I want to talk about Cassandra Clare...

Okay, so some of you might be fans of The Mortal Instrument series by Cassandra Clare, and her Infernal Devices series that exists in the same fictional world she's built. Recently, she announced several other series that exist, yet again, in the same world populated by the Shadowhunters and all the other goodies that Miss Clare apparently spent a crap load of time building and designing.

If you are aware of her fandom, you might also be aware of the fact that her fans are starting to get buggy concerning her need to write series after series in the same exact world. She simply changes characters or time periods, then writes with the same world-building she has been relying on since City of Bones first came out into the YA industry. 

(Series set in the world of the Shadowhunters...

The Infernal Devices
The Mortal Instruments

The Bane Chronicles
The Dark Artifices

TLH Series
and a shit load more, but I got sick of looking...)

These fans are really, really annoyed. They just want her to stop. They want her to write something, anything, different. (It appears she has, actually. According to Goodreads.)

So I've been thinking about this situation, mostly because I have nothing better to do with my time. I've looked at this from a readers point of view, from the writers point of view, and from the eyes of a person who really enjoys the challenge, and hopefully the reward, of world-building. And I say this, who the feck cares?

I personally have no problems with her writing a series in the same world as her current books. It just doesn't piss me off like it does some people. I don't know if it's because I haven't read all of her currently published books or what, but I just can't get mad at her. I love her world building, and her witty writing, and (so far) it hasn't annoyed me.

What does annoy me are people who need to add reviews on Goodreads for books not yet released to complain about this. To each their own opinion, I know, but I just see it from everyone. Yes, we know, a lot of people aren't thrilled about it. No need to tell me with a bunch of cleverly placed gifs. Maybe if one or two people had mentioned it, instead of a couple of dozen, I wouldn't be annoyed. As far as people going bat crap crazy over this bookish revelation, here are the fecks I give...

Oh, look, there are none... (And see, I can use pretty gifs, too.)

I completely respect everyone's decision to be upset with Miss Clare, and their desire to tell everyone, in every possible, even visual, fashion. I just want to say that I, and I'm sure some other people, are going to buy these books, read them, probably enjoy them, and I'm not going to pop a blood vessel over something that hasn't even been published/given a title/given a real synopsis/received a cover yet.

Rant over, I'm going back to reading. Love you all.

Review: Angelfall by Susan Ee

Angelfall by Susan Ee


My rating: 5 of 5 stars

How I got it: I own a copy, and shall never part from it...

This book is absolutely amazing. When I first started it I was really apprehensive. So many people have recommended this to me and the reviews have been uber-positive. I really wanted to like this one, especially since the premise sounded amazing. So without further ado, my review...

I loved the characters. A lot of times in Young Adult lit, you can't rely on the characters or the writing. They don't feel or sound believable, and often times I hate the female characters who are written as whiny, spineless bitches. But not in this case. I loved Penryn, her attitude, her strength, and I found it entirely believable.

The story line was a lot of fun. At first I thought a lull was coming. I held my breath, anticipating a disappointment, but there was none. Without giving anything away, let me just say the author is probably the only person who could have pulled this plot off. By the end I was sure that no other story teller could have done such a good job.

Honestly, most of this book was me preparing to wince, and then being more than pleasantly surprised at how situations were handled. Face it, if you read this book, there are countless areas the author could have buried herself in. But she didn't. Holy shit she was spot on at ever possible turn.

I don't know how to write this review without gushing, so I'll just say this. Everything was so authentic, so believable, from the writing to the dialogue, that it was just an absolute thrill ride and pleasure to read. Absolute favorite.

Review: Wings by Aprilynne Pike

Wings by Aprilynne Pike

My rating: 3 of 5 stars How I got it: I own a copy...

Laurel was mesmerized, staring at the pale things with wide eyes. They were terrifyingly beautiful; too beautiful for words.

Laurel turned to the mirror again, her eyes on the hovering petals that floated beside her head. They looked almost like wings.

In this extraordinary tale of magic and intrigue, romance and danger, everything you thought you knew about faeries will be changed forever.

3.5 Rating...

Okay, so when I finished this book I didn't know how I felt about it. There are some massive pros and cons that I would love to get into, but then I just hard a hard enough time deciding if I liked it or not. I decided to let it mellow in my head for a wee bit, and as time wore on, for some dumb reason, I actually started to enjoy it. But not love it.

The writing is probably my biggest pet peeve. It wasn't very well developed. Some chapters were completely unnecessary, the dialogue was wobbly, and there was just this odd sensation of the author rushing through important parts. She'd drop a sentence to cover one complex action. I don't know if I was reading it too fast (I read pretty fast), but a couple of times I was sure the author had made a slight error in where characters were standing, etc... Plus, a few odd plot questions I had...


I had a hard time getting to believe her characters, especially the main character, which is the last thing I ever want to experience in a book. Eventually, and by some miracle, things began to pick up in the book and for the characters and, tada, I didn't hate them anymore. I really want to remark on the authors attempt, and fairly good job, at re-writing fae lore.

By the end of the story I was having fun. It wasn't edge of my seat, hold me breath, can't put it down even for a moment fun, but it was fun. I liked the witticism that the book came with, and how, with time, it grew on me a little more. When I finished it I didn't hate it the way I was sure I would. And a small aprt of me is actually interested in reading the rest of the series.

So yeah, it was... fun, :)

Review: The Lightening Theif by Rick Riordan

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

How I got it: I won a copy.

Percy Jackson is about to be kicked out of boarding school... again. And that's the least of his troubles. Lately, mythological monsters and the gods of Mount Olympus seem to be walking straight out of the pages of Percy's Greek mythology textbook and into his life. And worse, he's angered a few of them. Zeus' master lightning bolt has been stolen, and Percy is the prime suspect.

Now Percy and his friends have just ten days to find and return Zeus' stolen property and bring peace to a warring Mount Olympus. But to succeed on his quest, Percy will have to do more than catch the true thief: he must come to terms with the father who abandoned him; solve the riddle of the Oracle, which warns him of betrayal by a friend; and unravel a treachery more powerful than the gods themselves.

Okay, I want to take a moment to talk about why I liked this book. Because, clearly, by the time I’d finished reading it, the book had grown on me. It was fun and cute in the way that Harry Potter series started. It also had a few creative, endearing qualities that made me smile, or fine the writer witty. I think the secret to me enjoying this book was finally coming to terms with the intended audience. I have a difficult time reading these books, because someone always comes along and tells me, “Well it was written for twelve year olds…” and then I want to argue back that the book should have substance regardless of its audience, but oh well…

Riordan was pretty creative translating Greek mythology into a modern dialogue. He did a fine job at most of his characters. I think that the main characters were very well driven, with a few exceptions. I actually didn’t like Grover. He wasn’t funny, beyond a point-and-laugh factor that didn’t amuse me half of the time anyway.) Percy was very commendable, even though it took me a while at first to get attached to him. My other favorite character involved the gods themselves, because I could feel Riordan’s mature writing bleeding through as he wrote scenes that demanded a powerful tone and stronger characterization.
I only had two pet peeves that I absolutely refuse to get over. One, there were a few massive clichés. Ares has a motorcycle? Really? It seemed like poor, lazy characterization. And his children being hateful and detestable was unfortunate. I think the general idea was, “let’s throw these kids into a camp, give them across the board stereotypes according to which god they belong to, and make it seem completely understandable, but we won’t do it to the main characters.” There was just too many literalisms being tossed around that I thought Riordan was missing the part about being creative and just fell back on clichés.

Second, and I cannot stress this one enough… does NOBODY want to talk about the fact this camp is filled with children from gods who are just going down to earth and making babies with whoever they came across? Some of these kids are in the same age range. I just wanted to scream at the lot of them, “Your parents don’t love you, you are all the products of lust and one night stands.” I had a hard time coping with that many children from one god, and no one at least one mentioning it bothered them that they were just one among several kids born to their mother/father. Maybe it wouldn’t stand out to me so much if just one kid said, “I don’t feel unique, I don’t loved, and I hate being generalized and looked over.”

In the end, I looked over these problems and looked forward to them being resolved in later books, if they ever are. I think the fact I found the book fun was the reason I read it with such gusto, and why I want to read the rest of the series. I wonder, though, if it will get better with time. I have a feeling that the author’s voice matures with every book, and within every book. I really hope I’m right, because I could learn to love this series if it does.

Review: Witch and Wizard by James Patterson

Witch and Wizard by James Patterson

My rating: 1 of 5 stars
How I got it: Library, thank goodness...

EVERYTHING. CHANGES. NOW.

Imagine you wake up and the world around you-life as you know it-has changed in an instant. That's what has happened to Whit Allgood and his sister, Whisty. They went to sleep as normal teenagers, and woke up as wanted criminals. Accused of holding incredible powers they'd never dreamed possible. And now, just how different they are-special, even-if just beginning to be revealed in a strange new world.

I have never been a fan of James Patterson's young adult novels, if he really writes them. Sorry, Jimmy, one day I'll pick up a piece of your adult fiction and we'll see where it goes from there, but as far as I'm concerned your YA novels sound like they were written via a twelve year old little girl and somehow, for some reason, you put your name on them.

Witch and Wizard is this sudden, desperate attempt to harness all the 'good' elements of today's bestselling young adult novels and put them into one book. I really can't stand it. The two main characters, children, suddenly lose their parents when they are arrested, and each find out that they are a witch and wizard. Then off they go on this heroic quest to free their parents and save the world.

First of all, JP's writing is disgusting. I don't know if he thinks it's 'dumbed-down' for younger readers, but it's just insulting how childish his style and prose is. I'm not buying it, all I have is wincing, shuddering, and surpressing the gag-reflex when I delve into this book. The pacing is just awful, there's nothing original about this book or anything of impressive depth. I just find myself cringing at every moment I had to endure the lifeless characters and the pointless plot.

And is it just me, or was this book a huge Harry Potter rip off? I stopped myself too many times to count at the similarities, that all I can say is that this is the biggest knock-off I could have ever had the displeasure of reading. JP had his version of wands, Tom Riddle's diary, Muggles and Death Eaters, and a lot, lot more that I can't believe this even got past an editor. If I had been his editor I would have shoved this book up the nether regions and kicked him out of my office for even bringing that crap near me.

You just fail, JP. You just FAIL.

The good thing about his books are that I can read them in like.. an hour and then continue on with my life. The sad part is, I can't even finish the book going, "Oh my gosh, what's going to happen next?!" because I honestly don't care. It's not that I hate the characters that much (because believe me, I do), it's really that his plot and character development was SO bad that I couldn't even care about the characters enough to not want them to die.

JP, you have the same issues in this book as you do with others. I'm speaking of the Max Ride series, people. The plot was strewn about, nothing was believable, there was just nothing that stopped me and made me go, "You know what? Holy. Crap."

('cept in a bad way)

So no, I didn't like it. There is my very un-English Major, but from the heart, review. I don't know how you're doing it, Jimmy. I really, really don't.




View all my reviews

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
How I Got it: Own a copy, :)

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder -- much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing -- not even a smear of blood -- to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know. . . . 

First of all, if you saw this book on my currently-reading shelf for a while, that is not because I did not enjoy the book, rather this was part of crazy time in which reading was almost impossibly for me.

So let’s talk about this book. First of all I can’t talk enough about how fun this book was to read. I love laughing out loud when I read something and I love characters who are generally witty and adorable. This book had both, so even in those few minutes a day when I could sneak in a few pages I was rewarded.

The book is modern fantasy and follows a young girl ‘waking up’ into the world she’d been made to forget. Miss Clare pulls in a lot of classic fantasy ingredients, putting a fine spin on them all and adding some new ideas into the mix. Everything she added felt natural, as well. I wasn’t reading about characters in a setting that reminded me of a square peg in a round hole.

Clare has a unique writing style that is sometimes simple yet effective, and other times surprisingly intricate. I was really pleased to see that she could really bring out all the stops when it came to writing this novel, and instead didn’t keep it going at the general pace she’d started it as.

Her plot twists were interesting, in a way that I liked them. Usually if something happens in a YA novel, it’s the same old sh*t, different title. Hers were pretty fun, and I enjoyed finding them because I knew they’d be unique.[ I was proud of her for making one of her characters gay. I personally will not go into my views on the matter, but it’s nice to see a young adult author willing to address it.

Not to mention who the main fella turns out to be. I don’t know if I like who Jace is or not. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series to see what happens, but right now the idea of him being that gal’s sister hasn’t really resolved itself yet. (hide spoiler)]

There are, of course, things I didn’t quite understand. First of all some of the twists sit heavy on me and I’m still wondering how she’s going to address them. At times her writing style is a little too simple, to where I feel like she didn’t get a fair chance to edit a certain section before it was published. Also, some of the characters I felt I was supposed to have natural, negative feelings towards just because that was the author’s intention, and t hen their personalities would change or other’s opinions of them would switch around, and I was a little confused as to how that could happen so quickly.

This is a really fun book for readers of all ages. If you like to have fun and laugh, dig right into this one. It’s a series, which I love, so I can’t wait to read the next ones. The world-building was enjoyable, the writing very nice, and the character memorable. I am super looking forward to reading the rest of the series, and I understand she has written another series similar to the world she created for this one. I am happy she has become so prolific, but at the same time I hope that she keeps the quality of her writing and the wonderful characters and world she h as already created.




View all my reviews

Review: City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare

City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
How I got it: I own a copy.

Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal. But what’s normal when you’re a demon-slaying Shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? If Clary left the world of the Shadowhunters behind, it would mean more time with her best friend, Simon, who’s becoming more than a friend. But the Shadowhunting world isn’t ready to let her go—especially her handsome, infuriating, newfound brother, Jace. And Clary’s only chance to help her mother is to track down rogue Shadowhunter Valentine, who is probably insane, certainly evil—and also her father.
To complicate matters, someone in New York City is murdering Downworlder children. Is Valentine behind the killings—and if he is, what is he trying to do? When the second of the Mortal Instruments, the Soul-Sword, is stolen, the terrifying Inquisitor arrives to investigate and zooms right in on Jace. How can Clary stop Valentine if Jace is willing to betray everything he believes in to help their father?
In this breathtaking sequel to City of Bones, Cassandra Clare lures her readers back into the dark grip of New York City’s Downworld, where love is never safe and power becomes the deadliest temptation.

Note: The following review is assuming that you’ve already read the first book in The Mortal Instrument series.

Cassandra Clare brings back her wonderfully witty characters in the second book of her much loved series, The Mortal Instruments. I can’t tell you how excited I was when I sat down to start this book, as those of you who read the first book are well aware how amazing the series started out.

Let’s grab a short recap if it’s been a while since you’ve read the series. Clary, our main character, was pulled into the rude of Shadowhunters and blatantly shown that mythical creatures no longer belong on the pages of children’s books. She learns she’s not human, or a Mundane as Shadowhunters call them, but rather the daughter of the murderous Valentine, who seeks to gain control over everything his dark mind can reach with the help of his home grown demon army. By the end of the first book, not only does Valentine have the Mortal Cup, the first Mortal Instrument, but we also find that Clary and Jace, the handsome, rogue Shadowhunter she developed strong feelings for, are brother and sister.

City of Ashes comes as the much anticipated next book in the series. Readers not only want to delve back into the plot, but they want to see the continuation of their favorite characters.

It becomes known that Jace is Valentine’s father and from there the trust is lost in him. His adoptive mother finds his presence painful. People who have known him for years question if he is truly ignorant of having been Valentine’s father all this time. The Inquisitor, a woman on edge with a personal vendetta, accuses Jace of fraternizing with the enemy and locks him up in the City of Bones for trial.

But Valentine, up to his tricks, won’t have that happen. The man is looking forward to having his son by his side when he begins his war. His involvement in Jace’s life only strengthens the beliefs of people like the Inquisitor that the young man is not on their side.

Clary feels torn between the people she loves most in this book. Simon, her childhood friend, expresses deep feelings with her while battling with the fear that he is getting pulled into her world a little deeper than he had wanted. Jace seems to have his own opinion on the matter that Clary is his sister. Her mother is still in a coma that doesn’t seem to be breaking, she has no affection for her father, a man she would have preferred staying lost, and she clings to Luke, the man who is like her father and he only link to her past when she wasn’t fighting demons to keep her life.

I’m not going to tell you how amazing this book is, because if you thought that way about the first book, the second will just confirm your suspicions that this series wreaks of awesome. You will laugh, scream, scowl, and smile while reading this book, and Clare will not for any reason give you a time to rest in between. Many, many questions arise by the end of this book, and then the book ends, with a shock, and leave you sitting their whilst waving and laughing.

It is such a tease.



View all my reviews

Review: Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
How I Got It: I own a copy.

For Nora Grey, romance was not part of the plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how much her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her...until Patch comes along.


With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Nora is drawn to him against her better judgment, but after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure whom to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is, and to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is far more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.

For Nora is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen - and when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost her life.

So, meet Nora Grey, a fun loving teenager who lives in one of those towns where nothing interesting ever happens. (Hey, sound like where I live!) She’s typical, and so nothing overly exciting is ever expected to happen to her or her friend Vee. That is until the new boys show up and suddenly she feels like she has to fight for her life.

First of all, it’s pretty clear this novel concerns angels. I don’t think anybody is fooled by that. The back cover, the front cover, the prologue. Packed full of “by the way” segments, so you dive into this book prepared to read a novel about angels. I was excited, as this was my first fallen angel book, and I was excited to get into the details and the lore that covers this subject. It was a relief from the themes YA fiction has been tackling lately, so I dove in.

This book wasn’t that bad. I didn’t jump for joy over it, but I’ll get into that later. In all honesty I did enjoy this book, though, and I don’t regret reading it. Fitzpatrick’s writing isn’t bad, she has a witty sense of humor at times, and you can tell that the research and legend building she worked on for this was fairly dimensional.

The first problem I had with hush, hush was it’s pacing. I know we’re not supposed to expect the plot to unravel in the first line, but the beginning 2/3 of the book didn’t really mention angels as much as I’d expected. To me it felt like any typical, non-paranormal, YA romance punctuated occasionally by moments of action that were strung together to keep the illusion of something more going on alive. I read on, day after day, waiting for some fallen angel to swoop down and grab her, but to no avail.

The last 1/3 of the book, however, really blew up for me and finally I was getting into the thick of the plot and, in turn, the series. I read through this last section so quickly that I finally felt the book was reprieving itself. When I closed the cover I felt like I’d finally managed to get to what the book was about.

In this case, the book was fun, and I do recommend it to people who have patience to get to the heart of the matter.

Fitzgerald’s characters, however, are something to be desired. I particularly didn’t care for Vee, who seemed to be a complete idiot and the exact opposite of the type of friend I’d pegged for Nora. She constantly gets into trouble, chooses men over her supposed best friend, and crosses boundaries constantly. Found myself questioning if Nora would really be friends with a person like her or if rude people like Vee even existed.

Second was Patch. Okay, Patch was adorable, and he’s hot, and I even wanted to hug him, but please, stalker much? At times I was completely turned off by his inability to leave Nora alone or leave his attitude behind. His personality and in your face attitude got a little old and crossed the line from mysteriously dark and sexy to really needing a restraining order because not even the reader is buying it. I even felt awkward and was wandering how Nora could keep this fantasy alive about him.

Thankfully, by the end of the book I wasn’t harboring hard feelings still. Patch continued to be one of those YA male characters we know and love, and even Vee gave me a reason to want to stomach her character again.

This book is a series, will I read the rest? Yes I will!

I highly suggest this book to any readers out there looking for a fun read, a new series, or a break from the run YA fiction has fallen into.

View all my reviews

Review: Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

*** Spoiler Alert - If you don’t want to ruin the book for yourself, please take caution when reading ahead… ***

I was super excited when I sat down to read this book. I loved the first one in the series and I was told that my issues with the first book would be cleared up in the second. What issues? I had problems with the characters going along with the demands of the Capitol and not rebelling enough. So I was told by more than one person that this changes in Catching Fire, which it does and which makes me happy.

So the book goes on with Katniss being a victor and going on with her Victory Tour with Peeta before returning home. There are obvious signs of unrest in Panem which she can’t help but encourage. The Quarter Quell is approaching, the special anniversary of the games where they make them extra “special,” is well on it’s way. The announcement calls for previous victors to be reaped and called back into the arena.

This is really my only problem with this book. I was terrified of this happening and in my crazy plot brain-storming I sort of thought this would happen. More games. Don’t get me wrong, they were interesting in the first book, but now it’s like Miss Collins can’t write about this society without having half, if not more, of each novel set in the games. Even when I read through the rest of this book and saw the end of these “games” I was still a little bothered by them having to occur at all.

That said, when the novel finally came to and end I was pleased with where it was heading for the final installment. I love a good uprising, and this is one of those few books in my entire existence of reading that has brought out such an emotional reaction from me.

Much less annoying issues I had with this book include the speed. I don’t know what Collins was after in some parts. At first she’s going at a fine pace and all, details riddling the pages, emotions in every corner of the paragraphs, and then in a few short lines she’s jumped ahead several weeks or months like we’re supposed to just assumed what happened anyway. It didn’t ruin any of the story for me, but I was still shaking my head and wish she’d done so a little more fluidly.

Second, the love triangle is confusing the crap out of me. Who is Katniss in love with? At first it’s Gale, and she’s so sorry for what she’d done to Peeta, dragging him along and all. Then she’s in love with Peeta and can’t stand not to be out of his arms and thoughts of Gale are nowhere to be seen. I just wish there’d be a healthy page somewhere the outright explains what’s going on with her screwed up love life.

But onto the book…

Once again I commend Miss Collins for her dystopian world that is so screwed up you can‘t help but want to dive in. It’s only the second book, and I read the first book a little while ago, but when I read this one I felt as if I’d never left. I suppose you really bring out the Hunger Games fan in you when you understand it all and “know the drill” so to speak.

If you are considering reading this book because you read the first I highly suggest you do so. I feel it was much more in depth and driven than the first. It gets down to the main idea of the plot and the reason I think we all want to sit down and read these books.




View all my reviews

Review: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.

Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before--and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

After seeing all the hype that surrounded ‘The Hunger Games’ I decided to read the book. There seemed to be a serious following of people who didn’t look like raving fangirls flipping shit over sparkly boys with no personality, so it had to be a win, right? Right!

Te book was actually pretty good, I really enjoyed it, and although the book wasn’t a completely original idea, it was a refreshing read from what most Young Adult fiction has to offer these days. When I read through it, I could easily see places where the author was at risk for tripping up and ruining the novel, but she didn’t Instead I walked away with what appears to be a new favorite!

In an effort to somehow organize my review, I’m dividing it into three sections. So here goes…

The Good

I actually loved the characters Katniss, the narrator of the novel, was a strong willed female character with just the right faults to make her human and not a moron. I loved her strength and voice, and her overall being. I think she was the perfect candidate to carry this story forward, and I don’t think the book would have been as wonderful if it hadn’t been her telling it. Then there is Peeta, who I just LOVE. He’s an amazing man, and he is amazing because of his GASP! personality! He’s smart, witty, humble and devoted. I’m sure he’s also quite handsome, but I love him for his character as a whole.


The games I think were planned and written in such a fashion that it made them unlike anything I had expected. And what a relief, too! I was afraid, when starting this book, I would grow bored when things seemed to fall into place, but I was happy to see Miss Collins could navigate the idea so wonderfully.


Violence! Oh, sweet violence… I love violence. I mean, not in a creepy way, but damn. YA books everywhere have all these sex and stupidity, and then no violence. Why the heck not? Be honest with the kids. I’m so glad for the raw violence in this book.

The planning of the book, the setting, the plot was simple, but you could see how well it worked. SO glad for this, and it’s really why the book is as amazing as it is.


The Bad

There were times this book was a little corny and I wonder where Collins got the idea for some of the details. They were just off the beaten path and I didn’t know how to react to some things. I was laughing, but not with her.


Sometimes the plot seemed to take a turn when it was most convenient for the characters. It gave me whiplash when I had to read over something that turned the book in an entirely different direction, but didn’t really convince me of how well it fell in with the rest of the plot.


Sometimes Katniss just bugged me with what she was thinking about or where she was directing her energy, especially before the games. At times, I guess I could just say she acted out of character.

The thing with the dogs at the end really was lost with me. I just went through this emotional ride with the death of characters. Violent, horrible deaths, and I think they should have been left like that. The mutated dogs made from/with the dead contestants just went down a path that didn’t seem like the rest of the book’s style

Questions I have but will wait for the next book. I don’t think they are holes in the plot, just missing information that could go for or against the overall rating of this book.

Where the hell is the rest of the world? Seriously, there is an entire world out there, and after what seems to be some sort of war, I want to know what’s happening outside of Panem, if anything. Are there other countries, were they destroyed, are they in the same political chaos as Panem? Are there people in Europe realizing that there is something wrong with Panem, do they know about the wrong doings, do they care? I just couldn’t believe that the rest of the world is just… blah.

About this rebellion… what about it? What did the people face? A military? If so, where is it? Why are these people so loyal to this political movement? Why are people at the Capitol okay with this? I understand that the districts are forced into participating in the games, but there are people running this show that apparently think it’s okay. Not to mention the people waving banners and sponsoring this shit. Are they just crazy or are they playing along as well?

Is there going to be another revolt, is my biggest question. This book had a lot of people somewhat speaking out against their government, but I’m not going to read three books about people just complaining and not acting. I know there is fear and forces to stop them, but please, this book is screaming for a revolution. (I seriously think it’s going to happen, but I just had to say this…)


In conclusion… I really liked this novel. It was witty, fun, violent, harsh, emotional, and raw. I loved the characters, I laughed with them and cried with them. It’s sort of a little gem of what YA novels should be, and what a lot of fiction should model. I’m so glad I got to read this, : )





View all my reviews

Review: The Goblin Gate by Hilari Bell

The Goblin Gate by Hilari Bell

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

He's willingly crossed over to the Otherworld with a hedgewitch named Makenna and her legion of goblins. What Tobin doesn’t know is that the Otherworld is a perilous dimension that leeches magic from those who have it—and life from those who don’t. In order to save his brother, Jeriah must find a way to open a mystical gate between the worlds.


Searching for the key to rescue Tobin from the clutches of the Otherworld, Jeriah is thrust into a tangled web of political intrigue as he uncovers a dangerous secret that could change the fate of an entire kingdom. Now he must get help from the very beings he’s been taught to hate—the mischievous goblins. Meanwhile, the clock is ticking for Tobin. . . .


Hilari Bell’s enthralling fantasy adventure tests the bonds of magic, love, and loyalty in an unforgettable follow-up to The Goblin Wood that will leave readers breathless as they race to find out what high-stakes consequences await its hero.

Story time!



Several years ago I used to be in a magical place called Middle School. It sucked. Aside from the book fair that came twice a year. I'd load up my pockets with money, skip lunch to peruse the shelves, and come home loaded with books. One of these books, oh so many years ago, was the first book in this series The Goblin Wood.

I read the book quickly and rather enjoyed it, it having satisfied my pre-teen self, and concluded it wasn't all that bad of a story. It wasn't a favorite, but it wasn't some of the crap I was reading back then.


Year and years later I found there was a second book. Years later, and it's not like I've been missing it for this long either. Hilari Bell was a little late in the game as far as getting a sequel out. How many readers from her original book did she snag back? How many forgot about it completely? I don't know why it took her so long to write the next book, but somehow, finally, I found out about it and ordered it from the library.

Now on to the book...


Most of the book felt like a lead up to... something. Something that never happened. The first 150 pages were just sort of slow and I couldn't tell if something was supposed to be happening or what I was waiting for. I confess not remembering everything from the book before but I didn't really need to, this was almost a separate story, but not in a bad way. Nevertheless it was a struggle to get started, but once I started to come upon some plot twists, well, I wasn't feeling that bad after all.


Jeriah Rovan's brother is in the 'Otherworld.' This must be something of an alternative reality, but everyone but his brother, and the hedgewitch and goblins he went with, seems to know and understand that this Otherworld drains the life from all those who enter it. Jeriah is in a fight against time to get the spell notes and the power from a sort of... ruthless creep who is as crafty as he is annoying.

To do this, Jeriah reluctantly enlists the help of goblins...


Let's talk about those little creeps for a second. So this series it totally about the goblins. (Hint, look at the title...) But I can't stand them. They're sort of rude, and do nothing for free in fear of being indebted to another. So poor Jeriah, with a person's life at stake, mind you, has to g out of his way to pay the little vermin to help him. They don't do favors apparently? They're gruff, annoying, demanding, and they just drive me insane. Even when things seem square, payments have been deliver, and everything is supposed to be fair and peachy, well they're just jerks still.

And what do they look like...? I have no idea. Let me tell you, the goblins from Harry Potter were little creeps too, and didn't exactly have a face to learn to love...







Or let's not forget the ones from Lord of the Rings, them's not adorable freaks either...







So needless to say I would have preferred the book if she'd worked around the need to include the little things in it all the time. They were like a headache, always there, sometimes dull, sometimes a sharp pain that made me want to force the book away and sleep.


However, the book was rather enjoyably. Most of the characters were unique and not the cliché type that we all read in most books. The plot, once it picked up, was very intriguing, and the main character, Jeriah, experience obstacles and human error within himself, so you weren't reading a book about Mr. Unstoppable.


The was sort of a climax to the book, although not what I was expecting. I suppose it was a bit of a refreshment, but that depends on what you enjoy reading. It was more of a battle of wits, a master plan, and a conclusion that shed no blood. The ending was left open for the next book in the series, which I'm really looking forward to reading.

Conclusion? Pick this book up for a light weekend read, and to experience some good ol' high-fantasy. You might not be able to expect the world from this book, but I know a lot of other shit I could have read instead, and I'm glad this wasn't part of it.



View all my reviews

Review: A Great and Terrible Beauty

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Gemma Doyle isn't like other girls. Girls with impeccable manners, who speak when spoken to, who remember their station, who dance with grace, and who will lie back and think of England when it's required of them.


No, sixteen-year-old Gemma is an island unto herself, sent to the Spence Academy in London after tragedy strikes her family in India. Lonely, guilt-ridden, and prone to visions of the future that have an uncomfortable habit of coming true, Gemma finds her reception a chilly one. She's not completely alone, though... she's been followed by a mysterious young man, sent to warn her to close her mind against the visions.

I cannot but feel a bitter-sweet relationship to Libra Bray’s ‘A Great and Terrible Beauty.’ For the first several chapters I thought it was quite terrible, but then as I finished the novel I realized there was a bit of beauty after all.


Set in the late nineteenth century, Miss Gemma Doyle is sent to an English finishing school after the death of her mother in India. There she befriends and creates enemies that seem to be one in the same person. At the same time she is revealed and ancient power that has been her own her entire life, and exercises its use during the fast paced plot.

My biggest complaint with Miss Bray’s work is her characters. With a lovely writing style and enjoyable plot, the characters fall short of being likable. Although they improve going into the second half of the novel, I still could not help but feel not an ounce of pity for many of them. That feeling of complete disregard, at least I think, should be better directed towards the side-characters or the meaningless antagonists. Instead I found myself having to work through a general distaste of characters that I was supposed to be enjoying and declaring wonderful girls.

The pacing was very quick, although a bit too quick in some spots, but made the book enjoyable nonetheless. As I read further, the plot thickened, as they say, the characters became less snobbish and annoying, and I actually began to enjoy the novel. So much so that the book was bumped up as far as rating goes for me.

All the girls change, thank goodness, there’s a lot of plot twists and developments that made for a quite enjoyable read. At the very end there was even an emotional tug that made the novel even that much more worth the read.


I am well aware there are two other books in this series, and I am confident in my desire to read them. This was a YA novel that almost didn’t make the cut, as I’m a very picky reader when it comes to YA fiction, but eventually it did.




View all my reviews