I have elected not to read and review this book due to time constraints. Thank you for the opportunity.

I was really excited about the concept of this book but ended up slightly underwhelmed. I was interested enough to keep reading (an fly through it), but I just feel like there was something missing. If I were to compare this to another book/show it would be The 100 but with more sci-fi rather than dystopian aspects.
I did find myself confused as to what exactly was going on, but since the characters were too it worked in the book's favour.
Overall it was an entertaining (albeit middle-of-the-road) read.

I love post-apocalyptic type books and I LOVE The 100 show so of course was thrilled to read this book. A lot of great characters and strange goings-on in the novel but it worked well and I enjoyed it. An interesting and strange read that I recommend.

I picked this up without reading the description and was very confused as I was reading. I didn't really understand the premise and had to look up what the book was about. It sounded interesting and unique and I kept reading. It really didn't hold my interest but I did find the setting very interesting and vivid. I thought the characters were flat and I did end up putting this down about 77% of the way into it. I lost interest and couldn't get through it. I wish the author would have included more context to what was happening and why earlier in the book.

I think that the plot twist would have been so much better if I hadn't figured it out earlier in the book. I really enjoy the writing style that this author has. I will most likely pick up the next book that they put out.

this was an enjoyable read, the characters were great and I really enjoyed the plot. I look forward to more from the author.

I received this book as an ARC from netgalley! I had been trying to read this book for months on ebook but just couldn’t push myself to get through it on ebook format. I’m more of a physical book and audiobook person. Once I picked this book up from my library and read the first chapter I didn’t want to stop! Lake, Willow and the other characters were written very well. I loved the fact that I could compare this book to The Maze Runner and Illuminae. This book definitely could’ve been the two of those books plus Across the Universe all into one compact book! It blew my mind and I definitely need to read more of Parker Peevyhouse’s novels as they are released!

Thank you NetGalley for a complimentary copy. I voluntarily reviewed this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

REVIEW ☆☆☆
Strange Exit is strange indeed. I thought I would like this story much more than I did. I was lost and just not into the premise. I think maybe virtual reality is not my thing. It's not the story, rather I'm not the right person to read this book. If virtual reality is your thing, you will likely enjoy this book. It wasn't for me!

This is a different little tale for lovers of scifi and suspense. I wasn't sure I was going to like it, and it took me a bit to get into it. Once I did, I couldn't put it down.

I have not had the time or interest to get through this book, unfortunately. I requested based on the author and would love to get to it eventually.

I unfortunately DNF'd this book a chapter into starting it. There was something off about the writing style that didn't quite work for me.

I like stories playing out in VR because nothing seems impossible. In Strange Exit the world building was great and I enjoyed it greatly. In comparision to that the characters where rather bleak. Overall an okay read.

This book had a terrific premise that definitely sucked me in but the execution was weird. And I'm still not sure what the hell happened at the end. The virtual reality aspect reminded me of Ready Player One while the space travel was a totally different tale. It was definitely a unique idea. I just think the misdirection was done so well that I'm not sure what the point of certain main characters like Taren was. Also what happened to him at the end? Lake's relationship with Willow was interesting. However her relationship with the bartender was confusing as hell. Also the rules of the simulation made no sense either.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this book. This one was an okay read for me. Not usually a book I would read but it had its moments. This one is more of a young adult science fantasy and I dont read too many scifi or fantasy books so this one was definitely out of my comfort zone. The setting in most of this book is like a virtual reality dystopian type world that the characters are stuck in. Overall it was a pretty fast paced read for me and was somewhat entertaining.

This one was really fun, really unique, and I really enjoyed the story! The book was atmospheric, and this dystopian universe completely sucked me in and kept me reading. The characters fell a little short in comparison to the setting and the world building, but I was still able to enjoy the story regardless. This book totally gave me THE 100 vibes, which I was super into!

It started off very strong. The virtual reality was easy to visualize at first, as were the problems that had to be faced. The author is also very good at building tension.

I didn't feel much of a connection to either of the two main characters, which made it a little difficult to stay invested in the story. Also the ending felt rushed and some of the action towards the end was hard to follow. We never really get to know how people felt about what had happened, or if one character survived.

A few things about the story didn't quite work for me, but overall I thought it was well-written. I'd be interested in reading more of this author's work.

This book was ok, but I found it confusing at points. The characters and world building are great but it jumped around all over the place.

Strong premise and nicely done development. I really enjoyed the characters and the world building.⁣
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But... ⁣
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The ending ruined it for me. It was so very rushed, a tad confusing and not satisfying at all. It sort of felt like the author got to the end and kind of gave up on it. But the beginning and middle of it were great. Also I didn't get a satisfying wrap up for all the characters. ⁣
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Will keep an eye out for what this author writes next.

Started 12/22/19

I’m about 75% through Strange Exit, and I am not loving it. I’m going to finish it because I don’t absolutely hate it, and I want to push through it to provide the best review possible. I will say it’s an interesting idea; essentially earth has been destroyed, and there are a ship of humans who had to take it to survive. However, they had to be put in homeostasis which seemed to involve this virtual reality system to help them cope with the trip. It seems like they only took kids, for whatever reason, and, honestly, I don’t quite understand why we had this setup. I guess it’s something to do with re-population and an innate “right” to be saved over adults who’ve had a chance to live their life. Unfortunately, it just feels like a convenient way to write a YA novel.

On that note, I don’t love the writing of this book. It reads very YA but not just in style of substance as well. I don’t mind a YA perspective, but I want depth in my story and characterization. I am mildly interested in what is going on , but to me it just all seems bland. Obviously, I wish I was more excited by the book. Something seems to be going on with the ship, and they have to wake up all of the people in the virtual reality to avoid a major catastrophe. The novel, it seems, revolves around this task, so naturally it’s not an easy task to wake them up. I’m not entirely sure how it all fits together because it seems very convoluted, and what I do understand feels like plot convenience.

I understand the nature of writing is creating, but I a good story should sell the idea and plot naturally (particularly the plot given a specific idea). I feel bad because I am very happy to have been granted this arc. However, it just isn’t a book for me. I think YA readers are probably more likely to enjoy it.

Finished 1/23/20

I finished the book, and while I enjoyed the ending, overall my opinion isn’t very high. I’ll admit I don’t read that much YA, but it’s a genre that personally I’ve been trying to explore more to figure out what type of way works for me. I couldn’t connect with the characters, and the most exciting thing about the plot was the idea. Of course, an idea doesn’t write a book. There were some things that seemed convenient for the sake of the plot, the sake of action, and for the sake of emotion. Obviously these are all necessary to develop a new story. However, it just didn’t work for me.

By the end, the plot drove everything. It wasn’t a special accomplishment of the characters. The ending was near, so the characters arbitrarily make progress where they couldn’t before. I will probably read another book by Parker Peevyhouse, specifically because I know one Books and Lala gave a decent rating to one of them. I recognize her name for a reason, so I don’t want to give up on Peevyhouse just yet. It may just be at this novel isn’t that great, or maybe she isn’t right for me. Thanks to the publisher Internet galley forgive me that we reviewed this book. 2.5/5 stars

Rating Break Down
Writing Style (7%): 5/10
Plot (15%): 5/10
Characters (15%): 4/10
Ending (1%): 7/10
Engagement (5%): 5/10
Enjoyment (25%): 4/10
Comprehension (20%): 8/10
Pacing (2%): 7/10
Desire to Reread (5%): 0/10
Special (5%): 0/10
Final Rating: 2.38/5
Note, each rating is weighted based on personal importance.

Strange Exit isn’t normally a book I would pick up. The premise sounded interesting but it just reminded me of some syfy shows I’ve watched and I honestly expected to be disappointed. Sometimes it’s just hard to get things to live up to expectations. But man did this book blow me out of the water. I couldn’t put it down once I started and I had to know everything that was happening. Parker Peevyhouse did an amazing job wrapping up so many different genre’s into one and not making any of them seem half assed. Sure there was a little cursing thrown in but nothing over the top (like they said shit twice) because it wasn’t needed. The panic and the emotions flowed all on their own.

But the best part was the book wasn’t obvious. You always have those stories where you know what’s going to happen. You know that the people in the Hallmark movie are going to end up together kind of thing. Strange Exit didn’t have that. Ransom for example. You’re convinced he’s a sleeper that is just in too deep and can’t bring himself to wake up because of something that happened in the sim. The reader is sure that’s what’s happening until Lake starts to believe that he’s not real at all. That Ransom is part of the simulation and was never a real person just someone that she made up so she would have a friend to talk to. It’s heartbreaking and as a reader I fully believed that was the case and that Lake was just starting to realize how deep she was when they’d first met. Only to learn later that he is real. He’s trying to pull her out of the simulation and that’s why he always shows up when she needs him. He’s going in to save her and not the other way around.

It’s so well written that every twist was surprising and I was dying for more. The book was just fantastic and I would really recommend it.