Want

I'm disappointed with WANT, but probably because my expectations were set too high. When I finished it, I didn't feel the urge to read it again, and even while reading it I had an incredible sense of deja-vu.I think if it's your first time reading scifi, you'll enjoy it immensely. It's got action, cool technology, exciting plot and a future that scares you because it's so realistically possible. But for a massive fan of scifi, I found it full of clichés, and very predictable. I felt like i had read the same thing before.Lots of things were far fetched, and irked me. Not the science, actually: but the plot itself. The logic behind sending Zhou in undercover - to befriend the woman he once kidnapped, the daughter of a man who had a man hunt out for him? - is just absurd, and bugged me out of the story. Other decisions like that made the story not flow easily.And other small things got in my way of truly enjoying the book: the fact that Iris always has to be doing something dangerous (her only character trait is that she's dangerous, and this gets repeated over, and over again) for example. The characters other than Zhou or Daiyu were flat, with the author reminding us over and over why they're not. But one character trait does not make a character complex.It just was hard to get into the style. The constant repetition of traits, the fact every chapter starts days/weeks forward and then Zhou has to tell you "we were doing this," the lack of chemistry between Zhou and Daiyu...I'm disappointed, because I was really excited about this novel. I mean, it's so cool to see a novel set in Taiwan! And that cover, wow! Taiwanese MCs! But the story fell flat. While the worldbuilding was extremely realistic (as I said, real enough to scare me) the plot was nothing new.

This was yet another on the list of “oh god it sounds so good what if it isn’t really that good?!”Spoiler: y’all it REALLY WAS THAT GOOD.This is one of the most fabulously paced near future sci-fi that I’ve read in a long, long time. While I questioned it as I started reading, this started in exactly the right place and then sent us backward just long enough to establish the stakes and the horrible truth of just how far the antagonist would go to keep everything going the way he wanted it to. And once we’d established that – the story took off and just pulled me along in the best way. The mission and Zhou’s time among the you crowd intertwined so well. Just awesomely done.And can I mention Zhou for a moment? Holy crap it’s been a while since I’ve crushed on a main character so hard. He just got me right in the feels with damn near every scene. And he and Daiyu together were a fabulously swoony couple. I was rooting for them the entire time even with everything that should rightly have made them a terrible idea LOL. But they worked so well as equals, and that just hit me right in the competency kink.I have to admit though that they were not the only couple I ended up ride or die for by the end of the book. I hadn’t heard anything about them, so discovering that there was a major side couple of two incredible wlw was just a fabulous bonus for me. Plus ONE OF THEM IS BI!! … OK so I admit it’s possible that character realized she was a lesbian after dating men but then falling for a woman, but my little bi heart was just beating like crazy for those two so I’m headcanoning her as bi so there LOL.Finally I think my absolute favorite part of this book was the glorious sense of place. I’ve never been to Tai Pei, but I could see the streets Zhou lived on so well! Plus oh good lord the street food discussions and the family dinners with the group just had me drooling and getting hungrier the longer I read. Just a gorgeous setting in this book. I loved it kind of a lot.

This wasn't my least favorite book, but I didn't love it.PlotJason Zhou, a young revolutionary living in Taipei, witnesses injustice on a daily basis. Pollution and sickness are killing the poor people (the meis) because they can't afford to buy protective suits, which are manufactured and worn by the rich people (the yous). As a result, the yous thrive: they party daily and enjoy all of the luxuries that life has to offer. Meanwhile, the meis lay dying on the streets. Enraged by this gap between classes and the man behind it all, Zhou and his friends set out to make a difference.Overall, I found the plot to be a bit boring. While I was excited by the idea upon first reading the novel's description, I just wasn't that captivated while reading it. Not only did it drag on a bit, but everything was simply too easy. Every "problem" was resolved immediately and there was always a convenient, yet somewhat unrealistic, solution. Furthermore, while carrying out what should have been a complicated plan, there were very few hitches. Everything just seemed to work itself out. Even the ending didn't have me on the edge of my seat.CharactersThe characters in this novel were likable but not lovable, and overall not very memorable. I even found some of them, such as Victor, to be a bit annoying. In most cases, they were rather underdeveloped. They each had a certain quirk, but Pon failed to elaborate on any of their back stories. However, they were very diverse. This book is representative of people of multiple races and sexual orientations.World-buildingThe setting of this story was certainly unique. I have yet to read another novel that takes place in Taiwan. There are several good details, and Pon paints a consistent, detailed picture of the streets of Taipei. That being said, you don't learn much about the world beyond the pollution, sickness, and financial inequality.OverallNeither the plot nor the characters in this story captivated me. The events that take place throughout the novel failed to excite me and I simply didn't fall in love with any of the characters. I do, however, admire Pon for creating a very diverse world. I don't regret reading it but I wouldn't read it again. I give it 2.5/5 stars overall.

Pon has perfected the art of world building and this was another great example of it. I loved the dynamics and diversity of the main characters and their absolute love for each other and their home land. The story carried at a good pace and had a good balance of deep calmness and awesome action, can't wait for Ruse!

WANT was so. freaking. good.It was absolutely wonderful, the best mix of grey-morals and scifi, and I loved the fact that we finally had a scifi book set somewhere other than America on Earth, and highly recommend this. I can't speak much to the rep in depth because I am not Taiwanese, but, as far as my knowledge goes, it was wonderful, positive, and awesome.