Official Review: Seven at Two Past Five by Tara Basi
- Camille Turner
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Official Review: Seven at Two Past Five by Tara Basi

4 out of 4 stars
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Seven at Two Past Five by Tara Basi is a refreshingly unique novel that takes readers on a complex journey through the life and psyche of the old button maker Abi, also known as Seven. Abi has spent her life in a world ruled by routine and simplicity where she awakens every morning in her number seven bunk-bed-coffin and proceeds to her workshop where she receives a letter with the day’s button orders. Her orderly world is overturned when she awakens for the first time without having had nightmares, known as the Terrors, during the previous night. This change in routine is welcomed until she arrives in her workshop to find a new note instructing her that because of the absence of her usual Terrors, she is accused of “Disturbance Potential.”
After her accusation, Abi has her first ever contact with other people and ultimately decides to appeal the absurd and unfair judgement. This act of defiance, a first for her, sets in motion a change of events that is built with one difficulty after another. Abi and her Appeals Process Administrator, Zero, embark on a never-ending path to clear her name and receive justice. Yet, nearly everyone seems to be standing in their way with ridiculous and arbitrary demands, accusations and rules. As time begins to run out, Abi will have to come to terms with some startling truths that she has kept hidden deep inside her.
I rate Seven at Two Past Five 4 out of 4 stars because I find it an extremely well-written and creative novel. For starters, I didn’t find a single grammatical error or typo throughout the entire book, which was obviously professionally edited. As for the content, the story kept me in suspense the entire time, and I wasn’t sure what would happen to the characters or even what was truly going on behind the strange world until the very end. The setting is so richly described and always changing that I felt like I was actually being swept from place to place alongside the characters. I think that Basi’s descriptions are one of her strongest writing points, and they were proportionally mixed with interesting dialogue, a balance that many authors struggle to achieve.
This book will appeal to those who enjoy reading absurdist, surrealist, or philosophical novels that keep you guessing. The writing style and tone of the book are fast-paced with short, abrupt, often fragmented sentences that reflect the bizarre nature of the world and its people. The frustrating process of the appeal and the absurd behavior and explanations from the characters had me feeling so agitated and restless, and I think readers will be able to sympathize and identify with Abi. On the other hand, the situations were so ridiculous that I often found myself laughing at their relation to the paperwork and red tape we all have to go through in the real world, and I quite enjoyed this exaggerated parallelism.
If you’re the kind of reader who enjoys this genre, I do not think you’ll be disappointed with Seven at Two Past Five. It was a really interesting take on a subject I didn’t altogether expect—and which I’ll withhold to avoid spoiling the end. This book held my attention until the last page, and the ending was so fascinating that I’d like to read the book a second time now that the mystery has been solved, an unmistakable sign of a successful novel.
******
Seven at Two Past Five
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- Allyseria
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- Camille Turner
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It's such a cool book, and the bizarre accusations and rules are my favorite! Thanks for commenting!Allyseria wrote: ↑23 Sep 2018, 10:31 What an interesting concept! I rarely come across absurd and surreal books that were written like that on purpose. But now I'm intrigued with this book. I want to know more about her accusation of 'Disturbance Potential' and how ridiculous and arbitrary demands other people gave!

- Camille Turner
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It was so cool! And yes, the plot is really different from anything I'd ever read before. Thanks for commenting!Alicia09 wrote: ↑23 Sep 2018, 10:32 This sounds like an amazing novel. I love that the plot is so different from other stories, in that the main character is a button maker and they are punished for no longer having nightmares. One would think that would be a good thing! I would love to review this book, just to find out what happens to the button maker. Thanks!

- Camille Turner
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I definitely think you'd enjoy it! Thanks for commenting.MsTri wrote: ↑23 Sep 2018, 11:10 This definitely sounds like the kind of book I'd love to read, as I adore unusual books, and this seems to fit the bill. I'm really curious as to what button-making has to do with nightmares, as well as why the protagonist sleeps in a bunk bed coffin. Thanks so much for the introduction!

- Camille Turner
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Absolutely, it definitely reminded me of Kafka. While reading, I was actually thinking it would make a cool movie, or maybe even a play, if it could be done right. Visually, it would be really stunning as a film. Thanks for commenting!AliceofX wrote: ↑23 Sep 2018, 11:33 Sounds Kafka-esque. Your review made the book seem really interesting, but I'm not sure that I would pick it up. I like those kinds of stories in movies or games where there's a visual element that accompanies the weird story, but in books I just find them confusing and hard to follow along.
- Julie Green
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- Camille Turner
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Thanks, Julie! I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did if you end up reading it.Julie Green wrote: ↑23 Sep 2018, 14:08 Your review does a great job of capturing attention without giving away the end... I am intrigued now to read the book to find out about the big reveal!

- kandscreeley
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- Heath D. Alberts
"You must have chaos within you to give birth to a dancing star."
― Friedrich Nietzsche
- Camille Turner
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It definitely is dystopian in tone and setting! Great, I hope you like it. Thanks for commenting.kandscreeley wrote: ↑23 Sep 2018, 18:24 I know this is other fiction, but it has almost a dystopian feel to it. It would be right up my alley. I'll absolutely look into this one. Thanks.
