Glimmer [Hardcover]

What I Liked
The World
Perfection does come at a cost for the little happy town, but the townies don't really know what that cost is. This concept is so crazy and awesome, but I am so glad I don't live in it. Give me the pain of my memories any day over these lies. Also the ghost and magic just add to the appeal of the world that Phoebe has created for her characters.
Characters
Elyse: She is a very "human" character, she has her flaws and she knows what they are, but she just wants to escape her life. I give her a lot of credit for fighting in her own way and taking initiative to do something about it all. Elyse was a bit of a surprise for me, I was expecting weakness as she finds out about her life, but what was revealed was strength.
Marshall: I'm glad we get to learn about new Marshall, not the original old Marshall, I don't think I would have liked him that much. Who he is becoming and who he was are two different type of people, it goes to show that people can change given the circumstances and opportunity.

A Little Confusion
Following two characters with amnesia was a little confusing at first. Not only are the characters trying to puzzle out who they are, but as the reader you are also trying to figure what type of rules their world has as well. I personally like to understand the parameters of a created fantasy world early on in the book. As this world got unraveled I quickly forgot about it and become very intrigued with everything.

Recommendation
Definitely worth the read

Glimmer by Phoebe Kitanidis was a strange book, and I mean that in a good way. I love magical realism, but hardly ever read it because I don't think a lot of people know how to write it, and it's also an emerging genre. Think Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma, a fantastically written magical realism.

I have to say that I read Glimmer quickly; not as quick as I usually can, but when I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about it. I would read it until I had problems keeping my eyes open. I just HAD to know what was happening to Elyse, Marshall, and Summer Falls.

DUDES, Summer Falls was so weird! I was CREEPED OUT by the people always falling into heatnaps and everybody exclaiming Summer Falls was paradise! I wanted to get out of that town as soon as possible. It's a seriously creepy town, yo. I think because of its creepiness I was cheering for Elyse and Marshall to save the town.

Now, the good parts outweigh the horrible parts for me, but I have to say what the horrible parts for me is. In the description, it says Marshall and Elyse fall in love and omg, there is zero chemistry between them. NONE. I never wanted them to kiss, or do anything of that sort. It didn't make me mad when they did kiss, but idk, maybe they would have been better off as friends instead of lovers.

Also, Elyse calls herself a slut and then somebody else does and THAT IS THE WORST WORD EVER. Like, I don't even get offended when people cuss or even use those words as insults, but once "slut" and "whore" are thrown around I want to beat my head against a door. And I absolutely hate it when people are slut-shamed. And Elyse isn't exactly slut-shamed, but it still made me so mad I had to set the book down for HOURS until I could manage to bring myself back to reading the book.

However, like I said, the good outweigh the bad. I LOVED the ending, when everything came together. I so did not guess it coming, but I also wasn't that shocked, so it's not a HUGE plot twisty ending. But it's still wicked awesome. And I do recommend this book, especially for those who like magical realism and ghosts! I will say for those who do read this book to keep an open mind. Just because it's confusing doesn't mean it isn't fantastic. <3 Take a risk, not everything in life is explained! So why should it be in books?

I saw this book on Goodreads giveaways (and didn't win, sadly), and kept it on my to read list because the plot looked so fascinating.

Glimmer by Phoebe Kitanidis starts dramatically with two teenagers waking up together naked in bed. The twist is, they have no memory of each other or of their own lives. From there, in alternating first person narratives, we learn little by little about each of the characters, the odd town that they are inhabiting, and their lives prior to their loss of memory.

I am very torn when writing this review, because I thought that this book would definitely get five stars from me. The first 75% of the book is perfectly paced with very even viewpoints from each of the characters-- and this decision is necessary for this book. We have to learn about each of the characters history and take each of their individual journeys to understand what is going on. I was fascinated, drawn in, and I couldn't put it down. It has been a while since I didn't start editing a book in my head with changes that I thought might help.

Something happens in the last few chapters, and the thing is, I can't quite pinpoint the problem that I had with it. It may just be a personal preference, but some of the twists start to become a little more heavy-handed and the pacing seems off especially in comparison to the terrific beginning.

That said, this book is definitely worth reading, has wonderful characters and a really wonderful premise. I'm excited to see what else Kitanidis has up her sleeve!

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