DNF at 18%

This is actually so incredibly disappointing considering the Arc of a Scythe series is one of my favorites. All Better Now was rough from the start and I have a feeling I am just going to continue to struggle with it. The writing felt cringey and incredibly clunky. The plot was so slow, especially for a book clocking in at over 500 pages. There were way too many character POVs and I didn’t like any of them. The overall idea was super interesting, but with the state of the world being what it is right now, it was also kind of hard to read. I am really bummed out by this one.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve been reading Neal Shusterman’s books for probably ~15 years and I find them just as enjoyable and though provoking now as I did when I was 10. I think I find his books so compelling because while he primarily writes for YA audience, he still deals with very heavy topics like reproductive rights, mental illness, mortality, and power.

All Better Now starts off slower than most of Shusterman’s previous works, but the premise of the book is so intriguing that I didn’t want to put it down. Using the backdrop of a global pandemic, Shusterman asks the question “If you could catch a virus that makes you perpetually happy, would you?”

This book is incredibly thought provoking and wholly unique. If you like dystopian/speculative fiction or fictional books with strong social commentary, then you should book up this book. I can’t wait to see how this series develops.

Hey book lovers! 📚 Let’s chat about Neal Shusterman’s latest novel, All Better Now, hitting shelves on February 4th, 2025. This one’s a wild ride through a world transformed by a virus that, get this, cures depression and anxiety. Sounds like a dream, right? But, as you’d expect, things aren’t that simple. 😅

The story follows three teens:
•Mariel Mudroch: Living in a car with her mom, she discovers something about herself and the virus.
•Rón Escobedo: A wealthy guy battling depression who becomes an “alpha-spreader” after recovery.
•Morgan Willmon-Wu: An ambitious teen tasked with eradicating the virus after inheriting a fortune.

Their paths intertwine in unexpected ways, diving deep into the societal impacts of this so-called “cure.”

Now, let’s get real. I felt the book was a bit on the lengthy side and had moments where the pacing dragged. I did enjoyed certain characters but didn’t form strong attachments to them.

On the flip side, I did appreciated the thought-provoking themes. The novel delves into questions like: Is unending happiness truly a gift? Does humanity need its darker emotions to maintain balance? It’s a narrative that gets your brain gears turning.

Happy reading! 📖✨

4.5/5

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is terrifying because this could totally happen. Maybe not exactly Crown Royale, but the way it’s spread, the reason for pharma to contain and what lengths they’ll go, how the rich view it, the hypocrisy, how the working class view it.

It also puts into perspective about pros versus cons in terms of mortality rate for the greater good, and how even with the best intentions, extremism still probably isn’t the way to go.

Morgan is a scary villain. She’s extremely intelligent, clever, selfish, and radical. That’s a dangerous combo. The ending gave me goosebumps.

I’m only docking it half a star for a few grammatical errors and typos. Other than that, this had me freaking out, lol.

In the not so distant future, another pandemic is sweeping the world. However instead of being a doom and gloom type of disease, this one ends with the survivors full of positivity and love. The disease has attacked the nervous system, changing personalities to only think good thoughts and do good deeds. Told through multiple voices, and multiple perspectives of the disease, in multiple settings, this book left me feeling meh about it–perhaps more editing to make it a more cohesive read would have helped. This one started off quick and then it really dragged and then it picked up again at the end, with the writing style being all over the place throughout the entire saga. An interesting concept, but unfortunately not my favorite by this author.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing for providing a DRC in exchange for an honest review.

4 out of 5 stars

This is my first Shusterman book, and while it's published under Simon and Schuster's children's label, it didn't feel YA. Except the parts where the ages of the main characters were specifically mentioned, I kept forgetting that they were, in fact, all still teenagers. Add to that the side characters who were very old and the billionaires who were definitely not teenagers, it just didn't feel aimed at younger readers at all.

I have to say, the fact that I was constantly on the fence about which side I was on (the unembraced or the embraced) was a testament to how well the book was written.

There's a new pandemic. Crown Royale - a "spider" of a virus that has a low mortality rate and very interesting side effects for those who survive it: the loss of strong negative emotions: grief, anger, jealousy, snarkiness, passive aggressiveness. In fact, those who survive appear to be content in everything. Billionaires are giving their money away or changing focus to help the embraced.

One particular old woman, Dame Havilland who runs the Havilland Consortium, doesn't want to turn into what she believes is a loss of who she is, her personality, her character. So, she finds a young woman who she believes will carry out her wishes once she has turned. She enlists Morgan to take over her money, her company, and finding a cure to Crown Royale.

Meanwhile, Mariel and her mother find themselves the winner of the AirBnB lottery and spend a night at a property owned by a billionaire, and they are greeted by the son, Tiberón. Rón and Mariel hit it off, but Mariel inadvertantly makes Rón anxious, and he leaves. When they meet again, Rón has gone against his father's wishes to hide from Crown Royale, and Rón and Mariel will join together to bring Crown Royale to the masses.

When Rón stops taking Mariel's suggestions about letting people decide themselves if they want Crown Royale or not, she starts to rethink her stance, especially since she has a natural immunity.

Meanwhile, Morgan has been working with Rón's father to locate his missing son, and has also found that his travelling companion may be the answer she needs in finding a cure.

First off, I hated the name of the virus. Crown Royale made me think of purple velvet bags. Did I miss why it was named that?

Second, okay, maybe the characters acted immature at times, but honestly, I kept forgetting they were not adults. These were 17- and 19-year old kids running around trying to break or save the world.

But I did enjoy the story. Definitely. I particularly loved the complicated but ultimately enduring and endearing relationship between Tiburón and his father, Blas Escobedo. Also, like I said, I wasn't sure what side I was eventually going to fall on. I kept expecting some alien invasion type situation with the Crown Royale virus.

The end left me reeling, but it was a damn good ending nonetheless. I expect there to be more. How could the author leave us with that ending without at least another book to answer my questions?! I felt both that it could have been longer but also that it could have been shorter? Either way, it certainly won't be my last Shusterman book.

I loved the pro-social overtones of this near future that focused on a transitional stage between dys- and pro-topia. Shusterman dives into the fragile systems that hold modern society together and pressure tests them with a pandemic that leaves those who survive the virus in a state of perpetual contentment and compassion. Excellent balance among disparate storylines of the ways that the virus affected different populations and individuals and intriguing engagement with ideas about the systems that hold society together without being pedantic. Highly recommend for young adults and adult-adults alike.

This book reminded me why I LOVE the dystopian/post apocalyptic genre!! 🤯
I genuinely loved this book for beginning to end. The story, the multiple POVS (yes please!), the details!
While there are a couple people you follow throughout the story, I enjoyed the random accounts of other people around the world and how they were dealing with the virus.
The ending just leaves you wanting more!! Wondering what happened 😬

You follow a handful of people in the world after a pandemic that leaves half the population feeling utter contentment. Who wouldn’t want to be happy all the time?

This book makes you think! At first you think well of course who wouldn’t?! But it really shows you the pros and cons.

I HIGHLY recommend this book! 🙌🏻

What would happen if a pandemic causes all its victims to be happy and charitable, even to the detriment of the self? That is exactly what this story explores and it is a very thought provoking concept. Each character is quite flawed but they all have redeeming qualities or actions, so I felt my opinions changing about each 'side' of the pandemic over and over throughout the story. I was pleased with the character development and how the ending wrapped up the story but did not give us all the answers. I felt that the lack of answers was very realistic and I know I will be thinking about this book for a long time going forward.

Scythe is my second favorite series ever. Needless to say, I had high expectations. The premise is genius, but the execution felt like a let down. The plot feels circular in that every scene or circumstance seems to be the same but slightly altered. There was no forward movement, and the uniqueness of the central plot therefore wore off quickly.

neal did the damn thing again. i didn’t know if he could top the scythe series and he surely proved me wrong. i can’t wait to read even more from him.

This book is such an interesting concept - a virus that causes happiness. Pure, unadulterated compassion, empathy, contentment, and happiness. It was such an interesting thought experiment and was intriguing when the downsides to this were shown. It makes for many interesting moral dilemmas. I enjoyed the book a lot. Thanks to NetGalley and Simon&Schuster for the ARC!

This was a great read. You could easily have shaved off 100 or so pages and not lost anything, but overall, I really enjoyed it. It makes you think...what would you do? Would you want to catch Crown Royale and live a life free of anxiety, pain, and burdens, or avoid it at all costs and maintain your 'true' sense of self, faults included?

I knocked off a star only because the ending gets pretty far-fetched and crazy. I also would have loved an epilogue explaining what happened 1 or more years down the line, but for the most part, this was an extremely readable book with engaging characters, and I'm so glad I got a chance to read it early. Thanks, NetGalley!

Fans of Shusterman’s Scythe trilogy (among his numerous other hits) are going to devour his newest, All Better Now. In a post-Covid world, there’s a new pandemic, but instead of leaving the infected with a lingering cough or weakened immune system, this virus leaves them feeling happy in ways they never imagined. They do everything for the benefit of the greater good, but if that seems too good to be true, it’s because it is. Three teenagers get wrapped up in major ways as the world grapples with competing agendas, conflicted societies, and moral dilemmas. This is a fast-paced thriller featuring various perspectives, and in true Shusterman-fashion, ties things up while leaving us eager for the next installment.

Shusterman is an author that I can always guarantee is a win with teen readers. As a classroom teacher, he was always an easy recommendation. His catalog of books keeps kids hooked, but also inspires them to dig into the information that informs the fiction. This book is no different. He writes teen characters that we root for and admire; he paints a dystopian society that felt too close and too real at times, and he left me thinking about the plot, the characters, and what’s next for days.

Took me a few days to finish All better now, thank you to the publisher & Neal Shushterman for the ARC of this. I loved it, I couldn’t imagine a virus like this. Or which virus I’d rather have. To be happy forever? If I don’t die first… I want to say sign me up. Sometimes though, you have days where you need to be sad. Another great by Neal Shusterman.

I've been reading Neal Shusterman's work for well over a decade now, and this was my ~10th book of his. While it had many of the elements that I enjoy about Shusterman's writing, I must admit this was probably my least favorite of his books.

What worked well:
- The premise of this book was super intriguing. In general, appreciate the way that Shusterman creates these dystopian worlds based on interesting philosophical and ethical dilemmas. In this case he explores the question: How would people react when faced with a rampant virus that leaves recoverees feeling only joy and gratitude (thus creating a pandemic of happiness)? The way the author approaches these philosophical topics through the eyes of his characters is always captivating, and for All Better Now I was hooked pretty early on.

What didn't work for me:
- Unfortunately, the initial premise was just about the only thing I enjoyed. The book felt so underdeveloped (especially for being over 500 pages long). The characters didn't grow; the plot didn't progress; and the romantic relationship was so forced, the only way I knew they were in a romantic relationship was because Shusterman kept telling us the characters had never loved anyone else so much.
- Above all else, I found some of the writing to be cringeworthy (at best). At one point the straight protagonist kisses a queer character (with a crush on him) out of pity. Shusterman also wrote phrases like: "[She was] irked to be mansplained by a woman" or, "She was Brown, but not Latina. Her accent pointed to India."

After sticking it out and completing all 500 pages, the book ended on a cliffhanger that left me feeling ultimately unfulfilled and frustrated.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my advanced copy.

This may be my favorite Shusterman yet. I think it is perfectly timed. Young people are starting to begin to process the pandemic. I love how the protagonists are also the antagonists. I will definitely be using this book in my young adult literature and writing courses.

This was so interesting and quite a scary concept of a world we could live in. I don't know how I'd like this world. The characters were all so different and fleshed out and I like how none of them were really perfect, good people. They all were in that Grey area. Especially Morgan, she was an interesting character, while on the other hand, Ron was getting on my nerves.

I read the Scythe series and enjoyed the premise of it, but not necessarily the writing (dry and slow for me for parts of the books, but not the whole series). This one is much better! I was into the book the entire time, and the writing was very easy to read.

The plot is interesting and actually made me think about how things would pan out if the virus succeeded. It’s honestly an intriguing idea, and realizing that being eternally content and willing to help others may not be a good thing is a bit of a wake up call to me. The characters are interesting enough, and I like the little backstories and side characters we get to know while reading. It’s also a wonderful addition to see into the minds of each side of the virus.

I enjoyed this quite a bit, and the ending is diabolical. If this isn’t a series, the ending is very thought provoking. 4.25⭐️

All Better Now is a fresh look at the question of what emotions are allowed and acceptable, and what happens if people simply can't feel 'bad' emotions. It wrestles with the real questions and posits convincingly the dangers and losses of unbounded optimism. Neal Shusterman's story is compelling with well drawn deep characters that are worth spending time with.