The Truth of Now
Scardust had a very interesting plot. I read it pretty quickly, and I was fully engaged the entire time. It’s just odd because all the reasons I have for liking the story are also all the same reasons I had for not liking the story. It feels like some strange paradox. The other interesting thing about Scardust is how to review it without discussing key aspects of the story, which are exactly what I need to discuss! They are the reasons I both liked and disliked the book in the first place.
Basically the story is about Raleigh, or Raw as his friends call him, and the messed up life he’s had. His life long dream is to work as an astronaut on Mars, getting away from his past. He finds Crow (Meteor Man) in the desert, devoid of any memories prior to Raleigh finding him, and their two lives become intertwined.
Scardust works hard to remind you that it’s very likely Crow isn’t even human. From the indigo hair that grows that way from the root, to the swirly scars covering his body, you’re never able to forget there’s just something not right about him. It doesn’t stop you from liking him, or liking the way that Crow is with Raleigh. It gets even harder to keep your emotional distance after they begin sharing memories. Through those flashbacks not only do you get the sordid history of Raw’s life in Dead Rock, you also get glimpses of what we believe is likely Crow’s prior life.
I liked that! I liked that we can’t forget. These weird things keep happening to Crow and you’re so worried as you read, wondering how in the world this is going to work out for everyone. It’s not just Crow either, it’s all the trauma that happens after Raleigh and Crow are united. So, I liked it, but at the same time I didn’t like it. It felt real, and then it also didn’t feel real. Sometimes it was just too perfect, their relationship worked out too well. I don’t know, it’s very hard to describe.
And the end, that was even more of a mindf*ck. On one hand, I actually really liked the twist toward the end. It was one answer that, maybe it’s just me, I totally didn’t see it coming. It wasn’t anything at all that I would have guessed. It was intriguing, and clever. I liked the resolution after the twist too. It was sweet. Yet, underneath all that I was also really sad because of what was lost. It was the sacrifice of something sweet, for the possibility of something sweet. A paradox.
See, this is so hard to review without giving anything away. There’s a mystery at the core of the story, and overall I’m very glad I read it.
Thank you to Entangled Publishing and Netgalley for providing a copy of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
Read this review, and others like it, at Badass Book Reviews!
Basically the story is about Raleigh, or Raw as his friends call him, and the messed up life he’s had. His life long dream is to work as an astronaut on Mars, getting away from his past. He finds Crow (Meteor Man) in the desert, devoid of any memories prior to Raleigh finding him, and their two lives become intertwined.
Scardust works hard to remind you that it’s very likely Crow isn’t even human. From the indigo hair that grows that way from the root, to the swirly scars covering his body, you’re never able to forget there’s just something not right about him. It doesn’t stop you from liking him, or liking the way that Crow is with Raleigh. It gets even harder to keep your emotional distance after they begin sharing memories. Through those flashbacks not only do you get the sordid history of Raw’s life in Dead Rock, you also get glimpses of what we believe is likely Crow’s prior life.
I liked that! I liked that we can’t forget. These weird things keep happening to Crow and you’re so worried as you read, wondering how in the world this is going to work out for everyone. It’s not just Crow either, it’s all the trauma that happens after Raleigh and Crow are united. So, I liked it, but at the same time I didn’t like it. It felt real, and then it also didn’t feel real. Sometimes it was just too perfect, their relationship worked out too well. I don’t know, it’s very hard to describe.
And the end, that was even more of a mindf*ck. On one hand, I actually really liked the twist toward the end. It was one answer that, maybe it’s just me, I totally didn’t see it coming. It wasn’t anything at all that I would have guessed. It was intriguing, and clever. I liked the resolution after the twist too. It was sweet. Yet, underneath all that I was also really sad because of what was lost. It was the sacrifice of something sweet, for the possibility of something sweet. A paradox.
See, this is so hard to review without giving anything away. There’s a mystery at the core of the story, and overall I’m very glad I read it.
Thank you to Entangled Publishing and Netgalley for providing a copy of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
Read this review, and others like it, at Badass Book Reviews!
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