Rooms by Lauren Oliver // Creepy, but Not My Favourite Ghost-Based Story

Rooms, by Lauren Oliver
Publication: September 23, 2014, by Ecco
Genre: Adult Fiction, Paranormal, Ghosts, Contemporary, Mystery
Pages: 320
Format: Paperback
Source: Borrowed
Rating: 

The New York Times bestselling author of Before I Fall and the Delirium trilogy makes her brilliant adult debut with this mesmerizing story in the tradition of The Lovely Bones, Her Fearful Symmetry, and The Ocean at the End of the Lane—a tale of family, ghosts, secrets, and mystery, in which the lives of the living and the dead intersect in shocking, surprising, and moving ways

Wealthy Richard Walker has just died, leaving behind his country house full of rooms packed with the detritus of a lifetime. His estranged family—bitter ex-wife Caroline, troubled teenage son Trenton, and unforgiving daughter Minna—have arrived for their inheritance.

But the Walkers are not alone. Prim Alice and the cynical Sandra, long dead former residents bound to the house, linger within its claustrophobic walls. Jostling for space, memory, and supremacy, they observe the family, trading barbs and reminiscences about their past lives. Though their voices cannot be heard, Alice and Sandra speak through the house itself—in the hiss of the radiator, a creak in the stairs, the dimming of a light bulb.
The living and dead are each haunted by painful truths that will soon surface with explosive force. When a new ghost appears, and Trenton begins to communicate with her, the spirit and human worlds collide—with cataclysmic results.

My Thoughts:

Lauren Oliver is one of my all-time favourite authors. Because I love her sass in writing and her ideas that eventually form into spectacular concepts of books, I once decided that I would read anything that she has written. When word got out about Rooms being released, I figured that it would be brilliant. And no, this isn't the popular top-notch book that a movie is based on called Room. I keep getting asked that by everyone in my family, and I'm sure that some may think it, too. After reading this, I'm sure that the other book has a nicer, brilliant concept that is better than this.

I probably wouldn't even watch a film that is based on this book. It is not scary, but creepy, and just because of the fact that Oliver's characters are eerie and dysfunctional. It is adult, and it does have themes that not every average YA reader would care to enjoy or find interesting. It basically is about an old house that is getting cleaned up after Richard Walker's death, a father and grandfather. There are ghosts of the past living there, watching everyone and basically discussing their lives. It's pretty exhausting to read about because there are many perspectives and all of the people are pretty similar. The book itself is a whirlwind of details, and a mystery that may or may not seem applicable to the regular kinds of books you read.

"This was progress. This was modernity; you could cover over the past completely. You could bury the old under a relentless surface of new, stretched from corner to corner."

Rooms was not, or not even close to perfection. I had four main issues with it: characters, theme, pacing and plot. Some people may fall head over heels for this story and must have anticipated it for ages, but I am not part of that club. I expected something more YA, with some teenage, light horror to it, but I was not scared at all. If this book turned into a movie and hit the theatres, it wouldn't even be classified under the horror genre. Sure, it does have a creepiness factor with the ghosts, but I didn't actually form any kind of relationship with those ghostly characters; I couldn't even treat them like characters. I dreaded their perspectives, especially Caroline's, and the story wasn't too eventful to have to have many perspectives. Most of the characters annoyed me, and it was like they were forced to have an issue going on in their lives. One was an alcoholic, one was depressed, and the list continues.

I didn't like where this story was going from the beginning. It is a mystery, it is supposed to have that extra bit of something, like suspense, to make readers go crazy, but it lacked that, for me. It didn't change my life or the way I see adult-paranormal books at all. And it was supposed to, because hey, it's written by a favourite author of mine. This was pretty disappointing, as a matter of fact. 

I fell for the hype. I requested it from the library, knowing that I couldn't handle the wait any longer, but it didn't matter at all. My opinion would probably never change if I read this next year, or right now. The ending was the best part of the story, where all of the secrets were revealed and we realize that this book does have a purpose and so do the characters. But honestly, that is what brought this rating up. The story overall wasn't anything special or unique from what I've read before. Where is the maturity and creepiness that I was seeking?

Rooms is a book that won't change your life—it's absolutely okay to go on without it. But if you are positively sure that this is the right thing for you, if you're fine with pacing and with a concept that is no different than anything else and won't wow you, then just go for it. The writing is nice, lyrical, as does anything Oliver writes, but this time around, the adult thing didn't work out for me. And now Oliver switched to middle grade fiction, which I am dying to read and compare. Can't we just go back in time to Delirium and Before I Fall? 

Are you willing to read anything your favourite author(s) write? Have you read/enjoyed Rooms? 

ARC Review: A Curious Tale of the In-Between by Lauren DeStefano

A Curious Tale of the In-Between (Pram #1), by Lauren DeStefano
Publication: September 1, 2015, by Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Genre: Middle-Grade Fiction, Fantasy, Ghosts
Pages: 240
Format: ARC
Source: BEA/Publisher
Rating: 

Pram Bellamy is special—she can talk to ghosts. She doesn’t have too many friends amongst the living, but that’s all right. She has her books, she has her aunts, and she has her best friend, the ghostly Felix.
Then Pram meets Clarence, a boy from school who has also lost a parent and is looking for answers. Together they arrive at the door of the mysterious Lady Savant, who promises to help. But this spiritualist knows the true nature of Pram’s power, and what she has planned is more terrifying than any ghost.
Lauren DeStefano is beloved by critics and readers alike, and her middle grade debut is lyrical, evocative and not to be missed. 

My Thoughts:

As the summary states, this middle-grade debut surely is evocative. I can't continue that note even further until you all go out and pick up this gothic read. DeStefano's mind and world created is so dark and steampunk-ish. All I picture is grey skies, characters dressed up in bonnets and pretty dresses and did I mention grey skies? It's such a gloomy read filled with grief and discovering who you are, but at the same time it gives readers all of the feels. Any kid would enjoy this book somehow and it's absolutely recommended by me, myself, and I.

In her foreword, Lauren DeStefano describes her state of grief and what inspired her to write this novel. After her latest teen novel, she will have written 6 YA books and I completely understand her reason of switching into middle-grade. Like YA, middle-grade's a pretty new genre that has formed just for children who are still too young to understand/enjoy more mature subject matter. We all need that comfort read to turn to when times are rough, and I firmly believe that this book will become that for many kids. Our heroine, Pram, is eleven years old and she sees ghosts—what else can a kid want to relate to in a story? (Not that many children see ghosts these days...)

"'Don't be in any hurry,' Felix said. "I like you alive. I like the way you see things. It makes you who you are, the way the spirit world makes me who I am." (ARC, page 15)

These characters are eleven years old and they're already so inspirational. That's really cute, if you ask me. And also to mention, this isn't scary by any means. It does have that spooky feel, but you won't be hiding under your covers in case any gorilla-monster will come up and take you away. Lauren did that aspect perfectly—you're in for a wild ride—and it brings us into a mystery of finding your family and discovering how it's okay to be different. NO, this isn't a cheesy concept whatsoever and if you think it is, something's wrong with your taste of books, just saying. *winks*

This story is about Pram Bellamy, short for Pragmatic, an attribute that Pram's mother didn't have at all. Pram's an orphan, as her mother died while giving birth and her father's completely out of the picture as he doesn't even know that Pram exists. Did I mention that she sees ghosts? Her closest friend is Felix, who's a ghost and is the only one who she can talk to. She lives with her two aunts and when it's time for her to actually start attending school (her aunts taught her for a while), she meets Clarence, who also has lost his mom in an accident and together they head off to discover answers from a spiritualist.

Things like this can surely happen to people. That's one of the reasons why I enjoyed this so much, even though it contains lots and lots of fantasy. A ghost killing someone and chasing you? That obviously isn't bound to happen in reality, but some of the book's events seems so real. FRIENDSHIP? Check. A NICE FAMILY? Check. It's complete beauty.

"Clarence. Pram thought of his blue eyes and his sad smile, and the tickets to Lady Savant's Spirit Show in his hand, and then the feel of his hand in hers. She could taste the chocolate-raspberry ice cream he'd bought her, and the haze trimmed." (ARC, page 134)

Pram and Clarence were so freaking adorable. I bet that they'll end up being boyfriend-and-girlfriend one day, or as the series continues. *hopes* I am in full support of boy-girl friendships, especially in literature because we NEVER see enough of that. Fighting in the spirit world and helping each other out? That's cuter than watching two brown bears play fighting. They were always there for each other and now I'm squealing. Damn.

I didn't like Pram's character, sadly. I bet that you now know what's the special ingredient that brought my rating down, and it was that. I usually never have issues with middle-grade heroines/heroes, but in this case, she was disappointing. Too naïve, too gullible, I don't know. She fought for her answers, which was nice, but we didn't get to see that special something coming out of her, you know? But in that case, I'm letting you know that the writing is so descriptive, slow but imaginative. No fantasy author has ever done it that way, I can tell you.

The title of this book makes so much sense now that I've read the story. It speaks to readers, actually. This certainly is the best middle-grade read I've read this year, next to Fuzzy Mud and The Isle of the Lost, and I just can't wait for the next book in the Pram series. I'll fight a ghost to grab a copy of the sequel. I'M JOKING, I'd never do what the brave characters had to go through now that I think about it. Let me go read a cutesy contemporary because I just can't go without thinking about this spooky read. CHILDREN, GO AND LINE UP FOR THIS BOOK WHEN SEPTEMBER 1ST COMES.

*A review copy was provided by the publisher via BookExpo America in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much!*

What do you think of YA authors going to middle-grade instead? They have the experience, so why not, right? ;)

Ashes to Ashes by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian Review

Ashes to Ashes (Burn for Burn #3), by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian
Publication: September 16, 2014, by Simon and Schuster
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Romance, Paranormal
Pages: 387
Format: Hardcover
Source: Purchased
Rating: 

New Year's Eve ended with a bang and Mary, Kat and Lillia may not be prepared for what is to come.After Rennie's death, Kat and Lillia try to put the pieces together of what happened to her. They both blame themselves. If Lillia hadn't left with Reeve... If Kat had only stayed with Rennie... Things could have been different. Now they will never be the same.Only Mary knows the truth about that night. About what she is. She also knows the truth about Lillia and Reeve falling in love, about Reeve being happy when all he deserves is misery, just like the misery he caused her. Now their childish attempts at revenge are a thing of the past and Mary is out for blood. Will she leave anything in her wake or will all that remain be ashes?

What the hell. WAS THAT. I'm not saying that this was bad or disliking in any way, I MEAN, WHAT WAS THAT WHIRLWIND OF A ROLLER COASTER RIDE? And also, why the hell are people hating on this gorgeous piece of literature? I'm telling you right here, that Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian have never done it better. They don't deserve any rants or any signs of garbage coming at them, because of some sort of "ugly ending" that I don't see at all, whatsoever. Can I just sit here, pretending that Goodreads isn't clogged with all of those negative reviews? Let's move on, and let me just say that this was one of the best books that I've ever read, and it certainly sparks up onto me as one of the best finales to a trilogy, or to any series that has ever climbed into my eager hands.

For the time being, I can tell you that it was love at first sight. From the first chapter to the last, it was a never-ending roller coaster ride that really messed up my feelings and emotions. I fell in love with the plot right away and I kept telling everyone around me that my heart is racing. I never have been this excited and anxious to let my feelings about a book out for a long time, and now here's my raving moment where I'm just about ready to explode. Every single masterful thing written in this book was meaning something, and I just never wanted to let anything leave out of the gorgeous pages that introverted into my heart. 

Back in 2012 when the first book in the series was released, Burn for Burn, I picked it up as soon as it hit the shelves because at the time, I had been loving Jenny Han's other series and I wanted more, obviously. Little did I know that this would become a paranormal series by the end, as there were barely any hints given to us through the first two books but I can tell you that suspense and plot twists were two elements that both Han and Vivian are masters of. It's been more than a year and a half since I last put down the sequel to this one and I've always been thinking about what had happened to Rennie. Doesn't that tell you something? How often does a book's events stay in your mind? For me, if it's memorable, it can last a lifetime I'm sure, and the whole series is going to stick with me forever.

"A fiery anger begins to simmer inside me. I used to hate feeling angry. I used to fear it. Except now... it feels good. It feels like something."

This took off right where the sequel left us with. We're currently at Rennie's funeral, and Kat and Lillia can't seem to believe what's happening, and they feel like they have something to do with her death. Mary's also there, and she's witnessing it all, first thinking that it's her funeral. Later on, Lillia is mistaking her feelings with Reeve, and she doesn't know what to feel since it's absolutely forbidden in her case after Rennie's death. It's their senior year, and graduation is coming up, and everyone's trying to figure out what they'd like to do with their futures, but the only thing on Mary's mind is revenge and Lillia and Kat are stopped from following the mainstream, at least for now.

What this book has done to me is something unlike the usual situation with a 5 star read. I was sitting on my bed for 20 minutes, trying to figure out what my feelings were doing with me, and what the rating I should give this. It's no excuse to say that I shouldn't give this 5 stars. If my conscience told me that, I literally would've thought that it was messed up. Although yes, there had been some things that frustrated me, like Mary's character, everything in the end was perfect and it made up for all of the mishaps and tweaks needed. We started off this series with a 5 star rating, and we end it off with a 5 star rating. That definitely shows you how two fabulous authors can achieve something remarkable with just a thought that was shared over eating cupcakes, as the best ideas usually do.

"Years from now this will be what I remember when I remember my spring break senior year. Not the missed trip to Jamaica, or not being invited on Alex's yacht with all my friends. It will be this moment right here. The smell of chlorine on his skin. The way the sun dips slow into the water before it disappears. The first time I ever told a boy I loved him."

The pacing and everything about this plot was angelic and illusional. It's rare to find a book that puts you in a situation where you feel like you're burning into ashes because of your happiness, but in this case, I got all of that right in a matter of a few hours. The book made me want to devour and read this slowly, as I know it's my last chance to read a story of three girls who I can totally relate to and who I see as the best protagonists with different personalities and actions that they plan to do those those who they love and hate. Han and Vivian sucked me into the world of Lillia, Mary and Kat instantly, and I wasn't let out until the epilogue, where the questions were answered.

I honestly feel like I'm dying inside. The ending was so sad, but amazing and remarkable at the same time. I expected everything to end off differently, but we have achieved a classic ending where it all seemed right. There was some action as we all knew would come with Lillia, Kat and Reeve against Mary, who truly unlocked her sense of authority and power over everyone as she thought that her case of revenge gave her the allowance to be stubborn and use who she was against everyone else, including the two best friends who always were there for her. I just have to get my feelings of the ending out of me, or else I'll be stuck in this world for the rest of my life!

"He's alive. He's free. We all are. Because whatever Mary was in the end, she saved us."

Lillia had to be my favourite girl out of the three. Over the past three books, I have to tell you that she's changed and learned the most from them all. She's become confident, where she's now able to let her feelings and words be said without a bossy chick going over her. She demands to be in power, and she's looking for love. She's dealt with it now, of course, and Reeve's changed her, and she knows that the time to move on is the right time for her. I love her attitude, and her perspective was my favourite to read, where her leadership oozed my heart.

Kat has grown up from an immature reckless chick to someone who's been through so much but is there for her friends. Hey, she proves that she doesn't need a man in her life to be happy, and you can definitely see her obedience and connection to Lillia throughout the novel. You call Kat, she'll be parked on your driveway with a cup of coffee ready for you. She was loyal and most of all, she didn't care about the revenge anymore. It was like fate put her and Lillia in that revenge situation to find each other as they never had given each other a chance in the past.

And Mary? Well, through the middle of the book I would've told you that I hated her, but she was lost in her own world as well. She was a total mystery, and though she thought that she knew it all and what was really going on in her life, she didn't, but it was okay, as the other girls proved. Her authority went a little savaged and out of control, but I guess that's what happens when you're lonely and you don't give other experiences a chance. Of course, guilt and sorrow is what came out of Reeve and the girls in the end, and she needed it to make her stronger. Her ending was absolutely open, and I guess it all goes depending on your opinion of her to see what actually happened.

Some would agree to call this a chick-lit, or a contemporary-romance, but I believe that the contemporary and the romance absolutely stem away from each other. Yes, the novel had tons of romance (and kisses) in it, but the romance proved the strength of the characters and it was all about fate and the situation. Lillia and Reeve were really something else, I adored them together. And yeah, Lillia found herself in a love triangle with both Reeve and Alex, but I saw Alex more of a supporting friend who will always love Lil in a 'sister' way. Though in the end, everything was quite open, I feel that the connection had never subsided and left them. Reeve will always look at Lil and see a glint of the opal necklace that he bought her, and Lil will always see the fire in Reeve's eyes. But that's another thing to talk about—it was all real. 

Happily ever afters? Not so much, if you really think about it. And that leads me to my last thought, where I'm telling you that this was unlike anything else I've ever read because although it is a fantasy, it's real as well. I can picture this happening in reality, and all of the events even changed my viewpoint of the way I see friendship and love. This was the normal way of seeing things, which gets us to realize that these characters are just teenagers, who had been in the wrong situation at the wrong time, but they surely had gotten something from it. 

"What we had was perfect, and it was finite in the way that all good things are. Nothing gold can stay. I take off the necklace Reeve gave me and then I cry until the sun comes up. For what could have been and what will never be."

And that sends thick tears into my eyes, because the impossible is barely possible. And the authors got that.

This wasn't a miserable read, if you're kind of getting that from what I'm trying to say. This book was perfectly fabulous and gorgeous, and every time my eyes blink, I see ashes, ashes of what could've came out of this book, but then I realize, there's nothing else or else it wouldn't have been real. I won't even try to explain to you what this one meant to me, because it was truly something else. Reeve, Lillia, Kat, Mary, Alex, and even Rennie will always stay as real people, real characters in my heart who are walking on this Earth today. And maybe, just maybe, we're all one of them. Love's powerful, guys, but it can always change your fate.

What's the most recent book that you've read where you cried?

Division Zero, by Matthew S. Cox

Division Zero (Division Zero #1), by Matthew S. Cox

Genre: New Adult, Paranormal, Ghosts, Cyberpunk

Rating: 1.5/5 stars

Publication: March 7, 2014, by Curiosity Quills Press

Format: ebook






Goodreads Summary: Most cops get to deal with living criminals, but Agent Kirsten Wren is not most cops.

A gifted psionic with a troubled past, Kirsten possesses a rare combination of abilities that give her a powerful weapon against spirits. In 2418, rampant violence and corporate warfare have left no shortage of angry wraiths in West City. Most exist as little more than fleeting shadows and eerie whispers in the darkness.

Kirsten is shunned by a society that does not understand psionics, feared by those who know what she can do, and alone in a city of millions. Every so often, when a wraith gathers enough strength to become a threat to the living, these same people rely on her to stop it.

Unexplained killings by human-like androids known as dolls leave the Division One police baffled, causing them to punt the case to Division Zero. Kirsten, along with her partner Dorian, wind up in the crosshairs of corporate assassins as they attempt to find out who – or what – is behind the random murders before more people die.

She tries to hold on to the belief that no one is beyond redemption as she pursues a killer desperate to claim at least one more innocent soul – that might just be hers.

Review:

 *Review copy provided by Xpresso Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.*

  DNF @ 71%

 I have given the genre of cyberpunk/steampunk many tries and chances, but after reading this book, I realized that it just isn't for me. 

  Adding the concept of paranormalcy into this just hooked me right in. And I believed that there will be a hint of romance added into this as well (who doesn't want romance?) so I requested to read this and be part of the blog tour immediately. Turns out, this just wasn't the right read for me.

   I struggled while reading this book. For its sake, I wanted to really like it and enjoy it. But having a psionic cop solving who's killing random people just isn't my thing, I guess. I usually fall for these type of mysteries-- murder and paranormalcy together equal a great deal of enjoyment for me. Was it because this falls in the New Adult genre? I don't know, but the concept and plot really unsatisfied me.

    

    This was about Kirsten Wren, who is a gifted psionic cop who's living an abnormal life. It is the future. In 2418, a violent rampage has left almost no wraiths in West City, but there is more left than just few shadows and whispers. When mysterious random murders by human-like androids begin turning up all over the city, Kirsten and her partner Dorian are up to find out who's behind all of this and why.

     Books that have incorporated androids such as Cinder by Marissa Meyer have really left me stunned. Androids are such an interesting exotic topic that rarely exists in the literature world today, and many people such as myself are left wanting the books that incorporate the subject more than anything. The androids in this book didn't feel real. Of course, there isn't such thing as human-killing androids, but in a book that has this kind of atmosphere should really pick up the pace and give us that feel that gets us to believe that the world we're in really exists and that we're currently in it when reading the book. So therefore, the world-building in this book absolutely sucked, in my opinion.

      The plot was another thing. In the beginning to about 25% of the book, everything was starting off great. I really liked the story and how the author introduced the characters and events to us, and everything felt pretty real. As we moved on quickly towards the middle, I just lost track of everything that was going on and just got bored. Everything moved on to be slow-paced and I realized that the idea just wasn't for me. At that point, I didn't know how I was going to stand to complete the novel. I stood on reading until the seventy-one percentage, and then just let it go because it was just too horrible. So part of the 1.5 star rating goes to that advantage in the beginning. But the rest disappointed me because of the no-point sucky plot. No twists were incorporated that stunned me, and everything was predictable.

     

           

          Kirsten was just a regular clueless protagonist. She was a good fighter and thinker, but I didn't really like her personality. She was too stuffed up and in that 71% that I read, I didn't feel like I got to meet her. She differed from other characters that I liked. 

           I really ended up liking Dorian, the only other good thing in this book. He was the sugar and spice of the book and came to be a really good friend to Kirsten. I totally ship: Korian!
 

           So sadly, I didn't even care to find out the ending of this book. It disappointed me too much and left me not wanting anything to do with these characters or storyline. Unrecommended to YA readers because it's not what we're really looking for in a book. It was very unenjoyable.