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Really, I felt like it could have just been left out and not really changed too much. I think the author just wanted some way to get that shock factor and couldn't think of a better way.

I feel like it is a little bit of both. Some of these sexual ideas Adam has feel like they are important to his self discovery and figuring out who he is. On the other hand some of it feels like a shock value tactic and could have been left out without altering the book too much. It might have actually made it more intriguing for people that were off put by a lot of it.

It was off putting when I first encountered it and couldn't understand why the author chose to include it in the plot. However as it progresses and we see who she is to him,I got a better understanding.

It seemed to be a twist in the story, that in the beginning seems more repulsive and abnormal but later on more understandable and explainable

Odette Chace wrote: ↑15 Mar 2020, 15:06 I didn't think Adam's infatuation with his mother was necessary. The scene with Terry was more than enough for shock value. I also thought he was mentally unstable at first because of his obsession with telekinesis.

Yes, that one-two punch of his infatuation with his mother followed by the situation with Terry, really turned me off him as a character. I didn't enjoy the book as much because I disliked him so much and later explanations weren't enough to redeem him in my estimation.

I agree with several of the responses above. Adam's Oedipal desires were more about revealing his character than furthering the plot. The author adequately explained it in the end.

memalescole75 wrote: ↑23 Mar 2020, 11:48 I agree with several of the responses above. Adam's Oedipal desires were more about revealing his character than furthering the plot. The author adequately explained it in the end.

I feel like those desires were messed up but it did get the point across that Adam was a messed up character. I too was satisfied with the explanation in the end.

Frances019 wrote: ↑27 Mar 2020, 12:46

memalescole75 wrote: ↑23 Mar 2020, 11:48 I agree with several of the responses above. Adam's Oedipal desires were more about revealing his character than furthering the plot. The author adequately explained it in the end.

I feel like those desires were messed up but it did get the point across that Adam was a messed up character. I too was satisfied with the explanation in the end.

Those are good points. Honestly, though, it served to make me feel disgust for Adam. If I'm going to give the character of a book real estate in my brain, I don't want to feel disgusted by them.

It felt a little needless really. We already saw through numerous other ways that Adam thought very little of his father (though I felt that this was also not overly well explained), and this additional Oedipus complex does little than to make him seem even creeper. The way he considers himself a predator over the other people in his class does this well enough, assuming the author wants us to view him as creepy at all.

I think Adam's feelings for his mother were obnoxious and it was the single most element that I disliked in the book. Adam hated his father because he was his mother's husband which is sickening.
Also, his hatred for Vikki had nothing to do with the plot.

Laura Lee wrote: ↑29 Mar 2020, 21:20

Frances019 wrote: ↑27 Mar 2020, 12:46

memalescole75 wrote: ↑23 Mar 2020, 11:48 I agree with several of the responses above. Adam's Oedipal desires were more about revealing his character than furthering the plot. The author adequately explained it in the end.

I feel like those desires were messed up but it did get the point across that Adam was a messed up character. I too was satisfied with the explanation in the end.

Those are good points. Honestly, though, it served to make me feel disgust for Adam. If I'm going to give the character of a book real estate in my brain, I don't want to feel disgusted by them.

Can't blame you there. I enjoy reading about train wrecks for some reason, and I think that's why I was able to stick with it. Would have been a better experience if it had been with someone clearly not blood related though.

I don't think that the obsession Adam had with his mother was essential to the story. Perhaps it was added for just shock value, because this did not contribute to his character development for me. I was just disturbed at some points, particularly when we learn of the Den where its walls are full of pictures of his mother, housed along with weapons, toys, rope, cameras, and other items...

Odette Chace wrote: ↑15 Mar 2020, 15:06 I didn't think Adam's infatuation with his mother was necessary. The scene with Terry was more than enough for shock value. I also thought he was mentally unstable at first because of his obsession with telekinesis.

I agree. However, It wouldn't make sense because the serum drew Adam close to his mother and kept her young. At first he comes off as a total pervert and killing Terry? That was on another level, I didn't see how it fits with the story.

My impression so far is that Adam is a troubled teen. This weird behavior is just another facet of that. I’m not sure yet how it will tie in with the rest of the story but I am curious to find out. At the moment I just find it off-putting and highly unusual.

I hadn't considered if that part of the novel was for shock value, I just thought it didn't make sense at all to have that kind of content in a young adult story. But that makes sense! I can see the incest stuff being there as a means to make the story be more "unique" or edgy. Honestly the inclusion of this kind of stuff gave me Game of Thrones vibes. And if that's your thing, that's fine, just don't have that in a YA book where it's unclear if we're supposed to despise Adam or feel bad for him.

If it was handled better maybe the incest plot could've been redeemed. Like if Adam already knew he was adopted and was adopted while he was 16. Then perhaps his milf fantasy would've been more acceptable? Still not YA but would've made for a more interesting love triangle.