Adaptation is the first I’ve read of Malinda Lo’s books. In fact, before Adaptation, I had never even heard of the author. However, I now realize what Malinda Lo has done for the YA world. And I definitely regret not reading her book earlier! If you’re in my situation right now, here’s a quick debriefing on Malinda Lo. She’s founded a project called Diversity in YA with fellow author Cindy Pon, won the 2006 Sarah Pettit Memorial Award for Excellence in LGBT Journalism, and has master’s degrees from both Harvard and Stanford. Wow. Just wow.
Back on the topic now! Adaptation in described on Netgalley as a “fast-paced, romantic thriller,” although I think my description of “crazy birds are symbolizing the apocalypse and all hell is breaking loose” suffices as well. Reese is experiencing this hell. After a terrible accident, her memories are wiped. The only thing she knows is not a memory- it’s a feeling. Reese knows she’s different before. Could the new girl Amber have something to do with it? And more importantly, what will she do about her love life (okay, so maybe it’s not more important, but still!)? Torn between Amber and David, torn between who to trust, torn between fact and fiction, Adaptation takes the reader through many twists, turns and revelations.
Ok. You might be thinking that I made my synopsis a little over dramatic. Okay, really dramatic. However, this is the feeling that Adaptation gave me. Honestly, there were many parts of this book that I literally started laughing at. Not because the book was hilarious but because the plot was just so ridiculous. However, what I did like is the fact that Reese is bisexual. An overwhelming number of protagonists in the YA world, not to mention the whole entire book world, are straight. Reese is a refreshing character in that regard.
The characters are not very great. Reese overall was a pretty weak character. The whole entire time, I felt like she wasn’t prioritizing the world over her problems. Her narration was laughable at best and intolerable for the most part. Honestly, Reese was so annoying.
As for the other characters, they too were undeveloped. I felt disappointed in the author’s creation of the characters. Amber, David, they felt like placeholders meant to fulfill a purpose. The purpose was fulfilled, but it wasn’t done very cleanly. The characters weren’t easy to relate to, which really upset me.
Overall, Adaptation was a unique, intriguing novel whose sequel I will definitely read.
Rating: 5 out of 10
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Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (September 18, 2012)
Source: Netgalley
Pages: 400
ISBN #: 9780316197960
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