Reviewed by Amber (The Literary Phoenix) on
Mixed feelings on this one.
On one hand, lets take a moment to ogle that beautiful cover? Those colors, the artwork, it's simple but it's beautiful and I love it.
On the other hand, I struggled with this one. It's a very readable book, but it didn't feel real. Which I know is a stupid thing to say about a book, especially one where I cannot compare to the characters and story situation in so many ways. Chloe seems like a nice enough person, but she's the only character I felt we actually got to know. The other characters in this book felt very much like supporting figures, less people than devices to move the plot. It bothered me, I guess.
This general lack of depth was a running theme in Everything I Thought I Knew. I know nothing about the trauma of a major surgery at a young age and the way it changes a life. But Chloe's behavior felt so much like a carbon copy of many other contemporary YA characters where a good-student-decides-it-doesn't-matter-and-she-wants-to-enjoy-her-life. Everyone felt like a trope - Jane's Misunderstood Bad Girl, Kai's Sweet Athlete Love Interest... none of the characters popped off the page.
The story, similarly, moved in a jagged place, like puzzle pieces forced to fit where they don't belong. At first, I thought it was a basic issue-focused contemporary. Then it started to feel science fiction. Then a ghost story. The whole thing felt disconnected, a forced story. I'm not sure how well researched the cellular memory parts were - many stories like this will have an addendum or author's notes or something that talks about the scientific aspect and where the story idea came from. Because this is a ARC, I'm not sure if it was missing just because of the unfinished nature, or because... there is no section like that. I feel like the lack of knowing here affected my ability to trust or appreciate the reading, because my instinct was that it felt too convenient to the sort, too overblown... not real. And that may be completely unfair. But it bothered me.
Still, despite my hesitation over the depth of the characters and reliability of information driving the plot, this was a generally enjoyable book. Really, it was! It's a light and easy read, only took me a couple days and that was at the end of a readathon where I was starting to burn out. The original concept was compelling - heart transplant, and how does life change. I was even on board for the cellular memory bit as clever and uncommon, though I felt it could have been tightened up a bit. It's certainly not a book I regret reading, nor was a miserable while reading it. It's an "I'm glad I read it, but I don't want to keep it forever" book, and the world needs those, too.
Reading updates
- Started reading
- 26 July, 2020: Finished reading
- 26 July, 2020: Reviewed