Tuesday, April 5, 2016

Burning by Danielle Rollins

Just before Angela's scheduled release from juvie, THINGS start happening.  First, a 10-year-old girl (Jessica) is brought in under high security.  Then, a new program called Sci-Girls is causing a major stir among the inmates.  There's something about Jessica, Sci-Girls, and the director of Sci-Girls (Dr. Gruen) that freaks Angela out.  Weird things begin happening, and soon it becomes clear that there's evil in this prison that has nothing to do with the girls who are serving sentences.













You know how you read those books where you're just EXPECTING the twist at the end to be incredible?  You're expecting it to be something you would never see coming and could never come up with yourself.  Maybe even something you've never read about before.  THAT'S what I wanted from this book... but it didn't happen.  It's sort of the same thing that I had going on with the Mara Dyer series.  It's all built up with this creepy-vibe, but the ending didn't live up.

The First Half: LOVED!!  The characters, the writing, the atmosphere.... it all sucked me in.  I felt bad for little Jessica.  How does a little 10-year-old girl wind-up in max-security??  I also was really intrigued by Angela and her 2 bunkmates' backstories.  I wanted to know why they were there and when they would get out.

When it became clear where the story was actually headed:  UGH.  Part of me liked the creepy/paranormal element, but part of me just felt blah about it.  It definitely wasn't the thing that kept me reading.  I stayed reading because I CARED about Issie, Angela, Cara, and Jessica.  I cared abut their families and what happened to them.

The Villain and Ending: I thought the ending was shaky.  I mean, parts were explained and explained, and parts were left so muddled and confusing.  It left off so that it's probably going to be a sequel.  Maybe things will be better explained in that book.  I'm not hopeful.  Also, I thought the villain was a tad TOO villainous.  It was too dramatic and I just didn't think that drama was necessary when the setting and characters were so strong.

There is a romantic element to this book, and all I have to say about that is PUKE!!!

It felt like Orange is the New Black and The Walls Around Us had a baby, and that baby turned out not to be able to live up to his/her parent's spotlight.  Sort of like when 2 celebs have kids and none of them have that "it" factor.

OVERALL: It was OKAY.  The problem with that is-- okay isn't really good enough for me.  I want more than okay, I want AMAZING.  It's creepy, it has strong characters, but the over-the-top villain and the ending weren't for me.

This Book Contains:
  • Social issues
  • Friendship
  • A juvenile detention center
  • Minorities
  • Cooking
  • Paranormal activity


My Rating: 2/4





Date Published: 4/5/2016
How I got this book: Thanks to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Kids for allowing me to read and honestly review this book.
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens













Character: Angela
Book: The Magicians by Lev Grossman


  • Angela was a fan of the His Dark Materials series by Phillip Pullman, so this seems like a good next series for her to get into.  On audio, obviously, since that's her choice of medium.







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3 comments:

  1. Sorry this one was just okay. I hate when the end of a book is confusing.

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  2. I DNF'd this one. It sounded so good but once I started it I just wasn't feeling it. Since you say it got worse, I need to go look up some spoilers!
    Jen @ YA Romantics

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  3. Sounds very intriguing but with the rating and the review, I'm going to have to say no. Thanks for sharing!

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