Review Detail

This was a brisk and enjoyable YA read, with intriguing plot choices and a
great hook to boot. I see The Inheritance Games vibes that people have been touting for sure, but I do think that these titles manage to hold their own, slightly differing spaces within their shared scope of genre.

The thriller elements were not as high-stakes as billed, and I do think the story leans more drama than thriller. The pacing was quite quick as well, which led to certain arcs falling flat sometimes, primarily because this didn't leave much room to flesh out important nuances of relationship dynamics. Also, a lot of the key moments were presented in info dump form; they were more tell than show, and I would have preferred the latter.

That being said, this book was a truly FUN read. The vibes were immaculate, and I did find myself loving the found family crew situation a lot more than I initially thought I would.

All in all, this was a solid debut, and a great way to kick off the autumnal reading season!