Kevin Lau
AUG 2018-2019 BOOK CLUBBook 7/30: A Book You Don't Think You'll Like
As much flak as I give YA, I can't deny that it is simultaneously the worst and best genre in all of literature. Unlike with adult or, surprisingly, children's novels, Young Adult is a lot of GO GO GO! Thin plots! Flat characterization! Lost potential but it doesn't matter because it's just soooo relatable to the youth!
Young Adult fiction is the genre that tries really hard to get people who think reading is dumb (Yay! Pressures of fitting in!) to pick up a book and go from cover to cover. If the plot slows down at any point for the characters to reflect and develop, a sub-literate teenager will most likely drop it unless it becomes a phenomenon with a film.
This is why I'm always hesitant to read YA. The popular 2% are rather bland and 95% are trying to mimic what works for others. Thankfully, Mariah Fredericks falls into the narrow 3% that are legitimately good.
Mean Girls meets [random witch story] isn't an apt description here. Sure, you've got your typical high school setting with the bitch squad bullying the protagonist and pushing them to take measures into her own hands. Sure, you've got some spells casted too. Ultimately, though, Mariah Fredericks writes a very moving story about why you shouldn't beat yourself up and how some things, even the death of someone you know, are out of control and aren't always your fault.
By literature standards, the plot is rather thin but could easily be adapted to film. The pacing and overall structure is perfect and every beat matters. The characterization is strong for the main cast, with the protagonist and antagonist servicing as two sides of the same coin, but minor characters are only mentioned when they're needed (like pulling them from a void). Season of the Witch doesn't necessarily paint an atmosphere, but its strong narrative really gets you inside the main character's head.
I really thought this was going to be trash. Outside of the fact the writing could be richer and perhaps a different editor should have been hired (some typos and lack of proper italicization), this book really outdid itself. This may not be the creepy horror story the marketing team suggests, but it's a good novel nonetheless.
AUG 2018-2019 BOOK CLUBBook 7/30: A Book You Don't Think You'll Like
As much flak as I give YA, I can't deny that it is simultaneously the worst and best genre in all of literature. Unlike with adult or, surprisingly, children's novels, Young Adult is a lot of GO GO GO! Thin plots! Flat characterization! Lost potential but it doesn't matter because it's just soooo relatable to the youth!
Young Adult fiction is the genre that tries really hard to get people who think reading is dumb (Yay! Pressures of fitting in!) to pick up a book and go from cover to cover. If the plot slows down at any point for the characters to reflect and develop, a sub-literate teenager will most likely drop it unless it becomes a phenomenon with a film.
This is why I'm always hesitant to read YA. The popular 2% are rather bland and 95% are trying to mimic what works for others. Thankfully, Mariah Fredericks falls into the narrow 3% that are legitimately good.
Mean Girls meets [random witch story] isn't an apt description here. Sure, you've got your typical high school setting with the bitch squad bullying the protagonist and pushing them to take measures into her own hands. Sure, you've got some spells casted too. Ultimately, though, Mariah Fredericks writes a very moving story about why you shouldn't beat yourself up and how some things, even the death of someone you know, are out of control and aren't always your fault.
By literature standards, the plot is rather thin but could easily be adapted to film. The pacing and overall structure is perfect and every beat matters. The characterization is strong for the main cast, with the protagonist and antagonist servicing as two sides of the same coin, but minor characters are only mentioned when they're needed (like pulling them from a void). Season of the Witch doesn't necessarily paint an atmosphere, but its strong narrative really gets you inside the main character's head.
I really thought this was going to be trash. Outside of the fact the writing could be richer and perhaps a different editor should have been hired (some typos and lack of proper italicization), this book really outdid itself. This may not be the creepy horror story the marketing team suggests, but it's a good novel nonetheless.