Member Reviews
It was difficult to write this review, simply because this was a very nuanced novel. On one hand, this was not a perfect read. On the other hand, it certainly was a
thrilling one.
The story follows a group of teens racing against time to unravel the human vs. chimera conflict. The plot is quite action-packed, and the setting is diverse and imaginative. The pacing skilfully weaves tension throughout the story, which I enjoyed.
The book also beautifully tackles several important themes such as loss, friendship, love, and humanity. There were some troubling aspects with regards to the colonisation in the book, which I also found problematic.
This book could have benefited from less characters. I appreciate reading about diverse sets of characters, but this was too much. The POV switches were confusing and made it hard to keep track of who is who. It also made it difficult to sympathise with any of them. This lack of connection really put me off the story. Additionally, the world-building was strange - I had no idea what was happening sometimes.
Overall, despite the fact that the story flounders a bit, this was an enjoyable read with an intriguing premise.
"Rumor Mora fears two things: hellhounds too strong for him to kill, and failure. Jude Welton has two dreams: for humans to stop killing monsters, and for his strange abilities to vanish.
But in no reality should a boy raised to love monsters fall for a boy raised to kill them.
Nyx Llorca keeps two secrets: the moon speaks to her, and she's in love with her best friend, Dahlia. Braeden Tennant wants two things: to get out from his mother's shadow, and to unlearn his colony’s darkest secret.
To save everyone they love, they'll both have to commit treason.
During one twenty-seven-hour night, these four runaways must stop the war between the colonies and the monsters from becoming a war of extinction, or the things they fear most will be all that's left."
I fell madly in love with these very real, very caring, very badass characters...Tristina Wright's 27 HOURS combines Sci Fi and fantasy against the backdrop of a world so vivid you could smell it. A whirlwind of action and romance surround its diverse cast as they fight against a ticking clock to survive and save their home from destruction.
A fairly interesting read! I loved the diverse representation—representation is so important. The writing itself could have been better, there's definitely room for improvement, but overall it was alright.
An empire based on an alternate Venice/Rome with a unique system for maintaining power and harnessing magic. Strong political subplots, a minor romance; themes of freedom vs protection. Still engaging third time through.
I decided to not review this book on my blog, because I did not feel comfortable promoting it. The issue at hand is that the theme of the book centers on colonization vs. indigenous species. While Wright does not make excuses for the colonizers, it is very obvious where the POV is centered on and it didn't sit right with me. The world building was otherwise alright though.
I thought it was really cool to see a cast of queer teenagers portrayed with such nuance and love, so I really appreciate this book for spotlighting marginalized kids and making them feel seen. I didn't find the story that compelling though, and I would have liked to see a more tightly-plotted story to go along with the stellar characters. This was still a surprisingly emotional read and I did enjoy it.
I started this book before the allegations were made and after the publisher decided to pull the plug I stopped reading. Wasn't really my cup of tea anyway.
This book presents a wide range of diversity and representation in their characters, which is what I enjoyed most. You will fall in love with them and root for them, which is amazing. Frankly, the story plot per se did not lived up to the hype for me. Maybe it was the writing per se, but I found myself feeling I HAD to finish the book, which is not a good sign for me because i realized the only reason I did was for the characters. I gave it three stars just because there were some parts I did enjoy and it was an okay book so other people might enjoy.
I liked that this book was inclusive but it felt like this whole "one of everything" rule white authors route tend to go in the name of inclusion, and as a poc, it's rare to have one of every marginalized person in your inner circle.
removing my initial review due to the allegations on the authors actions
will also remove review from other outlets
While I very much appreciate the approval on this book, I will not be reviewing it in lieu of the publisher's decision to pull the title because of the allegations against the author. I very much respect the publisher's decision to do so and do not want to promote this book in any way, shape, or form.
This was a fun queer teens in space read. I did think that maybe the kids were a little too sexualized considering their circumstances but hell, if you are facing death I guess what better time than the present.
I've been afraid to say this until now: I couldn't make it past the first few chapters. The writing was poor and the worldbuilding sloppy. It didn't make sense, like slogging through a wet marsh with the book held over my head while I batted mosquitos. I was trying to make sense of too many things at once. I wanted to love this book. I wanted to cheer for it. I was there to be its biggest supporter. Which is why I didn't submit my review until now. We need more books about queer teens written by queer people, but this wasn't it.
This book didn’t live up to my expectations. Don’t get me wrong, the characters are AMAZING and the writing is okay. But I just did not care about the plot at all. *sigh*
Anyway.. due to recent allegations of sexual harassment, I’ve decided I won’t be wasting my time writing a full review of this book, nor talking about this author and/or book.
I was fairly annoyed by the early chapters of this book. It was trying much too hard to be inclusive. And the message about judging the alien species based on official rhetoric was so heavy handed. For teen novels, I prefer a subtle message rather than a blunt instrument.
I wish I could’ve enjoyed 27 Hours as much as most people I know seem to have enjoyed the book, but alas, that is not the case.
Also I’ve been keeping a wonderful streak of finishing every book this year, and I wanted to keep that streak. But...
27 Hours was an absolute pain for me to read, and this was the situation I found myself in constantly:
Me: *picks up book, starts reading*
Me (ten minutes later): Ugh, this is painful. I’m bored.
Me (while trying to read): I’m going to do some blogging and maybe quest on my balance wizard. Maybe this will motivate me.
Me (two hours later): *finishes a dungeon in game, finds myself reading maybe two sentences in between battles* Please note that I'm actually good at reading while waiting for my turn, especially when I'm in a team.
Me (two days later): Ooo shiny book! *starts new book*
Me (another two days later): Oh, yeah. I was supposed to read you, right? *eyes book warily* Let's try this again.
This cycle repeated itself for days and weeks. Eventually, I just called it quits because when I’ve been repeating the same thing over and over again and have progressed more in a game than a book, we’ve got issues and it’s time for me to move on to other books.
27 Hours has a lot of representation among the characters, I won’t deny that. But that’s honestly the only thing I can think of that’s good about this book. Anything I might have missed has been clouded over by the cons.
Why 27 Hours Is Not My Cup of Tea
Rumor - I’m being very nitpicky, but the name Rumor instantly reminded me of Adele’s song. Every time “Rumor” came up in the book (which is a lot, considering the fact he’s a main character), the song blasted in my brain.
The name Rumor, however, is the least of my worries.
The world building is a mass of confusion - I have no clue what things are and honestly the world is a jumbled mess of a confusion. Is a dragon the same as a gargoyle, is a chimera the same as a gargoyle, are they simply the same creatures with different names depending on which group the person belongs to… or what? Is it a group of rebellious humans? Also what is this about hellhounds and gargoyles? The world building feels like a melting pot gone very wrong on the moon hundreds of years in the future.
Not only is the world building is a mass of confusion, but it feels way too modern for a book that is supposedly set 200 years from now.
I’m mainly concerned about the world building to focus on the logistics of book year and present year, though.
Too many characters - There are too many to keep track of in 27 Hours, and the fun part? They’re introduced early. I don’t… I don’t even know who this random dude is and boom! We’ve got another one. I knew for sure there were going to be at least four POVs, which is a lot, but it’s not too much. BUT… not only do we have Jude, Rumor, Nyx, Braedon, etc. etc. we have some person named Colt, Wren, Eric, Sara… that’s just some of the characters.
This is by chapter three. Chapter freaking THREE. My brain was already hurting from the world building and then there are all of these characters being introduced and OMG I just wanted to scream.
I just… I just can’t handle all of these characters because I don’t even remember who does what by the time character #2244 pops up.
I really wished I could’ve finished 27 Hours and continued my streak for this year, but the huge cast of characters being introduced so early into the story and massively confusing world is a no go for me.
I am no longer interested in reading and reviewing this title.
I am sorry for the inconvenience but I no longer feel comfortable reading and reviewing this novel. I was greatly looking forward to this novel because of the sci-fi aspect and the inclusion of a deaf character. However, as the author mistreated POC in her book and has been outed as a sexual abuser I do not wish to read her works. I believe that it would benefit your book more if I did not skim your book and write a rushed review. Again, I am sorry for the inconvenience.
Though 27 Hours was coming up on my TBR, the allegations of sexual harassment, grooming, and general harassment against Tristina Wright have left me unable to read or review this book. OK, this has been me wasting 50 characters so I can submit this. Thank you!
I'm sorry but given the recent news surrounding Tristina Wright I no longer wish to read her work.