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Borrowed from Chelsea. This book was really compelling, very well written, but a lot darker than the other Westerfeld books I've read. I know Chelsea wants to read this, so I'ma put my thoughts behind a cut.
This was a good book, but I was disappointed by the ending. The main character spends the whole book trying to fight Bonito, but ends by becoming just like Bonito. And doesn't see it happening. I thought it was depressing, actually. I wish that this character could have had the physical awakening of using the shapeshifting power easily and still remained herself and good, instead of descending into the creepiness and violence that Bonito lived in. You get the sense that eventually Lee will be vivisecting a young woman, just like Bonito did, just because she can. I felt like Lee's character arc was heading somewhere entirely different and more fulfilling--that connecting with Freddie and Sam was going to make her a better person--but that arc got interrupted. Sometimes that happens in real life, but this is a book. If I wanted gritty reality I wouldn't be reading YA fiction.
This book looks like a YA book, is probably filed as YA in the bookstore, and for the most part reads like YA fiction--but, even beyond the disturbing character arc, it contains some really graphic sex and violence and murder. Just really dark. This book would have messed with my head in a serious way if I'd read it when I was 13. I'm kind of mad at Westerfeld for that--I feel like YA books should have some boundaries, should allow kids to tackle mature themes in a safe way. I understand that part of the fun/interest in writing about a shapeshifter is in exploring the sexual aspects of that power, but if that's what you're doing, market it for adults. The vivisection and the rape/attempted murder scene at the end were a little much for my sensibilities, and, yeah, the character development really bothered me--personally, and because I didn't feel like that stuff was appropriate for this kind of book.
Eh. I wasn't happy with how the Uglies/Pretties/Specials trilogy ended, and I wasn't happy with this ending either. I like Westerfeld as a writer, but I don't like the places where his stories end up. I don't know that I'll be reading much more of him.
This was a good book, but I was disappointed by the ending. The main character spends the whole book trying to fight Bonito, but ends by becoming just like Bonito. And doesn't see it happening. I thought it was depressing, actually. I wish that this character could have had the physical awakening of using the shapeshifting power easily and still remained herself and good, instead of descending into the creepiness and violence that Bonito lived in. You get the sense that eventually Lee will be vivisecting a young woman, just like Bonito did, just because she can. I felt like Lee's character arc was heading somewhere entirely different and more fulfilling--that connecting with Freddie and Sam was going to make her a better person--but that arc got interrupted. Sometimes that happens in real life, but this is a book. If I wanted gritty reality I wouldn't be reading YA fiction.
This book looks like a YA book, is probably filed as YA in the bookstore, and for the most part reads like YA fiction--but, even beyond the disturbing character arc, it contains some really graphic sex and violence and murder. Just really dark. This book would have messed with my head in a serious way if I'd read it when I was 13. I'm kind of mad at Westerfeld for that--I feel like YA books should have some boundaries, should allow kids to tackle mature themes in a safe way. I understand that part of the fun/interest in writing about a shapeshifter is in exploring the sexual aspects of that power, but if that's what you're doing, market it for adults. The vivisection and the rape/attempted murder scene at the end were a little much for my sensibilities, and, yeah, the character development really bothered me--personally, and because I didn't feel like that stuff was appropriate for this kind of book.
Eh. I wasn't happy with how the Uglies/Pretties/Specials trilogy ended, and I wasn't happy with this ending either. I like Westerfeld as a writer, but I don't like the places where his stories end up. I don't know that I'll be reading much more of him.
