The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau: Review

Summary (via Goodreads): Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Isn’t that what they say? But how close is too close when they may be one in the same? The Seven Stages War left much of the planet a charred wasteland. The future belongs to the next generation’s chosen few who must rebuild it. But to enter this elite group, candidates must first pass The Testing—their one chance at a college education and a rewarding career. Cia Vale is honored to be chosen as a Testing candidate; eager to prove her worthiness as a University student and future leader of the United Commonwealth. But on the eve of her departure, her father’s advice hints at a darker side to her upcoming studies--trust no one. But surely she can trust Tomas, her handsome childhood friend who offers an alliance? Tomas, who seems to care more about her with the passing of every grueling (and deadly) day of the Testing. To survive, Cia must choose: love without truth or life without trust.

Review: This book was A LOT like the Hunger Games. Like so much so that I would find myself anticipating things that happened in THG to happen in The Testing. 

Now, the premise was good. The idea of having the smart kids go through a testing - that sounds pretty cool, very epic. However, the writing was just trying to be like The Hunger Games way too much. For the majority of the time, Cia was in the wilderness (how does that judge anything?) and she was going through some of the very same things that Katniss went through in the arena. 

Other than that - Cia was annoying. Well, not necessarily annoying, but she didn't really have any strong character. She was selfless and caring, she wanted everyone to live, got everything handed to her, passed on all the tests, and figured out all the strategies her fellow Testers were throwing her way. Nothing bad really happened to her. I have no idea what was happening with Tomas. I never trusted him and it irritated me so much when Cia did, even falling in love with him. At the end...ugh, the end. Thankfully, the last cliffhanger gives me some hope for the second book. Will was my favorite character and all of the crazy stuff that happened in this book mostly belonged to him. Other than that, I didn't really care about the other characters in the book. There were lots of little characters that floated in and out of the book. They were trying to be likable so we felt bad when they were eliminated/died but that didn't really work either. 

Overall - this plot seriously would have been better written without trying to be like the Hunger Games. It was entertaining and constantly moving, but the characters and the world could have been developed a whole lot more. 

3/5 stars 

Beautiful Creatures Movie Review

Rating: 3/5 stars

I have never read these books before, I've tried many times though. Before I wanted to keep pushing with them, I decided to try out the movie. This film stars Alden Eidenreich as Ethan and Alice Englert as Lena, the main two characters in the story. 

The movie focuses on Lena who is a Caster (aka witch) and is approaching the day when her powers will be claimed for the light or the dark, a process that only female Casters go through (males can chose). Ethan is going through the process of helping her, as well as helping Lena figure out a curse that dates back since the Civil War. It entwines their two destinies as the cast of characters all come to life. The side characters are all well developed, to varying degrees. Macon was okay, but I didn't feel emotion towards him. Ridley was very drawing, as was Seraphine. 

The filming was very good, all the cinematography and contrasting of lights. The soundtrack was also good, but sometimes it would drown out the scene instead. The cast all delivered their lines very well and worked with the characters, but the script was lacking something. Some parts were a little confusing and left the viewer to create their own background for it. 

Overall, the film was okay. I would not watch it again, but it sold me on the overall idea of the books. I loved the Southern aspects and parts to it, which I really found adorable. The characters were friendly and witty; Ethan stole the show. If you have some extra time, this would be a good movie, or if you are having a night with friends. 

The Memory of After by Lenore Appelhans: Book Review

Summary (via Goodreads): In this gripping exploration of a futuristic afterlife, a teen discovers that death is just the beginning.

Since her untimely death the day before her eighteenth birthday, Felicia Ward has been trapped in Level 2, a stark white afterlife located between our world and the next. Along with her fellow drones, Felicia passes the endless hours reliving memories of her time on Earth and mourning what she’s lost-family, friends, and Neil, the boy she loved.

Then a girl in a neighboring chamber is found dead, and nobody but Felicia recalls that she existed in the first place. When Julian-a dangerously charming guy Felicia knew in life-comes to offer Felicia a way out, Felicia learns the truth: If she joins the rebellion to overthrow the Morati, the angel guardians of Level 2, she can be with Neil again.

Suspended between Heaven and Earth, Felicia finds herself at the center of an age-old struggle between good and evil. As memories from her life come back to haunt her, and as the Morati hunt her down, Felicia will discover it’s not just her own redemption at stake… but the salvation of all mankind.

Review: This book was fun. And slightly cool in a thought provoking way. It was specifically mind blowingly-epic. The descriptions of the world were intense and cool, Appelhans put a lot of thought into their creation. The characters could have developed a little bit more, but overall they did a good job with transitioning. 

My favorite part were the flashbacks in the memory files to Felicia's days on Earth. Her parents are diplomats and she lives an incredible and heartbreaking life. They all reveal parts of her life that better explain her attachment to certain people in the afterlife or why she works so hard to save certain people. They aren't just randomly picked, but they are all chosen as she comes to term with each of them, the purpose of Level 2. 

This book is actually an angel book, which I did not expect from the cover and title. It just didn't seem that this one would be about angels and a almost heaven like afterlife experience. However, there are various different classes of angels that are introduced, including the bad angels that are so often read about.

Level 2 was a fun and quick read and I suggest it to any one looking for exactly that. Don't expect anything more, but I would suggest it to those of you who have time.

Rating: 4/5 stars

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare: Book Review

Summary (via Goodreads): Danger and betrayal, secrets and enchantment in the breathtaking conclusion to the Infernal Devices trilogy. Tessa Gray should be happy – aren't all brides happy? Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute. 
A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan. He needs Tessa. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her. 

Review: The last book in the Infernal Devices series...and the last book with Tessa, Will, and Jem. For me, this book was a huge trial in how City of Heavenly Fire (the last book in the Mortal Instruments, releasing May 2014) would turn out. What kind of endings was Clare prone too? 

With this book, I found the disappearance of Tessa most disappointing. It was almost as if she had turned into Clary. Tessa was a mellow, level headed, sensible girl who fit in well with her time period. She was the character that I related to the most and was very fun to read about. However, in this book, she became rash and sassy, too much like Clary from the Mortal Instruments. Her character had a total shift and lack of development that was really upsetting in the last book. 

Will or Jem? Well, in all honesty, this didn't really close well either. Some might say that she preserved both of their good character, but the ending was just too sappy for me. She didn't really pick either, which really compromised both of their feelings. Much like Magnus, another immortal character, I expected her to have one person who she really loved, not too. It destroyed the reputation of either being a true love.

And as for our side characters, they were all pushed together in an insta-love mess. You know, characters can be single throughout an entire series. It's a thing that can happen. 

This book was also much too long. It would have packed a bigger punch like the first two if it had wrapped up quickly and beautifully. However, the relationships and battles dragged out for too long without much to offer when they were all wrapped up. Including the epilogue. I'm probably the only person who didn't like the way it ended, but I did enjoy at least having the little bit of closure that we got from all our characters. 

Did you like anything? Yes, yes I did. Namely MAGNUS and HENRY!! Favorites in the entire series. This book definitely had some things that kept me reading but it was altogether just not complete by the end. 

Rating: 4/5 stars

December To Be Read

Twelve books for this month! I have a nice long winter break for plenty of reading. Here's what I picked!

 Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare - The last in the Infernal Devices. I think I'm ready.

 Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card - With the recent movie release, I think this is something I have been missing out on.

 Angelfall by Susan Ee - This book has been getting a lot of praise, so I am interested to see if it lives up to the hype.

 Shell Game by Ridley Pearson - I haven't been reading this series for a while and I want to get back up with this world.

 Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake - The Cover. Is. Gorgeous.

 The Hallowed Ones by Laura Bickle - I don't even know what this is about. But it looks cool.

 The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider - I felt like I needed some happiness after the long string of darkness.

 Beneath the Glitter by Elle & Blair Fowler - More glitter.

 Something Strange and Deadly by Susan Dennard - Zombies!

 Marked by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast - I bought this book, so I should probably read it. I hate having books I haven't read just sitting there.

 Masque of the Red Death by Bethany Griffin - It's named the same as my favorite Edgar Allen Poe story, so duh, must read!

 The Eye of Minds by James Dashner - Another one from James Dashner. I loved the Maze Runner.

That's the 12! What will you be reading?

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness: Book Review

Rating: 4/5 Stars

Summary (via Goodreads): Todd Hewitt is the only boy in a town of men. Ever since the settlers were infected with the Noise germ, Todd can hear everything the men think, and they hear everything he thinks. Todd is just a month away from becoming a man, but in the midst of the cacophony, he knows that the town is hiding something from him — something so awful Todd is forced to flee with only his dog, whose simple, loyal voice he hears too. With hostile men from the town in pursuit, the two stumble upon a strange and eerily silent creature: a girl. Who is she? Why wasn't she killed by the germ like all the females on New World? Propelled by Todd's gritty narration, readers are in for a white-knuckle journey in which a boy on the cusp of manhood must unlearn everything he knows in order to figure out who he truly is.

This book was insanely good and epic. I highly suggest it for fans of the action packed series like Divergent or Hunger Games. This was definitely an action book - you can tell that from the summary - but it wasn't just a book that had lots of fighting, nor did it glorify the fights that they certainly did encounter. 

The main point of this book was against 1) the sharing of information, especially in a public way (*hint* facebook *hint*). The idea of the Noise is so that everyone can hear everything you do, say, think, see. It's pretty terrifying and kind of like a constant refreshing Twitter, except you can't control it. Yes, there are ways to block it out for a small amount of time, but it's always there. And that's a pretty scary concept to deal with. The next major point was against violence. Yes, a book with the word 'knife' in the title is super against violence. The main portion of the second half was spent dealing with Todd's internal conflict between killing and not. This is ramped up by the presense of Aaron, a 'preacher,' who pushes him toward thinking more critically about becoming a killer. The knife is such a metaphor and the title really pushes you to think that way. Brilliant title naming.

Todd is such a lovable character and maybe that's because you know what he's thinking all the time. He's not warm or fuzzy exactly, because of the larger focus on the world and action, but he makes good and bad decisions. He's a human and therefore is both loved and hated. Manchee, his dog, is super adorable. Unlike most talking animals, he actually makes sense (think the dog from the Disney movie Up). Viola is one of the strongest female characters in the book (wait ---the only female character) and she stands up for herself while keeping Todd rooted toward his goal. This is really an epic trio to follow around New World. 

Which let's talk about this world, shall we?

New World's colonies are all different and unique, like the differences between the states in the US. Prentisstown is definitely the worst and it may not seem that way until the end. The world is so built up and important to everything the character's do. It's a swampy disaster, a jungle, a waterfall. The descriptions are beautiful, yet creepy, as they travel along to experience the different ways the various settlements are dealing with the Noise. There is a lot of fear in every one of these places, but each tries to work its way around it. Some do very well at this, while others are little...um....freaky. 

So why the four stars? Because pages 300-400 were needless and just made the book a whole lot longer. These could easily have been taken out and the two plot points inserted in another, hopefully shorter, way. So that's why the four stars. I have to start getting harsher here! 

That's it! Do read this book, I highly suggest it. The writing style (very Mark Twain-esque) can take a while to get used to, but it just adds a new layer. 

Have fun with your next read! 

Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick Review

This book is one of my favorite books of this year - wait - life. I adored this book because it was truthful and honest. 

The main character is Leonard Peacock, who decides on his birthday, to kill his 'friend' and then himself. The entire premise is scary and terrifying, but so intriguing. The side characters are very important, as before he kills himself, he gives four presents to the four people he cares about. His old neighbor, Walt, made me cry during their last scene together. The violin player he listened to every day after school. The girl that he liked, but didn't like him back. His Holocaust teacher. All of them reacted in very different ways to the gifts, which also made them seem different as people. Another important thing is that they represent other ways that people could be prejudiced against - dealing with addictions, race, religion, and sexual orientation. The characters really make this book. 

The premise is both heartbreaking and intriguing. Matthew Quick handles this amazingly and really gets into the head of a person who is really dealing with these types of situations. It is extremely eye opening. 

Please read this book. It is amazing. Just do it. It will probably change your life. 

5/5 stars

Perfect Ruin by Lauren DeStefano Review

 Summary (from Goodreads): On Internment, the floating island in the clouds where 16-year-old Morgan Stockhour lives, getting too close to the edge can lead to madness. Even though Morgan's older brother, Lex, was a Jumper, Morgan vows never to end up like him. She tries her best not to mind that her life is orderly and boring, and if she ever wonders about the ground, and why it is forbidden, she takes solace in best friend Pen and her betrothed, Basil.

Then a murder, the first in a generation, rocks the city. With whispers swirling and fear on the wind, Morgan can no longer stop herself from investigating, especially when she meets Judas. He is the boy being blamed for the murder — betrothed to the victim — but Morgan is convinced of his innocence. Secrets lay at the heart of Internment, but nothing can prepare Morgan for what she will find — or who she will lose.

Review:

And just when you thought the dystopian genre had been exhausted, Lauren DeStefano comes up with this gem. Perfect Ruin is the firs book in the Internment Chronicles, a new trilogy. Her first, the Chemical Garden books, were terrible. However, I decided to give her books another chance because the summary was so intriguing. 

Internment is a city in the sky, characterized by its love of trains, extreme monarchy, and careful population control. People can also jump off the city in the sky, called jumpers, who are trying to kill themselves. Morgan's brother, Lex, is one of these. The book kicks off when Daphne, a fellow classmate, is killed in a city supposedly without problems. This leads to a chain of crimes in the city. 

Morgan is one of the best female characters. She isn't strong like Tris or Katniss. She is honestly a normal girl reacting in the same way I would (like a better version of Clary). Her best friend, Pen, would be amazing to have as a best friend. She is extremely funny and witty, the perfect comparison to Morgan. Basil is adorable and my new fictional boyfriend. Thomas and Pen were also very cute together, in a different way.

The book is written beautifully and all the pictures of the world are so drawn out. It is perfect for those looking for a fast paced read, while not necessarily action. Love, love, loved this book. Highly suggest. 

5/5 stars

Allegiant by Veronica Roth Review

If you have not read Insurgent, do not read this post! I do suggest this series though.

When I first ended the book, I thought this was the worst ending that anyone could come up with. I was angry, just about ready to throw the series to the wayside. I hated the book, but it was probably just being emotionally drained. After rereading the majority of it, I am now emotionally stable enough to write a coherent review. Not a good one, just a little bit less scathing. 

Plot: I highly disagreed with the way this one turned out. Honestly, I don't even think it was very realistic. I knew after reading Insurgent that Veronica Roth had written herself into a corner, but I still hoped that she would pull herself through. Not exactly. This book missed the crazy action we normally love and the plot moved slowly. It wasn't enjoyable or believable and that harmed the book as a whole. 

Characters: The dual povs also hurt this book. Four was whiny and had no self confidence. He made rash decisions and totally stepped outside of his character. Tris should have had the entire perspective, or maybe Caleb, as Veronica mentioned in an interview. Four's perspective just hurt the book because his chapters were boring. I really feel in love with Caleb and Cara, who turned out to be my favorite characters and Christina remained epic as usual. Our new characters were very off-putting and easy to see through, which is probably needed to develop them in one book. I also really liked the back story we received with Tris' mom. 

Writing: Veronica did not disappoint. It was beautifully written, with every sentence making a punch. Towards the end, it did get a little preachy as Four said lots of pointless things for twenty pages, but overall, it was still very good. 

Message: After initially reading this, I could find none. From this series, it lacked the one thing I though it needed to become a major hit that would withstand time. I could not find an essential meaning. At the end of this book, a major plot point does reveal something major that ties the book together well, while not necessarily the best. 

Rating: 2/5 Stars

October Wrap Up and Haul

October is at a close, and with it, the books that I have read. Let's check out my TBR and compare what actually happened.

• Allegiant by Veronica Roth   review coming soon
• House of Hades by Rick Riordan review
• Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare review coming soon
• Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell review
• Perfect Ruin by Lauren DeStefano

Four out of five, not bad! Here are the six books I purchased this month:




Lots of dark books! Not sure when I'll read the last four, but I am excited for them each. Let me know if you've read any in the comments below.

And that's October. Hope you had a wonderful month!

November To Be Read

It's November and that means a new to be read list, bigger than October! I've picked out ten books for me to (hopefully) read during this month. Let's see my picks, shall we?

 Reboot by Amy Tintera. This book is sure to be action-packed and a quick read, perfect for the ever hectic month I'll be having (did I mention NaNoWriMo?)

 Never Fade by Alexandra Bracken. I'm a little hesitant with this one because Darkest Minds was so heartbreaking and also long, but the reviews have been fantastic.

 Level 2 by Lenore Appelhans. I'm a little nervous for this one because of the negative reviews, but it's been on my shelf forever.

 The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness. THE COVER, man. The cover.

 Frostbite by Richelle Mead. Not sure why I'm so prepared for the second Vampire Academy book because I didn't like the first one. Maybe it's the movie?

 Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick. I'm so anxious to read this...EEP!

 Champion by Marie Lu. I've loved the Legend trilogy so far, so let's hope this one is as epic as the last two.

 Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins. This is, of course, a re-read as I prepare myself for the movie. *deep breaths*

 The Carrie Diaries by Candace Bushnell. After all this action, I should probably have a fun read to let my mind relax and I love the TV show.

 The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. As a Native American myself, I'm excited for this look from another person's perspective. It sounds amazingly brilliant.

That's it! I'll post reviews as I go. Wish me luck. :)

Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare Review

Rating: 4/5 Stars
If you have not read Clockwork Angel, the first book in this trilogy, this review still has spoilers! If you have not read Clockwork Prince, you will be safe.

Overall, I thought this book was slow. Until the last 100 pages or so kicked in. It seemed like we spent a whole lot of time doing just about nothing, including multiple failed attempts to find Mortmain. Charlotte has been set up to find Mortmain, or she will lose the Institute, so you would think that is the major priority in this book.

Except, no, not really.

During this book, we get the "conclusion" of the love triangle. Throughout the failed attempts, Tessa is accompanied on her missions by either Jem or Will and stuff happens. Mostly in carriages and under balconies and pretty much everywhere. This book is mainly Tessa's decision between the two as they are finally put under equal light. In the end, she does make a decision, even though it may not be right for her. This part is the only thing that really grabs readers, until the main chunk of action at the end.

There is some exciting stuff going on with London, as well as the expansion of Will's backstory which was very intriguing. We also got some more of Magnus Bane, whom I am always a fan of, but not so much Camille, who I am also a fan of. Jessamine's character is also expanded upon more, but you have to wait until the end to see that story line really unfold. Sophie also gets more book time with a new love interest :).

So, in essence, the book is like a Clockwork Angel - part 2, which I guess it should be considering it's a sequel. I wouldn't say it suffered sequel syndrome, but it definitely had some side effects.

I highly suggest this series (at least what I've read of it) and it is MUCH better than the Mortal Instruments. I will probably not get around to Clockwork Princess for a while, maybe January? Late December? Hopefully this book packs more of a punch. It certainly has room for it.

NaNoWriMo Discussion

It's almost November, meaning the National November Writing Month is almost upon us! This is my first official year participating (last year I just watched every one else and wrote a paragraph...) and I'm almost ready. Let's chat about what I plan to write. 

Title: Purple 

Why? Mostly because you'll see (one day) and I'm a huge fan of mysterious, one word titles. 

Genre: Young Adult Sci-Fi

Why? I'm most experienced in reading young adult and sci-fi, so it fits naturally. 

Synopsis in 5 Words: Weapon Fights in Techno Game

Like Hunger Games? No. Definitely not. No children deaths, no nature aspect, no disturbing outside violence. 

Anything else? My friends have described it as an anti-dystopia, so there's that. Also, I'm doing something cool with colors. 

I'll be doing weekly process updates or you can follow my profile page here.

Good luck!

House of Hades by Rick Riordan Review

Naturally, if you have not read up to Mark of Athena, do not read this post! Avoid spoilers, my friends. 

P.S. I posted this a while ago and it didn't publish. #epicfail 

Plot: Being a Rick Riordan book, we expect certain things from the plot. Tons of action, witty lines, and a heaping of Greek mythology to accompany it all. And he certainly delivers. While most of us were excited for the major epicness probably contained in Tartarus, this was the part I found lacking the most. We didn't get very many fight scenes, more conquering the evils with our brain power. So for that, I am taking off half a star. IT'S TARTARUS, YOU CAN'T JUST TAKE PEOPLE OUT WITH WORDS. Above ground, Frank and Piper just killed it with the destruction of villains. Congrats dudes. 

Characters: So much development I can't even (except for the minor cases of Percy and Piper). Hazel has some new powers that allow her to do some absolutely epic things with the mist, Frank has finally regained some self confidence, our little Leo has grown up and found a love interest, Jason is beginning to realize his mortality (?), Annabeth has finally made me ship Percabeth. It's just a party of character development all around. Except for Percy, who has by now done just about all the growth we could expect from a character, and Piper. Piper is just a lost hope. 

Writing: With seven POVs, stuff should probably get hectic. But, NOPE, none of that happening around here. This book was packed with lots of funny lines (even Jason had one. That's like pigs flying) and action sequences to balance it out. However, it just drove in a straight line, never going up or down, and I'm not sure what to expect from the Blood of Olympus. 

Rating: 4/5 Stars 

And now...

we wait. 

Reading Habits Tag

This tag started out on Youtube, but I decided to bring the questions to my blog. Hopefully, this will also let you get to know me a little more too!

Now - onto the questions:

1. Do you have a certain place at home for reading? Not really. I generally wherever, when ever, but I prefer to read in my reading chair whenever possible. 
2. Bookmark or random piece of paper? BOOKMARK, all the way. I've used the same one for three years and I'd probably have a mental breakdown if I lost it. 
3. Can you just stop reading or do you have to stop after a chapter/ a certain amount of pages? I always stop at the end of a chapter. This has been a recent change. 
4. Do you eat or drink while reading? Sometimes. It's more plausible if I'm reading on my Kindle. 
5. Multitasking: Music or TV while reading? Music, no. TV, yes. Multitasking is life.
6. One book at a time or several at once? One book at a time. I barely have time to finish one a week, I have no idea how I would handle multiple plots. 
7. Reading at home or everywhere? Everywhere! I love reading in the car, waiting rooms, before my food arrives in the drive thru :p
8. Reading out lout or silently in your head? This is a major pet peeve, but I hate when people read out loud. It irritates me so much. So silently for me. 
9. Do you read ahead or even skip pages? Sometimes I look ahead, but I hate when I do that. 
10. Breaking the spine or keeping it like new? Breaking the spine. iT jUST hAPPENS, okay? okay. (that was a total TFIOS reference...)
11. Do you write in your books? No..no..no...i can't even. why would someone do this?

And that's the tag! 

October To Be Read

It's October now, folks, and with that a new TBR list! Last month was my first time with a to be read list set aside for me, and I really liked knowing what book was coming up next. I've decided to make another for this month. This is quite shorter because I'm going to be very busier than normal. Let's just get onto it:

Book #1: Allegiant by Veronica Roth, published 22 October 2013. I'm so excited for the conclusion to this series, even though my life will probably be ruined for the entire week afterwards. 

Book #2: House of Hades by Rick Riordan, published 8 October 2013. Just...so...many....questions to be answered! Another book I'm extremely excited for. It's going to be a good new release month!

Book #3: Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare. I read the first book in this series late July and I've been dying to get back into it. These books are always quick and entertaining reads for me. I hope to finish this series by COHF. 

(Possible) Book #4: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. I'm not sure if I'll have time for four books this month, but if I do, this is the next book. I liked Eleanor and Park, her second book, so I'm excited to see what this will bring (plus it's my life in a novel). 

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell Review

5/5 Stars

OMG THAT BOOK WAS SO CUTE! - first reaction

Fangirl is about Cath, sister to Wren (let's give a high five to Rainbow Rowell for best naming of a character ever) who is going to college. She lives with her mean roommate Reagan and Reagan's best friend, Levi, who is there enough that he practically lives there. We also get characters like Professor Piper, her fiction writer teacher, and Nick, who writes with her. 

Oh, wait, she's exactly like us!

Legit, Cath is the fangirl. She writes fanfiction, has a gay noncanon ship, buys merchandise, watches the movies, goes to the midnight release party. this character is us. 

I love Cath and Levi's relationship. It was so cute to see them develop together, from the beginning when they invited her to get out of her room with the protein bars. Just adorable. Wren was one of the most interesting characters with her alcoholism problem. I really liked how that topic was touched on. It was done beautifully and she really redeemed herself and their relationship. Great work!

The plot was much better than Eleanor & Park, in my opinion. The main character was much more human. While she had her faults, they didn't define her. She was strong without being an overdose. It was so hard watching her go through all of the dramas of her freshman year. 

Must read. Seriously, read this if you've ever loved a book. And because you are on Goodreads, then you probably have a favorite book. Just read it, okay?

Okay.

The Fifth Wave by Rick Yancey: Review

Rating: 3.5/5 Stars

This book has mostly rave reviews, but this one will not be. Mostly because I was so confused throughout the entire book. Cassie skips around a lot in her life story, with the time jumps and the explanations after the event has already occurred. Also, there are dual POVs between Cassie and her high school crush, Ben Parish. Honestly, Ben's parts were a lot better than Cassie's. He was easier to relate to. 

Sammy was probably the actual main character. He was the connection between Sam and Cassie which really were the entire motivations for this book. I always knew that Evan was not right, he wasn't human, Cassie shouldn't trust him. Even when she started, I never believed her, or him, for that matter. Ringer was a fantastic character who really had a lot of power. She was brilliant in her strategies and wins the award for my favorite character in the book. I really wish we had more of her. 

The main reason I didn't like this book was because I had no idea what was going on. The five waves weren't explained very well and I had to keep referring to the chart at the beginning of the book. I don't even know with the fifth wave - although I think I should. This book was very skippy (like the peanut butter) in writing style, which really made it unenjoyable. I still have no idea what happened in the book and I didn't like that. 

Will I be reading the next book in the series? Probably not. If I can't understand what happened in the first book, there would be no need for the second. 

Tithe by Holly Black: Review

Rating: 1/5 Stars

To be totally honest, I didn't finish this book. I got through the prologue and the first chapter, but I had to stop there. So many things were wrong with this book and I could just not push myself through it. I hate to leave books, but honestly I don't know how I could possibly get through Tithe. 

Some reasons why:

1. The language. I have no problem whatsoever with curse words. But, just like any other word, they have meanings. If they are not used with those meanings in mind, that is when I start having problems with it. Every sentence has one thrown in - of every size - and they don't make any sense together. They distract so much from the story. 
2. Kaye is the most irritable human being. She makes me want to pull my hair out. By the first chapter, we should at least be able to identify some reason to like the main character, to feel for them. In this book, I just felt repulsed by her. I can't imagine having to read a book following her around. 
3. The writing is atrocious. It reminds me a lot of Cassandra Clare's, but her's is a little bit more defined. I totally understand why the two of them would be writing a book together. They write exactly the same (which to be honest kind of bothers me a little bit. It's questionable). Everything about this book felt forced. 

Those are my three readings for no longer finishing this book. I picked this out of my book jar, so I'm not too concerned with not finishing it, but it is definitely a disappointment. 

Seven Minutes in Heaven by Sara Shepard: Review

4/5 Stars

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS! *look for an upcoming post about the entire series without spoilers later this week. 

The Lying Game series is finally over (fingers crossed) and ended all wrapped up in a cute little bow. I even shed some tears toward the end. This final book is as crazy and twisted as all the rest, leading the reader down crazy pathways and adventures. The second half of the book is a lot more put together and action packed than the first, but I've just come to expect that from Sara Shepard. 

Now, onto the actual book review:
The entire first half I knew it couldn't be Garrett. It just didn't make sense. Why was all of this stuff just now being found out about him? It was all happening way too quickly. Towards the end, they began to have me convinced, up until Nisha's house. I loved the thing with the tampon box. That was brilliant.

So, Ethan Landry was it the whole time. Never expected that one coming. Emma and Ethan were always so good together, I never suspected him. That was the whole point though... Anyway, I do like the way the mystery was solved and wrapped up, all thanks to Nisha and Mr. Banjeree.

Another crucial part of this book was when the detective found out she wasn't Sutton. I found it quite shocking the way their family reacted though. After just talking about how much they wanted to meet Emma, they turned her away at the door without giving her a chance. And the whole thing with the school? That was strange too. It makes me wonder about the actual law in this situation, if it were real. (Let's all hope this never happens.)

The end was so beautiful, with all the stars that Grandmother Mercer made. I love the concluding sentence, wrapping up everything very nicely. It was a great conclusion to a series that I hope stays six books. 

If I want one thing for Christmas, it would be that Sara Shepard lets Emma live her life after this. Without falsely committing anymore felonies.