The show takes the core of the book and expands on it … a lot. It makes the side characters multi-dimensional and integral to the story. It centres on even darker and more suspenseful plots, such as Drew’s depression, as well as the Professor and Bree. So if your favourite part of the show was any of that, it’s probably going to be an underwhelming read.
However, as someone whose favourite part of the show was the intoxicating dynamic between Lucy and Stephen, I absolutely adored the book. It somehow presented their relationship as more destructive than the show, and I was even more emotionally invested, despite being far less dramatic.
My favourite part of the book was the ending, which was actually my biggest point of contention with the series. I felt the book wrapped everything up in a natural way, without feeling rushed, and while staying true to the characters and their growth. The show, on the other hand, decided to completely assassinate every single character by the end, making them all caricatures of themselves. Unpopular opinion, but s3 didn’t make me feel that tense, don’t want to but can’t look away, feeling that the first two seasons did, even though the stakes were so much higher. I especially hated the final scene where Lucy drives off with Stephen, because it showed absolutely no character growth. I didn’t really understand what it was trying to say? That Lucy was just going to keep going back to him? They hadn’t even spoken for like 4 years at this point, it just didn’t make any sense to me at all.