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Thank you for the opportunity to review this book. I am sorry I did not get to read it before the archive date, I couldn't find a copy of the first one in the series. I like that the main character is non-binary and this was seven years ago. I hadn't picked up on that before. I also really enjoyed Malinda Lo's book Ash and her work on afterellen.com.

A solid sci-fi novel with a diverse cast that confronts bigotry, though at times it feels disjointed due to the flipping between the romance between Reese and Amber, and the sci-fi mystery.

Thank you so much to net galley for sending me a copy of this book. I love this author so much and was so excited to receive this book. I was not disappointed. I would definitely recommend this author!

Plot: ★★★★
Characters: ★★
Readability: ★★★★

If you’ve been following the blog for long, you’ll probably know there are a few things I absolutely cannot resist, and while this book doesn’t have all of them (there’s a distinct lack of dragons) it does tick a lot of my boxes. Secret government conspiracy? Check. Mysterious, creepy, apocalyptic scenarios? Check. LGBTQ relationships? Check.

In the near-future, Reese and David are debate partners, stranded at the airport when flocks of birds start flying into planes and causing them to crash. After the two eventually manage to hire a car, they leave the airport and begin making their way home. During the drive, they are involved in a crash thanks to more weird bird behaviour, and later wake up in a mysterious facility, confused but seemingly fine. The story has a great, action-packed beginning, and a breakneck paced ending, but it slows down a bit in the middle – not at all a deal-breaker, but not something I was expecting. It’s fairly impossible to talk about the plot without giving anything away, but suffice to say I loved the idea, and I’m intrigued as to where the story will go next!

“People are always going to think something about you that isn’t real. It doesn’t matter what they think.”

First things first, while this is a sci-fi story, there’s also a lot of romance. There’s a love triangle, but instead of the cliche good boy vs bad boy, it’s more a case of nice-boy vs exciting-girl, as Reese begins to wonder just what she’s feeling about the mysterious Amber. Obviously, everyone’s sexuality and experience is different, but as a bisexual reader I personally found the unexpected development of feelings towards the same sex, and all the questioning that went with it, very realistic. I loved reading a bisexual love triangle and I loved how Lo portrayed all the emotions that each of the characters involved felt. On the other hand, I didn’t feel like any of the characters was really developed enough – David was bland, Reese was too passive and compliant, and Amber felt like a bit of a manic pixie dreamgirl. It’s hard to get truly invested in the possible ships when you don’t really connect to any of the characters!

“It’s like — this is going to sound weird, but it’s like we’re in a movie and every time I’m with you, the camera zooms in for a close-up and we’re the only two people in the frame. Do you know what I mean? You’re the close-up.”

I know objectively, that Adaptation isn’t perfect: parts were predictable and I was disappointed by the character depth. Despite the flaws though, I really liked it, and I find myself recommending this all the time. I’m really looking forward to reading book 2, because Lo has created a gripping plotline I can’t wait to read more of, and a cast I want to love, even if I don’t just yet.
Buy it? I think this is worth a re-read, so it’s a buy for me.
In a nutshell: Bisexual love triangle + near-future apocalypse = definitely worth a read!

I have been trying to dig deep into my TBR and read some of the older stuff I have had in my pile. Adaptation is one of those books. Adaptation is a fast paced YA sci-fi thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat. Reese and her debate partner David are on their way home from losing a match in Phoenix when birds start falling out of the sky. Planes crash and general chaos and panic sweeps the country. Racing to get home to San Francisco, they are in a car accident and wake up a month later with no memory of what happened to them. Once they get home, hey both begin to suspect they are different in some way.

I really enjoyed this one. I read it in one sitting. It was a pretty refreshing sci-fi YA with some romance in it. I'm not going to give away much of the plot other than whet is written in the synopsis. It would ruin the reveals at the end. The characters were fun and interesting. There is kind of a love triangle, so it will be interesting to see how it plays out in the sequel. The whole story is told through Reese's perspective as she and David try to figure out what happened to the both of them. I thought the author did a great job of portraying Reese as someone who is questioning being Bi-sexual. It came across as genuine and not cliche. Honestly, I'm not sure who I am rooting for, Amber or David.

The book ends in a huge cliffhanger, so I must seek out the sequel to see what happens next. I would probably keep it to older YA readers as there is a bit of mature exploratory content. I definitely recommend this one.

Since receiving this book, my interests have changed therefore I will not be reading or reviewing this title. Thank you.