Adaptation

by Malinda Lo

[Jo]

Originally published on Once Upon a Bookcase.

I have been intrigued by Adaptation for a while, but after not really enjoying Malinda Lo's Ash, I have been wary about picking up. I recently saw a few reviews really singing it's praises, so finally decided to give it a go. Although it starts of promising, the rest of the book was really disappointing.

When birds start hurtling themselves at planes, causing multiple plane crashes, all flights are cancelled, fearing a terrorist attack. Out in Phoenix with her debate partner David, and their coach, Reese has no other way to get back to San Fransico than to drive. But on route, they're in a car accident, and Reese and David wake up in a military medical facility. They have undergone advanced treatment, and are sent home after signing a non-disclosure agreement forbidding them to talk to anyone about where they were or the treatment they received. Then strange things start happening to Reese and her body Reese, like super healing. Confused by what's happening to both of them, her feelings for David, and the arrival of the magnetic Amber, Reese's life just got complicated. With conspiracy theories flying left, right and center, Reese is determined to find out the truth.

I was originally intrigued by Adaptation when I first started reading it.. First quarter of the book was awesome, with the birds, and the road trip, and the car accident. All the conspiracy theories about what was happening were really interesting, and kept me turning the pages, wanting to know what was really happening. But after everything has happened, and after Reese meets Amber back home, there are no surprises. You keep reading because it feels like you'll find out more, but you never do.

Adaptation is also very predictable. As I said, the conspiracy theories kept me turning the pages, wanting to know the answers, wondering where the story was going, but the big reveal... well, it was pretty obvious what happened to them because of those conspiracy theories. A whole book went by for no reason, it seemed. Sure, the characters had to find out, but really? It took that long, and that's all there was to this story? About a quarter of the way into the book, you, as the reader, know what happened, because it's that obvious - the hints couldn't be more obvious. So when the rest of the book is all about them getting to the point when they find out themselves, it just felt like a waste of time.

The attraction between David and Reese was sweet and felt very natural. However, Amber and Reese... not so much. It just felt cheesy and over the top. As the story progresses, you could say some of this is maybe explained, but not completely. It just didn't feel real to me, and fell kind of flat. There was a lot of eye-rolling on my part. I didn't mind Amber as a person, but the two of them together just didn't work for me.

Really, by the time I finished the last page, I was so disappointed. Adaptation did keep me reading, and did have me wanting to know what would happen, but I was expecting more than what I got. It's a page-turner, for sure, but just didn't give me what I wanted. That's two books by Malinda Lo that I haven't enjoyed now; I'm not sure I'll be reading anything by her again. Do read some other reviews before deciding based on my review alone, you might really enjoy Adaptation.

Thank you to Hachette Children's Books via NetGalley for the eProof.