5 Reasons for Why You Should or Should Not Read Sparked
1.
The story is unique. The story is a blend of supernatural,
mystery, romance, and more. One day, Laurel wakes up to find her sister, Ivy,
missing. She also finds a note that explains her absence. However, just some
simple oddities convince Laurel that the note was forged and that Ivy is in
trouble. She tries to tell others but no one believes her until she meets Jasper.
It turns out Jasper has a special power: the ability to set anything on fire. He
explains to Laurel everything he knows about the reason for Ivy’s absence, explaining
how Ivy is related to an ancient prophecy and the special powers they have. Together,
they set out to rescue Ivy and save the world at the same time.
2.
The characters are relatively complex. The two
most important characters are probably Laurel and Jasper. Laurel starts out as
someone who is relatively useless, not having a power or being smart enough to
do much, but eventually she develops to be one of the most important characters
in the book. Jasper has a mysterious background. He has many secrets that we do
not know about until later into the story. His mysterious background makes him
start out as untrustworthy, but he eventually reveals his secrets throughout
the story. The main characters also all feel like real teenagers with their
insecurities and flaws. Laurel feels as though she is worse than her sister in
every way and she believes Jasper would never like her. Jasper has a dark
history that was in part his fault and shows how he has flaws as well, but his
history is not revealed until later in the story.
3.
The plot feels awkward. There are many parts of
the story that seemingly come out of nowhere. For example, we get no insight as
to why people spark or where the prophecy came from and there are also random
plot twists that don’t have any foreshadowing and are just put forth in an
awkward manner. For example, Jasper has a lot of secrets that he randomly
reveals throughout the story. These secrets come so suddenly that they seem
like they were brainstormed on the spot by the writers just to complicate or
progress the story.
4.
The way the powers manifest is interesting.
However, like I said earlier, the origin of the powers is never properly explained.
The specific power one receives after sparking is based on their personal
desires. For example, one character desires to be like others, so they develop
a shape shifting power. Near the end, another character develops their power at
the last moment and ends up saving the whole world. Their power functioned in
an incredibly unique and interesting way, but it would be a spoiler to share.
5.
The plot twists themselves are interesting. Again
however, the plot twists were not introduced that well. The reveal of Jasper’s
dark history was great because it added some complexity to Jasper’s character
and made him seem more realistic and likable. There is also a huge plot twist
at the end of the book that might give way to a sequel, but as far as I know,
no sequel has been confirmed. Overall, I think the plot twists are interesting enough
to forget about how they were not integrated seamlessly.
I like how you gave an unbiased opinion of the book, listing the pros and cons through the list. The only thing I would suggest is that you give a brief summary of the book early on to give the readers more context, however I realize that's a difficult thing to do in listicle format especially when it has to be related to the title.
ReplyDeleteI liked how your blog post brought out some of the book's best qualities, but also criticized some aspects that were not as well done. I especially liked the way you described the characters Laurel and Jasper. The fantastical aspect of Jasper seemed very interesting, and I would like to see Laurel's reactions to it as well as Jasper's uses of it. I think I might give this book a try.
ReplyDeleteI liked this blog post a lot. I respect the decision to provide five reasons, which is more than most other people. It helps me better understand the book, as well as it allows for me to better understand the book without actually reading it. One thing that i appreciate was how you explained why the plot being awkward was included as a reason to read the book, as an awkward plot is not something I value in a book, but to each their own. Nice work!
ReplyDeleteThe pros and cons element of this book review makes the review more realistic for me because there isn't much bias involved. The listicle was interesting but left me wondering what the book was actually about. Overall, the book sounds interesting. Good work!
ReplyDeleteI like how you chose to also critique the book, while most blog posts strictly focus on the positive aspects of the novel. I also appreciated how you illustrated the complexity of the central characters, and also explained how the plot was awkward with secrets revealed abruptly throughout the novel.
ReplyDelete