review: Bitterblue by Kristen Cashore

pub date: May 1, 2012
publisher: Dial
pages: 545
source: LibraryThing Early Reviewers
appeals: it's a continuation of Cashore's Graceling.
content: violence, innuendo, a lot of boring parts

thoughts:
I loved the book Graceling when I read it years ago. Fire, meh. I was intrigued with Bitterblue because I wanted to read about the little princess from Graceling. I was happy when I received the copy from LibraryThing, until I saw how big it was. Did you see the page count? Five-hundred-forty-five pages! A very Looooong five-hundred-forty-five pages.

I would like to say the reason I didn't enjoy the book much was because it was all so political. Bitterblue is queen of Monsea, trying to navigate a kingdom that has been deeply scarred by her father's rule. There is so much politic that I found the story Tedious to read. Yet one of my all time favorite books is The King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner and that book is full of politics. I've read it at least five times, and I've never been bored with Gen's story. But Bitterblue's? A snooze fest. Maybe not the politics so much?

Maybe the fact that I didn't care for Bitterblue? I didn't dislike her, but I didn't love her either. Maybe her impossible romance with a romantic interest that I wasn't too thrilled with, either? Maybe the mystery that wasn't even a mystery until half way through and when it was apparent, kept going in circles, round and round, but never actually went anywhere? Maybe the nonexistent plot? Whatever it was, this book wasn't all that interesting to me.

Add to all of that how much I got sick of Leck and his history and Bitterblue's determination to learn more about how wicked Leck was. There were times Leck seemed like the main character of this story, not Bitterblue.

I must say that I thought the actual writing stellar, like always. Cashore is an amazing storyteller, even when the story she's telling isn't all that interesting. And she did a great job giving reminders for what happened in Graceling for those readers who read it years ago (like me), without going overboard. (Except for all of that about Leck, of course).

When I keep reading books that I should really just give up on, I have to wonder why I keep reading them. Sometimes, like in this case, I just feel like I have to complete it so I can check it off my list. And, when I get a copy for review like I did Bitterblue, it makes me that much more compelled to keep going. I really need to learn how to stop. Especially when the book is five-hundred-forty-five-freakin pages (too) long.

summary:
Eight years after Graceling, Bitterblue is now queen of Monsea. But the influence of her father, a violent psychopath with mind-altering abilities, lives on. Her advisors, who have run things since Leck died, believe in a forward-thinking plan: Pardon all who committed terrible acts under Leck’s reign, and forget anything bad ever happened. But when Bitterblue begins sneaking outside the castle—disguised and alone—to walk the streets of her own city, she starts realizing that the kingdom has been under the thirty-five-year spell of a madman, and the only way to move forward is to revisit the past.

Two thieves, who only steal what has already been stolen, change her life forever. They hold a key to the truth of Leck’s reign. And one of them, with an extreme skill called a Grace that he hasn’t yet identified, holds a key to her heart

review: Enchanted by Alethea Kontis

pub date: May 8, 2012
publisher: Harcourt Children's Books
pages: 305
appeals: fairy tale retelling, romance, fantasy
content: clean

thoughts:
I have a stack of ARCs and I picked this one up because it was short. But the moment I read those first few pages, it grabbed my attention. It had a fun, light tone and there was a talking frog. How great! However, my attention was soon lost. In three words: I got bored.

The premise of the book is fun. In Sunday's (that's our main protag) world, fairy tales are reality. She and her family take part in a whole slew of different tales, most importantly the Princess and the Frog. It was interesting to see how everything connected, and there was a lot of original story involved, too, notably at the end.  Yet however fun and original the story concept...it just didn't work for me. It was too cluttered, too much going on and not enough character development.

Like I mentioned earlier, I got bored. I didn't care much for the characters. I didn't feel invested in their stories and how those stories would end. Mostly, I didn't like the love interest, Prince Rumbold. I found him bland and weak and boring. Which made it hard for me to care if Sunday would get a kiss at the end of the book.

I made myself pick this book up on numerous occasions even when I didn't want to. Not sure why. I should have left it unfinished, but I guess I cared enough to want to know how it ended. FYI--It was happy.

summary:
It isn't easy being the rather overlooked and unhappy youngest sibling to sisters named for the other six days of the week. Sunday’s only comfort is writing stories, although what she writes has a terrible tendency to come true.


When Sunday meets an enchanted frog who asks about her stories, the two become friends. Soon that friendship deepens into something magical. One night Sunday kisses her frog goodbye and leaves, not realizing that her love has transformed him back into Rumbold, the crown prince of Arilland—and a man Sunday’s family despises.

The prince returns to his castle, intent on making Sunday fall in love with him as the man he is, not the frog he was. But Sunday is not so easy to woo. How can she feel such a strange, strong attraction for this prince she barely knows? And what twisted secrets lie hidden in his past - and hers?

review: Bloodrose by Andrea Cremer

pub date: January 3, 2012
publisher: Philomel
pages: 406
appeal: werewolfish Guardians, romance, love-triangle (maybe that's a turn-off?), adventure, action, cool magical world
source: library
content: a lot of loving

thoughts:

the tweet:
I almost bought this book the moment it came out. I'm really glad I didn't.

the non-spoiled (slightly rambling) review:
I really loved the first two books of this trilogy, Nightshade and Wolfsbane. I didn't necessarily love the characters, not a big fan of Shay or Ren (though I was rooting for Ren through the first two books just because he was less dislikable than Shay), and was disappointed in how Calla handled herself at times. But the side characters where wonderful. I loved the Guardian packs and Searchers. They were fun to read.

But the big draw for me was the cool world building. It was so fun and original and interesting. The shift of perspective from the first and second book was awesome. And then there was the adventure and action of the plot. Just a cool series overall.

Seriously, so excited for this third book. But since I decided I was broke and didn't buy it, I had to wait for it at the library. It arrived almost three weeks ago, and I began reading it right away. I finished it last night.

Yes, It took me almost three weeks to finish it. Which is bad. On average, I finish books I like in two days. Which means I didn't like this one so much...

On the plus side, this book's world building was steller. The action (once it got started) was great. Fun, witty dialog between characters. I thought it ended the story arch of all three books pretty well.

My problem came with Calla. The first eight chapters or so are all about her and her boys in their epic, stupid love triangle. Have I ever mentioned how much I HATE love triangles? Well, I also discovered that I HATE Calla. She's a liar, she's manipulative, and she's an idiot. Those first two weeks I was stuck in those first eight chapters and didn't seem to make much progress because every three pages I threw the book across the room had to put the book down. 

Once the triangle was no longer the focus of the book and the Searchers actually went out to search for something, it got much better, I enjoyed the story, and I finished the rest of the book rather quickly.

I probably would have been upset about the ending if I had cared more. But the anger and resentment I felt towards Calla in the beginning distanced me from the rest of the book and I didn't care all that much. So o'well.

the spoiled (also rambling) review: 
I mean it guys! I'm not even going to try to make this spoiler free. I will not only be spoiling Bloodrose, I will be spoiling the whole trilogy.

Also, this isn't so much a review as a RANT. More detailed thoughts about the whole triangle that I mentioned above. You'll probably want to skip this part. Just sayin...

You've been warned.

I got through chapter one and was pretty pissed off (excuse the language). Calla is such an idiot. She just slept with Shay one day ago at the end of Wolfsbane, and now she meets up with Ren and things get steamy really quick. She's trying to help Ren, because she knows best and all (ha!), so she manipulates him into believing what he wants to believe about their relationship so that he will go with her. I HATE MANIPULATION!!!  Manipulation is used by bad guys, not the main character who I am supposed to like! And at that moment, I started to hate Calla.

The hate deepened as I read on.

A friend who I recommended the series to got the book from the library at the same time, so over the next week she started texting me about her impressions of the book. I forced myself to keep going because of this, yet for over a week I just kept responding, "still on chapter five," because I was so annoyed with Calla. Finally, when my friend had finished the book and liked it, I made myself push past chapter five, where Calla has a second night with Shay, because she just can't refrain from ripping off his clothes.

It was rather tedious reading in the beginning because EVERY PAGE of Calla's internal dialog was this back-and-forth, "I love Shay so much! He helped me find myself! Yet I'm so drawn to Ren! We have a past together and we work well and make sense. But I love Shay! Everytime Ren isn't around I can't stop myself from kissing Shay and sharing secret looks with him. But Ren can't know about it!"

And the book would go flying across the room.

This is what I hate about love-triangles: The indecision, the manipulation of two boys, the need for attention and power. Calla had it down to an art form.

My favorite was when Calla and Ren met up in the showers, both wrapped in towels, and Ren confronts Calla about Shay. Ren says, "I know you slept with Shay because our packmate told me." Calla responds, "She had no right!" I just groaned. Ren had a right to know what was going on, to know that Calla was playing a game, it's just Calla is an idiot. Her reasoning being if Ren knew the truth, he'd throw a tantrum and storm off and Calla couldn't let that happen because they needed him in this battle. And guess what...when Ren knew the truth he didn't throw a tantrum and he didn't storm off. He acted like a mature, reasoning human. And then he proceeds to seduce Calla, which worked since Calla seems only to think of her body and was soon trying to drop his towel--with no resistance from Ren, of course.

And Calla's insistence that she wasn't going to make up her mind on which boy to have as her alpha was just ridiculous. As far as I was concerned, she'd decided that the moment she went to bed with Shay. The first time.

After all that, Calla keeps drawing Ren behind her, unwilling to tell him that he was out for good and Shay was in forever. Not until after the battle was won. Not sure exactly why...because she loved having power over him? I think her reasoning, if I remember right, was so that they weren't distracted from their goal. Because she still sees Ren as a baby who can't handle the truth.

And then Calla realizes that Shay's responsibilities in the war might take him away from her. But at least Ren is there in the background. Just in case she loses Shay, she'll still have another boy-toy. (I must put in here that I got the pack dynamic that made Calla's behavior "understandable." She needed an Alpha. She was half animal so it was part of her identity to have the urge to mate. I just didn't care.)

It got even better when about about 3/4 the way through Calla's talking with someone and says how much she respects honesty. And expects it. I laughed out loud. I returned the book to the library already, or I would quote the passage. It was so ridiculous and hypocritical.

So it was such a relief when things outside of the messed up romance happened and I could read something else. I was still anti-Calla and everytime any of the romance flared up again I groaned. I love romance in my books. Really, I do. But in this book, it just made me hate the main character more and distanced me from the story.

I decided Ren was too good for Calla, and was rather relieved when he died. Especially in the context of the story, where as a wolf he would've been an Alpha with no pack.

And the ending...like I said before, I would've been so sad if I cared. They were always more human to me than wolf, so when they became wolf for good and forever, it was as if they were dead. Gone for good. There was no Calla or Shay or Ansel or Brynn...there was just a pack of wolves on the mountain. So I'm actually kind of glad I don't care. And really, I think I like Calla better as a wolf (how manipulative and conniving can a wolf be?), so that kind of made me happy.

*as a side note, please treat library books with respect. Don't follow my example and throw them across the room. unless they deserve it

summary:
Calla has always welcomed war.

But now that the final battle is upon her, there's more at stake than fighting. There's saving Ren, even if it incurs Shay's wrath. There's keeping Ansel safe, even if he's been branded a traitor. There's proving herself as the pack's alpha, facing unnamable horrors, and ridding the world of the Keepers' magic once and for all. And then there's deciding what to do when the war ends. If Calla makes it out alive, that is.

review: Irises by Francisco X. Stork

pub date: January 1, 2012 
publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books
pages: 288
sources: for review at Kiss the Book
appeals: sister, death, orphans, religion,
content: two swear words, some talk about sex but rather mild comparatively

thoughts:
This is the second book I've read from Francisco X. Stork. My first was The Last Summer of the Death Warriors. I didn't love that book (I gave it three apples), but it was interesting enough that I decided to try another Stork novel. The summary for Irises appealed to me, so I picked it up. I probably didn't need to bother.

What I have decided after reading Death Warriors and Irises is that Stork's style of writing doesn't appeal to me. I find it kind of boring. There's no beauty to his language. It's just...words on a page.

Also, I had a really difficult time keeping Mary and Kate straight. One was brilliant and studied a lot, one painted. That was it. The first thirty pages I was very confused on who was doing what because I couldn't figure out which was which. All the characters seemed very one dimensional. And sometimes behaved in odd ways...like Kate's best friend becoming her best enemy in just a day without much provocation. It was weird.

Religion is a large aspect of this novel and ties into the growth of the characters, and I did find that interesting. But...that's about all.

Without beautiful words or strong characters, the plot itself wasn't enough to keep me interested. I did finish it, but near the end I was reading just so that it was finished, not because I cared so much.

summary:

Two sisters discover what's truly worth living for in the new novel by the author of MARCELO IN THE REAL WORLD.

TWO SISTERS: Kate is bound for Stanford and an M.D. -- if her family will let her go. Mary wants only to stay home and paint. When their loving but repressive father dies, they must figure out how to support themselves and their mother, who is in a permanent vegetative state, and how to get along in all their uneasy sisterhood.

THREE YOUNG MEN: Then three men sway their lives: Kate's boyfriend Simon offers to marry her, providing much-needed stability. Mary is drawn to Marcos, though she fears his violent past. And Andy tempts Kate with more than romance, recognizing her ambition because it matches his own.

ONE AGONIZING CHOICE: Kate and Mary each find new possibilities and darknesses in their sudden freedom. But it's Mama's life that might divide them for good -- the question of *if* she lives, and what's worth living for.IRISES is Francisco X. Stork's most provocative and courageous novel yet.

review: Bright Young Thing by Anna Godbersen

pub date: October 12, 2010
publisher: HarperCollins
pages: 389
appeals: speakeasies, historical, flappers, romance, friendship
content: Cordelia sleeps with a few boys, but nothing is described. Some violence.

thoughts:
I picked this book up at a librarian conference I attended last year and meant to read it since then, but it was a promise to review this book for a coworker that finally got me to pick it up. And to keep picking it up, each time I put it down. Every time I put the book down, I didn't want to pick it back up. It took me almost two weeks to get through the almost 400 pages, and it felt like so much longer. The story didn't compel me to keep reading.

In short, it's about three girls who are more worried about their clothes and cars then they are about morals. And the adults in the book aren't much better.


I was giving a quick synopsis of the book to a friend and as I was talking I realized not much did happen, actually. Especially Astrid's part of the story. What actually did she do besides go back and forth between Charlie and her mother? Nothing. In response to my summarizing, my friend said, "Are you sure it isn't called 'Dumb Young Things?'" I thought that was pretty funny. Harsh, I know, but it just wasn't all that appealing for me.

So overall, not my kind of book.

summary:
The year is 1929. New York is ruled by the Bright Young Things: flappers and socialites seeking thrills and chasing dreams in the anything-goes era of the Roaring Twenties.


Letty Larkspur and Cordelia Grey escaped their small Midwestern town for New York's glittering metropolis. All Letty wants is to see her name in lights, but she quickly discovers Manhattan is filled with pretty girls who will do anything to be a star…

Cordelia is searching for the father she's never known, a man as infamous for his wild parties as he is for his shadowy schemes. Overnight, she enters a world more thrilling and glamorous than she ever could have imagined—and more dangerous. It's a life anyone would kill for . . . and someone will.

The only person Cordelia can trust is Astrid Donal, a flapper who seems to have it all: money, looks, and the love of Cordelia's brother, Charlie. But Astrid's perfect veneer hides a score of family secrets.

Across the vast lawns of Long Island, in the illicit speakeasies of Manhattan, and on the blindingly lit stages of Broadway, the three girls' fortunes will rise and fall—together and apart. From the New York Times bestselling author of The Luxe comes an epic new series set in the dizzying last summer of the Jazz Age

review: Cloaked by Alex Flinn

pub date: February 8, 2011
publisher: HarperCollins
pages: 342
source: library
appeals: fairy tale retelling, contemporary, romance, male protagonist,
content: none that I remember

thoughts:
This is only the second book I've ready by Alex Flinn, the first being Beastly, and that was many years ago. I remember enjoying Beastly, so I had hopes for this one. Hopes that were not realized.

I think Flinn does a good job of taking fairy tales and updating them to our modern times. It's great world building and entertaining. In Cloaked, I thought all of the fairy tales she brought in to this one story were fun and I enjoyed how they all entertwined.


However, I kind of thought seventeen-year-old Johnny was an idiot. Sorry, kind of harsh, but I really started to dislike him A LOT by the middle of the book. He lied, he stole, he was extremely dim-witted, and not a hero at all. He did such stupid things and got in such lame situations because of stupid decisions, that I had a hard time liking him, or even rooting for him to come out on top. I saw the consequences of his choices LOOOOONG before he did, as well as how to get out of situations he got himself into when he didn't, and it was annoying. I kept thinking, "this is who the princess chose to help her? She's just as dumb as he is." He was also extremely shallow.

At the end when they were praising how honest and upright Johnny was, I had to laugh. If that is the definition of honest and upright then the world is in a lot of trouble.

Overall, not a recommend.

summary:
I'm not your average hero. I actually wasn't your average anything. Just a poor guy working an after-school job at a South Beach shoe repair shop to help his mom make ends meet. But a little magic changed it all.

It all started with a curse. And a frognapping. And one hot-looking princess, who asked me to lead a rescue mission.

There wasn't a fairy godmother or any of that. And even though I fell in love along the way, what happened to me is unlike any fairy tale I've ever heard. Before I knew it, I was spying with a flock of enchanted swans, talking (yes, talking!) to a fox named Todd, and nearly trampled by giants in the Everglades.

Don't believe me? I didn't believe it either. But you'll see. Because I knew it all was true, the second I got cloaked.

review: Monster High by Lisi Harrison

pub date: September 2010
publisher: Poppy
pages: 272
appeals: high school, friendship, romance, monster
content: clean

thoughts:
This book took me a long time to finish because in the beginning (and middle) I was really bored. I would not have finished it if I hadn't committed to writing a review for a different book review blog. Since I had committed, I stuck with it and was surprised when the end was somewhat entertaining.

Mostly what I can say about this book is that it didn't appeal to me. It wasn't horrible and I can see a lot of people enjoying this book. I think it would be a good pick for tweens especially. There were a couple aspects of the plot that I found rather creative and fun (even in the mist of being bored).

First, I liked how the plot was told from two points of view, from two girls on different spectrum of the school hierarchy, who don't like each other but by the end understand a little about each other. Second, the love triangle was fun. I know, I thought a love triangle was fun. Wonders will never cease. Anyway, I think it will play out in an interesting way in the continuing series though I wont be reading them to find out.

summary:
They prefer to call themselves RAD (Regular Attribute Dodgers), but some call them monsters. So far, the "monster" community has kept a low profile in Salem, but this year two new girls enroll at Master High School, and the town will never be the same.

Created just fifteen days ago, Frankie Stein is psyched to trade her father's formaldehyde-smelling basement lab for parties and cheerleading. But with a student body totally freaked out by rumors of monsters who might be stalking the halls, Frankie finds that life in the "normi" world can be rough for a chic freak like her.

She thinks she finds a friend in fellow new student Melody Carver--but can a normi be trusted with her big secret?

review: I am Number Four by Pittacus Lore

pub date: August 3, 2010
publisher: HarperCollins
pages: 440
appeals: aliens, adventure, romance, male protagonist,
content: some swearing

thoughts:
Will you hate me if I admit I liked the movie better? Because I did.

I saw the movie first and really enjoyed it. I thought it was fun and exciting and romantic. I'd been meaning to read the book since it came out, but watching the movie made me finally pick it up.

Truth be told, I was rather bored by the book. It was different from the movie, but similar enough that I already knew the main story arch and plot points and the writing was not compelling. It was very bland writing and I got bored with it.

I did enjoy the depth the book brought to the story. There was a lot more about Four's legacies and his home planet. Who Henri is to him and what they're doing on earth. There were so many cool things in the book, it was just written so bland!

I thought the ending dragged on and on. I wish I had read the book first. I know I would've liked it better. Even if the writing was bland, the plot would've kept me interested.

The romance in the book made me laugh. Only because it is such a boy romance. If a girl had written this book or if it was from a girl pov, there would've been a lot more senses involved. And his descriptions of what people were wearing cracked me up. If I hadn't already returned the book to the library I would give you an example, but it was mostly because there was no detail, just a, "she was wearing a nice dress," sort of description. It sounds like I'm bashing it, but I'm not. I enjoyed it and just thought the contrast between the boy/girl pov was interesting.

summary:
In the beginning they were a group of nine. Nine aliens who left their home planet of Lorien when it fell under attack by the evil Mogadorian. Nine aliens who scattered on Earth. Nine aliens who look like ordinary teenagers living ordinary lives, but who have extraordinary, paranormal skills. Nine aliens who might be sitting next to you now.

review: The Piper's Son by Melina Marchetta

pub date: March 8, 2011 
publisher: Candlewick Press
pages: 336
appeals: family, contemporary fiction, realistic, frienship, romance
content: a lot of swearing, a lot of the f-bomb, sex,

thoughts:
I was really excited about this book because I loved Saving Francesca. Sadly for me, I didn't enjoy this book much.

First of all, it read more like an adult book with adult problems. Thomas tells his story half of the book, but his Aunt Georgie tells the other half. She's in her forties, is pregnant, and is having relationship issues. Their stories together show a whole picture of their family situation which is the point of the book. It was just too adultish. I wanted YA.

Second of all, there were A LOT of characters and it was difficult to keep track of who was who. Especially because we're told about all these people, but we don't meet most of them until later in the story, if at all. Very confusing. I didn't know who they were talking about half the time.

And third, the characters from Saving Francesca weren't the same. I guess it has been 5 years, but I missed the way they were. And overall, I didn't love the new characters. They didn't speak to me.

So, a disappointing book.

blurb:
Award-winning author Melina Marchetta reopens the story of the group of friends from her acclaimed novel Saving Francesca - but five years have passed, and now it’s Thomas Mackee who needs saving. After his favorite uncle was blown to bits on his way to work in a foreign city, Tom watched his family implode. He quit school and turned his back on his music and everyone that mattered, including the girl he can’t forget. Shooting for oblivion, he’s hit rock bottom, forced to live with his single, pregnant aunt, work at the Union pub with his former friends, and reckon with his grieving, alcoholic father. Tom’s in no shape to mend what’s broken. But what if no one else is either? An unflinching look at family, forgiveness, and the fierce inner workings of love and friendship, The Piper’s Son redefines what it means to go home again.

review: Human Blend by Lori Pescatore

pub date: 2010
publisher: self published
pages: 234
source: ebook from author
challenges: ebook
appeals: paranormal, romance, love triangle,
content: lots of kissing, sex that is left to the imagination, violence, some swearing

goodreads:
Marion, Virginia seemed like a nice place to live a normal life, but she is not a normal girl. Laney has special abilities that keep her looking over her shoulder as she makes her escape from the men who had kidnapped her. A young doctor's interest is piqued when he witnesses her mysteriously curing a young child's illness. He befriends her due to his growing fascination with uncovering the true nature of her abilities, but not without harboring secrets of his own. Laney's budding relationship with a local boy puts both of them in danger when the men she was hiding from find her. All of their lives will change forever as ancient secrets become unearthed.

me:
I thought Laney's abilities were rather cool. And later on in the book when the reader, and Laney herself, discovers why she has the abilities she does, that was neat, too. There are exciting things that happen in the plot, a lot of characters with unique skills that make them interesting to read.

So while I liked the concept of the book, I had a hard time reading it because I thought the characters were underdeveloped and acted in ways that made no sense to me.

For example:

Laney is hiding from an evil man. She is afraid of him and afraid what he would do if he found her and anyone connected to her. So she moves around a lot and changes her name and hair color before settling in Marion.

Though Laney says a couple of times that she shouldn't get attached to anyone because she puts them in danger, her behavior does not match her worry. Within two days she's sleeping with her new boyfriend. For someone who has been through traumatic experiences with other men, she sure is trusting.

Laney has the skill of healing people so she wants to volunteer at the hospital so she can use it. But for someone on the run from an evil guy who knows her abilities, she isn't worried about instantly healing people who are really sick. I would be worried this would attract attention. And it does--the doctor, Eli, realizes rather quickly that something is going on. Luckily Eli doesn't want to expose her.

But Laney doesn't know this. Within minutes of meeting Eli, Laney is telling him everything about her healing skills. I just don't get why she would be so trusting of strangers when she knows what others have done with this knowledge.

There is one guy who does act suspiciously around Laney, but it doesn't raise any red flags for her. She just finds his nosey behavior rude and annoying.

But what really bothered me was the way Eli kept touching Laney's cheek and kissing her on the mouth and hugging her. Touchy, touchy! Laney thinks nothing of it, doesn't find it at all odd that this man who is practically a stranger is touching her so much. Eli obviously likes Laney, but Laney is clueless and accepts all this attention without batting an eye. All the while Laney is sleeping with someone else.

And then of course there are the other men Laney kisses. Wow. And it never crosses her mind that she is cheating on her boyfriend. It bothered me and I thought it should have bothered her.

So, mostly I had a hard time with this book because I didn't understand why the characters, especially Laney, behaved the way they did. The relationships aren't developed. And because of Laney's loose lips, I didn't really like her much.

review: Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton

pub date: February 15, 2011
publisher: HarperCollins
pages: 464
Source: NetGalley
challenges: debut author, 350 page, ebook
appeal: fallen angels, teen romance, supernatural, strong female narrator
content: scattered swearing, violence, some underage drinking

goodreads:
When seventeen-year-old Ellie starts seeing reapers - monstrous creatures who devour humans and send their souls to Hell - she finds herself on the front lines of a supernatural war between archangels and the Fallen and faced with the possible destruction of her soul.

A mysterious boy named Will reveals she is the reincarnation of an ancient warrior, the only one capable of wielding swords of angelfire to fight the reapers, and he is an immortal sworn to protect her in battle. Now that Ellie's powers have been awakened, a powerful reaper called Bastian has come forward to challenge her. He has employed a fierce assassin to eliminate her - an assassin who has already killed her once.

While balancing her dwindling social life and reaper-hunting duties, she and Will discover Bastian is searching for a dormant creature believed to be a true soul reaper. Bastian plans to use this weapon to ignite the End of Days and to destroy Ellie's soul, ending her rebirth cycle forever. Now, she must face an army of Bastian's most frightening reapers, prevent the soul reaper from consuming her soul, and uncover the secrets of her past lives - including truths that may be too frightening to remember.
 
me:
Well, I'm rather sad to say I didn't enjoy this book much. Especially since I read all 464 pages of it. Honestly, I had no idea it was this long when I requested it from NetGalley.

Why didn't I enjoy it? Mostly I didn't buy into the premise. I am able to suspend disbelief for post apocalypse, dystopian, supernatural, and paranormal, but apparently not for fallen angels. Once a fictionalized God and religion get in there, I just don't buy it. It all seems rather ridiculous. So, that ruined the book since that was the whole point.

There were other things--Will reminded me of a faithful little puppy dog, the way he followed Ellie around everywhere. It was too long. I wanted Ellie to care less about her high school friends (like I did) and more about fighting grim (which was the fun part). And I wanted her to remember more about her past, and a lot quicker!

I think Angelfire will appeal to a lot of readers, especially those who like fallen angel books. It's exciting and has an interesting plot. Ellie is a strong heroine, she is a warrior and there are a lot of well written fight scenes. There is some forbidden romance, which is always fun. Will is a good (non-human sort of) guy, even if he did remind me of a puppy.

This just wasn't my kind of book. I think I need to stay away from fallen angels...

review: The Lost Gate by Orson Scott Card

pub date: January 4, 2011
publisher: Tor
pages: 384
audience: adult
source: free from goodreads First Reads
appeals: fantasy, magic,
content: sexual content for older teens and adults, some swearing,

goodreads blurb:
Dan North knows from early childhood that his family is different — and that the differences are secrets that can never be told. This contemporary Urban Fantasy introduces the North family, a clan of mages in exile in our world, and their enemies who will do anything to keep them locked here.

me:
The first 30 pages were interesting. The whole premise of Danny's family's history and what their 'talents' are, it was cool stuff. I liked it. 
 
However, sometimes Card goes a little overboard in describing how the magic (or science) in his fiction works--at least for me. And that is what happened here. WAY too much of Danny figuring out what he can and can't do and how he does it and why it works. That is so BORING to me. I want plot, action, growth. I don't need to know how it works, I just want to see it work.
 
I kept slogging through only because I got the book from Goodreads in exchange for a review and I felt like I should finish before reviewing it. I was not liking what plot there was, or even Danny for that matter, for most of the book. Which was very disappointing.
 
However, it did get better. On page 206. Before this page Danny goes through this phase of being a thief and it was SO BORING AND POINTLESS. Once he ditched Eric (a thief who was Danny's teacher in all things illegal) and grew some brain cells, the plot picked up and things finally happened.

But really the best part of the book was the story of Wad. After every few Danny chapters we got a chapter about Wad. He had nothing to do with Danny, he lived somewhere else and did his own thing. His chapters were short and super interesting and such a nice break from Danny. I liked Wad! One of the reasons I liked his chapters was that I didn't get long (boring) magic lessons. He just did what he did--the plot moved! It was his story that kept me engaged while Danny was being a 13-year-old idiot.

The ending was really fascinating. It made me rethink how I felt about the rest of the book because it was so cool. How things come together, the hint of what's to come. Though I was sad how Wad's story ended. It is a series, so maybe happy things will happen later. Though I wont find out for myself. As fascinating as the ending was, I wont be picking it up.
 
It is an interesting premise and cool magical world Card created, so if you don't mind 13 year old boys who aren't all that likeable and long described discoveries into magic, pick it up.