Good Omens

Good Omens
written by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman



This was my first experience with Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, although I'd heard plenty about both. It was, for the most part, a pretty positive one, although they aren't authors I'd immediately go rush out to get their other books. I was pretty reluctant to read this. I don't know, it feels...blasphemous in a way, even after reading it. I don't exactly regret reading it, but I do think that it needs to be taken lightly. The book itself was well-paced, with interesting writing that kept me wanting to read more. My favorite characters were Aziraphale and Crowley, and I definitely loved the banter and chemistry between the two. Adam was also a pretty fantastic character. However, I don't know about you, but I got pretty annoyed when about halfway through the book, the characters that I just named lost a lot of screen time, barely appearing at all until the very end. Huh? Aren't they the main characters? I lost a lot of the enthusiasm that kept me hooked at the beginning, because all of the interesting characters had, for some reason, received boring tiny storylines all of a sudden, leaving the readers with too many stories all over the place, not one of them particularly interesting. It became just another book that tried much too hard to be quirky and by doing so, failed to be quirky. The reader is left with an unsatisfying, predictable, and anticlimactic ending that really confused me at first, because I couldn't understand why the authors had decided to end it this way. It could have been a great book, but it unraveled and fell apart, and I'm very sad that I had to witness such a great story falling apart.

Rating: 3.5/5

How to Ditch Your Fairy

How To Ditch Your Fairy
written by Justine Larbalestier



While I adored the concept of everyone having their individual 'fairy' that would enhance abilities, the storytelling wasn't exactly top-notch. Unlike say, Louise Rennison, I got used to the slang pretty quickly and managed to start enjoying the story. Everything was light and conversational with a good story, but not that much really happened. I don't know, there's not much to remark on. It's not that the book was a flop, because it's really not, but there's not much of anything that's really awesome about it other than the fairies. I just feel like the story could have been done much faster. There also could have been more sideplots, instead of this one huge plot that took up more time than it needed. I did love everything to do with the fairies--the different types, the mythology, etc. I kind of wish Fiorenza's mother's book was what I was reading instead of this book. Still, it's not *too* bad as a book, just skip it if you're looking for heavy literature.

Rating: 3.5/5

Skin

Skin
written by Adrienne Maria Vrettos



I was definitely excited about Skin once I saw that it was a Simon Pulse book--I don't think I've ever disliked one of those. I didn't quite dislike it, but I'm not entirely sure if I liked it either. It was real and raw, that's for certain, but something just seemed off. The main character is an interesting and complex one, but I wish his sister had been the focus. I would have really liked to have seen alternating POVs, because I think both of them had stories to tell, and just focusing on his story and not hers as much, it was all skewed. We never find out much about Karen, because well, Donnie doesn't know much about Karen either. It is a unique perspective, yes, but it also leads to many moments of downtime where not much happens. Donnie's perspective really doesn't hit home until the very end, which, you know, with alternating POVs, would have been entirely do-able. That said, I do like that it's a brother/sister YA book as opposed to your typical teen romance (not that I have anything against those). Skin leaves the reader with much to think about long after the book is done, and it's a bittersweet end when you realize that it had to happen for Donnie to find his place.

Rating: 3/5

The Looking Glass Wars

The Looking Glass Wars
written by Frank Beddor



The Looking Glass Wars took a while to get into, I'm not going to lie, but once I was about a quarter of the way in, it was smooth reading. The problem is, while the pace picks up and more time is dedicated to storytelling, the time for character develpment is sadly lost, and some of the characters are not explored as in-depth as they should have been. All the connections to Alice in Wonderland are great, but you don't have to be a complete Wonderland Fan to understand and enjoy the story. The weird thing about this book is that, well, technically, it's an Alternate/Author's Universe Fanfic. It's good writing for the most part, though dense at times, but the story isn't as original as it could have been. Nevertheless, I did enjoy this unique new spin on things, as I am a complete sucker for fractured fairy tales. It was very interesting to see the original author now presented as a character in the story, very mind-blowing, but in an awesome way. My personal favorite was Dodge, and I can't wait to see where his story, along with Alyss's go in the next book.

Rating: 4/5


In other news, you may have noticed a new link in my sidebar. This is to a fantastic microfinancing nonprofit called KIVA. I definitely encourage you all to check it out and maybe make a donation. The money you give will allow someone to go out, make some money, and in a couple months time, pay you back, allowing you to keep giving and making more peoples lives better. Hope you consider this great way of giving!

[In other, other news, guess who has gotten completely obsessed with Brotherhood 2.0? Yeah, that'd be me.]

News!

Hey there, lovely people!

I've actually started a new blog and would like to be a shameless self promoter for a moment. The blog is a spin-off from this one, focusing on children's books. I won't post there as often, but I'm really excited about it! Children's books are this fantastic, amazing realm, and I hope some of you decide to explore it more with me :)

kidlitlove.blogspot.com

Watchmen

Watchmen
written by Alan Moore, illustrated by Dave Gibbons



I'm not a comic book person. In fact, this was the first comic book (or is the term 'graphic novel' now?) I've ever read. I had some trouble getting into it, but it was all worth it. The text is scribbly and very difficult to read, random words were bolded for no apparent reason, and the page numbers made no sense. The story itself was hard to get into because I was concentrating on these things, but once it got started, it really got started. I think I got hooked right around the part where Dr. Manhattan's character gets more to do (basically, when it started being slightly more character-centric). The majority of the book is action-centered, but there are some fantastic moments of character development (whole story arcs for several of the characters, giving them psychologically deep stories behind the actions that become crucial to the plot). The two most intriguing characters to me were by far Rorschach and Dr. Manhattan. One with too much to feel, the other with nothing. The minor details the characters were given, such as distinct speech patterns, made all the difference. The end fell apart. Once all the character development was done, it was all action, action, action, and the big reveal at the end made no sense to me. Fantastic set-up with really well-rounded characters, and it all falls flat on its face near the end. The ending could have been handled much better, but it was still an amazing experience, and well-worth the time to get to know all these interesting characters.

Rating: 4.5/5

Epic

Epic
written by Conor Kostick



Epic is simply an epic book. It is set in a fascinating (not to mention, scary) new future, where violence is outlawed everywhere but in Epic, a game that determines one's fate. While difficult to grasp at first, readers will easily be sucked in to this intriguing world where parents and children alike win the game to live the life. While I initially found parts to be exceedingly descriptive (I'm sorry, but I don't want to read a page about salt workers), the book later on grows to be extremely action-centric. There is so much you want to know, and everything is ultimately resolved (which makes me wonder, why is there need for a sequel? More story, or desperate reaching for more material?) This is one book all futuristic sci-fi fans should read (particularly all you gamers out there!). I feel like much of it is aimed toward boys, but it can [clearly, since I'm writing this review] be enjoyed just as much by girls. Fan-tastic!

Rating: 5/5

On a side note, I swear, I'm pretty sure this book was written to make me lose the game (which I just lost. And so did you.) a lot.

Twice Told

Twice Told
written by various



Twice Told is an astoundingly original concept and a great book. The stories are based on pictures, and two authors worked on each piece of art to produce two separate, very different stories. They are "twice told" through both the writing and the art, and "twice told" between the two authors. Different authors definitely had different takes on the project. Some, to my annoyance, focused very much on the image itself, taking time to actually describe what is already depicted. Others jumped right in, making for more interesting, active stories. Description in many of the stories seemed very redundant, since the picture was right there, but many of the authors felt it necessary anyways. Going a little more into specific authors and their stories, I think my least favorite was Audrey Coulombis's piece. The most shocking aspect of the book, I'd really have to say, was the John Green story without a *gasp* ROAD TRIP. What has happened to this world? Margaret Peterson Haddix's story was good, but unlike anything else I've ever read from her. I felt like many of the authors tried too hard, as often, to make their stories "quirky", and the stories then turned out anything but. As is usual with short stories, I found myself really enjoying stories by random authors, and not particularly liking the ones written by authors I was previously familiar with. The biggest shocker had to be Nancy Werlin's extremely powerful story, Rebecca. It definitely grabbed my heart and was by far my favorite of the collection.

Rating: 3.5/5

A Rip in Heaven

A Rip in Heaven
written by Jeanine "Tink" Cummins



I'm so glad this wasn't one of those books where a murder occurs and it tears the family apart. The Cumminses are a great group, you can tell, the way their family only grew stronger through everything. The book reads like a mystery and memoir simultaneously, and the emotions felt by all the characters are very powerful--and absolutely interesting. The courtroom drama to it all was pretty neat, again, I was really glad it was courtroom drama and not family drama. It slightly ticked me off that it wasn't until the trial that we learned that Julie had a best friend--way to not focus on someone else this directly affected. The other thing that weirded me out was that Tink, the author, referred to herself in the third person. This would be slightly bearable, except whenever something happens that directly affected her in the story, she interjects her thoughts and draws attention to the fact that she is the one writing this, which made reading the book a little awkward and annoying at times. Tink was extremely brave to actually take the time to write this, not as a publicity stunt, but for her own personal healing as well as justice to Robin and Julie. The last two paragraphs of the book are some of the best, most powerfully honest, pieces of writing I have ever had the pleasure to read. It's a fantastic memoir that, at times, moves along a little slowly, but is well worth the read.

Rating: 4/5

(And the other thing that creeped me out? The murders, they happened on my birthday, the exact date and year.)

The School for Dangerous Girls

The School for Dangerous Girls
written by Eliot Schrefer



When I first heard of this book and saw it making the rounds through the book blogs, I seriously thought it was yet another Twilight ripoff, with your cast of supernatural girls at school or something. Wow, was I wrong. The School for Dangerous Girls is unlike anything you've ever read and probably ever will read. It's set in an entirely new and unique place, despite the fact that it is at first glance, a teen boarding school, but it's so so much more. Even more astounding than all this is that it is a male who wrote this, came up with this amazing, downright spooky and somehow surrealistic world of teen girls. The plot held no predictability and was simply fantastic. You could never imagine where it would go next. It's emotionally charged, powerful, and extremely raw, and the only thing you really knew (...mostly) is that the main character lives, since she's the narrator (but even so, who knows, she could have been a ghost or zombie or something, I suppose). It's all about the primal instinct of survival. While the title is slightly pathetic and could definitely have been better, this is one book I would very strongly recommend you read if you're looking for a thriller that will haunt your thoughts for days after reading.

Rating: 5/5