Let's be honest... I borrowed this book from Netgalley before I actually started reviewing books. (Think 2013 at 18 years old.) I'm now 30 and much more serious about my book reviews so I apologize for never formally reviewing this book.

If I’d picked up this book as a teen, I would have loved it.

I really like the concept, the being “more” rather than a vampire or fae - it’s something a little different to the usual but still has roots in mythology that make it believable. There was a nice bit of explanation and background too.

There was a lot of telling rather than showing, which felt more middle grade fiction than young/new adult, but it did make for a faster paced read as you didn’t need to read between the lines too much.

I have a gripe with the main character. A lot of reviewers describe the characters as likeable, but there was something I couldn’t quite put my finger on at first with Ava - I later realised that there’s a lot of self-talk in the book that, while realistic for a girl of that age (and at the time this was written - early 2010s), I didn’t like. I can’t be 100% certain that these parts haven’t changed as this was an ARC copy, but one example is describing herself as “not fat”, and describing men as “skinny” in a somewhat disparaging way. It might be a personal thing as I’m currently in a phase of teaching my kids not to comment on aspects about people that they can’t change in a couple of minutes (a valid concern after growing up in the 90s and 00s). And maybe these remarks can be put to one side as it’s early in the book and there’s character growth later, but it left a little bit of a bad taste for the character for me sadly.

I can’t figure out Caleb’s motivation to save Ava, aside from the fact that he’s got to know her - I didn’t get much depth from their interactions to take them from physics tutor to “must protect at all costs”, aside from it being something of a rebel move from him? Maybe there’s more further into the book/series, but I feel like I needed a little more, at least a hint towards something before this point (~80%) to make it realistic.

Nevertheless, these flaws are minor, and I think this is a good book for teens to experience their first taste of fantasy as it crosses gently into it from the real world with some action, but it’s not too complex. It could easily sit alongside the Twilight series which, despite its popularity, does also have similar flaws, I admit! I imagine the rest of the series is good too, I won’t be rushing to read it, but if I can find time in my upcoming book schedule (yes, I’m that person!), I’ll add the next to my list.

Just when you think there couldn't possibly be a YA story you haven't heard before, a book like More comes out with a fresh take and a unique premise. Ava has always wanted to be special, but that was when she was a kid. Now that she's an adult, she thinks she's put all of that behind her, until events transpire that bring it all back, and lo and behold, she does have powers! Unfortunately, that means people are after her, and she's going to have to trust her tutor, Caleb, who knows a lot more about all of this than she does!

The world Ava finds herself in was very well written and described. The characters were fully fleshed out and enough back story was given so you didn't have to wonder why they acted a certain way.

This was a quick read, and an enjoyable one. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.

5/5 stars.

The world T.M. created is surprisingly unique and fresh for a genre that (as of the past few years) has been completely swarmed with supernatural, sci-fi, dystopia-type stories. MORE stands out because it's logical in a sense, branched off from our current reality to make the scenario seem almost entirely plausible, like maybe this really exists, but there's enough supernatural elements to make it feel magical. Reminds me of Harry Potter in that sense, the balance of realism and something much more (get it? MORE? Haha)

MORE is a fun debut novel that has action-packed and suspense-filled plot (plus some nice romance. The author has also created a real interesting mythology in this book, and I can't wait to read further into the series to learn more. I appreciated that while there was a ton of world-building, the author didn't overload the reader with too much information! There was enough information given to avoid plot holes and to keep the reader informed, but not too much so that I felt overwhelmed.
Both Ava and Caleb were really complex and interesting characters. I loved their dynamic together, and I was rooting for them to get together the whole time! Also loved the character development! The plot was really good and full of unexpected turns.

At the time of requesting this book, I was heavily into paranormal YA but since then have fallen out of love with it. I think this somewhat effected my enjoyment of this book and so my thoughts on the book may be somewhat skewed but I still want to be honest.
The idea behind the story was a good one and I was interested in how it would play out but I just couldn't get on with the characters and their romance. I usually love dual POV books and I was hoping that would help but it wasn't quite doing what I wanted it to do.
It is certainly not a bad book at all, it starts of slow but it does get a bit of build up which did help in the end. In the end, it just didn't wow me the way I was hoping it would.
Please accept my apologies for not sending any feedback until now.

Interesting premise and characters. The pace of the story was intriguing and you can see the changes of the protagonist slowly building as her character is developed.