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| 0732295920
| 9780732295929
| 0732295920
| 3.72
| 5,337
| Oct 30, 2012
| Dec 06, 2012
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liked it
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3 stars Since reading and loving The Art of Lainey by Paula Stokes earlier this year, I was convinced I had to try her previous books under her pen 3 stars Since reading and loving The Art of Lainey by Paula Stokes earlier this year, I was convinced I had to try her previous books under her pen name, Fiona Paul, as well! Venom became our November book club pick and for the most part, I liked it, though it had obvious signs of being the first in a series (and of being a debut novel). Venom is a historical fiction set in Renaissance Venice. Cassandra, the main character, is part of the wealthy elite, trapped in an engagement and unable to experience life due to the strict social conventions. One of her close friends just died, and this puts her in the middle of a mysterious string of murders that her youthful curiosity demands her to unravel. It's pluses and minuses for me all around. I liked the setting - I absolutely adore Venice and wish I could go back there again sometime, so it was nice to see the canals, the palazzos, and the elite society with their balls and formalities. Any historical fiction fan could find themselves drawn into the story. (Srsly, there's a masquerade ball - 'nough said. Also ALL THOSE PRETTY DRESSES YES PLEASE.) However, I could tell that the vividness in descriptions and language was watered down - likely to make the book more palatable for the young adult target audience. Now, it's a matter of preference. I would have liked a bit more authenticity, but that's not to say that it's completely inaccurate with modern day American speak either - definitely not. But it wasn't quite as embellished as I wanted. Cassandra is a character that I do understand and sympathize with, but she's not always likable. I liked seeing her take on her position in society, and I liked that she so clearly longs for some empowerment that just isn't possible in this time period. Though she comes from a privileged life, as a woman, she's still very much a caged bird. I can only imagine that in her position, I would feel the same way. That being said, I understood her unstoppable curiosity and naivete as well. She's been sheltered for so much of her life that of course she's innocent and shocked by some of the realities of the other sides of Venice. But something about her still put me off, and I think that it's because the book is written in 3rd person. It was a bit clunky at times, and I wanted so badly to just see from her eyes, because her internal frustrations would have made her a much more dynamic, vivacious, and interesting character. I do think that there's a promising character growth arc coming though, so that is pacifying me. Then there's that love triangle of doom. Now I wanted so badly to swoon for Falco, the mysterious artist boy who Cass is drawn to, but... I dunno. Let's be honest: it's instalove. Now I will say that I'm more forgiving of instalove in historical fiction, because in that context it's not wholly unrealistic. And certainly with Cass's sheltered life and how boxed in she feels in her engagement to Luca, I get that she would be instantly attracted to this boy who is so different. He's from a completely different walk of life, he has that air of mystery, and if anything, pursuing him would mean she makes her own choices for once. However, I felt way too suspicious of Falco the whole time. He was keeping too many secrets for me to trust him, and when Cass kept letting those things slide time after time I wanted to hit her in the face. *cough* I mean, not that violently, but still. I wanted her to have some common sense. Given the risk involved in pursuing that affair in the first place plus all that Falco was hiding from her, I did not feel like their physical attraction was strong enough to compensate. I didn't really ship it. I actually ended up liking Luca more when he was finally around, because he was a grown goddamn man with a heavy dose of chivalry. He may be a little sketchy too, but I trusted him more than Falco - that's for sure. The plot was, frankly, confusing. I think the balance between the mystery and the romance may have been off a little. I did think the murder mystery aspect was interesting, but given Cass's social status limiting her sleuthing to the nighttime, it was hard to pursue and ended up a bit rushed in the end. I think the problem for me is that the plot was just at a consistent level throughout. There were no high points or low points, really, and it was difficult to tell which direction the story was heading. I mean, the very end did have a climax and some significant and genuinely surprising reveals, but it took a long time to get there. That being said, I never really felt like putting the book down either, because I was captivated by the setting. Ultimately, the ending left a few too many unanswered questions for me. I did think the whole murder mystery was wrapped up nicely, but for the rest - this secret society that seems to be playing a role in the background was left way too vague. I mean, I guess we'll see more later in the series, but I would have hoped that the first book would be more concrete about it. It's just that with all of the passages in between chapters from this "Book of the Eternal Rose", I thought that would have been playing a much bigger part in this story, and it just... didn't. So it was a bit confusing. I also still can't pinpoint whether this story will have a paranormal twist or not. I guess that mysteriousness is simultaneously kind of cool and kind of confusing. Basically, I just need to continue on to the second book and stop rambling. Summing Up: I'm torn. I kind of liked Venom, but I do think it could have been better. There were just no major showstopping moments, and though the story entertained me well enough, it never really blew me away. I wish it had been written in first person (words I never thought I'd say about any book ever) and I wish there had just been more clarity about this Eternal Rose society thing. And Falco. Oh Falco. Please get better or get lost. That being said, the ending does give me hope that Cass is going to grow into a strong, independent character who goes after what she wants and doesn't take shit from anyone. Please let it be so! GIF it to me straight! [image] Recommended To: Fans of historical fiction who can handle a moderate amount of YA clichés. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Nov 16, 2014
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Nov 19, 2014
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Feb 13, 2014
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Paperback
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| 0062235796
| 9780062235794
| 0062235796
| 3.86
| 47,052
| Sep 02, 2014
| Sep 02, 2014
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it was ok
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2 stars The Jewel was one of those typical cases for me where I can scream, "THE COVER MADE ME DO IT!" Seriously, much shiny, very want. But I knew bef 2 stars The Jewel was one of those typical cases for me where I can scream, "THE COVER MADE ME DO IT!" Seriously, much shiny, very want. But I knew before I got into this that it most likely would not end up going very well for me - for one thing, the book is blurbed in comparison to The Selection , and we generally know about the quality of that series. In the end, though, The Jewel had both moments where it surprisingly impressed me and moments where it was worse than I expected. First of all, I gotta hand it to the author, because for a debut, I thought the writing was pretty good. She has a great way of describing the splendid opulence of the world that she created, which made it very engaging to read. I was pretty impressed with the world building overall (given my low expectations), and I liked the concept of the tiered society, surrogates, royalty, and auguries. I felt most of it held up well, and I was tempted to look for places where I could poke holes in it, but I couldn't really. Well, maybe aside from all the stupid character names. But though it stood up well as a whole, particularly after some reveals and crucial questions FINALLY being asked at the end of the book, it still felt a bit BIZARRE. Particularly the way that the royals treat their surrogates kind of gives me pause - and the fact that there's been no revolution before now leaves me baffled. Of course, much of what goes on is kept secret... but still. I need some more answers. [image] But okay, we follow the main character, Violet, as she is chosen to be the surrogate for the Duchess of the Lake. Not... much... happens. The book is basically one big world building set up - which I kind of appreciated. I mean, I like reading about elitist luxurious societies and such, and this world is truly extravagant. I appreciated seeing these royals and their scheming to each other - it's the political bitchiness that I can appreciate and helps to add an element of mystery about what all their motives are. But I thought that this would all lead up to something. It's clearly a dystopia - you know it right from the start - because these girls are forced to be surrogates, without any choice in the matter, and Violet frequently expresses her fear about it. There are enough parallels to The Hunger Games in how the girls are basically abducted, get one day to say goodbye to their families, and then are whisked off on a train to the luxurious "Jewel" district, where the royals live. After the auction, they are even paraded around with collars - while their families thought they'd live cushy lives, they're actually more like slaves for baby-making. *shudders* I don't even want to think about how horrifying that actually is to me. So Violet ends up in this lush palace and the Duchess and her doctor start prepping her to spawn the greatest baby in the world - quite literally, they're hoping it'll someday marry into the supreme royal family. And that's where it all gets a bit cliché - because Violet starts looking like a little Mary Sue. She's extremely gifted in auguries - basically magical powers. The surrogates have something special in their DNA, basically, that gives them these powers which is why they're selected to be surrogates (yeah, this is where the world building didn't really hold up, but I wrote it off as a fantasy). These powers let them change the color, shape, and growth of different objects. (view spoiler)[Yeah, and how the growth part translated into controlling the baby's personality traits? DIDN'T REALLY GET THAT. (hide spoiler)] Obviously, Violet is amazingly good at this. Her personality, on the other hand, is rather nondescript. She has some moments where she flares up and seems to show some fierceness, but mostly she's living in fear. But people keep seeing something in her that makes her extremely special for some reason. [image] Point one being Lucien - or, Cinna Mark II. Lucien first meets Violet when he preps her for the auction - by, you guessed it, making her all pretty. He's immediately taken with her - for a reason that later becomes apparent as being appearance alone. Whereas Cinna had seen Katniss's bravery and bold defiance before meeting her, Lucien had nothing to do with Violet beforehand, so I found it very irksome how he suddenly decided that he wanted to help her, save her, be her friend - you name it. There was no real build up for this, I mean, he'd been prepping girls for years for this but Violet is just oh-so-special. (view spoiler)[She looks like his dead sister who rebelled against the surrogate system, but for serious, he picked her out as his first move to break the system just because of THAT? It was all just a bit too coincidental and obvious. (hide spoiler)] Point two being... the romance. *headdesk* You know, I'd heard this book had some pretty bad instalove, but I was cruising along, reading about the world building for half the book, and I was pretty much enjoying it. And I thought, romance, what romance? I haven't even really seen a legit love interest. But then in strolled Ash. [image] After one conversation with Violet about music, they were in love. Seriously, okay, I'll take you through it: they talk about a shared love of music, then he discovers who she is and that basically he shouldn't even be speaking to her ever. They both stare because they're both just so pretty. Then he hears her play her cello one day, and he pretty much kisses her out of the blue because he just couldn't stay away. She then gets jealous because he kisses Carnelian (which he is basically hired to do, as a Companion), and he runs after her and they talk for two seconds before making out again. On their next encounter, he's saying that his life was broken until he met her, he's never met anyone like her, he'd risk his life to be with her, and the "I love you"s aren't far off either. It's your textbook case of instalove, that's it. There's no real chemistry, they don't even really talk or get to know one another before they "know" they're in love, and both their personalities are nothing special. I unship this ship something fierce. It can go to hell. [image] Seriously, pass me a bucket. So though the romance definitely took over in the second half of the book and dominated the plot, I kept reading anyway because I was intrigued by this world and Violet's desire to escape. It was pretty classic dystopia, nothing really special about it, but it read really fluidly and did somehow keep me entertained. Though I might also write that off to the fact that I read it in almost one sitting. But I kept turning pages and noticing how little room we had left for a resolution... and basically all of my fears were confirmed. The ending is majorly aggravating for the fact that, looking back, nothing really happened in this book at all - and it was all just one big set up for a series. If you hate cliffhanger endings, don't even think about getting into this before the second book in the series is out. But I had other very excited and violent feelings about it, which calls for a spoiler tag. (view spoiler)[Okay, HOW EXCITED AM I THAT GARNET IS HELPING LUCIEN?? SO EXCITED. Because throughout the whole book I was sitting there going, "This would be SO much more interesting if Garnet was the love interest." So, in spite of how meh I feel about this book I may still pick up the sequel if I can expect some chemistry between Garnet and Violet, mmmmmmmhmm, though probably not because the romance in this one was so sappy and gross. But overall I'm just SO pissed that nothing at all is revealed or resolved, other than that the surrogates die after childbirth. That wasn't really a mindblowing thing for me to suspect. And since I didn't care about Ash at all, I don't give two shits about his arrest or possible execution. Sorry not sorry. Ash can go die. (hide spoiler)] Summing Up: It's a mixed bag for me, because The Jewel both exceeded and failed my expectations. I was pleasantly surprised by the writing and world building, but the romance was more insufferable than I could have expected. I didn't even really care about any of the characters - except for a mild liking for Garnet and Annabelle. I did think the fear and politics made it intriguing enough to stand up as a dystopia, and that did keep me reading but... the ending was a cop out and a cheap set up for a series. Will I read the next one? There is a slight possibility - but I think I'll wait for the reviews first, like I should have done with this one. GIF it to me straight! [image] Should've known to stay away. Recommended To: You know, fans of The Selection would quite possibly like this still. *ARC received at BEA in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the contents of my review. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Aug 17, 2014
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Aug 18, 2014
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Feb 12, 2014
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Hardcover
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| 0062286943
| 9780062286949
| 0062286943
| 3.88
| 68,354
| Oct 14, 2014
| Oct 14, 2014
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liked it
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3 stars Ahh, the book with the too-pretty cover. And it is pretty. Pretty pretty. I find it very hard to look past books with covers like that. But, ok 3 stars Ahh, the book with the too-pretty cover. And it is pretty. Pretty pretty. I find it very hard to look past books with covers like that. But, okay, I need to review more than that. Snow Like Ashes is an entertaining start to what will likely be a fantastic fantasy series. Though I have some reservations, I liked it quite a bit. Snow Like Ashes takes place in Primoria, a fantasy world with 8 different kingdoms, governed by magic. Meira, our main character, is one of the last free citizens of Winter, a kingdom that was taken over by Spring 16 years ago. Together with other free Winterians, including the heir to the throne, she tries to get their magic back and free their people - eventually. The book reminded me a lot of Throne of Glass, actually, though it is unique enough to be entertaining. It just has a lot of the same elements: a fighting, fierce main character, a lost kingdom, enslaved citizens that will build to a rebellion, magic, a love triangle, and, of course, (view spoiler)[a secret Queen (hide spoiler)]. These are basically things that I will always appreciate in a fantasy, but because Throne of Glass is so dear to my heart, Snow Like Ashes more or less feels like the less fun, less impressive little sister. First on that count would be the characters. I liked them, but didn't love them. I appreciated what a fighter Meira was. Despite not really knowing or having experienced life in Winter herself, she wants to do whatever she can to win the kingdom back. She grows quite a bit over the course of the book as well, but ultimately she lacked the snark that Celaena has, which made her less memorable. The other characters are all right but also didn't really stand out so much. The love interests, in particular, do not exhibit really strong personalities. Though, I suppose, I prefer Theron for now, if only because Mather seemed too much of a given right at the start of the book, and Theron had some subtle character development that made him more endearing. I think my biggest hang up for this book is that in a lot of ways it was too easy, too basic. I figured out the twist about Meira within the first 10% of the book, pretty much. It was so obvious to me, and that made the story much less exciting/intriguing. The magic also seemed too easy for me. It's governed by conduits - magical objects, (view spoiler)[but then if the conduits break, the magic transfers to the heir (hide spoiler)], and it's magic that doesn't really have any rules. It can do anything - whatever the plot requires. I like my magic systems with a bit more structure and rules. I mean, supposedly it made the Season kingdoms self-reliant, but I don't understand how magic could make crops grow in ground that is frozen solid. That might just be me though. Also, the politics of this fantasy world just seemed way too simple. First off, the map itself. There's so much unconquered land that I just can't even understand. Then, (view spoiler)[when Meira is captured the first time, they seriously put her - a prisoner - on her own horse, which happens to be carrying the trinket she was trying to steal? (hide spoiler)] Villain, you're just plain dumb. Then, in Cordell (view spoiler)[the king seriously just thinks it's a good idea for him to send a message TO ANGRA to tell him that he has the last remaining Winterians??? That because his son is marrying a Winterian PEASANT he gets the rights to all the land? He thinks Angra would just be OKAY with that??? (hide spoiler)] WTF. That is not how you run a country. You're supposed to be a freaking grown up. These are all things that you can easily gloss over when you're sucked into the story, but because I knew how it was going to go, it all stood out to me and made me grumbly. It's not all bad though - I mean, look at my rating! What it comes down to is the fact that the execution of the story was still very entertaining. I'll be the first to admit that it was the last 20% or so that really started impressing me, so it did require some effort to get there. But it's also the potential this now has as a series. The magic, though too easily all-encompassing so far, opens the door to a beautiful story with a frightening villain. And though the two love interests so far have not been too exciting, I see the potential there too. And, to be honest, I want to see Meira kicking more ass. Because I think she definitely could. Summing Up: It's a bit of a mixed bag for me, but a mostly positive one. I wish I could have been as in love with Snow Like Ashes as many of my friends have been, but I just found a lot of the story and worldbuilding too basic. But it has entertainment value and definite potential. I just need some more development - but I'll definitely give the sequel a fair shot. GIF it to me straight! [image] Recommended To: Fans of Throne of Glass? A bit risky, because it's not quite at the same level, but with many similar elements, ToG fans could easily find this series fantastic. *ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the contents of the review. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Oct 14, 2014
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Oct 17, 2014
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Feb 12, 2014
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ebook
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| 0765376458
| 9780765376459
| 0765376458
| 4.05
| 381,835
| Feb 24, 2015
| Feb 24, 2015
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it was amazing
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5 stars As big a fan as I am of Victoria Schwab, it's taken me ages to get around to reading A Darker Shade of Magic for the simple fact that the hype 5 stars As big a fan as I am of Victoria Schwab, it's taken me ages to get around to reading A Darker Shade of Magic for the simple fact that the hype surrounding this book was freaking insane. And yeah, I don't cope that well with hype. But I should know by now that when V Schwab's books get hyped, it's for a good reason. A Darker Shade of Magic is OUTSTANDING. Whenever I get into an adult fantasy book there's always a few expectations I need to manage. World building is gonna be intense, so I can set my standards for them to be pretty high. But you can also reasonably expect that as a result of that world building focus, the story won't be fully action packed right from the start. The thing about V Schwab though is that she tackles all the challenges of every genre with finesse. She creates not one, but three distinct worlds in A Darker Shade of Magic and weaves them together in such a fluid way that you're sucked straight into the story even though the action takes a bit to get going. I could just bathe in the beauty of her words forever and always. But you know that for me it's usually all about characters. And outside of YA, it's not always guaranteed that they'll be fleshed out enough for me. But with V Schwab, again, not an issue. Kell, Lila, and Rhy - arguably the three main characters - are amazing. Even though the book is written in third person, she loads these characters with so much voice, it's like they're real people you wish you could hang out with and call your friends. Seriously. That sounds so corny, but seriously. Kell is so grumpy, but smooth and powerful. Lila is reckless, but so charming and kick-ass awesome. And Rhy is the embodiment of charisma that you can't help but love. And the relationships between them are even better than that. Real talk: there's not much romance here to speak of - arguably, there's pretty much none at all. But it is oh so shippable. Seriously, Lila and Kell have a chemistry that I just can't even get into right now - but I love the fact that though nothing very serious happens between the two romantically, you see them slowly gaining fondness, respect, and caring for each other. They become a dream fighting team that I would gladly let rule my world. Seriously, if they're not endgame my heart may break forever. And the story... wow. Well I've said before that V Schwab is a master storyteller, and she's just proven that reputation once again. Honestly, she builds up the world perfectly, intriguing you with her magic, enchanting you with the elements, and then unfurls a plot line that is both classic and new. The characters really seal the deal though - you get invested in them and their perfectly characteristic ways of interacting with each other and the drama that occurs. You're swept through highs and lows and when the climax arrives (with stakes that are unbelievably high - SRSLY THE PAIN), you try your absolute best to tear through the pages at a speed that is not even human. And honestly, what more could you possibly want from a book? Summing Up: Victoria Schwab is brilliance in human form and absolutely shaping up to be one of my top 5 favorite authors of all-time. Yeah, I'm not kidding around. A Darker Shade of Magic is creative, exciting, thrilling, compelling, and brilliantly devised and executed. Schwab has crafted amazing characters, amazing worlds, and an amazing story. I can't say much more than that I loved this book and am so stoked to see where the series will take us. I'm down for more magic, thievery, battles, and courtly intrigue any day. A Darker Shade of Magic has something for everyone. It's across the board awesome. GIF it to me straight! [image] Recommended To: Everyone who likes fantasy even a little bit. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Dec 24, 2015
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Jan 08, 2016
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Feb 10, 2014
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Hardcover
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| 0805099239
| 9780805099232
| 0805099239
| 3.93
| 146,705
| Jul 08, 2014
| Jul 08, 2014
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it was ok
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2 stars Ugh. *moan* *sigh* Oh boy. The Kiss of Deception came out last year to a generally positive reception - in fact, plenty of my closest blogging 2 stars Ugh. *moan* *sigh* Oh boy. The Kiss of Deception came out last year to a generally positive reception - in fact, plenty of my closest blogging friends clamored about it as being one of the best new YA fantasy series out there. I am baffled, because I do not understand at all. This book was boring as hell. Honestly, I should have paid more attention to what this book was about than all of the positive reactions it had gotten. The title conveniently has the word 'Kiss' in it, and the premise already introduces the fact that there are two handsome strangers who enter the main character's life. But basically, this book is 500 pages of love triangle drama, and I am hardly even exaggerating about that. I thought we were getting a princess rebelling to find her own personal freedom instead of being forced to marry a foreign stranger, and while that definitely happens, all that follows is her mooning over two guys. After fleeing her wedding, Lia arrives at the town of Terravin and starts working in an inn, and soon after that, the love interests arrive. They are the prince she was betrothed to and an assassin, who both instantly know who she is, but she thinks they believe her to be a normal working girl. The prince was going to just observe her from a distance and then return to his kingdom, while the assassin was meant to kill her. But - they both - instantly - fall head over heels for her. I mean, they don't profess love right away, but they're both smitten because she's... beautiful, and I guess there's something admirable about her throwing away all of her privileges and actually being happy to work in an inn. What proceeds is just hundreds of pages of nothing. There's hardly a plot to really pinpoint in this book. Lia's working in the inn, Rafe and Kaden won't leave, and they all have ~meaningful eye contact~ all of the time. They're all lying to each other, but to the reader, the lies are pretty obvious (yes, even the mystery of which one is the prince and which one the assassin - at least for me), and after hundreds of pages it definitely gets tiring. Lia clearly has a preference for Rafe, but strings Kaden along in the friend zone, flirting with him on occasion to pretend she's not that into Rafe after all. But honestly I found both love interests incredibly dull. Especially because they're holding so much back, I just don't see an emotional connection in either ship. They bored me. What I also don't understand is that the writing undercuts the romance / swoon-factor on multiple occasions. For example, Lia sneaks off with Rafe during a festival, and then the scene ends. It jumps forward to where she then reflects on what had happened when they were alone together. It doesn't actually show those kissing scenes in real time! Instead, we're treated to a reflection of, "He had touched me and kissed me, and it felt really nice," or something along those lines - force feeding us her perspective, worries, and the like. The book did this on at least two occasions and I cannot for the life of me understand why. If you wanted me to ship the romance, you maybe shouldn't skip the romantic scenes, 'kay? At a certain point, it seems like things are actually going to start happening plot wise, but that backfired soon enough, and it became one of those classic fantasy scenes of hundreds of pages of traveling. Seriously. So. Little. Happens. Along the way we are only given vague clues to a kind of magic that may exist in the land and a "gift" that Lia is supposed to have, but Lia doesn't even start to grow into that until the very end, which means that the world building is left for the sequels to develop. All that we really know right now is that there are three kingdoms at war and plenty of racial/cultural tensions as a result. And, obviously, there's a cryptic prophecy. Why did this book have to be 489 pages long?? I honestly cannot understand. That was such a waste of my time. The only things that I did enjoy were Lia's courage to abandon her royal life, her fascination with and love for the working life, and her friendship with her maid. But then she started longing for her love interests again and I just closed the book and sighed. Like, I understand her obsession with finding a true love after almost being forced into an arranged marriage, but I also would have maybe respected her more if she was fine being on her own for a while - if she didn't think about Rafe every other page. By the end, she does appear to have grown a bit: she shows strength and courage at crucial times (when the plot's not being boring as hell), and there's an interesting cliffhanger ending which makes me grudgingly curious about the sequel... but I dunno. I doubt it'll win me over. Summing Up: Honestly, I don't think I've ever been so confused about book hype before in my life. To me, this was 500 pages of love triangle drama - and not even good love triangle drama, which I swear exists. Other than that, what even was the plot? Seriously. There is none. Okay, there's a KERNEL which could have been trimmed down to 200 pages, for real. Anyway, I'll just go have my private black sheep dance party in that corner there. Baaa. GIF it to me straight! [image] Recommended To: Fans of romance-heavy (ultra)-lite fantasy. (The Girl of Fire and Thorns comes to mind?) ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Jun 15, 2015
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Jun 19, 2015
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Feb 10, 2014
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Hardcover
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| 0316366323
| 9780316366328
| 0316366323
| 3.60
| 6,102
| Sep 16, 2014
| Oct 21, 2014
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it was ok
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2 stars I don't think there will ever come a day when I'm NOT interested in a teenage celebrity romance story. Seriously. The instant I heard about Fam 2 stars I don't think there will ever come a day when I'm NOT interested in a teenage celebrity romance story. Seriously. The instant I heard about Famous in Love, I knew I'd be reading it. And I knew that, like most of these stories, it probably wouldn't end well. This really is guilty pleasure territory (though I somewhat hate that term) because it's so entertaining while at the same time it's so horribly bad. To be fair, the first half of Famous in Love is really strong, and I was enjoying myself immensely. Paige is a nobody who somehow lands the lead role in the movie adaptation of a massive YA book trilogy. She knows hardly anything about the business and, as such, is kind of innocent and naive. But her co-star, playing one angle of the book's love triangle, Rainer, is experienced and sweet and helps her navigate this strange new world of movie sets, paparazzi, and tabloid mania. Soon it seems he's quite interested in her. She's a bit hesitant, but she can't help but develop a crush on him. Meanwhile she's also struggling with her crush back home, whom she's separated from while on set. They're moving on with their lives and drifting apart. I was engrossed in her story and it was compulsively readable. When things start to advance with Rainer, I was on board. I was mostly reading this for the swoons, and I will admit that Serle can write an engaging romance with heaps of chemistry. The problem is that she makes this book almost a parody of itself, because then Jordan, playing the other angle of the triangle, comes in and in no time he and Paige also develop a certain attraction. There's a love triangle in the books/movies. And now there's a love triangle behind the scenes. Can we say cliché? Even worse, the sweet guy in the movie is dark and mysterious in real life, and the mysterious guy in the movie is the sweet one on set. Paige gets tugged in both directions and on top of all that, there's also the question of whether Rainer is really such a good guy, or just a fame whore. (Personally, I think he's just a controlling asshole.) *sigh* It's a bit exhausting. To be fair, Paige does have a certain chemistry with both leads, so when your nose is buried in the book and you're reading at lightspeed, it's easy to get caught up in the swoons. But it's just so. goddamn. cliché. And the sap. Oh god. But when you think about this whole story at a distance, why would Paige even put herself in this position? As someone who wants to make it as an actress so badly, you should be avoiding on set romances as much as possible, and she should be really wary of celebrity romances. They're such great actors on set, who says they're not acting in real life? (And I believe they kind of are. Which means both guys have like three layers of identity, which is just, ugh, my brain hurts.) It didn't make sense either that the director was so paranoid about their relationships. Hello? Anyone in Hollywood would JUMP at the opportunity of your movie couple getting together in real life. Think of all that free publicity! I'm still firmly of the belief that this happened with Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart, at least for part of the Twilight era. What it really comes down to is this. There is romance and it can make you swoon. There are really nice kissing scenes, and I loved the experience of seeing a YA film adaptation get made and all the strings that come attached to that. (Though, seriously, it sounds like the whole movie only had 3 people in it, so I wouldn't care to actually watch it in real life. It sounds like a fucking boring story tbh.) But the romance is essentially a love triangle of instalove spawned by another love triangle. And all of that together makes it a lump of sap and clichés, and I just ended up wanting to SHAKE Paige and tell her to LIVE HER OWN FUCKING LIFE and JUST FORGET ABOUT THOSE BOYS and ACT PROFESSIONALLY FOR ONCE. At times it seemed she was going to show a backbone, but then it just gets so hackneyed and all is lost again. Ugh. Summing Up: I wanted to like this so badly, and at first I did. It's compulsively readable, and there are some swoons. But then all those things I mentioned: too many clichés, a main character who can't stand on her own, and the triangle of instalove. I like the behind the scenes peek at the YA movie industry though. Something about that world still holds a kind of magic to me, and that made the story, though so sickeningly cliché, very entertaining. Qualitatively this book is not very good, but I really enjoyed... parts... of it. It's the first in a trilogy, and to be honest, in spite of my lackluster rating, I could see myself picking up the sequels on a rainy day. It's a nice kind of comfort read, where you can just turn off your brain and seek out the swoons. But honestly, Team Jordan. GIF it to me straight! [image] Basically, I feel like I have a love/hate relationship with this book. Recommended To: Fans of... love triangles? Hollywood romances? I guess? *ARC received in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the contents of the review. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Oct 18, 2014
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Oct 20, 2014
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Feb 07, 2014
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Hardcover
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| 1444921185
| 9781444921182
| 1444921185
| 3.83
| 20,411
| May 06, 2014
| May 01, 2014
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it was ok
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2.5 stars *sigh* I so badly want to find a great mermaid book, but the hunt must continue. That's not to say that Deep Blue is bad - but it's very midd 2.5 stars *sigh* I so badly want to find a great mermaid book, but the hunt must continue. That's not to say that Deep Blue is bad - but it's very middle of the road for me, and I hoped for more. Deep Blue tells the story of Serafina, a mermaid princess on the cusp of being named the next Regina and being betrothed to Prince Mahdi, her childhood crush. Before any of this ceremony can take place, her kingdom is attacked, her mother is, likely, fatally wounded, and she and her friend Neela flee. It becomes apparent there's a prophecy involving her and five other mermaids, and so they embark on a quest. Right off the bat, I'll just put my biggest complaint out there: very little happened in this book. It's not a slow read, because the plot continuously moves forward and I did find the world interesting enough to read about. But basically, Serafina and Neela are swimming from place to place, finding the simplest clues to keep going, and now and then being chased by their enemies. It takes an incredibly long time until some reveals are actually made about this prophecy - what it involves and what it means - in quite an info-dumpy way, and then the book's over already and they're swimming off to the next part of their quest. The synopsis made it sound like they needed to find these other mermaids of the prophecy - but at the end they all just end up together, without any "finding" really happening. So basically, the plot was just too easy and yet messy at the same time. It generally really bothers me when the first book in a series is set up this way. It barely begins the story, just gives you the bare bones, trying to get you hooked, but failing to provide a standalone story arc. Honestly, you could read the synopsis of the book and the last couple chapters and start the sequel without missing anything. That's just a waste of pages and reading time - and if you didn't get a review copy, money. The characters also didn't really impress me. The story is written in third person and mostly works from Serafina's point of view, but at times (read: when necessary) randomly changes to one of the other characters. But the story is very much plot-driven and not character-driven. So if you were hoping to fall in love with characters, you will probably be out of luck. I couldn't describe their personalities to you if I tried. Well maybe a little bit. There's the mean girl mermaid over there. ... Yeah. That's about it. I will praise the fact that the 6 mermaids of the prophecy are a diverse cast of characters from all regions of the world, in spite of their lacking personalities. It was nice to see that - more diversity in YA is always a plus. Also, females are empowered in this society - like in Serafina's kingdom, the power passes to female royals - male royals will only ever be a prince or consort. Definite plus - to turn the tables like that. However, I don't understand what the idea is with this "childhood romance" with Mahdi. He used to be really charming to Serafina but in the last couple years, he's become a playboy party merman and he acts like a right douchebag to Serafina when he arrives for their betrothal ceremony. Of course, after that, they're on the run and Mahdi is MIA, so it's all rather pointless, and yet Serafina still thinks of him so often. The appearance of another merman, Blu, who helps Serafina, also made my love triangle radar go off, but the quest again took precedence, so soon he was gone - though still in Serafina's thoughts. I just don't really get it. Romance is not the centerpoint of this novel, but it kept being interjected in it anyway though really subtley. I guess my issue is that neither romance was (yet) built up in a way that caught my interest. I just doooooooon't care. The world building itself, I rather liked. Yes, it was very reminiscent of Disney's The Little Mermaid, but what else could you really expect? I enjoyed the whimsical nature of it, and it was rather cute. There's magic! Who doesn't love magic? Of course, some things I raised my eyebrows at as well (i.e. wanted posters being spread around underwater? Made of what? Sheetrock and kelp?) so a certain suspension of disbelief may be necessary, and perhaps it's a world that would appeal more to the lower-end of YA, or even a middle grade audience. What kind of baffles me is the random interjection of punny humor. Usually, I'm all about the puns - they're puntastic, but it felt really out of place in this book. The subject matter is just too dark for it. The kingdom has been ruined, Serafina is unsure if her mother is still alive, her uncle is missing, she has no idea where Mahdi is, and generally all things suck. Witches are telling her she has a duty to save the world from a dark monster. So I guess the puns are there to try to lighten the mood and keep it from being too dark, but the puns aren't said by the characters. The puns are part of the worldbuilding - and thus meant SERIOUSLY. Now, what are these puns, you might ask? Currensea. Merlfriend. Or just, merl. A cat lady - who has a unhealthy number of catfish. The list goes on and on and on. I may have snickered at one or two, but they really drew me out of the novel, so I don't feel like it worked for me. They made me feel like I was laughing AT the book, instead of being entertained by it. Summing Up: It's a mixed bag for me. It's a fast-paced adventure in a whimsical and cute world, but it was too underdeveloped for me. The characters left me feeling nothing, the plot was cut short, and the humor I still just don't get. I think this would work better aimed at a middle grade audience, because it can still be entertaining. But as for me, I just kind of expect MORE. GIF it to me straight! Sadly, this book left me feeling... [image] Recommended To: Middle grade fantasy/adventure readers. *ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the contents of the review. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Apr 14, 2014
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Apr 16, 2014
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Jan 29, 2014
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Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||
| 045147239X
| 9780451472397
| 045147239X
| 3.97
| 30,483
| Jul 07, 2015
| Jul 07, 2015
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really liked it
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4 stars When Ink and Bone first came out, it got some rave reviews that made me place it on my wishlist and file away under "definitely should check ou 4 stars When Ink and Bone first came out, it got some rave reviews that made me place it on my wishlist and file away under "definitely should check out at some point". That point arrived in the form of a book club nomination. I went into the book not knowing much about it aside from (a) the good reviews, and (b) it had something to do with the library of Alexandria. But oh man, the way that this book kept me on my toes was something I did not expect. Ink and Bone is a dystopian story set in the near future of an alternate history - trust me, that makes sense. In this version of our world, the library of Alexandria rules all - having basically replaced the church as the ruling body of the world. As comes with the dystopian territory, this did not really have a good impact on society. The library halted all forms of progress - books are illegal to own, printing presses are illegal to even suggest. All books are owned by the library, though it offers to share some of its knowledge by ways of the codexes and blanks - empty books that can be mirrored to the books in the library's possession. Knowledge is power, and the library is keeping it to itself. What an interesting concept. This story has been pitched as Harry Potter meets The Book Thief - and I can venture a guess as to why. The Book Thief obviously comes into play with the "books are illegal" premise. Harry Potter comes in because of the characters. The parallels are striking when you think about them - but they didn't bother me at all while reading. Jess, the main character, comes from a smuggling family and is sent to the library to infiltrate it. He is our Harry - he's brave and a little stubborn, but his personality is not the most outspoken. Thomas, a friend he makes in Alexandria, is more or less Ron - loyal to the very end (though Thomas is admittedly much more intelligent). Khalila - a muslim girl, who proudly wears a hijab - is the brightest of the class and an obvious Hermione. And Jess instantly picks up a rival who can easily be compared to Draco (though he gets an impressive character growth arc). The interactions between these characters are all well and good. It's fast-paced, dynamic, and you certainly grow to care for them (especially after some of the horrible things they face). But the one who really and truly stole my heart was Wolfe. Wolfe is the Scholar (and proctor) for the students, and he first appears rather gruff and grumpy. But... he's so much more than that. He's complex, caring, and protective, but he doesn't like to draw attention to himself. And he has a ship that I totally called and that did give me feels, even though they are decidedly secondary characters who are not in the forefront that much. Wolfe is a total Snape (though younger and much more handsome). And for Snape fans - you will get feels. Though this is a dystopian story, it's not at all a typical one. I'm very much over dystopian fiction at the moment, but this one felt fresh and new. It's been heralded as Harry Potter meets The Book Thief, but I would even dare to throw a shout out to The Bone Season in there, because of the alternate history / near future setting, slight fantastical elements, and the gripping scenes of unrest in London and Oxford. Seriously, the battle of Oxford was a heart-stopping and surprisingly brutal page turner. I couldn't get enough. I do feel like there's room for improvement on the world building, though. How this world came to be this way, why no one has ever managed to really stand up against it, and how the magical and alchemical aspects of the library work are not that developed yet. But I have faith that it'll come. Summing Up: Ink and Bone is a delightfully refreshing take on the dystopian genre. It's not a dystopia I think would realistically have been able to happen (because, yeah, no magic), but it raises the right questions: what happens when the knowledge capital of the world is hoarded by a selfish institution? How would society react? The cast of characters is vibrant, the challenges they face are intense, and by the end of the story I just cared SO MUCH for all of them. I could spend ages dissecting the little details of this book that I think make it so smart and cool, but I'll spare you the full length novel. Pick this one up instead. GIF it to me straight! [image] Recommended To: Honestly, anyone who likes dystopias even a little bit - because this one's much better than most. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Mar 21, 2016
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Mar 29, 2016
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Jan 29, 2014
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Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||
| 0316404519
| 9780316404518
| 0316404519
| 3.51
| 3,507
| Sep 23, 2014
| Sep 23, 2014
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did not like it
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1.5 stars As with any negative review, particularly of a debut author, this is somewhat painful to write. I picked up Salt & Storm hoping for interesti 1.5 stars As with any negative review, particularly of a debut author, this is somewhat painful to write. I picked up Salt & Storm hoping for interesting magic adventures with stunning world building and the possibility of a nice romance. And I'm left extremely disappointed on all counts. So much so that at a mere quarter of the book, I was extremely close to leaving it unfinished (and we know how bad I am at DNFing). I pushed through anyway but... that didn't change my opinion. My primary complaint about Salt & Storm sadly comes down to the writing. It didn't work for me at all. It was so amateurish, clunky, and awkward. From describing a POC character as having "cinnamon-colored skin", to calling the nice neighborhood on the island as "up lighthouse" (leading to awkward sentences as "I don't bother heading up lighthouse"), to the lingo used for Avery's dream telling ability ("Will you tell my dream? I would like to know what it means."), to the main character stating she has "clear, cloudless gray" eyes, there were way too many instances of awkward sentences that made me do a double take. Some of it you could probably write off to my reading an advanced copy, and hopefully, some of this would be weeded out before the finished copies were printed, but... it's a lot. It didn't work for me and constantly pulled me out of the story. I ended up skim reading parts so that I wouldn't get hung up on how bad the writing was. That's... not good news. When I next wake, two kindnesses: my wrists are no longer chained and a bowl of broth sits on the stool in front of me. I stare at it for a long time. Although I can't remember the last time I ate, it might as well have been a bowl of sand. [image] That's my mother's name. Essie Roe. I don't think I ever mentioned that. On one of the very rare occasions my grandmother spoke of my mother, she told me that she'd named my mother for the sounds of waves on the shoreline, whisper-quiet in the morning: Ehhhss-eeee ehhhssss-eeee. [image] But when the writing wasn't bothering me with its awkwardness, it was confusing me with how completely inauthentic it was. This is a historical fantasy, which I may not have known before starting the book, but quickly became obvious due to a lack of technology yet references to Earth locales - the story taking place on an island off the coast of Massachusetts. For more than half of the book, I was trying to figure out exactly when this takes place though. They referred to the civil war as taking place in the past, but then Avery references wearing "the new dress [her mother had] flown in from Paris". Possibly, this was an error, but I was confused as fuck. That possible innocent sentence aside, there weren't enough context clues to let me figure it out. There were no rich details about architecture, clothing, hairstyles, dialogue, mannerisms. Everything was described as simply as possible: a dress = white with a blue ribbon, a hairstyle = like a proper girl hairstyle. Towards the end, Avery even says she wants, "A blue house with yellow shutters." That's. Just. No. [image] So, fair enough, around halfway it does become clear that this story happens JUST after the civil war - so in the late 1860s. But still, I didn't feel that. I'm all for historical fantasy, you know, but you have to make it believable and authentic. From the narrations, dialogue, and mannerisms this honestly could have taken place in our generation. It hinted at a lack of research and kept me from being fully engaged in the story. I was just confused about it for so long. And it didn't feel like having it set in our world really added anything. I was just wondering why this couldn't have been in a fantasy world entirely, because that would have cut out the confusion and my gripes about the inauthentic setting. But okay. Writing complaints aside, I still don't have many positive things to say about the book. Avery, the main character, is a witch of Prince Island. She's been kept from her magic by her mother until she dreams that she will be murdered (right, she can see the meaning behind dreams). Knowing the protective nature of the status of being the Roe witch, she tries to escape her mother's clutches and unlock her magic, and things happen. Avery bored me to death. She's boring, cardboard, nondescript. She's overly dramatic, which causes some really predictable problems. I couldn't relate to her at all. The magic was sadly underdeveloped - as was this whole whaling concept that was a big point of the premise. Sure, they live on a whaling island, so the witch's main task is selling protective charms to the sailors but that's about it. We don't get to see a lot of magic because Avery is kept away from it for the most part. When it does set in, it's all washed up in the clunky writing and I just cannot even care. But the sad thing is the story becomes hopelessly intertwined with this romantic arc. Admittedly it is important to the story. But it's a freaking trap. It doesn't start out as instalove, no. The two are hesitant about each other but enter into a partnership that would be mutually beneficial. Then, a dramatic thing happens, they kiss, and mere days later they're spouting I LOVE YOU and I WILL STAY WITH YOU and I WANT TO MARRY YOU AND BE WITH YOU ALWAYS. That's when I start backing awayyyyy. I mean, it's the 1860s, so instalove *was* kind of more common, but this didn't have that tone - because I didn't feel the setting at all. No, it just felt like two melodramatic, obsessive teenagers, and as soon as they were serious about each other, I was off that ship because NO I DO NOT WANT THAT PLEASE STOP. The plot was... meh. It had some interesting points - some twists that did intrigue me and make me wonder, "Hmm, how does that turn out?" But they were few and far between. It is a standalone, and there's something to be said for that, but it was very surface level. I feel like there were a lot of discarded ideas along the way, and it lacked cohesion. The ending was particularly boring, because there is a clear climax, with a shocker I was not really expecting, but then it goes on for 50 more pages that completely lost my interest. There were a bunch of last minute infodumps to try to tie up all the loose strings, but I didn't feel like it worked for me. Overall, the story was pretty boring, NGL. Summing Up: I get what Kendall Kulper was trying to do, but I don't feel she succeeded. Making this a historical fantasy was a bad decision, because her writing just didn't manage to pull that off. When I could disregard awkward sentences and the inauthentic setting, I was just bored by the characters, romance, and plot. I'm still waiting to find an awesome book about witches. This was not it. GIF it to me straight! [image] *An ARC was received at BEA in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the contents of the review. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Sep 06, 2014
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Sep 10, 2014
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Jan 14, 2014
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Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||
| 0399256938
| 9780399256936
| 0399256938
| 3.81
| 42,014
| Apr 08, 2014
| Apr 08, 2014
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really liked it
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4.5 stars Ever since I started reading YA actively in 2012, I've heard the greatest things about Rachel Hawkins as being an author of excellent enterta 4.5 stars Ever since I started reading YA actively in 2012, I've heard the greatest things about Rachel Hawkins as being an author of excellent entertaining and fluffy paranormal romances. As such, I've been meaning to try out her books for ages, but it never quite made it to the top of my priority list. What an idiot am I. Rebel Belle is an absolute delight, and I can't wait to check out all the rest of Hawkins's works. Rebel Belle tells the story of Harper, an overachieving southern Belle, who out of the blue, after witnessing the death of her school janitor and being assaulted by her teacher, gets superpowers. She soon finds out she is a Paladin, graced with super strength and fighting skills, destined to serve as a protector to the only Oracle in the world, who happens to be her nemesis since Kindergarten, David. From the very first page, I was sucked into this book. The tone is so light and refreshing. Harper's voice is vibrant and lively - I loved her southern grace and her overachieving nature. It was kind of like I formed an instant connection to her, and I couldn't wait to see what would happen. [image] One of the things I love about this book is that it turns so many fantasy tropes on their head. The woman, here, serves as the protector. The main character is not the chosen one - she's in fact destined to protect him. She's the strong one, while he has a magical fate he does not yet understand. And not only that, but once Harper realizes the powers that she has, she doesn't just lie down and accept her destiny. She's not immediately brave, confident, and self-sacrificing. In a more realistic move, she actually just really wants to go on with her normal high school life. She didn't choose this fate, this power, so it takes her a really long time to accept that her life has been forever changed. I can imagine some people might get annoyed with her for running away from it all for so long, but I really respected it for how realistic it was. [image] But before we go any further, let me just state for the record: the ship is strong with this one. Oh how it delighted me with every shared moment and touch. Though Harper is in a long term relationship with Ryan, her newfound powers obviously put her in close contact with David... her nemesis. In fact... they quite hate each other. LO, HOW THE BIRDS ARE SINGING, MY SHIP IS SETTING SAIL. Hate-to-love romance is one of my favorite tropes of all time, obviously, and it was spectacular here. There's so much banter, such mutual disdain, but gradually it all melts and becomes a puddle of adorable goo. David is a cutie pie, for serious, with a crazy unique fashion sense (though bonus points for the Doctor Who shirt), much geekiness, and spectacular snark. Harper is a master of holding grudges and maybe a bit too obsessed with her clean-cut southern Belle image, but the two are magic together. Many feels. Many flailing in bed feels. [image] Obviously, however, with Harper in a relationship already, the romance is not uncomplicated. And I guess it's kind of a love triangle, though I didn't mind it so much. The love triangle I feel serves more to show the struggle between Harper's mind and her heart. Ryan is a perfect boyfriend on paper, yes, but after two years, the relationship has kind of plateaued. I could relate to that immensely as both within the context of high school relationships and personal experience. And, let's face it, the hate-to-love ship had me blazing through the pages from one feelsy moment to the next. I am kind of worried about the love triangle drama continuing or getting more dramatic in the sequels, given the ending, but for now, I'm quite satisfied with it. Overall, this is just an excellent light paranormal romance. There's not too much world building - but it's not really necessary, because the amount of magic in the world is extremely limited. It's not very complicated or deep, but it doesn't have to be. For most of the story, Harper and David are just coming to terms with what their powers mean and trying to stay alive, while fending off the gossip of their small town southern community. There's an excellent friendship between Harper and Bee, some mild bitchiness with Mary Beth, and wonderful glimpses of the southern culture as the girls prepare for their Cotillion. Then there are a couple of brief fight scenes that really get the juices flowing. Basically, there's just high entertainment value all around. I didn't want to put the book down for a second, and when I finally finished, the first thing I did was get online to order the sequel. I. Need. More. Summing Up: Rebel Belle is an absolute breath of fresh air. With a light tone and easily digestible story, once you start reading this book, it's extremely hard to stop. There's action, magic, and mystery like one might expect from a paranormal romance, but friendships, family, and cultural tidbits that read much more like a contemporary. Harper's voice is a delight, and the hate-to-love romance gave me ALL OF THE FEELS. Basically, I can't wait to read more from this series and author. I'm thinking Hawkins could easily turn out to be one of my favorites. GIF it to me straight! [image] Recommended To: Fans of Magnolia by Kristi Cook, The Art of Wishing by Lindsay Ribar, Gossip Girl, banterfluff, and light paranormal romance / urban fantasy. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Jun 13, 2015
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Jun 14, 2015
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Dec 03, 2013
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Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||
| 0062133977
| 9780062133977
| 0062133977
| 3.50
| 1,137
| Apr 29, 2014
| Apr 29, 2014
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it was ok
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2 stars I absolutely adore music and books involving music (i.e. This Song Will Save Your Life) - so when I heard of Exile, all about music, band manag 2 stars I absolutely adore music and books involving music (i.e. This Song Will Save Your Life) - so when I heard of Exile, all about music, band management, and a promising romance, it went on my must read list. Sadly, this book is just a blend of meh for me. Summer is an aspiring band manager who just got dumped from her previous band after they got picked up by a record label. Even worse, she was involved with the band's front man, and he ended up cheating on her. Her life revolves around music, and with a new school year, she now has to pick up the pieces and find a new project. She quickly finds one in the talented musician Caleb - who also just got dumped from his band. She inspires him to start a new band. And here right away is my biggest problem with this book. Summer constantly narrates how it was a bad idea to get involved with someone from her last band, and how she hates the judgement she gets from it. She feels peoples stares and practically hears them thinking, "Oh, there's that groupie lovesick girl." And what does she do with Caleb? Immediately starts dating him. The first time they meet, he asks her on a date, and she goes under the pretense of inspiring him to make this new band so that she can manage it - but they are immediately dating, already. [image] Girl, are you serious? I will say that it's not instalove. They don't go around proclaiming that they can't live without the other, but they're just immediately a couple, before the band even starts up. In fact, the rushed formation of the relationship gives me exactly ZERO feels for them. But I just hate how Summer knows and frequently tells the reader that this is a bad idea, and then does it anyway. There isn't a sense of burning chemistry between them or attraction or whatever either. Just, she likes his music, he likes her personality, they both feel exiled. Whoooo, so much in common. And her hypocrisy doesn't stop there. No, they soon find out about Caleb's secret - about his father, and go on this treasure hunt for these lost songs. Meanwhile, the band quickly gets noticed and a label becomes interested, and Summer keeps all that a secret from the band. She again tells the readers that coming clean is probably the best option but then doesn't until it's too late and drama rears its ugly head. Just ugh. Just ugh. So clearly I don't care much for the characters. Summer's hypocrisy annoyed me and Caleb didn't make me feel much of anything. But the plot was also super weak. This is a series which is absolutely depressing, because the story in this book is so unresolved it makes me want to rage. It was just drama drama drama, with mean girls and jealousy and family drama (Summer resents and writes off her parents in such a way that seriously makes me give her some side eye; although, major props to her relationship with her gay aunt), and then tiny little reveals (most of which were totally predictable) and then THE END BUY THE NEXT BOOK SUCKER. I.. no. Just no. Summing Up: I liked the idea of this. A performance arts high school is an awesome setting, and I loved seeing a different side of the world (band management), so for what it's worth, there were still parts of this that entertained me. But mostly I couldn't bring myself to care about the characters or the story. It was unresolved in a way that just makes me raise my shoulders and wipe the book from my memory. NEXT. GIF it to me straight! [image] Me to Summer *ARC was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the contents of the review. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Apr 02, 2014
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Apr 05, 2014
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Dec 03, 2013
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Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||
| 0062209264
| 9780062209269
| 0062209264
| 3.73
| 1,901
| Apr 29, 2014
| Apr 29, 2014
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did not like it
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1.5 stars As a fan of all things timey-wimey, when I spotted Sleep No More being advertised as a thriller with a "change the future" kind of aspect, I 1.5 stars As a fan of all things timey-wimey, when I spotted Sleep No More being advertised as a thriller with a "change the future" kind of aspect, I was immediately intrigued. I'll be the first to admit that I had not heard many great things about Aprilynne Pike's writing, but I thought I might as well give it a shot - because maybe this story could convince me. While I was absorbed by the creeptastic story, the ending was a disaster, and without the illusion of suspense I realized... I didn't like this book very much. So in Sleep No More, our main character, Charlotte, is an oracle. She's spent her life fighting her visions, because she's not supposed to interfere with the future, but now the visions are overpowering her as she sees brutal murders of her fellow classmates. A serial killer is on the loose. I don't often pick up serial killer type stories, I must admit. It's not exactly my thing, but I thought with the paranormal aspect of seeing the future, this was worth a shot. And boy did it bring the creep factor. Charlotte sees these murders and the aftermaths, and it chilled me to my core. It evoked such suspense that I just had to keep reading to know who was doing this and why. And so, for much of the novel, I was completely engrossed. Charlotte finds out more about her powers and what she can do, and tries to help in whatever way she can. However. However. Obviously, there is a big but. The plot was going so well until about 75%, because then, obviously, some resolutions had to happen. And it was a messy disaster. Nothing made sense anymore. (view spoiler)[So I guess my biggest problem is that I just don't get the motivation for Feeders. They feed on Oracles when they have visions and get stronger. But... THEN WHAT? Like, what do they need that strength for? What do they do with it? (hide spoiler)] You can't just throw in all these supernatural elements suddenly and then just rush a half-assed explanation of them. Talk about your poor planning and poor worldbuilding. I was so excited to learn who the killer was and then it was just a combination of easy way out + fuzzy resolutions. Disappointment doesn't begin to cover it. This could have been so much more. But how the plot crashed and burned isn't even my biggest complaint about this novel. When the suspense was receding, my eyes were opened to the bad writing. People weren't joking around about Aprilynne Pike's writing. It's all tell and no show. That makes me sad. It was okay during the sections with a lot of action and suspense, and I didn't notice it, but at the end, it comes down to the characters and how they've been affected. Here's my biggest problem: Charlotte doesn't seemed to be scarred at all. I mean, she tells you she is. I wonder how long it will be before I can sleep peacefully again. - Sleep No More by Aprilynne Pike (ARC) She says it so calmly, but I was on the brink of that insantiy and even now - in this comfortable room with Sierra's arm around my shoulders - it terrifies me. - Sleep No More by Aprilynne Pike (ARC) But do you see how I don't buy this? Okay, here's where my review is going to get personal. At the beginning of the month, I was walking to the station after my cousin's birthday party. It's a creepy road that's almost completely dark, and I was crying because I didn't enjoy the party at all. Suddenly, out of nowhere, this guy was standing in the middle of the path. I jumped a bit, but I kept walking and moved to walk around him. I passed him, let out a breath, but suddenly, his hand came out of nowhere and he grabbed me by my thigh. I screamed, pulled away, and pulled out my phone. LUCKILY, he backed off there, and I ran off, talking to my dad on the phone until I got to the station, but I have to admit it's the most terrified I've ever been in my life. I was sobbing uncontrollably. The rest of the night I was constantly looking over my shoulder. I was only sticking to well lit roads, always making sure there were people around, and at the station, I pretty much hugged this pole that has a panic button. This is fear. The fear that I was feeling earlier in the novel was my own fear - not the main character's fear. And that would have been fine if this was a second person novel, but it's not. (And ew, no to second person.) The thing is, this is just not how you convey fear. You can't just TELL me the character's frightened. You have to make me feel it through the main character - the full range of the emotional trauma, including not only fear, but paranoia, suspicion, terror to the point of uncontrollable crying, and the desire to lock yourself up in the safety of your home for the rest of your life. Thinking about it, I think fear is possibly the hardest emotion to write - especially if you're writing about attacks, harassment, or abuse, which (hopefully) you haven't experienced yourself. For people who know even a shred of what that actually feels like, you won't come across as genuine. Could what I'm describing be considered overkill? Perhaps. But moderation would be fine. Just, if you're writing realistic fiction (which I would argue this still is in spite of the paranormal element) and you're writing a thriller from the eyes of a victim... you have to show that you know at least to some degree what a realistic person would feel in that situation. You have to show that. And not just tell me. Because I don't buy it. Not even for a second. Charlotte is freaking Hercules, because it seems like none of this affects her for more than an hour. And she witnesses terrifying things. People getting their throat slit, beaten to death with a bat, chopped up by a machete - she's even grabbed in the dark herself. But no lasting impact, aside from telling us, which I find hard to buy. In fact, when she should be scared and paranoid, she dreams about her boyfriend and how much she wants to kiss him and whatever, even begging her mom to let her leave the house to see him while the killer is still out there. Prioritization, bitch. Ughhhhh. Summing Up: Obviously I pulled my own personal experiences into this story, and that's a big barrier for me to like it. But even without that, this would have bothered me. Perhaps not to this extent, but still. The suspense and creepiness was good... until that last fateful quarter. Then I was left with bad writing, bad characterization, bad romance, bad plot resolutions, and bad worldbuilding. So... yeah. I'm disappointed. GIF it to me straight! [image] *ARC received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the contents of the review. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Apr 06, 2014
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Apr 08, 2014
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Dec 03, 2013
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Kindle Edition
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| 006222123X
| 9780062221230
| B00DB36462
| 3.59
| 7,238
| Mar 04, 2014
| Mar 04, 2014
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it was ok
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2 stars Death Sworn, oh Death Sworn, with your awesome blurb, I thought this was bound to go well. You reminded me of The Burning Sky, which was one of 2 stars Death Sworn, oh Death Sworn, with your awesome blurb, I thought this was bound to go well. You reminded me of The Burning Sky, which was one of my favorite reads from last year. But sadly, it just didn't work out, at all. The prevailing emotion felt during our time together was, sadly, boredom. I ended up surprise buddy reading this one together with Christina, so it's going to be no surprise that our reviews are rather similar. We were, unfortunately for Death Sworn, in full agreement. The plot kicks off with Ileni becoming the magic teacher to the Assassins "guild". Right from the start, I felt rather bored. Ileni lacks a personality to me. She was kind of grumpy, but that was about it. It was a simple main character in a simple plot. I missed complexity and emotion. (It doesn't help that this was the first book I read after Ignite Me, which can be dubbed the most feelsy book on the planet.) Ileni is tasked with a secret mission to find out who has been killing off the previous teachers that her sorcerer group has sent over. Within hours of getting there, Ileni meets Sorin and already tells him what she's investigating. ...Her "secret" mission. He's an assassin who is presumably brainwashed to do whatever the master tells him and to keep no secrets from him. But whatever. It's a little thing that I'd like to call "instatrust" and I hate it in books. It's just.. no. A day or so after that, Sorin already tells Ileni his super personal and dark back story. Guys. Ugh. No. There was no build up or probable cause to this trustworthy relationship. You're trying to build a book of suspicion but then instantly contradict that. Sorin also has rather no personality to speak of, but Ileni is of course charmed by his good looks. We all know where it's going, though apparently Ileni is still in mourning over her last relationship with Tellis. You never meet this Tellis, but Ileni will tell you at almost any occasion how much she misses him and how perfect he was. No concrete details. Just telling, no showing. It didn't impress me or get to me emotionally. It felt like the author was trying to interject a really odd love triangle, where one side wasn't even present. It was really annoying. But fine, so Ileni and Sorin are "drawn" to each other, but even there I didn't feel the chemistry for one second. Then the actual romance happens. And... I just can't even. While Sorin was self-aware about the nature of his feelings for her, and how it may not be real exactly, he pretty much tells Ileni she's stupid. And she's fine with that. They have their moment, for which I have no facial expression at all, because I was still bored, as with the rest of this book, and then it actually fades to black, skipping the actual kissing and heavy romantic bits. Because, I mean, why on earth would young adult readers want a heavy dose of FEELS? Maybe the author knew she couldn't pull it off. I dunno. After that, Ileni reflects that "they went pretty far" and already she "feels the pang of his absence" when they're apart for a couple hours. ...I have no words. So you'd think then, fine, this book isn't romance-centric, but the plot's gotta pack a punch then. Not... really. While the world they live in is interesting, we barely get to see any of it. Just some poor hints about the Empire that is corrupt and rules with an iron fist (hi Star Wars feels), the sorcerers who live in hiding, the assassins who are trained as mercenaries and want to bring the Empire down, and the magic. You kind of have to fill in the blanks yourself though, and a lot of it is left in the dark. The plot itself became disjointed, convenient, and simple. After being raised her whole life as a peace-loving sorceress, Ileni suddenly has no problems becoming a murderer. She was weak, but suddenly becomes strong. She almost dies but (sadly) doesn't because of her auto-healing abilities. Then the antagonist is revealed. And suddenly a whole bunch of people apparently knew about him and everything. The ending was just a disastrous blur and made no sense to me at all. Summing Up: While it started off mildly entertaining, this book never managed to impress me. With cardboard characters, a feels-less romance, a pointless love triangle, and ultra convenient plot, it's not a book I would really recommend. Usually I'm all for magic and assassins but... not like this. I'm not even angry. I'm just bored. GIF it to me straight! [image] **ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect the rating or contents of the review. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Feb 08, 2014
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Feb 12, 2014
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Dec 02, 2013
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Kindle Edition
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| 1444914464
| 9781444914467
| 1444914464
| 3.61
| 883
| Jan 02, 2014
| Jan 02, 2014
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did not like it
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1 star *exhales* First off, NO. I had to get that out of the way. I tried really hard to like Witch Finder. I went in with the lowest expectations poss 1 star *exhales* First off, NO. I had to get that out of the way. I tried really hard to like Witch Finder. I went in with the lowest expectations possible, because several of my reader friends were reading it just before I did and warned me that it didn't look that good. A pity, because I still absolutely adore the cover. But, as it was a review copy, I went ahead and read it anyway. For the most part, I was not amused. [image] I received this review copy rather late and was in a bit of a reading slump, so to still have my review up reasonably on time, I read most of it in one sitting. A good thing too, because if I had put it down more than once, I can't promise that I would have picked it back up again. Reading it in one sitting also helped to engross me in the story, so much so that I was quite enjoying the middle part of it and debated whether it was worth 3 stars. But overall... no. So Witch Finder promises us the story of a witch, Rosa, and a witch hunter, Luke, who is assigned to kill her as an initiation into a brotherhood of witch hunters. The plot, however, is stretched terribly thin. The beginning and end were rather boring and strayed into the realm of, "Huh? What?" Luke is on a mission to kill Rosa. You'd think there'd be more suspicion, plotting, etc., but no. He makes a couple attempts and quickly realizes he cares too much for Rosa, she's too much of an ordinary girl, for him to kill her. But where is the plot aside from that? I kept reading, trying to find it, but there was just no driving force to the story. A new plot arc is introduced in the last quarter of the book, and it was just really disjointed. [image] The world for that matter also made no sense to me. While it is our world in 1880, magic is in the world, and in the first couple chapters it's said that this is common knowledge. That fact is hardly used at all in the book. Sure, the witches are in hiding, and there's this secret brotherhood trying to kill them all, but ordinary people seem like they don't know witches exist, when according to the earlier chapters they should. And where do politics come in? There's some political body mentioned a few times, but no laws about witchcraft or anything. It was just so much missed potential. *sigh* The magic that is used in the book is also hardly noteworthy. Since Rosa has to be discrete about her magic around the house (given the normal human servants), the only spells we ever really see in this book are for things like starting a fire, mending some clothes, and making stains disappear. I mean really. [image] But for what it's worth, I did enjoy the romance between Luke and Rosa. It's the reason why I really enjoyed the middle of the book. I guess the way that Luke struggled with his fear of becoming a killer and his growing feelings for her did manage to touch my ice cold heart somehow. It wasn't instalove, really, although they do hop quickly to "I love you". That, however, I more or less accepted as part of the time period and of the dire circumstances they kept tumbling into. So I appreciated the romance, and it was probably the highlight of the book. My largest issue with this book is the rampant and blatant sexism and female oppression. You might say, "Well, duh, Debby, it's set in 1880." Yes, I know, this is set in our world more or less (plus a tiny bit of magic) and that was basically the scene in the 19th century. Female oppression was a thing. It happened, certainly. But does that mean I want to read about it? Not exactly. Does that mean it should be blatantly shoved in my face like this? No. You're putting magic in this world, couldn't you have chilled a tiny bit on the living standards for females? Even if it's realistic, this crossed the line into serious uncomfortable territory. So Rosa is from a family with good standing who recently lost all their fortune. Basically, their last hope is for Rosa to get married to a rich husband. They have their eye on Sebastian, another witch and long time family friend. Alexis, Rosa's brother, from the very start of the book commands Rosa around to do precisely as he says and more or less orders her to seduce Sebastian. Her mother basically does the same. Alexis is a prick and her mother actually slaps her for disobeying her. But Sebastian... oh, Sebastian, it turns out, is the hugest dick to ever grace this planet. On pretty much their first "date", he whips his dog to death for being disobediant. Rosa, after this, understandably is freaked the fuck out by him. She can hardly contain her fear. Her family tells her to get over it, because it was "just a dog". He then quickly, for whatever reason, decides that yes, he wants to marry Rosa. (Honestly I still can't understand this, because all throughout the book they mention that almost everyone knows that their family is broke, so why on earth would he want to marry her anyway? They don't have a good banter or talk much before he proposes anyway.) Then, he slips this ring on her finger that he magically tightens until she can never take it off. He starts referring to her as "his" and commanding her around. [image] Every second, she pretty much confesses that she's scared to death of this man. So after she gets engaged, she sneaks off to get some air and finds Luke. Luke has saved her life, and long story short, they kiss. Sebastian catches them, and BEATS HER TO A BLOODY PULP. He yells at her, screams that he'll kill her. This man is a raging psychopath. Words cannot describe the rage. [image] Do they break up after this? No. He doesn't leave her, even as he yells that he will not tolerate infidelity, and the reasoning is... he loves her? At least, that's what he keeps saying for the rest of the book. I'm still asking why. She has no fortune, which is public knowledge. She has reasonable looks. But he's wealthy as fuck. He surely could have found someone better. And then he could have gotten the fuck out of this book. [image] Like, did this happen, was it realistic in 1880? I'm sure to an extent it is. But that doesn't mean I want it in my books. Honestly, the book should come with a warning label, because there is some MAJOR abuse going on, not just from Sebastian, but also from Rosa's mother and brother. This was not at ALL what I was expecting from this book. It seriously made me uncomfortable, and every time I think about it since, I just have a hot flash of rage. No. Just no. The ending also takes a major cop out. Not only does the villain stupidly reveal his plans to obviously let the two main characters escape safely, but how they escape happens in a toss up ~fade to black~. Thanks to Christina, I've found the apt term for this: Too Stupid To Die. If my earlier rage about female oppression wasn't enough, by this time I was just yelling, "FUCK THIS SHIT," but it was too late to DNF the book. Summing Up: I can't. I just can't. Just no. I tried so hard with this book, and for a while it had me fooled, but that's only because the romance played off my emotions. At most I would maybe have considered giving it 3 stars at some point, but I just can't. While I thought it was an interesting and possibly accurate depiction of the time period, the late 19th century, it's a depiction that just makes me rage. Hence the long review. I just cannot with this book. Can. Not. No. GIF it to me straight! [image] Recommended To: No one. Definitely no feminists. Stay away. *ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley. Thank you! This does not affect the rating or content of this review. Clearly. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Dec 30, 2013
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Jan 05, 2014
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Nov 28, 2013
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Paperback
| ||||||||||||||
| 1622661834
| 9781622661831
| 1622661834
| 3.75
| 2,098
| Oct 28, 2013
| Oct 28, 2013
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really liked it
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4 stars This modern day Pride and Prejudice retelling is pretty damn good. It's not the best - but it's nigh impossible to beat The Lizzie Bennet Diari 4 stars This modern day Pride and Prejudice retelling is pretty damn good. It's not the best - but it's nigh impossible to beat The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. There was banter, there were swoons, I was amused. I do feel like they kind of butchered the Wickham part of the story, but eh, I did not pick this up to read critically. For the record, this is a sexless NA title. So. In case you were wondering. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Apr 03, 2015
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Apr 05, 2015
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Nov 16, 2013
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Unknown Binding
| ||||||||||||||
| 054762834X
| 9780547628349
| 054762834X
| 3.89
| 106,594
| Apr 03, 2012
| Apr 03, 2012
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really liked it
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4.5 stars Grave Mercy and indeed the His Fair Assassin trilogy is one of those super hyped up YA series that I sort of never really considered until an 4.5 stars Grave Mercy and indeed the His Fair Assassin trilogy is one of those super hyped up YA series that I sort of never really considered until an explosion of hype seemed to appear last year. That one's on me. Whyyyy did I not pick this up earlier?? I absolutely adored this historical fiction with light touches of fantasy and amazing, amazing characters. Grave Mercy, you've probably heard, is about assassin nuns. Our main character, Ismae, ends up at a convent for St. Mortain, the god of death. Mortain is supposedly her father, so she trains in all manner of weapons and poisons to do his bidding. She sees people marqued by Death and carries out those orders unquestionably. Now, that premise might make this book sound really dark and death-heavy, and that certainly was kind of what I had thought beforehand. But, then Duval shows up. Duval, Duval, my love, Duval. Duval is a guard for the Duchess, and he brings news of the court being in peril. Likely, Anne has a traitor in her midst, while the French are threatening war and the councilors are rushing to get her married off. Ismae ends up pretending to be Duval's mistress to uncover the traitors at court and protect the Duchess - and keep Brittany safe. Yeah. Hold the phone. How come nobody told me this was essentially a fake dating book? Albeit in a very different form. But the trope stands and is supported by how Duval and Ismae definitely don't get along at first. The banter is absolutely fantastic. I was shipping it so freaking soon, and all throughout the book, there were just those tiny moments of swoon. Historical fiction is all about finding the romantic subtext, and although Ismae was pretty quick to realize her feelings (though she maybe didn't want to admit them), the chemistry was palpable. This was just... omg. It's my everything. Please give me more historical romance like this. But let's not get carried away - romance is but a subplot of this story. Ismae is such a badass assassin, and her voice just instantly absorbed me into this story. The plots at court were fun to unravel, and though I may have been a bit quicker in the discoveries than Ismae, it was an intriguing story that I think accurately captured how courtly politics worked back in the 1400s. Everyone has their own motives and with a young royal who is guided by a governess, a brother, a privy council, it's interesting to see how all of that clashes. Add in Ismae's growing doubts about her convent and her purpose in life, and it's also very much a character growth story. And I love how Duval is such a supporting character for that. He really challenges her beliefs and gets her to question some things that she'd accepted as resolute facts. They make each other so much better, omg please hold me. The rest of the supporting characters were also so delightful and fleshed out. Annith stole my heart, so I can't wait to see more of her later in the series. Beast and De Lornay, Duval's trusty companions, also made me smile with their banter. (Although, that ending... AH.) Anne and her little sister were so adorable, although it was hard for me to constantly remember that Anne is only 10 or 11 years old. She comes across much older and wiser. Where Grave Mercy loses a few points are a couple of things that happen at the end of the book. There's a certain romantic scene that was just too vague. I'm pretty cool with sex in books, in fact I love it, and I get that in YA it can be hard to remain in the realm of acceptability while still providing enough clarity that you do in fact know what's going on. Yeah, LaFevers didn't really manage it here - at least not for me. The scene was just too vague and faded to black way too quickly, so I wasn't really swooning at all. And other than that, the ending just felt extremely rushed. I didn't really understand the time leaps and how certain things seemed to indicate everything was suddenly okay, even though the war was very much still in full swing. But I suppose that just means that I need to pick up the sequel ASAP. Summing Up: I wish I had listened to everyone a heck of a lot sooner, because Grave Mercy is indeed amazing. I fell so hard for these characters, this romance, and this plot... I enjoyed every minute. Towards the end, I was so absorbed, I just could not stop reading. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. It's brilliant, and I can't wait to pick up the sequel. GIF it to me straight! [image] Recommended To: Fans of historical fiction, bantery romances, courtly politics, assassins. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Feb 16, 2015
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Feb 19, 2015
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Nov 08, 2013
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Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||
| 1423157311
| 9781423157311
| 1423157311
| 3.96
| 34,666
| Jan 22, 2013
| Jan 22, 2013
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really liked it
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4.5 stars The Archived is one of those books that has just consistently been raved about since it came out. It was also one of those books that I had o 4.5 stars The Archived is one of those books that has just consistently been raved about since it came out. It was also one of those books that I had oddly written off - I didn't think it would be something for me because, like, ghosts? Really? WELL DON'T I LOOK STUPID NOW. The ever fabulous Gaby forced me to read this and I'm so glad she did. It's one of those times that reading out of your comfort zone totally pays off. This has none of the paranormal romance elements/drama that I feared and instead brought an exciting, creative, and entertaining story that I thoroughly loved. It was my first time reading one of Victoria Schwab's books - but it definitely won't be the last. Woah. Not only am I seriously impressed by her fluid and engrossing writing style, her story is just so damn creative. It appeals to ever single inch of me. The dead resting on shelves. The Archives, the doorways, the Keepers, it all created a really vivid and unique world that I just absolutely loved. It blends perfectly with this dark, cryptic murder-mystery plot that I found extremely enjoyable. But let's face it, a big reason for me reading this was the ship that has people gushing and GUYS I AM ON YOUR SIDE NOW OMG. I loved Mac right from the start, because she's just plain fierce. And as soon as Wesley appeared, I was totally intrigued. A hot, mysterious guy who wears EYELINER, oh how hilarious. I knew there would be more to him than that - and yeah, he's kick ass and awesome. But then. Then the bantering happened. THE BANTER. Authors, this is how you get Debby to SHIP YO SHIP. "Well, you can't go through life without touching anyone." [image] I realize it might make me kind of weeeeeeeeeeeeird that THAT part really made me flail and giggle like a maniac, but Wes and Mac just have the PERFECT dynamic for me. So teasing. Much hilarious. Very fangirling. Wes meeting her parents made it even more perfect. He's just so charming and obnoxious in a funny way, and the way that Mac reacts to it all is priceless. Obviously, she tries to deny it because who even is this kid, but banter and charm like that always ends up wearing you down. JUST GIVE IN MAC TEEHEE. "I can see why my daughter likes you." That made the sort of love triangle a bit annoying for me, because AGH. Don't worry, it's not a typical love triangle - and it actually is tied to the plot, but I was feeling very intense emotions about it because I shipped Wes and Mac so hard. I didn't trust Owen at all and I wanted Mac to just return him. Don't mess with my ship, dude. The mysterious plot definitely worked for me though, because my mind was rapidly coming up with theories and then frantically telling Gaby my suspicions. The murders were cold and creepy - though not too gruesome - and some parts did give me a bit of a chill. It was super fun to try to puzzle it all out and really made the story that much more engaging. In the end, I was right about some things but other things still managed to surprise me - which is pretty much the perfect mix, right? There are a lot of Easter eggs for Doctor Who fans, as Gaby had raved about beforehand. I'm not gonna lie, that was a big selling point for me to read it as well. But while I am a huge Whovian, it sometimes felt like it was a bit too much. It's really confusing to me that that would be the thing I think is overdone, but that's the way it is. Cracks in the wall, creepy hotel, library full of the dead, and even Roland's resemblance to Ten - it's funny, but as a fierce Whovian, I didn't want it to overshadow the originality of the actual story, and sometimes it kinda did. But for those who don't know Doctor Who at all, this won't be an issue, obviously. Summing Up: This was super duper fun, and I just want to thank Gaby forever for actually pushing me to not keep putting off reading this. Wes and Mac are two of the most fun and entertaining characters I've met in quite a while and OH BOY DO I SHIP IT MUCHLY. With great writing, unique world building, and a wonderful storyline, this is one book I'll happily recommend. I have dubbed it a Debby Book. Now I just need to get on it and finally read The Unbound - I've been putting it off for far too long already. GIF it to me straight! [image] Recommended To: I'm tempted to just say everyone, so there we go. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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May 12, 2014
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May 14, 2014
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Oct 26, 2013
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Hardcover
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| 0399166505
| 9780399166501
| 0399166505
| 3.85
| 11,890
| Jan 13, 2015
| Jan 13, 2015
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it was ok
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2 stars WARNING: I am spoiling this entire book for you and I don't care. *deep sigh* It's been almost 3 months since I read this book, but I'm just get 2 stars WARNING: I am spoiling this entire book for you and I don't care. *deep sigh* It's been almost 3 months since I read this book, but I'm just getting around to reviewing it now. It's so laughably terrible that I needed to have the right energy and enough time to fully explain why. Honestly, before I dove into the book, I'd already seen that the public opinion on it was largely negative - but I still went into it with an open mind. It has such a beautiful cover and awesome premise (YA Da Vinci Code!), that I desperately wanted to like it. However, by page 24 my hopes were already shot. On page 24, the main character reveals herself to be a TSTL speshul snowflake - a theory which only gets more and more support as the story goes on. First: she has purple eyes. I know I'm not alone in my hatred for purple eyes because it's usually the first step to have a total wish fulfillment speshul Mary Sue-like character, who is just so beautiful it's not fair. It's also unrealistic. Purple eyes don't happen (don't fucking cite Elizabeth Taylor to me, her eyes only sometimes looked purple due to lighting/make-up/clothing - there are scientific articles about this), so unless there's some paranormal/sci-fi/fantastical reasoning behind it, it should not be in contemporary books. [image] Admittedly there is a reason for Avery's purple eyes and she's not the only person on earth with the eye color. It's actually a link to her father's family, though she has no idea who he is. That family is part of an elite Circle of Twelve families that controls the world (more on that later), and all those 12 families have the gene for purple eyes due to interbreeding (because that's how that works, no birth defects, just purple eyes). So she's not super speshul. But then, she's the only GIRL with purple eyes, so she is speshul, so speshul that there's even a prophecy about her (we'll get to that too). Oh and did I mention that Avery has been bullied and teased for her purple eyes as a kid, because no one thought they could possibly be real? So much so that she wears colored contacts to hide them? Yeah, feel very sorry for this speshul unfortunately beautiful girl. Further descriptions of Avery: "Has anyone ever told you that you look like one of those dolls?" he said. "A... kuklachka. How do you say it in English? With the white skin and the big eyes." "Five foot two inches tall." He looked me up and down again, and I straightened automatically. "One hundred and three pounds." [image] Her TSTL (too stupid to live) nature also reveals itself very early on. When the new, mysterious, handsome guy at school, Jack, drops a picture of her that he was carrying, instead of being creeped the fuck out, she decides to get closer to him and go to prom with him. As you do. She usually keeps herself from making friends because she moves constantly (later revealed as her mom trying to keep her hidden from the Circle of Twelve), but when she hears she'll be moving again she figures she can have one night of fun with this presumed stalker. At the dance, she meets this other guy, Stellan, who she'd spotted once before leering at her from a parking lot. He grabs her to go dance, and then Jack comes along and they start fighting with cryptic reasoning over her. And thus the seeds of the love triangle are planted, because this book needs to cover every YA cliché ever. This Stellan guy seems a bit more forceful and dangerous than Jack - who for the record does try to be honest with her and does seem to be looking out for her. But both guys have been sent by MYSTERIOUS MIGHTY PEOPLE to find her. Those people are connected to her father, who might be from one of these Circle of Twelve families. But instead of confronting her mom, who never told her about this side of her family, she obviously decides to drop everything and right that minute fly off to Paris with STELLAN. Not Jack, he'll catch up with them later. And this in spite of her earlier musings that her mom was basically her only friend and only constant in the world. *sigh* [image] So she finds out she's probably related to the Circle of Twelve and arrives in Paris like a total dumbass. Her supposed family, the Saxons, are not there but would arrive the next day, so she's staying with the Dauphins in a wing of the Louvre. Like you do. When you practically run the world, you get to live in one of the world's most famous museums because duh. She finds out that Jack is a "Keeper" for the Saxons, and Stellan is a "Keeper" for the Dauphins. Keepers are something like bodyguards, and the two families are kinda rivals but kinda not. The next day there is a ball or something, so obviously they have to go dress shopping. At Prada. Which the Dauphins just had closed for the day so they would have the shop to themselves. Stellan leaves her there to try on dresses and just before she's ready to leave, this guy comes in and tries to attack her. She runs and gets stabbed in her arm, but then Stellan and Luc (the heir to the Dauphins) arrive and kill the assassin and his partner. One had his head cut off. The other was stabbed in the chest in front of Avery. So THAT escalated quickly, but Avery is hardly traumatized - not by the deaths happening in front of her, or by these new "friends" who hardly blinked before killing people. Jack reveals that the assassins are from the Order, who are against the Circle - they don't believe the Circle should be in charge of the world. The Circle is basically the New World Order - descendants of Alexander the Great who hold almost every position of power everywhere. They are responsible for the two world wars (because of internal feuding) and all this other shit (which, okay, maybe I fucking agree with the Order and the Circle needs to die). Avery then reveals she has purple eyes just like Luc, and Jack is *SHOCKED* because this means she's a direct descendant of one of the heads of the families. The whole prophecy gets revealed - when the girl with purple eyes and the One are joined, it will somehow reveal treasure, wealth, power, and weapons - the birthright to the Circle, left behind somewhere by Alexander the Great. Now, Jack tells her some of these things and offers to take her to the Saxons who will keep her safe. Obviously the Order wants to kill her, and the other families would try to manipulate her. But Avery thinks that Jack and the Saxons would keep her under intense scrutiny, while Luc and Stellan don't know about her eyes yet, so if she stays with them she'll have a bigger chance of sneaking off. She's acting like she's been kidnapped even though she voluntarily went off to Paris with them, because retconning makes for great storytelling. [image] Because she is so too stupid to live, she goes off with Luc and Stellan, who for some reason are going clubbing in ISTANBUL so bye bye Paris. Anyway, they're clubbing in Istanbul and Avery learns about more of this prophecy stuff in infodumps from Luc because why not. The prophecies are apparently all super accurate because they were made by the Oracle at Delphi and stuff because reasons. And this one - the Mandate - is so important because of the internal power struggles. The families all want to be the One. To get all the glory. Finally it seems like Avery is acting with minimal intelligence, and she does try to sneak away.. But then Jack shows up outside on a motorcycle because apparently he'd put a tracer in her purse - isn't that romantic? He takes her to find Fitz / Mr. Emerson - his mentor, and her previous neighbor from when they lived in Boston. Fitz knows THINGS, but had sent a message to Jack that things were going wrong and they had to follow the clues he leaves them. When they get to his apartment, they find blood everywhere, and eventually they find a secret message that they have to go on a scavenger hunt thing because apparently "they are wrong about the mandate." (They call the prophecy "the mandate" as if those terms are synonyms. *sigh*) The Order then shows up and the two try to escape out the window. A chase sequence follows, and when they finally get away in a market, the two are pressed close together and tempted to kiss. Because obviously, being on the run makes for the perfect time for kissing. They go to the Haggia Sophia, where Fitz worked, and where the first of three clues would be hidden. It points them towards the Notre Dame in Paris. They narrowly escape from the Order again - who yell that they will kill Fitz if they don't tell them who the One is - and go back to Paris. At the Notre Dame, they find the next clue - a gargoyle that "watches over" the place, and they realize where it's looking would be the next location. (They puzzled over this for ages, but I had it figured out in seconds. *sigh*) It's looking at the ferris wheel and Jack says it's the Louvre. FREEZE FRAME: This is INCORRECT. The ferris wheel in Paris is in the Tuileries Garden. It is next to, but not part of, the Louvre. FACT CHECK FAIL. [image] Regardless, they go to the Louvre anyway, and find the next clue there (it should have been in Tuileries but whateverrrrrrr) in an exhibit, where Avery crawls under a sarcophagus. When the security guard comes to question them, she says she fainted and fell UNDER the sarcophagus. Because that's so believable. Well, the guard thought so. (THIS BOOK IS SO RIDICULOUS.) The Order shows up again and chases them, but by disguising themselves (by switching coats) and pretending to be a couple kissing, they manage to evade them. Then they come back around, so Avery actually kisses him, and it's all very dramatic and cliché - but honestly I'm a glutton for this kind of situation so I giggled anyway. At this point, Jack reveals that Keepers get killed if they get involved with anyone from the Circle in that way, so OOPS IT'S FORBIDDEN. (Yep, we needed to fit in that cliché too.) The Louvre had yielded them a book by Napoleon, where he documents more about the prophecy. After some research and sleuthing, a masquerade ball on the third level of the Eiffel tower, eavesdropping on conversations between the Circle families, meeting her father, make out sessions, and Stellan finding out that Avery has purple eyes, Dauphin kidnaps Avery and decides to force her to marry Luc, so that he will be "the One". (Right: the Circle is all about the patriarchy, with women mostly being good for marrying off and bearing children.) While in captivity, she, Jack, and Stellan start piecing together the clues and realize that what Napoleon had figured out was that the interpretation the Circle had was wrong. The prophecy mentions "the One superior to all others" - as in a thirteenth descended from Alexander himself. And as there's a bit in the prophecy about the One walking through fire unharmed and Avery realizes that Stellan has burn scars and he was brought to the Circle by Fitz after surviving a fire... They test it out with a lighter - he feels the pain of fire but it doesn't leave a mark on him (because reasons). Dun dun dunnnn, Stellan is likely the One. Anyway, the wedding is on, in Notre Dame because obvi. However, after many dramatics, Avery reveals herself to the crowd as having purple eyes, exposing Dauphin for tricking the Circle and trying to use Avery for her "power". Chaos erupts, and she manages to escape with Jack, aided by Luc and Stellan. They contact the Order to ask for more time, but they kill Fitz and reveal that they kidnapped Avery's mother. They want the identity of the One ASAP. The story comes to a close the next day, when Avery and Jack meet up with Stellan, now enemies of the Circle and the Order. Stellan agrees to help them and comes with a last bombshell... "That's right, kuklachka. Congratulations to us. It appears you and I are getting married." [image] While big picture this story is pretty terrible - mostly due to the very many clichés and terrible writing - there is some entertainment value. The chase scenes are decently intense. Avery doesn't escape unscathed, and enough characters get wounded/killed that it's not entirely lame. Towards the end, when more of the conspiracy stuff comes to light, there is an actual sense of complexity to the story that can be fun for readers to puzzle out. But then again, it usually comes with enough contradictions/inaccuracies to make me groan again. The biggest mystery to me is that I actually didn't find the romance altogether terrible. It's cliché and corny and overdramatic - sure. And they are super ~attracted~ to each other and tempted to kiss at the absolute worst of times. But the kiss scenes themselves are almost swoonworthy? However, all the stalking and dramatic stuff does keep me from boarding a ship. (Though, for the record, Jack is superior to Stellan.) All in all, if the story isn't ridiculous enough for you, there are more than enough horrific examples of the writing. Stellan pulled out the other bar stool and sat. My feet dangled, but his rested solidly on the floor. (Apparently Stellan is 8 feet tall and/or ridiculously proportioned.) Jack nodded. "I need to borrow a shirt from Fitz anyway," he said, rolling his shoulders. The shirt from Prada was a little tight, and stretched taut across his shoulders. The butterflies flapped harder, but I shook them off. What was wrong with me? How could I possibly be thinking about how good he looked in a tight shirt right now? (Oh look at me, I'm so cliché, but I recognize the ridiculousness, so then it's not cliché, right?) But the best thing ever, and the quote of the book, in my opinion, comes when Luc explains the significance of the number twelve in the world, all due to the Circle. Luc grinned wider. "Then you'll really be impressed with this. The twelve months of the calendar. Inches in a foot. Hours in a day. Zodiac symbols. The 'twelve' aspects of those all came into being around 300 BC, just around when the Diadochi took over." Twelve hours in a day. Twelve hours in a day. TWELVE HOURS IN A DAY. [image] Summing Up: You might wonder why I didn't give this the lowest rating possible, but that's simply because this book is so bad it genuinely became a bit entertaining. The Conspiracy of Us is a gold mine of clichés, bad writing, inaccuracies, terrible characters, and corny, dramatic romance. Laughing at it was not the worst way to spend my time. But I do doubt I'll go out of my way to read the sequel. GIF it to me straight! [image] Recommended To: I would NOT, unless you're a glutton for punishment. Or... if you liked The Jewel. [image] ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Apr 28, 2015
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Apr 30, 2015
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Oct 25, 2013
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Hardcover
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| 0765335344
| 9780765335340
| 0765335344
| 4.20
| 262,792
| Sep 24, 2013
| Sep 24, 2013
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it was amazing
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5 stars For as long as I can remember, a book with an "evil" main character, or anti-hero, has been on the very top of my reading wishlist. (We'll igno 5 stars For as long as I can remember, a book with an "evil" main character, or anti-hero, has been on the very top of my reading wishlist. (We'll ignore the glaringly idiotic fact that I had this book on my shelf for more than a year and a half and didn't read it.) Vicious burst into the world with no small amount of hype, so it was somewhat daunting to read it, but boy am I glad I did. This book will be on my favorites shelf for years. Vicious takes all the superhero movies you ever loved and twists them into something far more complex. In this science fiction/urban fantasy novel, two intelligent-as-hell college students discover that it is actually possible for a normal human to become ExtraOrdinary (an EO) following a near death experience. It's a premise that is rooted in science - about the body's will to survive - and the "gift" each EO gets is tailored to the manner of their almost demise. However, simply discovering this fact is not enough for Victor and Eli. The discovery of this kind of power leads to the ambition to seize it for themselves. While the plot of Vicious is thrilling for sure, for me this book is all about the characters. They're so wonderfully flawed and complex! Victor is ambitious, selfish, and not just a little egotistical. He pretty much despises the world around him. However, he owns those flaws. He acknowledges them, and when push comes to shove he does have a pretty strong moral compass. Eli is the one you would first think of as kind, intelligent, and benevolent, but he's just as proud and conceited as Victor. He just keeps that side of him buried down deep - though Victor can spot it through the cracks in his facade. When the two of them are both superpowered and have a falling out (to put it in the lightest way possible), their views on justice completely diverge. It's not a battle of good vs evil that follows. It's not black and white. It's twenty thousand shades of gray and revenge on top of revenge on top of revenge - and that's what makes this book so interesting to read and then to discuss. (Incidentally this was a book club pick and it led to an excellent discussion.) [image] Obviously I have to draw the parallel to one of my favorite manga and anime series Death Note. Death Note also has an anti-hero protagonist, and it's so delightfully complex because you gradually see him going on a downward spiral. Power corrupts, for sure, and though Light first decides to kill people he deems "evil" and absolutely does some good for the world, as time passes the lines blur and the question is raised... who dubbed him judge, jury, and executioner? The conflict is similar in Vicious though also more intricate and complex because both Victor and Eli arguably do terrible things - and that makes me like it even better. The storytelling takes a little getting used to here. The voices are strong and the characterizations are absolutely excellent, but there are a lot of jumps in both perspective and time. You see Victor's point of view pretty consistently throughout the book, but it starts by alternating between the present day and 10 years ago. When necessary, Eli gets a point of view as well, and other supporting characters later sporadically get a voice too. Then there are more time jumps again. Ordinarily, this could confuse and overwhelm me, but Schwab is a master storyteller. Every switch, every jump adds something to the story. It never gets confusing and instead just pushes you to keep reading because you want to understand all these aspects, all these characters and their motivations, all their back stories. The blurb on the cover, "A killer from page one," is pretty much the best description ever. I never wanted to stop reading - it was interesting, intense, and action-packed. Obviously I love this book a lot. I love the big moral questions it raises. I love all the depth in both the characters and the overall story. I loved the exciting, intense action scenes. I love that Schwab made me fall so deeply in love with a character that is very obviously not a very good guy. Victor got me rooting for him, because though he is ambitious and condescending to the world, his voice is so strong, and he will fight for what's right (or, at least, what he deems right - whether you agree with him or not is another issue). When he accidentally finds himself caring for his 12-year-old sidekick (and her adorable dog), it completely stole my heart. Mitch, his other sidekick and loyal friend, also grew on me. I just love every part of this book, okay? (Except that there's no sequel. *sobs*) Summing Up: For once I can with full certainty and confidence confirm that the hype train did not lie. Vicious is absolutely epic. It's the anti-hero story I always wanted in my life. These characters, though all are within the gray area on the morality scale, completely stole my heart. The story was gripping, complex, and intense; I couldn't stop reading it. I was left thinking about these themes and conflicts for weeks. Victoria Schwab is one of the most talented authors I have ever read, and I am pretty much certainly going to read all of her books from now until the end of time. GIF it to me straight! [image] Recommended To: EVERYONE. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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May 23, 2015
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May 25, 2015
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Oct 18, 2013
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Hardcover
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| 0062233661
| 9780062233660
| 0062233661
| 3.86
| 13,495
| Jan 28, 2014
| Jan 28, 2014
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really liked it
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4 stars While it may seem like the young adult dystopian genre is being inundated, I still keep reading them, hoping to find something fresh. And Uninv 4 stars While it may seem like the young adult dystopian genre is being inundated, I still keep reading them, hoping to find something fresh. And Uninvited definitely delivered on that front. It was a chilling and thrilling world, a future I could see the realism of, and it even put a ship on my ship list. With stories like this, there is still hope left for the genre. What got me hooked on this book is precisely the premise: a world where they have found a "kill" gene, Homicidal Tendency Syndrome (or HTS). People are tested for this gene, and if they test positive, they're basically assured of a crappy life. Our main character, Davy, immediately gets kicked out of her private school and is forced to go to public school when she's discovered to have it. But the gene doesn't mean she's actually dangerous. Right now she's normal. But apparently, those with the gene are likely to "snap" one day and become murderers. It's understandable that when this has been proven by science, people are terrified of people like her. She is marked so people immediately know exactly what she is. Her friends and boyfriend desert her. Within a day, her entire life is changed. With so much violence and terror in the news lately, with the latest school and mall shootings, it's not hard to imagine that if this gene did exist, this would be the state of our world. So honestly, I absolutely love it. The fear in the normal people, the segregation of the HTS positive people, and the rapidly escalating governmental policies just made sense and painted the picture of a horrifying world that could happen. As far as premises go, this is probably one of my favorite dystopias I've read. Davy's circumstances made her really endearing to me. She won't be on my list of favorite characters, but I was just overwhelmed with sympathy. I really liked seeing her cope with all of it - it was very realistic. She doesn't really stand out much personality-wise, but I felt really involved in her story. It was harsh, and she was confronted with a cold reality. She was left being unable to trust almost anyone, and she started getting suspicious looks from everyone. Ugh, I just. So many emotions. And while I loved this emotional, psychological aspect of the book, I felt there was plenty of action as well to keep the plot going - particularly in the latter half of the book. I really loved seeing the relationship between Davy and Sean develop. He seems dangerous at first, but really he has a heart of gold. He's fiercely protective of his friends and family and doesn't care if he's misunderstood by others. Honestly, that will almost always do it for me. That is so attractive. I only felt like the end was a bit odd. I felt like Sean basically overnight decided to shed his mask of "toughness" and he became too sweet. I dunno. Lots of people would probably love it and defend it - he finally felt close enough to Davy to show his true self - but it felt off for me. And it made the romance get less irresistible and a bit too ...sappy. Ultimately, I'm sad that this is a series, because we barely scratched the surface in this book. While I enjoyed the story, I haven't seen enough of the world. And I can't see them potentially bringing down the regime. I mean, this could be a good thing, because it promises an original and unexpected story, but it didn't evoke a MUST HAVE THE SEQUEL NOW PLEASE vibe. Though I will be checking that out anyway. Wow, this whole paragraph is useless. I DUNNO. I KIND OF JUST WISH THAT THIS BOOK WAS LONGER AND THAT THERE WAS A CLEAR SIGN OF A REBELLION GOING TO HAPPEN AND THAT I GOT TO KNOW EVEN MORE ABOUT THE WORLD. Okay? *pouts* Summing Up: Uninvited was a majorly pleasant surprise. It sounded interesting from the start, make no mistake, but I loved the premise so much. This is a world I could endlessly read about, because the social repercussions of this kind of dystopia are so interesting to explore. The romance was great and the plot left me wanting more. While I feel like certain parts of this could have been better or more impressive, I can't wait to check out the sequel! But alas, I must. GIF it to me straight! [image] Recommended To: Fans of realistic dystopias involving social repercussions and politics. **ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect the contents or rating of the review. Thank you! ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Jan 12, 2014
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Jan 14, 2014
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Oct 17, 2013
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ebook
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my rating |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| 3.72
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liked it
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Nov 19, 2014
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Feb 13, 2014
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| 3.86
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it was ok
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Aug 18, 2014
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Feb 12, 2014
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| 3.88
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liked it
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Oct 17, 2014
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Feb 12, 2014
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| 4.05
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it was amazing
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Jan 08, 2016
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Feb 10, 2014
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| 3.93
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it was ok
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Jun 19, 2015
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Feb 10, 2014
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| 3.60
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it was ok
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Oct 20, 2014
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Feb 07, 2014
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| 3.83
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it was ok
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Apr 16, 2014
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Jan 29, 2014
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| 3.97
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really liked it
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Mar 29, 2016
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Jan 29, 2014
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| 3.51
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did not like it
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Sep 10, 2014
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Jan 14, 2014
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| 3.81
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really liked it
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Jun 14, 2015
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Dec 03, 2013
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| 3.50
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it was ok
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Apr 05, 2014
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Dec 03, 2013
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| 3.73
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did not like it
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Apr 08, 2014
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Dec 03, 2013
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| 3.59
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it was ok
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Feb 12, 2014
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Dec 02, 2013
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| 3.61
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did not like it
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Jan 05, 2014
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Nov 28, 2013
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| 3.75
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really liked it
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Apr 05, 2015
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Nov 16, 2013
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| 3.89
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really liked it
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Feb 19, 2015
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Nov 08, 2013
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| 3.96
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really liked it
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May 14, 2014
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Oct 26, 2013
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|||||
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| 3.85
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it was ok
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Apr 30, 2015
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Oct 25, 2013
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| 4.20
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it was amazing
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May 25, 2015
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Oct 18, 2013
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| 3.86
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really liked it
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Jan 14, 2014
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Oct 17, 2013
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