Crazy House

WTF THERE BETTER BE A NEXT BOOK!!!!!

This is the first book I have read by James Patterson but I have heard many good things about him from other readers. I was drawn to this book as I am a fan of YA fiction &amp; dystopian style novels. I have been told that this is different to what Patterson usually produces and so, as a result, I will also be purchasing some of his other books. <br /><br />Becca Greenfield was kidnapped from her home and thrown into prison known as the Crazy House and that was when her life became a living hell. Then her sister is taken and joins Cassie in jail where they are both on Death Row, fighting for survival.<br /><br />I enjoyed the fast pace and the characters in this novel. It had been said that this was the next <b>Hunger Games</b>. I must be the only person who hasn't seen a single episode of it or read the books! I am going to get on it and make sure <b>The Hunger Games</b> is added to my TBR list. This is one of the first books I have read with this mix of genres - YA/thriller/dystopian outlook - but it won't be the last. I will be on the lookout for more releases from Patterson in the future.<br />

This latest Patterson fiasco was in the hopper from my local library and the reason I choked it down. It certainly felt that way as I had to gag my way through another debacle. Except for possibly, NYPD Red, I will not suffer through another Paterson factory work. 0 of 10 stars

1.5 stars<br /><br /><b> <i>TW: rape, abuse, suicide</i> </b><br /><i>All spoilers will be tagged as such.</i><br /><br />I felt like I accidentally picked up a book that was in the middle of a series. There wasn't much explanation for at least half of the book about what the "cell" is. And even then, it was super vague until the end. I don't know about you guys, but I like a little explanation about the world I'm getting into. Not just a shrug and a vague mumbling about what it is. <br /><br /><u>What I liked:</u><br />-The protagonists. I liked Becca and Cassie. They were fine. I couldn't really tell them apart at times, I felt their voices were too similar. But they were alright.<br />-Nathaniel. I liked him. I liked his POV. <input type="checkbox" class="spoiler__control" aria-label="The following text has been marked spoiler. Toggle checkbox to reveal or hide." onchange="this.labels[0].setAttribute('aria-hidden', !this.checked);" id="c2fedeee-9c2a-43a3-b984-108766e3e60f" /><label aria-hidden="true" class="spoiler" for="c2fedeee-9c2a-43a3-b984-108766e3e60f">And okay, okay, I liked the romance between Nathaniel and Cassie. If you could even call it that.</label><br />-Kind of reminded me of James Patterson's <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/6387565.Witch___Wizard__Witch___Wizard___1_" title="Witch &amp; Wizard (Witch &amp; Wizard, #1) by James Patterson" rel="noopener">Witch &amp; Wizard</a>. Unfortunately, I liked that book more than I liked this one. <br />-The cover is really pretty.<br />-I don't really have anything nice to say about this book. <br /><br /><br /><u>What I didn't like:</u><br />-<b>TW: suicide</b><input type="checkbox" class="spoiler__control" aria-label="The following text has been marked spoiler. Toggle checkbox to reveal or hide." onchange="this.labels[0].setAttribute('aria-hidden', !this.checked);" id="cf2d6df6-4156-430a-97b2-199b41b8451c" /><label aria-hidden="true" class="spoiler" for="cf2d6df6-4156-430a-97b2-199b41b8451c">It kind of weirded me out how casually they talked about suicide and that if you didn't have a vocation or didn't have good grades at school, a black van would show up at your house. So someone could talk to you "about your options", which is code for assisted suicide. So other babies could be born. I don't know about you guys, but that made me a little uncomfortable. What do you think?</label><br />-<b>TW: rape</b><input type="checkbox" class="spoiler__control" aria-label="The following text has been marked spoiler. Toggle checkbox to reveal or hide." onchange="this.labels[0].setAttribute('aria-hidden', !this.checked);" id="42267519-a631-48bb-9069-88521d1c304b" /><label aria-hidden="true" class="spoiler" for="42267519-a631-48bb-9069-88521d1c304b"> So there was a teacher, Mr. Harrison, who assaulted not one but both of the twins. And raped Becca. Why? I have no idea. The book could have done without it and the outcome would have been the <i>exact same</i>. Strep then went and killed Mr. Harrison after they found out at the prison that Becca had been pregnant. (She had gone through a miscarriage.) His death didn't really make an impact on the novel?? There were some plot points that occurred at the same time of his death but? Like I said, it could have done without. Honestly, it felt really forced and like it was just used to gain sympathy for the twins. Why? They have enough shit to deal with. And they hardly brought up Mr. Harrison after he died. And not that much before that either. *End rant*</label><br />-*Ugh* Don't even get me started on the romance. It felt really forced to me. This book didn't need any romance. It could have gone without and been a little better. Out of nowhere there were two characters who suddenly starting kissing and it was so jarring because there was nothing building it up. It was so forced and barely present anyway. <input type="checkbox" class="spoiler__control" aria-label="The following text has been marked spoiler. Toggle checkbox to reveal or hide." onchange="this.labels[0].setAttribute('aria-hidden', !this.checked);" id="95fd3154-02e5-4c0e-bfad-a9ad7b89528c" /><label aria-hidden="true" class="spoiler" for="95fd3154-02e5-4c0e-bfad-a9ad7b89528c">Besides the helpfulness that was Tim.</label><br />-Wtf about the dragonflies?? <input type="checkbox" class="spoiler__control" aria-label="The following text has been marked spoiler. Toggle checkbox to reveal or hide." onchange="this.labels[0].setAttribute('aria-hidden', !this.checked);" id="2f90607a-65e0-4ea1-8d30-b0ca300c4f24" /><label aria-hidden="true" class="spoiler" for="2f90607a-65e0-4ea1-8d30-b0ca300c4f24">I know that they were followed to help the kids escape, but it still felt really silly.</label><br />-Lmao. Nice try trying to compare this to the Hunger Games. It's definitely not as good and I didn't feel for these characters. Feels like a stretch to me...<br />-This. Stupid. Frickin'. Prison. Aka, Crazy House. <input type="checkbox" class="spoiler__control" aria-label="The following text has been marked spoiler. Toggle checkbox to reveal or hide." onchange="this.labels[0].setAttribute('aria-hidden', !this.checked);" id="c8313d94-3cb4-497e-9fd5-248fed1e1105" /><label aria-hidden="true" class="spoiler" for="c8313d94-3cb4-497e-9fd5-248fed1e1105">I am <i>beyond annoyed</i> with this stupid prison. So they take kids from these "cells" that show potential to help rebel and help their cause? But why not just tell them???? Instead of making them suffer and pretending that <i>they're on death row.</i> That makes absolutely no sense to me at all. Becca and Cassie saw the kids they thought died at the end and??? It wasn't talked about?</label><br /><br /><u>The Writing</u><br />The writing is alright. It's not spectacular. It reminds me of any of James Patterson's other YA works. Kind of bland and just okay. The writing is pretty simple. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, just not for me. I listened to the audiobook so thank god it was a quick read. I would not had been able to read a physical copy of this.<br /><br /><u>The Ending</u><br />I still don't understand this stupid kid prison business. And the ending is left off like it's preparing for a sequel but from what I know, there won't be one. By the time Strep revealed what was going on, it was way too late. It was the last ten pages of the book, and too late for me to actually enjoy it. Everything that lead up to that point seems really meaningless. If the authors introduced what was actually going on earlier in the book, then it could have had some potential. But instead, the readers are lead around in circles only to learn, wow, that "not everything is how it seems, children!!" in the last few pages. Smh.<br /><br /><b>*update: It was revealed some months after this book (and my review) came out that there would be a sequel. (Possibly to become a trilogy?) The ending still didn't make any sense at the time when we weren't being told there was a sequel in the works. Either way, I'm still gonna say fuck this book.</b>

This wasn’t quite what I was expecting. I thought it was going to be more of a thriller, but was actually a dystopian. It reminded me of pretty much every other dystopian YA I’d read before. Entertaining enough but no real closure, and wasn’t anything new.

Giving up at 100 pages. I wasn't a fan of the dialogue, the story didn't grab me. Maybe I'm just not the right audience, as the book does seem to have decent reviews.

Why must I finish every book I start? Why did I allow this pretty cover to lull me into forgetting this is a James Patterson bookfarm book of sucky suck-atude? Do not read this. Do not waste your time. For the love of God, unless you like the most boring, predictable, mind-numbing book ever, don't read this. I don't hate this book, to hate it would be showing too much emotion for a book that honestly didn't deserve to be published, and wouldn't have been if not for JAMES PATTERSON plastered on the cover almost as large as the title.

This is a really interesting dystopia type of fantasy and I did enjoy it very much. Read it in one sitting because I really wanted to see how it would pan out. However, I am hoping there is a sequel because there were some unanswered questions and a cliff hanger type of ending.

Review to come soon

<br />Are you missing the Dystopian genre since it seems to have faded away lately from the YA trend? James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet have banded together to present teens a new YA dystopian series. Crazy House I first thought would be a mystery novel, a bit of a serial killer type that James Patterson is often famous for but then I noticed his co-author as she normally helps write his romance novels. In Crazy House, some suburbs have been cornered off, and everyone must follow the rules to survive. For twins Becca and Cassie Greenfield, they have been busy trying to keep things under control as their mum was removed years ago for a mood adjustment and their father tried to kill himself and now is in a hospice waiting to die. Becca goes joyriding one night and ends up kidnapped and transported to a place known as the "Crazy House" where the only way out is death by execution. Cassie being the good twin decides to search for her sister and save her. During her search, she will discover that her sister was part of the Outsiders which include of course the son of the leader of their dystopian society - cliched I know as the son always ends up being a rebel. Cassie will eventually land herself in the Crazy House too, but can she with Becca's and her newfound friends find a way out of the house alive? Find out in Book #1 Crazy House by James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet. A Good start to a new Dystopian series.<br />