Priya Guns

I'm not sure how to feel about this one. I went into it without knowing much, and it was not at all what I expected. It was mostly vibes, which is not a bad thing. The story followed Damani, a 'RideShare' driver struggling to keep the bills paid and care for her mother, who was crippled by grief over the loss of her husband. It was really just following her life over several weeks or months. And it was a lot.

This was actually pretty sad because the struggles and drama portrayed in this book could very easily be real life -- and probably is for many people. It was just shy of being dystopic. I liked it, but the vibe wasn't what I was looking for in a read this time around. Perhaps when I reread it, it'll feel different. I will be looking forward to seeing what the author does next.… (meer)

I was excited when I first heard of this book. The concept sounded great and it appeared to be a good read. Unfortunately, the book was overhyped.

I was unable to engage with the narrative at all. The book was a chore to read. The characters were impossible to relate to and distant. Jolene, despite being one of the major characters in the book was simply one-dimensional. She was not well developed at all. She also acted out of character, especially at the end.

The protagonist, Damani, an entitled young lady of color was clueless. She could not understand why her landlord wanted her evicted, despite being three months behind on the rent. She was suspended from her job as a driver as she was being investigated for criminal behavior, but she had no idea what that behavior might be. How about, burglary, theft, destruction of property, breaking and entering, and assault and battery for starters. Totally clueless.

The dialog was another issue with this book. All the characters spoke alike, despite their age and backgrounds. Many dialogue tags were omitted, even when multiple people were speaking, it was impossible a times to determine who was speaking.

Finally, the ending was ridiculous. It was unrealistic and totally out of character for Damani and Jolene, based upon the previous 300 pages.

This is one of the worst books I have read in years. Total waste of time and paper.… (meer)