I loved the little details of this book. How it is not just some big battle for Riley (the main character) trying to find out what the binoculars actually are. Its about him taking his SAT's and talking to the girl he has loved for like ever and even taking part in charity runs. Everything in This is How It Ends is perfectly placed together and it is like Jen Nadol has sewed together a tapestry of love, murder, friendships, and betrayal with just the right amount of everyday life mixed in with it.



Full review on https://www.bloomingbookreviews.blogspot.ca
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Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: This novel was intriguing with a bit of a slow pace.

Opening Sentence: Trip was late.

The Review:

Riley and his friends are playing truth or dare by a cave when he is dared to go into it. He finds a pair of binoculars, but they seem to be more than that. In them, his friends see bizarre visions, and Riley’s sees him in a dorm room naked next to his best friend’s girlfriend whom, consequently, he’s been crushing on forever. They are thrown off as hallucinations until Natalie’s vision comes true and a gruesome murder of her father happens in her own home. What are these binoculars and who is the killer? It’s not so straightforward, and Riley is determined to figure it out.

There were two interconnecting main plotlines in this novel. Both were something of a mystery. The first was the binoculars. What did they do? Do they really tell the future or do they cause hallucinations? Do they make the future? For a while I believed that they were never going to go into what they were in detail. I thought it would be a whole bunch of guessing with a hypothesis at the end, but no real answers. I was actually excited when there was a backstory to the origin of the binoculars at the very end. It could have been executed better, and it was a little far-fetched, but in the main scheme of things it did make sense. I liked the sense of finality that it gave the story of the binoculars.

The other mystery in this novel was the killer of Nat’s father. Being a drug dealer and generally not very nice, his only friends were the ones he partied with, though he made plenty of enemies. When he ended up dead, there were quite a few suspects considered. I had thought it would end up being a super surprising plot twist, but it was just a character that we didn’t really consider much. Sure, we knew of him, and he had the right motives and made sense. It was set up in a way. There was a trail of bread crumbs. But in the end I expected more of a plot twist out of the killer. I felt that there were some other subplots that generated interest, so it wasn’t a turning point for how much I enjoyed this novel.

As far as characters go, they were well done. I liked the complexity of each one. The main character, Riley, is something of a geek. But he’s very in love with his best friend’s girlfriend. It was upsetting to me when they cheated, because he did kiss her a few times when she was still with Trip, although he was plagued by guilt and regret afterwards. Sarah was more to blame for the times they kissed, really. Riley was the one who broke them apart each time. As far as the other characters, a ton of them were in hard family situations. Riley’s dad was dead. Trip’s father was cheating on his mother. Sarah’s mom walked out on them, as did Nat’s. Maybe if one normal character had been thrown into the mix, it could have added more of a degree of realism.

When I began This Is How It Ends, I didn’t know what to expect. I hadn’t heard much about it and the synopsis was vague. Altogether, I found it to be pretty good. It was a mix of thriller and mystery, with some romance mixed in. I’ll be honest, there were times when it was hard for me to read because it got slow. Some of those lagging points were boring. But when you hit the 75% mark, things blow up and hit the ground running. Suddenly, revelation over revelation hit you and everything begins to piece together. That last fourth of the novel raised my opinion of it. The romance was cutesy and I liked the realism of it, besides the whole cheating element. I’d recommend this to someone looking for a mystery novel with some science fiction twists thrown into it!

Notable Scene:

“How about you?” Trip asked. “What are you thinking?”

I’m thinking how much I wish we hadn’t started this conversation. And that I’d had the guts to ask her out last week or the week before or two years ago when I realized how into her I was. I’m thinking how irritating it is that you always one-up me like this, even though you’re not trying and probably don’t mean it.

“I’m thinking I’m going to skip it,” I told him. “It’ll probably be lame anyhow.”

FTC Advisory: Simon Pulse provided me with a copy of This Is How It Ends. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. ( )

If you could see the future, would you want to? After the disturbing visions Riley and his friends see turn out to be more than hallucinations, fate takes a dangerous twist in this dark and suspenseful page-turner. Riley and his friends are gearing up for their senior year by spending one last night hanging out in the woods, drinking a few beers, and playing Truth or Dare. But what starts out as a good time turns sinister when they find a mysterious pair of binoculars. Those who dare to look through them see strange visions, which they brush off as hallucinations. Why else would Riley see himself in bed with his best friend's girlfriend-a girl he's had a secret crush on for years? In the weeks that follow, the visions begin to come true...including a gruesome murder. One of Riley's closest friends is now the prime suspect. But who is the murderer? Have Riley and his friends really seen the future through those mysterious binoculars? And what if they are powerless to change the course of events? ( )

I really enjoyed this story. The whole concept of seeing the future through binoculars is so exciting!

Plot: This is about a group of kids who, while playing in the woods finding a pair of binoculars. Upon looking into the binoculars, they see a brief look into the future. This alone excites me. I mean, I wonder what I would see if I looked into it. Good or bad? Honestly, I’m not sure that I even want to look. The future is uncertain and a tad bit scary. Anywho, this plot rocks. It’s well paced with plenty of drama to keep the reader entertained.

Binoculars: These binoculars made me wonder. Where did they come from? Can you see more of the future if you continue to look in? What else can they do? All this and more flowed through my head as I devoured the story. I loved that all characters played a part in each others future. Some good/bad. Each characters also held information to their future that they didn’t share. Throughout reading the story, I was anxious knowing somehow their futures were and how they affect each other.

Ending: Well, that ending certainly surprised me. I wasn’t expecting such a revelation but man oh man. The information that flowed out of the pages just reeled me in even more. I totally loved how my suspensions were right. The futures impacted each other more than what I thought. It was an great and well written ending!!

I really enjoyed this story. I can only hope that there will be a novella or possibly a second book to determined their future. The ending does leave it open for more. If you love a good mystery, supernatural story read this book. ( )

Actual Rating: 2.5/5 stars

Okay. Have you read the blurb of this book? If not, go read it! It's basically shouting: "Go read me!" It looked so inviting and promising that I'm so happy I got approved of my ARC request.

Sadly, it didn't reach my expectations.

Synopsis:

It started when a group of friends who were hanging out and decided to play Truth or Dare. So Riley was dared to went to the cave with Sarah, whom he has a puppy-dog crush AND his bestfriend Trip's girlfriend, to tell her a secret. Anyway, they have found a box that contained a binocular. So they each took turns to looked into it and everyone saw something really weird.

They're freaking out after that because Natalie saw his father's bloody death. Of course, they blame it all on the alcohol.

Just their luck, what Natalie saw, actually happened.

So what is with the binocular? Was it cursed or something? And those other "visions" that they saw, will that happen too?

They talked about this. They guessed maybe the visions are they're secret desires? Or maybe they're deepest fears? Or they're future? But what really was the truth?

--I found this book both appealing and boring sometimes. Yup, that happens. This contained such an interesting premise but unfortunately, it didn't quite deliver.

There's just some things that I didn't like that much:

"The worst part is what it's done to how I feel about Trip. I used to think I loved him. Now I know I don't."

Okay.. So why continue stringing him along if she know for herself that she doesn't love him? She should've broke up with him. Before it's too late....

And of course, Riley is so happy to hear that.

And-shitty, awful and backstabbing friend that I am-I felt happy. She doesn't love him.

----> O____O

Anyway, Riley hadn't really acted upon his feelings so it's kind of okay =)) There's no reason to hate them so much at all.

-The story was slow-paced. I would like this book a lot more if it's not.

The Ending:

Am I the only one who felt like it's kind of open-ended? And there's just so many unanswered questions! For example: Why in the world is the binocular supposed to be given to Riley?? What's so special about him?

I'm so disappointed about the ending. I think the story has so much potential. I wished it was much more creepier than what it was. Anyway, I still enjoyed this one so you guys might as well try this for yourself!

"I think there are just some things you have to see for yourself," she said. "Right?"

*Quotes taken from an uncorrected version of the book.* ( )