A Wattpad Star's review book.
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Thanks to Wattpad, I've been able to read a free copy of Revenge of the Sluts.
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- This is a review based on the version published by Wattpad Books -
Title: Revenge of the Sluts Author: Natalie Walton (@Floats) Genre: Contemporary teen fiction Narrative: First person, past tense Content: 23 chapters and an epilogue. Link: wattpad.com/story/130421113
Summary: Eden Jeong, a senior and aspiring journalist at St. Joesph High School, is tasked with the reporting of an email containing intimate photos of seven female students, sent to everyone at the school by a mysterious Eros. However, it quickly becomes a difficult challenge as she is met with resistance from not only the victims but also the school's administration, who won't allow any coverage that can harm the school's reputation. Unwilling to accept defeat, and as incidents related to the email keeps happening throughout, Eden is determined to fight for justice, getting to the bottom of who Eros is.
Cover: The cover is okay. I think the cartoon drawings age the book down, and I don't know if that's necessarily what you want with a book about revenge porn. But the setup with the girls—their eyes drawn out lining up the title—is great.
Blurb: I'm having a little trouble with the blurb. "No one ever said high school was easy, and that couldn't be more true for journalist Eden Jeong." This gives the impression that Eden is the one you should sympathize with, simply because she's met with pushback when trying to write an article for a school newspaper. When the actual victim, who you should be concerned for, are the girls who've had their private photos stolen and spread to everyone. It doesn't sit right with me. Other than that, the blurb does a good job of setting up the story.
The good: First, I want to acknowledge what a great eye-catching title this book has. Kudos to Walton on that.
The story opens directly on the capital moment with the email ticking in, and I love that. No wasting time with introducing characters but straight into the action. It works great for this book. (Though I wish we were introduced to the main character a little sooner than page nine. It was starting to get weird not knowing whose eyes I was reading the story through.)
I like how it's set up with the girls in the email not having any clear connection. It makes for some great guesswork of whodunit and wondering why these girls ended up in the email together—working out what they have in common. I love when a book does that; make you think and theorize. This also meant that I trusted no one in the story, which I actually enjoyed.
What I also really liked, is that the book tries to show the situation from several people's points of view, and it does so in a very realistic way. Even among the girls who've been exposed, we see different reactions. I really appreciate how Walton has tried to put herself into the mindset of such a varied cast of characters, taking the time to develop their individual personalities. She's done an amazing job at it. I especially appreciate that the school jerk, who tries to make light of the situation, isn't given a redemption arc. Sometimes people are who they are.
