Author: Lauren Oliver
Genre: Contemporary
Page Count: 408
Publication Date: March 4th, 2014
Publisher: HarperCollins
Source
*Note: Since this is a new release, I will try my best to not include spoilers.*
Panic by Lauren Oliver takes place in a small town in New York called Carp. Nothing ever happens in this small town, so the high school seniors from several years ago started a game called Panic. Panic is a high-risk game in which the contestants have to face some of their worst fears. Each year, the seniors pitch in a dollar a day to form the prize for the game. Normally, the pot adds up to about $50,000 but this year, it's up to $67,000. Two hopeful teenagers, Heather and Dodge, decide to join in on the game for two very different reasons. Dodge plays for revenge and Heather decides to play after her boyfriend dumps her. This book is full of action, suspense, romance, and anything else you could ask for. I found myself eager to see what happens next and the story left me with a pit inside of my stomach from my nervousness for the characters. The plot was very engaging, the characters were compelling, and the game was jaw-dropping.
First of all, the plot was very engaging. Throughout the story, the contestants of Panic had to face numerous challenges to get to the final challenge and win the prize. These challenges kept me so on edge and nervous for the characters' fates. Some of the challenges were so dangerous that I literally had a pit in my stomach from the anticipation to see what happened. The romance between the main protagonists was also remarkable. I usually don't read books with a lot of romance in them, and this book doesn't completely surround the romance either, but this book left me rooting for the characters to fall in love. The way Lauren Oliver described the interactions between two of the characters made me feel that they truly loved each other and they didn't even realize it. Lauren Oliver also kept a good balance between the jaw-dropping game and the main characters' everyday lives.
Secondly, the characters were compelling. Heather, one of the two main protagonists, comes from a crappy family in which her mother is an alcoholic and drug-addict. Heather is ultimately left to take care of her younger sister, Lily, as well as herself. Heather has a low self-esteem but learns to build it after she finds a job that she actually likes. Her two best friends, Nat and Bishop, are always there for her and will support her through whatever troubles she's facing. Dodge is the other main protagonist who also comes from a ragged family. He, on the other hand, has a sister, Dayna, who has become paralyzed after playing Panic a few years before. This leads his family to become poor from the multiple doctor appointments she has to attend. Dodge decides to play Panic as revenge for what happened to Dayna. Dodge is constantly looking over Dayna so she doesn't feel too lonely. I found Dodge to be very likable. I grew attached to him and sympathized for him very early in the story. Dodge and Heather think that they are very different but they are really similar due to their broken family life. The story is written in third person and switches from Heather and Dodge's point of view. I think that the third person point of view helped decipher the different perspectives unlike Allegiant by Veronica Roth.
Overall, Panic was a marvelous read. The plot was very engaging and suspenseful and the characters were compelling. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a thrilling or realistic read.
P.S: I participated in the BOOKSPLOSION Read-Along on Goodreads, so check it out my thoughts while I was reading this story.
First of all, the plot was very engaging. Throughout the story, the contestants of Panic had to face numerous challenges to get to the final challenge and win the prize. These challenges kept me so on edge and nervous for the characters' fates. Some of the challenges were so dangerous that I literally had a pit in my stomach from the anticipation to see what happened. The romance between the main protagonists was also remarkable. I usually don't read books with a lot of romance in them, and this book doesn't completely surround the romance either, but this book left me rooting for the characters to fall in love. The way Lauren Oliver described the interactions between two of the characters made me feel that they truly loved each other and they didn't even realize it. Lauren Oliver also kept a good balance between the jaw-dropping game and the main characters' everyday lives.
Secondly, the characters were compelling. Heather, one of the two main protagonists, comes from a crappy family in which her mother is an alcoholic and drug-addict. Heather is ultimately left to take care of her younger sister, Lily, as well as herself. Heather has a low self-esteem but learns to build it after she finds a job that she actually likes. Her two best friends, Nat and Bishop, are always there for her and will support her through whatever troubles she's facing. Dodge is the other main protagonist who also comes from a ragged family. He, on the other hand, has a sister, Dayna, who has become paralyzed after playing Panic a few years before. This leads his family to become poor from the multiple doctor appointments she has to attend. Dodge decides to play Panic as revenge for what happened to Dayna. Dodge is constantly looking over Dayna so she doesn't feel too lonely. I found Dodge to be very likable. I grew attached to him and sympathized for him very early in the story. Dodge and Heather think that they are very different but they are really similar due to their broken family life. The story is written in third person and switches from Heather and Dodge's point of view. I think that the third person point of view helped decipher the different perspectives unlike Allegiant by Veronica Roth.
Overall, Panic was a marvelous read. The plot was very engaging and suspenseful and the characters were compelling. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a thrilling or realistic read.
P.S: I participated in the BOOKSPLOSION Read-Along on Goodreads, so check it out my thoughts while I was reading this story.
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