Author: Charlotte McConaghy
Genre: new adult, science fiction, dystopia, romance
Published: June 11, 2015
Publisher: Momentum Books, Pan Macmillan
Purchase: Amazon
Here in the west they know a lot about hope. They know how to ration it just as they do with food and water.
Josephine is at last free of the blood moon. But in a desperate rush to find help for a comatose Luke, she discovers the strange and dangerous world of the resistance, and it is unlike any world Josi has known.
In the west they believe in fury – they cultivate and encourage it. The unruly people of the resistance know that to survive means to fight. But can they fight the inevitable cure for sadness that rushes steadily closer?
In the action-packed sequel to Fury, everything Josi believes about herself will be challenged. Haunted by atrocities and betrayals, she must find the strength to trust again, and decide how far she is willing to go to fight the inevitable.
At times both brutal and sweet, Melancholy is the story of second chances and finding love in a ruined world.
* * *
OVERALL, Melancholy is a great sequel. It's one of those sophomore novels that didn't suffer the middle-book-syndrome. It's got great pacing - sometimes slow but full of important and emotional events, other times completely thrilling and action pack. Melancholy also made me love Josi and Luke even more. It made me root for them - the struggle their relationship suffered in the beginning strongly made me ship them!
Fury was more of an 'okay' read for me. Melancholy, on the other hand, turned out to be a great prequel. I like every aspect of it although the sequencing and pace may seem a bit inconsistent at times, it still went off well all in all.
Unlike many books that involves romance, Melancholy as a second book started with a broken relationship between Josi and Luke. It felt right after everything that happened in Fury - Josi angry yet cured and Luke oblivious of the things that occurred in the end. The beginning of Melancholy is perhaps a combination of the usual dystopian sophomore novel and something completely unique (does that even make sense?).
Melancholy's different take dystopian sophomore novel made me like Luke and Josi as a couple. It's kind of refreshing to look at the two of them trying to stay away from each other not because of fear but because of anger due to trust issues - this is of course Josi's part. Luke's understanding of Josi's point of view though was really good and I love how he never really gave up on her. Basically, Melancholy made me want the two of them to be together! It made me ship them!
Melancholy expounded the interesting world that was shown in Fury. While Fury went on about the cure and it's effects on people - their lack of response and confusion of emotions - Melancholy extends its reach by including the conception of a cure for 'sadness'. Imagine a life when you can't grieve for someone because you've been disabled to do so. Just thinking about it and how Josi actually talks about it sounds so painful. McConaghy's writing really just hits you hard with the occasional thought-provoking questions.
Let's talk about the characters now. I LOVE how Josi slowly develops here. There is of course, anger inside of her in the beginning. But as she settles into the life in The Inferno and many things happen, Josi just grows as a person - she becomes stronger and grows more confident on the things she believes in. Luke, on the other hand, is still the same old Luke. He has always been a reliable man and someone who's purely calculative yet still keeps his emotions in check. He doesn't neglects the things in his life and that makes him a strong man.
Melancholy introduced several characters yet it never felt overwhelming. There was enough time for me to really absorb and love everyone. Yes, I like every single one of them. Okay, maybe not so much on Raven just because she's just so EVIL! Anyway, my fave of them all has to be Pace. I knew I'd like her right form the beginning - she shows that strong facade at the same time, she's extremely friendly and honest. Throughout the novel, I ended up really feeling so much for everyone.
One of the things I really love in Fury is the non-linear sequence of the story - told in multiple perspectives and on different time frames. Melancholy, on the other hand, tried to retain the non-linear sequence but it deemed useless later on in the novel and I do think that getting rid of it later on was a more appropriate choice. But it saddens me that it wasn't able to stick with its sequencing style from the first book.
Unlike many books that involves romance, Melancholy as a second book started with a broken relationship between Josi and Luke. It felt right after everything that happened in Fury - Josi angry yet cured and Luke oblivious of the things that occurred in the end. The beginning of Melancholy is perhaps a combination of the usual dystopian sophomore novel and something completely unique (does that even make sense?).
Melancholy's different take dystopian sophomore novel made me like Luke and Josi as a couple. It's kind of refreshing to look at the two of them trying to stay away from each other not because of fear but because of anger due to trust issues - this is of course Josi's part. Luke's understanding of Josi's point of view though was really good and I love how he never really gave up on her. Basically, Melancholy made me want the two of them to be together! It made me ship them!
Melancholy expounded the interesting world that was shown in Fury. While Fury went on about the cure and it's effects on people - their lack of response and confusion of emotions - Melancholy extends its reach by including the conception of a cure for 'sadness'. Imagine a life when you can't grieve for someone because you've been disabled to do so. Just thinking about it and how Josi actually talks about it sounds so painful. McConaghy's writing really just hits you hard with the occasional thought-provoking questions.
Let's talk about the characters now. I LOVE how Josi slowly develops here. There is of course, anger inside of her in the beginning. But as she settles into the life in The Inferno and many things happen, Josi just grows as a person - she becomes stronger and grows more confident on the things she believes in. Luke, on the other hand, is still the same old Luke. He has always been a reliable man and someone who's purely calculative yet still keeps his emotions in check. He doesn't neglects the things in his life and that makes him a strong man.
Melancholy introduced several characters yet it never felt overwhelming. There was enough time for me to really absorb and love everyone. Yes, I like every single one of them. Okay, maybe not so much on Raven just because she's just so EVIL! Anyway, my fave of them all has to be Pace. I knew I'd like her right form the beginning - she shows that strong facade at the same time, she's extremely friendly and honest. Throughout the novel, I ended up really feeling so much for everyone.
One of the things I really love in Fury is the non-linear sequence of the story - told in multiple perspectives and on different time frames. Melancholy, on the other hand, tried to retain the non-linear sequence but it deemed useless later on in the novel and I do think that getting rid of it later on was a more appropriate choice. But it saddens me that it wasn't able to stick with its sequencing style from the first book.
OVERALL, Melancholy is a great sequel. It's one of those sophomore novels that didn't suffer the middle-book-syndrome. It's got great pacing - sometimes slow but full of important and emotional events, other times completely thrilling and action pack. Melancholy also made me love Josi and Luke even more. It made me root for them - the struggle their relationship suffered in the beginning strongly made me ship them!
* * *
What I Like: (1) Josi and Luke && their relationship, (2) ALL the secondary characters especially Pace and Shadow!, (3) the further world building + the cure for sadness - just how interesting is this world?, (4) the occasional thought-provoking moments that had me nodding on Josi's thoughts
What I Didn’t Like: (1) nothing in particular (maybe the change of sequencing but linear storytelling also works and it's just right for Melancholy, really.)
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| 4.5 |
~I received this book in exchange for an honest review~
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