Scythe Review

My first review is going to be on Scythe (Arc of the Scythe, Book 1) by Neal Shusterman. This review is my opinion only. 

When looking at reviews for this book, you will tend to see two things. You will see that some find it boring while others absolutely love it. I found the happy middle. I got this book in an elephant book exchange and was extremely happy that I ended up with it. It has a very cool concept, and, in my opinion, it is fairly unique. Due to this, I was disappointed at first. I would say that the first half of the book (maybe a little more) was, for the most part, quite boring. It had its moments where I would get really interested, and then it would kind of lose me again. If you are someone that needs constant action in a book, this may not be the best option for you. However, if you can handle a couple hundred pages that lean more towards the boring side of things, you will be pleasantly surprised and happy that you stuck with it. The last half (or maybe a little less) was absolutely fantastic. Neil Shusterman does a great job with plot twists. On more than one occasion did I think that I had the book figured out. Well, I was wrong, and boy am I happy that I was. If I wasn't, this review would be a bit more negative and it probably would have gone down a star or two. I don't like predictable books, and this one certainly is not predictable. This was a very redeeming quality for the more boring parts. It was also fairly fast-paced once the story became more involved, and sucks you in during this time. The whole time I was reading, I kept going back and forth on whether or not I should buy the other two books in the trilogy. Now that I have finished, I can confidently say that I will. I mean, how can I not after the ending that the author delivered? I can only hope that the books ship to me fast so I can get the answers I so desire. So that's the run-down on pace and somewhat plot because those two things kind of tie into each other. As for the characters, there are some that you do grow an attachment to, whether that attachment be love or hatred for them. I found the main two to be hard to attach to in the beginning, but that attachment grew with the story. Out of the two romantic relationships in the book, I found one of them a bit annoying. It felt a bit forced and sudden, so it was hard to completely support it. I understand how it adds to the plot- it is not some meaningless relationship forced into the story to try to attract a wider audience. However, it could have been built up better. Towards the end of the book, I was behind it a bit more, but nowhere near my usual giddiness at romance in the books I'm reading. I am hopeful, though, that the relationship will develop more reasonably in the next book in the series. Overall, the relationship was not enough for me to take away a star, but it was a bit of a disappointment. I believe that the second half more than made up for the first, so this book still found its way onto my favorites list, bumpy road and all. I can't see myself rereading this like I can and have with most of the other books on my favorites list, but it was definitely worth the read and got some physical and mental reactions out of me that are required to get on that list. The best I can say is that, you may want to stop reading for a bit because you are bored, but please don't! It makes up for it in the end and is actually a very enjoyable book!

Rating: 4/5  Stars
Genre: Dystopia
# of Pages: 435

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