Better as an adult book

[Njkinny]

I picked this book up thinking it was ya but I agree that with the darkness and sexual overtones of this book, it is better suited as adult fiction. I got a bit uneasy reading about Adam’s darkness and did think that with this being placed in ya category so many readers will feel the same shock that I did because here you expect young adults behaving like young adults and instead you get characters dealing with a variety of not so young-adult scenarios.

I also got uncomfortable with his darkness and I agree that the author was probably going for shock value. I don't mind so much that the young adults were dealing with "not so young adult scenarios", I just think the author went overboard with it.

Yes, if the author wanted to portray dark and twisted psychology he could have handled it in another way rather than showing Adam's sex den.

Totally agree with you. I get showing dark overtones but scenarios like these send out the wrong kind of message to the younger readers, considering this book is labelled in a category dealing with young readers.

[mishkaat]

At the beginning there is so much darkness and that disturb even adults.

[Howlan]

I agree with Nym182, it should not have been a YA book. Too sensual for young readers. As a parent, I would not want my child to read this, yet.

Definitely suitable for a much mature audience.

[Howlan]

I agree. some of the topics were just too much for a young adult book. I have it 4 stars but I am not a teenager. Definitely would be better as an adult fantasy book.

I agree with you on this, although I didn't give the book as many stars as you haha.

I have not reviewed it and I would also not give it four stars. A three stars maybe.

[Howlan]

I often find books I read as a teenager were classed as young adult or adult. There is something about the darker side of humankind that always sparked my curiosity. That being said I found this book to be justified in the YA rating as a young adult is between the ages of 18-26 according to the medical world, while some people say 19-35. So I don’t personally see an issue.

Interesting to know! From my research YA in contexts with reading is grouped as 12-18.

You are right, my apologies. I had assumed that young adults would be the same age for books as medical/legal. So thank you very much! Now my opinion has certainly changed as I feel it’s to dark for the lower ages in this category.
Thanks again for the correction.

Yes, they even portray students from middle school and high school so it kinda makes sense.

[Howlan]

I found the book to be an odd combination. The beginning was definitely very dark and contained aspects I do think are suited for an older audience. After their romance took off the book became much more like a YA novel in my opinion. I think the author should have either made the book more suitable for YA or taken an entirely different direction and made a darker novel for older audiences.

It felt like dark fantasy and suddenly it became a toned-down version. Everything seemed off. It felt that the switched genres in between.

[Howlan]

I found the book to be an odd combination. The beginning was definitely very dark and contained aspects I do think are suited for an older audience. After their romance took off the book became much more like a YA novel in my opinion. I think the author should have either made the book more suitable for YA or taken an entirely different direction and made a darker novel for older audiences.

I have felt that this book was two different books smooshed together, it's not consistent.

Yes like two aspects which do not fit well, like oil and water I guess!

[Howlan]

I also got uncomfortable with his darkness and I agree that the author was probably going for shock value. I don't mind so much that the young adults were dealing with "not so young adult scenarios", I just think the author went overboard with it.

Yes, if the author wanted to portray dark and twisted psychology he could have handled it in another way rather than showing Adam's sex den.

Totally agree with you. I get showing dark overtones but scenarios like these send out the wrong kind of message to the younger readers, considering this book is labelled in a category dealing with young readers.

Yes the sexual undertones were very unnecessary.

[Howlan]

At the beginning there is so much darkness and that disturb even adults.

Yes, it could definitely phase out many adult readers as well.

[S1234]

I agree, labelling it as a young adult book is misleading. It's a lot darker than expected. Not a bad thing but I can imagine readers being disappointed if they don't enjoy dark genres.

[S1234]

I was expecting something a lot lighter due to the YA label so I was disappointed. As a dark thriller, it's fine but not for those that are not interested in these themes. YA stories usually are not this intense. This kind of felt like a midsommar situation.

[Giga51087]

One of the thoughts that kept occurring to me as I read this book was that Opaque would have been much better if it was not a YA book.

I dig gritty and dark books like anything by Bret Easton Elis or Stephen King, so when it turned as dark as it did I had mixed feelings. I enjoyed it but did not think that it fit in a YA book.

Between the darkness of Adam and the sexual undertones, I really think that Leigh-Reign would have made a much better book if she had leaned into the darkness. It would have made the strange sexual parts of the book less strange, especially if they were expanded on. I didn't like the scenes where Adam watches Carly wash or Carly's admittance that she wore socks to prevent stirring up Kane's foot fetish (what high schooler has a foot fetish?) in the context of a story about high schoolers.

Do you think writing it a YA book held the author back? Would you have preferred to read this as a sci-fi thriller?

I am in acord with you. I truly put in my rewiew that I consider this book missrated. It is a true and trougth R-18 Book. The book has sex, hijaking, intentional fire, murder, rape and stalking.
We are in times of higschool violence incidents. When a person comes to their schoolroom armed to the teeth, and kills off their cassmates becuse a lot of reasons, this book can be bad news.

We have to be carefull of Adam scion saga firsth book. It could be taken has a guide to the american sociopath. Im not telling to ban the book by all means. But it is true that we have the responsability of warning the people the risks of this book.

Untill Carly Adam is a jerk. And he is not a paria, is a top exponent of the higschool comunity. And a very important influence too. Is a top deportist, a martial artist and active memeber of the social circle of the higschool. Alas he wants to be alone beacuse think that the rest are mindless drones, not beacuse isolation or ostracism.

I am a martial artist and a sportsman to, and a true one dont think off people that way, or not in the rigthfull ones. So Adam has the mind of a sociopath, the body and the ability set of a higly trained sportsman and the social circle of a beloved student. It´s too rare to me. His thechers, companions or trainers, no one noticed it?

Lets put it simply. we have a edition work here. If we do not put the miss rate case we will have it in our tab. Opaque its a truly and trogth dark book. Sex apart, Adam mind it´s very dark at the begining of the plot. He is a true sociopath that attacks people at minimum provocation. Put it in an bullyng surronding and we have a explosive mix for a higschool student. This book missinterpreted can be a guide to hijjaking, to murder, and rape. It show you how can ressentment and pettyness can macerate and become a blistering pustule of arrogant selfconceith.

[Kaitlyn Canedy]

I think that the thoughts and actions in this book are too mature for a younger audience. I agree with you; Opaque is better classified as an adult book.

[Howlan]

I agree, labelling it as a young adult book is misleading. It's a lot darker than expected. Not a bad thing but I can imagine readers being disappointed if they don't enjoy dark genres.

Yes, that is currently the case for many who choose to read the book based on its YA label.

[Howlan]

I was expecting something a lot lighter due to the YA label so I was disappointed. As a dark thriller, it's fine but not for those that are not interested in these themes. YA stories usually are not this intense. This kind of felt like a midsommar situation.

I think while that is true for the first part of the book. The second half is much toned down and it feels like a YA.