(review) Above by Leah Bobet

Above by Leah Bobet

Release date: April 1st 2012

Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books

Pages: 368
Source: Bought (hardcover)

Rating: ★☆☆☆☆

Matthew has loved Ariel from the moment he found her in the tunnels, her bee’s wings falling away. They live in Safe, an underground refuge for those fleeing the city Above—like Whisper, who speaks to ghosts, and Jack Flash, who can shoot lightning from his fingers. But one terrifying night, an old enemy invades Safe with an army of shadows, and only Matthew, Ariel, and a few friends escape Above. As Matthew unravels the mystery of Safe’s history and the shadows’ attack, he realizes he must find a way to remake his home—not just for himself, but for Ariel, who needs him more than ever before.

I don't know where to start, this was the worst book of the year for me. I was absolutely captivated with the cover and synopsis since the day I found this on goodreads and reading this was a total disappointment.

The book was written in our protagonist's, Matthew, point of view. I found myself really confused about everything. The thing about dystopian books is that the Author needs to be able to introduce us to their world well and I'm really confused about the world in Above. All I know is that Matthew and a few others with animal features (like bee wings, lion legs, and others. They're mutated humans I think) lived in an underground refuge called Save. And (I'm being a bit rude, sorry) maybe it's because of that, our protagonist didn't get the right education, it's like he didn't know how to speak properly at all. I found it really hard to understand the events and everything. So yes, Above forced me to re-read lots of words again and again.

Not only that, I was quite annoyed at Matthew. He's a boy and a Teller. Teller was the one who write stories of other peoples around him. The thing that I disliked about him is that he cried. Matthew is not that young to cry over anything. I know guys cry too but when it's applied for Matthew he became a girl. I really don't like him. And Ariel (the girl with bee wings in the cover) was just flat and one-dimensional, no, I think every other characters felt one-dimensional. I wouldn't recommend this to anybody, I don't even know why I manage to finish it at all. One star.