- thanks to @allenanunwin for the #gifted copy, and for organising a fantastic Book Tour!
I must admit that I am quite torn about Wilkinson's new novel. On the one hand, the first half of the book was utterly thriller-y and exciting, and, on the other hand, the second half was sadly disappointing, as it was not what I was expecting.
The premise of this novel is mind-blowing, and the concept was brilliant. The narration starts when Cecily wakes up in a moving bus, surrounded by six strangers and with no memory of who she is, or how did she end up in one of the most bizarre situations ever.
I enjoyed the first half of the novel, while Cecily and the rest are trying to figure out what is going on. Those moments were authentic page-turning inducing, and I couldn't slow down or even stop reading for too long because I was in desperate need of answers. I had so much fun theorising and speculating about the psychological tests, and the whole purpose of what looks like a pretty insane social experiment.
Unfortunately, reaching the answers wasn't as exciting as I had hoped. I guess this has to do with the fact that my expectations grew exponentially while reading and that the final plot development didn't deliver the mind-blowing explanations I was waiting for; everything turned out to be way too far-fetched and unlikely for my liking.
I also struggled with the stereotypical characters and the clichéd personalities. I understand the purposes of the characterisation, but it didn't resonate well with me.
Overall, The Erasure Initiative is a page-turner YA Psychological Thriller that develops an exciting and fascinating concept. Even though I struggled with the plot the development and the characterisation, I'd still recommend this book to any YA readers.Show moreShow less
I must admit that I am quite torn about Wilkinson's new novel. On the one hand, the first half of the book was utterly thriller-y and exciting, and, on the other hand, the second half was sadly disappointing, as it was not what I was expecting.
The premise of this novel is mind-blowing, and the concept was brilliant. The narration starts when Cecily wakes up in a moving bus, surrounded by six strangers and with no memory of who she is, or how did she end up in one of the most bizarre situations ever.
I enjoyed the first half of the novel, while Cecily and the rest are trying to figure out what is going on. Those moments were authentic page-turning inducing, and I couldn't slow down or even stop reading for too long because I was in desperate need of answers. I had so much fun theorising and speculating about the psychological tests, and the whole purpose of what looks like a pretty insane social experiment.
Unfortunately, reaching the answers wasn't as exciting as I had hoped. I guess this has to do with the fact that my expectations grew exponentially while reading and that the final plot development didn't deliver the mind-blowing explanations I was waiting for; everything turned out to be way too far-fetched and unlikely for my liking.
I also struggled with the stereotypical characters and the clichéd personalities. I understand the purposes of the characterisation, but it didn't resonate well with me.
Overall, The Erasure Initiative is a page-turner YA Psychological Thriller that develops an exciting and fascinating concept. Even though I struggled with the plot the development and the characterisation, I'd still recommend this book to any YA readers. Show more Show less