Book Review - Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Cinder by Marissa Meyer
Series: Lunar Chronicles #1

Publisher: Square Fish

Publication Date: 1 January 2012

Genre: YA - Sci-Fi

My Copy: Library - Paperback

 Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl.

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

Review:

This was one of those books where I had doubts that I would like it. I'm not that big into fairytale retellings, and Cinderella is probably one of my least favorite fairytales. However, I kept hearing wonderful things about this series, a coworker gushed about the series, and the cyborg aspect kind of interested me. I didn't have high expectations going into this novel, and in fact, I almost convinced myself that I wouldn't like it. I had checked it out from the library on a whim, and I waited until a couple days before it was due (roughly 54 days since I checked it out since I renewed it once) to actually read it. I'm really glad I decided to go ahead with it since I found myself loving the story!

I thought Cinder was kind of badass by the end of the book. She took care of herself and stood by her stepsister who was obviously the less important daughter to her mother. She started a little "woe-is-me" but she ended by taking a stand for not just herself, but for Earth. Sure she had moments of self-doubt, but I think everyone does so that just made her even better. I guessed at the ending fairly early in the book, so the only thing that kind of irritated me was that she didn't pick up on it sooner. I thought she ought to put the pieces together herself quicker than she did. I like that she's a female mechanic too. The secondary characters were a little one-dimensional to me. Even Prince Kai was kind of blah. I hope to see more development out of them in the second novel, even if Scarlet is focused on a new character and different fairytale.

Despite this being a twist on Cinderella, there is plenty of unique story line. The Cinderella aspect isn't overly obvious and isn't even the main story to me. The cyborg business wasn't explained perhaps as much as I would have liked, and Cinder was the only one named in this book. I hope the next book has more about the cyborg process as well as going more into depth about the Lunars. I knew this was futuristic and had cyborgs and androids, but despite reading the synopsis, I didn't pick up on the fact that there would be a civilization on the moon as well which made the story that much more awesome to me. So many interesting dynamics and politics explored in the book. I'm really looking forward to reading Scarlet next.

Favorite Quote:

Vanity is a factor, but it is more a question of control. It is easier to trick others into perceiving you as beautiful if you can convince yourself you are beautiful. But mirrors have an uncanny way of telling the truth.

Book Review - Something Like Normal by Trish Doller

Something Like Normal by Trish Doller

Publisher: Bloomsbury Books

Publication Date: 19 June 2012

Genre: YA/New Adult - Contemporary

My Copy: Library - Hardback

When Travis returns home from a stint in Afghanistan, his parents are splitting up, his brother’s stolen his girlfriend and his car, and he’s haunted by nightmares of his best friend’s death. It’s not until Travis runs into Harper, a girl he’s had a rocky relationship with since middle school, that life actually starts looking up. And as he and Harper see more of each other, he begins to pick his way through the minefield of family problems and post-traumatic stress to the possibility of a life that might resemble normal again. Travis’s dry sense of humor, and incredible sense of honor, make him an irresistible and eminently lovable hero.

Review:

I have to mention one thing before I start my review, and for the record, it has no bearing on my review. I recently discovered Trish Doller in a strange way. I had heard the names of the books, and working in a library I saw her books circulate regularly. The thing is, I worked with her husband Captain Phil for several months when I first moved to Fort Myers, FL. It wasn't until after I started my new job at the library and was no longer working with Phil that I found out his wife was Trish. So, there you go, it's a small world. Anyway, once I found that out, I had to read her books because it's exciting even if I've never actually met her. I just finished this one and I'm getting ready to start Where the Stars Still Shine. 

I really enjoyed this story. I wasn't sure going into it that I would like it which made me a little nervous to read it. I don't usually like anything war related in fiction. I know that is weird since my focus for my BA in History was Nazi Germany and the Holocaust, but because of knowing so much about it, fiction just kind of irritates me. I think because this was set in present day and dealt with Afghanistan that it didn't bother me as much as I thought it would. Travis was an easy character to care about. Usually I don't feel for male characters as much as female, but I really wanted things to work out for Travis. I liked that the writing made his story seem realistic. Sometimes YA/New Adult novels make it seem as though everything is tied up in a pretty bow at the end, like there should be a "and they lived happily ever after" at the end. Without spoilers, the end seems plausible. Hopeful, but plausible. 

I have read a few reviews on this book and a few say that the PTSD isn't as bad as it really is in life; however, I think there are different levels of PTSD. Not to mention, it's great to bring this up in a YA novel because the truth is lots of people join the military right out of high school, but much of the effects of war is not mentioned, particularly to teenagers. Or at least, I never really heard much about it until after I was out of high school for awhile. It's something that shouldn't be shameful. It also shows that it's okay to need help. I think that's a big theme in this book. It's okay to need someone else to help you. Everyone needs someone else to pick up some of the burden, someone who understands you and accepts you without judgment.

Travis goes through a lot in this book and grows up quickly. There were several actions by him that endeared him to me multiple times in the story. I wanted to punch his dad and shake some sense into Ryan. I cheered for his mom, especially at the end. She started out weak and ended strong. I love characters that change within a story, and this one had two. The book gets 4 stars because while I liked the story, characters, and lessons, it didn't quite have that thing that makes it a book I absolutely love. Still, I recommend this book and I did thoroughly enjoy reading it. In fact, I read it all at once.

Favorite Quote:

But here's the thing: the strings are already attached.

Book Review - Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Publication Date: 26 February 2013

Genre: YA Contemporary

My Copy: Library - hardback

Two misfits.
One extraordinary love.

Eleanor... Red hair, wrong clothes. Standing behind him until he turns his head. Lying beside him until he wakes up. Making everyone else seem drabber and flatter and never good enough...Eleanor.

Park... He knows she'll love a song before he plays it for her. He laughs at her jokes before she ever gets to the punch line. There's a place on his chest, just below his throat, that makes her want to keep promises...Park.

Set over the course of one school year, this is the story of two star-crossed sixteen-year-olds—smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try.

Review:

I have to admit I had kind of mixed feelings about this one. Eleanor has crazy curly hair like me, although mine isn't red. She doesn't care what other people think about how she looks, but it's more out of necessity than because she's a rebel. Not to say she doesn't have a little rebel going on as well. She's kind of a hard character to describe, very complex. She's quiet and prefers to keep to herself; however, in her new school, her classmates just won't let her go to class in peace. Park is a different kind of quiet. Whereas Eleanor is quiet so that she isn't noticed, Park is more introspectively quiet. He's kind of your average teenage boy who worries about what his classmates will think of himself and Eleanor, but through the book he gets over that some.

Eleanor and Park begin a relationship on the bus very quietly and almost by accident. He brings comic books to read on the bus, and eventually catches her reading over his shoulder. He starts bringing more onto the bus for her to take home and read, and the relationship slowly develops out of that. There's no insta-love if you're the type of reader who hates that. Everything isn't as it seems with Eleanor though, and through the book more and more of her private life is revealed.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, but it didn't flow well for me. It constantly changes from Eleanor's point of view to Park's point of view. It doesn't seem to do it with any rhyme or reason. It can be paragraph to paragraph or page to page. During important scenes it seems to do it more frequently, which takes away from the scene to me. Others might like that you see the scenes from both perspectives; it's just not for me. The book was fairly realistic and believable until the very end, which I can't say much about here, but a key point I was thinking, "Really? That wouldn't happen." If you like contemporary YA, then you'll probably love this one!

Quotes:

Holding Eleanor's hand was like holding a butterfly. Or a heartbeat. Like holding something complete, and completely alive.

Disintegrated. Like something had gone wrong beaming her onto the Starship Enterprise. If you've ever wondered what that feels like, it's a lot like melting--but more violent.
...
Maybe Park had paralyzed her with his ninja magic, his Vulcan handhold, and now he was going to eat her.
That would be awesome.

Park rolled over onto his stomach and pressed his face into his pillow. He'd thought he was over caring what people thought about him. He'd thought that loving Eleanor proved that. But he kept finding new pockets of shallow inside himself. He kept finding new ways to betray her.

Sometimes, Park stood at the end of the sidewalk and hated everything the house stood for.

You think that holding someone hard will bring them closer. You think that you can hold them so hard that you'll still feel them, embossed on you, when you pull away. Every time Eleanor pulled away from Park, she felt the gasping loss of him.

Rating Breakdown:
Plot: 5 stars
Pacing: 3 stars
Characters: 5 stars
Ending: 4 stars
Recommend: Yes, particularly if you like YA contemp.

Review - The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
Publisher: Dutton
Publication Date: 10 January 2012
Genre: YA Contemporary
My Copy: hardcover - library

Diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 12, Hazel was prepared to die until, at 14, a medical miracle shrunk the tumours in her lungs... for now.

Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else, too; post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means), Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumours tenuously kept at bay with a constant chemical assault.

Enter Augustus Waters. A match made at cancer kid support group, Augustus is gorgeous, in remission, and shockingly to her, interested in Hazel. Being with Augustus is both an unexpected destination and a long-needed journey, pushing Hazel to re-examine how sickness and health, life and death, will define her and the legacy that everyone leaves behind.

Review:
This was the first book I've read by John Green. I've only seen maybe two of the Vlogbrothers YouTube videos. It's not like I'm some crazed John Green fanatic. I'm almost too worried to read another book by him because now I have high expectations. I say this so you understand that this book really did blow me away, and it wasn't just because I was already biased to like the book.

I wish I could put into words how absolutely fantastic this book really is. My words, however, do the book no justice. I was in tears for last couple chapters of the book, which does make it difficult to read. It’s one of those books I just want to shove into everyone’s hands and tell them they must read it. When I finished the book, I immediately turned back to the beginning and reread it. I have never done that with any book before. This book ripped my heart apart and then somehow stitched it back together again. It’s a book that takes you awhile to recover from. I expect it will stick with me forever, and I think maybe it has changed something inside me. I know that sounds ridiculous and cheesy, but I’m not being dramatic.

This book had me laughing so hard I was in tears. Then I was in tears because of the overwhelming feelings the book inspires. The characters are amazing. They're teenagers, but they are going through things that most of us couldn't begin to imagine. Green does a wonderful job balancing the angst of teenagers with the maturity that comes with facing adversity. Hazel and Augustus are eccentric and yet still very grounded. The book is filled with their existential ponderings which add great depth to the story. Isaac behaves in a way which is a little closer to what most people might think the average teenager would react. There are parts in the novel, mostly with Kaitlyn, which make it seem like this is a book written by an adult with preconceived notions of how teenagers act, but overall I think it's believable that the characters could be real teenagers.

The plot is incredible with some unexpected twists and turns which ground the book in reality. The pacing is pretty solid throughout the book except perhaps towards the end where it speeds up. I wasn't prepared for the ending and then it was over. However, I hesitate to call that a weakness in this story because it really happens that fast sometimes. That feeling of imbalance in the world is completely realistic. I don't want to say more than that for fear of giving something away. But seriously, if I could put this book into the hands of everyone I met, I totally would.

Book Beginning:
Late in the winter of my seventeenth year, my mother decided I was depressed, presumably because I rarely left the house, spent quite a lot of time in bed, read the same book over and over, ate infrequently, and devoted quite a bit of my abundant free time to thinking about death.

Favorite Quotes:
“There will come a time when all of us are dead. All of us. There will come a time when there are no human beings remaining to remember that anyone ever existed or that our species ever did anything. There will be no one left to remember Aristotle or Cleopatra, let alone you. Everything that we did and built and wrote and thought and discovered will be forgotten and all of this will have been for naught. Maybe that time is coming soon and maybe it is millions of years away, but even if we survive the collapse of our sun, we will not survive forever. There was time before organisms experienced consciousness, and there will be time after. And if the inevitability of human oblivion worries you, I encourage you to ignore it. God knows that’s what everyone else does.” -pg 12-13

Sometimes, you read a book and it fills you with this weird evangelical zeal, and you become convinced that the shattered world will never be put back together unless and until all living humans read the book. -pg 33

"All salvation is temporary," Augustus shot back. "I bought them a minute. Maybe that's the minute that buys them an hour, which is the hour that buys them a year. No one's gonna buy them forever, Hazel Grace, but my life bought them a minute. And that's not nothing." -pg 59

"But I believe in true love, you know? I don't believe that everybody gets to keep their eyes or not get sick or whatever, but everybody should have true love, and it should last at least as long as your life does." -pg 75

Wounded. Like Caroline Mathers had been a bomb and when she blew up everyone around her was left with embedded shrapnel. -pg 98
"I'm like. Like. I'm like a grenade, Mom. I'm a grenade and at some point I'm going to blow up and I would like to minimize the casualties, okay?"
My dad tilted his head a little to the side, like a scolded puppy.
"I'm a grenade," I said again. "I just want to stay away from people and read books and think and be with you guys because there's nothing I can do about hurting you; you're too invested, so just please let me do that, okay? I'm not depressed. I don't need to get out more. And I can't be a regular teenager, because I'm a grenade."
-pg 99

"You realize that trying to keep your distance from me will not lessen my affection for you." he said.
"I guess?" I said.
"All efforts to save me from you will fail," he said.
"Why? Why would you even like me? Haven't you put yourself through enough of this?" I asked, thinking of Caroline Mathers.
Gus didn't answer. He just held on to me, his fingers strong against my left arm. "We gotta do something about this frigging swing set," he said. "I'm telling you, it's ninety percent of the problem." -pg 122-123

As he read, I fell in love the way you fall asleep: slowly, and then all at once. -pg 124-125

"I'm in love with you, and I'm not in the business of denying myself the simple pleasure of saying true things. I'm in love with you, and I know that love is just a shout into the void, and that oblivion is inevitable, and that we're all doomed and that there will come a day when all our labor has been returned to dust, and I know the sun will swallow the only earth we'll ever have, and I am in love with you." -pg 153

Some infinities are bigger than other infinities. -pg 189, 260

But that wasn't quite right. I called it a nine because I was saving my ten. And here it was, the great and terrible ten, slamming me again and again as I lay still and alone in my bed staring at the ceiling, the waves tossing me against the rocks then pulling me back out to sea so they could launch me again into the jagged face of the cliff, leaving me floating faceup on the water, undrowned. -pg 263 [referring to level of pain on a scale of 1 to 10]

My thoughts are stars I can't fathom into constellations. -pg 311

The marks humans leave are too often scars. You build a hideous minimall or start a coup or try to become a rock star and you think, "They'll remember me now," but (a) they don't remember you, and (b) all you leave behind are more scars. Your coup becomes a dictatorship. Your minimall becomes a lesion.
We are like a bunch of dogs squirting on fire hydrants. We poison the groundwater with our toxic piss, marking everything MINE in a ridiculous attempt to survive our deaths.
We're as likely to hurt the universe as we are to help it, and we're not likely to do either. -pg 311-312



Rating Breakdown:
Plot: 5 hearts
Pacing: 5 hearts
Characters: 5 hearts
Character Relationships: 5 hearts
Ending: 5 hearts
Recommend: Absolutely! A must read for everyone!

Read for these challenges:
YA Literature
A to Z
100+ Books

Review - Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion
*Debut Novel*
Publisher: Atria
Publication Date: 26 April 2011
Genre: YA Zombie Horror
My Copy: library - hardback

R is a young man with an existential crisis--he is a zombie. He shuffles through an America destroyed by war, social collapse, and the mindless hunger of his undead comrades, but he craves something more than blood and brains. He can speak just a few grunted syllables, but his inner life is deep, full of wonder and longing. He has no memories, noidentity, and no pulse, but he has dreams.

After experiencing a teenage boy's memories while consuming his brain, R makes an unexpected choice that begins a tense, awkward, and stragely sweet relationship with the victim's human girlfriend. Julie is a blast of color in the otherwise dreary and gray landscape that surrounds R. His decision to protect her will transform not only R, but his fellow Dead, and perhaps their whole lifeless world.

Scary, funny, and surprisingly poignant, Warm Bodies is about being alive, being dead, and the blurry line in between.

Review:
This book was a unique and fantastic read. The question the book seems to be asking is what is life? Does R have a life? R is a zombie with feelings and intelligent thought. That alone makes him unique in the realm of zombie novels and movies. He has no pulse, but he contemplates his existence. He listens to music and seems to enjoy art. The zombies have a culture of their own with a religion and a legal system of sorts. Do the humans who live in the stadium have a life? They live day to day just trying to survive. They aren't really improving their lives. They aren't trying to find a cure anymore. They are just trying not to die. Julie is a bit different from the average person in the stadium. She collects artwork (like Salvador Dali's Persistence of Memory) and reads books. It is definitely an interesting and thought provoking book.

The plot is unique although it is not the only zombie book with this theme running through it. The pacing is fairly even with only a few spots where I had to force myself to not skip forward. The story has enough small conflicts to keep the book moving forward to the larger climax. The climax did seem a little rushed, and some of the things surrounding R and Julie and also the Boneys are never explained. The ending does not imply any sort of sequel which is probably for the best, so you just have to make a few assumptions. It's interesting to be inside R's mind. He's a very insightful and lovable character. Perry's thoughts provide the dark, realistic human perspective on the world while still somehow maintaining an edge of hope. Julie provides the lighter side of the book. She's hard and has been through a lot, yet she's incredibly vulnerable, forgiving, and hopeful. She's brave and has a lot of spunk.

On a final note, I will say that sometimes this book seemed like a YA novel and at other times I doubted that label. I'd recommend this to anyone who enjoys a good zombie book or who likes to read books which question the meaning of life. The film is supposed to come out August 10th.

Book Beginning:
I am dead, but it's not so bad. I've learned to live with it.

Favorite Quotes:
"You haven't been here long enough. You grew up in a safe place. You don't understand the dangers."
Dark feelings flood my belly at this, but I manage to hold my tongue. I don't know the pain she's speaking from, but I know it's deep. It makes her hard and yet so terribly soft. It's her thorns and it's her hand reaching out from the thicket. -pg 111

"There is no benchmark for how life's 'supposed' to happen, Perry. There is no ideal world for you to wait around for. The world is always just what it is now, and it's up to you how you respond to it." -pg 113



Rating Breakdown:
Plot: 5 hearts
Pacing: 4 hearts
Characters: 5 hearts
Character Relationships: 5 hearts
Ending: 4 hearts
Recommend: Absolutely!

Read for these challenges:
Zombie
YA Literature
12 Dystopian/Post Apocalyptic
A to Z
100+ Books

Review - Fracture by Megan Miranda

Fracture by Megan Miranda
*Debut Novel*
Publisher: Walker & Company
Publication Date: 17 January 2012
Genre: YA Contemporary (sorta)
My Copy: received for review from NetGalley - kindle

Eleven minutes passed before Delaney Maxwell was pulled from the icy waters of a Maine lake by her best friend Decker Phillips. By then her heart had stopped beating. Her brain had stopped working. She was dead. And yet she somehow defied medical precedent to come back seemingly fine

-despite the scans that showed significant brain damage. Everyone wants Delaney to be all right, but she knows she's far from normal. Pulled by strange sensations she can't control or explain, Delaney finds herself drawn to the dying. Is her altered brain now predicting death, or causing it?

Then Delaney meets Troy Varga, who recently emerged from a coma with similar abilities. At first she's reassured to find someone who understands the strangeness of her new existence, but Delaney soon discovers that Troy's motives aren't quite what she thought. Is their gift a miracle, a freak of nature-or something much more frightening?

For fans of best-sellers like Before I Fall and If I Stay, this is a fascinating and heart-rending story about love and friendship and the fine line between life and death.


Review:
I'm not sure where to start with this review. The book was intense, thought provoking, and enjoyable. I really loved Decker. You can tell from the very beginning just how much he cares for Delaney. The way he waits by her hospital bed and how upset he gets when the car spins out of control later. It's too bad that it took Delaney nearly dying for him to get it. I was annoyed with him and his fling with Tara. I was also annoyed that Delaney couldn't see how he felt when it seemed so clear. The part with Carson towards the middle of the book brought tears to my eyes.

Troy was extremely intimidating and more than a little scary. I didn't like him at all. I kept wanting to yell at the book and tell Delaney to stay away from him. He was very controlling and had a very twisted view of the world and his circumstances. His part in the ending of the book did not surprise me. It fit with what I knew of his character. I actually think that particular part of the ending was well done.

The book brings up questions about surviving near death experiences, humanity, and morality. What should you do if you know someone is dying? Should you save them or help them die peacefully? What if they could survive like Delaney? I have to love Delaney's question to the dying - If you had one day left to live, what would you do?

It seems like Miranda might have left the book open for a sequel. I think that would be ill-advised, but the ending is somewhat ambiguous. The synopsis hints at a dark supernatural cause for her predictions, but there is never anything like that in the book. She never explains why Delaney survived without any complications considering her brain scan. Whether Delaney's "gift" will continue or not is never really determined. The ending of the book feels misplaced somehow.

Book Beginning:

"The first time I died, I didn't see God."

Favorite Quote:

"Funny how everything can change in an instant. From death to life. From empty to full. From darkness to light. Or maybe I just wasn't looking. I hadn't known that a light could be a feeling and a sound could be a color and a kiss could be both a question and an answer. And that heaven could be the ocean or a person or this moment or something else entirely." - Kindle location 2504






Rating Breakdown:
Plot: 4 hearts
Pacing: 4 hearts
Characters: 4 hearts
Character Relationships: 5 hearts
Ending: 3 hearts
Recommend: Yes

Read for these challenges:
YA Contemporary
YA Debut Author
100+ Books

Review - Haven by Kristi Cook

Haven by Kristi Cook

Series: Haven #1

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Publication Date: 22 February 2011
Genre: YA Paranormal

My Copy: library - hardback

Violet McKenna isn’t a normal girl with normal teenage issues; she has more to contend with than most people could handle. Violet thought she was just crazy when she had a vivid vision of her dad’s murder. Her life started falling apart when her premonition came true. She’s had flashes of other events too. The problem was nobody believed her until she found a new school: Winterhaven.

At Winterhaven, Violet finally feels like she belongs. She quickly finds a close group friends and discovers that they too have psychic ‘gifts’—as do all the students at Winterhaven. But as soon as she feels settled she discovers the most intriguing and alluring boy she has ever met, and things quickly go awry. As the attraction between them grows, intense visions of the boy’s death start to haunt her. In her premonitions the secret he is unwilling to share begins to reveal itself. And to Violet's horror, she learns that their destinies are intertwined in a critical—and deadly—way.

Review:

I really enjoyed this story even though it wasn't really what I thought it was about. I think the synopsis is a little misleading. I liked that Violet was a fencer. I'm not really sure why that aspect stuck out for me, because I don't know anything about fencing, but I liked it. Maybe because it wasn't a sport most YA characters take up. I loved Violet's friends. Unlike a lot of YA novels, Violet hangs out with her friends throughout the story even though she's all gooey over Aidan. Cece and Sophie were my favorites, and I totally wanted them to be my friends too. It was interesting to have so many characters with special talents. How cool would it be to have some of them? Astral projection, telepathy, telekinetic abilities, empath, being able to tell if someone was injured?! I have to admit that the one I'd want the least would be Violet's ability to see the future, particularly since it's always bad stuff. I can't imagine seeing horrible things happening to people I loved on a regular basis.

I've probably read too many paranormal books because I knew very early on what Aidan was. So that aspect of the mystery was blown. However, I did wonder how they were connected, although his and Violet's relationship was all over the place. I honestly don't have much hope for them to stay together after the big connection is revealed because their relationship didn't really seem to have much of a foundation. Another downside to this story was the similarity to two other well known series. There were moments where I was just like "Eh, okay, I've heard this before." The ending seems a little rushed too. The author also includes a character who isn't really important to the story, Allison. There is only one place where she very briefly alludes to the ending, but it's so quickly passed over and never explained that it seems like it might as well have not been included.





Rating Breakdown:
Plot: 3 hearts
Pacing: 3 hearts
Characters: 4 hearts
Character Relationships: 4 hearts
Recommend: Yes

Read for these challenges:
YA Literature
100+ Books

Review - But I Love Him by Amanda Grace

But I Love Him by Amanda Grace (Mandy Hubbard)
Publisher: Flux
Publication Date: 8 May 2011
Genre: YA Contemporary
My Copy: library - paperback

Tonight was so much worse than anything before it. Tonight he didn't stop after the first slap.

At the beginning of senior year, Ann was a smiling, straight-A student and track star with friends and a future. Then she met a haunted young man named Connor. Only she can heal his emotional scars; only he could make her feel so loved — and needed. Ann can't recall the pivotal moment it all changed, when she surrendered everything to be with him, but by graduation, her life has become a dangerous high wire act. Just one mistake could trigger Connor's rage, a senseless storm of cruel words and violence damaging everything — and everyone — in its path.

This evocative slideshow of flashbacks reveals a heartbreaking story of love gone terribly wrong.

Review:
This is one of those books where I am having a hard time determining if I liked it or not. The story covers exactly one year of a relationship between Ann and Connor. It starts with a piece from the last day, August 30, and then works its way to the beginning of the relationship backwards while interspersing pieces of the last day. The book ends with the first day they meet. I'll be honest, I didn't read the book in the order it was written. I don't mind reading books knowing part of the ending first or in reverse chronological order, but with this book, I wanted to know all of the last day at once. So, first I went through and read all of the chapters that were dated August 30 One Year, then went back and read the rest from the front cover to the back.

The author wanted the reader to understand what it is like in an abusive relationship where the victim often doesn't see what is going on until it's too late. I think she does this well with the reverse order. The highs and lows of being in the relationship are wonderfully done. The uncertainty about how to react or what will set someone off. The devotion of a first love in which you think you can fix all the problems. Having to stay quiet and ride out the anger of the abuser. The abuser can be extremely sweet at times. These things in the book can easily be understood by the reader. Also, Ann seems like an intelligent girl. People always assume that abuse won't happen to them or that the victim must be stupid. But I Love Him shows that anyone can become a part of a bad relationship. Connor doesn't seem like he's a necessarily bad kid either. You can almost sympathize with him at points without condoning his behavior towards Ann.

I found very few things I disliked about the book. It is a little difficult to follow at times. The minor characters relationship to Ann is not really ever explained until later in the book. I felt like even though it makes sense that they wouldn't be in the story line much at the beginning (since it was a controlling/abusive relationship and often you avoid friends and family when you're the victim) that they should have been included more at the end/beginning of relationship. I felt that the ending could have been stronger. Then again, I did read the entire last day first, so I missed one of the major points of the last day when I read it. I can't really explain more than that without giving away the ending.

Book Beginning:
"I lie in pieces on the floor."





Rating Breakdown:
Pacing: 4 stars
Plot: 5 stars
Characters: 4 stars
Character relationships: 4 stars
Recommend: Yes

Read for these challenges:
YA Literature
100+ Books

Review - Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
Series: Hunger Games #3
Publisher: Scholastic
Publication Date: 24 August 2010
Genre: YA Dystopian
My Copy: bought - kindle


Young Katniss Everdeen has survived the dreaded Hunger Games not once, but twice, but even now she can find no relief. In fact, the dangers seem to be escalating: President Snow has declared an all-out war on Katniss, her family, her friends, and all the oppressed people of District 12. The thrill-packed final installment of Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games trilogy will keep young hearts pounding.


Review:
This book was almost torturous to read after finishing Catching Fire. Katniss turns into a weepy girl who seems to have no backbone unless she's being shot at. After really beginning to like her in the second book, I found myself annoyed with her, but for different reasons than in the first book. I thought her harsh in The Hunger Games and brave in Catching Fire, but for most of Mockingjay I just wanted to throttle her. Rather than Katniss's character growing, she backpedals fast. And poor Peeta. I just wanted to squeeze him and tell him it would be okay. I will say I didn't feel like the love triangle was really strong. The synopses on the book covers make you think that it's a prominent aspect, but I didn't think it really was that big of a choice personally.

Besides my issue with Katniss, I had some other serious problems with the book. I kind of felt like Collins had no idea what to do with the story she built up in the first and second books. Most of the main characters the reader wants to hear about are drugged up anytime they feel depressed, which with a war going on and loved ones held captive, is most of the time. I can't say the ending surprised me much, although Katniss didn't seem like a 17 year old girl by the end of the book. I understand why the characters were as hardened as they were in this book, and in a way, they were written very well, but I just couldn't connect with Katniss again. The third book seemed much closer to an adult novel than a young adult one with many of the themes regarding war and post-traumatic stress. It's a very dark story with very little hope.

Overall, I liked the story and to a certain extent I understand why the series ending played out the way it did. I didn't love it, and I feel that this story had so much potential, but it just failed to rise to it.

Rating breakdown:
Plot: 2 hearts
Pacing: 2 hearts
Characters: 2 hearts
Character relationships: 2 hearts
Recommend: Only if you've already started the series. You should read it to at least find out how it ends, but just be prepared. There are plenty of people who do like it, so maybe you will too.

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Review - Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
Series: Hunger Games #2
Publisher: Scholastic
Publication Date: 1 September 2009
Genre: YA Dystopian
My Copy: bought - kindle


Every year in Panem, the dystopic nation that exists where the U.S. used to be, the Capitol holds a televised tournament in which two teen "tributes" from each of the surrounding districts fight a gruesome battle to the death. In The Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark, the tributes from impoverished District Twelve, thwarted the Gamemakers, forcing them to let both teens survive. In this rabidly anticipated sequel, Katniss, again the narrator, returns home to find herself more the center of attention than ever. The sinister President Snow surprises her with a visit, and Katniss’s fear when Snow meets with her alone is both palpable and justified. Catching Fire is divided into three parts: Katniss and Peeta’s mandatory Victory Tour through the districts, preparations for the 75th Annual Hunger Games, and a truncated version of the Games themselves. Slower paced than its predecessor, this sequel explores the nation of Panem: its power structure, rumors of a secret district, and a spreading rebellion, ignited by Katniss and Peeta’s subversive victory. Katniss also deepens as a character. Though initially bewildered by the attention paid to her, she comes almost to embrace her status as the rebels’ symbolic leader. Though more of the story takes place outside the arena than within, this sequel has enough action to please Hunger Games fans and leaves enough questions tantalizingly unanswered for readers to be desperate for the next installment.

(Summary from School Library Journal)

Review:
As soon as I finished The Hunger Games, I began to read the sequel. I absolutely loved this book in the series. Katniss proves her worth as a main character. She is witty, intelligent, brave, and compassionate. Since the book synopsis pushes the idea of a love triangle, it was nice to see Gale finally become a real love interest as well as Katniss bonding with Peeta. I have to admit the decision between the two was the most torturous part of the book for me. I really liked both Gale and Peeta in this story. They each bring their own admirable traits in, making it difficult to pick just one. The Hunger Games twist is interesting, although not unexpected. We are introduced to more of the past winners, and I adore Finnick.

I don't have much more to say about this book. I've already finished Mockingjay as I write this, so it's difficult to write this review without giving away too much. I can say that this was my favorite in the series.

Rating breakdown:
Plot: 5 hearts
Pacing: 4 hearts
Characters: 5 hearts
Character relationships: 5 hearts
Recommend: Yes!

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Review - The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Series: Hunger Games #1
Publisher: Scholastic
Publication Date: 14 September 2008
Genre: YA Dystopian
My Copy: bought - paperback


In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.

Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister Primrose, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before — and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that will weigh survival against humanity and life against love.


Review:
My first book of the new year! I finally got around to reading this. I got the book for free on my Kindle when Catching Fire came out because it sounded like a book I would enjoy, and it was free for a few days around the release of the second book. I put off reading it, then it became such a huge deal in the book blogging world. Then I avoided reading it because I didn't want to be disappointed. When I was considering what my first read of the year was, I noticed my paperback copy sitting on the top shelf of the bookcase. What a perfect read to start with; some post-apocalyptic dystopian for 2012. I really liked the book. I found the writing style enjoyable. Collins kept me reading the book well into the morning because I just had to finish it. I loved Peeta, Gale, and Rue; however, I found Katniss hard to empathize with. She was a bit of a harsh character. Don't get me wrong, that totally fits within the book and the society, but I just could not make myself fully support her. I sort of waiver between 4 and 5 stars for this book mostly because of Katniss. Perhaps it was also the fact that I instantly liked Peeta, so I felt bad for his own personal torture in the book. I can appreciate that she didn't fall head over heels in love with Peeta as it happens in many YA books.

I think it is different to read it knowing as much as I did going into it. It's supposed to have a lot of suspense, but some of that was ruined by reading it this late in the game so to speak. I already knew it was a trilogy, so at least Katniss had to survive. I knew there would be a love triangle, so Peeta had to survive. I found it was easy to imagine the games themselves. The writing was done, so that I could visualize the battles and challenges easy enough. I can see how this would make for a great movie if done well. I had several favorite quotes, but I can't really share them without giving away possible spoilers!





Rating Breakdown:
Plot: 5 hearts
Pacing: 5 hearts
Characters: 4 hearts
Character Relationships: 4 hearts
Recommend: Yes!


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Review - Sometimes It Happens by Lauren Barnholdt (16)

 Sometimes It Happens by Lauren Barnholdt

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Publication Date: 12 July 2011

Genre: YA Contemporary

My Copy: received for review from publisher - Galley Grab

 On the last day of her junior year, Hannah's boyfriend Sebastian dumped her. Facing a summer of loneliness, Hannah turns to her best friend Ava for comfort. Ava does what BFFs do: she stays by Hannah's side...until it's time for Ava to head up to Maine for the summer. Also left behind is Ava's boyfriend, Noah, who's such a great guy he gets Hannah a job at the diner he waits tables at. Slowly, Hannah comes out of her funk thanks to Noah's good conversation and their fun times at the diner. But things get complicated when their friendship turns into attraction--and one night, into a passionate kiss.

The novel opens on the first day of senior year; the day Hannah is going to see Ava, Sebastian, and Noah all in one place. Over the course of the day secrets and betrayals are revealed, and alliances are broken and reformed. In the end, everyone is paired up once again, but not the way you might think...

Review:

I really kind of wanted to put off this review since this is my first one in a few months, and I really wanted the first one back to be a good book. However, this is the first book that I've actually finished in awhile, so this is the one I'm reviewing. The first thing to note about this book is that it is told in alternating chapters. The first chapter is set on the first day of her senior year followed by a chapter from her summer. This is the way the whole book is set up, but I didn't feel like it really worked in this book. The story is really what happened during the summer, while the first day of school is more like the consequences of that summer. This limited the books potential because Barnholdt couldn't give away too much in the beginning despite the fact that you're getting the ending throughout the book. The characters couldn't really grow which felt essential for this book to be successful. The story revolves mostly around a lot of drama; lots of boys cheating on girls and girls backstabbing friends. It made the book a bit repetitive. I did like the beginning of the book. It held my interest for the first 100 pages or so, but then it lost its hook. I became tempted to not finish it, but it was a pretty quick read, and I was already halfway through it (I think I finished the whole book in about two hours). The reader can figure out what's going to happen fairly early, but then the author tries to drag out the suspense which made me just want to say enough already. I never connected with any of the characters. The characters are realistic in that none of them are completely good or completely bad people, except for perhaps Lacey who might actually just be a good person. However, Lacey came off as kind of whiny and spineless in the beginning, so I had a hard time feeling bad for her. The characters do grow a bit, but not until the last 15 to 20 pages which hardly seemed worth it. One last oddity, the characters seem to just skip classes like it's no big deal. I don't know anywhere where the students can just keep running around the school and off campus at random. The bottom line? The book had potential, but failed largely due to the fact that all of the characters had the same problem and were not very rounded.

Rating breakdown:

Plot: 2 hearts

Pacing: 1 heart

Characters: 1 heart

Character relationships: 2 hearts

Recommend: No

Review - Matched by Ally Condie (15)

Matched by Ally Condie
Series: Matched #1
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Publication Date: 30 November 2011
Genre: YA dystopian
My Copy: library - hardback


Review:
I adored this book! At first I wasn't sure I'd like it because it starts slow. Normally I hate slow starts. Now that I've finished Matched, I realize how perfect that slow start fits it. The slow gradual build up of the story is intricately woven with subtle foreshadowing. It gives the reader time to understand the unique community created and connect with it. Because of this, the reader can truly understand the anguish of Cassia's decisions. Condie's writing has a wonderfully lyrical quality to it which starts strong and grows with the story. Not to mention, the strong connections to one of my all time favorite poems "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night" by Dylan Thomas. She does a great job of connecting objects from the past with the new society. I also really liked how she connected the ending of the story back to the beginning with certain phrases and scenes, yet the ending still has a strong sense of a new start itself.

Characters are quite possibly my favorite part of books. They easily make or break a book for me. The characters in this book are outstanding. Cassia is an awesomely strong girl. She's brave and compassionate yet she has faults which make her real. She wants to do what is right even as she struggles to determine what is actually right or wrong when her idyllic society begins to look more illusory. Xander is consistently loyal to Cassia which is very admirable. Ky has been through so much and still never gives up. Cassia's parents are even fantastic. They support Cassia through everything even when it threatens their lives. I love her grandfather too! I like that he's a quiet rebel. I cried and found myself wanting to shout at the Officials for Cassia and Ky, Xander and Bram, Cassia's parents and Ky's parents.

This book is now on my list of top favorites, and I cannot wait for Crossed to come out in November.

Other thoughts:
I love this cover. It matches the book so well!

Favorite quotes:
Every minute you spend with someone gives them a part of your life and takes a part of theirs. -pg 65

I look out the window where the burning evening sun sets in a clear sky. There is no trace of clouds, but I promise myself that when it rains I will remember too. This paper, these pictures and words. This piece of him. -pg 207

That's how I know they are dreams. Because the simple and plain and everyday things are the ones that we can never have. -pg 260

Sometimes, when I look down at the pale seeds I scatter in the black dirt, it reminds me of the night of my Banquet when I imagined that I could fly. The darkness behind doesn't worry me; neither do the stars ahead. I think of how perhaps the best way to fly would be with hands full of earth so you always remember where you came from, how hard walking could sometimes be. -pg 365

There are two paragraphs on page 249 which I love as well, but I'm not putting those here out of fear of giving too much away.



Rating breakdown:
Plot: 5+ hearts
Pacing: 5+ hearts
Characters: 5+ hearts
Character relationships: 5+ hearts
Recommend: Absolutely! It's a must read!

Short Reviews - Hunger, Summer, and a Witch (9 - 11)

“Thou art the Black Rider. Go thee out unto the world.”

Lisabeth Lewis has a black steed, a set of scales, and a new job: she’s been appointed Famine. How will an anorexic seventeen-year-old girl from the suburbs fare as one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse?

Traveling the world on her steed gives Lisa freedom from her troubles at home: her constant battle with hunger, and her struggle to hide it from the people who care about her. But being Famine forces her to go places where hunger is a painful part of everyday life, and to face the horrifying effects of her phenomenal power. Can Lisa find a way to harness that power — and the courage to battle her own inner demons?

Hunger by Jackie Morse Keller
Series: Horsemen of the Apocalypse #1
Publisher: Graphia
Publication Date: 18 October 2010
Genre: YA fantasy/supernatural
My Copy: library - paperback

Review:
The premise caught my attention awhile back because it sounded interesting. Unfortunately, the book didn't really live up to my expectations. I found it very difficult to connect with the main character. I grew increasingly frustrated with her attitude towards her real best friend, her boyfriend and her parents as well as her near worship of a bulimic girl. Don't get me wrong, I understand why she had the attitude, but it seemed like she should have shown more change in character earlier in the book since that sort of was the point of the story. Instead, everything happened in the end of the book, but by that point I was already too annoyed with Lisabeth. Then there's the ending which felt like it didn't fit with the rest of the story, or really even with the premise. I'm not sure yet if I'll read Rage.






Review breakdown:
Plot: 3 hearts
Pacing: 3 hearts
Characters: 2 hearts
Character relationships: 1 heart
Recommend: No

Anna is dreading another tourist-filled summer on Dune Island that follows the same routine: beach, ice cream, friends, repeat. That is, until she locks eyes with Will, the gorgeous and sweet guy visiting from New York. Soon, her summer is filled with flirtatious fun as Anna falls head over heels in love.

But with every perfect afternoon, sweet kiss, and walk on the beach, Anna can’t ignore that the days are quickly growing shorter, and Will has to leave at the end of August. Anna’s never felt anything like this before, but when forever isn’t even a possibility, one summer doesn’t feel worth the promise of her heart breaking...

Sixteenth Summer by Michelle Dalton
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Publication Date: 3 May 2011
Genre: YA contemporary
My Copy: received for review from publisher - e-book ARC

Review:
I loved this story! The relationship that builds over the course of the summer is so realistic. The book is surrounded in the bittersweet feeling of summer love. I loved Anna. She's very down-to-earth, and I instantly connected with her. Will is so swoon worthy. Plus, I would love to be a part of Anna's family (not to mention live on a beach). Anna's friends remained strong in the story line as well rather than dropping out of it when she meets Will which is an often heard complaint with YA novels. There are so many realistic aspects to this book that make it a perfect contemporary YA story. I laughed and cheered and then found myself crying my eyes out at the ending. This is a must read for your summer lists! Warning: This book will give you a sweet tooth! I'd recommend having ice cream nearby.






Rating breakdown:
Plot: 5 hearts
Pacing: 5 hearts
Characters: 5 hearts
Character relationships: 5 hearts
Recommend: Absolutely!

Freak. That's what her classmates call seventeen-year-old Donna Underwood. When she was seven, a horrific fey attack killed her father and drove her mother mad. Donna's own nearly fatal injuries from the assault were fixed by magic—the iron tattoos branding her hands and arms. The child of alchemists, Donna feels cursed by the magical heritage that destroyed her parents and any chance she had for a normal life. The only thing that keeps her sane and grounded is her relationship with her best friend, Navin Sharma.

When the darkest outcasts of Faerie—the vicious wood elves—abduct Navin, Donna finally has to accept her role in the centuries old war between the humans and the fey. Assisted by Xan, a gorgeous half-fey dropout with secrets of his own, Donna races to save her friend—even if it means betraying everything her parents and the alchemist community fought to the death to protect.

The Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney
Series: The Iron Witch #1
Publisher: Flux
Publication Date: 8 February 2011
Genre: YA fantasy/supernatural
My Copy: library - paperback

Review:
The book has a slow start, but definitely picks up the pace towards the end (which is why it only gets 4 hearts). Most of the action happens in the last few chapters. The slower parts are interesting though and gives the reader a chance to learn about the world created within the story. Donna is a dynamic character. In the beginning she seems afraid most of the time, but towards the end, she has much more confidence in herself. I was very intrigued by Xan. I want to know more about his history. I also want to know what the Wood Queen was talking about when she speaks with Donna. I will definitely be picking up the second book.






Rating breakdown:
Plot: 5 hearts
Pacing: 3 hearts
Characters: 5 hearts
Character relationships: 4 hearts
Recommend: Yes

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Review - The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter (6)

The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter
Series: Goddess Test #1
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Publication Date: 26 April 2011
Genre: YA paranormal/romance/myth
My Copy: received for review from NetGalley - Kindle


It's always been just Kate and her mom—and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate's going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear her mother won't live past the fall.

Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld—and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests.

Kate is sure he's crazy—until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she'll become Henry's future bride, and a goddess.


Review:
I am very conflicted about this book. I liked it, don't get me wrong, but something about it bugs me. I can't quite put my finger on it. I think it might be James. We're introduced to James very early on in the story, and I couldn't help but like him. I was secretly rooting for him the whole time I read the novel, and I'm fairly certain that is why I'm conflicted. Despite the fact that the synopsis clearly says Henry, I wanted it to be James. Through the first part of the book, I kept waiting for James to actually be named Henry. You know, like James was his "human" name or whatever. Then we meet Henry, and he's all tormented and mournful which just made me like James even more. As the story progressed, I did warm up to Henry, but James was still my favorite. I felt so bad for James. I did like the slow evolution of the relationship between Henry and Kate. It seemed believable and normal given the circumstances. However, I was irritated with how often Henry's old love, Persephone, is brought up by both Henry and Kate. I felt like saying enough is enough, move on already. Even at the end of the novel, I wasn't convinced that he wasn't hung up on her. The whole marriage thing bothered me throughout the novel. Six months and then marriage? Really? Henry isn't what I typically think of when the name Hades comes to mind, but it made the story interesting. I liked the compassion for others that Kate consistently shows throughout the novel, but she isn't one of my favorite heroines. I kind of felt she should have considered her own life and feelings a little more. I found myself liking Ava and being completely annoyed with her as well, which I believe was Carter's goal when she created the character. I liked Calliope's part in the story. I thought she played it well.

The plot is a very interesting idea. I loved the Greek mythology base and the unique twist to the story. The judgement at the ending was a bit of a surprise although looking back I suppose I should have seen it sooner. I was pleased with myself that I knew who the saboteur was fairly early on. It's definitely not obvious, but there are little hints. The story line builds upon itself well although the pacing is a bit choppy in parts. A big event occurs and then nothing happens for awhile except for Kate talking about her routine. The tests are not nearly as action filled as I expected. Some of them don't really seem like much of a test at all. I do want to read the second novel. I've got to know what happens. (Plus, I'm still secretly rooting for James...)

Look for this book on Tuesday!

Other thoughts:
I like the cover, but the girl isn't quite what I imagine Kate to look like as I read through the novel.


Rating breakdown:
Plot: 5 stars
Pacing: 3 stars
Characters: 3 stars
Character Relationships: 3 stars
Recommend: Most likely yes

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