Review: Hmm... Liked It in Most Cases
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 11 13, 2013
Disclaimer: Review copy provided by Clean Teen Publishing for the blog tour.What I Liked:~ It's set in a different country other than the US - No offense whatsoever to fellow US peoples, but I'm kind of a bit tired of reading books near the same settings over and over again when it comes to futuristic-like novels, despite the fact I love them all the same. The Woodlands being set in a different country (not the UK either) is a nice, new refresher in terms of setting.~ Rosa's character - I don't know why I find female main characters having a bit of an attitude appealing. For some reason, it just makes the book more interesting. Rosa also undergoes major changes throughout the story; from a closed off troublemaker/rule breaker/rebel to someone who's more open and letting others in.What I Didn't Like:~ Not so appealing - Let's just say I was expecting a tad bit more than George Orwell's 1984 (oh, and I can't wait until we move on from that in English soon) style in a way that's thankfully appropriate for a YA audience (but then 1984 isn't YA in the first place. Though in terms of relation to 1984, I meant the Superiors remind me of the Party and Big Brother. Thankfully, The Woodlands isn't as awkward and doesn't make me squirm uncomfortably as 1984 does. It's also a bit... slow paced.~ A little confused - I am so confused about her father/stepfather. Rereading the parts over and over again after finishing the book unfortunately didn't shed any further light either. And I had a little over an entire week to ponder on it. But still... over a week. That's usually enough time for a light bulb to illuminate in my mind and for me to come up with a reasonable bridge to gap my confusion and wrap my mind around it.Overall: Pretty cover, good idea, nice setting refresher, but I think I may have overestimated my thoughts on Taylor's debut novel. Though for a debut novel, it honestly wasn't that bad. I found it okay-ish, but The Woodlands didn't exactly make a majorly grand impression for me in the end.