The Returned

I received this ARC through First Reads from the publisher in exchange of an honest review.

I was really excited about this book. The premise just sounded so amazing! And after having read the book, I can definitely see why some people are raving about it. All of the elements of a good literary novel are there. It's beautifully written, themes of human existentialism, an examination of human nature, etc.

Unfortunately, I found it to be incredibly boring. I was about 3/4 of the way through this book and had to force myself to finish. I doubt I would have finished it if it were not an ARC copy. As it was, I did do a bit of skimming in the middle because OMG NOTHING WAS HAPPENING. I mean, sure, the writing was really beautiful and subtle and all that, but who gives a crap about the writing when FREAKING NOTHING HAPPENS.

I suppose what I said above isn't 100% accurate. Something does happen very very late in the book. I do have to say that the last few chapters are the reason I did not give this one star. The ending was quite good. Rather powerfully, it brought together the underlying themes in the novel. I also liked the extra little excerpts in bold/italics from the points of view of various Returned people. They were probably the most interesting sections in the novel.

Personally, I wasn't exactly sure what I was expecting from the novel, but I at the very least wanted to discover WHY the Returned were there. Or, barring that, HOW they got there. I mean, was it everybody that ever died? Cuz holy hell that's a lot of people.

In the end, I would say that this book is not a bad book. It's just not the book for me.

I received an advance copy this book for free in a GoodReads FirstReads giveaway.

I'm slightly torn about this book. The story line idea behind this book is a great idea. Also, I love how the author switched chapters with telling the story from the view of the “True Living” and the “Returned”. I also loved the ending with respect to the emotional issues of Jacob's parents. Those are the good things I can say about this book.

That being said... I never really completely got into the story. The writing style just doesn't flow well, and I felt there could have been better description of events and personalities. But that could be because I really enjoy classical style writers who tend to sometimes be overly descriptive. Another problem I had was that there was no true resolution of the government's involvement in controlling the Returned, and there was no resolution of the purpose of the Returned.

This may be the first time I have ever felt this way but... I believe this book would translate very well into a movie. Mostly because a movie would add to what is already there.

I hope that the sequel will complete the story. If that ends up being the case, I would be completely satisfied with this story.

Read more reviews at Great Minds Read Alike.