Rating: ⭐️⭐️
I had been really looking forward to reading this, especially in the summer, when it's hot and all I want is a tall glass of ice water. Sadly to say, it didn't live up to even the slightest expectations I had for it.
Synopsis
When the California drought escalates to catastrophic proportions, one teen is forced to make life and death decisions for her family in this harrowing story of survival,
The drought—or the Tap-Out, as everyone calls it—has been going on for a while now. Everyone’s lives have become an endless list of don’ts: don’t water the lawn, don’t fill up your pool, don’t take long showers.
Until the taps run dry.
Suddenly, Alyssa’s quiet suburban street spirals into a warzone of desperation; neighbors and families turned against each other on the hunt for water. And when her parents don’t return and her life—and the life of her brother—is threatened, Alyssa has to make impossible choices if she’s going to survive.
I was expecting so much from this. The beginning of the book did live up to what I was expecting. It was dramatic and twists and turns of the unexpected tap running dry, but it just continued and continued to go down hill as the story went on. It became so much more of the extra teenage drama aspect of the story that I was really hoping wouldn't take over, but did anyways. It wasn't just the pacing that was off, but more like the plot jumped off a cliff in the first part of the book. That was the climax. What was supposed to, most likely, be the most dramatic scene of the book didn't even phase me because I didn't feel attached to the characters in anyway. I also would've liked it if the rescue wasn't so glossed over. Like hello, we have been waiting this book for some kind of resolve and we barely even got it. It was like all the sudden Alyssa was what, cleaning herself in the bathroom because she's suffering too much to take a shower? Ugh it was so frustrating and then the book had the audacity to try and resolve the "romance." It was practically non existent which I didn't even care about because I wasn't invested in it and they didn't seem to fit together anyways.
The one thing I actually enjoyed about this book were the snapshots. Those were more interesting to me than the actual plot. It was like finally a point of view that actually makes sense and matters in the slightest.
Maybe it's because I can't imagine being in their situation but how in your right mind can you imagine a few teens going out and trying to make it on their own in a disaster like this?? Yes if your parents are gone or if your dad shoots your brother and they are refusing to leave the savages invading your house.. you are supposed to leave but at least maybe try to go home? Or continue to try and contact your parents? The events in this don't even line up or make any sort of sense. And it's not like they were interesting, that would've helped all the jumping around from one lame event to the next.
I feel like this would have been more interesting if told from the perspective of adults. If the same people, all adults with maybe the exception of the younger brother, because then it would have seemed more realistic to try and venture out and try to survive instead of leaving your general neighborhood. As a kid I would've been super freaked out and probably would've refused to leave my house without my parents.
Overall, I guess I just expected this to be something that it simply wasn't and will never be. I'm sad to say I was dissatisfied by all of this.
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