Those who know me well know that I don’t shy away from longer novels. That’s why D.J. MacHale’s new novel, SYLO, came my way I didn’t even flinch at its 400 pages. I can typically read 400 pages in less than a month. The premise was intriguing and it seemed to set up a series of dystopian thrillers that could potentially rival my love for The Hunger Games series. That’s why it pains me so much that it took almost a month and a half for me to finish this novel.

I had a really hard time getting into this story, thanks to totally off pacing. It was like nothing would happen for pages on end, and then when something exciting did happen, no one on the island of Pemberwick reacted realistically. This made the story drag, despite the fact that some pretty bizarre stuff was happening on the island. MacHale could have easily cut at least fifty pages from the book without losing any of the essential storyline. I also found MacHale’s writing a little stilted. For much of the novel, 14-year-old Tucker’s voice did not sound like that of a teenager, but instead a grown man.

I did not DNF this book though, even though I thought about it several times, and I’m glad I didn’t. The last 150 pages or so knocked me off my feet with action that kept me reading through my daily hour commute by bus until I was finished. I like having that feeling about a novel from early on, and if I had given up on this one, I never would have thought much about this book at all. In the end, I was left with a lot of question about SYLO, Tucker’s parents, and the future of the United States, but I think MacHale left things so open-ended so that readers will be pick up the next in the series, Storm. I think I will give it a try, especially if it delivers the thrilling dystopian storyline that is promised.