From the Bookshelf of Reading In Between The Lines YA Book Club…

Half Bad (The Half Bad Trilogy, #1)

Sally Green

Start date: May 1, 2014

Finish date: May 31, 2014

Discussion: Montlhy Reads

Discussion leader: Orla-Kate

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Montlhy Reads

The Queen of The Tearling Discussion
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last updated Mar 06, 2016 07:38PM

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What Members Thought

Mar 19, 2015 Katie (Kitkatscanread) rated it really liked it

Great start to a series.
Got better as I got more into the book.
Was slow at times but still a fab read.
Can't wait to continue.
Thank you Penguin for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. :) ...more

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Jan 20, 2014 Stephanie (Gorelenore) Cover2CoverBlog rated it really liked it

Shelves: early-review, ya

I was so excited to have been chosen to read this book early. There was so much hype over it and I could not wait, a book about witches, good vs. evil, and a kid in a cage?! Come on, that has awesome written all over it (no pun intended) and I flew through the beginning of the story. Nathan, our main character, is telling the story of ostracized witches through his own story of survival. We are told the story from Nathan's POV and also in 2nd person POV, which was a very interesting choice, but I was so excited to have been chosen to read this book early. There was so much hype over it and I could not wait, a book about witches, good vs. evil, and a kid in a cage?! Come on, that has awesome written all over it (no pun intended) and I flew through the beginning of the story. Nathan, our main character, is telling the story of ostracized witches through his own story of survival. We are told the story from Nathan's POV and also in 2nd person POV, which was a very interesting choice, but a very cool experience. At times this was a difficult read, there are a lot of overtones of racism and cruelty. The plot was beautifully done though, Green really builds this world of segregation and makes you really think about who is good and evil, there really isn't a clear line. Those that are dubbed evil have redeeming qualities, while those who are expected to do good are scheming and mean.

Nathan is such a resourceful character, and it is refreshing that we have a male lead in a Young Adult book. Other characters are just as strong as well. Although some were maddening when it came to the plot, you cannot help but have a love/hate relationship with them. Added to the intense plot themes this book was wonderful. However, due to the amount of backstory and world building required to explain this world of witches and their idiosyncrasies put a bit of a damper on the plot here and there. The book is divided into six sections, the first two, as I mentioned, I flew through, after that though it was hard to read quickly. Sections three through about five were a little slow moving; important to the overall plot but running, hiding, and surviving can only be so exciting for so long. About half way through part five and through the end, I again flew through the pages. AND THEN it leaves the reader on the edge of their seat to wait for the following book! Arg! I cannot wait to read the next installment of this world.

So here are the overall pros and cons of this book. I loved the characters, the world, and the overall plot theme. I did not always like the pacing of the book - sometimes it was just too slow, but I cannot be too picky about that because it does lend a hand to that awesome world building that I loved! Oh the mixed feelings, so this is why it only got 4 stars. I really wanted to give it 5...
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Jun 07, 2017 Roberta rated it really liked it

This was an interesting read. Ilike the way that the author showed that sometimes the good side isn't always good. There are definitely some blurred lines in this book. Can't wait to read the next. ...more

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