(April 22nd, 2014, HarperCollins)
Book
Description: Life
hasn’t been
kind to Jaxson Aubrey. His father has passed way in a car accident, leaving him
an orphan and in the questionable care of 18 year-old Reilly Pendare. His life
becomes more complicated when, on the Wednesday after his thirteenth birthday,
he wakes up to find a world without people. He later discovers that he is a
Transitioner and can access an extra day (Grunsday) of the week. Reilly also
turns out to be a Transitioner, and the person who can answer Jax’s questions both about himself and the
mysterious girl next door who in only lives in the eighth day.
Pros:
The
premise is very intriguing and the inclusion of Arthurian myth made it very
fresh and compelling. The writing style helped as well as it was simple, but
fluid and funny enough to appeal to the intended audience.
I
thought both Riley and Tegan were very interesting characters and would have
liked to see more of them here. Hopefully, we'll learn more about them in
future books.
Cons:
For me, there
were three main problems in this book. One was Jax’s frequently stupid decision-making
and inability to both convey and understand simple pieces of information. It
was really frustrating, because it made it seem like the author didn’t think the reader deserved a more
competent protagonist. It also undermined the goodwill Jax gained at the
beginning of the book.
The
second problem was Jax’s relationship with Evangeline. His near-obsessive devotion
to her felt both creepy and unjustified, especially considering that other
vassals (people in a similar position to Jax) didn’t seem as pathetic.
The last
was Evangeline’s importance. It was a bit shoehorned and felt exaggerated,
mainly because she was a rather bland character. She was often ineffective and
was more a plot ploy than a real character.
Verdict: Despite
its failings, The Eighth Day is still a fun, light,
fast-paced read best suited for younger audiences and those who won’t be too bothered by contrived and
somewhat lazy storytelling.
Love the cover on this one. Sounds like it's still a good one to keep on my TBR list. Thanks for the helpful list of "Cons" and welcome to MMGM.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, it's still a good book. But we can only give our full and honest opinion. We hope this review was helpful. Thanks for commenting!
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