Tag Archive | 2011

Book Review: Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick

Please note: This is the third book in the Hush, Hush series and does contain spoilers.

Check out my review for Hush, Hush (1) and Crescendo (2).

All summer Nora Grey has been missing. When she appears out of nowhere in the middle of the cemetery, she discovers she can’t remember the past five months of her life. It also turns out her mother has been dating the father of her biggest enemy Marcie Millar. Talk about living an nightmare.

Traumatized and feeling alone Nora tries to piece her life back together. Her friends say one thing and other people from her past say another. Nora knows her mother is keeping something from her, but as she muddles through her memories each road comes up empty.

Try as she can to figure things out there are other forces drawing Nora into danger. Each time she lands in perils way, a handsome unknown stranger swoops in to save her. Like a guardian angel. If only Nora could just remember what really happened…

Sigh. It’s been a slow deterioration for this series. Granted, again, Fitzpatrick has made me eager to know what happened to Nora. However the plot is beginning to thin. I found this book to be ‘too easy’. There were many sections where I thought ‘That seriously wouldn’t happen’ to ‘The world doesn’t operate that way’.

Now I understand this is a YA book and sometimes you come across ones that don’t make sense and it’s supposed to be ok. However, the best YA can weave a tale where even if things don’t make sense it’s still believable. This is not one of those series.

My disappointment is growing, but there is only one book left so I feel I’ve invested this much and need to finish. My hopes are not high though.

Book Review: Happy Birthday to Me by Brian Rowe

Jul27

It all started as a practical joke. Cameron Martin is one of the most popular kids in school. At seventeen he’s the star of the basketball team and dating one of the hottest girls at his high school. Life is perfect, his body is perfect and what could make it better? A free piece of birthday cake is always the cherry on top.

But something is wrong is Cameron. Perhaps it was stress of the game or finals of senior year. Everyday he feels…a bit different. Older.

When a visit to the doctor confirms the worst, that Cameron is aging an entire year everyday, it makes one think, how would you spend living the rest of your life?

I LOVED THIS. Seriously. What a fun quick read! Why do male lead characters get all the fun in YA fiction? It’s light-hearted, easy and full of wonder. I mean, could you imagine? Aging a year in an entire DAY? The plot was pretty easy to figure out but that didn’t deter from my enjoyment. I loved Cameron. What a total teenager that bloke is.

It’s a fun story, and I’m so happy to learn it’s an already completed trilogy. The book also helps puts things in perspective. It was a joy to see the progression of Cameron’s character from prick jerkface to an adult male. He makes a lot of mistakes and boy there are some hilarious mishaps that happen. Yet in the end Cameron is still a teenager and Rowe is dead on with his tone of voice.

If you want an easy read that makes you laugh out loud at moment please give this first in a serious a shot. It’s well worth the time and a totally great read!

This book was provided by the publisher, Patchwork Press, in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks to Brian Rowe for such a delightful read and to Patchwork Press for taking a chance on a read self published piece of work!

Book Review: A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

Apr25

“The monster showed up at just after midnight. As they do.”

Thus begins the emotional story of 13-year-old Conor, who struggles to come to terms with his mother’s illness in England. This work of art is blended beautifully with the realistic story that no child should ever endure. Conor’s harsh reality includes everything a present day child can face. A father who remarries in America, a cold grandmother and bullies at school along with facing how terminal cancer affects his mother.

Written for a slighter younger audience this book transcends age limits. The monster, a creature comes to Conor in the form of a Yew tree is evil, scary and has a sense of humour. Telling Conor three tales, the monster will force Conor to see the truth that he’s been avoiding.

The late Siobhan Dowd, who unfortunately passed away before the story was finished but Ness has done an outstanding job, inspired this story. The result is a piece of work that anyone can relate to.

Crafted with amazing illustrations of shadow and shapes A Monster Calls is an important book to be on everyone’s bookshelf.

Crossed by Ally Condie

Feb19

Cassia Reyes has been Matched, but a glitch in the Society’s perfect system has derailed her life. When Ky’s face was shown instead her Match Xander, Cassia’s heart took a leap and made her own choice. Now she is out working manual labouring, far from her family and home. In the Outlands she waits for any opportunity of where she can find Ky once again.

All her life the Society has chosen everything for Cassia, but loving Ky has opened her eyes to what else lies open in her world. Cassia will do anything she can to find Ky. In the process she’ll discover more secrets that her Grandfather was trying to clue her in on: The rising of the Rebellion. It’s tough to decide what is more dangerous – being out in the unknown or under the heavy watch of The Society. With new friends and the skill of trade Cassia must decide what she wants ultimately for her future, love or freedom.

I ate Crossed up. Four days dear readers, that is how long I was able to stretch out reading this book. Condie is fantastic at peppering the mystery of The Society within this second book. It’s interesting because there isn’t much action in this book but the lingering questions are carried through beautifully. Yes there is a Rebellion but there are so many more questions as to why it is in existence? How long has this Rebellion been growing? What exactly are the reasons and what do they hope to accomplish? The romance wasn’t the front-runner theme and I loved how every page captured my attention as to what is really going in this Big Brother world.

Cassia grows a lot during this book. She becomes her own woman-trying figure out love and what she wants for her future. She doesn’t shy away from the challenge but instead goes looking for it. She’s given a difficult task at the end of the book and I wait patiently for the third book to become available at my library. Those who loved the first Matched won’t be disappointed with Condie’s return to Cassia’s life.

Prized by Caragh O’Brien

Feb5

Gaia Stone has escaped the Enclave with her newborn baby sister Maya. Out into the wasteland she ventured, but with little food, water and baby formula, they’re doomed to die if they don’t find help soon. Days pass and just when death looms near, a hero on a horse rescue Gaia and takes her and Maya to Sylum.

Sylum is a community where the women are in charge. Something is happening to all the newborn babies, they’re always male. Females are in high demand and marriages are a battle. Kissing is outlawed and when Gaia joins the people of Sylum she doesn’t understand why everyone isn’t equal. Sylum isn’t better than the Enclave, it’s almost worse.

Gaia is determined to figure out the mystery of Sylum, but her heart is distracted. As a new female she gathers the attention of every eligible male. When a familiar face returns Gaia must look inside her heart and trust what she feels if she, Maya and the people of Sylum have any chance of continuing their existence.

I loved the first book in this series, Birthmarked. I was looking for something that would grab my attention like The Hunger Games and Birthmarked filled all that criteria. However, once I leaped into Prized, I found myself disappointed. It started off great, and finally here is a scenario where women have all the power and treat men like they have treated us for thousands of years! Power to women! What a fantastic choice to move the story I originally thought.

Instead I found myself being embarrassed to keep reading. The women in power were just as bad as stereotypical male lead characters and it was a huge disappointment. What had the potential to be a great story line got somehow lost. My disappointment grew as the lack of originality progressed. I still want to read the last instalment in the series. The ending at least in Prized wasn’t a disappointment and I’m happy O’Brien captured my attention. I’m excited to see how things end for Gaia in Promised.

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

Jan22

R is a zombie. It’s hard to tell how long he’s been dead or how long the zombies have been around. What R does know is that there is a hunger inside him that must be fed or he’ll die. What starts as a routine feeding session with his best friend M changes the moment he sets his cold grey dead eyes on Julia.

In that moment something alters. Something inside him stops. He protects Julia but does savour her boyfriend’s brain. R stumbles upon a beautiful love story through ingesting one’s memories.

R doesn’t understand why Julia is so special; there is just a feeling deep in inside that has been still until now. It’s as if Julia somehow has breathed new life into R’s decaying corpse and he’ll do anything to keep her safe from his kind.

What a TREAT this book is! I was turned on to this story by seeing the movie trailer, and by luck my friend had been given this book for Christmas! (I read it in two days to make sure I got my share) I was also ecstatic to learn that Marion is from Washington State himself! It’s rare to read about a male focused romance YA, but this book is done cleverly with humour and insight out of the ‘normal’ zombie genre.

I found this book to be a delightful read. It’s also short, and I loved how the chapters are separated by old school drawings of body parts. In a time where the zombie genre has arisen to its height, this book has the goods to keep it around for a long time. I hope the movie lives up to the book, and I also hope that the series continues in this strange ‘love conquers’ all track. It’s a simple story of hope and that message makes it essentially timeless.

Many thanks to my dear friend Rachael for letting me read her book and to her friend Michael for being awesome and winning it for her.