h > Recent Status Updates

Predictable plot twist is predictable. But also (mild spoiler?), if you want me to hate a character and root for their torturous demise, you should make them... More hateable.

Unfortunately the author has definitely decided to tell and not show. I don't know why we've been given the answer to each riddle before the riddle itself, when trying to follow the clues and piece the mystery together ourselves would have been more compelling, but alas.

There are all these lil plot holes driving me crazy but that are so minor I can't tell if it's intentional misdirection, bad editing, or just my nit-picking. Between sipping a drink that Scott'd already finished a few pages ago, Winnie commenting on the six people sat at a table we know has seven people at it, and Crystal eating from an empty plate... Again, maybe I'm just being nit-picky, or all will be revealed.

Choosing 2020 for the year that "everything the scientists had warned people about was happening all at once" is morbidly hilarious given that this book was published in 2017.

Trying to connect the dots of all the conclusions the main character jumps to 🧮🔍🔬🧪🧐

I’m trying to have grace for the MC jumping to so many conclusions because she’s supposed to be a traumatized teenager but like, girl. Girl. Use your brain.

Also, personal pet peeve: using ‘he or she’ instead of ‘they’ for this mystery texter. It’s so clunky when she uses it multiple times a paragraph.

I mean get your paycheck I guess, Ms. Shepard.

Why are we inserting a random racist quote that doesn’t have anything to do with the main point of the passage, and also agreeing with it?

I have truly, truly been trying to keep an open mind with this book and give the author the benefit of the doubt over passages I disagreed with, but after the author describing actively killing his hamster in the first grade and then somehow trying to equate this to humans being born naturally sinful… I can’t.

“…immorality saturated the city. Brothels, homosexuality, and pornographic mosaics filled the streets.” Amen brother sign me up.

There’s something unsettling about discussing God’s unconditional, irrevocable love in the same breath as “the Christians whom God saves.” Is this love truly unconditional, if salvation is reserved for a select few?

Comforting yourself about your childhood bully not getting into trouble for throwing a basketball at your face by claiming that it’s ok because one day God will judge this world with fire and only the righteous will ascend is certainly… something.

“A prostitute tried to have sex with me once.” Does the author KNOW she was a prostitute? Because he goes on to describe her as a camp counselor on his mission trip with zero indication of her employment history. I’m also not a fan of him describing communicating with her as “frustrating,” “like doing a Sudoku puzzle in the dark.” Sir you’re in HER country and she has to speak YOUR language.

It was a mild red flag to me when the author described God as giving Eve to Adam, but the fact that in the same page he describes himself as making “a risky move but a sexy one” when approaching a woman has cemented the tone for this book in my mind. Thankfully, I think it will err on the side of entertaining at least.

The main character of this is giving Patrick Bateman vibes

ANA PUT THE GUN DOWN AKSKSKSKKS