Jen's Review
by Anne Applegate
April 30, 2013
Point
320 pages, Hardcover
Honestly,
I just don't even know.
The
only way that I can describe this book, is weird.
HOLY. Like, I can't even describe. To be honest, after reading the last word in
this book, my only thought was, "I'm glad that's over." The Last Academy by Anne Applegate is a book
that I was highly anticipating for 2013, and all I got was a bunch of
uncomfortable weirdness. Y'all might be thinking: is that the only way Jen can describe this book? And the
answer is yes! Throughout the entire novel I was constantly thinking how
strange and utterly freaky this book was, and not necessarily in the good way.
So many things went wrong for me in this book, and I have to admit, it was
frustrating. The Last Academy is a
curious book with its odd characteristics here and there (and everywhere).
One of
my main problems (among many..) in this book is the plot. There's not much
going for it, which makes it really confusing. At first, I kind of just went
along with it, but by the midway point, I was completely befuddled as to where the story was going. I wasn't even sure
if the genre of this book was contemporary, thriller, mystery, or supernatural?
It's all over the place. It's not until 90%
that the reader finds out the answers in this book. Ninety percent. That's a long time; usually, it's the halfway
point or a little after that, not right before
the very end. Sadly, only the last ten percent of this novel was
redeemable and actually slightly enjoyable. So that's how the plot went. As you
can tell, not very well…
I also
had issues with the characters in The Last
Academy. The main character, Camden, is one of those characters that's
just kind of there. I have no feelings
for her, none at all. I felt no connection during my time with this book
whatsoever. She is flat, and a bit boring at that. Camden goes through a lot of
problems, and not one of them made me empathize with her. And the other
characters in the book? Nawwwt much better. I have to mention the staff in The Last Academy. UUUMM, creepers! They are
all totally pedos and spine-tinglingly uncomfortable!
So,
clearly, this book didn't work out for me. However, it did make me curious enough to read the whole thing, and not DNF
it. It's like those things that are so gross
but you just can't look away, you know?
It's a weird feeling. I honestly expected so much more out of this book because
I love boarding school books (lately,
I've noticed that boarding school books haven't been working out for me..), but
The Last Academy was not my cup of tea.
Hopefully some readers out there will enjoy this novel, but I can't really
recommend it, unless you want to be completely weirded out!
2 teacups for The Last Academy!
*Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for providing me with a copy to review!*
Posts
every single review I have read of this novel first said how this novel was very anticipated for them (like me) and in the end it was highly disappointing.. I am kind of sad because it had the potential to be so much better.. I guess I'm taking it off my tbr list.
ReplyDeletegreat review,
- Juhina @ Maji Bookshelf
To be honest, I probably would've never picked this book up in the first place. Looks like my decision was right. Sorry you had to suffer through this, Jen. I hate it when I don't like a book. It just feels like a complete and utter waste of precious time. Great honest review. :)
ReplyDeleteThat's definitely something if you didn't DNF it! I actually have only seen one other review and it said the same thing, that it's just really weird. I wasn't planning on reading it before, but now I know to keep that in mind in the future as well.
ReplyDeleteEEE JEN!! I was looking forward to this too!! Not so much now... :/ I get what you mean by "weird", some books make me feel extremely uncomfortable with its lack of any REAL plot or direction, the story just throws me around and around aimlessly while I'm just, WHAT?! And a main character whom you can't connect to... *pushes Last Academy further down the pile*
ReplyDeleteAlicia @ Summer Next Top Story
Hmm.. this sounds strange! It must have been very frustrating to only enjoy the last 10% and to be confused for most of it. I have read books like that and they didn't go down well.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry this wasn't your cup of tea, Jen. Thanks for the honest review! :)
I've read a few reviews that had me interested in picking this one up, but the majority I've read since then have me convinced this will be a disappointment. I hate flat, boring characters, and the novel honestly sounds like a mess. It's amazing you didn't DNF. Sometimes it's hard to look away from a train wreck. :-) Thanks for your honest, thoughtful review!
ReplyDeleteI was never keen on this one since it seemed so much like everything else out there, but it's still a shame this disappointed you. I hope you have better luck with your next book, dear, and thanks for your honesty! :)
ReplyDeleteI had a very similar reaction to this one Jen! I was impressed by the last couple chapters and how everything came together, but up until then this story was a little rough for me. I couldn't connect to any of the characters either, and I felt like a lot of her "friends" (I'm not sure any of them can really be called that) were interchangeable, I had trouble telling them apart. The ending did save it a bit for me though. Loved reading your thoughts!
ReplyDeleteThe plot and characters both don't sound good. I think I'll definitely be skipping this one. Thanks for the great, honest review! :)
ReplyDelete