Title: Adaptation
Author: Malinda Lo
Book #: 1st of Series
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publish Date: September 18th 2012
Pages: 400
Format: Hardcover
Date Read: August 3rd 2013
Rating: ★★ / out of 5
Summary:
Reese can’t remember anything from the time between the accident and the day she woke up almost a month later. She only knows one thing: She’s different now.
Across North America, flocks of birds hurl themselves into airplanes, causing at least a dozen to crash. Thousands of people die. Fearing terrorism, the United States government grounds all flights, and millions of travelers are stranded.
San Francisco feels like a different place with police enforcing curfew, hazmat teams collecting dead birds, and a strange presence that seems to be following her. Her search for the truth is forced in an entirely new direction—and threatens to expose a vast global conspiracy that the government has worked for decades to keep secret.
Review:
Ever since I saw this cover and read the synopsis, I was intrigued. I will admit, though, that the reason why I stopped myself from reading this book was because I can't see myself being with the same sex. When I read, I try as much as possible to connect to the main character and imagine myself in her shoes. I didn't think I would be able to do so since I am not physically attracted to a girl (I do have my fair share of girl-crushes, but they are actresses and authors who I look up to and admire as role models).
Eventually, my inner nerd started to tingle and I could not ignore it's call much longer. I gave in because I wanted to read this story about aliens, government conspiracies and other strange happenings. I also thought I would give it a try with the romance and just use my imagination.
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The story: Awesome!
Killer birds and conspiracies. I wanted to know more. And why. Why was this all happening? Who was really behind all the plane crashes and deaths. How does Reese has the ability to regenerate skin tissue so fast? I think the author did a great job of spinning together this sci-fi story and I wanted to read and learn more.
The romance: No.
I like how the author created Reese's character. She made her seem strong and yet, deep down, we see that she is hurting and closes herself off from creating close, emotional attachments with other people. The psychological aspect of it is most likely that she feels a mistrust towards men because of her philanderer of a father.
It was obvious that she does feel something towards David, but also just as obvious that she never feels quite right around him, as well. Like something just isn't clicking. It is even more obvious how she felt about Amber.
However, no matter how awesome the story is or how hooked I am, insta-love is becoming as much of a story-killer for me as is love-triangles. And this story has both!
The love-triangle (angle?): I actually didn't mind if Reese ended up with either David or Amber. If it was David, then I hoped it would prove to her that not all men are abusive cheaters and that her father's actions cannot be associated with the entire male population. Or, if she ended up with Amber, I hoped it would show that, even if she never forgives her father for his actions, she was able to find love elsewhere in the end.
The insta-love: Amber and Reese's relationship was cute and I loved how they were so tender and sincere. Except: On the first day that Amber and Reese officially hang out, Amber (no matter how much I loved that she mentions majoring in chemistry or microbiology..) comes off as being nice, but having no sense of personal space or boundaries. On the second day they meet, Amber invites Reese over to her house where she practically strips in front of her, questions her about her sexuality, and then makes out with her on the couch. On the third day, her and Reese are taking off their shirts and bras and making out on Reese's bed.
I don't know about you guys, but even for me, being the straight person I am, if Amber was replaced with a guy I would still feel the same. Too much, too fast. Bottom line.
Maybe I still need to understand that there are different types of love, some that are fast and some that come more slowly. However, I don't think I am wrong in saying that I think all of us readers appreciate a well developed romance, not insta-love.
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Though this has nothing to do with the story itself and I don't want to talk about it too much because I prefer to keep my person interests to myself, here is is: I do understand that everyone has their own values and beliefs and I can appreciate what this author is contributing to the book pool. I think adding this kind of variety is great, especially because I only know of one other well known author who writes LGBT books.
However, I cannot and will not support her because she does not understand that you can't get everyone to agree with your cause especially if you do not take the time to understand them and their reasons. You can't bash religious people without truly understanding their religion.
Overall, I think this is a great sci-fi story, but the romance really ruined it. At least for me. Amber and Reese's relationship was cute but too rushed and I didn't really like parts of Amber's personality or the fact that Reese begins smoking for no reason after telling her best friend that smoking is a disgusting habit (which it is).
On My Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/678325747
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