly have gotten any better… yes it can.

This book was different than what I usually read. The book starts off with a main character that has little to no idea what is happening to her or the people around her. The book doesn't start to reveal what is happening until almost the end. This leaves the plot confusing and ultimately somewhat hard to understand what is happening at times. The narrator was very unreliable and the other characters were kind of shallow. I wished that there were multiple POVs that way the reader had a better understanding of the plot. That said, I will say the book had me on the edge of my seat most of the time and it was a quick read. I'd say it read like a suspense/mystery/thriller novel for 75% of the book and the other 25% is dystopian and Sci-Fi. It wasn't a book I would read again but I enjoyed it for the short book it was.

I really love books by J.L. Armentrout. Her writing can sometimes be cringeworthy but for the most part her world building is good and her characters are super likeable. I'm particularly in love with Roth. He's the perfect bad boy love interest for this series. The trope of "He doesn't like anyone but me" is one of my favorites. Cheesy but oh well! I have already read the spinoff series from this one. I think this series might be a little bit better so far but it could just be the fact that now I've got some blanks filled in (my fault for reading them out of order). These books remind me of moms romance novels but in a good way. I would definitely love to finish the series.

Love

This book was an easy read. I felt her first hand real life experience was comical and could be relatable to some readers who may have had similar experiences.

This dystopian novel was written in 1982 by Stephen King under a pseudonym and imagines a 2025 in the United States with massive unemployment, air so polluted that those who can afford it wear nose filters, and a government run in part by The Games Federation, a government approved reality TV network that places the desperate and poor and hopeless into various deadly reality shows for the entertainment of the masses. Ben Richards, unemployed, his baby daughter gravely ill and needing medication, is chosen for a program called "The Running Man", which no contestant has ever survived. But Ben Richards is no ordinary contestant, and the book follows him through his Running Man journey. Some of the book is hopelessly dated but enough of it will sound familiar - and terrifying.

I really liked this book for a few reasons. It was great seeing a good range of characters. We had some in their 40s, some in their 20s and some ancient. I liked it better than some YA where there are only people in their late teens or early 20s. I didn’t like how many POVs there were. I do like how they left the POV of the “evil” character and we got to kind of see her “descent into evil.” I don’t like the premise of “what waits” or basically the devil. It seems kind of weird and like it doesn’t fit. Aveyard could have just made the main character the one who is “evil” for the sake of being evil. I also love Dom but wish he had more depth. I will probably read the next book in the series.

My first step into the fantasy realm. I’m addicted.