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A review by kjjohnson
Nexus by Deborah Biancotti, Scott Westerfeld, Margo Lanagan
4.0
I really enjoyed this book, and blazed through it quickly, right up to the end. The epilogue/conclusion was just, in my opinion, okay.
I loved the relationships and dynamics between the main group, which largely continued from the previous book. It was also great seeing them meet more people who had similar powers (except Mob and Scam), and how prison changed Nate and the group's dynamics, as Riley took a bigger role as a leader.
I also loved the expansion of the mythology, while still making sense. There were new powers, and they discovered that their powers had two sides to them, which I thought was fantastic because it allowed them to 'power up' in a believable/contained/different way. They also continued to struggle with the negative aspects of powers, especially Anon as he got lost/drifted, Chizara as she found out she could kill people, and Kelsie as she struggled not to kill/absorb people.
The NOLA setting for a good chunk of the book was great, and I liked the main villain/glorious leader. Her idea, to preemptively strike to make sure Zeroes came out on top, made sense (in theory and if you don't care about killing people) as the government already had interest in people with powers and the public was starting to realize (and be afraid) that they existed. Finally, I enjoyed reading about the various romantic relationships in addition to the friendship/group bonds, which is a little unusual for me with Scott Westerfeld.
My only real issue with the book, and why I knocked it down a star, was the ending. While I enjoy a happy ending, it felt ridiculous to me that not only did they save the day, they inordinately solved all of the world's problems in about ten pages. I mean, come on. I appreciated the peeks ahead of each of their lives, but Ethan's power was never really explained and now he's omniscient? Sure the irony was nice and it sucks that he's mute. But he knows everything now and there are plenty of ways to communicate other than speaking out loud.
All in all I enjoyed the plot and characters of the book and would be happy to read about more of their adventures, but the pat ending was a bit of a bummer.
I loved the relationships and dynamics between the main group, which largely continued from the previous book. It was also great seeing them meet more people who had similar powers (except Mob and Scam), and how prison changed Nate and the group's dynamics, as Riley took a bigger role as a leader.
I also loved the expansion of the mythology, while still making sense. There were new powers, and they discovered that their powers had two sides to them, which I thought was fantastic because it allowed them to 'power up' in a believable/contained/different way. They also continued to struggle with the negative aspects of powers, especially Anon as he got lost/drifted, Chizara as she found out she could kill people, and Kelsie as she struggled not to kill/absorb people.
The NOLA setting for a good chunk of the book was great, and I liked the main villain/glorious leader. Her idea, to preemptively strike to make sure Zeroes came out on top, made sense (in theory and if you don't care about killing people) as the government already had interest in people with powers and the public was starting to realize (and be afraid) that they existed. Finally, I enjoyed reading about the various romantic relationships in addition to the friendship/group bonds, which is a little unusual for me with Scott Westerfeld.
My only real issue with the book, and why I knocked it down a star, was the ending. While I enjoy a happy ending, it felt ridiculous to me that not only did they save the day, they inordinately solved all of the world's problems in about ten pages. I mean, come on. I appreciated the peeks ahead of each of their lives, but Ethan's power was never really explained and now he's omniscient? Sure the irony was nice and it sucks that he's mute. But he knows everything now and there are plenty of ways to communicate other than speaking out loud.
All in all I enjoyed the plot and characters of the book and would be happy to read about more of their adventures, but the pat ending was a bit of a bummer.