It should probably be illegal to keep reading an authors work when you’ve so thoroughly panned it twice before but, you see, I was curious. Take away It should probably be illegal to keep reading an authors work when you’ve so thoroughly panned it twice before but, you see, I was curious. Take away the horrible plotting and burdensome story of The Goddess Test, could Carter write something I liked, because I always suspected she could. If Pawn had continued in quality from the first half into the second, then I’d probably be giving it four stars right now.
Pawn started out very promising indeed. Kitty, ranked a three in a society that lives and dies by rankings, has two choices. Shovel shit in a far off city away from her beloved boyfriend, or take to prostitution. Figuring prostitution is temporary, she chooses option B but is quickly given a third option. Become the body double of the newly deceased princess.
Kitty, living as Lila Hart, still isn’t safe. She knows her days are numbered and the only way to survive is to play the game and hope she can outsmart the other players. Pawn is really well written and well actualised up until roughly this point. The players are all there, you can see the intrigues and alliances and power plays are all ready to be explored.
Where Pawn lets you down is that they aren’t explored at all. Despite Kitty’s plan to try and outsmart the others, despite the myriad references to a chess match which spawns the title of the book, Kitty does not play or dalliance in any kind of battle of wits. She is a very reactionary character, making decisions and acting on the spur of the moment, often to her detriment. This would be okay, except the other characters fare little better in their plotting. Eventually it becomes a jumbled mess with too many plot holes and not enough sense to see it through to a satisfactory end. I don’t think any characters knew what the fuck they were doing. It kind of feels like the author just kind of went with whatever plot twists occurred to her at that moment.
[image]
Which means that I want to be annoyed, but I’m not. I’m relatively impressed with this offering from Carter, but still disappointed at the wasted potential. The writing has improved, as has Carter’s use of characterisation and gender roles. Plotting and plotholes aside, the writing and pacing of this book was pretty good – a definite improvement!
This is the third Carter book I’ve read now. I want to read the sequel to this, but doesn’t that constitute some kind of cruel and unusual book reviewing behaviour? On one hand, if I’d hated this book, I’d be like:
[image]
But I didn’t hate it, and I doubt many readers will despite its faults. It’s a pretty endearing novel and I’m glad that I read it. So onto the next one for me!
Even if maybe, at this point, Carter is like:
[image]
This book was given to me for review purposes. No money was exchanged for this review though, ya know, that would have been nice for me.
Did you know this book is shiny? Just look at its cover! So shiny! Gloriously, gloriously shiny. You know how some people are beautiful on the inside Did you know this book is shiny? Just look at its cover! So shiny! Gloriously, gloriously shiny. You know how some people are beautiful on the inside and the outside? Well the great thing about this ponderously big tome is that it is shiny on the outside and the inside. Rather like a phosphorescent jellyfish, it shines even if you cut it open and play with its splayed tenders.
How is it shiny on the inside, Kat? You ask because you like things to make sense.
[image]
Cat scientists are only marginally more terrifying than real scientists.
Everything inside this book is just so good and pure and awesome. Maggie is one of those unusual YA protagonists who actually moves the storyline along herself. She doesn’t wait for anyone to strike. She’s beautifully flawed, fatally flawed but you just can’t help love her. She has a goal, a job to do and she’ll manoeuvre people into position to do it, even to her own detriment.
The game she plays with Quentin is gripping and the romance between the two characters makes me want to drink a bottle of wine and present a ring to this book if only to keep it with me forever. Maggie’s pro activeness in everything drives the entire book. From plot and pacing to character reveals and the thrilling end.
In fact Maggie stalked me until she found out about that time I killed a old man over half a pickle sandwich.
Then she threatened to expose me unless I wrote a favourable review of this book.
Now she’ll probably discard me once I’ve become useless to her in her grand scheme to bring down a multibillion dollar corporation that controls the world.
I both fear and love her. Part of me respects her and I absolutely can’t wait to see how this series ends.
This review appears on my blog, . I received this book for free from Purchased in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. ...more
I’m not sure how to proceed with this review WITHOUT resorting to a shit ton of gifs. I just really feel like some kind of crazy wild action would betI’m not sure how to proceed with this review WITHOUT resorting to a shit ton of gifs. I just really feel like some kind of crazy wild action would better represent how I feel than words ever could.
I mean, I could say that The Eternity Cure is one badass tale that left me desperate for more because this story was fucking awesome. Or I could just do this:
[image]
Which is, no joke, my exact facial expression upon finishing this book. I think it actually stayed like that for a full two minutes.
I could tell you that Allison Sekemoto was such an unmitigated badass that I am prepared to lay my sword down at her badass feet and swear my fealty to her as the god of badass forever. Or I could just do this:
[image]
See how much easier that is? I can’t write this bloody review because I’m too busy stalking Julie Kagawa and thinking of ways to beg her to hurry up and give me the next book. I need it. Seriously. And I can’t even talk about this book much, because I don’t want to spoil anyone. But I will let you know some vague things that you can expect:
1) Allison Sekemoto continues to be a stone-cold, kick-ass, awesomely awesome protagonist.
2) There are smoochies.
3) Things need to be killed and Allison is exactly the person to do it.
4) This is a creepy fucking book and I still shiver occasionally when thinking about it.
5) Some people in the book are horrifically horrible and terrifying.
6) Some people in this book are kind of sweet and make me smile.
7) Kanin <3
8) There is a return of a character I didn’t expect and he was fuckin’ ACE, man.
9) Be prepared to want to have everyone’s babies. Just everyone’s.
10) Read it. That is all.
I have to admit, like The Immortal Rules, it started out a little slow. Allison’s naivete and willingness to trust scumbags annoyed me. However, it didn’t take long before I fully endorsed pretty much each and every decision she made. She’s just so… cool. Kagawa throws the readers right back into this creepy, desolate, and somewhat hopeless world. But somehow, when the characters in this book teamed up ready to go kick ass, I just felt this rightness. Like, “Hell yeah! It’s ASS kicking time!” For those who don’t know, ass kicking time comes right after Balls-to-the-wall crazy time, and briefly before Cleaning-blood-out-of-your-clothes time.
Steph, baby, honey-munchkin. You are going to love this one. I usually don’t do Dystopians much anymore. Steph still loves them though, so I’m kind ofSteph, baby, honey-munchkin. You are going to love this one. I usually don’t do Dystopians much anymore. Steph still loves them though, so I’m kind of excited to see how she’ll feel about it. I didn’t know what to expect because I hadn’t loved Bracken’s previous work, Brightly Woven. Yet this book was getting rave reviews. All I can say is, my god that writer’s done her work. This was a massive improvement on both a technical level and story-telling level.
Ruby lives in a world where an entire generation of children spontaneously sprout super-human powers. This results in her being towed off to a concentration camp where she is raised under constant threat of death and inhumane conditions. But when Ruby breaks out of Thurmond, the Dystopian equivalent of an Auschwitz, she finds that life on the outside isn’t much better. She meets up with a group of kids and the adventure goes from there with a lovable cast of characters. The back drop of this hauntingly close dystopian world begins to unfold.
As I said, Bracken’s writing has improved dramatically. Her only real issue involves vague writing in connection to action scenes and I would have ideally preferred a smoother, tighter plot. The scene where a van is attacked is a good example. It’s a confusing hot mess to figure out what exactly happened. The writing, uncharacteristic considering the rest of the novel, was not smooth at all and there was a strange disjointed feeling – the same one that had plagued Beautifully Woven. This is a pretty significant development. Almost as good as getting out a near perfect debut novel, is learning and developing and improving so much on the next, which Bracken has clearly done. Especially when I read it thinking, “Is this even the same author?” For this, Bracken, I salute you!
[image]
But this is a very character driven novel and as such, the characters are a big part of what makes it a great read. Liam, Chubs, Suz, Clancy – these are the big characters that keep you reading alongside Ruby. If you don’t connect to Ruby or these other characters, then you will struggle to enjoy it at all. The novel races almost from start to finish – though readers will have to excuse a little bit of a bumpy beginning. Darkest Minds seems to have something to say about true freedom, but I can’t actually decide what main theme it’s working on. It’s not a perfect novel, there’s still plenty of improvement to be had in tightening the plot, technicalities and smoothing out some of the narration. The romance between the two leads wasn’t as convincing as I would have liked. It’s never ideal when a reader wonders what even connects them, let alone binds them in love, but I felt it was an enjoyable book.
In fact, this would be the one aspect of Bracken’s writing that I feel has been neglected. North and Sydelle had a much more believable connection with a more developed romance than Ruby and Liam got. However, the story manages to move along at a brisk pace without ever really falling into being stagnant or boring. Darkest Minds mostly hits all the high notes and, in my opinion, it’s well worth checking out. People keep saying that Dystopia is a dead genre, but I think Steph and I are very happy to see it fighting the odds!
The ARC was provided to me for review purposes. I did not receive any money, gifts, favours or dragons for reviewing it. Though I'd have liked the dragons./>
It’s been so long since I actively disliked a book that I wasn’t quite sure what to do with myself. The more I tried to separate my dislike for the chIt’s been so long since I actively disliked a book that I wasn’t quite sure what to do with myself. The more I tried to separate my dislike for the characters and storytelling and try to analyze it impartially, the more I found myself saying, “Bugger this! Drink anyone?” to the empty air around me.
Crewel is a post-apocalyptic dystopian world in which women are oppressed and tightly controlled. It is a world where matter and people can be weaved and stitched through special looms that Spinsters use. This should have been right up my alley. It was definitely right up something, but it wasn’t my alley.
Unfortunately, Crewel is a heavily character-based novel. I say unfortunately because there isn’t a single character with more complexity or depth than a kiddie pool and certainly none of them are even a fraction of the fun. Even the main character, whose head we live in, is so vague and two dimensional that any actions and emotions she displays felt disconnected from the reality of the novel. This story, even in its most intense moments, was emotionless and the opposite of affecting. It was like watching a play only the stage is at the bottom of the cliff and you’re at the top. So far removed that you can see what the actors are doing but engaging in them or the story is impossible.
There are a number of characters the narrator expects us to care about: Elanor, Valery, Amie, Jost, Erik, Pryana. However, most of these characters barely even have a role. Most of Valery’s speaking lines come after the Great Tragedy that befalls her – and they’re still only a few lines. Elanor as well, while having a slightly bigger role, is little more than a convenient plot device and represents one of the only semi-positively written female characters. Her role is so tightly packed into being a convenient tell-machine for the narrator to pass information, and to resolve a later plot point that there is nothing else to her.
The plot itself is a hot mess with no direction or focus. It flits around distractedly, trying to accomplish everything and achieving nothing. Don’t even get me started on the ending! The main selling point of this novel is the weaving – which Adelice does almost none of since she spends more time making goo goo eyes are boys than she ever does interacting with women or doing the damn thing this book was named after.
This is made even worse when you consider the face that the romance in this book is justifiably scoff-worthy. There isn’t even enough material between them for one convincing romance. Since Adelice is about as interesting as wet cardboard, it’s hard to imagine anyone falling for her. Each boy barely fares better. Their personalities combined still wouldn’t save them from being inhumanely dull. They are just two more wooden puppets in a whole cast of wooden puppets.
For a novel that is supposed to be about the struggles of women in a highly patriarchal world, this novel was dreadfully sexist. When I spoke to a friend about this issue, they said, “I tend to disagree with a lot of the criticism re: the book being sexist, but think you could probably make a more compelling case.”
Well, buckle up your seatbelt, sunshine*! Here’s my case!
*Seatbelt not actually required.
Readers can and should make a deal about the slut-shaming and complete lack of positive female characters. That’s an issue all in itself. But then, I guess, one could also sweep that aside with justifications. Because there are unpleasant and horrible women out there – because women are people, and people come in a mixed bag. And a society so entirely preoccupied with purity would result in citizens slut-shaming girls for acting outside of those bounds. So there’s obviously an important discussion to be had on those topics, even though they are not definitely sexist on their own, only kind of sexist.
For me, the true test came when I considered what my Southern and Imaginary mother always told me and that is, “Honey cupcake, y’all should know that actions speak louder than words.” So true, Southern and Imaginary mother. So true. So whilst this book may have given lipservice to how unfair life was for women and how that TOTALLY wasn’t right or good, what service did the narration and plot actually have to say about women? Put it this way: When comparing the relevance and representation given to male and female characters in relation to their contribution to the novel, what does it say about women?
Almost every single male character we meet is important. Cormac, Jost, Erik are the three big ones. There are only a handful of other males with speaking roles in this book and they’re fairly neutral in their representation. People just doing their job. Only one male with a speaking role is depicted badly, which is a drunk, handsy official at a party – and he is still not portrayed worse than the woman trying to vie for his attention. At least, the characters narrating the situation focus on how disgusting she is, while he only gets a passing mention. I think there may be a waiter who has a speaking role for the purpose of showing how segregated and unfair they world is, but that’s it.
Compare that to the novel’s complete and utter lack of focus on women – which is pretty disgraceful for a novel that’s supposed to be about women’s struggles in a patriarchal society. The only important women in this book are Adelice and the women who torment her. We are introduced to whole batches of women, who are immediately dismissed by the character and text as meaningless and valueless. The girls from Adelice’s hometown? Just simpering morons waiting to get mated. Even her own younger sister cares for little else. It seems no one is as deep and thoughtful as Adelice. Then when she enters Coventry with a large group of her peers, they are immediately shown to be jealous and power-hungry, but ultimately completely inconsequential. We don’t meet any of them ever again whilst Jost, Erik and Cormac receive the large bulk of Adelice’s, and the narrative’s attention. Because they’re what really matters, ya know? What the menfolk are doing. The only exception to this rule, because it is a pattern repeated yet again when Adelice joins the Spinsters who are also cliquey and immediately dismissed from the narrative as pointless and worthless like the literally dozens of other women we meet, is Maela and Pryana. Maela is a power-hungry psychopath and Pryana is a power-hungry, vicious, idiot. Both are stupid and extremely ineffective at what they do. Female solidarity doesn’t exist in this novel. Unless you’re referring to the convenient plot-device that is Elanor. She is the sole exception.
Add to this the fact that the women in this novel all act inexplicably irrational. There is evil Cormac, and evil Maela and evil Pryana. Only one of them acts intelligently and with rationale – I’ll let you pick which one. You can depend on the evil women to be emotional, lashing out and sometimes hysterical. Behaviour that is never depicted in the men. For example, Maela asks Adelice to remove a strand from the weave. The strand is a person who doesn’t need to be removed and doing so could harm the weave, so she refuses. Maele takes her scalpel and tears into the weave out of anger. It turns out this was a school where Pryana’s sister lived. So Pryana… blames Adelice?! Because that totally makes sense. And she spends the rest of the novel irrationally tormenting Adelice. Valery, similarly blames Adelice for things that are entirely out of her control. It is so manufactured and senseless that it made the novel ridiculous. Almost as ridiculous as the fact that Adelice spent the novel entirely focused on boys. The plot went something like this:
Adelice’s family dies
Cormac
meets horrible girls
boy
boy
Cormac
stuff about weaving
boy
boy
boy
boy
Cormac
More horrible girls
boy
boy
boy
Cormac
Cormac
Even Loricel, supposedly the one, decent woman in power in this book is little more than a caricature. You can’t claim a feminist text when the narration itself, despite constantly being surrounded by women, decides that all the male characters are so much more interesting and worth focusing on. When the few male characters are afforded exponentially more important roles than any of the many, many female characters – many of whom don’t even get the honour of a name or mention outside of just Horrible Female #35 who says horrible thing to Adelice. When the rate of decent male character so far outstrips the demonstration of decent female characters that there isn’t even room for comparison, you have a problem. You have a book that wants to say something about women, but ignores them in favor of focusing on men.
That is really fucking sexist. So… Bugger this! Drink, anyone?...more
Skylark is the most technically proficient and well-written novel that I’ve ever struggled to finish. No doubt Spooner is an author to watch.
ThSkylark is the most technically proficient and well-written novel that I’ve ever struggled to finish. No doubt Spooner is an author to watch.
The world building of Skylark is both imaginative and rich. It has a fascinating backstory set in a dangerous and vivid world. By the end of the novel I was rather attached to the characters and invested in Lark’s and Oren’s struggles. I cheered them on and felt a little heart palpitation at the impossibility of their circumstances.
Your enjoyment of this novel will hinge on what kind of reader you are. Do you like writing so animated and dynamic that it leaves you feeling as if you’ve reached through the pages and felt everything the author intended you to feel? Do you like a slow and sensual walk through a character’s journey as if you are taking it yourself? Then, by all means, go get this book. Read it. You will love it.
I was simply the wrong reader. I don’t typically like journey stories with lots of walking from A to B where every ache along the way is explored. I like fights. I like blood. I like sex. I like action. I like suspense. This novel has a lot of that (Well not the sex) but I wasn’t feeling it due to the plot which simply wasn’t gripping enough to keep me coming back. I enjoyed the book while I read it, but struggled to muster the enthusiasm once it was put down.
But I really have to hand it to Spooner. It’s just been so long since I’ve seen writing like this that I almost wish I’d loved it more.
“Then I looked up.
And saw the sky.
The wind had blown the day’s thick cloud cover away, and a bottomless blackness yawned above, pockmarked with stars. A sliver of moon cast the sickly, color-leaching hint of light across the ruined city. There was no end to the sky, nothing holding me down on the ground. I felt it reach down to me, threaten to swallow me. I seemed to fall upward, and threw myself down to stop it, knocking the breath out of my lungs.”
I could literarywank to that for hours. I feel the vertigo hit me every time I read this passage. There’s like three passages including this one about the sky and I read them while feeling my lungs constrict in sympathy. I felt her terror like I’ve rarely felt physically for a book character before. I could see that exact sky above me, waiting to drag me up into the nothingness.
While reading this book, I often just went back a reread passages of some of the most superb writing I’ve seen in a long time. It was enough to make me shake my head, stare glumly at my own manuscript and start pressing ‘delete’. Truly, I just wish that the story had focused more on the necessary story telling elements instead of covering every missed meal and blistered foot. But that’s a personal thing and it’s going to be different for every reader.
I will be desperately looking our for Spooner’s next novel in the hopes that the plot and pacing is more to my speed, but that her wonderful quality of prose hasn’t diminished.
*An ARC of Skylark was provided to me by the publisher. No money or favours were exchanged for this review....more
Skylark is the most technically proficient and well-written novel that I've ever struggled to finish. No doubt Spooner is an author to watch.
The worldSkylark is the most technically proficient and well-written novel that I've ever struggled to finish. No doubt Spooner is an author to watch.
The world building of Skylark is both imaginative and rich. It has a fascinating backstory set in a dangerous and vivid world. By the end of the novel I was rather attached to the characters and invested in Lark's and Oren's struggles. I cheered them on and felt a little heart palpitation at the impossibility of their circumstances.
Your enjoyment of this novel will hinge on what kind of reader you are. Do you like writing so animated and dynamic that it leaves you feeling as if you've reached through the pages and felt everything the author intended you to feel? Do you like a slow and sensual walk through a character's journey as if you are taking it yourself? Then, by all means, go get this book. Read it. You will love it.
I was simply the wrong reader. I don't typically like journey stories with lots of walking from A to B where every ache along the way is explored. I like fights. I like blood. I like sex. I like action. I like suspense. This novel has a lot of that (Well not the sex) but I wasn't feeling it due to the plot which simply wasn't gripping enough to keep me coming back. I enjoyed the book while I read it, but struggled to muster the enthusiasm once it was put down.
But I really have to hand it to Spooner. It's just been so long since I've seen writing like this that I almost wish I'd loved it more.
"Then I looked up.
And saw the sky.
The wind had blown the day's thick cloud cover away, and a bottomless blackness yawned above, pockmarked with stars. A sliver of moon cast the sickly, color-leaching hint of light across the ruined city. There was no end to the sky, nothing holding me down on the ground. I felt it reach down to me, threaten to swallow me. I seemed to fall upward, and threw myself down to stop it, knocking the breath out of my lungs."
I could literarywank to that for hours. I feel the vertigo hit me every time I read this passage. There's like three passages including this one about the sky and I read them while feeling my lungs constrict in sympathy. I felt her terror like I've rarely felt physically for a book character before. I could see that exact sky above me, waiting to drag me up into the nothingness.
While reading this book, I often just went back a reread passages of some of the most superb writing I've seen in a long time. It was enough to make me shake my head, stare glumly at my own manuscript and start pressing 'delete'. Truly, I just wish that the story had focused more on the necessary story telling elements instead of covering every missed meal and blistered foot. But that's a personal thing and it's going to be different for every reader.
I will be desperately looking our for Spooner's next novel in the hopes that the plot and pacing is more to my speed, but that her wonderful quality of prose hasn't diminished.
*An ARC of Skylark was provided to me by the publisher. No money or favours were exchanged for this review....more
Requiem. When all good things must come to an end. A horrible, horrible end that didn’t do any justice to the series. But an end nonetheless. Requiem Requiem. When all good things must come to an end. A horrible, horrible end that didn’t do any justice to the series. But an end nonetheless. Requiem is like sitting down to a well-deserved, hot pie and relishing every bite until you get to the last one and die of poisoning without ever knowing why or how. There was literally a moment when I got to the last few pages, realized there wasn’t any more and freaked out. From enjoyment for insurmountable anger.
[image]
I am a solid believer that Lauren Oliver is a capable, talented author. I also think she’s brave. Not all authors risk venturing into unfamiliar territory. Think how common it is for an author to be writing their fourth or fifth book in a series and starting spinoffs in the same world when even that gets old. It’s clear from Delirium that Oliver was trying on something new. Uncomfortable at first, but I’d felt that in Pandemonium, she had hit her stride. Requiem, the last part of Lena’s journey, seems to have been a new challenge all in its own. One that I didn’t feel Oliver managed to surmount.
The novel is divvied up into Lena’s POV and Hannah’s POV – sometimes done with more success than other times. Overall, it wasn’t a bad series and Requiem wasn’t necessarily a bad book. It simply could never escape from the premise holding so much more promise than the story could deliver. Compared to other series in this genre, it struggled to hold its own candle. I feel bereft and let down after the promise and goodness that was Pandemonium.
There are concepts and ideas there. A tale Oliver wants to tell about love – its strengths and pitfalls. The good and the bad. You can see the reaching for it in Requiem. Then a point comes when it seems the tale is abandoned in favour of wrapping it up as soon as possible. Some might call it an open ending. To me an open ending leaves you with thoughtful questions, not a whole lot of blank spaces. To me, Requiem doesn’t have an open ending. It just stops, with little rhyme or reason.
I’m not even going to talk about anything else that happens or the characters or themes or writing or anything. I refuse. Debate or not, an ending is an ending is an ending. Just because something ended doesn’t mean you gave it an actual ending. Need further proof? Allow me to illuminate on th-
Okay, Pandemonium was a HUGE improvement over Delirium for me. First of all, the Oh! Urrrrrrr. *Gurgle* Kapowy! *Splutter* *Cough* *Die*
[image]
Okay, Pandemonium was a HUGE improvement over Delirium for me. First of all, the world seemed A LOT more consistent. The world building was an improvement as well.
Perhaps the biggest improvement was Lena herself. No more whiny, annoying, insecure little girl. This Lena has been through the fire, got burnt and is fighting to survive. What I love is that Lena has grown, become capable, assertive, intelligent and shrewd. There were parts of this book in which I was physically cheering her on.
Lena has survived the wild, the bombs and the harsh winter. She’s come out stronger and more weary. Now she’s back behind the fence, but this time as an operative of the resistance and her mark is Julian Fineman – son of a radical movement to further eradicate the sickness known as love. Julian is confused, complex, damaged and vulnerable. When he and Lena are kidnapped and held hostage together, they have to join forces to escape.
What I loved was the development of their relationship, the hero role of Lena as the stronger, more knowledgeable and capable of the two, and how they both start to grow and heal together.
Of course, the book is filled with complicated plot twists and a couple of “NO WAY!” moments – one of which was obvious and easily foreseen but SO WHAT?!
The writing in this book matched more to the caliber I expect of Oliver. It felt a appropriate and smooth.
And I guess this is a lesson learned – one that I was glad to learn. Find a good author and stick with them. I wasn’t a huge fan of Delirium but Pandemonium has me aching for Requiem to see what happens.
You know it’s a good novel when the last line has you going:
So I really wanted to like this one, but I just didn’t and the more I think about it, the less I like it. For me, the biggest problem was Gray, whose So I really wanted to like this one, but I just didn’t and the more I think about it, the less I like it. For me, the biggest problem was Gray, whose head we experience the world in. If you don’t like a protagonist in a novel that is narrated in the first person then that’s an immediate problem – one that is probably highly dependent on the individual reading. Gray just didn’t feel like a real character to me. It was hard to explain exactly what it was I didn’t like about his personality, but when I made a list of Gray’s characteristics: Angry, impulsive, curious – and realized that was all I could say about him, I figured that was a pretty good indication.
Actually, the focus on the novel really is largely on the characters, which was unfortunate for me because I simply couldn’t connect to them. I couldn’t really name my favourite other than a slightly more preferential nod toward Bree. But the others tended to fall under a giant banner of Meh from which none of the actions of plot developments could rescue them.
The world building was interesting, and is at least certainly different, though a little M. Night Shyamalan’s The Village for my taste. FULL OF TWISTS MOTHERFUCKERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!
[image]
But, having said that, at least the world building was interesting. What I did find intriguing is the number of typos. And, yes, it is an ARC so I expect they’ll all be fixed up by the time Taken goes to print. I’m just still not used to seeing that many typos in an ARC. My only real issue with the writing was how often it turned from an engaged narration to a reflective one.
And not that that’s bad because different tones represent different kinds of story telling, but it would spend a lot of time in reflective mode which involved a lot of summarizing and musing which kind of stalled it up a bit. When I would have liked to have seen these things, even briefly rather than just hear about them. Particularly at the end where it felt like the reflective tone started just a little too early and spent an inordinately long time wrapping up events that would probably have been better off not being consigned to a summary of their happenings.
Also, and this is really weird to complain about but… but… GRAY HITS A GIRL! Like just punches her in the face. Now can I mention that she was being a horrible, nasty person. And my feminist instincts would say that if you’re an equal opportunity douche, then you maybe can get an equal opportunity punch in the face. But… But… DUDE!
[image]
She does slog him a good one back, but the thing is, most women can’t hit anywhere near as hard as a man can. So hitting kind of takes it into unfair territory. I know Gray is impulsive and angry and that takes up 2 out of 3 of his personality traits – but wasn’t there a better way to show this than beating up on some girl and putting her in the medical bay?...more
A list of things I would do if I were in someone else’s body:
*Moon nunneries *Spend a day doing nekkid performance art in illegal locales *Yell atA list of things I would do if I were in someone else’s body:
*Moon nunneries *Spend a day doing nekkid performance art in illegal locales *Yell at people randomly that they can’t handle the truth *Trick various people into skinny dipping with people and then steal their clothes. *Randomly strip on trams and use the pole to dance
A list of things old people would apparently do in my body:
*Drink/Club *Sports *Sex *Bungee Jumping
If anything is representative of the generation gap – I think that is.
[image] See Dad, first I mooned the nuns while a friend took pictures. Then we uploaded the photo to fifteen different social media sites. Then we photoshopped their faces to meme rage faces, loaded it to our blog, monetized it and made a fortune from all the clicks. Now I’ll show you how I paid my own college fund by replying to popular youtube videos and turned a Republican candidate’s name into a euphemism for something you’ll ground me for describing. This is how we have fun!
This is not a bad novel – but nor is it a perfect one.
Price has strengths, which make this book an enjoyable read, but she also has marked weaknesses. It is those weaknesses, unchecked, that ruin an otherwise enjoyable tale.
The story, a futuristic dystopian Body Snatchers of sorts, is a fast paced, thrilling read. It has a great cast of characters, an interesting story-line, and a tight plot.
Price’s strengths lean toward the adrenaline-pumping action, the intriguing plot side of things. Where the novel falls apart is all related to the relationships and how her characters interact.
I’m quite sure Michael plays some pivotal role in a future book – but for this book he felt entirely unnecessary and his relationship with Carlie felt baseless and meaningless.
Similarly, Blake’s reactions and relationship with Carlie felt forced, inauthentic and completely unbelievable. Whatever spark Price wanted us to feel, just wasn’t there for me.
Perhaps the biggest factor that crippled the novel for me was in the M. Night Shyamalan like story telling. Everything was a twist!
[image]
When your villain is always one step ahead, it’s fascinating and exhilarating. When your villain is 2,568 steps ahead, it starts to look a little comical and super villainy with twisty mustache included. Or like the author is giving him inhuman powers of foresight to act as a deus ex machina.
I really, really wanted to like this novel. Despite the low rating, I would be interested in reading the sequel to see where Price takes some of the themes and storylines and to see if she improves on the weaker elements of her writing.
Until then I’ll be over here planking, splanking and plankouring.
[image] My generation makes no sense. Planks can’t parkour!...more
Shatter Me, otherwise known as: When Creative Writing Class Goes Wrong.
I am all for experimental writing, for stretching your abilities anShatter Me, otherwise known as: When Creative Writing Class Goes Wrong.
I am all for experimental writing, for stretching your abilities and trying to find fresh ways to express ideas. Occasionally you end up with genius, but most of the time you result in pretentious, awkward prose that stick in the proverbial craw of readers. This book is that writing. There are plenty of examples that I can give as evidence – but I shall stick with two relatively short ones:
“His eyes scan the silhouette of my structure and the slow motion makes my heart race. I catch the rose petals as they fall from my cheeks, as they float around the frame of my body, as they cover me in something that feels like the absence of courage.”
The absence of courage? Are you fucking kidding me? We have a word for that. I believe that is almost the dictionary definition of the word coward. I would explain what was wrong with the rest of the paragraph too but I want to keep this review to a 10,000 word thesis at max.
“I always wonder about raindrops.
I wonder about how they’re always falling down, tripping over their own feet, breaking their legs and forgetting their parachutes as they tumble right out of the sky toward an uncertain end.”
…right.
I get, artistically, that Mafi wanted to expose her readers to the mind of a girl whose sanity is fragile and questionable, and that she’s trying to show this through the prose. I don’t think the effect works or is done particularly well. I think the workings of a troubled mind would result in more than bad analogies and a bunch of numbers. Despite the fact that Juliette’s backstory and premise is interesting, we still end up with the same mundane, cookie-cutter heroine that can be seen in the vast majority of Young Adult literature. The only thing insane about this novel is how predictable and trite it is.
[image] It would not be completely unreasonable to question my sanity in regards to reading Young Adult novels.
When are popular young adult authors going to provide more to the characterization of their main protagonists than: Irresistible, unique outsider, in love with a guy?
Can’t male protagonists have other qualities than: in love with main character, hot, tragic backstory to illicit excessive brooding?
The entire premise of Shatter Me promised something different and new. Yet we still end up with the same bland old fare.
The plot and pacing is awkward and cumbersome. Even when situations are supposed to be tense, there is a sense of boredom and predictability. I feel sad that this is yet again, another disappointing dystopian Young Adult novel that will join its sisters in the Mediocre Hall of I Can’t Be Stuffed.
But, if you do decide to visit, at least you get a free shirt!
[image]
One last thing (view spoiler)[– the ending? That pissed me off the most! Xavier’s school for Mutants in Rebellion of the Oppressive Dystopian Régime? FML! And the suit, using that word loosely, that they provide for her at the end? Yeah, that’s great…
[image]
Doesn’t EVERY woman look at this suit and just say to themselves, “Yes! I can’t wait to wear this! This doesn’t objectify me as a woman, degrade me as a human being and make an embarrassment out of everyone involved. Not. At. All.
So Allie is an orphaned teenager in a dystopian fantasy where people are enslaved by vampire masters. Then she gets turned into a vampire and strSo Allie is an orphaned teenager in a dystopian fantasy where people are enslaved by vampire masters. Then she gets turned into a vampire and struggles with the morality of being a monster.
[image]
So at first I was like.
[image]
But then she was like.
[image] A comparable representation on the scale of awesomeness - not a literal depiction.
And then I was like.
[image]
Right away from the beginning of the novel Allie was pretty ass kicking.
And then Kanin the vampire showed up and I was like.
[image] Yeah, sure. Whatevs.
But then he was like.
[image]
And then I was like.
[image]
So then Allie goes trekking through the woods and I’m like.
[image]
And then she meets up Zeke and I was like.
[image]
Then Zeke is like ewwww Vampires suck and I was like.
[image]
Then stuff with them happened and I was like.
[image]
So then I was worried about the writing since I’d been on the fence about The Iron Fey. But then Kagawa did a lot of:
[image]
And I was like.
[image]
And then Stephanie said the plot was slow, and I was like.
I have said this before and I’ll say it again. I have no problem with an implausible story vehicle. As long as the ride is good and it relates a mI have said this before and I’ll say it again. I have no problem with an implausible story vehicle. As long as the ride is good and it relates a moral or philosophical value.
But where the line is drawn is when the world isn’t consistent and in the confines of that world, things don’t make sense.
That’s my limit. That’s when I start getting frustrated and annoyed. And it’s not because an author tried something new, okay? Lauren Oliver is AMAZING. She is a great author who is erudite and verbose and interesting to listen to. I’ve seen her speak live and frankly to an audience and her ability to relate to them and express herself is fantastic.
But this novel still didn’t work for me. Delirium, unfortunately, failed for me. Which is saddening, because Lauren Oliver is a good author and I know, with Delirium, she was reaching out and trying something different. I just wish it had been more successful.
Now, here’s where it all buggered up:
1. Inconsistent world building.
The main protagonist says the word “love” twice. Once in conversation and the second time mentally. Love is a concept that’s stigmatized to such an extreme degree that even the whispered word “sympathizer” is verboten. Yet the main protagonist SAYS it to her aunt – that she LOVES children. It just doesn’t make sense. And she’s wandering around with Alex and making out with him in public like the consequence for that is a slap on the wrist. Look, she lives in a highly autocratic world where even a hint of the disease will land you in prison – and she makes out with her boyfriend in the middle of public places.
2. Characterization.
I loved the characterization of Lena. I thought it was accurate and realistic. It’s the characterization of Alex that left me hollow and empty. He felt like a place-holder. Simply a textbook demonstration of today’s YA expectations of a love interest. Devoted, stalkerish, sad back story. Oliver’s love interest in Before I Fall was so much more dynamic even though he comprised a relatively small part in the story. Alex felt like a definition of desirable love interest instead of actually being a person Lena fell in love with.
3. Writing.
I never thought I’d say this because, in my mind, Oliver is – and always will be – a fantastic writer. But there were aspects of the writing in this book that were obvious, cliche and simplistic. For example, Lena is emotionally stunted but it’s an obvious parallel. Whenever she feels intense emotion she blames it on the air conditioning or weather etc. She is the result of a childhood of emotional detachment – but not really – and this is where it gets personal for me.
Because, if you don’t religiously read my reviews, then you wouldn’t know that my son was almost diagnosed with Attachment Disorder. Because when my first son was born, I was one of those weird religious people that ascribed to books like Baby Wise, etc. For the first six months of his life, he barely looked at me in the eye. Attachment disorder babies are those that, from their infancy, do not experience consistent, loving care. They are children that learn, early on, that they are not truly loved and this results in a wide swath of behavioral and emotional problems.
Lena is the result of a childhood that had a mother who loves her and responded accordingly to her needs, but other children in the society didn’t receive this – something that I felt was a huge cope-out. What about the characterization of a person who wasn’t loved? Who was a product of the system? I feel like this wasn’t examined enough – wasn’t inspected enough. Like it was handled by someone who just assumed that children would still reflect some modicum of normality after being raised in a world where they aren’t being lovingly raised by people properly attached to them. And the assumption that you can have attachment without love – it’s mind boggling because I kind of feel like she was out of her depth on this one.
It’s not Oliver’s fault. But what I wanted from this is a deeper understanding of society from the point of view of someone willing to delve into a harder, grittier, more realistic story. Someone willing to ask the tough questions and write the tough characterization. Instead the novel glosses over a lot of those things and thus felt cheap and shallow.
Okay, you know that guy, THAT guy. The one so insanely hot that any flaws, personality issues or intellectual deficiencies pale in comparison to his sOkay, you know that guy, THAT guy. The one so insanely hot that any flaws, personality issues or intellectual deficiencies pale in comparison to his smoldering sex appeal.
[image] And you know how he looks a lot like Ryan Reynolds...
This is how I feel about this book.
I will be the first to admit that it is not a perfect novel and rightly so, I should only give it four stars. The problem is that I just can't help myself. It has its issues. Whoever edited it did an appalling job. There were a couple of aspects of the story that were borderline silly. Not to mention that this novel could have been improved with richer, more tactile descriptions. Lastly, I just know that some readers are going to struggle with being tossed into the deep end on the story-telling side of things and struggle to keep up with this new and unfamiliar world.
But I don't fucking care.
This book is a glorious, shirtless Ryan Reynolds to me and I don't care if he does corny movies, can't act and is a little strange. HAVE YOU SEEN THAT SIX-PACK?!
[image] In case you missed the first one
Seriously, he could sacrifice babies as part of his religion, he could have single-handedly caused the extinction of every cute animal on the planet, he could like NICKELBACK and I would still be attracted to him!
So I don't care about the issues mentioned above regarding Burn Bright. This book is a wet-dream for any teenage emo. Retra escapes from her morally rigid home to find her runaway brother on the party island of Ixion. There are basically no rules on Ixion except for one: When you get too old, the party's over and nobody really knows what they do to you then.
Retra causes some upset with the "Ripers" (the people in charge of Ixion) and with the strange Night Creatures who lurk in the dark. At first Retra, a morally uptight shut-in, is an outcast among the wild youth whose only purpose in life is the freedom to party. However, when she becomes a catalyst for change on Ixion, she begins to unlock its secrets and form strong bonds of friendship with others.
This book is dark, gothic and mostly original. It stands out amongst a sea of interchangeable paranormal YA. It's sexy, it's mysterious and very readable. It's everything Fallen and its ilk wanted to be and failed miserably at.
After a great deal of reflection, I can't shake off the fondness I had for this novel. For me it had a deep, rich, intoxicating quality that I don't oAfter a great deal of reflection, I can't shake off the fondness I had for this novel. For me it had a deep, rich, intoxicating quality that I don't often read in Young Adult novels and has become an increasing rarity for me.
Many reviews make a deal of the problems associated with the implausible premise. If you think that’s going to bother you then you’re best to steer clear of this one. As for me, unbelievable characters or plot holes will ruin my reading experience but I’ve never necessarily been deterred by an implausible story vehicles so long as it gave me a good ride (TWSS). As with Unwind, I prefer to see the value of the idea fulfilled than to wonder over how likely, or unlikely it is.
However, Unwind’s premise was always very clearly tied to its themes and intentions which didn’t always feel as such with Withered. I found it difficult to determine what the main themes of Withered actually were. The value of freedom glimpsed from a gilded cage? The systematic oppression of women when society is placed under stress? The insidious nature of Stockholm syndrome?
Despite the ambiguity of the above, Wither is very readable, complete with unsettling atmosphere, interesting, relatable characters and a compelling plot. I wonder at the characterization of Linden, though, and it worries me. Raise The Red Lantern depicted this setting best, for me, by not even showing the husband on screen.
It strained credibility that he could be so naïve, so blind to the world around him and, at times, felt weak to not portray him as a more realistic character. Realistically, he would have been a character who purchased three girls from slave traders and, with full knowledge and forethought, forced them to marry him.
Perhaps that is the crux of the issue. Despite Rhine’s seeming pragmatism, there was a romanticizing, idealic undertone that couldn’t be ignored. Where the bad people are irredeemably bad and the good are great and we all know which side of that line they’re on. Whether black or white. Still, I can’t complain really. I thought every character was reasonably complex and interesting – even if I would have preferred to read this story with a different type of Linden, just to see a more bold stance by the author.
I think DeStefano’s strong stylistic abilities and natural story telling flare saved this for me. Parts of me wanted it to be a grittier, rawer read, but the other half wasn’t sure my blood pressure would take it.
So if you're looking for an interesting, thought-provoking YA Dystopian, give this a try!
See how happy, how healthy, how loving they are. ImaginSee this family?
[image]
Or this family?
[image]
Take a good long hard look at all of their faces.
See how happy, how healthy, how loving they are. Imagine you've known them your entire life and that you love each one more than life itself.
Now imagine if you were one of the people in that photograph with them.
Now imagine that I told you and all those other people standing and smiling with you that I was going to kill you all so that I could go for a trip to the beach...
Okay, now you know the basic plot of The Forest of Hands and Teeth.
I've mentioned before that I have a love/hate relationship with zombies. On one hand, I love reading zombie books and watching zombie movies. On the other I will then spend two weeks wide awake clutching a baseball bat while waiting for the shuffle of feet and the moans of the undead outside my bedroom door.
[image] I actually have something like this in my house...
I love the chase as things fall a part and slowly people are picked off one by one.
That's the thing that's almost a constant in the Zombie genre - is the psychological breakdown of the group. Usually in a zombie group, you'll find the differing personalities and human flaws are what slowly kills the group - not so much the zombies.
The difference between most of the zombie media, and this book, is that usually you watch things unfold from the sole sane person who is trying to keep all the crazies from turning themselves into meat patties and throwing themselves to the horde.
In this story you get to watch the gradual mental breakdown of a woman until she's willing to sacrifice anything and anyone just to live out a damn fantasy.
Okay, so I know the point of it is that there are dreams and dreams are important like freedom is important and you must always follow your dreams blah de blah blah!
Sorry, I'm a very pragmatic person.
Kill zombies first, fulfill life long dream of of seeing ocean second.
Yet, despite my utter hatred of the main character by the time I finished this novel, I still can't give it less than five stars.
I can't give it less than five stars because I spent most of this book gripping the bed covers in suspense. The characters were all great, realistic and interesting. Mary's decent into madness was COMPLETELY understandable and very well documented and this book was very well written and paced very well.
Then, of course, I had the satisfaction of knowing that if it had been me - I totally could have survived better than them. And that, my friends, is the biggest satisfaction you can get out of the zombie genre.
Oh yeah, baby.
My Zombie Plan totally beats the crap out of their Zombie plan.
What were you doing when you were 16? Checking your boobs each morning to see if the Boob Fairy had paid you a visiThis review has spoilers!
Bitches...
What were you doing when you were 16? Checking your boobs each morning to see if the Boob Fairy had paid you a visit? Sneaking out of the house to the park down the street where you and your six friends would share a single can of beer and pretend you're drunk? Making out? Homework? Fighting with your parents? Watching scary movies?
Katniss is sixteen years old and she's been in two Hunger Games, fighting against twenty-odd opponents to the death. Then she becomes the symbol of the rebel leadership and helps overthrow an evil empire before she can legally drink.
So I suppose it's really ridiculous of anyone to expect her capable of then going on to be president of this new world after everything she's been through. Nobody would be evil enough to force that on her considering her fragile mental state...
Except me.
[image]
Maleficent and I go way back...
But this is fantasy, right, it's not like children or teenagers are really capable of this much! It would be totally unrealistic of me to expect much more of Katniss considering all she's done...
Well, except for the cute little nine-year-old Htoo twins who lived in the Karen National Rebel camp when the enemy came and all the soldiers ran away leaving their AK-47's. These two nine-year-olds thought it'd be a hoot to pick up a few guns and hold off the entire invading Burmese army... successfully.
And that would be a really cute story except for the fact that they went on to create their own army who were convinced that these two little chain-smokin' tykes had magical powers and were invincible.
But I mean, they're a fluke! It's not like any other kids did great things. Well, unless you're counting Iqbal Masih who was made a slave at the age of five and chained to his loom for twelve hours a day. Still, the little tyke managed to escape when he was ten so he only had to endure the first half of his life with unspeakable cruelty and torturous living conditions that left him unable to grow.
Luckily, when he got out he ran off into the sunset and lived happily ever after. *Kat is interrupted by whispering* Wait - what? He didn't? *More whispering* He joined the Bonded Labor Liberation Front of Pakistan as their spokesperson, going RIGHT back into the slave trade that had abused and tormented him for five years so that he could rescue another three THOUSAND children from slavery?
Shit.
[image] Get off the computer you lazy little cow and go rescue some child slaves!
Oh and by the way, he only stopped after two years because he'd affected carpet manufacturing so much that carpet export in those years dropped by $200,000,000 and he was assasinated in 1995 for being too damn awesome.
At 12 years old my greatest achievement was not killing myself while I shaved my legs!
I wasn't going to mention St Joan of Arc because that comparison would be a little too easy but since I have time I'll just quietly mutter that she helped lead France to a number of tactical defeats in the Hundred Year's War, crowned a King and was Burned as a witch before she was nineteen years old.
But, no, it's too much to ask that Katniss step up into a role like that! After all, she had PTSD and she was traumatized. It would be evil for any adult to keep her on retainer as a figurehead to inspire the people. Which, by the way, if I were an adult in power in this particular world - I would totally do.
But Katniss isn't the only one I'd keep to do my bidding. I'd keep Peeta around too. Occasionally, I'd pull them out of their little therapy/rejuvination bubble to do short propos on how the new unified nation was moving forward in positive steps and how everything was improving.
And since I am only moderately evil and am actually very fond of Katniss and Peeta, I find the fact that they were allowed to go home and live out their quiet little lives peacefully to be very unrealistic. In fact, it was the only really unrealistic thing in this novel and let's remember that I'm including genetically altered mutts and beams that can melt your skin off on that list!
So she did a little thing like shooting President Coin. Let's be realistic. Until a few days earlier, the Capitol didn't even know who President Coin was and every single district apart from 13 probably had never seen her. She has the personality of a dead fish left on hot concrete for three days that had been shat on - and the charisma to match! I doubt many of the residents of district 13 even held any great love for her! Most of the population of Panem was probably going to immediately assume that President Coin somehow had it coming. After all, if Katniss shoots you - you probably did something bad. Something very, very bad!
The election of Paynor was just ridiculous and unrealistic. You have a nation so fractured that it's fourteen different districts have never cooperated or worked or even really MET each other. Plus the fact that they're in economic collapse and dealing with the fallout of a costly war.
I just can't bring myself to believe that they wouldn't drug Katniss up, put her smiling face on stage and have some kind of deciding power working behind closed doors while Katniss waved happily to the smiling faces and kissed babies.
It reminds me of that scene in Ender's Game when Ender is reminiscing about how he's just won the war as one of the greatest generals of recent history and suddenly, in the clean up effort, he's become useless because the adults don't think that the same leadership and skills it requires to lead an army, could also be useful to rebuild a world.
But Katniss and Peeta have the perfect matching set of skills to help put the world back together and they already have the love and trust of most of the population! I'm not saying they'd want to do it. I'm saying I doubt, realistically, that they'd have a choice in the matter.
Now, apart from the ending - which I didn't mind, just was baffled by - I loved and adored this book.
Peeta's hijacking was devestating, Katniss' mental breakdown was harrowing. Finnick! *cries* and I'd really held out that maybe somehow Cinna had survived and been kept as a prisoner like Peeta - but alas, no! And everytime he was mentioned in the costuming etc I wanted to cry.
The battles, the politics, it was all such an amazing novel and the end to an amazing series. I'm honestly in love with Suzanne Collins because she's such a brave writer. She's not scared to go to dark places and she's not scared to scar her characters up a bit. She's happy to take the audience out of their comfort zone and I LOVE that about her.
Catching Fire and Mockingjay could never match the perfect pacing and brilliant plot of The Hunger Games but they're still amazing books full of suspense, action, great characterization and thoughtful dialogue. They reflect circumspectly on our society as Collin's asks us to see ourselves through the eyes of Katniss.
I've heard a little bit of mumbling about the relationship between Peeta and Katniss. It's interesting to bring up because I've heard the concept that Katniss doesn't deserve Peeta a lot. Why? Is she as patient, devoted and understanding of Peeta and he is of her? Absolutely not. Katniss regularly fails at patient and kind. I'd also highly doubt that this would come of any shock to Peeta. He didn't fall in love with her not knowing who she was. He's watched her for years and he has ALWAYS been the one to feel more deeply, act unselfishly in her favor and to give more of himself. That's who they are as a couple. Katniss on the other hand, I'm relieved to say, is a female character who isn't hung up on emotions and the postures of love. She loves Peeta enough to make herself sick and crazy at the thought of what's happening to him - but she's also a functional, strong person who has a job to do. She's not like Bella who falls to pieces when Edward leaves. She can't afford to and she's never been one to sit around and obsess over how perfect Peeta's hair is or comment on his body like it's a marble statue.
I guess what I'm saying is that if Peeta feels like he deserves Katniss and vice versa, then who am I to argue?
So whilst I didn't satisfactorily buy the ending, I really loved this book and highly recommend this series - even if I had to out myeslf as an evil, plotting witch with political aspirations of taking over the world to do it!
*Can I also just add that Katniss' mother is the saddest excuse for a human being - in reality, she's a sack of shit who should never have had children. I can't think of more horrible things to call her right now because I'm so angry at her! Gah!...more
Kat Kennedy
>
Books:
oppressive-dystopian-regime
(18)
Loading...
