The Power (Novela) (Spanish Edition)
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Community Reviews
2.5 stars rounded down to 2.
Man, I'm super disappointed because I really wanted to like this book because the concept seemed really unique and interesting and the framework in which it was written was so good, but as I read, I felt like the author started going in too many different directions because she didn't know what to do with this main idea.
For example, I really liked the characters as they were at the beginning, but they all started going in these weird directions that I thought were not really compelling. Although I felt this way more or less for most of the characters, I especially felt this about Allie and how she somehow became a religious figure. That was not at all something that I could really understand or feel connected to because it just seemed to jump the gun and not make complete sense. I really didn't like how much religion ended up overtaking the main plot of the book, more or less. I would have been fine with the explanation of religion as it changed, but not having it be the main focus.
Also, I agree with a lot of other people here than that role reversal of men and women having power and how women immediately began murdering and raping people felt very...forced. Not to say that no one would do this in such a situation, but having so many people suddenly on board with this just felt unrealistic. Also, we didn't need a gratuitous rape scene — although there could be something said about how it kind of is a commentary on rape against women as used in fiction in the world today - so I'm sort of in two minds about this.
Another problem I had with this book was pacing. The story was really good at the beginning and in the last 100 or so pages. Those were the pages that I read super fast, staying up late so I could keep going to find out what happened next. But everything in the middle dragged. I put this book down for months because I just couldn't bring myself to read it when I was in the middle of the book. I even considered giving up on it, and that is a pretty bad sign when I was so excited about the initial concept (which is why I lowered the rating from a 3 to a 2). I finally forced my way through the middle, and like I said, I did enjoy the last parts of the book (although there were some things I found confusing and I'm not sure what actually happened), but the overall pacing could have used a lot of work.
I didn't hate the overall book. Like I mentioned earlier, I enjoyed the framing narrative where the book is presented as a historical novel written by a male author to a female publisher, and how the author (of this book, not the fictional male author) draws attention to how the two characters interact with each other in this new world of power differences. I also really liked the idea as a whole. I think it's super interesting to explore and consider. I just wish that the author had done it a bit differently.
Man, I'm super disappointed because I really wanted to like this book because the concept seemed really unique and interesting and the framework in which it was written was so good, but as I read, I felt like the author started going in too many different directions because she didn't know what to do with this main idea.
For example, I really liked the characters as they were at the beginning, but they all started going in these weird directions that I thought were not really compelling. Although I felt this way more or less for most of the characters, I especially felt this about Allie and how she somehow became a religious figure. That was not at all something that I could really understand or feel connected to because it just seemed to jump the gun and not make complete sense. I really didn't like how much religion ended up overtaking the main plot of the book, more or less. I would have been fine with the explanation of religion as it changed, but not having it be the main focus.
Also, I agree with a lot of other people here than that role reversal of men and women having power and how women immediately began murdering and raping people felt very...forced. Not to say that no one would do this in such a situation, but having so many people suddenly on board with this just felt unrealistic. Also, we didn't need a gratuitous rape scene — although there could be something said about how it kind of is a commentary on rape against women as used in fiction in the world today - so I'm sort of in two minds about this.
Another problem I had with this book was pacing. The story was really good at the beginning and in the last 100 or so pages. Those were the pages that I read super fast, staying up late so I could keep going to find out what happened next. But everything in the middle dragged. I put this book down for months because I just couldn't bring myself to read it when I was in the middle of the book. I even considered giving up on it, and that is a pretty bad sign when I was so excited about the initial concept (which is why I lowered the rating from a 3 to a 2). I finally forced my way through the middle, and like I said, I did enjoy the last parts of the book (although there were some things I found confusing and I'm not sure what actually happened), but the overall pacing could have used a lot of work.
I didn't hate the overall book. Like I mentioned earlier, I enjoyed the framing narrative where the book is presented as a historical novel written by a male author to a female publisher, and how the author (of this book, not the fictional male author) draws attention to how the two characters interact with each other in this new world of power differences. I also really liked the idea as a whole. I think it's super interesting to explore and consider. I just wish that the author had done it a bit differently.
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