Book Review - Rival by Sara Bennett Wealer

Rival by Sara Bennett Wealer


My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I read this for the debut author challenge. I was in the mood to read a contemperary realistic fiction novel. I've been going pretty heavy on the fantasy and dysotopian here lately. So I went onto The Story Siren's blog to see what new debut novels were coming out in the month of February in the YA genre. Most of the ones listed were fantasy... Rival was one of the few realistic novels on the list.

I was immediately turned off and intrigued (at the same time if that's possible) by the synopsis and I'll get into why a little later in this review.

So basically this novel is the story of two girls in their senior year... who happen to be arch rivals. They are both deeply involved in the school choir and are competitive with each other. Brooke is the school's "teen queen". She's the popular one who everyone wants to be in the graces of. Kathryn is more of the pretty, quite, shy type. So how is it that two girls on complete opposite spectrums of the high school world could become rivals? Well the storyline is full of flashbacks that take you back to their junior year when the girls first met and give you the entire back story... all while you are experiencing their current dilemas of their senior year.

So like I said before, the synopsis gave me conflicting feelings for this book. I was turned off by the choir, "Glee", type storyline. I was not involved in choir in highschool and my school did not have a big choir program. I was concerned that I would not be able to relate with that part of the storyline. Then I was also pretty sure that as a 28 year old woman, I would not be interested at all in the catty-ness of teenage girls being "rivals". But on the other hand, I at one time too was a teenage girl... and I've dealt with my share of catty-ness coming from other females. I've always kind of related myself to the "Kathryn" type of girl. So I was intrigued to see the inner workings and thoughts behind the actions of the Brooke character... the epitome of the "mean girl".

I was pleasantly suprised by this book. I always go into the debut author novels feeling like they are a crap shoot. I was very happy with this one. I didn't find myself rolling my eyes as the girls argued. I actually related to a lot of what they went through. I sympathized with the characters and found myself fully invested in the book very quickly. I highly recommend it to anyone who is a fan of YA or realistic contemperary fiction!

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Book Review - Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater


My rating: 2 of 5 stars


Ok, well this book took me nearly a month to get through. It's not because the book is super long... because it's not. I'm not sure if I've just been in a reading funk or if I just was really not enjoying this book. Since it took me so long to get through it, I feel like I lost a lot of what the story was about. =( But I did persevere and finish reading it!

I really loved the way the book started out. I was extremely intrigued by the idea that Grace felt drawn to these wolves that lived in the woods behind her house. I liked that way that Sam talked about being in love with Grace for years.

But after that, I really can't think of any other major shining points. You basically know the entire plot by mid-way through the book. But you don't realize that you know everything... you keep thinking that there is more to come... more to be uncovered. But there's not! I was not miserably bored with this book, but I was not entertained for a lot of it either. So I give this book two stars and I really don't have much else that I can say about it. I'm sorry that this review is so short =( I do have the second book in the series, Linger, which I will probably read, but if I am bored with it as well then I don't think I'm going to force myself to finish it.

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Book Review - XVI by Julia Karr

XVI by Julia Karr


My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Hmmm... ok. What to say about this book. As you can see, I have given it a three. I can't say that I was blown away by it - but I also can't say that I was ever miserably bored with it either.

I'm gonna start out with a description of what this book is all about:

You have Nina, who is fifteen years old. She's living in a suburb outside of Chicago. The year is 2150. The world is a much different place than what we have now. Nina is preparing for her 16th birthday that will be coming up in a few months.

When girls turn 16 they are tattooed with an XVI on their wrist. This tattoo basically announces to the world that the girl is 16 and therefore legal for sex. Sex has become a much less taboo thing than it is now. Girls are brought up believing that being "sexy" and having "sex" should be the ultimate goal for them... in this future these behaviors are encouraged and accepted.

The government basically controls EVERYTHING! They have the majority of people brainwashed by constantly stimulating their minds with "verts", advertisements and commercials. People are never given a moment of peace and quite to just be with their own thoughts. The government also has the capabilities to monitor conversations between people and anyone who seems to disagree with the government is taken in for "re-assimilation", which is basically just turbo-brainwashed to get rid of any defiant thoughts that person may have had. Of course, with this much government control, there are people who rebel against it. These people are called Non-Cons. Most people think of Non-cons as a dangerous rebel group.

Nina lives with her mother and younger sister. Nina's father died shortly after she was born. Years after his death, her mother began dating a government official named Ed, who is the father of Nina's younger sister Dee. Her mother raised Nina to not think like the typical "sex-teens". So Nina is not looking forward to turning 16 - unlike most other girls. As Nina begins to prepare for this milestone in her life, her mother is brutally attacked and killed. In her dying words, she tells Nina a secret that sends Nina on a hunt for the real truth about her life and family.

Nina and Dee go live with their grandparents in Chicago - there Nina meets new friends along with being able to spend more time with old friends. She opens up to them and fills them in on what her mother told her. Together they begin investigating the clues that lead to the truth about Nina and Dee's life.

So... what did I think??

First of all - I think that some people may be mislead by the synopsis. I was under the impression that this was going to be a story focused on what happens to these girls when they turn 16 and are legal for sex. I'm not exactly sure what I was expecting... but it was definitely not the same thing that the book ended up focusing on. This book focuses on the story of Nina and unraveling the mysteries that surface from her mother's death.

The futuristic world that Julia Karr sets up is really amazing! I had no trouble at all understanding all of the new inventions and gadgets that they were using. I was also not left feeling confused about the futuristic world... what I mean is that there are lots of new terms and such that are introduced, and I never felt confused or compelled to go back and look up what something meant or what something is.

I liked the way the book started out. But once the death of Nina's mother occurs I felt like the storyline seriously dragged! I do not like a book that waits to resolve everything in the last few pages. I need a little bit of the mystery uncovered as you go along... otherwise I feel frustrated and resentful of the writing... I start to think of it as "filler" writing that is put in just to drag it out. I definitely started feeling like this at certain points of this book.

By the end of the book, I came back around to liking it a little more than I expected. I was prepared to give it a two star rating - the ending redeemed it.

This book really seemed to be more of a mystery/suspense novel, rather than what I think of as dystopian. I really think that this is the type of story that I would enjoy more as a movie, instead of a book.

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Book Review - Prophecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink

Prophecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink


My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I'm so excited that my first book review of 2011 is a FIVE STAR BOOK!! Oh yes - this book is definitely full of awesomeness! =)
So this book might be considered historical fiction - eh, maybe not. It is set in the late 19th century (I think). The time period is great for the story - but it is not a focus in the plot. The story can just as easily take place in a more current time period. The main thing that reflects the 19th century time period is the speech and "voice" of Lia the main character. So if you are participating in the historical fiction challenge, this may not count for that challenge. It is definitely more of a paranormal type genre, rather than historical fiction. But I'm counting it as one of my books for that challenge - so if you think I should not let me know. Thanks =)

Now on to the plot...
The main character is Lia. She is around 16 years old. She has a twin sister, Alice, and a younger brother named Henry. The three of them come from a wealthy family. However, they have recently become orphans. Their mother died when they were all much younger. And recently, their father died under mysterious circumstances. The three of them are currently living under the care of their Aunt Virginia (mother's sister).

The story begins shortly after the death of their father. Lia is coping with the loss, when strange things begin happening in her life. She is experiencing strange, yet realistic dreams, an odd marking has appeared on her wrist, and her twin sister Alice is behaving differently. Lia soon comes into contact with some other girls her age who are able to help her begin to unravel the mystery of what's happening to her.
She discovers that she is part of a centuries old prophecy that involves both her and her sister Alice. According to Lia, the two of them have never been close sisters, but they certainly did not consider each other enemies. However, all of that is about to change, because the prophecy is going to put them on opposing sides. One good, one evil.

My thoughts...
Alright, so I wasn't sure what I was getting myself into when I began reading this book. All of the reviews and the synopsis really do not give any clues as to what exactly this prophecy is... and I'm not going to either! Finding out is half the fun! So I do not want to spoil that for you. I will just say that once I found out, I was immediately intrigued and interested in all of the possible directions this story line could take. And I was not disappointed! I kept getting reminents of the same feelings I felt while reading Dan Brown's The Davinci Code. I'm not saying this book is anything like Dan Brown's, just that I felt a similar sense of excitement while reading both books.

This is a great story. Usually, I am left with a disappointing feeling when I read the first book of a series. This is because I am left with so many unanswered questions! And I hate that feeling! I want to know the answers!! lol This book did not leave me with that feeling. I was completely satisfied with the journey and answers that were discovered in this first installment. And I am stoked about reading the next!

I really like the characters! I have no complaints there. At first, I was on the fence about Lia, but by the end of the book I really sympathized with everything that she was going through. I bought into all of the characters.

I was a little concerned after reading the first 7 chapters of the book. Chapters 1-7 mostly give you background information into the characters lives. There is very little insight into the main conflict of the plot. Then in chapter 8 she really dumps a lot of information on you! I was worried that I might not be able to keep it all straight. But as you continue reading, a lot of the information is restated, which I was grateful for. This really helped to keep me from getting confused. I've read novels before where I felt like they unload all of the pertinent informaiton to the story line on you at one time, then never revisit it again. I would have to constantly flip back in the book to make sure I was understanding everything correctly. This is not the case with this book, thank goodness!

Michelle Zink does a pretty decent job with the cliffhangers at the end of each chapter. They certainly made me want to continue on reading. I think that its important for authors to give the reader frequent cliffhangers. I think that is what leaves the reader with a satifying experience. Suzanne Collins does an awesome job of this in The Hunger Games series, and I think Michelle Zink is doing just as a commendable job in this book as well!

There are lots of twists and somewhat unexpected suprises! I say "somewhat" because this is what kept happening to me as I read: I would guess the suprise! I would guess in pages and pages before it actually came to fruition. But as I continued reading, I would start to convince myself that what I guessed what wrong. Then just when I was certain that I had guessed wrong - Bam! I'd find out I was actually right! So I can't say that this book is predictable. Because even though I was correctly guessing most of the twists and turns - I was also constantly second guessing. Haha This made for a even more interesting reading experience, in my opinion. And there certainly were a few twists that I never saw coming.

The end of the book does get quite emotional and I even teared up. I usually can't say that about a paranormal novel... but this one got to me.

I highly recommend this book! YA lovers, paranormal lovers, mystery lovers, historical fiction lovers, romance lovers, suspense lovers, action lovers, complex heroine lovers - there is something in here for everyone!

Reading on Cloud Nine ~

Nicole

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Book Review - Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld


My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Let me start off by saying that I give this book a four with the expectation that I will more than likely give the entire series as a whole a FIVE! However, this being the first book in the series, there were some things missing that I need for a five star book.

So this book is dysotopian. It is set hundreds of years in the future. The author doesn't really get into specifics about continents, countries, states, cities, etc... so there is no way to know where exactly this story is taking place in relation to the world as it is now. But the setting begins in Uglyville, where Tally (the main character) is impatiently waiting for her 16th birthday. She is very unhappy with her life as it is now, because all of her friends, including her best friend Peris, have moved over to New Pretty Town and are all now "pretties" except her.

In this society, people start out as "littlies" and they live with their parents. Then at some unspecified age, they become "uglies". They are then moved to Uglyville, where they live in conditions that are something similar to boarding schools. They go to school and learn about the fall of "the Rusties" (society as it is now). When they turn 16, they are given a surgery that makes them a "pretty" and they move over to New Pretty Town, where life is one big party and everyone is equally beautiful. They have been taught that this surgery was created to rid society of issues like racism and unequal treatment due to appearances.

Tally has to wait 3 months until she turns 16 and will be able to become a "pretty". In the meantime, she sneaks over to New Pretty Town to see her best friend Peris and almost gets caught. She makes a daring escape. When she returns back to Uglyville, she meets a girl named Shay. Shay is very impressed by Tally's story of her slim escape from New Pretty Town and the two girls quickly become friends.

Shay takes Tally exploring in the "Rusty Ruins", which is the remains of a city that exists in our current society. As the two girls spend time exploring these ruins and pulling pranks in Uglyville, Shay begins to share with Talley that she doesn't really want to get the surgery to become Pretty. Talley doesn't understand this, because becoming Pretty is the ultimate dream of all Uglies. Eventually, Shay shares with Tally that there is another society of people living out in the wilderness who have not had the Pretty surgery. Shay runs away to live with them. She asks Tally to come with her, but she chooses to stay. Shay leaves Tally a cryptic note giving her directions to find her if Tally changes her mind.

After Shay's disappearence, Tally goes in for her Pretty surgery. But, rather than getting the surgery, she is brought in to speak with Dr. Cable, who works for a department called Special Circumstances... which is comparable to the FBI or something like that. Dr. Cable blackmails Tally into helping them find Shay and the society of runaway Uglies. Tally will not receive the Pretty surgery until she helps them.

That's pretty much where the story really takes off from. Tally goes on a big adventure... and lots more happens. The book ends with a MAJOR cliffhanger that pretty much makes it impossible for you to not read the next book, called Pretties.

I really liked this book. It is very reminsicent of The Hunger Games to me. So if you enjoyed that book - you should like this one too!

There is a small love interest/love triangle... but it is not explored very deeply at all. Usually for me, if a book is going to skip out on the love interest/love triangle plot... then the story has to be pretty darn good for me to like it! And I can say that I did not miss the lack of focus on the love story plot in this book at all! The storyline definitely holds its own without it. But I'm certain that the later books in the series will quench my thirst for a good love story! =)

I really enjoyed reading about all the different ways technology and society has changed in this futuristic setting.

I highly recommend this book and hope you will give it a try!!!

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Book Review - If I Stay by Gayle Foreman

If I Stay by Gayle Forman


My rating: 3 of 5 stars


If I could give this book a 3.5 stars with Goodreads rating system, I would. I definitely liked this book. It's different from the books that I've been reading lately. It was a quick read and kept me interested pretty much through the whole thing.

This book tells the story of Mia. She is 17 and a senior in highschool. She's not one of those superficial "silly" girls. She comes across as a very grounded person. Mia plays the cello. She is very good at it. She has a best friend named Kim and a boyfriend named Adam. He is a freshman in college and plays in a band that is starting to take off. Her parents are not the typical parents. Her dad used to be in a band that had some notoriety... I believe they put out several cds. Her mom was a kind of punk rock wild child back in the day. So the whole family, including her boyfriend Adam, are heavily involved in music. Music plays a big part in this book... which certainly adds an interesting aspect to it.

So basically the premise of this story is the Mia and her family (mom, dad, and little brother) stay home from work and school for a snow day. They decide to get out of the house and end up in a bad car accident. Mia then finds herself in an out of body experience. She is like a "ghost". She can see everything that is going on, hear everything that people are saying, but her actually body is in a coma. It's kind of cool because Mia gets to see the reactions of her boyfriend, best friend, grand parents, extended family, and friends. You know everyone always wonders how people would act if they were seriously injured or died... and she kind of gets to experience this for herself.

The book consists of flashbacks from Mia's memories which really help you to get to know all of the characters and love them. Then it goes back to present time, where all of these characters are dealing with the reprecussions of the car accident. You experience all of this from Mia's perspective.

This book centrally deals with death. So it's not really a warm, fuzzy feeling book. But it is good. It tells a good story, makes you fall in love this little family and group of people, and you will cry for them. =)

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Book Review - Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick


My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Ummm.. ok. So I've finished reading Hush, Hush today, and in record time for me... it only took me the weekend to get through it. Does this mean that the book was fantastic and therefore I could not put it down? Sorta, kinda, maybe not so much... lol

Alright, I'll start with the pros:
1. BEAUTIFUL cover! I have to be honest, it is what drew me in. I saw this cover and said, "I want that book on my bookshelf"
2. Quick read! If you have been following my reviews for a while, then you may have noticed that I am a slow ass reader! It's true! But I flew through this book. The print is kind of small, but the line spacing is quite large, so there's not as much to read as you think.
3. Tons of dialogue. I love a book that tells a story using a lot of diaglogue and this one does that for sure! The only time that I felt like skimming was during all the descriptive parts of the "fight scenes" lol
4. Some pretty cool angel mythology thrown in there at the end. I always like reading about that kind of stuff.

And now for the cons:
1. How can I put this lightly.... ridiculous characters! You've got your main character, Nora and her best bud Vee. Between these two... I must have hit my palm to my forehead shouting, "WTH are you thinking!?!" at least a dozen times. I kind of got the sense that the author was "making" some things happen just for the sake of taking the story where she needed it... rather than having everything that happens in the story be interesting and valid pieces of the plot. Does that make sense?
2. Three fourths of the book feels like you're reading a Nancy Drew dectective type story... or maybe even an R.L. Stine Fear Street novel. I was seriously experiencing some flashbacks to my junior high days when I lived off of Fear Street books. A lot of this story was kind of "juvenille". And I do know that this is a YA/Teen book, and that I'm a 28 year old woman. So I guess it just depends on your tastes.
3. I did not like the way some of the plot lines were resolved at the end of the book. I don't quite know how to describe what I mean by this without giving away a spoiler. But just trust me... it came across as a "lazy" or "quick" means of wrapping it up.
4. The love story was lacking, seriously. By the end of the book, I was like... "Wait, how did these two actually fall in love with each other?" It was not a gradual build up that had me screaming, Kiss her, Kiss him! It was kind of like all the drama and danger has passed, and now we will kiss and be in love! Tadah!! lol I was disappointed.

So overall, do I reccommend this book? It's hard to say. If you are a young/young at heart reader, than this may be a great book for you. I feel like I went into this book looking for a lot of angel mythology mixed with a love story, and both things were not there until the very end... and even then there was very little. However, I will say this... this book is the first in a series, which means the story is not over. I know that I tend to be critical sometimes on first and second novels in a series because I want every part of the story to be there... and it could be that this author is simply saving the better parts for the latter books. Will I read the sequel Cresendo? Probably, but it will not be at the top of my pile of to-be-reads.

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