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A Dark and Twisting Path
Book
Writer's apprentice Lena London is happily working on a new collaboration with her idol and...
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Preacher - Season 2
TV Season
A Preacher, an Irish vampire and a petite femme fatale all go on a road trip to find God. Following...
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Outlander - Season 1
TV Season
Follows the story of Claire Randall, a married combat nurse from 1945 who mysteriously swept back in...
historical romance drama
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Parenthood
TV Show
The four grown Braverman siblings -- Adam, Sarah, Crosby and Julia -- share the joys, heartaches and...
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Clanlands
Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish
Book
Two men. One country. And a lot of whisky. As stars of Outlander, Sam and Graham eat, sleep and...
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My Sporting Heroes
Book
First-hand account from the heart of Welsh sporting action. One of the country's most recognized...
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Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011)
Movie
Jack Sparrow finds himself captive on the legendary ship, Queen Anne's Revenge, after escaping...
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The Green Mile (1999)
Movie Watch
Paul Edgecomb (Tom Hanks) walked the mile with a variety of cons. He had never encountered someone...
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True Blood - Season 1
TV Season
In the not-too-distant future, vampires have come out of the coffin...no longer in need of a human...
"If I have a superpower, it's invisibility. Like the perpetually overcast skies of Portland in winter, I'm part of the background -- a robot with a disappearance drive, the dullness against which everyone else shines."
~Sam
This was an interesting and somewhat different YA novel. I enjoyed the story of two brave girls battling tough circumstances. Boy, poor Zoe and Sam certainly had the weight of the world on their shoulders. I really liked both of our main characters. The book tells the story from each of their perspectives, making it easy to know each girl. I found myself a bit more aligned to Sam--probably because she was queer and shy (like drawn to like, right?). As other reviews have mentioned, some of the book is in texting format, as Sam and Zoe fall into Starworld. Being far removed from teenagehood myself (sigh), I will admit that I did sometimes sort of "fast read" or skim those sections. I appreciated them--because Starworld meant so much to these girls and their friendship--but the text-speak wasn't always the easiest to read and digest.
I had picked this up thinking it was a love story, but it's not a true romance, though there's love in other forms. There's some great representation in this book: a queer character in Sam, plus discussion of adoption, mental illness (OCD and anxiety), disabilities, and more. All were very well treated too, I felt.
The book felt a little slow at times. It felt a little repetitive in its insistence on Zoe feeling different due to being adopted. Still, I was very drawn to Sam and Zoe's story. There was a strength in each of them, and I was intrigued to see what was going to happen. Sam's arc as she struggled with her romantic feelings was especially strong and wonderfully done.
Even though much of the book is serious, it's also very funny at times, with some excellent quotes and zingers. (I really did love Sam and her sense of humor; she was right up my alley.)
"I hate using phones for their original intended purpose. It's like Alexander Graham Bell wondered, Hey, what could maximize the awkwardeness of human-to-human communication? And then answered himself by giving us the ability to speak to one another through stupid disembodied little boxes."
I mean, right? One of the best quotes ever.
So, overall, this book is really a love story of friendship and triumph. It's very easy to root for the characters and get caught up in their lives. I was often just aghast at how much these poor girls had to go through. If you're not necessarily used to text-speak, it may give you a pause, but Starworld is a big part of the book (obviously!) and it's woven well into the story. This was a different and intriguing read, and I'm glad I picked it up. 3.5+ stars (rounded up to 4 here).