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The Nightside Saga #1
27 Hours
Rumor Mora fears two things: hellhounds too strong for him to kill, and failure. Jude Welton has two dreams: for humans to stop killing monsters, and for his strange abilities to vanish.
But in no reality should a boy raised to love monsters fall for a boy raised to kill them.
Nyx Llorca keeps two secrets: the moon speaks to her, and she’s in love with Dahlia, her best friend. Braeden Tennant wants two things: to get out from his mother's shadow, and to unlearn Epsilon's darkest secret.
They’ll both have to commit treason to find the truth.
During one twenty-seven-hour night, if they can’t stop the war between the colonies and the monsters from becoming a war of extinction, the things they wish for will never come true, and the things they fear will be all that’s left.
27 Hours is a sweeping, thrilling story featuring a stellar cast of queer teenagers battling to save their homes and possibly every human on Sahara as the clock ticks down to zero.
But in no reality should a boy raised to love monsters fall for a boy raised to kill them.
Nyx Llorca keeps two secrets: the moon speaks to her, and she’s in love with Dahlia, her best friend. Braeden Tennant wants two things: to get out from his mother's shadow, and to unlearn Epsilon's darkest secret.
They’ll both have to commit treason to find the truth.
During one twenty-seven-hour night, if they can’t stop the war between the colonies and the monsters from becoming a war of extinction, the things they wish for will never come true, and the things they fear will be all that’s left.
27 Hours is a sweeping, thrilling story featuring a stellar cast of queer teenagers battling to save their homes and possibly every human on Sahara as the clock ticks down to zero.
404 pages, ebook
First published October 3, 2017
About the author
Tristina Wright
5 books174 followersTristina Wright is a blue-haired bisexual with anxiety and opinions. She’s also possibly a mermaid, but no one can get confirmation.
Her brief foray into queer YA began and ended with her scifi debut, 27 HOURS, in 2017. The series was cancelled the following year and she hasn't published anything since.
**Please note: this account does not accept friend requests and is rarely updated.**
Her brief foray into queer YA began and ended with her scifi debut, 27 HOURS, in 2017. The series was cancelled the following year and she hasn't published anything since.
**Please note: this account does not accept friend requests and is rarely updated.**
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September 28, 2017
A visual representation of me trying to figure out how to write this review:
In all seriousness, this might be one of the most difficult books I’ve had to review, simply because I have so many thoughts. So many different aspects to a novel as complicated and nuanced as this one, and so many thoughts about several of these aspects. More than this, perhaps – the reason why reviewing this book is so difficult is because I can fully see the invaluable benefits of it, as well as the potential harm it can cause, and the intersection of both can be difficult for a reviewer (who isn’t, by any means, claiming to be an expert) to encompass and do justice. But, I will try my best here, and if I start to ramble, resulting in a post that resembles word-vomit more than a structured review- well, you’ll have to forgive me here, I guess.
27 Hours is a futuristic (set, I believe, 150-200 years from present day), science-fiction, action-packed tale which counts down from 27 hours to certain war. When the clock hits 0, prompting the sun to come up, our characters’ world is going to be torn apart by the two species fighting on (over?) it. A couple hundred or so years ago, humans arrived at a moon from all over the Earth, giving rise to a civilization, unaware that an indigenous species was asleep underground. When the construction of a lake causes several underground tunnels to flood, the indigenous species (referred to as chimera, or “gargoyle” as a slur) lost many lives. Ever since, war has raged on. The humans consider the chimera blood-thirsty monsters, while the chimera are staunch in their belief that the land is theirs. A third group emerged some time during the war – a forest civilization – that broke away from the humans, formed an alliance with some chimera, and strive for peace.
Perhaps it’s my own background and cultural history, but I couldn’t fully root for any of the main characters, all of whom are human.
I was born and raised in Pakistan, a country that emerged in 1947 from India after a brutal war raged on, killing millions upon millions of people; much of that bloodshed, the consequent splitting, and the after-effects that exist even now were a direct product of the British colonization of the Indian subcontinent. We are still told horror stories, of piles of bodies at the border – riots, massacres, friends and families torn apart for the rest of time, as my ancestors, as my neighbors’ ancestors fought for their rights on a land that belonged to them. It was our land. It was our country, not some colonizers’. They had no right to be there.
It’s not an issue that raged just then – it’s an issue extremely current and relevant even now, whether we’re talking about the war over Kashmir (again, a direct product of British imperialism), or the Israel-Palestine situation that seems to have no end in sight. Maybe it’s my hypersensitivity to issues of indigenous peoples’ having their lands stolen by invaders who have no right to be there, but I found it almost impossible to sympathize with the main characters. When I realized that the theme of the novel was an indigenous species versus colonists, and the main characters all being colonists or descendants of colonists, I was immediately put off.
Let me get something straight here: Wright does not excuse colonists’ actions, nor does she pass off the war as a binary issue. What does, however, happen is that all the characters who get perspective chapters are humans (in this case, colonists), and three out of four of the perspective chapters are humans who are learning to rid themselves of long-held prejudices against chimera, while the fourth perspective character is a forest-human who doesn’t have these prejudices anymore, who instead strives for peace. The issue here, at least for me, was glaringly obvious: in a war raging between an indigenous species and colonists, why is the colonist’s perspective centered? Why is the storyline so intensely focused on colonist guilt, and realizing that indigenous life that existed on this planet is still, you know, life? And despite them unlearning their prejudices against the species itself, the issue of invasion and settling is almost entirely ignored, while all the weight is put on violent warfare.
To me, it parallels a book where white characters realize that people of color are “humans as well,” and start working towards co-existence, while also refusing to (intentionally or unintentionally) acknowledge or dismantle the root cause of the issue: systematic, institutionalized racism and white supremacy. In this case, the human characters’ narrative is the only one being centered, while the root issue of invasion, trespassing and unethically settling over land that already belongs to beings living on the moon is thrust aside, instead focusing on the byproduct of this main issue: war. There was a moment in this novel where the villain (so often described as the monster who needs to be destroyed for peace to finally be achieved) says:
This tells me that Wright is fully aware of the complicated issue at hand, yet the villain – hell-bent on destruction and blood and chaos – is the only one who brings it up. Bro, if I’m twenty pages from the end and I’m siding with the villain here? That’s not a good look.
Some of the thematic choices made regarding character prejudices were also… uncomfortable for me to read and consider.
27 Hours is a book full of underrepresented identities on the page, with beautiful relationships forming – both platonic and romantic. We have a truly diverse cast of characters. Our four perspective chapters are Rumor, Nyx, Braeden and Jude, while a fifth character can still be considered a main character, despite not getting a perspective chapter. Rumor is a bisexual, multiracial Nigerian/Portuguese & Indian who falls for Jude, who is gay. Nyx is Deaf, pansexual, chubby, signs ASL throughout the book, has Cuban ancestry, and is in love with her best friend, Dahlia, who is an Afro-Latinx trans girl. Nyx’s abuela is also Deaf. Braeden is asexual, and has two moms. Jude is adopted by a family of two brothers – both are people of color, both are queer. There is an Asian side character who uses they/them pronouns, and there is discussion about using and normalizing pronoun introductions.
Rumor and Jude form a beautiful bond immediately, and their interactions are lovely to see unfold on the page. Dahlia and Nyx’s complicated romantic relationship is slow-burn, and the pay-off is ultimately swoon-worthy, for lack of a better phrase. Braeden discusses his asexuality often, there is sign language throughout the book – so these identities are given proper time and weight. But with three of your five protagonists being people of color, there is no discussion about race, but I’ll get to this later.
In line with the imperialist discussion I was having above, let’s talk a little bit about Rumor. I believe Rumor could be considered the driving force of the novel – his perspective chapter starts the novel off, and his actions and reactions are, for the most part, what drive the story. For me, when it was revealed that he has Nigerian and Indian ancestry, I was immediately intrigued. Why? Because for a story dealing with colonial issues, a main character having ancestry from both Nigeria and India – both countries that have been colonized by the British in the past? That seemed significant to me. But I was… disturbed (if that’s the right phrase) by the fact that Rumor, more than anyone else, holds the most vicious hatred for chimera.
Rumor’s past with the indigenous species is bloody; his mother and his father both died during the war, and the book quite literally begins with his colony being wiped out by an attack. So, his reactions are to be expected, but… I’m a little uncomfortable that a character who has ancestry tracing back to countries that were torn apart due to colonization is so staunchly pro-colonist, is so staunchly vicious in his hatred of chimera. That’s a strange thematic choice for me. And it gets especially strange (this is a euphemism for problematic, by the way) that the two people who, arguably, have the most sway over changing his prejudices are white. The two characters (Jude and Braeden) who basically show the boy, who has ancestry 🗣 tracing 🗣 back 🗣 to 🗣 countries 🗣 that 🗣 have 🗣 been 🗣 colonized 🗣 by white 🗣 people, that his prejudices are unfounded, unfair and discriminatory are white. Bro. White.
“Aimal, you’re overthinking this. It probably wasn’t that serious, it probably isn’t that deep.” Is that what you’re thinking? I’ve already acknowledged that perhaps it’s because I’m hypersensitive to imperialist issues, I saw flaws in this novel that many others would have overlooked. But come on – even the most non-interested of you couldn’t say that it isn’t a big deal that the most racist (specie-ist) person from our cast of characters is a person of color, and that the people who changed his mind were white people. Like… that’s just… 🏃🏽♀️ Moving on.
You could argue that Rumor’s ancestry isn’t as significant as I’m making it out to be, mainly because Wright makes it clear that the humans have one language (referred to as “the human language”), and don’t retain much from their culture back from home. Which: if the book is set 150-200 years in the future (which is 7-8 generations at most), would people who immigrated from all over the world really have forgotten their language, their cultures? Here’s a passage from the book:
This seems to imply that the humans don’t know much, if anything at all, about where they came from on Earth. And that’s fair, if the book was set even further into the future. Would entire cultures cease to exist in just a few generations? (More on this later, too). And even if they did, why does the book seem to imply that they gradually, over the course of a century, defaulted to a Westernized way of living? Where romantic, familial and platonic relationships are modeled after Western culture? This is vague, and this is where the holes in world-building start to seep through. Are there no other cultures? And if there aren’t, how did the near-7,000 languages that exist in the world right now get wiped out in just a century or two from now?! How did entire civilizations coming from all over the world forget their own cultures to default to the present “human culture?” How is there no variation past ideological thought (and even then, only as it relates to war versus peace)? And if there are cultures, why not show them? I’m so confused about this – there are so many gaps and holes in world-building here that it’s driving me up the wall just thinking about the lack of information there is to grapple with.
Is racial representation really REPRESENTATION if the characters of color can be replaced by white people without changing anything else at all?
Basically, every single character of color in this book could be replaced with a white character, and nothing would change. Absolutely nothing, apart from a couple words here and there (and a large chunk of my review *badum tss*). Like I said, there is little to no significant mention of differing cultures, or different languages (the only non-English words in the book are “chai,” “prem,” and “abuela,” which just… make up your mind. Do languages exist, or do they not?) Fine, take away cultures, take away languages, but even people of color who live in diasporas, who have largely assimilated to the society around them and retain little to nothing of their ancestral culture still undergo micro aggressions, if not outright racism. And there is no mention of it. Anywhere. When I say that the characters of color could be replaced by white characters and nothing would change, I mean that quite literally. You’d just have to replace every time the color “brown” is mentioned with white, change the ethnicities, and… that’s it.
Apparently, in this society, people aren’t prejudiced based on race, because it’s of no consequence to anybody, so it doesn’t exist anymore, despite there being a very clear prejudice against the. indigenous. species. So, prejudice does exist – just not intra-human racism. Which, just…
Racism has existed for centuries. It has been the cause of genocide in various parts of the world, wars, slavery, systematic and institutionalized oppression. Look at the ethnic cleansing in Myanmar right now, the refugee crisis and the fear-mongering against Middle Easterners and Muslims, the legal and violent war underway against black Americans in the U.S., the purging of Native American lands and rights in today’s society, the discriminatory rhetoric against Mexicans that won someone the election. Look at our fucking President. Look at the Ku Klux Klan, the neo-Nazis taking off their robes and parading around in the streets with torches and tell me racism is going anywhere. It has always existed, because as a human race, we’re prejudiced people. You mean to tell me that a colony, that exists and is an amalgamation of human society from cultures all over the world, has no racism?! Especially if this colony isn’t even that far into the future?! I…
The only way this could be even slightly possible would be if a scientific device existed that purged the very idea of prejudice out of your mind. I would buy this if prejudice, in and of itself, didn’t exist in the society. But prejudice does exist! Against the indigenous species! So that takes that out of the equation.
It feels a lot, and I mean A LOT, like erasure of the struggles people of color go through every single day, and have gone through every single day. For a white author to build a world where (1) colonialism thrives, but (2) racism no longer exists? It feels like a cop-out. It feels like Wright wanted people to say that people of color exist in her book, but didn’t want to do the heavy-lifting of representing the lives of people of color. So with the complete lack of representation of non-white culture, and the insinuation that racism no longer exists, while every other identity is given the proper balance and proper weight? Just… *endless sigh* I’m sorry. It’s lazy. It’s lazy writing, to me. It’s lazy world-building, it’s a lack of understanding of racial issues, both historical and contemporary, and it feels like simply checking off checklist items rather than actual representation.
I am not going to deny that this book has so much potential to benefit so many people, but it also participates in erasure, as well as a base misunderstanding of imperialist issues.
Which is exactly why it was so difficult for me to review this book. It is a diverse book and offers on-the-page representation for trans, gender non-conforming, asexual, pansexual, gay, bisexual, lesbian, and Deaf representation. And not even just that – it’s still a decent book with constant action, well-developed characters, an interesting (albeit under-developed or vague) world, and engaging dialogue. But it still falls flat in so many areas. And I hope that me pointing the things out that made me uncomfortable, that left a bad taste in my mouth doesn’t seem to you that I’m negating all the good this book can do in so many young people’s lives. I hope that if this review does anything, it at least sheds some light on the issues in the book, and maybe the issues will be rectified or redeemed in the sequel(s).
And with that ~3,000 word review…
I received a free physical ARC at Book Expo '17.
In all seriousness, this might be one of the most difficult books I’ve had to review, simply because I have so many thoughts. So many different aspects to a novel as complicated and nuanced as this one, and so many thoughts about several of these aspects. More than this, perhaps – the reason why reviewing this book is so difficult is because I can fully see the invaluable benefits of it, as well as the potential harm it can cause, and the intersection of both can be difficult for a reviewer (who isn’t, by any means, claiming to be an expert) to encompass and do justice. But, I will try my best here, and if I start to ramble, resulting in a post that resembles word-vomit more than a structured review- well, you’ll have to forgive me here, I guess.
27 Hours is a futuristic (set, I believe, 150-200 years from present day), science-fiction, action-packed tale which counts down from 27 hours to certain war. When the clock hits 0, prompting the sun to come up, our characters’ world is going to be torn apart by the two species fighting on (over?) it. A couple hundred or so years ago, humans arrived at a moon from all over the Earth, giving rise to a civilization, unaware that an indigenous species was asleep underground. When the construction of a lake causes several underground tunnels to flood, the indigenous species (referred to as chimera, or “gargoyle” as a slur) lost many lives. Ever since, war has raged on. The humans consider the chimera blood-thirsty monsters, while the chimera are staunch in their belief that the land is theirs. A third group emerged some time during the war – a forest civilization – that broke away from the humans, formed an alliance with some chimera, and strive for peace.
Perhaps it’s my own background and cultural history, but I couldn’t fully root for any of the main characters, all of whom are human.
I was born and raised in Pakistan, a country that emerged in 1947 from India after a brutal war raged on, killing millions upon millions of people; much of that bloodshed, the consequent splitting, and the after-effects that exist even now were a direct product of the British colonization of the Indian subcontinent. We are still told horror stories, of piles of bodies at the border – riots, massacres, friends and families torn apart for the rest of time, as my ancestors, as my neighbors’ ancestors fought for their rights on a land that belonged to them. It was our land. It was our country, not some colonizers’. They had no right to be there.
It’s not an issue that raged just then – it’s an issue extremely current and relevant even now, whether we’re talking about the war over Kashmir (again, a direct product of British imperialism), or the Israel-Palestine situation that seems to have no end in sight. Maybe it’s my hypersensitivity to issues of indigenous peoples’ having their lands stolen by invaders who have no right to be there, but I found it almost impossible to sympathize with the main characters. When I realized that the theme of the novel was an indigenous species versus colonists, and the main characters all being colonists or descendants of colonists, I was immediately put off.
Let me get something straight here: Wright does not excuse colonists’ actions, nor does she pass off the war as a binary issue. What does, however, happen is that all the characters who get perspective chapters are humans (in this case, colonists), and three out of four of the perspective chapters are humans who are learning to rid themselves of long-held prejudices against chimera, while the fourth perspective character is a forest-human who doesn’t have these prejudices anymore, who instead strives for peace. The issue here, at least for me, was glaringly obvious: in a war raging between an indigenous species and colonists, why is the colonist’s perspective centered? Why is the storyline so intensely focused on colonist guilt, and realizing that indigenous life that existed on this planet is still, you know, life? And despite them unlearning their prejudices against the species itself, the issue of invasion and settling is almost entirely ignored, while all the weight is put on violent warfare.
To me, it parallels a book where white characters realize that people of color are “humans as well,” and start working towards co-existence, while also refusing to (intentionally or unintentionally) acknowledge or dismantle the root cause of the issue: systematic, institutionalized racism and white supremacy. In this case, the human characters’ narrative is the only one being centered, while the root issue of invasion, trespassing and unethically settling over land that already belongs to beings living on the moon is thrust aside, instead focusing on the byproduct of this main issue: war. There was a moment in this novel where the villain (so often described as the monster who needs to be destroyed for peace to finally be achieved) says:
“Humans are a parasite, and you’re destroying this land with your mining and your colonization. You came and took with no regard to the life already existing here and, according to your histories, that’s fairly standard for your species, isn’t it?”
This tells me that Wright is fully aware of the complicated issue at hand, yet the villain – hell-bent on destruction and blood and chaos – is the only one who brings it up. Bro, if I’m twenty pages from the end and I’m siding with the villain here? That’s not a good look.
Some of the thematic choices made regarding character prejudices were also… uncomfortable for me to read and consider.
27 Hours is a book full of underrepresented identities on the page, with beautiful relationships forming – both platonic and romantic. We have a truly diverse cast of characters. Our four perspective chapters are Rumor, Nyx, Braeden and Jude, while a fifth character can still be considered a main character, despite not getting a perspective chapter. Rumor is a bisexual, multiracial Nigerian/Portuguese & Indian who falls for Jude, who is gay. Nyx is Deaf, pansexual, chubby, signs ASL throughout the book, has Cuban ancestry, and is in love with her best friend, Dahlia, who is an Afro-Latinx trans girl. Nyx’s abuela is also Deaf. Braeden is asexual, and has two moms. Jude is adopted by a family of two brothers – both are people of color, both are queer. There is an Asian side character who uses they/them pronouns, and there is discussion about using and normalizing pronoun introductions.
Rumor and Jude form a beautiful bond immediately, and their interactions are lovely to see unfold on the page. Dahlia and Nyx’s complicated romantic relationship is slow-burn, and the pay-off is ultimately swoon-worthy, for lack of a better phrase. Braeden discusses his asexuality often, there is sign language throughout the book – so these identities are given proper time and weight. But with three of your five protagonists being people of color, there is no discussion about race, but I’ll get to this later.
In line with the imperialist discussion I was having above, let’s talk a little bit about Rumor. I believe Rumor could be considered the driving force of the novel – his perspective chapter starts the novel off, and his actions and reactions are, for the most part, what drive the story. For me, when it was revealed that he has Nigerian and Indian ancestry, I was immediately intrigued. Why? Because for a story dealing with colonial issues, a main character having ancestry from both Nigeria and India – both countries that have been colonized by the British in the past? That seemed significant to me. But I was… disturbed (if that’s the right phrase) by the fact that Rumor, more than anyone else, holds the most vicious hatred for chimera.
Rumor’s past with the indigenous species is bloody; his mother and his father both died during the war, and the book quite literally begins with his colony being wiped out by an attack. So, his reactions are to be expected, but… I’m a little uncomfortable that a character who has ancestry tracing back to countries that were torn apart due to colonization is so staunchly pro-colonist, is so staunchly vicious in his hatred of chimera. That’s a strange thematic choice for me. And it gets especially strange (this is a euphemism for problematic, by the way) that the two people who, arguably, have the most sway over changing his prejudices are white. The two characters (Jude and Braeden) who basically show the boy, who has ancestry 🗣 tracing 🗣 back 🗣 to 🗣 countries 🗣 that 🗣 have 🗣 been 🗣 colonized 🗣 by white 🗣 people, that his prejudices are unfounded, unfair and discriminatory are white. Bro. White.
“Aimal, you’re overthinking this. It probably wasn’t that serious, it probably isn’t that deep.” Is that what you’re thinking? I’ve already acknowledged that perhaps it’s because I’m hypersensitive to imperialist issues, I saw flaws in this novel that many others would have overlooked. But come on – even the most non-interested of you couldn’t say that it isn’t a big deal that the most racist (specie-ist) person from our cast of characters is a person of color, and that the people who changed his mind were white people. Like… that’s just… 🏃🏽♀️ Moving on.
You could argue that Rumor’s ancestry isn’t as significant as I’m making it out to be, mainly because Wright makes it clear that the humans have one language (referred to as “the human language”), and don’t retain much from their culture back from home. Which: if the book is set 150-200 years in the future (which is 7-8 generations at most), would people who immigrated from all over the world really have forgotten their language, their cultures? Here’s a passage from the book:
“My mom was Indian. Like India. My dad was… He was Portugese and Nigerian. I only know because we had a school project to see what, if anything, we’d kept from our Earth ancestors.”
This seems to imply that the humans don’t know much, if anything at all, about where they came from on Earth. And that’s fair, if the book was set even further into the future. Would entire cultures cease to exist in just a few generations? (More on this later, too). And even if they did, why does the book seem to imply that they gradually, over the course of a century, defaulted to a Westernized way of living? Where romantic, familial and platonic relationships are modeled after Western culture? This is vague, and this is where the holes in world-building start to seep through. Are there no other cultures? And if there aren’t, how did the near-7,000 languages that exist in the world right now get wiped out in just a century or two from now?! How did entire civilizations coming from all over the world forget their own cultures to default to the present “human culture?” How is there no variation past ideological thought (and even then, only as it relates to war versus peace)? And if there are cultures, why not show them? I’m so confused about this – there are so many gaps and holes in world-building here that it’s driving me up the wall just thinking about the lack of information there is to grapple with.
Is racial representation really REPRESENTATION if the characters of color can be replaced by white people without changing anything else at all?
Basically, every single character of color in this book could be replaced with a white character, and nothing would change. Absolutely nothing, apart from a couple words here and there (and a large chunk of my review *badum tss*). Like I said, there is little to no significant mention of differing cultures, or different languages (the only non-English words in the book are “chai,” “prem,” and “abuela,” which just… make up your mind. Do languages exist, or do they not?) Fine, take away cultures, take away languages, but even people of color who live in diasporas, who have largely assimilated to the society around them and retain little to nothing of their ancestral culture still undergo micro aggressions, if not outright racism. And there is no mention of it. Anywhere. When I say that the characters of color could be replaced by white characters and nothing would change, I mean that quite literally. You’d just have to replace every time the color “brown” is mentioned with white, change the ethnicities, and… that’s it.
Apparently, in this society, people aren’t prejudiced based on race, because it’s of no consequence to anybody, so it doesn’t exist anymore, despite there being a very clear prejudice against the. indigenous. species. So, prejudice does exist – just not intra-human racism. Which, just…
Racism has existed for centuries. It has been the cause of genocide in various parts of the world, wars, slavery, systematic and institutionalized oppression. Look at the ethnic cleansing in Myanmar right now, the refugee crisis and the fear-mongering against Middle Easterners and Muslims, the legal and violent war underway against black Americans in the U.S., the purging of Native American lands and rights in today’s society, the discriminatory rhetoric against Mexicans that won someone the election. Look at our fucking President. Look at the Ku Klux Klan, the neo-Nazis taking off their robes and parading around in the streets with torches and tell me racism is going anywhere. It has always existed, because as a human race, we’re prejudiced people. You mean to tell me that a colony, that exists and is an amalgamation of human society from cultures all over the world, has no racism?! Especially if this colony isn’t even that far into the future?! I…
The only way this could be even slightly possible would be if a scientific device existed that purged the very idea of prejudice out of your mind. I would buy this if prejudice, in and of itself, didn’t exist in the society. But prejudice does exist! Against the indigenous species! So that takes that out of the equation.
It feels a lot, and I mean A LOT, like erasure of the struggles people of color go through every single day, and have gone through every single day. For a white author to build a world where (1) colonialism thrives, but (2) racism no longer exists? It feels like a cop-out. It feels like Wright wanted people to say that people of color exist in her book, but didn’t want to do the heavy-lifting of representing the lives of people of color. So with the complete lack of representation of non-white culture, and the insinuation that racism no longer exists, while every other identity is given the proper balance and proper weight? Just… *endless sigh* I’m sorry. It’s lazy. It’s lazy writing, to me. It’s lazy world-building, it’s a lack of understanding of racial issues, both historical and contemporary, and it feels like simply checking off checklist items rather than actual representation.
I am not going to deny that this book has so much potential to benefit so many people, but it also participates in erasure, as well as a base misunderstanding of imperialist issues.
Which is exactly why it was so difficult for me to review this book. It is a diverse book and offers on-the-page representation for trans, gender non-conforming, asexual, pansexual, gay, bisexual, lesbian, and Deaf representation. And not even just that – it’s still a decent book with constant action, well-developed characters, an interesting (albeit under-developed or vague) world, and engaging dialogue. But it still falls flat in so many areas. And I hope that me pointing the things out that made me uncomfortable, that left a bad taste in my mouth doesn’t seem to you that I’m negating all the good this book can do in so many young people’s lives. I hope that if this review does anything, it at least sheds some light on the issues in the book, and maybe the issues will be rectified or redeemed in the sequel(s).
And with that ~3,000 word review…
I received a free physical ARC at Book Expo '17.
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Shelved as 'did-not-finish'
September 24, 2017Update 9/24: I've noticed a lot of discussion about the racial representation & themes of colonialism in this book and I believe this review started said discussion: http://bit.ly/2fpXO6X
I don't really have anything to say on this topic, especially considering I didn't finish the book myself, but if you're interested in reading a different perspective, you may want to check it out. (And here follows the unnecessary disclaimer that me providing you with a link to a review does not mean I agree with it or that I'm forcing you to read/agree as well. It's just there if you're interested in keeping up with the discussion.)
Never thought I'd be DNFing a book, but I just have to put this one down. I'm disappointed, not necessarily in the book itself, but because I was SO looking forward to this read and I can't love it as much as I wanted to.
Unfortunately, this one just wasn't for me. At least right now, I can't seem to get into this book at all. Let me be clear that I don't actually think this book is "bad", but I just have a lot of little problems that are making it too difficult to read and I feel I'm spending too much time trying to love a book that I just *don't*.
I do actually really like the characters. They aren't my favorite in the world, I don't think they'll stick with me for a long time or that they've made a huge impact on me, but they are good characters. They have their own individual stories and are all intersting to learn about. Of course, this is probably the most diverse cast I've ever read, which is a MAJOR plus. I can't find the exact list of representations in this book but we have a biracial bisexual MC, a cuban/Deaf MC, we have an ace MC, a gay MC, a black-latinx bisexual trans MC, there's just a lot to love about theses characters and I think a lot of people will be pleased with this cast. If you are looking for a diverse science fiction fantasy novel and find yourself getting invested in characters often, I would recommend 27 Hours to you.
The world-building confused me a lot, and I think that contributed to a lot of why I DNF'ed. I think the story began way to quickly and there wasn't enough time to actually set up how this sci-fi world has evolved. I really could not tell you anything about the world of this book because every bit of information just did not stick with me. I recognize my lack of enjoyment as a possible factor, but I seriously could not describe what a HUB, a colony, a gargoyle, or a chimera is and it made understanding the plot impossible.
I also felt like it was too obvious that this book was written in 2017? The book takes place hundreds of years into the future, but it felt too tied to modern times. It felt very "picky and choosy" as to which Earth customs were kept and which were left behind which made it feel a bit disjointed and not clean-cut. Personally, if I'm reading a book set in the future, I want to KNOW I'm in the future, and I just didn't feel like the world was separate enough from the world we are living in today. It had all the elements of science fiction, but it honestly felt like an urban-scifi where Earth today was waiting below, unaffected by the events of the story.
The writing was also very distracting for me. It felt a lot like purple prose where sentences were just too detailed and elaborate to the point of unnecessary. I found myself having to take a break from reading every few paragraphs because I just could not retain anything from the story. I was forgetting details from the top of the page 10 lines in. It became overwhelming and ultimately unenjoyable.
Honestly, I just don't think 27 Hours is for me. I'd consider giving it another go in the future because I really did want to love it. I definitely do not think this is a bad book whatsoever, there are just a bunch of tiny little things that made the story really difficult for me to read personally.
To me, this is just one of those things where it was the wrong book for me at the wrong time. I'm not sure if I'd go solely off my experience when deciding to read this book because I think my problems with it are very individual to my reading experience. I really do hope those of you interested in this story pick it up and love it.
I don't really have anything to say on this topic, especially considering I didn't finish the book myself, but if you're interested in reading a different perspective, you may want to check it out. (And here follows the unnecessary disclaimer that me providing you with a link to a review does not mean I agree with it or that I'm forcing you to read/agree as well. It's just there if you're interested in keeping up with the discussion.)
Never thought I'd be DNFing a book, but I just have to put this one down. I'm disappointed, not necessarily in the book itself, but because I was SO looking forward to this read and I can't love it as much as I wanted to.
Unfortunately, this one just wasn't for me. At least right now, I can't seem to get into this book at all. Let me be clear that I don't actually think this book is "bad", but I just have a lot of little problems that are making it too difficult to read and I feel I'm spending too much time trying to love a book that I just *don't*.
I do actually really like the characters. They aren't my favorite in the world, I don't think they'll stick with me for a long time or that they've made a huge impact on me, but they are good characters. They have their own individual stories and are all intersting to learn about. Of course, this is probably the most diverse cast I've ever read, which is a MAJOR plus. I can't find the exact list of representations in this book but we have a biracial bisexual MC, a cuban/Deaf MC, we have an ace MC, a gay MC, a black-latinx bisexual trans MC, there's just a lot to love about theses characters and I think a lot of people will be pleased with this cast. If you are looking for a diverse science fiction fantasy novel and find yourself getting invested in characters often, I would recommend 27 Hours to you.
The world-building confused me a lot, and I think that contributed to a lot of why I DNF'ed. I think the story began way to quickly and there wasn't enough time to actually set up how this sci-fi world has evolved. I really could not tell you anything about the world of this book because every bit of information just did not stick with me. I recognize my lack of enjoyment as a possible factor, but I seriously could not describe what a HUB, a colony, a gargoyle, or a chimera is and it made understanding the plot impossible.
I also felt like it was too obvious that this book was written in 2017? The book takes place hundreds of years into the future, but it felt too tied to modern times. It felt very "picky and choosy" as to which Earth customs were kept and which were left behind which made it feel a bit disjointed and not clean-cut. Personally, if I'm reading a book set in the future, I want to KNOW I'm in the future, and I just didn't feel like the world was separate enough from the world we are living in today. It had all the elements of science fiction, but it honestly felt like an urban-scifi where Earth today was waiting below, unaffected by the events of the story.
The writing was also very distracting for me. It felt a lot like purple prose where sentences were just too detailed and elaborate to the point of unnecessary. I found myself having to take a break from reading every few paragraphs because I just could not retain anything from the story. I was forgetting details from the top of the page 10 lines in. It became overwhelming and ultimately unenjoyable.
Honestly, I just don't think 27 Hours is for me. I'd consider giving it another go in the future because I really did want to love it. I definitely do not think this is a bad book whatsoever, there are just a bunch of tiny little things that made the story really difficult for me to read personally.
To me, this is just one of those things where it was the wrong book for me at the wrong time. I'm not sure if I'd go solely off my experience when deciding to read this book because I think my problems with it are very individual to my reading experience. I really do hope those of you interested in this story pick it up and love it.
May 25, 2017
***I receive many communications telling me that the author was sending people to flag reviews because she has pulled a Donald Trump and is calling it a fake review because it does not meet her liking. I am not affiliated with the people harassing anyone. I do not own a Twitter. My opinions are mine and I have a right to them. You are trying to silence a WOC to protect a white woman's feelings.
**I am being harassed by the author regarding my review, so I have changed it to 1 star.
This was not a good book, and Entangled Publishing is not a good publisher. Harassing me will not change my opinion of your poor pacing, over the top descriptions, or badly edited writing. This had potential, but the author needs help. In more ways than just this.
The author herself states that there's only a passing reference to the characters ethnicities and the rest of the time they're fighting monsters. To me, that says the much talked about "diversity" and "representation" were intrinsically done for allyship cookies and ass pats.
There is no real representation here. It's all for show. This is not what my sisters and I need when we are pointed to representation of our people, so please do not say that it is.
That makes this book complete and utter trash to me.
You will not silence me or brigade me.
**I am being harassed by the author regarding my review, so I have changed it to 1 star.
This was not a good book, and Entangled Publishing is not a good publisher. Harassing me will not change my opinion of your poor pacing, over the top descriptions, or badly edited writing. This had potential, but the author needs help. In more ways than just this.
The author herself states that there's only a passing reference to the characters ethnicities and the rest of the time they're fighting monsters. To me, that says the much talked about "diversity" and "representation" were intrinsically done for allyship cookies and ass pats.
There is no real representation here. It's all for show. This is not what my sisters and I need when we are pointed to representation of our people, so please do not say that it is.
That makes this book complete and utter trash to me.
You will not silence me or brigade me.
August 16, 2017
As one of Tristina Wright's beta readers, I've had the honor and privilege of seeing this story in multiple stages. It has come a long way since the first version I read, and there have been some fundamental plot changes along with little tweaks here and there. But in every form its taken, this story has been incredible.
27 HOURS is a story of loss and love, family (both by blood and those you make for yourself) and friendship, and finding yourself in the midst of chaos. But above all, this novel is one that explores the morality of humanity. In a world where the color of your skin, your sexuality, your gender, and so much more are of no consequence to anyone, Wright explores the give and take of humanity. She unflinchingly details the selfishness and greed, as well as the love and kindness, and everything in between.
27 HOURS is not a book that you want to miss.
ETA: Take a look at Aimal's review for critical analysis of the racial rep.
27 HOURS is a story of loss and love, family (both by blood and those you make for yourself) and friendship, and finding yourself in the midst of chaos. But above all, this novel is one that explores the morality of humanity. In a world where the color of your skin, your sexuality, your gender, and so much more are of no consequence to anyone, Wright explores the give and take of humanity. She unflinchingly details the selfishness and greed, as well as the love and kindness, and everything in between.
27 HOURS is not a book that you want to miss.
ETA: Take a look at Aimal's review for critical analysis of the racial rep.
February 12, 2018
[Edit: February 12th, 2018] I had given this three stars back in 2017, but I no longer can support this author or their work in light of recent events. I am keeping my original review up, but please know that I do not support this author or their inexcusable actions. If anyone needs me, my DMs are always open. And RAINN (1-800-656-4673) is available 24/7 to talk to anyone who needs it.
ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
📖🌘: And check out the rest of the reviews, interviews, and more from this blog tour Here!
First and foremost, before you read my review, you should check out my amazing friend Aimal’s review, because it’s an important and eye-opening discussion about colonization and it shouldn’t be ignored.
In my opinion, 27 Hours had so much good, yet so much disappointment, too. This book falls completely down the middle for me. The representation is beautiful and important, but a lot of the romance was too unbelievable for me, which I feel like the twenty-seven-hour time frame really did this book a disservice. Then there is the issue with the colonization that’s very hard to unsee once you’ve seen it, and finally, the only two white main characters in the book do most of the explaining to the main characters of color about what is right. It feels bad, like, really bad.
Yet, I love that any marginalized teen could pick this book up and see themselves. That, is something I can’t even put a rating on, and I cannot emphasize how important that statement is to me. This book honestly has me feeling very torn.
27 Hours is Tristina Wright’s debut novel that follows six teens that live on a moon many years in the future. On this moon, humans have settled into different communities, that specialize in different things, but there were already chimeras and dragons that were indigenous to the moon. After one of the communities are attacked, one of our main protagonists, Rumor, flees to another community to tell them what happened and to warn them that they could be next. All of these teen’s paths eventually cross; some from old friendships, some from old communities, and some from a not talked about forest community that live among the chimeras.
➽ Rumor - Biracial, bisexual, suffering from PTSD.
➽ Jude - White, gay.
➽ Nyx - Latinx, pansexual, hearing impaired, plus sized.
➽ Dahlia - Black, bisexual, transwoman.
➽ Braedon - White, asexual.
➽ Yi-Min - Asian, genderqueer, hand disfigurement.
This book has a lot of representation, but this book is so damn queer, which is completely normalized. The world needs more queer stories that aren’t just coming out stories. The world needs a vast array of books, in every genre, that just stars queer characters. Gay, bi, asexual, genderqueer, trans, this book is an unapologetically queer SFF novel, and for that I love it. And I can’t express or emphasize how important each of these characters perspectives are.
Unfortunately, I think what really hurts this story is the 27 hour time frame. We have characters that have had some horrible things JUST happen, we have characters learning secrets that have been told to them as lies of their entire life, we have characters suffering from exhaustion, we have characters dealing with near death experiences, we have characters fleeing the only homes they have ever known, but somehow all they can think about is sex. And this wasn’t in a scene or two, this was a constant theme in this book. Like, sexual jokes and innuendos and all, when it’s supposed to be a really high tension and scary situation for these teens. If this story would have been stretched out for days or weeks, this would have been fine and enjoyable, but it was just too unbelievable for me in this hour to hour chapter format, and it consistently pulled me from the story.
Or maybe if there wasn’t as many points of view this would have worked better. Like, if this book only focused on one romantic couple it would have been easier to relate and understand. Instead, we get a Sarah J. Maas, “everyone in my story must be paired up and with romance on the forefront of their minds constantly” story.
Also, I touched upon this a bit earlier, but Jude is from the forest community and he is pretty much the one that opens everyone’s eyes to their prejudices. There are some good discussions about not using certain words, and things that tie in and make good parallels to our world, but it still felt so bad that the white character had to constantly tell the PoC characters it. And the “quickest adaptor” is also Braedon, the other white character.
I almost feel like Tristina Wright did so much research and got such amazing feedback for her diverse cast and representation, that no one really helped her with the pacing and structure. Again, this is just my opinion, but I feel like if she changes a few things that the second book in this series could be amazing.
And obviously the diverse cast and representation was my favorite part of this book. Like, all I want are queer stories in space, and for that I’m very thankful that I was provided an ARC of 27 Hours! Hopefully, if you pick this one up you will enjoy it a little more than I did.
Blog | Twitter | Tumblr | Instagram | Youtube | Twitch
Buddy read with Jules! ❤
ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
📖🌘: And check out the rest of the reviews, interviews, and more from this blog tour Here!
First and foremost, before you read my review, you should check out my amazing friend Aimal’s review, because it’s an important and eye-opening discussion about colonization and it shouldn’t be ignored.
In my opinion, 27 Hours had so much good, yet so much disappointment, too. This book falls completely down the middle for me. The representation is beautiful and important, but a lot of the romance was too unbelievable for me, which I feel like the twenty-seven-hour time frame really did this book a disservice. Then there is the issue with the colonization that’s very hard to unsee once you’ve seen it, and finally, the only two white main characters in the book do most of the explaining to the main characters of color about what is right. It feels bad, like, really bad.
Yet, I love that any marginalized teen could pick this book up and see themselves. That, is something I can’t even put a rating on, and I cannot emphasize how important that statement is to me. This book honestly has me feeling very torn.
27 Hours is Tristina Wright’s debut novel that follows six teens that live on a moon many years in the future. On this moon, humans have settled into different communities, that specialize in different things, but there were already chimeras and dragons that were indigenous to the moon. After one of the communities are attacked, one of our main protagonists, Rumor, flees to another community to tell them what happened and to warn them that they could be next. All of these teen’s paths eventually cross; some from old friendships, some from old communities, and some from a not talked about forest community that live among the chimeras.
➽ Rumor - Biracial, bisexual, suffering from PTSD.
➽ Jude - White, gay.
➽ Nyx - Latinx, pansexual, hearing impaired, plus sized.
➽ Dahlia - Black, bisexual, transwoman.
➽ Braedon - White, asexual.
➽ Yi-Min - Asian, genderqueer, hand disfigurement.
This book has a lot of representation, but this book is so damn queer, which is completely normalized. The world needs more queer stories that aren’t just coming out stories. The world needs a vast array of books, in every genre, that just stars queer characters. Gay, bi, asexual, genderqueer, trans, this book is an unapologetically queer SFF novel, and for that I love it. And I can’t express or emphasize how important each of these characters perspectives are.
Unfortunately, I think what really hurts this story is the 27 hour time frame. We have characters that have had some horrible things JUST happen, we have characters learning secrets that have been told to them as lies of their entire life, we have characters suffering from exhaustion, we have characters dealing with near death experiences, we have characters fleeing the only homes they have ever known, but somehow all they can think about is sex. And this wasn’t in a scene or two, this was a constant theme in this book. Like, sexual jokes and innuendos and all, when it’s supposed to be a really high tension and scary situation for these teens. If this story would have been stretched out for days or weeks, this would have been fine and enjoyable, but it was just too unbelievable for me in this hour to hour chapter format, and it consistently pulled me from the story.
Or maybe if there wasn’t as many points of view this would have worked better. Like, if this book only focused on one romantic couple it would have been easier to relate and understand. Instead, we get a Sarah J. Maas, “everyone in my story must be paired up and with romance on the forefront of their minds constantly” story.
Also, I touched upon this a bit earlier, but Jude is from the forest community and he is pretty much the one that opens everyone’s eyes to their prejudices. There are some good discussions about not using certain words, and things that tie in and make good parallels to our world, but it still felt so bad that the white character had to constantly tell the PoC characters it. And the “quickest adaptor” is also Braedon, the other white character.
I almost feel like Tristina Wright did so much research and got such amazing feedback for her diverse cast and representation, that no one really helped her with the pacing and structure. Again, this is just my opinion, but I feel like if she changes a few things that the second book in this series could be amazing.
And obviously the diverse cast and representation was my favorite part of this book. Like, all I want are queer stories in space, and for that I’m very thankful that I was provided an ARC of 27 Hours! Hopefully, if you pick this one up you will enjoy it a little more than I did.
Blog | Twitter | Tumblr | Instagram | Youtube | Twitch
Buddy read with Jules! ❤
February 19, 2018
update feb 11, 2018:
There is nothing I can say to take back the fact that I stood up for this author, that I went to bat for her endlessly and took her side of the story over other sides I was presented with. I can't take any of that back. All I can do is say that, if I ever made you feel like it wasn't safe to tell me what she had done, or how her actions made you feel, I am so, so genuinely sorry. My heart is breaking today for anyone she has hurt, and I will certainly not be supporting her work in the future. I'm taking down my review because anything positive I had to say about her supposed attempts at diversity and activism have been refuted by her actions.
There is nothing I can say to take back the fact that I stood up for this author, that I went to bat for her endlessly and took her side of the story over other sides I was presented with. I can't take any of that back. All I can do is say that, if I ever made you feel like it wasn't safe to tell me what she had done, or how her actions made you feel, I am so, so genuinely sorry. My heart is breaking today for anyone she has hurt, and I will certainly not be supporting her work in the future. I'm taking down my review because anything positive I had to say about her supposed attempts at diversity and activism have been refuted by her actions.
May 24, 2017
From the diverse, inclusive cast to the non-stop intense action to the visually lush world-building, Tristina Wright's debut has everything I look for in a great YA novel. And I truly can't wait for her second book.
While reading, I kept thinking how this book read like the best video game I've never played. If anyone at Bioware is listening, please pick up Tristina immediately. Thanks.
While reading, I kept thinking how this book read like the best video game I've never played. If anyone at Bioware is listening, please pick up Tristina immediately. Thanks.
Read
February 24, 2018EDITED 2/24: I fucked up. I also should have edited this in the fall (when I pulled my stars from it) when I read many wonderful and extremely well-constructed critiques of this book. I did not see the racism in it, and I'm sorry for that. I am striving to do better, and I know that that has to be more than what I write here. Additionally, I apologize to anyone who believed that my leaving this review up as support for the racist narrative in this book or for the author who has been accused of sexual harassment and grooming. I stand with the victims and I believe you.
ORIGINAL REVIEW:
I was lucky enough to read this early and you guys, it is everything you dreamed of.
Someone flagged this review so yes, I did receive an early copy from the author but not in exchange for a review. I beta read this and worked on this as a freelancer.
ORIGINAL REVIEW:
I was lucky enough to read this early and you guys, it is everything you dreamed of.
Someone flagged this review so yes, I did receive an early copy from the author but not in exchange for a review. I beta read this and worked on this as a freelancer.
April 29, 2017
EDIT: Since @nickyoflaherty and others have been tweeting about this and accusing me of lying and faking this review asking for it to be flagged because they don't like that someone didn't like the book and can't stand anyone who goes against their grain, I'm happy to discuss who I got the early version from privately. But since all of the OTHER reviews on here are early version, and they seem to have only an issue with mine... hmmmm!!!!!!!! Seems fishy to me.
Anyway this is a 100% real review, and you will NOT silence me. I'm sorry if you don't like it, or if you don't like how I got the book. But if my review isn't allowed, neither should any other early reader's review. Just because I don't suck her ass over it doesn't mean my review isn't legitimate just like all the ones who do.
A friend who read this one early gave me her early digital version of this to share, because she was made uncomfortable by a lot of the content. Not saying who the friend is, because I don't want to start a hater brigade on her. I don't know if there are ARCs out.
I started in with an open mind, despite already knowing the author personally. Say what you want about her personality, but you have to give people a chance to show you that their art is good. See, this is why I have this account with my others. It's books like this, where I would be too afraid to say what I really think because of the cult of personality surrounding some authors.
The thing is that Tristina Wright has the ability to be a talented author, but her writer's ego gets in the way. Where her writing might be seen as lush and deep by some, I see the tendency to go for florid overly descriptive writing to hide some flaws in things like plot and characterization. I think it's pretty obvious to the reader why this was published through Entangled, a small press known for mediocre books and poor writing, and not through a better publisher, with more resources. Might have been that this book suffered from poor editing? Because the bare bones of the story are entertaining, but just not very good, or very memorable.
On the plus side, she's very good at writing catchy and dreamy one liners. I think Tristina should do marketing for other books, because she has a eye for them. Unfortunately, there were too many one liners that didn't link up.
I'm big on ships and shipping and all of that, yeah yeah I know, but I didn't really care about any of these characters. They didn't feel real to me, and their desires didn't feel real. It all felt flat to me. These characters felt like charicatures.
But really, there's just nothing memorable about this one. And I think part of this reason is that the author tries so hard. I think when I was 13, I might have swallowed this one up whole. But at 16, I've learned a little about good writing, good storytelling, and this isn't it. For people who don't read as much, I think they might like it.
In terms of representation, well... you can definitely tell the author is just another bland white woman who was trying very hard. I give her a lot of props for trying, but this is kind of one of those "stay in your lane" deals. I'll let someone else do the big takedown on it because I just don't care, because Entangled isn't known for quality among readers. Part of me wonders if this was the only place that would buy her book?
She did the best she could with what she had with this story. Sure, she has some talent, but I think it might be for one liners and Twitter rants, and not so much for YA novels.
Anyway this is a 100% real review, and you will NOT silence me. I'm sorry if you don't like it, or if you don't like how I got the book. But if my review isn't allowed, neither should any other early reader's review. Just because I don't suck her ass over it doesn't mean my review isn't legitimate just like all the ones who do.
A friend who read this one early gave me her early digital version of this to share, because she was made uncomfortable by a lot of the content. Not saying who the friend is, because I don't want to start a hater brigade on her. I don't know if there are ARCs out.
I started in with an open mind, despite already knowing the author personally. Say what you want about her personality, but you have to give people a chance to show you that their art is good. See, this is why I have this account with my others. It's books like this, where I would be too afraid to say what I really think because of the cult of personality surrounding some authors.
The thing is that Tristina Wright has the ability to be a talented author, but her writer's ego gets in the way. Where her writing might be seen as lush and deep by some, I see the tendency to go for florid overly descriptive writing to hide some flaws in things like plot and characterization. I think it's pretty obvious to the reader why this was published through Entangled, a small press known for mediocre books and poor writing, and not through a better publisher, with more resources. Might have been that this book suffered from poor editing? Because the bare bones of the story are entertaining, but just not very good, or very memorable.
On the plus side, she's very good at writing catchy and dreamy one liners. I think Tristina should do marketing for other books, because she has a eye for them. Unfortunately, there were too many one liners that didn't link up.
I'm big on ships and shipping and all of that, yeah yeah I know, but I didn't really care about any of these characters. They didn't feel real to me, and their desires didn't feel real. It all felt flat to me. These characters felt like charicatures.
But really, there's just nothing memorable about this one. And I think part of this reason is that the author tries so hard. I think when I was 13, I might have swallowed this one up whole. But at 16, I've learned a little about good writing, good storytelling, and this isn't it. For people who don't read as much, I think they might like it.
In terms of representation, well... you can definitely tell the author is just another bland white woman who was trying very hard. I give her a lot of props for trying, but this is kind of one of those "stay in your lane" deals. I'll let someone else do the big takedown on it because I just don't care, because Entangled isn't known for quality among readers. Part of me wonders if this was the only place that would buy her book?
She did the best she could with what she had with this story. Sure, she has some talent, but I think it might be for one liners and Twitter rants, and not so much for YA novels.
Shelved as 'zzzzz-coverporn-etc'
February 12, 2018I spend three months trying to pretend I hadn’t lost all interest in this book after the author was accused of 1) harassing a reviewer i trust and 2) having some shit in her book. because I had finally won a preorder giveaway!! and then this author gets accused of sexual harassment and has the Worst possible response so yeah wow this got off my shelf real quick
February 22, 2018
whoops i should've added this since last year ahhhhh cuz i was blessed to read an early copy of it and then another revised copy as well but the release is soooooon (October) so here i am to flail about iiiiiit.
It's so good ya'll. The world Tris has created is unique and so vivid and the characters are well fleshed out and helloooo none of the mains are straight WHOO!!! and some are POC as well so double whoo!!!
I was on the edge of my seat while reading this cuz damn so much is going on and you're just so riveted! An with every turn of the page you just want to know WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT. And everytime you think you know? nope you don't. you reallly don't
This is a story of budding relationships, already established relationships, loss (single tear falls down cheek NO SPOILERS!) conflicts, both internal and external.
And the characters, yes i had to come back to them. I'm not even sure i can pick a fave because i love them all so much.
And ya'll there is a freaking dragon. a DRAGON, among the other non-human creatures you'll see ;)
It's so good ya'll. The world Tris has created is unique and so vivid and the characters are well fleshed out and helloooo none of the mains are straight WHOO!!! and some are POC as well so double whoo!!!
I was on the edge of my seat while reading this cuz damn so much is going on and you're just so riveted! An with every turn of the page you just want to know WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT. And everytime you think you know? nope you don't. you reallly don't
This is a story of budding relationships, already established relationships, loss (single tear falls down cheek NO SPOILERS!) conflicts, both internal and external.
And the characters, yes i had to come back to them. I'm not even sure i can pick a fave because i love them all so much.
And ya'll there is a freaking dragon. a DRAGON, among the other non-human creatures you'll see ;)
Read
February 12, 2018Review removed.
January 15, 2018
I lost my first review to internet crashing, that's cool. Here is a shorter version.
27 Hours was never meant for me as a book, and part of the low star rating reflects that. It might be better for you, but I could never get into :
- All the violence. This is a book about teens who spend a lot of time killing, killing, killing.
- All the sexual attraction. If you're not in Braeden's POV (he is the ace teen), you will be constantly told how seriously horny the narrating teen is. Non-stop.
- The idea I'm supposed to root for the colonists teens? Aimal covers it way better in her review, but basically your heroes are settlers with families who have killed thousands of chimeras, the indigenous species, upon arriving and now treat them like beasts. 27H is clearly aware of this, but also fails to counter it.
- The tension that never goes down, ever, and feels like a string of actions without room to breathe. Seriously, i was 25% in and I wanted a real break. Instead of staying tense, I got bored. Lost track of wounds, who killed what, why it even mattered. Just one more dead chimera, y'know? YMMV I'm sure.
- The inconsistent worldbuilding. This book wants me to believe that in 200 years, entire cultures and languages have merged and mostly defaulted to Western, but that little internet memes have survived? I was already struggling with "200 years to wash away prejudice", but the references to the All or Nothing Pan/Ace tumblr post, to "cool motive, still murder", and other little nods like this really shattered the illusion. 27H has a weird way to be selective about what survived the passage of time. You know what else did? :
- Aromisia! Yay! Apparently racial prejudice is no longer a thing, but aromisic microaggressions are alive and thriving. Friendship is still considered a lesser relationship form than romance, and aromanticism is not mentioned once in the entire novel, despite that fact that Braeden's intense aro coding would have made it very appropriate.
But hey. There's ace rep, right? Indeed! And Braeden gets to be a kickass member of an awesome group of friends, a valuable part of the community, and a 3D character. And before I move on, let me state something clearly: Braeden's description and experiences are honest, real, and valid. They represent something many, many teens experience. I have no issues with them in themselves.
I have a lot of issues with how they fit the world. Here's the thing: out of all these happily queer teens, Braeden is the only one who struggles with his orientation.
27 Hours literally tells you that the ace pride ring and ace puns are a front, that in truth Braeden feels broken. He frequently says he does not understand other people's emotions or attractions, he calls himself an alien, says others make connections and move past him, and he struggles to define the kind of relationships he wants. Again, these are real and valid experiences that need representation, but they are completely disconnected from the worldbuilding. And it feels like a slap, like saying aces won't ever be rid of the brokenness, that we'll always be stuck in 2016/2017, because the world will always be ruthlessly, cruelly allonormative. And I guess that, in that at least, 27 Hours is coherent with itself, because every narration except Braeden's will constantly hammer on how hot the love interest is, and how much Nyx, Rumor, and Jude want to kiss and touch and more. Every ace has its own tolerance, but the superposition of Braeden feeling broken with everybody's constant lust was hard for me to handle.
He also wants a bond with a robot. Yeah, the asexual teen is the one that is really into robots stuff and wants a meaningful connection to them. He also frequently talks about exploring the stars alone, leaving, etc. And he frequently mentions not understanding other people's emotions. So the teen who doesn't always understand people, wants bonds with robots, seems to struggle with how to name his deep relationships but doesn't want romance ... is the one that talks of leaving the colony behind with *maybe* his friends. So while 27H isn't deep in the robots and exile tropes yet, it sure feels like it wants to head that way.
Finally, finally... All. That. Aro. Coding! Drove me up the wall! For the record, Wright has publicly stated that Braeden was alloromantic. Good, because otherwise I would never have guessed. In fact, I would have thought of Braeden as one of the greatest representation of a teen struggling to define relationships, needs, and attractions in an amatonormative society (though, again, worldbuilding incoherence?) I'm at a loss. Braeden literally states that he wants neither a girlfriend, nor a boyfriend, nor another best friend ... but let's pretend that doesn't sound like an aromantic teen who wishes he had a queerplatonic relationship (let's pretend he's not slowly building one in 27H, too). Let's pretend, also, that it makes sense for a world that is so open and accepting of queerness that Braeden never questioned if he might be aromantic. The answer doesn't even have to be yes! But the constant conflation of attractions, the representation of a wide spectrum of queer ID but no mention of aromanticism anywhere, the several microaggressions ... all of that coupled with Braeden's very relatable questioning of what he wants? It hurt. Forgive my salt, and let's put 27H on the top of the pile of books that completely erase aromanticism, even when it would absolutely fit the world.
EDIT: just to be very clear here, my problem with this is not whether or Braeden is or not aromantic. My problem is that his questionning draws heavily on experiences that will resonate *deeply* with many aromantic people, including aromantic teens, including teens living through the same questionning, who deserve to see the identity labelled, to have it among their possibilities in case it fits *them*.
Anyway. Patreon will have a longer, more detailed analysis with quotes and discussions, and hopefully a little less salt, but here you go for now!
27 Hours was never meant for me as a book, and part of the low star rating reflects that. It might be better for you, but I could never get into :
- All the violence. This is a book about teens who spend a lot of time killing, killing, killing.
- All the sexual attraction. If you're not in Braeden's POV (he is the ace teen), you will be constantly told how seriously horny the narrating teen is. Non-stop.
- The idea I'm supposed to root for the colonists teens? Aimal covers it way better in her review, but basically your heroes are settlers with families who have killed thousands of chimeras, the indigenous species, upon arriving and now treat them like beasts. 27H is clearly aware of this, but also fails to counter it.
- The tension that never goes down, ever, and feels like a string of actions without room to breathe. Seriously, i was 25% in and I wanted a real break. Instead of staying tense, I got bored. Lost track of wounds, who killed what, why it even mattered. Just one more dead chimera, y'know? YMMV I'm sure.
- The inconsistent worldbuilding. This book wants me to believe that in 200 years, entire cultures and languages have merged and mostly defaulted to Western, but that little internet memes have survived? I was already struggling with "200 years to wash away prejudice", but the references to the All or Nothing Pan/Ace tumblr post, to "cool motive, still murder", and other little nods like this really shattered the illusion. 27H has a weird way to be selective about what survived the passage of time. You know what else did? :
- Aromisia! Yay! Apparently racial prejudice is no longer a thing, but aromisic microaggressions are alive and thriving. Friendship is still considered a lesser relationship form than romance, and aromanticism is not mentioned once in the entire novel, despite that fact that Braeden's intense aro coding would have made it very appropriate.
But hey. There's ace rep, right? Indeed! And Braeden gets to be a kickass member of an awesome group of friends, a valuable part of the community, and a 3D character. And before I move on, let me state something clearly: Braeden's description and experiences are honest, real, and valid. They represent something many, many teens experience. I have no issues with them in themselves.
I have a lot of issues with how they fit the world. Here's the thing: out of all these happily queer teens, Braeden is the only one who struggles with his orientation.
27 Hours literally tells you that the ace pride ring and ace puns are a front, that in truth Braeden feels broken. He frequently says he does not understand other people's emotions or attractions, he calls himself an alien, says others make connections and move past him, and he struggles to define the kind of relationships he wants. Again, these are real and valid experiences that need representation, but they are completely disconnected from the worldbuilding. And it feels like a slap, like saying aces won't ever be rid of the brokenness, that we'll always be stuck in 2016/2017, because the world will always be ruthlessly, cruelly allonormative. And I guess that, in that at least, 27 Hours is coherent with itself, because every narration except Braeden's will constantly hammer on how hot the love interest is, and how much Nyx, Rumor, and Jude want to kiss and touch and more. Every ace has its own tolerance, but the superposition of Braeden feeling broken with everybody's constant lust was hard for me to handle.
He also wants a bond with a robot. Yeah, the asexual teen is the one that is really into robots stuff and wants a meaningful connection to them. He also frequently talks about exploring the stars alone, leaving, etc. And he frequently mentions not understanding other people's emotions. So the teen who doesn't always understand people, wants bonds with robots, seems to struggle with how to name his deep relationships but doesn't want romance ... is the one that talks of leaving the colony behind with *maybe* his friends. So while 27H isn't deep in the robots and exile tropes yet, it sure feels like it wants to head that way.
Finally, finally... All. That. Aro. Coding! Drove me up the wall! For the record, Wright has publicly stated that Braeden was alloromantic. Good, because otherwise I would never have guessed. In fact, I would have thought of Braeden as one of the greatest representation of a teen struggling to define relationships, needs, and attractions in an amatonormative society (though, again, worldbuilding incoherence?) I'm at a loss. Braeden literally states that he wants neither a girlfriend, nor a boyfriend, nor another best friend ... but let's pretend that doesn't sound like an aromantic teen who wishes he had a queerplatonic relationship (let's pretend he's not slowly building one in 27H, too). Let's pretend, also, that it makes sense for a world that is so open and accepting of queerness that Braeden never questioned if he might be aromantic. The answer doesn't even have to be yes! But the constant conflation of attractions, the representation of a wide spectrum of queer ID but no mention of aromanticism anywhere, the several microaggressions ... all of that coupled with Braeden's very relatable questioning of what he wants? It hurt. Forgive my salt, and let's put 27H on the top of the pile of books that completely erase aromanticism, even when it would absolutely fit the world.
EDIT: just to be very clear here, my problem with this is not whether or Braeden is or not aromantic. My problem is that his questionning draws heavily on experiences that will resonate *deeply* with many aromantic people, including aromantic teens, including teens living through the same questionning, who deserve to see the identity labelled, to have it among their possibilities in case it fits *them*.
Anyway. Patreon will have a longer, more detailed analysis with quotes and discussions, and hopefully a little less salt, but here you go for now!
November 26, 2017
EDIT: I think I'm officially lowering the rating to 2 stars, because the more I think about this book, the angrier I get lol. I originally said the lgbt rep was good, but a month later what stuck with me was the fact that the rep was presented so awkwardly/lowkey forced (as much as I hate this word), and that the asexual rep was.... not good. Which I noticed while I was reading but just let it slide because "everyone gets asexual rep wrong anyway" (yay for low standards), but now that I've read other asexual rep books that get it RIGHT, I'm not letting it slide anymore.
----
I received an advance copy of 27 Hours in exchange for an honest review.
hm.
For the TL;DR folk: plot - quite messy and cliche. worldbuilding - VERY messy. emotional and character development - very good. writing - good but could be better. diversity - good on the lgbt front, ABYSMAL ON THE COLONIZATION ALLEGORY FRONT.
Now for the full-on rant:
I'm having a hard time rating this book or even deciding how I feel about it, because while I did have fun reading it, there were a lot of things that really bothered me. The number one thing that bothered me and really took me out of the story was the whole "space racism as allegory for colonization" plotline, but for my complaints to make sense, first we need to get into the messy world building:
So in this book, a group of humans leave Earth for a new planet. This group is compromised of people from all over Earth, but with time, they stop seeing each other as different races/cultures and become just Humans In Space, We're All The Same. And at first: ok, that's a science fiction cliche, nothing out of the ordinary-- until you realize this "assimilation" happens in like, ~200 years? Racism/misogyny/lgbtphobia/etc disappear in 200 years, everyone starts speaking one common language in 200 years, all these cultures become just one (one who is 100% western based, btw) in 200 years????? Uhhh.
But still, authors fuck up timelines all the time, nothing unusual. The real problem is: for a nation so "totally new" and "completely separate from Earth", the people sure act like they're still living in 2017. They sure do pay a lot of attention to which ethnicity each character is, from which Earth country their "ancestors" come from, the latina character calls her grandma "abuela", another character makes references to Ninja Turtles, another one says "cool story bro".... WHY ARE THESE SPACE TEENS USING MEMES FROM 2017 LMAO. This is a futuristic society but it reads just like our normal society, except set in a shiny magical planet with 2 suns. It feels like the author wanted to include as much diversity as possible in the book without having to go through the "hassle" of addressing the difficulties all these minorities face daily. And like, whatever, you can write a "world without any -isms" if you want to, that's not a problem per se, but then
1) your world building needs to MAKE SENSE and SUPPORT YOUR STATEMENT of "people forgot pretty much everything from Earth customs haha!". Don't say that and then show your characters doing... the exact opposite....
2) don't go and add a allegory for irl colonization at the SAME TIME???
seriously, what the hell.
This is my biggest problem with 27 hours: the humans are fighting against a space race called gargoyles/chimera for control of the planet, basically. And this war is constructed as a /direct analogy/ to colonization as we see on our Earth. Most of the time I try to refrain from creating direct paralels between irl racism and magical/space racism because it never works, it almost always ends up becoming problematic (because 90% of authors can't resist doing the "both sides are wrong!" ~plot twist~, among other stuff), and sometimes authors just want to write about fictional societies fighting each other right, not everything has to have a link with reality.
Except this time the author goes out of her way to confirm the link with reality.
She straight up uses the words "colonization" and "indigenous people" when referring to the chimeras. She creates a slur for the colonizers to use (gargoyle) vs an accepted term (chimera). The arguments used by the humans and the chimeras are very familiar ("hey we wanna live here too :c" vs "YOU LITERALLY KILLED A BUNCH OF OUR PEOPLE AND TOOK OUR LANDS"), aaaand there's this:
"'It's... preconceptions. You hear gargoyle, and you think monster. What if...' Jude floundered for a comparison that was just as horrible and unconscionable. 'Okay, what if we labeled certain people as monsters based on their skin color or hair color or gender or whatever? No matter what they did or had done or acted like. You'd have an issue with that, right?'"
The fiction racism is an allegory for real racism, and the author puts it right on the page to make sure no one misses the comparison. The author is writing about fictional-but-actually-real colonization. The author is also an white american. Of course this wouldn't end well, because she somehow makes all the usual mistakes when colonizers try to write about colonization: the entire story is from the point of view of the colonizers. Not one character from the colonized race gets a pov. The colonized race is described as monstrous, not human, physically stronger than the humans, and a real threat to their livelihood. The entire book is about these characters unpacking their racism and learning that "colonization is bad, actually!", it's about them conciliating their hatred for the monsters that killed their parents/loved ones/etc while realizing there's also bad humans out there. The people who make these humans realize the error of their ways are another humans, the good humans fighting for the chimeras, the leaders in this revolution and the saviours of the poor oppressed monsters. There's still a big bad monster the protagonist needs to kill, though.
No pov for the chimera. Their side of the story is told by other humans. No focus on what their entire race went through since the humans arrived. It's allll about the poor humans' hurt feelings. "weh my parents were killed by gargoyles" YEAH AND YOU KILLED A FUCKTON OF PARENTS, BUDDY.
Hey, did the author think about how, if she writes an allegory where the colonized race are monsters, the real life readers who come from colonized countries will end up empathizing with the monsters, not the protagonists? (#StopGringos2k17)
At the end of the day this mess isn't even anything new, really. We see this kind of well-intentioned-but-ultimately-insulting-and-patronizing narrative all the time in fantasy and fiction. The thing is, though, that 27 Hours is being marketed as a book For Diversity. The dedication even has those "for every teen who didn't see themselves in the heroes" lines in it. AND I'm pretty sure Tristina was one of the authors who were RTing all those posts about how problematic The Black Witch is (book about magic racism from the pov of a magic racist), etc etc.... just to turn around and to the exact same thing in her book, lmao??? Rookie mistake!
Especially when it's clear she didn't consider the unfortunate implications of having a nigerian/indian pov character and a latinx pov character being the ones most hateful towards the chimera, while the most "colonization is bad!" pov characters of the book are.... the white ones. With british ancestry. I'm just facepalming at this point.
Why create a society where (human) racism doesn't exist anymore, but somehow are still aware of each person's different ancestry.... and then include the colonization allegory? It will ALMOST ALWAYS end up in unfortunate implications like latinx characters being pro-colonization.
But then you can say "well maybe that's the point the author is trying to make, that you can be from an opressed group and still oppress others!" which: yes, very true. But not a story I'm interest in reading when it isn't own voices, sorry. I don't want to hear about the shortcomings of latinos from a gringo, thanks. I'd think this would be common sense by now, but apparently not.
"But that's just the beginning of the the trilogy!" "The characters stop being pro-colonization by the end!" "The other race will most likely get povs later on!" All arguments already debunked during the The Black Witch discourse gate - which again, I'm pretty sure were RTed by the author and/or her friends, lol?
But I'm tired of talking about gringos gringando once again, let's go to the other facets of the book. Because like I said, I did have fun reading it... when I wasn't paying attention to the worlbuilding/plot. The author is really good at writing emotions and physicality. The scenes where Rumor has panic attacks were amazing. This is a story more focused on the charatcers and their relationships to each other than on plot - thankfully, because again, the plot is messy and quite cliche. The romance also has its fair share of cliches, but at least on this front the author knows how to develop it in a way that makes you buy it. For example: the romance between Jude and Rumor is another classic case of instalove, which I normally hate, but in here I didn't mind because their romantic/sexual tension was really well developed. I'm a sucker for UST, what can I say. Again, the physicality is really well done, by which I mean, the way the characters touch each other (or not) is always infused with tension, and the author writes a lot of forehead touching, hands on arms, hands on backs, all that good stuff.
The writing is ok for a debut - sometimes confusing when it comes to world descriptions and action scenes, but the emotional parts were really well done, and worked well with the purple prose/flowery style.
And of course, she may have fucked up on the colonization front, but the lgbt front was well done - to no one's surprise, that's the own voices part. I did think the character introductions were a bit forced, a bit "hello my name is x, i'm gay/bi/etc and this is my life story", but after that it smoothed out. And the characters themselves, while I woudn't call them super memorable just yet, were quite charming. They were the reason I liked the book and even plan to read the sequels, gringos gringando notwithstanding. Jude and Rumor were especially likeable, and I really want to see how their story will develop.
So overall I'd maybe give it 2.5 stars? It'd probably be a 3.5 star read if it wasn't for the colonization allegory.
----
I received an advance copy of 27 Hours in exchange for an honest review.
hm.
For the TL;DR folk: plot - quite messy and cliche. worldbuilding - VERY messy. emotional and character development - very good. writing - good but could be better. diversity - good on the lgbt front, ABYSMAL ON THE COLONIZATION ALLEGORY FRONT.
Now for the full-on rant:
I'm having a hard time rating this book or even deciding how I feel about it, because while I did have fun reading it, there were a lot of things that really bothered me. The number one thing that bothered me and really took me out of the story was the whole "space racism as allegory for colonization" plotline, but for my complaints to make sense, first we need to get into the messy world building:
So in this book, a group of humans leave Earth for a new planet. This group is compromised of people from all over Earth, but with time, they stop seeing each other as different races/cultures and become just Humans In Space, We're All The Same. And at first: ok, that's a science fiction cliche, nothing out of the ordinary-- until you realize this "assimilation" happens in like, ~200 years? Racism/misogyny/lgbtphobia/etc disappear in 200 years, everyone starts speaking one common language in 200 years, all these cultures become just one (one who is 100% western based, btw) in 200 years????? Uhhh.
But still, authors fuck up timelines all the time, nothing unusual. The real problem is: for a nation so "totally new" and "completely separate from Earth", the people sure act like they're still living in 2017. They sure do pay a lot of attention to which ethnicity each character is, from which Earth country their "ancestors" come from, the latina character calls her grandma "abuela", another character makes references to Ninja Turtles, another one says "cool story bro".... WHY ARE THESE SPACE TEENS USING MEMES FROM 2017 LMAO. This is a futuristic society but it reads just like our normal society, except set in a shiny magical planet with 2 suns. It feels like the author wanted to include as much diversity as possible in the book without having to go through the "hassle" of addressing the difficulties all these minorities face daily. And like, whatever, you can write a "world without any -isms" if you want to, that's not a problem per se, but then
1) your world building needs to MAKE SENSE and SUPPORT YOUR STATEMENT of "people forgot pretty much everything from Earth customs haha!". Don't say that and then show your characters doing... the exact opposite....
2) don't go and add a allegory for irl colonization at the SAME TIME???
seriously, what the hell.
This is my biggest problem with 27 hours: the humans are fighting against a space race called gargoyles/chimera for control of the planet, basically. And this war is constructed as a /direct analogy/ to colonization as we see on our Earth. Most of the time I try to refrain from creating direct paralels between irl racism and magical/space racism because it never works, it almost always ends up becoming problematic (because 90% of authors can't resist doing the "both sides are wrong!" ~plot twist~, among other stuff), and sometimes authors just want to write about fictional societies fighting each other right, not everything has to have a link with reality.
Except this time the author goes out of her way to confirm the link with reality.
She straight up uses the words "colonization" and "indigenous people" when referring to the chimeras. She creates a slur for the colonizers to use (gargoyle) vs an accepted term (chimera). The arguments used by the humans and the chimeras are very familiar ("hey we wanna live here too :c" vs "YOU LITERALLY KILLED A BUNCH OF OUR PEOPLE AND TOOK OUR LANDS"), aaaand there's this:
"'It's... preconceptions. You hear gargoyle, and you think monster. What if...' Jude floundered for a comparison that was just as horrible and unconscionable. 'Okay, what if we labeled certain people as monsters based on their skin color or hair color or gender or whatever? No matter what they did or had done or acted like. You'd have an issue with that, right?'"
The fiction racism is an allegory for real racism, and the author puts it right on the page to make sure no one misses the comparison. The author is writing about fictional-but-actually-real colonization. The author is also an white american. Of course this wouldn't end well, because she somehow makes all the usual mistakes when colonizers try to write about colonization: the entire story is from the point of view of the colonizers. Not one character from the colonized race gets a pov. The colonized race is described as monstrous, not human, physically stronger than the humans, and a real threat to their livelihood. The entire book is about these characters unpacking their racism and learning that "colonization is bad, actually!", it's about them conciliating their hatred for the monsters that killed their parents/loved ones/etc while realizing there's also bad humans out there. The people who make these humans realize the error of their ways are another humans, the good humans fighting for the chimeras, the leaders in this revolution and the saviours of the poor oppressed monsters. There's still a big bad monster the protagonist needs to kill, though.
No pov for the chimera. Their side of the story is told by other humans. No focus on what their entire race went through since the humans arrived. It's allll about the poor humans' hurt feelings. "weh my parents were killed by gargoyles" YEAH AND YOU KILLED A FUCKTON OF PARENTS, BUDDY.
Hey, did the author think about how, if she writes an allegory where the colonized race are monsters, the real life readers who come from colonized countries will end up empathizing with the monsters, not the protagonists? (#StopGringos2k17)
At the end of the day this mess isn't even anything new, really. We see this kind of well-intentioned-but-ultimately-insulting-and-patronizing narrative all the time in fantasy and fiction. The thing is, though, that 27 Hours is being marketed as a book For Diversity. The dedication even has those "for every teen who didn't see themselves in the heroes" lines in it. AND I'm pretty sure Tristina was one of the authors who were RTing all those posts about how problematic The Black Witch is (book about magic racism from the pov of a magic racist), etc etc.... just to turn around and to the exact same thing in her book, lmao??? Rookie mistake!
Especially when it's clear she didn't consider the unfortunate implications of having a nigerian/indian pov character and a latinx pov character being the ones most hateful towards the chimera, while the most "colonization is bad!" pov characters of the book are.... the white ones. With british ancestry. I'm just facepalming at this point.
Why create a society where (human) racism doesn't exist anymore, but somehow are still aware of each person's different ancestry.... and then include the colonization allegory? It will ALMOST ALWAYS end up in unfortunate implications like latinx characters being pro-colonization.
But then you can say "well maybe that's the point the author is trying to make, that you can be from an opressed group and still oppress others!" which: yes, very true. But not a story I'm interest in reading when it isn't own voices, sorry. I don't want to hear about the shortcomings of latinos from a gringo, thanks. I'd think this would be common sense by now, but apparently not.
"But that's just the beginning of the the trilogy!" "The characters stop being pro-colonization by the end!" "The other race will most likely get povs later on!" All arguments already debunked during the The Black Witch discourse gate - which again, I'm pretty sure were RTed by the author and/or her friends, lol?
But I'm tired of talking about gringos gringando once again, let's go to the other facets of the book. Because like I said, I did have fun reading it... when I wasn't paying attention to the worlbuilding/plot. The author is really good at writing emotions and physicality. The scenes where Rumor has panic attacks were amazing. This is a story more focused on the charatcers and their relationships to each other than on plot - thankfully, because again, the plot is messy and quite cliche. The romance also has its fair share of cliches, but at least on this front the author knows how to develop it in a way that makes you buy it. For example: the romance between Jude and Rumor is another classic case of instalove, which I normally hate, but in here I didn't mind because their romantic/sexual tension was really well developed. I'm a sucker for UST, what can I say. Again, the physicality is really well done, by which I mean, the way the characters touch each other (or not) is always infused with tension, and the author writes a lot of forehead touching, hands on arms, hands on backs, all that good stuff.
The writing is ok for a debut - sometimes confusing when it comes to world descriptions and action scenes, but the emotional parts were really well done, and worked well with the purple prose/flowery style.
And of course, she may have fucked up on the colonization front, but the lgbt front was well done - to no one's surprise, that's the own voices part. I did think the character introductions were a bit forced, a bit "hello my name is x, i'm gay/bi/etc and this is my life story", but after that it smoothed out. And the characters themselves, while I woudn't call them super memorable just yet, were quite charming. They were the reason I liked the book and even plan to read the sequels, gringos gringando notwithstanding. Jude and Rumor were especially likeable, and I really want to see how their story will develop.
So overall I'd maybe give it 2.5 stars? It'd probably be a 3.5 star read if it wasn't for the colonization allegory.
March 29, 2017
This might be my favorite 2017 release yet. Pre-order it and put it on you TBR if you haven't already! This book is simply phenomenal.
October 22, 2017
I received a copy of this book from the publishers in exchange of an honest review
Full review originally posted on my blog: Word Wonders
I know I’ve probably said this before about other book reviews but this is honestly the hardest review I’ve had to write since I started this blog, which is almost two years ago. I feel so torn and conficted about it because, if you follow me of Twitter you might’ve noticed that this was one of my most anticipated releases of the year so imagine how thrilled I was when I got sent an eArc but… but I couldn’t help but be disappointed. This is one of the hardest reviews to write because as much as I couldn’t fully love it, I couldn’t fully hate it either and that for reasons that I’m sure you’ve seen discussed before. Or most of them at least. But I’m still going to give you my two cents about it.
I really liked the writing in this one. It’s simple, quick to read and yet still gorgeous. I love when I don’t need extra efforts to get a sense of the general feeling of a scene and Wright has a way of making that effortless. I could feel every emotions characters felt effortlessly, sadness, fear, love, heartbreak, happiness (eventhough there wasn’t much of it) which made not getting attached to the characters really hard -and I ultimately failed. Speaking of characters, 27 hours is written from the perspectives of four different characters, all of which I loved. Rumor, Nyx, Jude and Breaden and surprise, surprise, they’re all hella queer. Their voices are all different and I had no trouble figuring out who was saying what and when. Another character that to me was as proeminent as the others but doesn’t get a POV is Dahlia.
I’m only going to be talking about every character briefly because otherwise, this review will be way way too long, and we don’t want that. All I can say is that they’re very well crafted, not only as individuals but also their relationships with each other and with the side characters. Rumor is an angry bisexual boy I couldn’t help but want to protect at all cost. Nyx is a delicate pansexual girl who can kick your ass, she’s also Deaf and definitely my favorite out of the bunch because of how raw her emotions are. Dahlia is a caring bisexual trans girl who’d do anything for the people she loves. Jude is gay and passionate about what he believes in. Last but not least is Breadan, who is very cocky and very asexual. And here start my problems with the book.
My issue is how Breaden’s romantic orientation was handled. Because it wasn’t. It’s not acknowledged anywhere inside the pages of the book and as someone who’s demiromantic that was quite the bummer. Breaden is heavily coded as aroace. He is said to be disinterested in sex AND in relationships but not once is his romantic orientations explicitely stated. It seemed to me like it was lumped with his sexual attraction as one and the same which isn’t the case.
You may also have noticed that I didn’t mention the characters’ race/ethinicity and no I haven’t forgotten. 2/4 of the POV characters are POC. Rumor is brown and Indian/Nigerian, and Nyx is latina and although I, personally, wouldn’t say that rep was necessarily bad, but it was forgettable. There wasn’t much effort put into it. I appreciate the fact that characters do not have to worry about being discriminated about due to their skin color and that they’re not defined by it, I would’ve loved for it to be more to it than just one mention of their ethnicity or skin color a couple times.
The worldbuilding is good. I had a little trouble picturing some things and grasping some concepts at first, as I read on, that problem got solved and my reading flowed better. The plot as a whole was promising and it was really well written. Fast paced, thrilling and really well constructed. The action scenes are detailed and I could easily follow what was happening and when it was happening, the descriptions are vivid and make everything come to life. But here’s the thing, the premise the book is built on is my biggest problem and the reason why I couldn’t enjoy it like I had hoped. By now, everyone knows it, but the book is built on colonization.
The whole premise is humans colonising a moon called Sahara (and that name in on itself is problematic to me which I’ll tackle a bit later) and being at war with the indigenous species called chimeras, for which “gargoyles” is a slur. And I don’t know if you know this but I live in a formerly colonized country and I’m still trying to decolonize myself on a daily (which I’ll maybe write a post about someday) so I did not cope well with this whole premise. And before anyone comments on this review, if you’ve gone through similar experiences and loved this book, good for you, that does not invalidate my thoughts and feelings.
To make it easier for you and for me in this review, I’ll sum up my problems with this whole colonization business in bullet points:
1- The chimera are the enemy for a major part of the story which made me very uncomfortable considering that that made it impossible for me to sympathize with anything happening to the characters because everytime someone, especially Rumor, thought “They took away X and Y from me” I couldn’t help but think “but you colonized them and killed their people”.
2- The chimera had to basically prove themselves and their “humanity” to be deemed worthy of empathy and that their deaths were actual losses which is understandable knowing how four of the five characters were endoctrinated all their lives but since the chimera are intelligent, caring, etc etc… I don’t get why one of them didn’t get a point of view, especially since Jude who co-habitates with them gets one. I think that would’ve made for a better, more wholesome view of the colonism issue.
3- Although the prejudice is slowly desconstructed throughout the novel, the core issue which is the fact that the moon was colonised is never explicitely addressed. Instead, the colonist’s guilt is what’s continuously brought up and discussed, the war is lived, continuously brought up and discussed but never anything beyond that, and again, I think this issue could’ve been solved with a chimera point of view.
4- This last point, I’ve never seen brought up -which is understandable because it’s more personal to me as a Moroccan- is the fact that a colonized moon was called Sahara. Why, you ask? A quick Google search would show that Western Sahara which a chunk of runs under Morocco (and is claimed as moroccan soil but… it’s complicated) is subject of a decades long conflict that stems from… Colonization!!!! I’m not gonna go into details because I won’t turn this review into a political rant but if you’re curious, look it up. So, even if unintentional, that name choice came off as really insensitive to me.
Don’t get me wrong, colonization is never excused in the book but it’s never discussed properly either and I think that if you choose such a heavy topic to build a book on, it should be tackled fully or not at all. Eventhough this book represents many people, it also hurts many others and as someone who felt simultaneously represented and hurt, it was a difficult book to get through (it took me a month to read) and I often considered not finishing it but that little part of me that is starving for representation and got attached to the characters kept pushing through and the result is this jumbled thoughts of a review.
Full review originally posted on my blog: Word Wonders
I know I’ve probably said this before about other book reviews but this is honestly the hardest review I’ve had to write since I started this blog, which is almost two years ago. I feel so torn and conficted about it because, if you follow me of Twitter you might’ve noticed that this was one of my most anticipated releases of the year so imagine how thrilled I was when I got sent an eArc but… but I couldn’t help but be disappointed. This is one of the hardest reviews to write because as much as I couldn’t fully love it, I couldn’t fully hate it either and that for reasons that I’m sure you’ve seen discussed before. Or most of them at least. But I’m still going to give you my two cents about it.
I really liked the writing in this one. It’s simple, quick to read and yet still gorgeous. I love when I don’t need extra efforts to get a sense of the general feeling of a scene and Wright has a way of making that effortless. I could feel every emotions characters felt effortlessly, sadness, fear, love, heartbreak, happiness (eventhough there wasn’t much of it) which made not getting attached to the characters really hard -and I ultimately failed. Speaking of characters, 27 hours is written from the perspectives of four different characters, all of which I loved. Rumor, Nyx, Jude and Breaden and surprise, surprise, they’re all hella queer. Their voices are all different and I had no trouble figuring out who was saying what and when. Another character that to me was as proeminent as the others but doesn’t get a POV is Dahlia.
I’m only going to be talking about every character briefly because otherwise, this review will be way way too long, and we don’t want that. All I can say is that they’re very well crafted, not only as individuals but also their relationships with each other and with the side characters. Rumor is an angry bisexual boy I couldn’t help but want to protect at all cost. Nyx is a delicate pansexual girl who can kick your ass, she’s also Deaf and definitely my favorite out of the bunch because of how raw her emotions are. Dahlia is a caring bisexual trans girl who’d do anything for the people she loves. Jude is gay and passionate about what he believes in. Last but not least is Breadan, who is very cocky and very asexual. And here start my problems with the book.
My issue is how Breaden’s romantic orientation was handled. Because it wasn’t. It’s not acknowledged anywhere inside the pages of the book and as someone who’s demiromantic that was quite the bummer. Breaden is heavily coded as aroace. He is said to be disinterested in sex AND in relationships but not once is his romantic orientations explicitely stated. It seemed to me like it was lumped with his sexual attraction as one and the same which isn’t the case.
You may also have noticed that I didn’t mention the characters’ race/ethinicity and no I haven’t forgotten. 2/4 of the POV characters are POC. Rumor is brown and Indian/Nigerian, and Nyx is latina and although I, personally, wouldn’t say that rep was necessarily bad, but it was forgettable. There wasn’t much effort put into it. I appreciate the fact that characters do not have to worry about being discriminated about due to their skin color and that they’re not defined by it, I would’ve loved for it to be more to it than just one mention of their ethnicity or skin color a couple times.
The worldbuilding is good. I had a little trouble picturing some things and grasping some concepts at first, as I read on, that problem got solved and my reading flowed better. The plot as a whole was promising and it was really well written. Fast paced, thrilling and really well constructed. The action scenes are detailed and I could easily follow what was happening and when it was happening, the descriptions are vivid and make everything come to life. But here’s the thing, the premise the book is built on is my biggest problem and the reason why I couldn’t enjoy it like I had hoped. By now, everyone knows it, but the book is built on colonization.
The whole premise is humans colonising a moon called Sahara (and that name in on itself is problematic to me which I’ll tackle a bit later) and being at war with the indigenous species called chimeras, for which “gargoyles” is a slur. And I don’t know if you know this but I live in a formerly colonized country and I’m still trying to decolonize myself on a daily (which I’ll maybe write a post about someday) so I did not cope well with this whole premise. And before anyone comments on this review, if you’ve gone through similar experiences and loved this book, good for you, that does not invalidate my thoughts and feelings.
To make it easier for you and for me in this review, I’ll sum up my problems with this whole colonization business in bullet points:
1- The chimera are the enemy for a major part of the story which made me very uncomfortable considering that that made it impossible for me to sympathize with anything happening to the characters because everytime someone, especially Rumor, thought “They took away X and Y from me” I couldn’t help but think “but you colonized them and killed their people”.
2- The chimera had to basically prove themselves and their “humanity” to be deemed worthy of empathy and that their deaths were actual losses which is understandable knowing how four of the five characters were endoctrinated all their lives but since the chimera are intelligent, caring, etc etc… I don’t get why one of them didn’t get a point of view, especially since Jude who co-habitates with them gets one. I think that would’ve made for a better, more wholesome view of the colonism issue.
3- Although the prejudice is slowly desconstructed throughout the novel, the core issue which is the fact that the moon was colonised is never explicitely addressed. Instead, the colonist’s guilt is what’s continuously brought up and discussed, the war is lived, continuously brought up and discussed but never anything beyond that, and again, I think this issue could’ve been solved with a chimera point of view.
4- This last point, I’ve never seen brought up -which is understandable because it’s more personal to me as a Moroccan- is the fact that a colonized moon was called Sahara. Why, you ask? A quick Google search would show that Western Sahara which a chunk of runs under Morocco (and is claimed as moroccan soil but… it’s complicated) is subject of a decades long conflict that stems from… Colonization!!!! I’m not gonna go into details because I won’t turn this review into a political rant but if you’re curious, look it up. So, even if unintentional, that name choice came off as really insensitive to me.
Don’t get me wrong, colonization is never excused in the book but it’s never discussed properly either and I think that if you choose such a heavy topic to build a book on, it should be tackled fully or not at all. Eventhough this book represents many people, it also hurts many others and as someone who felt simultaneously represented and hurt, it was a difficult book to get through (it took me a month to read) and I often considered not finishing it but that little part of me that is starving for representation and got attached to the characters kept pushing through and the result is this jumbled thoughts of a review.
Shelved as 'not-touching-with-a-ten-foot-pole'
February 12, 2018ETA:
the author has been outed as an abuser so I have removed my rating. My critical comments still stand.
---
There are multiple issues that bother me about the setup and worldbuilding as well as the ace rep.
The History
I had a lot of unanswered questions about the history that connects Sahara to Earth. The general lack of knowledge the characters had about their heritage seemed unrealistic. Given technological advances, it should be relatively easy for them to access information about Earth. If something had happened to make that not the case, then an explanation would have been helpful in understanding the context of Sahara's current state.
Colonialism
As Aimal pointed out in her review, the story chooses to center the perspectives of human colonizers on Sahara with no narration from the POV of the colonized chimaeras, which is super problematic. Add to that the fact that a white character is the one who has to explain and challenge the racism (speciesism?) of the characters of color, and that's just really uncomfortable.
The Ace/Aro Rep
Braeden's character is canonically asexual, and word-of-god not aromantic, leaving his romantic orientation open-ended. While I was excited about the ace rep being explicit, I noticed a troubling pattern of asexuality being conflated with aromanticism and general experience of non-attraction. In addition, it was more or less implied that being ace=never having sex. While aroace people are definitely real (*waves*), ace and aro IDs are ultimately separate concepts. As for ace people never having sex, this may be true of many ace people, but it is not true of all ace people nor is it what defines asexuality.
the author has been outed as an abuser so I have removed my rating. My critical comments still stand.
---
There are multiple issues that bother me about the setup and worldbuilding as well as the ace rep.
The History
I had a lot of unanswered questions about the history that connects Sahara to Earth. The general lack of knowledge the characters had about their heritage seemed unrealistic. Given technological advances, it should be relatively easy for them to access information about Earth. If something had happened to make that not the case, then an explanation would have been helpful in understanding the context of Sahara's current state.
Colonialism
As Aimal pointed out in her review, the story chooses to center the perspectives of human colonizers on Sahara with no narration from the POV of the colonized chimaeras, which is super problematic. Add to that the fact that a white character is the one who has to explain and challenge the racism (speciesism?) of the characters of color, and that's just really uncomfortable.
The Ace/Aro Rep
Braeden's character is canonically asexual, and word-of-god not aromantic, leaving his romantic orientation open-ended. While I was excited about the ace rep being explicit, I noticed a troubling pattern of asexuality being conflated with aromanticism and general experience of non-attraction. In addition, it was more or less implied that being ace=never having sex. While aroace people are definitely real (*waves*), ace and aro IDs are ultimately separate concepts. As for ace people never having sex, this may be true of many ace people, but it is not true of all ace people nor is it what defines asexuality.
Shelved as 'did-not-finish'
January 19, 2018After some consideration, I have decided not to read this. I'm extremely grateful to Entangled Teen for providing me with an eARC via NetGalley. If I didn't have an eARC I wouldn't even be writing this review; I would just quietly remove the book from my kindle and my GR shelves. But I feel like the publishers deserve an explanation.
The last thing that is needed is yet another white queer person saying "the queer rep was good but the race rep sucked." (For the same reason I'm no longer including this book on any of my queer shelves here on goodreads.) Honestly, after reading Chiara's review, I don't think there's anything I could say differently, more succinctly, or better than she has. I'm also going to follow the crowd and link Aimal from Bookshelves & Paperback's review, as it has become the quintessential review in regards to how this book treats race. If you haven't read it, please do.
I'll always be here for "queer teens in space" books, but I don't need to read this one.
The last thing that is needed is yet another white queer person saying "the queer rep was good but the race rep sucked." (For the same reason I'm no longer including this book on any of my queer shelves here on goodreads.) Honestly, after reading Chiara's review, I don't think there's anything I could say differently, more succinctly, or better than she has. I'm also going to follow the crowd and link Aimal from Bookshelves & Paperback's review, as it has become the quintessential review in regards to how this book treats race. If you haven't read it, please do.
I'll always be here for "queer teens in space" books, but I don't need to read this one.
February 12, 2018
I'm deleting my review with the allegations coming up against Tristina. I don't want to post potentially trigger content and I expect that Tristina will delete her tweet later so scroll through the comments of this where there's more allegations against other people.
September 16, 2017
I am admittedly disappointed and frustrated.
On one hand, there is a lot of bi, gay, and trans rep in this -- which makes me super happy. No one is straight; it's Gays (and Bis and Lesbians) in Space.
On the other we are presented a tale about a group of colonizers waging war against an indigenous, intelligent species because..... the humans wanted the land? And we are supposed to sympathize with the colonizers' plight? And none of the effected, intelligent race have a POV for their perspective on the invasion? Hmmm....
On one hand, there is a lot of bi, gay, and trans rep in this -- which makes me super happy. No one is straight; it's Gays (and Bis and Lesbians) in Space.
On the other we are presented a tale about a group of colonizers waging war against an indigenous, intelligent species because..... the humans wanted the land? And we are supposed to sympathize with the colonizers' plight? And none of the effected, intelligent race have a POV for their perspective on the invasion? Hmmm....
Read
February 13, 2018My review has been taken in down in light of the recent accusations against the author. I won't be supporting her.
Read
July 19, 2018Edit 8/15/17: My friend Aimal wrote a fantastic review about the racial representation and colonist issues of 27 HOURS that I didn't notice while I was reading. I'd highly recommend checking out her review, and many thanks to Aimal for pointing those problems out.
October 11, 2017
Unfortunately, this book just wasn't for me. I was really looking forward to this, but I pretty much had an issue with... everything. The characters, the world-building, the writing, etc. There wasn't anything particularly wrong with all of this, it just wasn't for me.
I do have to mention the biggest drawback this book has going for it. And that's the fact that this centers around colonists (or descendants of colonist) POVs and ignores the indigenous race (chimera). Basically, a long time ago humans started arriving at a moon called Sahara from all over the Earth and started colonizing. They had no idea that an indigenous species was asleep underground.
I thought it was obvious that reading a book where colonist wake up and realize "oh wait, you are a living being who deserves to be treated with respect and not have your land stolen from you" was something a lot of people wouldn't like. It's just hard to sympathize with characters who are just starting to let go of their prejudices. Aimal goes into a lot more detail here, which you should check out if you want to know more about this.
The best part of this book was that the cast was so diverse; it's probably one of the most diverse group of characters I've read about in a while. Rumor is bisexual and multiracial. Jude is gay. Nyx is Deaf, pansexual, and Latinx. Dahlia is Afro-Latinx, transgender, and bisexual. Braeden is asexual. And while I didn't dislike any of these characters, they weren't all that memorable to me. Characters in a story can make or break a book for me, and if I can't connect to any of them then I probably won't like the book. I don't think I'll remember any of these characters in a few weeks time.
Then there's the world-building, which didn't make a lot of sense to me. Maybe it's because I don't read a lot of sci-fi? But I thought the world-building was pretty flimsy. Parts of it had futuristic elements like a sci-fi should, but other parts read like it took place in modern times.
Also the writing was not my cup of tea. The writing was soooooo detailed. It got to a point where I had to stop every few pages to process what I'd read. And then I'd realize I didn't actually understand anything and I'd have to start all over. You could imagine why I didn't like it. So, the writing wasn't bad, I just wasn't a fan of it.
I can see why other people enjoyed it, I just wasn't one of them.
I do have to mention the biggest drawback this book has going for it. And that's the fact that this centers around colonists (or descendants of colonist) POVs and ignores the indigenous race (chimera). Basically, a long time ago humans started arriving at a moon called Sahara from all over the Earth and started colonizing. They had no idea that an indigenous species was asleep underground.
I thought it was obvious that reading a book where colonist wake up and realize "oh wait, you are a living being who deserves to be treated with respect and not have your land stolen from you" was something a lot of people wouldn't like. It's just hard to sympathize with characters who are just starting to let go of their prejudices. Aimal goes into a lot more detail here, which you should check out if you want to know more about this.
The best part of this book was that the cast was so diverse; it's probably one of the most diverse group of characters I've read about in a while. Rumor is bisexual and multiracial. Jude is gay. Nyx is Deaf, pansexual, and Latinx. Dahlia is Afro-Latinx, transgender, and bisexual. Braeden is asexual. And while I didn't dislike any of these characters, they weren't all that memorable to me. Characters in a story can make or break a book for me, and if I can't connect to any of them then I probably won't like the book. I don't think I'll remember any of these characters in a few weeks time.
Then there's the world-building, which didn't make a lot of sense to me. Maybe it's because I don't read a lot of sci-fi? But I thought the world-building was pretty flimsy. Parts of it had futuristic elements like a sci-fi should, but other parts read like it took place in modern times.
Also the writing was not my cup of tea. The writing was soooooo detailed. It got to a point where I had to stop every few pages to process what I'd read. And then I'd realize I didn't actually understand anything and I'd have to start all over. You could imagine why I didn't like it. So, the writing wasn't bad, I just wasn't a fan of it.
I can see why other people enjoyed it, I just wasn't one of them.
Shelved as 'dnf'
July 28, 2018I was going to read this book. But I'd barely begun when I got curious and started looking through some reviews. It looks like there was some trouble between the author and reviewers. Maybe some discussions about inappropriate content too. So, before I get any further in this story or in this mess, I'm going to set this one aside.
Shelved as 'did-not-finish'
November 25, 2017Want to read more of my reviews? Check out my blog: The Butterfly Reader
DNF - 43%
Even though I don't agree with anything the author says - I received this copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you NetGalley - I told myself that I was going to do my damn best to separate the art from the artist and read this book as I would any other book. I was doing alright, the beginning was actually really good, it started right into the action, no punches held back at all and I enjoyed Rumor, he's pretty damn badass.
Then we kept switching POVs and Nyx (LOVE the name!) was kind of mean, I get it, she's lived a hard life but when she flipped off the guy just for trying to make sure she understood what he was saying... that's not cool. That made me dislike her, not to mention how when her best friend/crush was going through some hard stuff all Nyx wanted to do was make out with her. Didn't like her character at all.
There are other characters but I've got my point across with just naming these two. Now, while reading this book, I can tell you the color of every single characters' skin, if they have a disability, and their sexuality. I can also tell you that Rumor's parents are dead. That's it. 43% into the book and that's it.
How is that character development? I mean, we are way more than our skin color, our disability (if we have one), and what our sexuality is. I don't want to be known to people as the "white Apache bi-sexual girl with the really severe nerve damage". I am more than that, I love to read, I am a mother, I was a straight A student, I was class president in 8th grade. I love to write. I am overly nice to people, even when they are mean to me because I just can't help myself. I am scared of spiders. I am shy till you get to know me and then I never shut up.
These are the things that would've helped me connect to the characters, that would have made me feel invested in them and want to know more. I don't connect to a character because of their skin color or what they are sexually attracted to.
Honestly, it felt like to me that the author was just trying to add things to check off a diverse list. Which I hate. I want diversity, I want to learn more about other cultures and the people that live in them. I want to read about all kinds of different characters. I want true diversity, like what we have in the real world. The kind of diversity I see every single day when I go to work.
So while some will praise the diverse characters in this story, I think it falls short, they are nothing more than what label the author gave them. They don't feel real, they just felt like a checklist. Guess that's what you get when you read a book by an SJW author.
I don't recommend this, not only because I think the book was lackluster but because the author isn't the nicest person around and doesn't like anyone who disagrees with her. There are much better books out there if you are seeking more diversity. Books that don't feel fake and are just trying to get browny points from their fanbase.
As I always do with books I DNF, I will not rate it as I only rate books I read in full. Though I'm sure you can tell from my review what I would rate this book if did.
DNF - 43%
Even though I don't agree with anything the author says - I received this copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you NetGalley - I told myself that I was going to do my damn best to separate the art from the artist and read this book as I would any other book. I was doing alright, the beginning was actually really good, it started right into the action, no punches held back at all and I enjoyed Rumor, he's pretty damn badass.
Then we kept switching POVs and Nyx (LOVE the name!) was kind of mean, I get it, she's lived a hard life but when she flipped off the guy just for trying to make sure she understood what he was saying... that's not cool. That made me dislike her, not to mention how when her best friend/crush was going through some hard stuff all Nyx wanted to do was make out with her. Didn't like her character at all.
There are other characters but I've got my point across with just naming these two. Now, while reading this book, I can tell you the color of every single characters' skin, if they have a disability, and their sexuality. I can also tell you that Rumor's parents are dead. That's it. 43% into the book and that's it.
How is that character development? I mean, we are way more than our skin color, our disability (if we have one), and what our sexuality is. I don't want to be known to people as the "white Apache bi-sexual girl with the really severe nerve damage". I am more than that, I love to read, I am a mother, I was a straight A student, I was class president in 8th grade. I love to write. I am overly nice to people, even when they are mean to me because I just can't help myself. I am scared of spiders. I am shy till you get to know me and then I never shut up.
These are the things that would've helped me connect to the characters, that would have made me feel invested in them and want to know more. I don't connect to a character because of their skin color or what they are sexually attracted to.
Honestly, it felt like to me that the author was just trying to add things to check off a diverse list. Which I hate. I want diversity, I want to learn more about other cultures and the people that live in them. I want to read about all kinds of different characters. I want true diversity, like what we have in the real world. The kind of diversity I see every single day when I go to work.
So while some will praise the diverse characters in this story, I think it falls short, they are nothing more than what label the author gave them. They don't feel real, they just felt like a checklist. Guess that's what you get when you read a book by an SJW author.
I don't recommend this, not only because I think the book was lackluster but because the author isn't the nicest person around and doesn't like anyone who disagrees with her. There are much better books out there if you are seeking more diversity. Books that don't feel fake and are just trying to get browny points from their fanbase.
As I always do with books I DNF, I will not rate it as I only rate books I read in full. Though I'm sure you can tell from my review what I would rate this book if did.
![Profile Image for Jessi ❤️ H. Vojsk [if villain, why hot?].](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/users/1646942374i/66224803._UX200_CR0,46,200,200_.jpg)
November 14, 2017
Story ⭐️⭐️
There is kind of a intercontinental war going on with gargoyles and humans on the moon.
Some of these humans are teenagers who struggle with live, love, loss, friendship and more.
Sadly, I wasn’t really attached to the story or it’s characters. 😕
Characters ⭐️⭐️⭐️
First of all I’m in love with the names in this story. I mean Nyx, Rumor, Dahlia... 😍
Second, diversity is nothing special, it seems normal in this world.
This is so refreshing. 👏🏻
There are characters with special issues, like Nyx is deaf and still able to work in a medical center and live like its the most normal thing.
In general I’m pretty impressed by the women in this story. There are women in charge of colonies, of science labs. 👩🏻⚖️👩🏼⚕️👩🏽🎓👩🏾🏫👩🏼🔬
Well, the men are fine too.🤷🏻♀️
World ⭐️⭐️
The moon in this world is colonized by humans. Next to the humans there are also gargoyles and dragons.
I need to say that I’m not really that interested in science fiction, but It was fine. Not my type of book though - I love fantasy more!
Relationships ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Again, there is no typical girl meets boy or boy meets girl moment or relationship.
There is a everyone-can-meet-anyone-they-want-and-love-them-situation! Hooray! 👏🏻❤️ 💑👩❤️👩👨❤️👨
Writing style ⭐️⭐️
I don’t know why, but I didn’t like her writing. It was kind of hard to get through and I had the feeling a few pages took ages.
There is kind of a intercontinental war going on with gargoyles and humans on the moon.
Some of these humans are teenagers who struggle with live, love, loss, friendship and more.
Sadly, I wasn’t really attached to the story or it’s characters. 😕
Characters ⭐️⭐️⭐️
First of all I’m in love with the names in this story. I mean Nyx, Rumor, Dahlia... 😍
Second, diversity is nothing special, it seems normal in this world.
This is so refreshing. 👏🏻
There are characters with special issues, like Nyx is deaf and still able to work in a medical center and live like its the most normal thing.
In general I’m pretty impressed by the women in this story. There are women in charge of colonies, of science labs. 👩🏻⚖️👩🏼⚕️👩🏽🎓👩🏾🏫👩🏼🔬
Well, the men are fine too.🤷🏻♀️
World ⭐️⭐️
The moon in this world is colonized by humans. Next to the humans there are also gargoyles and dragons.
I need to say that I’m not really that interested in science fiction, but It was fine. Not my type of book though - I love fantasy more!
Relationships ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Again, there is no typical girl meets boy or boy meets girl moment or relationship.
There is a everyone-can-meet-anyone-they-want-and-love-them-situation! Hooray! 👏🏻❤️ 💑👩❤️👩👨❤️👨
Writing style ⭐️⭐️
I don’t know why, but I didn’t like her writing. It was kind of hard to get through and I had the feeling a few pages took ages.
July 15, 2018
I would like to thank Entangled Teen for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Hmm. This one is hard, but ultimately I have to say no.
Check out my full review here.
edit: My original rating of this book was generous. 2 1/2 after everything that I disliked. But now Tristina has been accused of sexual harassment, and I can't do this anymore. I've had guilty feelings about rating this book so low because I consider myself friends of those who enjoyed it. But I cannot let this pass.
Hmm. This one is hard, but ultimately I have to say no.
Check out my full review here.
edit: My original rating of this book was generous. 2 1/2 after everything that I disliked. But now Tristina has been accused of sexual harassment, and I can't do this anymore. I've had guilty feelings about rating this book so low because I consider myself friends of those who enjoyed it. But I cannot let this pass.
November 28, 2017
Great LGBTIQA and disability representation. Unfortunately that's not enough to distract from the muddled descriptions and the confusing overstuffed plot.
The world is Sahara, Earth's most distant colony and the moon of an unnamed gas giant with several native intelligent species who have co-existed poorly with the human colonists. The actions kicks off 27 hours before the next "dayside" with an assault on the colony settlement of HUB2 by a huge army of mixed indigenous life-forms. The only survivor is Rumor Mora who flees to a nearby settlement and is in for the busiest night of his life. On arriving at the settlement, Rumor encounters a huge cast of diverse characters and backgrounds including a couple of "rebels" who live with the indigenous life forms in the forest between colonies.
This book is too long and doesn't resolve any of the questions it raises. The characters are ok and some of the relationships are believable, but others are just too fast. For instance, in one long Rumor loses everyone and everything in his home settlement, falls in love, switches allegiances and picks up a whole new friend group while fighting for his life and developing an appreciation for an alien species he's been taught to hate. Any realistic person would be curled into a small fetal ball.
And fair warning: no indication that the book is first in a series and it has a horrible cliffhanger.
The world is Sahara, Earth's most distant colony and the moon of an unnamed gas giant with several native intelligent species who have co-existed poorly with the human colonists. The actions kicks off 27 hours before the next "dayside" with an assault on the colony settlement of HUB2 by a huge army of mixed indigenous life-forms. The only survivor is Rumor Mora who flees to a nearby settlement and is in for the busiest night of his life. On arriving at the settlement, Rumor encounters a huge cast of diverse characters and backgrounds including a couple of "rebels" who live with the indigenous life forms in the forest between colonies.
This book is too long and doesn't resolve any of the questions it raises. The characters are ok and some of the relationships are believable, but others are just too fast. For instance, in one long Rumor loses everyone and everything in his home settlement, falls in love, switches allegiances and picks up a whole new friend group while fighting for his life and developing an appreciation for an alien species he's been taught to hate. Any realistic person would be curled into a small fetal ball.
And fair warning: no indication that the book is first in a series and it has a horrible cliffhanger.
Read
February 13, 201827 Hours was such an interesting and inclusive sci-fi read that so many people will feel represented while reading it. The story follows a motley group of teens as war rages when chimeras begin to attack colonies built on the moon. The group of strangers-turned-friends has 27 hours to fight for their lives and countless others as they face hardships, revelations, and twists and turns along the way.
The strongest point of this novel was the cast of characters who were all queer and the majority of them were PoC as well. The representation of these minorities in novels are so vital for teens seeking to identify themselves with book characters, and I think this book did it so well. I adored every character introduced into the novel and thought their story-lines and voices were distinct and fleshed out enough that you got to connect to each one as the story progressed. I especially loved Nyx and Dahlia’s relationship the most because it was such a healthy and adorable friends-to-lovers type of romance that captured my heart completely from the moment they were both on the page together.
The thing that kept me from giving this story a star rating, at all, was the plotline. The world building and story itself were difficult for me to follow if I’m being completely honest. The action scenes were muddling, and I couldn’t seem to connect to the plot the way I did with the characters themselves. There were so many elements thrown into the book that I couldn’t seem to keep up, but maybe that’s just how I perceived it.
The storyline is also very questionable with its race representation and colonial aspects that are woven in which a fellow blogger speaks about in depth and should be shared across all reviews for this novel: (Aimal’s review: 27 HOURS BY TRISTINA WRIGHT / CENTERS COLONIST GUILT & HAS FLAWED RACIAL REPRESENTATION). These aspects of the novel kept me from fully enjoying the novel because it had many problematic elements that should not be ignored or taken lightly because it has the potential to harm many readers.
The strongest point of this novel was the cast of characters who were all queer and the majority of them were PoC as well. The representation of these minorities in novels are so vital for teens seeking to identify themselves with book characters, and I think this book did it so well. I adored every character introduced into the novel and thought their story-lines and voices were distinct and fleshed out enough that you got to connect to each one as the story progressed. I especially loved Nyx and Dahlia’s relationship the most because it was such a healthy and adorable friends-to-lovers type of romance that captured my heart completely from the moment they were both on the page together.
The thing that kept me from giving this story a star rating, at all, was the plotline. The world building and story itself were difficult for me to follow if I’m being completely honest. The action scenes were muddling, and I couldn’t seem to connect to the plot the way I did with the characters themselves. There were so many elements thrown into the book that I couldn’t seem to keep up, but maybe that’s just how I perceived it.
The storyline is also very questionable with its race representation and colonial aspects that are woven in which a fellow blogger speaks about in depth and should be shared across all reviews for this novel: (Aimal’s review: 27 HOURS BY TRISTINA WRIGHT / CENTERS COLONIST GUILT & HAS FLAWED RACIAL REPRESENTATION). These aspects of the novel kept me from fully enjoying the novel because it had many problematic elements that should not be ignored or taken lightly because it has the potential to harm many readers.
February 12, 2018
Update- 12/2/2018.
My review has been took down from here and my blog. I will not support this author!
My review has been took down from here and my blog. I will not support this author!
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