Title: Individuality

Author: MilejdyVan

description: 

Individuality -the particular character, or aggregate of qualities, that distinguishes one person or thing from othersThis story takes place in an imaginative world where some special people awaken a power called Spirit. Few of the lucky ones who awaken Spirit later enter Academies where they learn how to control their powers and benefit the world with it.
This year in particular, quite a lot of students enter New Baymort Spirit Academy, seventeen to be exact.Seventeen individuals with different personalities and backgrounds. The only thing that unites these individuals is that they all have Spirit.Where did it go wrong?

title/cover:

title: very short and simple. usually, one-word titles can be boring, overused, or generic, but i can see it easily being the title of a movie or series, because it's memorable and encompasses the plot well.

score: 5/5

cover:

really, really cool. there are a lot of characters in this story, and the author includes all of them in the cover. it's impressive that they were able to find such a fitting picture. the colors are not as eye-catching. a vivid shade here or there could make it more appealing.

score: 4/5

total: 9/10

summary/hook:

summary: the summary is nice and short, and gives the reader a good idea of what the story is about. after reading it, i was instantly intrigued by the "Spirit" and the academy. there are some suggestions i'd like to offer, just to improve the flow:

"This story takes place in..."

is a part that can probably be cut out. it's very straightforward, and could be replaced by something else that pertains to the story, or peaks the readers' interests. it's just a very generic way of introducing a story, so i recommend that it be rephrased/replaced.

score: 4/5

hook:

"It is the first of September and today is the day when new students join 'New Baymort Spirit Academy' while old students return after their summer break."

usually, the first sentence of any story should be one that immediately grasps the reader's attention and dives right into the plot, but this method words with this type of book and this author's writing style. we are given an introduction of Baymort Spirit Academy, where the story begins. 

the author proceeds to introduce the narrator by writing:

"My name is Robin Taylor and..."

this method of introduction could be changed to improve the story. by introducing the mc in such a way, it sort of sounds like a speech, and doesn't give room to the show-don't-tell technique. this is information that can be revealed later on. 

score: 4/5

total: 8/10

grammar/flow:

the grammar is clean for the most part, save for a few commas here and there and some run-on sentences. these can be fixed with some editing. the writing itself is very smooth and i don't have many criticisms--the author has their own strong, distinct voice, and it's evident in both first and third person. 

the author provides short but effective descriptions, and the length of the paragraphs and chapters are perfect, making it easy to read.

score: 9/10

plot:

this plot is so interesting that i was immediately hooked. their are many books out there that try to accomplish what this book does, but the author has put their own twist on the idea, making it memorable and interesting. 

the author has a balanced amount of suspense in this story, and does a good job of revealing information at the right times. the story, does, however switch perspectives, which can break the flow a little. this works for the plot, but the inconsistency also puts the reader off at times. thankfully, the book is so well-written that it overshadows it. 

there's something really cool that the author does in this book--some text is written as this weird jumbled mess. it's so interesting because it's sort of like a third entity is bumping in and narrating. the first time it happens is really freaking cool, because the reader imagines something like a static or alien-like voice that cuts in between the story. it's difficult to describe, but once you start reading, you'll be astonished at how cool it is. 

score: 9/10

characters:

there are a lot of characters in this book. by a lot, i mean eighteen. this is quite overwhelming for the readers, because it takes time to adapt to the amount of times the story shifts between characters. it takes time to learn names and match them to personalities. i found myself spending a lot of time re-reading some descriptions and having to memorize who was who. that being said, the author gives each character his or her unique characteristics, making them easier to remember. 

what i found to be really cool is that the main character's gender is not treated as a huge deal. he is a man who enjoys dressing like a woman, and instead of overstating this fact and giving it so much attention, the author treats it as just another characteristic. this was very refreshing to see because many times, authors fall into stereotypes with these types of characters, and neglect giving them personalities that don't revolve around gender.

the different students in the story are all so interesting and unique. they have their individual personalities and backgrounds, which give us an insight on the way that Spirit works, and we can see some foreshadowing about which students will cause trouble and which won't. 

score: 8.5/10

all in all, Individuality is an awesome book with lots of interesting characters and plot twists. although it can be edited a bit and the characters can be difficult to follow at times, the book is absolutely worth reading. you'll be immediately hooked and will soon choose who your favorite student is. i recommend this to readers of all genres!