Cover via Goodreads.
Rating: 2/5 stars.
I cannot count on my fingers and toes how many times I wanted to throw this book across the room. Or better yet, slam it down on the floor. (get it? “slam”?)
I kid. I didn’t have such an intense reaction to Slammed. I barely had any reaction at all; I sat through the book like one sits through a cheesy, melodramatic romance movie. Bored and waiting for the next feature, or in this case, the next typo…
Slammed had such a fascinating premise. My favorite part of the book was Hoover’s inclusion of slam poetry, because I had only heard about it a couple of times before reading the book. Hoover incorporated love at first sight, forbidden romance, death, tragedy, and a multitude of other themes/motifs in the story. It should’ve been fantastic.
But it wasn’t. The main character, Layken, goes on a date with 21-year-old Will. They go to a club together where they witness some slam poetry. The next day, something happens that threatens their relationship. Here’s Layken’s perspective:
His words cause me to wince, because I know deep down he’s right. Whatever was happening with us, it was more than just an infatuation. I can’t possibly comprehend at this moment what it must be like to actually have a broken heart. If it hurts even one percent more than the pain I’m feeling now, I’ll forego love. It’s not worth it.
What? How did this happen? They went on one date and already her entire world breaks into bite-sized pieces? I don’t dismiss the notion of strong, instantaneous connections (check out Gayle Forman’s Just One Day to see what I mean) but the development of Layken and Will’s romance lacked explanation and felt cliche. I did not discern an adequate amount of characterization or a proper setup of what comprised their emotions for one another.
Layken annoyed me to no end as well. As a seventeen-year-old, I found her overreactions, insensitivity, and constant mood swings flabbergasting. Sure, some eighteen-year-olds may act a lot more immaturely than I do, but Layken had no consistent traits that endeared me to her; the only part of her personality that I picked up after 311 pages was her tendency to almost move on from an incident one moment and then get irrationally upset about it the next. Will’s character bothered me too – he’s 21 and acted responsibly in some scenarios, but contradicted his character altogether other times just to further the romance.
That brings me to my next point: plot. Hoover threw so many “issues” into the story that never progressed to their full potential. I expected touching, deep, tear-jerking moments, only to receive temper tantrum after temper tantrum after temper tantrum. Nothing felt sincere or true.
I wish I could have connected to the characters or the story or the writing as others on Goodreads have. But Slammed fell short; I felt like everything about it could have been done so much better if it had been broken up into different books or edited more. I would only recommend this if you’re looking for a mindless, mawkish read with a dearth of emotional depth.
the quiet voice 
I hear you I am really sick of YA novels having love stories happening in a short time. They go from not knowing each other to wanting to die without each others presence in less than a week (and that’s a best case scenario). I just wish authors would look back and really remember what it was like to be a teenager because what I am reading is not an accurate description..
Yeah, I agree… while that may be the case in some relationships, it would be nice if the underlying emotional roots were unearthed. Thank you for reading and commenting!
I couldn’t have said it better myself! I was so upset by the lack of emotional attachment both between these characters and that I felt for them. Everything was way too dramatic, the romance overtook the entire plot line, and having Layken and Will have so many serious issues was an overkill. I wish I could say the sequel is better, but only minimally. I’ve heard Hopeless, but this same author, is much better, but I’m too scared to give it a shot. I wasted too many hours of my life on this. =.= I think the only part I liked was the slam poetry itself and only because it led me to watch more slam poetry. *sigh* I hope your next read is better, Thomas! š
Thanks Keertana! I read your review on Goodreads and agreed with everything you wrote. It’s okay if romance is the main point of the plot line if it’s developed well, but things moved too quickly/jerkily without explanation in this one. And, yes, there were too many issues that were not expanded upon, even when they could have been. I think I’ll check out more slam poetry to… thanks again for reading and commenting!
I am not hearing very nice things about this book from bloggers that I trust. The insta-love would prove to be a problem for me. And temper tantrum after temper tantrum doesn’t seem like something that is nice to read about…
Yeah, most of my close book blogger friends aren’t too fond of this one – I put in on hold at the library after skimming a few glowing reviews but now I regret my decision. I’m not one to ever say you need to shun a book at all costs, so it’s up to you whether you want to read it or not!
Oh, and great review š
My Sis loves this author and was planning to read..I shall give her a warning! LOL
You should! Thanks for reading and commenting.
I’m seriously waiting to read this one…Half of the blog I follow love it and the other half were unimpressed. Insta-love plus drama is a no go for me usually.
Hm… I guess you’re on the fence then. If you try it I hope you have a better experience with it than I did!
I wasn’t sure I wanted to read this book anyway because I read Hopeless by this author was really disappointed, still I was hoping this book wouldn’t be as bad but it sounds worse.
I don’t think I’ll be reading this now
I think she published Slammed before Hopeless, so I was hoping that maybe Hopeless was better… but I guess not. As I always say when someone is turned off from reading a book due to one of my reviews, you could always read the first few pages or the first chapter in a bookstore just to test out if you want to read more! Thanks for commenting.