Minders by Michele Jaffe Review

Minders, by Michele Jaffe
Published On: January 30, 2014, by Razorbill
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Dystopia, Romance, Science-Fiction
Pages: 395
Format: Hardcover
Source: Borrowed
Rating: ½

A high concept, cinematic read with a surprising twist, MINDERS asks the question: who is really watching whom?
Sadie Ames is a type-A teenager from the wealthy suburbs. She's been accepted to the prestigious Mind Corps Fellowship program, where she'll spend six weeks as an observer inside the head of Ford, a troubled boy with a passion for the crumbling architecture of the inner city. There's just one problem: Sadie's fallen in love with him.
Ford Winters is haunted by the murder of his older brother, James. As Sadie falls deeper into his world, dazzled by the shimmering pinpricks of color that form images in his mind, she begins to think she knows him. Then Ford does something unthinkable.
Back in her own body, Sadie is faced with the ultimate dilemma. With Ford's life in her hands, she must decide what is right and what is wrong. And how well she can really ever know someone, even someone she loves.

    I've honestly seen this book everywhere I go, and I feel like it kept on following me, so I then decided to borrow it from the library to give it a go. Since August due to my crazy schedule, it has been stalling in my bookshelf waiting to be picked up and loved from. Minders was a psychological thriller, with some flaws in between. But overall, it was a great novel and a total change.

"He took a step forward, then another. Dread filled her. She wanted to close her eyes, look away, but that wouldn't change anything. He raised the gun, and as he stepped into the office she heard him think, Watch this Sadie. As if she had a choice."

   

        Okay, so this book did have some peculiar events where I thought things were too good to be true. But really, the plot is simple but so good. What's happening in this dystopia world is that the government basically hire spies to read other people's minds of troubled people. Sadie Ames is a girl who's perfect for this role, as she will be listening to the thoughts of Ford, who is troubled by his dead brother's past. What happens when she falls in love with someone who doesn't even know that she exists?

           "I want to feel what pressures other people feel. Experience the world guided by someone else's moral compass. See and hear and taste with senses formed in a completely different mold than mine. I want to see what it's like to live someone else's lie."

          The concept of this book was one of the most unique that I've read about for a while. Mind-reading slash dystopia? WHAT AWESOMENESS. This was like a less dystopian Hunger Games, if you get what I mean. There was almost always action at every corner of every page. Like legit, the word "action." xD Just kidding—but this book was a total joke with the romance and characters.

         

            At first, I saw Sadie as kick-ass and literally perfect. She was the new "Tris," and the character I've been looking for, for the longest time. And then Ford happened. EWEWEWEWEWEW NO. Their "love" ruined it all because it was completely fake and Sadie was so obsessed. GIRL DO YOUR JOB. 

             Honestly, that's the part that frustrated me the most. I was expecting something more simple and special. As I began reading, I was pretty intrigued. Jaffe had something so intriguing in her words and I just wanted to know what would happen and how the ending will come to be. Next thing next, the middle portion was a little too boring and I lost the real amazingness of the story until the ending came. Meh.

     Minders was something I haven't read about for a long time. The plot was pretty well, and the idea was perfect. Minus some bland and flaws in the characters, I was really impressed with the outcome, and it was a great standalone.

The Prince of Venice Beach, by Blake Nelson Review

The Prince of Venice Beach, by Blake Nelson

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Romance

Rating: 3/5 stars

Publication: June 3, 2014, by Little Brown Books for Young Readers

Format: Hardcover Edition (borrowed)




Goodreads Summary: Robert "'Cali" Callahan is a teen runaway, living on the streets of Venice Beach, California. He's got a pretty sweet life: a treehouse to sleep in, a gang of surf bros, a regular basketball game...even a girl who's maybe-sorta interested in him.What he doesn't have is a plan. All that changes when a local cop refers Cali to a private investigator who is looking for a missing teenager. After all, Cali knows everyone in Venice. But the streets are filled with people who don't want to be found, and when he's hired to find the beautiful Reese Abernathy, who would do anything to stay hidden, Cali must decide where his loyalties truly lie.

Review:

         This book honestly was so much fun to read. It was the perfect summer read, and it was definitely the type to make you giggle and squeal and soak up the sun. *says in a cheesy matter* I absolutely regret reading this in the dawn of fall. -.-

         As you probably can recognize from the title, this book is about summer. Robert Callahan is a runaway, and he's homeless, living in sunny California. At the same time, this a mystery where "Cali" is referred to a private investigator where he'll be searching for a missing teenage girl. This is a summer where he'll be introduced to a whole new different perspective of life and living it.

         

          I KNOW. BUT THAT'S WHAT IT WAS AND BECAME. Surprisingly, this wasn't as good as I expected it to be. It was simply a "meh" read that left me hanging and upset. A mystery? Yes, but it wasn't one that left us in suspense mode and wondering what will happen next. The way it went was the way we followed, no feelings after.

          As this story unfolded into a bigger story from behind, we got to know more about the characters and their pasts. For once, we learned about some rough pasts, which rarely occurs in contemporary novels. Sure, some of the dark hot guys in paranormal books have some secrets behind their backs, but almost never in contemporaries. *thinks of stereotypes* This time around, Blake Nelson gave contemporary a little twist and made the story not exactly what it seemed to be like from the perspective of a reader before beginning.

         Cali wasn't your average protagonist. First of all, he was MALE! *squeals* Yay, for once! Add that to uniqueness. 

           He was totally adorable, I must say. *sighs and fans self* The way he portrayed the mystery and mixed it in with real life was total beauty. I mean, it felt real, and this can totally happen on the street any day, anytime, believe it or not.

            To describe this book in a quick few words, this was a literal quick read. It was fun, quick, but nothing special at the same time. I wasn't really captivated, and this was just a quick read that you can complete in a night without making a big deal over. The was all about a boy detective trying to make it in the big world and dealing with things that he's never dealt with ever before. Eh, go for it.

Review: Since Last Summer, by Joanna Philbin

Since Last Summer (Rules of Summer #2), by Joanna Philbin

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Romance

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Publication: June 3, 2014, by Poppy

Format: Hardcover Edition (borrowed)




Goodreads Summary: Rory McShane should be excited to spend the summer in East Hampton with Connor Rule, her generous, smart, cute boyfriend. After all, Rory's no longer the hired help at the Rule family mansion on the beach, and she and Connor have made it through a year of long-distance dating. But now, in the months leading up to college, Rory can't help but wonder if she really belongs in Connor's world.

Isabel Rule is still trying to get over Mike, the devastatingly sexy surfer who broke her heart last summer. Enter Evan, an aspiring filmmaker who's kind, funny, and crushing on Isabel. He'd be the perfect summer fling -- so why can't she seem to forget about Mike?

Set against a backdrop buzzing with the rich, the famous, and the wannabe rich and famous, Since Last Summer, a companion novel to Rules of Summer, is the perfect beach read.

Review:

  Another book in this series? Really?

  It wasn't needed. The previous and first book ended off the perfect way for a good summer contemporary read! And this one took two years to be written. Meh. I already forgot who the characters were in the series. Thank goodness Joanna gave us a recap.

   This book was okay. I had some problems with it, but it overall was enjoyable, coming from this great author. 

    This book takes place right from where the first book left us off... well a year later. Rory is back in the Hamptons for a summer where she's the guest, since she is Connor's girlfriend and Isabel's best friend. Time is ticking, and Rory's beginning to wonder if it's working out between Connor and her, the first boy she's really loved. Isabel still can't forget about Mike, but when she meets Evan, she falls head over heels for him instantly, with some backtrack thoughts still nearing her down. How will their summer end?

      The big question that was sorted through in this book was--Who do these chicks really love? That's all that's really surrounding the reader's mind, at least, mine. I really think that Joanna was trying to create some plot twists and surprises, but none of those really came out as shocking. And I didn't expect them to. This is just a plain Mary-Jane summer contemporary read that you can read beside the pool with loud screaming kids behind you and while you sip a plain old Coke. It was a very easy read and none of it seemed to be a big deal.  So overall, the plot was okay, but really nothing special. 

       The characters were really what annoyed me. My hate for Rory was unbelievable. 

        I never really liked her in the first book, but now my disliking has gone extreme to a whole other level. She was selfish and didn't give a crap about anyone except her and her love life. She kissed Connor's ass the whole time through, and when he broke up with her, she didn't even care. She just acted like he was sad but she went to Amelia's (who she doesn't really know) house to hide and pretend that she was sad. She was a cold, heartless brat.

        Now Isabel was the character I just adored. She was badass and wasn't afraid to be afraid. Bad things were coming her way, but she dealt with them strongly and appropriately. I just loved that girl. She's a definite character that you could look up to.

         And then I got a different liking for another character... Evan.

           YUM. No other words needed.

         I'm silently hoping that this won't become a trilogy, because it doesn't need to be. It definitely should've stayed as a standalone, but it was enjoyable either way. The plot was good, and I liked what happened in the end.

Toxic, by Sara Shepard

Toxic (Pretty Little Liars #15), by Sara Shepard

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Romance, Mystery/Murder/Thriller

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Publication: June 3, 2014, by HarperTeen

Format: Hardcover Edition (borrowed)





Goodreads Summary: One A has been captured…but the most dangerous A of all is still out there in the penultimate installment in Sara Shepard's #1 New York Times bestselling Pretty Little Liars series.

High school seniors Aria, Emily, Spencer, and Hanna barely survived their most recent encounter with A. And it's not over yet…. The police don't believe there's another, deadlier, A out there, but the girls know what-and who-they saw. If they don't track down this final tormentor soon, A will silence them forever.

Sara Shepard's fan base continues to grow as ABC Family's hit Pretty Little Liars TV show draws in new readers to the #1 New York Times bestselling series. Full of unexpected twists and shocking revelations, the second-to-last novel ramps up the stakes for the jaw-dropping series conclusion in Pretty Little Liars #16.

Review: 

 *This review will contain spoilers from the past books, but nothing too much from this book. Please take a precaution before reading.*

Sara Shepard...

  Just end this series, come on. You know you've taken it too far now. FIFTEEN BOOKS IN A FREAKIN' SERIES? *barfs* 

  Every PLL fan knows that this series is too long. We get the story. And now in the series, fate just hates Aria, Spencer, Emily and Hanna too much. Like it has gone over the top. How can no one find Ali and turn her in? This whole story is too unreal and that's my reason why I'm giving it a 3.5 star rating, also adding to the fact that nothing much was happening in this book and it was predictable. 

  Alright, so Ali has still not been found, but she's still leaving hints and traces of herself around for the girls to see and be afraid of. The four of them want to go and find Ali and silence her forever because they just have enough of everything going on and what has happened in the past. Suddenly, good things start coming to all of them. Spencer's blog is getting more recognized, Aria has sold a painting of Ali for a ton of money, Emily is going to see her past lover in prison, and Hanna has scored herself a movie role... In a movie about the girls' experiences. So will good things all come to an end?

   The story keeps dragging on. We have the same plot setup as the past books. A is still leaving traces of herself, and well, the girls are scared and have enough of everything. And then there's a sneak of romance in between and of course, tons of drama and mystery. This author could've ended the series after the eighth or ninth book, but she added a whole new generation to the story and created another A. I'm still so shocked that it continued to this point.

   That's what frustrates me the most, and many other readers of this series, obviously. I'm not going to complain and rant too much. But, the book was okay itself. Nothing special, but bearable to read, despite the fact that the curse of the fifteenth book is haunting me.

    Do I really have to talk about the concept? After years of knowing the same plot, nothing has changed. Thankfully, *exhales* we will find out the ending in the sixteenth book, and then it'll be all done. I really have to admit that The Lying Game was better than this. 

     The previous book didn't really leave us off at some plot twist or anything, so the beginning just began out ordinary. The whole book was really ordinary anyways. I'd say that this was just a not-needed filler for the last book. 

      

      

      The plot was just good. It was intriguing because Sara Shepard is a good writer, but the events weren't anything special.

       Every time I read a book from this series, my liking of the four liars changes every time. This time, Hanna was my favourite, followed by Aria, Spencer and then Emily. But either way, they're all good characters who have their flaws and imperfections. That's it.

        The ending of this was just a mind-blower, but not in a good way. Now they're probably going to go to prison for "killing Ali." Wowww. And watch, in the last book, they're actually going to kill Ali once and for all. That's how the whole series is going to end. TA DA. -_-

         Overall, I'm very eager to see if my prediction was correct, so I will read the final novel, and who knows? Maybe it'll be amazing.

A Really Awesome Mess, by Trish Cook and Brendan Halpin

A Really Awesome Mess, by Trish Cook and Brendan Halpin

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Romance

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Publication: July 23, 2013, by EgmontUSA

Format: Hardcover Edition (borrowed)





Goodreads Summary: A hint of Recovery Road, a sample of Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, and a cut of Juno. A Really Awesome Mess is a laugh-out-loud, gut-wrenching/heart-warming story of two teenagers struggling to find love and themselves.

Two teenagers. Two very bumpy roads taken that lead to Heartland Academy.

Justin was just having fun, but when his dad walked in on him with a girl in a very compromising position, Justin's summer took a quick turn for the worse. His parents' divorce put Justin on rocky mental ground, and after a handful of Tylenol lands him in the hospital, he has really hit rock bottom.

Emmy never felt like part of her family. She was adopted from China. Her parents and sister tower over her and look like they came out of a Ralph Lauren catalog-- and Emmy definitely doesn't. After a scandalous photo of Emmy leads to vicious rumors around school, she threatens the boy who started it all on Facebook.

Justin and Emmy arrive at Heartland Academy, a reform school that will force them to deal with their issues, damaged souls with little patience for authority. But along the way they will find a ragtag group of teens who are just as broken, stubborn, and full of sarcasm as themselves. In the end, they might even call each other friends.

A funny, sad, and remarkable story, A Really Awesome Mess is a journey of friendship and self-discovery that teen readers will surely sign up for.

Review:

"I could swear I heard Mohammed say, "Hey baby," as he closed the door. Who the hell called their mom "baby"? Well, I guess if he didn't have issues, he wouldn't be here."

  If you're looking for a knockoff of It's Just A Funny Story, then pick up this book. But keep in mind that this is not even close to being classified as a "favourite" for me. It was good, but really nothing special. It's just a plain, predictable contemporary read.

  

    How original was this. *unpleased poker face* A good book should be original, and should be different than anything else in this world. But this was just an under-classified mental-hospital related novel. It did have its good things and its bad, but that was the thing that bothered me this most. 

     The concept was kind of boring, I must say. It was just about two teenagers's lives through time in a mental hospital. No biggie. They got in when they did something horrible, and they all think they're angels. Justin was sent because of a scandal that his dad found him in and Emmy was caught bullying a guy because he sent a compromising photo of her onto Facebook. When they meet, they find that they have a connection through their friendship and something more.

      Despite Justin (who I will get to in a second) and the concept and idea, I really enjoyed this book. It was hilarious, witty and some sorts of fun. The plot started off great from the beginning and I was very excited to see what would happen next that dealt with the romance. :) Yes, if you knew the way I judge books from before, you'll know that I'm a sucker for romance. I wasn't really bored at all. The plot was very fast-paced the whole time through and although the events weren't the most catastrophic or suspenseful, it was a good story.

       The characters were pretty great, if you ask me. But the only one who really made everything suck was Justin. He made me want to do this to the book:

          Like he was so pointless the whole time. He was so clueless and didn't know how to live a life. All he thought about was Emmy, who's romance with him wasn't anything special. Something about him just made me loathe him and made me angry and frustrated with the whole book.

           The side characters were just awesome. Muhammad and the rest of the crew were just all kick-ass and sarcastic and hilarious! I loved them all!

           This book was okay, nothing really special. It was definitely bearable to read with, and is recommended to those who want something light and fun!

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. 

The Winner's Curse, by Marie Rutkoski

The Winner's Curse (The Winner's Trilogy #1), by Marie Rutkoski

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Romance, Historical Fiction, Dystopia, Science-Fiction

Rating: 4/5 stars

Publication: March 4, 2014, by Farrar Straus Giroux

Format: Hardcover Edition





Goodreads Summary: Winning what you want may cost you everything you love.

As a general’s daughter in a vast empire that revels in war and enslaves those it conquers, seventeen-year-old Kestrel has two choices: she can join the military or get married. But Kestrel has other intentions. 

One day, she is startled to find a kindred spirit in a young slave up for auction. Arin’s eyes seem to defy everything and everyone. Following her instinct, Kestrel buys him—with unexpected consequences. It’s not long before she has to hide her growing love for Arin. 

But he, too, has a secret, and Kestrel quickly learns that the price she paid for a fellow human is much higher than she ever could have imagined. 

Set in a richly imagined new world, The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski is a story of deadly games where everything is at stake, and the gamble is whether you will keep your head or lose your heart.

Review:

"If you think it's stupid for me to go to the Firstwinter ball," she said, "you can be certain that it is far worse for me to take you along." He lifted one shoulder. "Or it could send a bold message of what we both know to be true: that you have nothing to hide."

  

   The worst thing that I care to admit: I hate historical fiction. It's basically the only genre that I hate that's been given so many chances by the boss ME. But of course, although I hate it so much, I still love to pick up those books that fall in the genre and have gorgeous covers. And obviously, you can see that I've picked this one up, and really liked it, according to the star rating system. 

    Marie Rutkoski has really made me proud to read this book. It had the mixture of many genres all in one, and it didn't give us loads of info-dumping, which I cannot stand in books. The Winner's Curse was one of those books that you will want to read every single paragraph, over and over again to catch every detail and feeling, because it's just that good.

     This story all begins with Kestrel, the general's daughter, going off into the village, where she's not supposed to be in. There, she finds a young male slave ready to be auctioned. Kestrel ends up buying the slave but all she doesn't know is that she's going to fall in love with him. Kestrel has a choice: to be married or join the war. Either way, it's a tough decision, and it's all said with one word.

      Wise words for Kestrel: 

  

    Kestrel spent this whole book trying to find out who she is and what she wants her life to be. And she had to go through some tough decisions. It's not easy when you're stuck in the situation that she was stuck in. I guess you could say that that was the point and concept of the book, but it was also about her and Arin's tough relationship. A slave and a general's daughter falling in love? Hmm... probably not so easy to deal with in their world. 

     Kestrel was a wise, willing character. I've read reviews that have noted that she was stuck-up and selfish, but I think otherwise. Kestrel had a capability in her that most protagonists don't show that fast in the novel or sequence. She was kick-ass and didn't care what the other characters thought of her. She just could blast her country off the Earth's surface and still could be walking out of there like a boss.

      I had issues with Arin. This time around (which rarely ever occurs with fictional men) I didn't like him. He was so rude most of the time and acted like he was the "boss" around. He thought that he was the best around and treated Kestrel like a loser. If you don't treat a girl right,

     The romance in this book was real cute, though. 

     "If her heart were truly a scroll, she could burn it. It would become a tunnel of flame, a handful of ash. The secret she had written inside herself would be gone. No one would know."

      In the end, I realized that Kestrel and Arin had a connection that most people don't have with each other. They understood each other and had an insta-love that was too powerful to tear apart. Together, they could rule the fictional world, right next to Tris and Four. :')

      The other flaw that this book had was the plot. It was kind of slow through the middle, but I had a bigger problem with Arin. Nothing could beat my anger with that man. Grr. But overall, this book was great. I recommend it to lovers of Game of Thrones, although I didn't get to read that yet. It has a medieval/dystopia feel to it and is very unique compared to others. I am looking forward to the thrilling sequel! 

A Midsummer Night's Scream, by R.L. Stine

A Midsummer Night's Scream, by R.L. Stine

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Romance, "Horror," Mystery

Rating: 3/5 stars

Publication: July 2, 2013, by Feiwel & Friends

Format: Hardcover Edition (borrowed)





Goodreads Summary: Oh, what fools these actors be!

it was a horror movie that turned into real horror: Three young actors lost their lives while the cameras rolled. Production stopped, and people proclaimed the movie was cursed.

Now, sixty years later, new actors are venturing onto the haunted set. In a desperate attempt to revive their failing studio, Claire's dad has green-lit a remake of Mayhem Manor, and Claire and her friends are dying to be involved.

At first, Claire laughs at Jake's talk of ghosts and curses. He's been too busy crushing on her best friend, Delia, or making out with that slut, Annalee, to notice that she's practically been throwing herself at him. What does he know anyway? This is her big chance to be a star!

But then, Claire runs into a creepy little man named Benny Puckerman, and gets her hands on a real love potion! Unfortunately, the course of true love never did run smooth...

Get ready for laughter to turn into screams as the Grandmaster of Horror, R.L. Stine, takes on the Master of Theater in this modern reimagining of Shakespeare's classic romantic comedy, A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Review:

   Aw. Now come on, Boo from Monsters Inc. is even more scary than this book. If you're looking for a scary horror read that will chase your happiness away from you, then stay away from this book. It was probably meant to be scary, but it wasn't at all! So don't judge a book by its cover or summary because I was wrong the whole time.

   I get scared in books, I'm not going to lie. I'm the type who screams if you say a word to me while I'm reading a horror/thriller read. I get so into the world and reality of the book that I feel like I'm not even in Earth anymore. So I specifically chose not to read this book during the nighttime because I was afraid that I'd get crazy nightmares afterwards. But really, what the heck was this supposed to be?

    "Do you like that guy Jeremy Dane?" Jake asked. "No way," Delia and I both answered at once. "He likes himself a lot," Delia said. "He likes to toss his blond hair back and forth like this. He thinks it's a turn-on."

      I'm not going to lie; R.L. Stine is a good author. He really creates the capability of intriguing readers into the crazy world of his crazy books. But then he loses us eventually and we slip away because of many factors that go missing. This man is a fine author. His writing is well-established, and I can kind of see why the public has gone mad for him over the years, but he doesn't create my type of books. This seemed too childish in a way. The Goosebumps series would probably be a humungous disappointment for me, and therefore that is because of the age group. This is meant to be a YA novel, but I'd really classify it as a middle-age, using the type of horror and scenes added. But some things are too mature-- so it's a mix.

          The thing that frustrated me the most was the fact that this was not frightening at all. I wouldn't even classify it as horror. The use of ghosts and paranormalcy was very mild and unfortunate for those looking for a horror read. It's also a very short book that is easy to get by with and alas, it's very fast-paced. The plot was okay. Sometimes it was more "meh" than "yay," but it was bearable to get by with. The storyline was fine. I guess this was more about the story and the mystery than anything else, and I suppose Stine did a good job with keeping his readers entertained that way. It's a nice story and is unique, but too old-fashioned at times for this generation.

           

            The characters were fine. There wasn't anyone who was really special or was unique than other characters/protagonists in other books, but everyone was okay to deal with and Stine made them really chill. Claire was easy-going and a little scaredy-cat, but I liked her, as well as Delia, Jake, Shawn et cetera. Everyone was great and made the book better.

             I felt that the romance was just added as something extra, but it was cute and it was there. Claire + Jake= Cake, my new ship.

            The ending sucked. It was predictable and I knew that the movie would keep on filming, it was a big DUH. I wish that it was something unexpected (like all of the characters die or something haha) and that would make the book probably to a 4 star rating from me. But overall, this was okay, nothing special.

The Casquette Girls, by Alys Arden

The Casquette Girls (The Casquette Girls #1), by Alys Arden

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Paranormal, Vampires

Rating: 3/5 stars

Publication: October 31, 2013, by fortheARTofit

Format: ebook

Goodreads Summary: After the Storm of the Century rips apart New Orleans, Adele Le Moyne and her father are among the first to return to the city following the mandatory evacuation. Adele wants nothing more than for life to return to normal, but with the silent city resembling a mold-infested war zone, a parish-wide curfew, and mysterious new faces lurking in the abandoned French Quarter, normal will have to be redefined. 

Events too unnatural – even for New Orleans – lead Adele to an attic that has been sealed for three hundred years, and the chaos she unleashes threatens not only her life but everyone she knows. Mother Nature couldn’t drain the joie de vivre from the Big Easy, but someone or something is draining life from its residents.

Caught suddenly in a hurricane of eighteenth-century myths and monsters, Adele must quickly untangle a web of magic that links the climbing murder rate back to her own ancestors. But who can you trust in a city where everyone has a secret, and where keeping them can be a matter of life and death – unless, that is, you’re immortal.

Review:

 This is how I wish this book came to be:

  

  In some ways, it was an above average book. The situation all began because of a HUGE hurricane that is not even classified as a regular storm. Adele is led into a world of vampires, witches, fairies and craziness, and she never even expected something like that to occur two months before-- before the storm changed everyone's lives. It's usually like that, though. The MC is usually living an ordinary life until something huge and unexpected occurs and they're brought into the world of paranormal beings, and then hell happens. Ta da. ._.

   In the beginning, especially if I haven't read the summary yet, I would've never expected this to be a paranormal book. It seemed very contemporary with a twist. Adding the paranormal aspect to the hurricane-tragedy thing didn't seem to work for me. It just didn't really go. 

   But overall, this book was okay. It was a mix of okay and meh, and that's a 3 star rating for me. I recommend it, but not to everyone, and I'll list some of the other reasons throughout this review.

    Adele is sent to Paris to live with her mother who is never there after a disastrous hurricane unexpectedly hits New Orleans, the home she's always known. She stays there for two months, and when it begins to turn all clear (with so much damage left) she heads back home with her father, an artist. And, everything isn't so normal. There is so much damage left behind, but thankfully her home is okay. Well, she is led to an attic that has been sealed with magic for over three hundred years, and this is just the beginning of a world of craze and magic.

    After reading a book, we usually never wonder what could've happened... But we do certainly think about what we wish could've happened. I felt like during this book, the audience never got what we wanted. The plot twists just led to more disaster and more craziness going on, and it never died down. And at times, some of the events happening weren't even anything special. It was boring 50% of the time. I wanted something so petrifying that we would get knocked out of our seats. Unfortunately, we never got that although this sort of book deserved that.

     One of the great positives was that the characters were just fine. :) I loved Adele as a protagonist. She was perfectly suited for this sort of book and had so much potential in the beginning of the book and showed her stuff by the end and made us proud for reading from the POV of such a great and heartwarming wild character. We didn't need a MC who worried and went crazy in her mind-- instead, we need an Adele; a cheerful, wild, willing, selfless kick-ass girl, in every book.

      I loved Isaac! <3 adele="" and="" b="" couple="" got="" had="" he="" i="" more="" perfect="" re="" romance="" scenes="" that="" the="" they="" though.="" wish="" with="">instant-connection

from the moment they met.

       Oh, and Desiree was just a total BAE. This chick has power and style and she's just perf. 

        

         Another positive is the world development. I loved the magical world and the world of Adelaine. (Or whatever her name is.)

          Recommended, but only to those who enjoy every paranormal book they pick up or for someone looking for a nice look of a book.

If There Be Thorns/Seeds of Yesterday, by V.C. Andrews

If There Be Thorns/Seeds of Yesterday, (Dollanganger #3,4) by V.C. Andrews

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Mystery/Murder/Thriller, Romance

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Publication: June 22, 2010, by Simon Pulse

Format: Paperback Edition





Goodreads Summary: Two books in one: If There Be Thorns and Seeds of Yesterday, from V.C. Andrews's classic series that begins with Flowers in the Attic.

Review:


 These two books kept slapping me the whole way through. (gif from the new movie, by the way.)

  

  I felt like V.C. Andrews was trying to create the luxury and amazingness that she did with the first two books in the Dollanganger series, but these two didn't really cut it. I was trying to remind myself of the feelings and love I had for the first two fantastic books, but I didn't feel a craze and adoration for these books. I feel like it has been dragged on for too long.

  V.C. Andrews is an amazing author. Although she confuses us like hell (which all of us can understand once we read one of her books), her writing is like munching into your most favourite food. She can make things rough, sad and everything else in between with just the snap of her fingers. It's just the perfect effect she creates. So don't think I hated this book or anything, although I can't deny that it's my favourite novel, either.

   After the craziness in the first two books and after we were left off with a pretty big cliffhanger in the end of the sequel, we jump straight into the future of Cathy and Chris's lives, where they are all grown up and are pure adults, and they are married. Yes, Andrews has absolutely gone CRAZY with this, but it's okay, I support it. This is written in the perspectives of their children, Jory and Bart. Well of course, Andrews mixes everything around and messes our minds up with many POVs. More drama, more messed up romance, but the same family is behind it all. 

     So I guess you could say that these two books weren't really needed at all, but since the rave for this series, V.C. Andrews came up with more ideas and cliffhangers and decided to write two more large books that deal with this family. But behind it all, these weren't really needed. It's all extra. The first two books are perfect for a duelogy. Just letting you know, there's one final book after this that takes place in the past in Olivia's POV. (And probably 5 more people's too.)

      Andrews is an author who doesn't care about time and length. She just skips, skips and skips through everyone's lives, and leaves out the miniature details and just gives us the big plot twists and reveals a lot of shocking secrets that the characters are hiding. If There Be Thorns was when Jory was 14 and Bart was 10, and Seeds of Yesterday occurred when they were in their twenties and thirties and Cathy and Chris were in their fifties. So there must've been a decade where nothing big happened. Between the two books, the characters, including Cindy, all grew up and came to be someone. Ta da... But of course,

       'Cause you all know, Mrs. Andrews adores to make us upset and cranky. But hey, she's a master at it. WARNING: You will get frustrated with this book, but it somewhat ends up all okay in the end. This is kind of the end of the series, anyway.

       These two books didn't bore me at all. It was all fast-paced and moving. You're addicted because there's plot twists every page. The major problem was the confusion. 

        I just wish that Andrews just gave us a little more background information. I didn't know who was who, who's dad was who, what was the secret behind something, et cetera et cetera. It was just unbelievably confusing, and the most confused I was with a book for a long time. Okay, I'm not saying I want everything to be crystal clear, but I just wish we could've been told some things, instead of having to guess and find out that we were wrong the whole time.

          Reading is part of understanding, and that affects a lot of the rating in a book and has to do with the plot as well. And I deducted a 1.5 out of 5 because of that, and of course a little because of the characters and imperfection as well. 

           This book wasn't perfect and neither were the characters. Bart just got on my nerves for stupidity and the way he believed that the whole world revolved around him and would do anything to have his mommy on his side 24/7. Jory was an absolute pleasure in the first book, but of course after the incident in Seeds of Yesterday, he was a wreck. Chris was "meh," and Cathy and Cindy were okay. It was a love-hate relationship with basically everyone.

             "Sin is what women use to make a man weak. You've got to face up to certain facts. Inside of every man there is a weak, spineless streak, and woman know how to find it by taking off their clothes and using earthly pleasures to sap a man's strength by desire."

               Oh, and did I mention that this WHOLE SERIES is utterly strange and completely weird? That was just the beginning of some weird quotes and statements that a grown man tells to a little boy (Bart) who actually ends up crazy in the end. 

               All in all, this is a spectacular, moving series that every master of YA should pick up to read. It's truly a classic and these two books are just adding to the greatness. Recommended but beware of the confusion.

City of a Thousand Dolls, by Miriam Forster

City of a Thousand Dolls (Bhinian Empire #1), by Miriam Forster

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery/Thriller/Murder, Romance

Rating: 3/5 stars

Publication: February 5, 2013, by HarperTeen

Format: Hardcover Edition (borrowed)



Goodreads Summary: An exotic treat set in an entirely original, fantastical world brimming with deadly mystery, forbidden romance, and heart-stopping adventure.

Nisha was abandoned at the gates of the City of a Thousand Dolls when she was just a child. Now sixteen, she lives on the grounds of the isolated estate, where orphan girls apprentice as musicians, healers, courtesans, and, if the rumors are true, assassins. Nisha makes her way as Matron’s assistant, her closest companions the mysterious cats that trail her shadow. Only when she begins a forbidden flirtation with the city’s handsome young courier does she let herself imagine a life outside the walls. Until one by one, girls around her start to die.

Before she becomes the next victim, Nisha decides to uncover the secrets that surround the girls’ deaths. But by getting involved, Nisha jeopardizes not only her own future in the City of a Thousand Dolls—but her own life.

Review:

  I usually never pick up high fantasy books that deal with the subject matter of assassins. But something about City of a Thousand Dolls just captivated me. Although this dealt with a lot of ideas I normally would never read about, the mystery intrigued me. 

  Imagine-- you live in a futuristic world where girls are spilt into different homes depending on their talents and adorations. This is what Nisha has grown up during almost of her whole life. She was abandoned at the City of a Thousand Dolls when she was just a child-- and she never quite fit in with all of the luxuries and people. As life goes on, Nisha rapidly makes her way to be Matron's assistant, but everyone believes that she's not like everyone else. She has a destiny, and in order to live it, she has to figure out, quickly, because many of the girls she's known since she was young begin to die. 

   So yes, this book is very different than others and in my eyes, that is a very good thing. Miriam Forster takes the idea of assassins to a whole new level and this pleased me very much. Assassins are usually combined with a medieval concept, but this author placed the idea in a dystopian/science-fiction world where everyone was safe and sound in the beginning. 

    If you read this book in between the lines, you'll find that there is more weirdness and trouble than what it seems. Seeing this occurring is truly magic, and Miriam Forster has done it, at least in that aspect of the novel. I am not saying that this is an amazing novel-- because it absolutely wasn't, but it was very pleasing at times and thoroughly enjoyable. It was one of those reads that you want to spend time reading, but you won't read it over and over again.

     The story started off very fast, but eventually slowed down and bored me. I was afraid that I wouldn't been able to encounter each character and know who is who, but the author did a fantastic job at reminding us who is who. I knew from the beginning that this was going to be one of those books with tons of characters, mostly secondary characters, who are going to be somewhat involved with the main problem.

      There were some moments where I was wondering if I should put the book down or not, but I was curious to see the outcome, so I kept going. The ending was very shocking and surprising, but that probably was the only plot twist that got me saying "wow." There was probably 100 pages that could've been taken out of the book, and it really wouldn't make a difference in the book-- yes, it did get me bored quite a lot.

       I didn't like Nisha. She was too stuck-up and thought that she was so special but suffering at the same time. For a book that deals with assassins and such, the author needs to incorporate a MC who's tough and is selfless. We just got a brat who's annoying and puts her and her safety first, before her country and city. 

         I didn't have a problem with the secondary characters because (a) The story was about their safety and (b) Nisha basically stole the show.

         In conclusion, this book was okay, just okay. I would recommend it to lovers of fantasy, especially because it's a fantasy read with a twist, but also because of the strong incorporation of the idea that everyone has a back story and a reason for everything.