First of all, this trilogy is nowhere near as good as "The Hunger Games," so lower your expectations. Still- I'm not sure why I have seen so many reviews hating on the second book in comparison to the first. To me, the first book was entertaining but very flawed. Same with the second.
\\SOME (mostly vague) SPOILERS IN THIS GRAPH:
Granted, perhaps because I didn't love the characters (Tally is no Katniss) I was less disappointed by Scott Westerfeld's decision to completely shift gear on the teenage romance subplot in "Pretties." (I do think that was a deliberate decision on Westerfeld's part, since he includes some fairly obvious commentary late in the book about how it's possible to fall in love with one person, and then as you keep growing up and changing, fall in love with another.)
//END SPOILER WARNING.
This book still includes some interesting ongoing commentary on society, human nature, and (although he's reaching a bit for this one) even gender stereotypes. Westerfeld's made-up jargon ("bubbly" and attaching "-making" to create an adjective, as in "pretty-making" or "panic-making," for example) is annoying and his plotting remains as shallow as it was in the first book (it just stands out more here, since he's relying on his past world-building).
I can't highly recommend this book or this series, but it's an interesting concept and fast read, so I wouldn't call reading these books a waste of time.
\\SOME (mostly vague) SPOILERS IN THIS GRAPH:
Granted, perhaps because I didn't love the characters (Tally is no Katniss) I was less disappointed by Scott Westerfeld's decision to completely shift gear on the teenage romance subplot in "Pretties." (I do think that was a deliberate decision on Westerfeld's part, since he includes some fairly obvious commentary late in the book about how it's possible to fall in love with one person, and then as you keep growing up and changing, fall in love with another.)
//END SPOILER WARNING.
This book still includes some interesting ongoing commentary on society, human nature, and (although he's reaching a bit for this one) even gender stereotypes. Westerfeld's made-up jargon ("bubbly" and attaching "-making" to create an adjective, as in "pretty-making" or "panic-making," for example) is annoying and his plotting remains as shallow as it was in the first book (it just stands out more here, since he's relying on his past world-building).
I can't highly recommend this book or this series, but it's an interesting concept and fast read, so I wouldn't call reading these books a waste of time.
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