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Cyber bugie
Kyla Cheng ha tutto ciò che una ragazza di diciassette anni può desiderare: è bella, a scuola è popolare, ha dei voti altissimi che le garantiranno l'accesso alle migliori università, e sta con un ragazzo da favola. Una vita perfetta, insomma. Almeno fino a quando su ConnectBook, il social network più diffuso in rete, viene condiviso un video che la mostra in atteggiamenti intimi con un suo professore. Il link diventa subito virale e la vita di Kyla è sconvolta. Poco importa se il video è un falso. In una società in cui la distanza tra ciò che siamo realmente e ciò che siamo sul web è stata azzerata, Kyla non rischia solo la sua reputazione ma anche il suo futuro. Kyla è determinata a scoprire chi ha messo online il video e perché. Nella sua ricerca della verità si scontra con hacker informatici, haters senza scrupoli, e amici che non si rivelano tali, arrivando a comprendere che la realtà è molto diversa da come appare dietro a uno schermo. Quanto è lecito condividere online? E la realtà può essere manipolata? Sono domande che ci poniamo ogni giorno e che Corrie Wang affronta con determinazione. Kyla è una ragazza come tante e quando la sua immagine online crolla, tutta la sua vita crolla con lei, con conseguenze irreparabili. La storia di Kyla ci appartiene. La seguiamo passo passo nella ricerca del suo persecutore, e insieme a lei prendiamo consapevolezza della fragilità di un mondo in cui il web sovrasta e confonde la realtà. Un mondo che è sempre più attuale.
384 pages, Hardcover
First published April 11, 2017
44 people are currently reading
3528 people want to read
About the author
Corrie Wang
2 books81 followersCorrie Wang owns and operates Jackrabbit Filly, a friendly neighborhood restaurant in Charleston, South Carolina. She is passionate about libraries, recycling, and eating all the food everywhere. Her debut novel, The Takedown, received much love from the New York Public Library and YALSA.
She and her husband, Shuai, live in a cozy yellow house with their pups, Moose and Olive. You can find out very little about her at corriewang.com or on Instagram @corrie_wang.
She and her husband, Shuai, live in a cozy yellow house with their pups, Moose and Olive. You can find out very little about her at corriewang.com or on Instagram @corrie_wang.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 298 reviews
dnf-did-not-finish
April 26, 2017DNFing for now (maybe forever?) because I really can't get into it. I can't.
It's sad because I was really intrigued and I LOVED the video I made based around it, but the book is just not capturing my attention.
It's sad because I was really intrigued and I LOVED the video I made based around it, but the book is just not capturing my attention.
May 9, 2017
4 stars
With the rise of the internet and social media in the last decade, many books focus on the lives people have online. Whether they're an Instagram star, a YouTuber, or some random person on twitter, their lives are interconnected to all forms of media from the internet. So imagine one day when something scandalous is leaked online of a person doing something bad. What would happen to them? Most people practically live on the internet and when something bad happens to them and is leaked online, it could scar them for life. There's a reason why it's called the web. Nothing can get out.
With Kyla Cheng, that's exactly what happened.
The Takedown follows Kyla as a video of her having sex with her teacher is leaked and everyone in school and practically the world knows about her and what she did. The thing is, the girl in the video isn't Kyla. Someone edited the video to make the girl look like her and her social life is crumbling as a result. She then sets out to uncover who did this and why.
Set in the new future, social media and the internet as a whole is changed drastically where pretty much anyone can know who you are just by tapping their smart pad or phone. Not only that but the expression "people live on the internet," is taken to a whole new level. And with Kyla's case, it's definitely not a good one for her.
At first, I thought the story was going to turn into one of those after-school specials about the dangers of the internet and social media. Not to say they're bad since they do offer information, but it can be cliche as well as the ending. But thankfully The Takedown wasn't like that. I felt like it was a good story with an interesting plot, setting, and characters. Mind you, it's not the best, but it's good enough to where I was entertained by the story and wanting to know what happened with Kyla.
Before I go into my review, I want to say upfront that the characters use a lot of text lingo. Like they say SHT instead of shit or something along the lines of "you and this equals sad face." It can be a bit annoying at times. It depends whether you get used to it or not.
Alrighty then, let's get on with the review!
My overall thoughts were positive. I liked the story and how it kind of delved into hacking, how the characters live their lives on the internet, and the repercussions of bad things circulating.
Even Kyla surprised me. The opening line to the book is: I'll warn you in advance. You're probably not going to like me." And that is true. Kyla is a character that you may have mixed opinions about. By no means is she a mean girl or a kind-hearted student. You could say she leans more to the kind-hearted student but still have some meanness in her. At times, she did annoy me, but sometimes I did admire her determination to not let the viral video get the best of her.
(Note: Kyla did get on my nerves on how she calls a girl a slut who is famous for posting pics of herself in lingerie. I'm more in the camp of letting people post pics of their bodies if they want to so long at they are of legal age. I don't call them sluts if they want to show off their body. Get it together, girl.)
If I had to point out the negative, it would be the text lingo (which I got used to after a while) and some miscommunication between Kyla, her friends, and her on-again-off-again love interest Mac. That's pretty much it on my negatives.
Now then, let's get on with something special! Let's talk about how some people think this book has bad stereotypes. There are some reviewers who think the rep in this book is bad that it's offensive. They point out some stuff that sounds stereotypical. To which I say: It's not that bad.
For example, there's this scene where one of Kyla's friends and another girl say:
"Konichiwa, Ailey-chan."
"Konichiwa, Senpai."
That's called being a weeaboo. Pretty much everybody who likes anime, JRPGs, and stuff like that say those things. The girls were a part of a Japanese appreciation class and they say that as like an inside joke. Not to mention if a school has a class that's about appreciating another culture, that's a good school to go to. That isn't really offensive. Hell, even I say Senpai. I would post a picture of a hot anime guy on my twitter and say: "Step on me, Senpai."
Can it be annoying? Maybe, to some. Is it offensive? Doubt it.
Next up, is Mac, the love interest. He's Mexican American and when he talks to either Kyla or his cousins, he sometimes says some Spanish words in his sentences. I mentioned this before but as someone who is Mexican-American and lives in south Texas, pretty much everyone I know speaks like that. Not all but some. My classmates do it. Even my mom does it. Like I said, not every Mexican-American is like that, but there are who use Spanish words while speaking in English. Also, Spanish is the most romantic language on Earth. Listen to a tella novella and tell me that Spanish isn't romantic. Don't speak for all Mexican-Americans like you know them. Don't say you know what's best for us when in reality, we know what's best for us.
What I'm trying to get with this is tolerance. People have different tolerance levels. In my case, I don't mind that Mac sometimes uses Spanish words while talking in English. It depends on the person who is reading it whether they think it's bad or not. Personally, I don't think it's bad.
It's called being a teenager in high school.
That's all I have to say.
Verdict
I really liked this book. It has it's problems here and there, and it might not be for everyone, but I did enjoy my time reading it.
Thanks for reading my review!
-Cesar
With the rise of the internet and social media in the last decade, many books focus on the lives people have online. Whether they're an Instagram star, a YouTuber, or some random person on twitter, their lives are interconnected to all forms of media from the internet. So imagine one day when something scandalous is leaked online of a person doing something bad. What would happen to them? Most people practically live on the internet and when something bad happens to them and is leaked online, it could scar them for life. There's a reason why it's called the web. Nothing can get out.
With Kyla Cheng, that's exactly what happened.
The Takedown follows Kyla as a video of her having sex with her teacher is leaked and everyone in school and practically the world knows about her and what she did. The thing is, the girl in the video isn't Kyla. Someone edited the video to make the girl look like her and her social life is crumbling as a result. She then sets out to uncover who did this and why.
Set in the new future, social media and the internet as a whole is changed drastically where pretty much anyone can know who you are just by tapping their smart pad or phone. Not only that but the expression "people live on the internet," is taken to a whole new level. And with Kyla's case, it's definitely not a good one for her.
At first, I thought the story was going to turn into one of those after-school specials about the dangers of the internet and social media. Not to say they're bad since they do offer information, but it can be cliche as well as the ending. But thankfully The Takedown wasn't like that. I felt like it was a good story with an interesting plot, setting, and characters. Mind you, it's not the best, but it's good enough to where I was entertained by the story and wanting to know what happened with Kyla.
Before I go into my review, I want to say upfront that the characters use a lot of text lingo. Like they say SHT instead of shit or something along the lines of "you and this equals sad face." It can be a bit annoying at times. It depends whether you get used to it or not.
Alrighty then, let's get on with the review!
My overall thoughts were positive. I liked the story and how it kind of delved into hacking, how the characters live their lives on the internet, and the repercussions of bad things circulating.
Even Kyla surprised me. The opening line to the book is: I'll warn you in advance. You're probably not going to like me." And that is true. Kyla is a character that you may have mixed opinions about. By no means is she a mean girl or a kind-hearted student. You could say she leans more to the kind-hearted student but still have some meanness in her. At times, she did annoy me, but sometimes I did admire her determination to not let the viral video get the best of her.
(Note: Kyla did get on my nerves on how she calls a girl a slut who is famous for posting pics of herself in lingerie. I'm more in the camp of letting people post pics of their bodies if they want to so long at they are of legal age. I don't call them sluts if they want to show off their body. Get it together, girl.)
If I had to point out the negative, it would be the text lingo (which I got used to after a while) and some miscommunication between Kyla, her friends, and her on-again-off-again love interest Mac. That's pretty much it on my negatives.
Now then, let's get on with something special! Let's talk about how some people think this book has bad stereotypes. There are some reviewers who think the rep in this book is bad that it's offensive. They point out some stuff that sounds stereotypical. To which I say: It's not that bad.
For example, there's this scene where one of Kyla's friends and another girl say:
"Konichiwa, Ailey-chan."
"Konichiwa, Senpai."
That's called being a weeaboo. Pretty much everybody who likes anime, JRPGs, and stuff like that say those things. The girls were a part of a Japanese appreciation class and they say that as like an inside joke. Not to mention if a school has a class that's about appreciating another culture, that's a good school to go to. That isn't really offensive. Hell, even I say Senpai. I would post a picture of a hot anime guy on my twitter and say: "Step on me, Senpai."
Can it be annoying? Maybe, to some. Is it offensive? Doubt it.
Next up, is Mac, the love interest. He's Mexican American and when he talks to either Kyla or his cousins, he sometimes says some Spanish words in his sentences. I mentioned this before but as someone who is Mexican-American and lives in south Texas, pretty much everyone I know speaks like that. Not all but some. My classmates do it. Even my mom does it. Like I said, not every Mexican-American is like that, but there are who use Spanish words while speaking in English. Also, Spanish is the most romantic language on Earth. Listen to a tella novella and tell me that Spanish isn't romantic. Don't speak for all Mexican-Americans like you know them. Don't say you know what's best for us when in reality, we know what's best for us.
What I'm trying to get with this is tolerance. People have different tolerance levels. In my case, I don't mind that Mac sometimes uses Spanish words while talking in English. It depends on the person who is reading it whether they think it's bad or not. Personally, I don't think it's bad.
It's called being a teenager in high school.
That's all I have to say.
Verdict
I really liked this book. It has it's problems here and there, and it might not be for everyone, but I did enjoy my time reading it.
Thanks for reading my review!
-Cesar
March 20, 2020
“No one would ever escape high school unscathed.”
I suppose the line above is mostly true although I honestly couldn’t be more indifferent about my entire high school experience. I even opted out of our Facebook group. Yep, my high school class, ‘Class 2002’ has a Facebook group. Lol. But this story indeed paints an intense image of how high school relationships and experiences could shape a person.
Set in a not so far future, The Takedown, is a story of a girl whose perfect life upended when a sex video of her and her teacher becomes viral earning millions and millions of views. Problem is it is not her in the video but the video didn’t look like it had undergone editing at all and that’s where the huge mystery in the story takes root.
Kyla or Kyle is at the top of her class in a prestigious private high school. Half French and half Chinese, her beauty is without equal. The guy every girl likes pines for her and she is friends with the three most popular girls in school. In short, people either hate her or want to be like her. Alas, the former is the more doable and easier choice. Somebody is definitely out to ruin her life and Kyle resolves to find the culprit.
What makes the plot even more interesting is the world Ms. Wang created. The technology, social media and even the language- they all seemed really authentic and surprisingly quite easy to adapt to and quite believable too. A world where every single thing you do even your purchases can be gleaned from online. Sounds like a pretty scary world to me. I think we should start social media detox now or else this might exactly be the world we’ll find ourselves in a few years from now.
But world building aside, the plot is also impressive and the suspense is consistent. I thought it was going to be predictable but the author did a good job on confusing me and making me look at other suspects. It’s a very gripping read really. The ending is very satisfying too and I very much appreciate the implicit morals of the story.
I suppose the line above is mostly true although I honestly couldn’t be more indifferent about my entire high school experience. I even opted out of our Facebook group. Yep, my high school class, ‘Class 2002’ has a Facebook group. Lol. But this story indeed paints an intense image of how high school relationships and experiences could shape a person.
Set in a not so far future, The Takedown, is a story of a girl whose perfect life upended when a sex video of her and her teacher becomes viral earning millions and millions of views. Problem is it is not her in the video but the video didn’t look like it had undergone editing at all and that’s where the huge mystery in the story takes root.
Kyla or Kyle is at the top of her class in a prestigious private high school. Half French and half Chinese, her beauty is without equal. The guy every girl likes pines for her and she is friends with the three most popular girls in school. In short, people either hate her or want to be like her. Alas, the former is the more doable and easier choice. Somebody is definitely out to ruin her life and Kyle resolves to find the culprit.
What makes the plot even more interesting is the world Ms. Wang created. The technology, social media and even the language- they all seemed really authentic and surprisingly quite easy to adapt to and quite believable too. A world where every single thing you do even your purchases can be gleaned from online. Sounds like a pretty scary world to me. I think we should start social media detox now or else this might exactly be the world we’ll find ourselves in a few years from now.
But world building aside, the plot is also impressive and the suspense is consistent. I thought it was going to be predictable but the author did a good job on confusing me and making me look at other suspects. It’s a very gripping read really. The ending is very satisfying too and I very much appreciate the implicit morals of the story.
April 14, 2017
Although the premise was attention-grabbing, I went into this one feeling cautious because it's not #ownvoices (the author is white and married to a Chinese American), and I DNF'd a few chapters in because of all the red flags. I posted excerpts+commentary here.
May 2, 2017
What happens when you step on one too many sets of toes? One of the IT girls at school, the brilliant and beautiful Kyla has it all and she knows it. Set many years into the future, Corrie Wang’s THE TAKEDOWN proves that high school won’t change too much through the years. Electronic gadgets are far superior, and no life is complete without a plethora was ways to communicate without actually dealing with too much face to face human contact. People talk in “computereeze.” Text short-cuts have become part of the language, but cliques never seem to change. Teen friendships are still used for political gain and true friends can be dropped on a whim.
Kyla doesn’t care if you like her or not, she says so, but what she discovers when someone starts a smear campaign against her is that people really DO need people and true friends are hard to come by. When push comes to shove, it takes a stranger to break into the social sites and give her the hater’s name. But was it a hate crime? Was the hater alone or has someone seen an opportunity to knock Kyla down a peg? Kyla is determined to find the last piece of the puzzle that has ruined her life, as she discovers that when one door slams in your face, another is just waiting to be opened.
I honestly can’t say I like all that Kyla did or said. She has a habit of treating those closest to her like disposable commodities. She was determined and strong-willed, I must say that for her!
Lots of futuristic angst, self-centered emotions and the “talk” of the times did kind of drive me crazy, making me wonder if this is the way we are headed! Corrie Wang did an excellent job being consistent with her characters, love ‘em or not, they never fell out of character! This book is going to be a hit for sure, it just wasn’t a total hit for me.
I received an ARC edition from Disney Group on exchange for my honest and voluntary review.
Publisher: Disney Hyperion (April 11, 2017)
Publication Date: April 11, 2017
Genre: YA Mystery
Print Length: 384 pages
Available from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
For Reviews & More: http://tometender.blogspot.com
Kyla doesn’t care if you like her or not, she says so, but what she discovers when someone starts a smear campaign against her is that people really DO need people and true friends are hard to come by. When push comes to shove, it takes a stranger to break into the social sites and give her the hater’s name. But was it a hate crime? Was the hater alone or has someone seen an opportunity to knock Kyla down a peg? Kyla is determined to find the last piece of the puzzle that has ruined her life, as she discovers that when one door slams in your face, another is just waiting to be opened.
I honestly can’t say I like all that Kyla did or said. She has a habit of treating those closest to her like disposable commodities. She was determined and strong-willed, I must say that for her!
Lots of futuristic angst, self-centered emotions and the “talk” of the times did kind of drive me crazy, making me wonder if this is the way we are headed! Corrie Wang did an excellent job being consistent with her characters, love ‘em or not, they never fell out of character! This book is going to be a hit for sure, it just wasn’t a total hit for me.
I received an ARC edition from Disney Group on exchange for my honest and voluntary review.
Publisher: Disney Hyperion (April 11, 2017)
Publication Date: April 11, 2017
Genre: YA Mystery
Print Length: 384 pages
Available from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
For Reviews & More: http://tometender.blogspot.com
Read
February 9, 2021(I was given an ARC for an honest review.)
This book was incredible.
Imagine yourself 50-ish years from now as a teenager. What would Facebook be like? What would Google be like? How much do you think technology would change the way we speak? How would it affect our obsession with fame and the famous? Our tolerance for a lack of privacy?
Imagine five different things you do everyday with your phones and social media. Now imagine each one of those things evolving and becoming its own monster.
Yeah.
But this doesn't read like some stuffy sci-fi allegory. At its heart, it's a story about a girl who's been caught in the cross-hairs of her beloved tech, greed, and human nature. It's about how she has to piece her life back together when the horrific happens, and how she has to learn the truth about those around her, her place among them, and her true self. And yeah, there's a boy <3
Corrie Wang's voice was refreshing and so well done that I was talking like the characters for a couple of days after. The Takedown was addicting and fun, scary and thrilling. The heroine, Kyla Cheng, claims to be an un-empathetic character right from the beginning, but the author will sneak her under your skin where she'll gnaw at you until you finish the book.
Great debut! I can't wait to see what she writes next.
This book was incredible.
Imagine yourself 50-ish years from now as a teenager. What would Facebook be like? What would Google be like? How much do you think technology would change the way we speak? How would it affect our obsession with fame and the famous? Our tolerance for a lack of privacy?
Imagine five different things you do everyday with your phones and social media. Now imagine each one of those things evolving and becoming its own monster.
Yeah.
But this doesn't read like some stuffy sci-fi allegory. At its heart, it's a story about a girl who's been caught in the cross-hairs of her beloved tech, greed, and human nature. It's about how she has to piece her life back together when the horrific happens, and how she has to learn the truth about those around her, her place among them, and her true self. And yeah, there's a boy <3
Corrie Wang's voice was refreshing and so well done that I was talking like the characters for a couple of days after. The Takedown was addicting and fun, scary and thrilling. The heroine, Kyla Cheng, claims to be an un-empathetic character right from the beginning, but the author will sneak her under your skin where she'll gnaw at you until you finish the book.
Great debut! I can't wait to see what she writes next.
Read
April 8, 2017A quick but compelling read -- reminded me of a futuristic Pretty Little Liars with a sharp, witty feel. The main characters were all pretty unlikeable mean girls, which is a risk, but I think the book pulled it off by at least helping me understand the characters even if I couldn't relate to them or like them. I was very amused by the text-slang and creative swearing.
The story did feel primarily plot driven, but did have interesting takes on female friendship, love, feminism, slut shaming, and social media. The romance was not at all the cookie cutter YA romance -- instead of classic hate to love it was kind of hate covering up love and then hate alternating with love and then "you wouldn't understand," which I thought was realistic and unexpectedly sweet.
Full review to come.
Read more of my reviews on YA Romantics or follow me on Bloglovin
The FTC would like you to know that the publisher provided me a free advance copy of this book, that free books can be enjoyable or not, and other readers may disagree with my opinion.
The story did feel primarily plot driven, but did have interesting takes on female friendship, love, feminism, slut shaming, and social media. The romance was not at all the cookie cutter YA romance -- instead of classic hate to love it was kind of hate covering up love and then hate alternating with love and then "you wouldn't understand," which I thought was realistic and unexpectedly sweet.
Full review to come.
Read more of my reviews on YA Romantics or follow me on Bloglovin
The FTC would like you to know that the publisher provided me a free advance copy of this book, that free books can be enjoyable or not, and other readers may disagree with my opinion.
October 26, 2016
The Takedown is electric and sharp, a layered look at the firewalls we place around our image, both on and off social media. Wang’s storytelling is as stylish as the future she portrays. If smart, savvy girls and edge-of-the-seat suspense is your thing, don’t let this book pass you by!
April 16, 2017
4.5/5
Corrie Wang got me with the image on the cover, initially. But then, as soon as I started reading the book, I was stunned that she told the readers immediately that we wouldn't like the protagonist. That kept me reading ....
And yeah. Ms Wang is correct. Kyla is THAT girl in her high school. Men want her; women want to BE her. But then something truly horrific happens to her. Something shameful and public--for anyone with wifi access to see. And life takes a sharp and twisty turn. The sudden and unexpected circumstances not only form the most fertile ground of a cool older-YA mystery, they further illustrate how Kyla's choices and actions--both in the years preceding this catasrophe, and the moments since it "dropped"--affect all the simultaneously-unfolding events. And they teach her more than school ever can about relationships.
A super fun, fast, GOOD mystery, with a side of important life lessons. Tough to ask for more. A solid 4.5/5
My sincere thanks to the publisher, and Ms Wang. I loved the writing. It was SO near future!
Corrie Wang got me with the image on the cover, initially. But then, as soon as I started reading the book, I was stunned that she told the readers immediately that we wouldn't like the protagonist. That kept me reading ....
And yeah. Ms Wang is correct. Kyla is THAT girl in her high school. Men want her; women want to BE her. But then something truly horrific happens to her. Something shameful and public--for anyone with wifi access to see. And life takes a sharp and twisty turn. The sudden and unexpected circumstances not only form the most fertile ground of a cool older-YA mystery, they further illustrate how Kyla's choices and actions--both in the years preceding this catasrophe, and the moments since it "dropped"--affect all the simultaneously-unfolding events. And they teach her more than school ever can about relationships.
A super fun, fast, GOOD mystery, with a side of important life lessons. Tough to ask for more. A solid 4.5/5
My sincere thanks to the publisher, and Ms Wang. I loved the writing. It was SO near future!
June 3, 2017
What I liked:
Amazing ideas about what life will be like in a not so distant future. Highly recommended for fans of Instagram and Facebook; it makes you think twice before posting anything. I also liked the language mix used by the author. I believe this is the kind of English/Spanish/Chinese/Japanese/French..... most people will be using soon .
What I didn't like so much:
I deeply disliked not only the main character but also her friends.Besides, all the technological jargon makes it sometimes difficult to understand what they are talking about.
Conclusion:
If you are curious about what the future will be like (and I mean it will be this way unless people start caring about their privacy), read it.
If you want to read about a mean girl getting what she deserves, read it.
However, if you find tech jargon, teenage jargon or the use of several languages in the same sentence off-putting, you may not be able to finish it.
www.theleisurediaries.blogspot.com
Amazing ideas about what life will be like in a not so distant future. Highly recommended for fans of Instagram and Facebook; it makes you think twice before posting anything. I also liked the language mix used by the author. I believe this is the kind of English/Spanish/Chinese/Japanese/French..... most people will be using soon .
What I didn't like so much:
I deeply disliked not only the main character but also her friends.Besides, all the technological jargon makes it sometimes difficult to understand what they are talking about.
Conclusion:
If you are curious about what the future will be like (and I mean it will be this way unless people start caring about their privacy), read it.
If you want to read about a mean girl getting what she deserves, read it.
However, if you find tech jargon, teenage jargon or the use of several languages in the same sentence off-putting, you may not be able to finish it.
www.theleisurediaries.blogspot.com
May 26, 2018
I just can't get in to this book, so many things just don't seem right or appropriate
October 7, 2016
I was lucky enough to read an ARC, and I can't say enough good things about this book. I loved it, and I'm still thinking about it a week after I put it down. The Takedown offers an edge-of-your-seat plot in a world you haven't read about before, populated by complicated characters and relationships. Mean-girl narrator Kyla Cheng warns you from the first line that you aren't going to like her, but don't believe her. No one in this book is exactly what they seem on the surface, and that's what makes it so great.
March 18, 2017
This book was absolutely unputdownable. I read it in its entirety between Christmas Eve and Christmas day because I couldn't bear to part with it. The story kept me guessing throughout and had several twists and turns along the way that were totally unexpected to me. In a lot of ways, this book reads like an episode of Black Mirror (and in a few ways, this book makes me want to totally Ron Swanson myself and go completely off the grid). It's set in a future that feels just close enough to touch but just far enough away to be intriguing, and the level of world-building Wang has done with setting does not at all feel like it's coming from a debut author.
This is my favorite YA book I've read in a long time. I would definitely read it again.
This is my favorite YA book I've read in a long time. I would definitely read it again.
October 8, 2019
ALL THE STARS!!!! This is a “me” book!! I loved the mystery mixed in with allllll the drama. I loved the future world and technology— and even the made-up lingo that the characters speak. Love, love, love this book.
You know how every now and again you start reading a book, and right from the start you can tell it is a "you" book?? Those reading moments are so special, and if you're anything like me, they only come along once in a while. This book was a breath of fresh air for me. Sure, I've read books recently that I've really loved, but none of them were completely perfect for me. This one was!!
THE TAKEDOWN was a cross of BEFORE I FALL with THE THOUSANDTH FLOOR. It was high school dynamics/drama and a mystery set in a future world-- and I think the futuristic part of this book was my favorite part. I loved reading about the technology and the way New York changed. I even loved the slang that the future teens used (I usually hate made up slang, but I thought it worked here).
Kyla is just a typical straight A, popular girl until a sex video of her and a teacher is put on her school's website!! Except IT ISN'T HER!! It looks like her, exactly like her, but she swears it isn't her. Proving it will also force Kyla to find out exactly WHO hates her enough to make such a sophisticated fake. Is it a friend? A known enemy? Someone lurking in the shadows? And how can she make anyone believe her while the video views climb higher and higher?
It was page-turning going on the journey with Kyla. Her friends are all suspects, her enemies are many, and the futuristic technology made everything so invasive and creepy!! I just loved the hell out of this story.
Kyla Cheng was the perfect main character to carry a book like this. She's a little naive, a little bit innocent, but also completely responsible for some bad behavior and unlikable in her own ways. I am nothing like Kyla as a person, she's very type A and not a risk taker, but I totally found myself relating to her and wanting her to persevere. I know that's good writing because type A goody-goodies are usually not my jam.
My fave parts: The family and friend dynamics. I really liked how close Kyla's family was, but that she was still feeling a disconnect from her mom and how that was effecting her despite everything she had going on. Kyla's friends were horrible but also not?? Thats where I was getting the BEFORE I FALL vibes. And the love interest was cute, but also a little too good to be true in my opinion.
OVERALL: YES!! 1 million times YES!!! I could read a book like this every day of the year and never get bored. It's hard to even think of who to recommend this to because it was such a ME book, but I think all YA fans should like this.
My Blog:
Pink Polka Dot Books
You know how every now and again you start reading a book, and right from the start you can tell it is a "you" book?? Those reading moments are so special, and if you're anything like me, they only come along once in a while. This book was a breath of fresh air for me. Sure, I've read books recently that I've really loved, but none of them were completely perfect for me. This one was!!
THE TAKEDOWN was a cross of BEFORE I FALL with THE THOUSANDTH FLOOR. It was high school dynamics/drama and a mystery set in a future world-- and I think the futuristic part of this book was my favorite part. I loved reading about the technology and the way New York changed. I even loved the slang that the future teens used (I usually hate made up slang, but I thought it worked here).
Kyla is just a typical straight A, popular girl until a sex video of her and a teacher is put on her school's website!! Except IT ISN'T HER!! It looks like her, exactly like her, but she swears it isn't her. Proving it will also force Kyla to find out exactly WHO hates her enough to make such a sophisticated fake. Is it a friend? A known enemy? Someone lurking in the shadows? And how can she make anyone believe her while the video views climb higher and higher?
It was page-turning going on the journey with Kyla. Her friends are all suspects, her enemies are many, and the futuristic technology made everything so invasive and creepy!! I just loved the hell out of this story.
Kyla Cheng was the perfect main character to carry a book like this. She's a little naive, a little bit innocent, but also completely responsible for some bad behavior and unlikable in her own ways. I am nothing like Kyla as a person, she's very type A and not a risk taker, but I totally found myself relating to her and wanting her to persevere. I know that's good writing because type A goody-goodies are usually not my jam.
My fave parts: The family and friend dynamics. I really liked how close Kyla's family was, but that she was still feeling a disconnect from her mom and how that was effecting her despite everything she had going on. Kyla's friends were horrible but also not?? Thats where I was getting the BEFORE I FALL vibes. And the love interest was cute, but also a little too good to be true in my opinion.
OVERALL: YES!! 1 million times YES!!! I could read a book like this every day of the year and never get bored. It's hard to even think of who to recommend this to because it was such a ME book, but I think all YA fans should like this.
My Blog:
Pink Polka Dot Books
April 4, 2017
This was a very obnoxious book. I couldn't make it past page 31. The text slang, abbreviations, and made up words for technology not explained was very hard to deal with. I got annoyed within a few pages and couldn't STAND the shallow nature of the characters. Even if they got better, it wouldn't be worth dealing with the writing.
I can see how some readers could like it; it's just not for me. When I pick up a book, I want proper English used.
I can see how some readers could like it; it's just not for me. When I pick up a book, I want proper English used.
October 27, 2018
Review to come!
March 26, 2018
Let me start off by saying this book it utter garbage.
Oops, did I come on too strong? Well, so did absolutely everything about this book.
Kyla Cheng, a half-Chinese teenager who, so trendily, goes by "Kyle" juuust like her brother does ("boy-Kyle and Kyle, as friends and family so cutely verbally distinguish), is caught in the sex scandal of the century when a video of her and a teacher goes viral. For some reason, millions of people watch and give a shit about watching two people they don't know have sex without any explicit rating warning, etc. if this is a futuristic tech-savvy world, how would adolescents be allowed to even access this? I digress.
"Kyle" is a pretty, smart, popular girl who upfront plays the pity card and says you won't like her. She's right. I didn't. Mostly because she consistently felt sorry for herself and spent nearly 300 pages walking in circles, using some of the worst lingo I've ever read and being pretty much a needy little brat. She has the all-caps PERFECT girl squad (one of the girls' name is Fawn, naturally. I waited for a sister named Bambi but no such luck) who have her back, then don't, then do, then don't, then- You know by this point I don't know how even the author cares anymore. They were all pretty little liars. Superficial, stupid (save Sharma), and pretty pretty pretty. Yay them!
The writing is horrific. The lingo, absurd and painful. "Txt" "FCK" and "Skool"were some of the platinum hits. I know it's "futuristic", but I don't understand how that would affect the way these words are written? Plus the "all-caps ANNOYING" way this was inserted on to 1/3 pages really started to melt my brain. Why do these people feel the need to spell and literally say "all-caps" EVERY few sentences? And everything "equals" something else. "My mom equals angry" "She equals frowny face"
Melissa equals annoyed, confused, and exhausted trying to figure out this damn book.
The length is pretty crazy too, considering it didn't really lead anywhere. You can skip full chapters and not miss a thing, because nothing's really happening. Oh, this has to be the "hater"! Nope, just kidding. This girl has to be it! Nope, just kidding. It's like a monster-of-the-week special thirty times over. If it wasn't for you kids and your meddling dog!- oops, wrong story.
Kyle is all about being the next president. She wants to empower women, hurray! And yet....
And yet she continuously refers to a girl who has a blog about lingerie as a "slut." Even after finding out who the "B&P slut" is, she never actually seems to change her position. Suuuuper hypocritical of a girl who acts like she's all for women holding and embracing their own power, don't you think?
And finally, the most offensive subject matter of this book. Corrie Wang, a white woman who's lived the majority (if not all) her life in America, wrote this book in the perspective of a half-Chinese girl. I could live with that, considering there was nothing too horribly offensive.
Mac, Kyle's kind-of boyfriend, however, couldn't seem to speak without adding some really stereotypical Spanish in every sentence.
I'm confused.
Does Corrie Wang believe all people of Mexican/Latin/Spanish descent can't speak English without adding Spanish? Does she honestly believe we have to intrinsically add and make apparent our heritage every single sentence, every day, all the time? And how about the fact that he's the only one who skips school and doesn't seem to give a shit about his education? Kyle and Sharma, who's noted as Indian (but has a Jamaican accent when she's mad. "It's adorable," Kyle comments) are obviously very smart, but the two white girls, namely Fawn, are definitely marked as all-caps NOT. I really hated the stereotypes. I feel like a woman who has no experience in other cultures other than running an untraditional Japanese food truck would do well not to step on every wrong note in the spectrum of ethnicity.
I hated this book. Really, greatly loathed it. I feel like I leave a lot of negative reviews, but this one really took the cake. I didn't even get to the absurd storyline. Just pass it on and move on.
Oops, did I come on too strong? Well, so did absolutely everything about this book.
Kyla Cheng, a half-Chinese teenager who, so trendily, goes by "Kyle" juuust like her brother does ("boy-Kyle and Kyle, as friends and family so cutely verbally distinguish), is caught in the sex scandal of the century when a video of her and a teacher goes viral. For some reason, millions of people watch and give a shit about watching two people they don't know have sex without any explicit rating warning, etc. if this is a futuristic tech-savvy world, how would adolescents be allowed to even access this? I digress.
"Kyle" is a pretty, smart, popular girl who upfront plays the pity card and says you won't like her. She's right. I didn't. Mostly because she consistently felt sorry for herself and spent nearly 300 pages walking in circles, using some of the worst lingo I've ever read and being pretty much a needy little brat. She has the all-caps PERFECT girl squad (one of the girls' name is Fawn, naturally. I waited for a sister named Bambi but no such luck) who have her back, then don't, then do, then don't, then- You know by this point I don't know how even the author cares anymore. They were all pretty little liars. Superficial, stupid (save Sharma), and pretty pretty pretty. Yay them!
The writing is horrific. The lingo, absurd and painful. "Txt" "FCK" and "Skool"were some of the platinum hits. I know it's "futuristic", but I don't understand how that would affect the way these words are written? Plus the "all-caps ANNOYING" way this was inserted on to 1/3 pages really started to melt my brain. Why do these people feel the need to spell and literally say "all-caps" EVERY few sentences? And everything "equals" something else. "My mom equals angry" "She equals frowny face"
Melissa equals annoyed, confused, and exhausted trying to figure out this damn book.
The length is pretty crazy too, considering it didn't really lead anywhere. You can skip full chapters and not miss a thing, because nothing's really happening. Oh, this has to be the "hater"! Nope, just kidding. This girl has to be it! Nope, just kidding. It's like a monster-of-the-week special thirty times over. If it wasn't for you kids and your meddling dog!- oops, wrong story.
Kyle is all about being the next president. She wants to empower women, hurray! And yet....
And yet she continuously refers to a girl who has a blog about lingerie as a "slut." Even after finding out who the "B&P slut" is, she never actually seems to change her position. Suuuuper hypocritical of a girl who acts like she's all for women holding and embracing their own power, don't you think?
And finally, the most offensive subject matter of this book. Corrie Wang, a white woman who's lived the majority (if not all) her life in America, wrote this book in the perspective of a half-Chinese girl. I could live with that, considering there was nothing too horribly offensive.
Mac, Kyle's kind-of boyfriend, however, couldn't seem to speak without adding some really stereotypical Spanish in every sentence.
I'm confused.
Does Corrie Wang believe all people of Mexican/Latin/Spanish descent can't speak English without adding Spanish? Does she honestly believe we have to intrinsically add and make apparent our heritage every single sentence, every day, all the time? And how about the fact that he's the only one who skips school and doesn't seem to give a shit about his education? Kyle and Sharma, who's noted as Indian (but has a Jamaican accent when she's mad. "It's adorable," Kyle comments) are obviously very smart, but the two white girls, namely Fawn, are definitely marked as all-caps NOT. I really hated the stereotypes. I feel like a woman who has no experience in other cultures other than running an untraditional Japanese food truck would do well not to step on every wrong note in the spectrum of ethnicity.
I hated this book. Really, greatly loathed it. I feel like I leave a lot of negative reviews, but this one really took the cake. I didn't even get to the absurd storyline. Just pass it on and move on.
March 27, 2017
From the opening lines where the narrator warns us that she's an unlikeable character, I was hooked on this story. It is packed with action, suspense, and serves as a cautionary tale about digital citizenship.
Kyle Cheng is part of a group of four popular senior girls attending a prep school in Brooklyn, New York. According to her, "... I did always say there were only two ways to emerge from high school. Scarred or Worshipped." Although the story begins with her in the "worshipped" category, it quickly moves to "scarred" as someone posts a video online of Kyle's hot, young English teacher and a student (Kyle's face), acting very inappropriately in the English classroom.
As Kyle works to convince those closest to her that it's not really her in the video, it tests not only her friendships and her relationship with her family but also her plans for the future as someone submits her college applications prematurely and her online profile is forever linked with the inappropriate video. Although the content is definitely for mature teen readers, there is a valuable message about friendship, not believing everything you see online, and the suggestion that the use of technology in our society can go so far as to invade our need for privacy.
Here is a favorite quote from the book regarding individual thoughts about a book versus information researched from other sources. "I hope I never see a day when 'collected knowledge' trumps an individual's visceral emotions... Knowledge needs a source. Or else there's no way of differentiating guerrilla propaganda from true learnedness." (location 216)
I read a digital ARC courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley.
Kyle Cheng is part of a group of four popular senior girls attending a prep school in Brooklyn, New York. According to her, "... I did always say there were only two ways to emerge from high school. Scarred or Worshipped." Although the story begins with her in the "worshipped" category, it quickly moves to "scarred" as someone posts a video online of Kyle's hot, young English teacher and a student (Kyle's face), acting very inappropriately in the English classroom.
As Kyle works to convince those closest to her that it's not really her in the video, it tests not only her friendships and her relationship with her family but also her plans for the future as someone submits her college applications prematurely and her online profile is forever linked with the inappropriate video. Although the content is definitely for mature teen readers, there is a valuable message about friendship, not believing everything you see online, and the suggestion that the use of technology in our society can go so far as to invade our need for privacy.
Here is a favorite quote from the book regarding individual thoughts about a book versus information researched from other sources. "I hope I never see a day when 'collected knowledge' trumps an individual's visceral emotions... Knowledge needs a source. Or else there's no way of differentiating guerrilla propaganda from true learnedness." (location 216)
I read a digital ARC courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley.
February 16, 2017
Full review to come later but here's my first impressions:
It's a super fast read. I was so into uncovering who was behind Kyle's take down that I hated that real life got in the way of my reading. I liked that Kyle was flawed in realistic ways. I liked that all the characters were complicated, and that friendships and relationships were portrayed for the crazy mess they can be. I liked that while it was set in the near-ish future and full of technology, it wasn't unrecognizable.
Here's what kept it from being a 5 star- Kyle's constant use of Slut or Skank. I get that it's kind of part of her journey, but I wish the ending had included some hint that she was done with the hypocrisy of slut-shaming. Also, I'd like to think that slut-shaming will not be part of the future... but who am I trying to kid?
My final verdict is that this is such a readable YA mystery. The main character is flawed, and there are things I loved about her and things I disliked- which made her a lot more human than most heroines. Loved the futuristic NYC setting, loved the diverse and interesting characters, loved how much I flip flopped over whodunit, and loved the drama and mystery.
It's a super fast read. I was so into uncovering who was behind Kyle's take down that I hated that real life got in the way of my reading. I liked that Kyle was flawed in realistic ways. I liked that all the characters were complicated, and that friendships and relationships were portrayed for the crazy mess they can be. I liked that while it was set in the near-ish future and full of technology, it wasn't unrecognizable.
Here's what kept it from being a 5 star- Kyle's constant use of Slut or Skank. I get that it's kind of part of her journey, but I wish the ending had included some hint that she was done with the hypocrisy of slut-shaming. Also, I'd like to think that slut-shaming will not be part of the future... but who am I trying to kid?
My final verdict is that this is such a readable YA mystery. The main character is flawed, and there are things I loved about her and things I disliked- which made her a lot more human than most heroines. Loved the futuristic NYC setting, loved the diverse and interesting characters, loved how much I flip flopped over whodunit, and loved the drama and mystery.
February 7, 2017
This book is the perfect mix of Gossip Girl and "Feed" by MT Anderson, with a great thriller and romance mixed in.
I have a feeling that in a few years a lot of the tech the author dreamed up will be all too true. It's so well done that I often forgot it was set in the near future.
While I don't often enjoy unsympathetic narrators, I loved how the author sets the stage and then gets us to like her main character more and more as the character grows and becomes more humble.
I think the friendships are very realistic and rich with the kind of politics and tension that comes with being a teenage girl.
Overall, I would highly recommend this book.
I have a feeling that in a few years a lot of the tech the author dreamed up will be all too true. It's so well done that I often forgot it was set in the near future.
While I don't often enjoy unsympathetic narrators, I loved how the author sets the stage and then gets us to like her main character more and more as the character grows and becomes more humble.
I think the friendships are very realistic and rich with the kind of politics and tension that comes with being a teenage girl.
Overall, I would highly recommend this book.
Read
April 6, 2017Overall, I liked this book. There were things I liked, and things I didn't, but overall it's solid.
The Good: At its core, The Takedown is a futuristic novel about modern feminism. A cyber terrorist creates a video using Kyla's image allegedly having sex with her teacher. To read more of this review, and to see an unboxing by Elizziebooks click here.
The Good: At its core, The Takedown is a futuristic novel about modern feminism. A cyber terrorist creates a video using Kyla's image allegedly having sex with her teacher. To read more of this review, and to see an unboxing by Elizziebooks click here.
October 15, 2016
This is one of my favorite books that I have read in a long time. I absolutely loved it. The voice is fantastic, and the world building is amazing. The author imagines a near future that is startlingly plausible. And (even though she didn't think I would) I loved the main character Kyle. Highly recommended.
April 10, 2017
Goodreads synopsis:
"Kyla Cheng doesn't expect you to like her. For the record, she doesn't need you to. On track to be valedictorian, she's president of her community club, a debate team champ, plus the yummy Mackenzie Rodriguez has firmly attached himself to her hip. She and her three high-powered best friends don't just own their senior year at their exclusive Park Slope, Brooklyn high school, they practically define the hated species Popular. Kyla's even managed to make it through high school completely unscathed.
Until someone takes issue with this arrangement.
A week before college applications are due, a video of Kyla "doing it" with her crush-worthy English teacher is uploaded to her school's website. It instantly goes viral, but here's the thing: it's not Kyla in the video. With time running out, Kyla delves into a world of hackers, haters and creepy stalkers in an attempt to do the impossible-take something off the internet-all while dealing with the fallout from her own karmic footprint. Set in near-future Brooklyn, where privacy is a bygone luxury and every perfect profile masks damning secrets, The Takedown is a stylish, propulsive, and provocative whodunit, asking who would you rely on if your tech turned against you?"
* * *
As you can tell from the Goodreads synopsis, The Takedown is an intriguing read about how difficult it can be to remove something life-changing from the Internet. This fascinating novel brings to mind a lot of questions about our use of technology. Although Kylie is living sometime in the future (the book doesn't give a date, but mid-late 2000's seems to be a good guess), it is all too easy to imagine her issues as our own. Kylie lives in a world where social media isn't just another fancy option--it's a way of life (and yes, I realize we are quickly moving that direction!). People are glued to their "Docs," and constantly browsing sites like "Connect Book," "YurTube," etc.. However, the technology in this story has progressed to where you are automatically tagged in anything with your face and you cannot permanently untag yourself. (Creepy, right?) This book especially calls out that fine print that we almost never read before hitting the "accept" box. It's so easy to sign away our rights without giving it a second thought!
Pros:
This book is unlike any other tech-crazy book I have ever read! Not only is it realistic with its approach to technology (some books are just too far-fetched to be relatable), it's a MYSTERY book. You can bet this makes for an interesting genre combination. ;) I'm no computer geek, but the unpredictable plot twists in The Takedown had me reading this book in just two sittings.
As I mentioned above--and I think it merits noting again--this book was realistic. The technology wasn't anything I couldn't easily imagine happening sometime in the near(ish) future. No hovercrafts or whatnot. This made it far easier for me to sympathize with Kylie's issues. I always find it difficult to empathize with a character whose world seems ridiculously fictitious.
Throughout the book, you discover that Kylie is an extremely complicated character. Like all people, she is quite the cocktail of good and bad, kind and (unintentionally-but-nonetheless) cruel, understanding and unfeeling, etc.. Although she has "friends," the video scandal forces her to reevaluate those friendships. I think we all can agree that social media has drastically changed how we create and maintain friendships, and not necessarily for the better...
The writing style of this book is actually kind of hilarious. Half the time, it's like you're reading someone's texts. ("O-M-G! That dress!") Other times, well... "All caps, WOW." Yep, the author writes like that. However, it just adds flavor to the text--there isn't enough thrown in to hinder the reading process.
Cons:
This is sort of a tough one for me. See, there were some parts of the book (regarding Kylie's friends) that made me (and Kylie, haha) more than a little uncomfortable. However, it's a bit hard to explain in a book review. See, it's the sort of thing where I'd have to write an entire 15-page essay explaining exactly why I personally objected to it and in what conditions those particular objections apply. Complicated, right? Soooooo if you read all of this review (including the breakdown at the end) and are concerned about something, you're welcome to shoot me an email and I'll give you a more detailed idea of what bothered me! But I'll say here that it was nothing explicit and nothing I think most parents would necessarily object to their mid-older teens reading. (And you know I tend to be picky there!) It was more of a personal thing.
* * *
Overall, I would recommend this book to all you geeks. ;) It wasn't my favorite book (I'm not a geek, remember!) but I definitely enjoyed it. I found The Takedown to be intriguing, well-written, and relatable. Definition of a well-rounded 4 star novel! :)
Content (10= extremely high focus; 0=non existent):
Adventure content: 5
Creepiness content: 4
Grief content: 3
Language content: 4
Religion content: 2
Romance content: 4
Sexual content: 6
Violence content: 1
"Kyla Cheng doesn't expect you to like her. For the record, she doesn't need you to. On track to be valedictorian, she's president of her community club, a debate team champ, plus the yummy Mackenzie Rodriguez has firmly attached himself to her hip. She and her three high-powered best friends don't just own their senior year at their exclusive Park Slope, Brooklyn high school, they practically define the hated species Popular. Kyla's even managed to make it through high school completely unscathed.
Until someone takes issue with this arrangement.
A week before college applications are due, a video of Kyla "doing it" with her crush-worthy English teacher is uploaded to her school's website. It instantly goes viral, but here's the thing: it's not Kyla in the video. With time running out, Kyla delves into a world of hackers, haters and creepy stalkers in an attempt to do the impossible-take something off the internet-all while dealing with the fallout from her own karmic footprint. Set in near-future Brooklyn, where privacy is a bygone luxury and every perfect profile masks damning secrets, The Takedown is a stylish, propulsive, and provocative whodunit, asking who would you rely on if your tech turned against you?"
* * *
As you can tell from the Goodreads synopsis, The Takedown is an intriguing read about how difficult it can be to remove something life-changing from the Internet. This fascinating novel brings to mind a lot of questions about our use of technology. Although Kylie is living sometime in the future (the book doesn't give a date, but mid-late 2000's seems to be a good guess), it is all too easy to imagine her issues as our own. Kylie lives in a world where social media isn't just another fancy option--it's a way of life (and yes, I realize we are quickly moving that direction!). People are glued to their "Docs," and constantly browsing sites like "Connect Book," "YurTube," etc.. However, the technology in this story has progressed to where you are automatically tagged in anything with your face and you cannot permanently untag yourself. (Creepy, right?) This book especially calls out that fine print that we almost never read before hitting the "accept" box. It's so easy to sign away our rights without giving it a second thought!
Pros:
This book is unlike any other tech-crazy book I have ever read! Not only is it realistic with its approach to technology (some books are just too far-fetched to be relatable), it's a MYSTERY book. You can bet this makes for an interesting genre combination. ;) I'm no computer geek, but the unpredictable plot twists in The Takedown had me reading this book in just two sittings.
As I mentioned above--and I think it merits noting again--this book was realistic. The technology wasn't anything I couldn't easily imagine happening sometime in the near(ish) future. No hovercrafts or whatnot. This made it far easier for me to sympathize with Kylie's issues. I always find it difficult to empathize with a character whose world seems ridiculously fictitious.
Throughout the book, you discover that Kylie is an extremely complicated character. Like all people, she is quite the cocktail of good and bad, kind and (unintentionally-but-nonetheless) cruel, understanding and unfeeling, etc.. Although she has "friends," the video scandal forces her to reevaluate those friendships. I think we all can agree that social media has drastically changed how we create and maintain friendships, and not necessarily for the better...
The writing style of this book is actually kind of hilarious. Half the time, it's like you're reading someone's texts. ("O-M-G! That dress!") Other times, well... "All caps, WOW." Yep, the author writes like that. However, it just adds flavor to the text--there isn't enough thrown in to hinder the reading process.
Cons:
This is sort of a tough one for me. See, there were some parts of the book (regarding Kylie's friends) that made me (and Kylie, haha) more than a little uncomfortable. However, it's a bit hard to explain in a book review. See, it's the sort of thing where I'd have to write an entire 15-page essay explaining exactly why I personally objected to it and in what conditions those particular objections apply. Complicated, right? Soooooo if you read all of this review (including the breakdown at the end) and are concerned about something, you're welcome to shoot me an email and I'll give you a more detailed idea of what bothered me! But I'll say here that it was nothing explicit and nothing I think most parents would necessarily object to their mid-older teens reading. (And you know I tend to be picky there!) It was more of a personal thing.
* * *
Overall, I would recommend this book to all you geeks. ;) It wasn't my favorite book (I'm not a geek, remember!) but I definitely enjoyed it. I found The Takedown to be intriguing, well-written, and relatable. Definition of a well-rounded 4 star novel! :)
Content (10= extremely high focus; 0=non existent):
Adventure content: 5
Creepiness content: 4
Grief content: 3
Language content: 4
Religion content: 2
Romance content: 4
Sexual content: 6
Violence content: 1
April 7, 2017
3.75 stars.
I received an ebook for review from Netgalley.
I quite enjoyed this book, especially seeing Corrie Wang's take on technology in the future, showing us what life might be like once we are completely dependent on technology for anything and everything. It also shows us how public everyone's lives most likely will become, considering where we are today.
Wow, I think this is the first book with a Chinese-American main character since I read The Great Wall of Lucy Wu back in middle school (that's a great book, by the way, you should go read it). Even though the book isn't mainly focused on her culture, it was still there, and interesting to hear about. I did think Kyla (the main character) was more than a bit arrogant and stuck up, and although I could handle that, I got fed up real quick with her calling every girl a slut (especially the b&p girl. There were only so many times I could read "that b&p slut" before I wanted to rip out my hair). I also really liked Sharma, because she was such a badass hacker. I mean sure, she was involved in some things, but still, I'd love to learn computers like she does. I don't really remember enough about the rest of the girls (I just read it yesterday) to have much to say about them.
I really enjoyed the plot, it was fast moving and I couldn't stop reading (and that's saying something, I haven't finished a book in forever, and I finished this in a day). There were so many twists and turns, and I was only able to guess little things that were going to happen. I do wish the love thing was cut out, because honestly I couldn't care less about "Macky." What an awful name, I feel sorry for the kid. There was a bit too much friendship drama for my liking. I mean, can't we get some supportive girl friendships here?
But yes, overall I enjoyed it.
I received an ebook for review from Netgalley.
I quite enjoyed this book, especially seeing Corrie Wang's take on technology in the future, showing us what life might be like once we are completely dependent on technology for anything and everything. It also shows us how public everyone's lives most likely will become, considering where we are today.
Wow, I think this is the first book with a Chinese-American main character since I read The Great Wall of Lucy Wu back in middle school (that's a great book, by the way, you should go read it). Even though the book isn't mainly focused on her culture, it was still there, and interesting to hear about. I did think Kyla (the main character) was more than a bit arrogant and stuck up, and although I could handle that, I got fed up real quick with her calling every girl a slut (especially the b&p girl. There were only so many times I could read "that b&p slut" before I wanted to rip out my hair). I also really liked Sharma, because she was such a badass hacker. I mean sure, she was involved in some things, but still, I'd love to learn computers like she does. I don't really remember enough about the rest of the girls (I just read it yesterday) to have much to say about them.
I really enjoyed the plot, it was fast moving and I couldn't stop reading (and that's saying something, I haven't finished a book in forever, and I finished this in a day). There were so many twists and turns, and I was only able to guess little things that were going to happen. I do wish the love thing was cut out, because honestly I couldn't care less about "Macky." What an awful name, I feel sorry for the kid. There was a bit too much friendship drama for my liking. I mean, can't we get some supportive girl friendships here?
But yes, overall I enjoyed it.
March 30, 2017
Thank to you NetGalley and Freeform for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
"The thing about high school was it all felt so personal. Every slight felt specifically, solely crafted for you. And the only thing worse than your 'unique' agony was the belief that no one else had to deal with anything as bad."
There is much to like *and* think about in this fast-paced book. Whip-smart dialogue and characters a la Mean Girls, interesting technology set in the near future (and its impact on people's lives) and an introduction to concepts of feminism and teen girls' use of their sexuality.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book because it was an easy YA read (the jargon is especially entertaining) but also because of the many ways it made me think about my own high school experience (small actions have big consequences) and my ideas of teen feminism/self-expression (what is the line between being proud of your body and being inappropriate and why does society label girls sluts/skanks in doing so).
Sure, there's the tired trope of hot yet emotionally advanced teen boy who professes his love for the main character on the daily (look, a unicorn!) and I found myself getting slightly ragey at the idea that this strong, successful, intelligent, beautiful girl should be feel bad about how she's taken control of her life (this character assassination almost never pigeonholes boys the same way) but those are fairly minor critiques in the midst of some pretty powerful themes. Such a clever imagining of where technology/social media is taking us (both realistic and scary) and a flawed but compelling main character made for a highly entertaining read. Oh, and of course the reader is taken along for the ride, trying to figure out just who did make the video.
A strong entry into YA - sophisticated, astute, captivating and thought-provoking.
"The thing about high school was it all felt so personal. Every slight felt specifically, solely crafted for you. And the only thing worse than your 'unique' agony was the belief that no one else had to deal with anything as bad."
There is much to like *and* think about in this fast-paced book. Whip-smart dialogue and characters a la Mean Girls, interesting technology set in the near future (and its impact on people's lives) and an introduction to concepts of feminism and teen girls' use of their sexuality.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book because it was an easy YA read (the jargon is especially entertaining) but also because of the many ways it made me think about my own high school experience (small actions have big consequences) and my ideas of teen feminism/self-expression (what is the line between being proud of your body and being inappropriate and why does society label girls sluts/skanks in doing so).
Sure, there's the tired trope of hot yet emotionally advanced teen boy who professes his love for the main character on the daily (look, a unicorn!) and I found myself getting slightly ragey at the idea that this strong, successful, intelligent, beautiful girl should be feel bad about how she's taken control of her life (this character assassination almost never pigeonholes boys the same way) but those are fairly minor critiques in the midst of some pretty powerful themes. Such a clever imagining of where technology/social media is taking us (both realistic and scary) and a flawed but compelling main character made for a highly entertaining read. Oh, and of course the reader is taken along for the ride, trying to figure out just who did make the video.
A strong entry into YA - sophisticated, astute, captivating and thought-provoking.
March 2, 2020
Really liked this YA read!!
Popular girl, Kyla, gets basically cyberbullied by a posted fake video of her. From there her life spirals down down down. Do you really know who your friends really are? Do they tell you everything? Did one of them post the video?
Kind of reminded me of the friendships I had when I was in highschool. Being close one year, then the next drifting apart, making new friends ,just like in this read.
Popular girl, Kyla, gets basically cyberbullied by a posted fake video of her. From there her life spirals down down down. Do you really know who your friends really are? Do they tell you everything? Did one of them post the video?
Kind of reminded me of the friendships I had when I was in highschool. Being close one year, then the next drifting apart, making new friends ,just like in this read.
March 17, 2017
Arc provided by netgalley for an honest review
I personally didn't connect to this book, the storyline and the author's writing style did not work for me. The author uses text messages throughout her story and so many different tech terms that are very hard to grasp and understand. While I'm not normally really picky, on things like this, but in this story not fully explaining the terms hurts the plot. The storyline is hard to follow and the character development that I like to see in books is lacking a bit. With that said, I would definitely still recommend this book to the appropriate reader. A reader who likes sci-fi, ya, drama, and social media. This book will definitely connect to today's teenagers that live viciously through social media.
I personally didn't connect to this book, the storyline and the author's writing style did not work for me. The author uses text messages throughout her story and so many different tech terms that are very hard to grasp and understand. While I'm not normally really picky, on things like this, but in this story not fully explaining the terms hurts the plot. The storyline is hard to follow and the character development that I like to see in books is lacking a bit. With that said, I would definitely still recommend this book to the appropriate reader. A reader who likes sci-fi, ya, drama, and social media. This book will definitely connect to today's teenagers that live viciously through social media.
September 13, 2017
ARG.
I there were so many things I love about this book: the non-labeled romance, how complicated female friendships can become when you are trying to find out who you are, how every one of us can be the bully, how sexual allegations have more than one victim, bondings with parents, social constrains towards female sexuality, social media and user rights - there were so many complex issues happening here, and I loved that they were embraced and discussed in the novel.
But I cannot overlook a book that just used skank and slut so freely (towards males and females) without facing the consequences of using such titles. It seemed to undermine a lot of what the book was preaching. That was not resolved and was dismissed.
I would have give this one the full five stars, but I'm not overlooking that issue lightly. There was a lot of slut shaming, and it was just brushed off when there was so much resolved by the end.
I there were so many things I love about this book: the non-labeled romance, how complicated female friendships can become when you are trying to find out who you are, how every one of us can be the bully, how sexual allegations have more than one victim, bondings with parents, social constrains towards female sexuality, social media and user rights - there were so many complex issues happening here, and I loved that they were embraced and discussed in the novel.
But I cannot overlook a book that just used skank and slut so freely (towards males and females) without facing the consequences of using such titles. It seemed to undermine a lot of what the book was preaching. That was not resolved and was dismissed.
I would have give this one the full five stars, but I'm not overlooking that issue lightly. There was a lot of slut shaming, and it was just brushed off when there was so much resolved by the end.
did-not-finish
March 21, 2018dnf at page 64, right after "I can no puedo see you." Seriously. There's a lot of random Spanish, and there is a character who speaks it, but mostly I think it's trying to do what Firefly did with Chinese? Which also didn't work, but mostly because Joss Whedon loves Asian things but not Asians.
I like the idea of this book, and I like that it's diverse, and I was really looking forward to a discussion on slut shaming, but wow is it aggressive with all the references to YurTube and ConnectBook and other such winks, and they really take away from the story. 65 pages in and it's pretty much all exposition and then finally the beginning of the scandal, which is not as much of a !!!! because it's nested within all that "and here is the history of how we got to this point in the near future." Nope nope nope. I was so looking forward to it too. Le sigh.
I like the idea of this book, and I like that it's diverse, and I was really looking forward to a discussion on slut shaming, but wow is it aggressive with all the references to YurTube and ConnectBook and other such winks, and they really take away from the story. 65 pages in and it's pretty much all exposition and then finally the beginning of the scandal, which is not as much of a !!!! because it's nested within all that "and here is the history of how we got to this point in the near future." Nope nope nope. I was so looking forward to it too. Le sigh.
April 21, 2017
ORIGINAL POST: http://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-r...
**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**
The Take Down by Corrie Wang instantly reminded me of Mean Girls meets Pretty Little Liars with a slight bump to the near future. This novel sounded intriquing and suspenseful, two of my favorite qualities to find in a book.
The Takedown follows Kyla as she maneuvers her life of college applications, holding space in the mean girls, popular crowd, boys, and more. Unfortunately for her someone is out to get her. From moment one in this book you can feel the tension building. You know something is happening, but you aren't sure what. It almost seems too obvious, but I found myself on the edge of my seat waiting to see what it was and how it was going to effect everyone. In this case, the ripple effect from the first incident is tragic for Kyla. She watches helpless as her life starts to fall apart.
I found myself hating Kyla and her friends, but also caring for them. I didn't want to see all these horrible things happening to them, but I felt that some was karma building up and overflowing. I kept guessing who could be behind it and I was pleasantly surprised when I found out who. The characters Wang developed were strong, multi-layered, and fun to read about. They really drew you in. I also loved that on top of the main story line, there were other side mysteries going on. It gave a depth to this novel that most are missing. The only thing that bothered me was the way the teenagers talked to each other in "IM" speak. It was distracting at times, but this was minor enough to not effect the overall enjoyment of the story. Plus I think it was part of the point of the futuristic, obsession with technology.
This book is perfect for young adults, teenagers, or anyone looking for a suspenseful, thoroughly enjoyable read then pick up The Takedown. You won't regret it.
**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**
The Take Down by Corrie Wang instantly reminded me of Mean Girls meets Pretty Little Liars with a slight bump to the near future. This novel sounded intriquing and suspenseful, two of my favorite qualities to find in a book.
The Takedown follows Kyla as she maneuvers her life of college applications, holding space in the mean girls, popular crowd, boys, and more. Unfortunately for her someone is out to get her. From moment one in this book you can feel the tension building. You know something is happening, but you aren't sure what. It almost seems too obvious, but I found myself on the edge of my seat waiting to see what it was and how it was going to effect everyone. In this case, the ripple effect from the first incident is tragic for Kyla. She watches helpless as her life starts to fall apart.
I found myself hating Kyla and her friends, but also caring for them. I didn't want to see all these horrible things happening to them, but I felt that some was karma building up and overflowing. I kept guessing who could be behind it and I was pleasantly surprised when I found out who. The characters Wang developed were strong, multi-layered, and fun to read about. They really drew you in. I also loved that on top of the main story line, there were other side mysteries going on. It gave a depth to this novel that most are missing. The only thing that bothered me was the way the teenagers talked to each other in "IM" speak. It was distracting at times, but this was minor enough to not effect the overall enjoyment of the story. Plus I think it was part of the point of the futuristic, obsession with technology.
This book is perfect for young adults, teenagers, or anyone looking for a suspenseful, thoroughly enjoyable read then pick up The Takedown. You won't regret it.
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