Book Blog #34 Darth Plagueis by James Luceno

Title: Darth Plagueis
Author: James Luceno
# of Pages: 481 (paperback)
Genre: Media Tie-In, Science Fiction, Fantasy
Rating: ★☆☆☆☆
Synopsis: At long last, the Star Wars story of the mysterious Sith Lord Darth Plagueis and his apprentice, Darth Sidious, is revealed! 

Darth Plagueis: Like all Sith Lords before him, he craves absolute power. But like no Sith Lord ever, he possesses the ultimate power—over life and death. 

Darth Sidious: In secret he masters the power of the dark side, while publicly climbing to the highest government office. 

One desires to rule supreme; the other dreams of living forever. Together, they will destroy the Jedi and rule the galaxy. Unless merciless Sith tradition becomes their undoing. . . .

Review: Okay. I'll try to make this quick.

I'm a Star Wars fan, and yet I STRONG DISLIKED this book. First of all, the cover's disturbing. Second of all, the writing style was awful. The one good thing about it was the stuff about Maul. And the epilogue. That was pretty good too.
---

Read the original post here!

Book Blog #33: Whispers at Moonrise by C.C. Hunter

Title: Whispers at Moonrise
Author: C.C. Hunter
# of Pages: 383 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Paranormal, Romance
Rating:★★★★★
Synopsis: Even at a camp for supernatural teens, Kylie Galen has never been normal. Not only can she see ghosts, but she doesn’t seem to belong to any one species—she exhibits traits from them all. As Kylie struggles to unlock the secrets of her identity, she begins to worry that Lucas will never be able to accept her for what she is, and what she isn’t…a werewolf. With his pack standing in their way, Kylie finds herself turning more and more to Derek, the only person in her life who’s willing to accept the impossible. 

As if life isn’t hard enough, she starts getting visits from the ghost of Holiday, her closest confidante. Trouble is, Holiday isn’t dead…not yet anyway. Now Kylie must race to save one of her own from an unseen danger before it’s too late—all while trying to stop her relationship with Lucas from slipping away forever. In a world of constant confusion, there’s only one thing Kylie knows for sure. Change is inevitable and all things must come to an end…maybe even her time at Shadow Falls.

Review: Oh. My. Frickin. Gosh.

I forgot how good this series was. It was probably the best book I've read in a long time.

As much as I would like to go straight to the content, I have to talk about the cover first. To tell you the truth, it's not my favorite. It has a bit of an erie feel to it; not a feeling I like very much. And the girl has a weird expression on her face.

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Okay, so I haven't read the first, what, three books in a while. When I started reading, all I could remember is that there was a girl who could see ghosts, a hot boy fairy (I'm sorry Derek!), and a hot werewolf. But after I read the first, I don't know, fifty pages, I was pleasantly surprised that I could remember a lot of the characters again. So I giver Hunter props on that.

I also LOVED some of the sentences that could be mistaken as...something else. Here's some examples:

"That night, Kylie lay in her bed with her clothes on..." -Page 202

Okay, I know what she really means....but I can't help thinking "I sure hope she has clothes on!"

"Holiday tried to touch everyone." -Page 291

...it was funnier in the book. Trust me.

And the whole "she's a witch/vampire/fae/were" thing was pretty funny (at items) too. It gives you a little taste of what she would be like if she was a certain supernatural.

Honestly, after all this time, I thought I wouldn't like this book very much. I mean, c'mon, they're talking about werewolves and vampires? After Twilight, both of those topics are pretty much ruined. But I seriously was pleasantly surprised. Even with all the cliché parts (like the super hot boys that both love our protagonist) didn't bother me like they should. Kind of crazy, right?

And, just a little side note, I counted how many times Derek and Lucas made what I considered direct contact with Kylie. For Derek is was fifteen times and for Lucas it was...fifteen times! Ha! Fancy that; they both tied! But don't you think that's a little weird, considering the fact that Lucas and Kylie were an item throughout the book. I glad, however, that Hunter is giving Derek an equal shot in the love game (I am NOT saying love is just a game. It just seemed appropriate for this book). Just saying, y'know

Oh, umm, there is one thing. The whole "Collin Warren" was trying to kill Holiday was pretty predictable. Especially since they kept trying to blame it on Blake and Hayden. And they make Collin all innocently shy (which was suppose to cover up his fearfulness of being caught)  and even defend him. But, lets think this through. Hannah (who annoyed me. I mean, of course Holiday has a twin! Hunter made it impossible for the reader to guess who the ghost really was) flipped out when she saw the new teachers. So it has to be one of the three (four? I can't remember how many of them there were). And Hayden is scratched off the list because all the attention was pointed at him, and that would make the killer way too obvious. But Hunter doesn't really talk much about the other teachers throughout the book, until the very end. Hunter mentioned that Holiday was talking to Collin. Kylie detected fear of some sort. None of the other teachers were mentioned that much (for goodness sakes, I can't even remember the female teacher's name! So it was pretty obvious it was Collin.

But, like I said earlier, this was the first book I loved in a long time. It's probably one of the few that truly put a smile on my face. C.c. Hunter truly has talent.

---

Read the original post here!

Book Blog #32: Glass by Ellen Hopkins

Title: Glass
Author: Ellen Hopkins
# of Pages: 681 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Realistic Fiction, Poetry
Rating: ★☆☆☆☆
Synopsis: Crank. Glass. Ice. Crystal. Whatever you call it, it's all the same: a monster. And once it's got hold of you, this monster will never let you go.

Kristina thinks she can control it. Now with a baby to care for, she's determined to be the one deciding when and how much, the one calling the shots. But the monster is too strong, and before she knows it, Kristina is back in its grips. She needs the monster to keep going, to face the pressures of day-to-day life. She needs it to feel alive.

Once again the monster takes over Kristina's life and she will do anything for it, including giving up the one person who gives her the unconditional love she craves -- her baby. 

The sequel to Crank, this is the continuing story of Kristina and her descent back to hell. Told in verse, it's a harrowing and disturbing look at addiction and the damage that it inflicts.

Review:  So here's my problem.

I don't understand two things; meth and poems. I don't understand how people can be addicted to something so awful or why someone would make a book of poems (I'm a poem hater. Sorry).

See, I actually liked Crank. I felt sorry for how messed up Bree/Kristina was. But Glass was practically the same story with a different setting.

I'm tired of hearing how messed up Kristina is. She obviously doesn't WANT to stop. It's hard to believe that she used to be a good student.

I'm glad I finished the book.

---

Read the original post here!

Book Blog #31: Solider's Heart by Gary Paulsen

Title: Solider's Heart: Being the Story of the Enlistment and Due Service of the Boy Charley Goddard in the First Minnesota Volunteers
Author: Gary Paulsen
# of Pages: 128 (hardback)
Genre: YA, Historical Fiction, War
Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis: Charley goes to war a boy, and returns a changed man, crippled by what he has seen. In this captivating tale Paulsen vividly shows readers the turmoil of war through one boy's eyes and one boy's heart, and gives a voice to all the anonymous young men who fought in the Civil War.

Review: I didn't read this book in a very critical sense, just for fun.


It wasn't a fun book.

There were some pretty crazy details about what happens to the soldiers when they're in battle (and even after that). It's pretty amazing. But I was so sad at the end!

SPOILERS AHEAD

This review is really short for two reasons; the book's based off a true story and I can't even remember half of it.

I read while I was reading a whole bunch of other books, so I can't quiet remember what happened in the very beginning. But I do remember some of my favorite detailed scenes.

One of them was when Charley (our protagonist) drank some water that was dyed red from the blood in the dead bodies. Another was when Paulsen said there was a pile of amputated limbs stacked in a pile. And when Charley had to stack the bodies of the dead to form a wind barrier.

But, it's too short.

---

Read the original post here!

Book Blog #30: The Elite by Kiera Cass

Title: The Elite
Author: Kiera Cass
# of Pages: 323 (hardback)
Genre: YA, Science Fiction, Romance
Rating:★☆☆☆☆
Synopsis: Thirty-five girls came to the palace to compete in the Selection. All but six have been sent home. And only one will get to marry Prince Maxon and be crowned princess of Illea.

America still isn’t sure where her heart lies. When she’s with Maxon, she’s swept up in their new and breathless romance, and can’t dream of being with anyone else. But whenever she sees Aspen standing guard around the palace, and is overcome with memories of the life they planned to share. With the group narrowed down to the Elite, the other girls are even more determined to win Maxon over—and time is running out for America to decide.

Just when America is sure she’s made her choice, a devastating loss makes her question everything again. And while she’s struggling to imagine her future, the violent rebels that are determined to overthrow the monarchy are growing stronger and their plans could destroy her chance at any kind of happy ending.

Review: I HATE AMERICA!!!

Okay, maybe not the America your thinking of. I'm talking about America in the book pictured at left. Yes, that one.

Speaking of that book...it's kind of ugly. The girl is alright, but the dress, well, there's something terribly, terribly wrong with it. Ew.

I've got a lot to say about the content, so I'm sorry if it gets all out of order.

SPOILERS

For those of you who have read this book, do you remember the Halloween party that America and Maxon brilliantly thought up? Yeah, maybe it wasn't so brilliant. I mean, what are they thinking? "Oh, let's have a Halloween party and spend loads of money on nonsense while poor people starve!" The prince shouldn't be wasting money on that, especially if it's not a live tradition!

And why was America wearing a butterfly costume? I thought she and her maids were fond of those bird costumes. Do you know what I think? I think America didn't want to wear the same thing as Celeste. C'mon, man up America!

Speaking of America, did I mention how much I hate her? Some how, she comes up with all the "great ideas." They don't seem very great to me. And she's really funny, right?

"'It seems you've fully recovered from me nearly running you over,' he joked. 

'It's a shame you didn't do any damage,' I shot back. 'If I was in a splint, I wouldn't have to dance at least,' He laughed.

'I'm glad you're as funny as everyone says you are...'" -The Elite, page 71

Yeah, that wasn't very funny.

It also seems like America's ALWAYS PMSing or something. I mean, she tries to pick fights with other girls. Like, for example, she was talking to someone (I forgot who) about her friend's punishment, and the other girls were saying that the punishment was justified, blah, blah, blah. But then America has a stick up her butt and has to make sure everyone knows that she's a "big, tough, Five" and that no one else would choose to be canned over death because it would be "too painful". She's pressing her opinion on other people!!! Just because someone might not do well with the punishment canning, it doesn't mean that she can assume that it would be better that the person DIES.

And what IS this big deal about being a five? It's not THAT big of a deal. Let's look at a number line:

Beautiful number line, right? Anyway, here we have a number line 1 through 8. Our crybaby lovely protagonist is a five, which is circled in red on our line. You'll notice (if any of you can count) that 5 is just after 4, which is your average joe. The average joe is probably going to be pretty well off, not to rich, not too poor. So a 5 is probably going to be a little poor, but not that bad off. So America goes marching around the castle, stomping her foot and saying how she is more worldly because she was a five and all that, well that's just a bunch of poo. If she was a 7/8 or even a 6, I might believe her. But not when she close to a 4, no way.

Okay, enough about stupid  America. Let's talk realism. The magazine article doesn't read like a real magazine article AT ALL. And the fights between characters didn't have enough emotion in them. It's one of those "oh, here they go again" kind of fights. This includes ALL fights, from cat fights to the north/south raids. I think America should have gotten stuck outside more often instead of huddling in the safe room moping and kissing and stuff. Maybe she should have gotten stabbed too.

I sympathize with Celeste. I think there's actually more to her. Y'know, more background and stuff that no one actually sees.

Ugh. The ending! Why can't America go home like a normal person!!! Stupid book. And to think that I actually LIKED The Selection!

---

Read the original post here!

Book Blog #29: Crank by Ellen Hopkins

Title: Crank
Author: Ellen Hopkins
# of Pages: 537 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Poetry, Realistic Fiction
Rating:★★★★☆
Synopsis: Ellen Hopkins chronicles the turbulent and often disturbing relationship between Kristina, a character based on her own daughter, and the "monster," the highly addictive drug crystal meth, or "crank." Kristina is introduced to the drug while visiting her largely absent and ne'er-do-well father. While under the influence of the monster, Kristina discovers her sexy alter-ego, Bree: "there is no perfect daughter, / no gifted high school junior, / no Kristina Georgia Snow. / There is only Bree." Bree will do all the things good girl Kristina won't, including attracting the attention of dangerous boys who can provide her with a steady flow of crank.

Review: At first I hated it.
And then I loved it.

No one told me it was a book of poems. Or at least something that looked like poems. But that's exactly what it was.

I hate poems.
I love poems.

Bree/Kristina was so messed up. I hated her for doing that to herself. But in the end, I just felt sorry for her.

Ellen Hopkins does something to you, inside. She makes you feel for her characters, makes you feel their despair, their happiness, their sickness. And in the least amount of words possible.

This book was the worst thing I ever read.
This book was the best thing I ever read.

---

Read the original post here!

Book Blog #28: Mastiff by Tamora Pierce

Title: Mastiff
Author: Tamora Pierce
# of Pages: 596 (hardback)
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Romance
Rating: ★★★★★
Synopsis: The Hunt is on!

Three years have passed since Beka Cooper almost died in the sewers of Port Caynn, and she is now a respected member of the Provost's Guard. But her life takes an unexpected turn when her fiancé is killed on a slave raid. Beka is faced with a mixture of emotions as, unbeknownst to many, she was about to call the engagement off.

It is as Beka is facing these feelings that Lord Gershom appears at her door. Within hours, Beka; her partner, Tunstall; her scent hound, Achoo; and an unusual but powerful mage are working on an extremely secretive case that threatens the future of the Tortallan royal family, and therefore the entire Tortallan government. As Beka delves deeper into the motivations of the criminals she now Hunts, she learns of deep-seated political dissatisfaction, betrayal, and corruption. These are people with power, money, and influence. They are able to hire the most skilled of mages, well versed in the darkest forms of magic. And they are nearly impossible to identify.

This case - a Hunt that will take her to places she's never been - will challenge Beka's tracking skills beyond the city walls, as well as her ability to judge exactly whom she can trust with her life and country's future.

Review: OH MY GOSH IT'S OVER!!!!!!

I can't believe this. I can't. This whole week, I haven't been reading the book because I had "better things to do" and "had to finish Alanna 4" when I should really have been reading Mastiff in all it's glory.

The cover that I had (pictured at left), wasn't THAT fantastic. But I looked closer and realized that Achoo (I think) and Pounce were on it, so it made it all better.

I'm going to try to go through my rant quickly so that I can tell you why I'm giving it the ranting I am. The beginning was a bit slow because the words didn't really...flow.

...Okay, enough of that. Now to the good stuff.

BEWARE OF MAJOR SPOILERS!!!

Achoo's almost death freaked me out! I was all like "HOW CAN PIERCE DO THAT TO ME!!!!!" I started hyperventilating. I officially love Pounce/Faithful (I KNEW THEY HAD TO BE THE SAME CAT!!!!) I really want a purple eyed cat now.

Tunstall's betrayal had me in tears. I really wasn't expecting it at all until seconds before Beka found out. It reminded me a lot of Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith when Anakin and Obi Wan were fighting.

(Please excuse my poor photo editing skills!!!)

And Farmer and Beka are adorable!!!! They had their little moments when they were traveling and when they were in the dungeon (but that whole I-have-magic-silk-up-my-butt thing was really gross). And I totally predicted that he would take Beka's last name, 'cause otherwise how would George have Cooper in his name?

The really awesome ending is what convinced me to give it the rating I did. This has to be one of my favorites EVER.

---

Read the original post here!

Book Blog #27: Lioness Rampant by Tamora Pierce

Title: Lioness Rampant
Author: Tamora Pierce
# of Pages: 384 (hardcover)
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Adventure
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Synopsis: Having achieved her dream of becoming the first female knight errant, Alanna of Trebond is not sure what to do next. Perhaps being a knight errant is not all that Alanna needs....But Alanna must push her uncertainty aside when a new challenge arises. She must recover the Dominion Jewel, a legendary gem with enormous power for good -- but only in the right hands. And she must work quickly. Tortall is in great danger, and Alanna's archenemy, Duke Roger, is back -- and more powerful than ever. In this final book of the Song of the Lioness quartet, Alanna discovers that she indeed has a future worthy of her mythic past -- both as a warrior and as a woman.

Review: OH MY GOSH IT'S THE FINAL BOOK OF THE SONG OF THE LIONESS SERIES!!!!!!!!

...to tell you the truth, I'm a little relieved that I finished it. These covers are just so...mediocre, it's killing me. But the title is better than the one before it, The Woman Who Rides Like A Man. Lioness Rampant sound a lot more, I don't know, mysterious? Action-y?

If you haven't read this book yet, scroll down to the bottom-ish, below the words "SPOILER END".

Caution: This review contains spoilers. You have been warned! O.O

The Alanna in the cover looks better, too. More woman-like. But, isn't that the outfit she wore when she presented (King?) Jonathan with the Jewel? If it is, where are her black earrings ear bobs?

The return of Duke Roger was very, very anti-climatic. Pierce could have done so much more with his rebirth, something that would make the reader gasp. But no. She just had Alanna have these "mysterious dreams" about what was happening while she was running around with Liam to find the Jewel (who's finding was also very anti-climatic).

And since we're talking about Liam, why does Alanna keep switching men? At first she's with John, then George, and, when she's still in love with George, she goes off and sleeps with Liam! And of course, George doesn't mind, which is lucky for Alanna. This goes to show how much better George is than Alanna. Or maybe he's just stupid because he can't get it in his head that he should break up with her and find some other girl who ONLY loves him.

Near the end, everyone seems so unconcerned about Roger. C'mon you guys! He was plotting to steal the throne from John before Alanna swooped in and saved the day! WHY IN YOUR STUPID LITTLE WORLD WOULD YOU NOT KILL HIM?!?! I wanted less reunion-with-old-squire/page-friends time and more kill-all-the-bad-guys-and-become-a-hero moments!

As far as littler things, Pierce makes it so obvious when a character is defeated verbally to the point where it sounds cheesy. Does that make any sense? Here's an example:

"Surprised by the attack  from this unknown source, Alanna took a step back. She clenched her hands, her nails bitting into newly formed scars, as she controlled her temper. 'I'm told you replaced me in his affections--for a little while,' she replied sweetly. 'Why didn't he make you Prime Minister?' Josiane's beautiful face changed into an ugly mask. 'No one gets the better of me,' she hissed." 

 And I wish I could just read the story from Alanna's point of view, not Alex's, not George's, but ALANNA. It just goes to show that Pierce was an amateur when writing the books in the Song of the Lioness series.

But the ending (like, the epilogue and the bit before that with Roger and Alanna), was pretty awesome. I still think that George is too good for Alanna though.

SPOILERS END

The reason why I read this series was because I had read the first two Beka Cooper books and thought that I should read the Alanna series since it was where this whole Tortall thing started in the first place. The Beka Cooper series was very interesting (I will be writing a review on the last book, Mastiff, as soon as I finish it ^_^), which was one of the only reasons why I was able to continue reading the Song of the Lioness. To readers who have not read either series, read Beka Cooper first. Then read Song of the Lioness. Well, actually, read the first two Beka Cooper's first, then read the whole Song of Lioness series, and then read the last Beka Cooper because there's an epilogue from one of the characters in the Song of the Lioness in Mastiff. I don't know. Read them in whatever order you want to. But Beka Cooper is better!!!

Meh...2.5 Stars

---

Read the original post here!

Book Blog #26: The Woman Who Rides Like a Man by Tamora Pierce

Title: The Woman Who Rides Like a Man
Author: Tamora Pierce
# of Pages: 256 (hardcover)
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Adventure
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Synopsis: Newly knighted, Alanna of Trebond seeks adventure in the vast desert of Tortall. Captured by fierce desert dwellers, she is forced to prove herself in a duel to the death -- either she will be killed or she will be inducted into the tribe. Although she triumphs, dire challenges lie ahead. As her mythic fate would have it, Alanna soon becomes the tribe's first female shaman -- despite the desert dwellers' grave fear of the foreign woman warrior. Alanna must fight to change the ancient tribal customs of the desert tribes -- for their sake and for the sake of all Tortall.

Review: Okay, you guys. What is up with this cover? I wanted the cover that corresponded with the other books, but this was the only one available. Alanna looks like a girl Santa Clause with all the red and green. And what's with the weird title? I get that Alanna was called that with the tribes, but its not going to bring in readers. I wouldn't even touch it if I was already reading this series.

Now let's go onto the good stuff; my rant.

What is up with the Alanna and Johnathan drama? It was a lot of kissing, fighting, making up, and all of that over. There was so much of it that there wasn't a very big climax in the story (I don't even know what the climax for this story IS).

Now, I might be biased here, but I think George is the better choice for her. But, then again, he might be too good for her.

John's and Throm's character changed so much from what I originally thought they were. They have both become less like-able. Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing, I'll leave that up to you to decide,

Some stuff that I DID like about this book was the big, foreshadowing-ish dream that Alanna had. I don't want to spoil it for anyone but...she dreamed that Throm would bring Roger back to life. That was the only shocking, mind-blowing thing in the whole book. I also liked the stuff that is also in the Beka Cooper trilogy. For example, the light-up-the-rock-thing that Alanna did was also done by Farmer in Mastiff. I love the Beka Cooper series soooooooo much.

But this book was very bland.

---

Read the original post here!

Book Blog #25: Zombies vs Unicorns by Holly Black and Justine Larbalestier

Title: Zombies vs Unicorns
Author: Holly Black, Justine Labalestier, Garth Nix, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Naomi Novik, Carrie Ryan, Margo Lanagan, Maureen Johnson, Diana Peterfreund, Scott Westerfeld, Meg Cabot, Cassandra Clare, Kathleen Duey, and Libba Bray
# of Pages: 418 (hardback)
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Short Stories
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Synopsis: It's a question as old as time itself: which is better, the zombie or the unicorn? In this anthology, edited by Holly Black and Justine Larbalestier (unicorn and zombie, respectively), strong arguments are made for both sides in the form of short stories. Half of the stories portray the strengths--for good and evil--of unicorns and half show the good (and really, really bad-ass) side of zombies. Contributors include many bestselling teen authors, including Cassandra Clare, Libba Bray, Maureen Johnson, Meg Cabot, Scott Westerfeld, and Margo Lanagan. This anthology will have everyone asking: Team Zombie or Team Unicorn?

Review: Wow, what an interesting title. And the cover is equally as...lovely.

I noticed that this book brought a lot of attention when I carried it around in public. Everyone would glance at what I'm reading, then looked at me with a weird look in their face, and then ask me what team I was on.

Every single person I asked said that they were on team unicorn. Not a single zombie? Isn't that funny? And when I asked why, they said that zombies were gross (Keep in mind that I asked this to dudes too) and unicorns can stab people with their horn. Which is absolutely true.

So, here's the thing about this book. It's actually twelve mini books all bound together. At first, I thought it was a stupid idea to have all these authors writing stuff until I realized that it gave me the opportunity to read other authors' writing styles.

Since there ARE so many books in this one, I thought it'd be best to grade each on individually.

The Highest Justice by Garth Nix

TEAM UNICORN

I've read Nix's book before and I wasn't a big fan. But I did know that he has the ability to write and that he was a good author. It's kind of like classics; they aren't your favorites, but there's value to them. His lovely unicorn story was a great start to the book. I like how he made the unicorns stab all those people; it shows the more violent side to our pure, fantasy creature.

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Love Will Tear Us Apart by Alaya Dawn Johnson

TEAM ZOMBIE

This was one of my least favorite short stories in the whole book. First of all, what's up with all the f-bombs? C'mon people, what every happened to variety? We get that your main character wants to...do things to other characters, so we don't need to be reminded ten times throughout the whole thing. And I hate her writing style. Johnson is going to cost Team Zombie.

Rating: 1 Star

Purity Test by Naomi Novik

TEAM UNICORN

Novik's stereotypical unicorn story is funny, lighthearted, and easy to read. I absolutely love the Voldemort reference. This has to be one of my favorites of the twelve.

Rating: 4 Stars

Bougainvillea by Carrie Ryan

TEAM ZOMBIE

This is the very first zombie story I've actually like so far (which isn't that big of a feat considering the fact that there was only one other zombie story before this one). There was action, there was love, and (best of all), there was the twist ending. I was sitting around, telling people around how sweet it was with the little love scene at the end and then...then THAT happened, and I was just sitting there in shock. I absolutely love these endings so I proudly reward Ryan a perfect score.

Rating: 5 Stars

A Thousand Flowers by Margo Lanagan

TEAM UNICORN

Although I like the depth of story (I'm sure I missed something), the point-of-view changes were very confusing. I thought it was funny that both character in the Purity Test and this one are suffering the effects of drinking. Just something I noticed, y'know?

Rating: 3 Stars

Children of the Revolution by Maureen Johnson

TEAM ZOMBIE

This one was really, really erie. It kind of freaked me out with the little zombie children. And it had one of those no hope endings. But what really, really bugged me was that the actor wasn't given a name. Any name would have been fine, even a fake one. 

Rating: 3 Stars

The Caring and Feeding of Your Baby Killer Unicorn by Diana Peterfreund

TEAM UNICORN

"I'm blindingly fast and scarily strong." This quote totally reminded me of Edward! The title is very...creative. But there wasn't anything special about it.

Rating: 3 Stars

Inoculata by Scott Westerfeld

TEAM ZOMBIE

Westerfeld is one of my favorite authors, so I had high expectations for his zombie story. But I was very disappointed.  There wasn't enough development and WHAT IS UP WITH ALL THE F-WORDS!!!

Rating: 3.5 Stars

Princess Prettypants by Meg Cabot

TEAM UNICORN

Somehow, Meg Cabot was able to create a unicorn story in the most normal, casual way possible. This story was obviously Cabot's style. I'm not a big fan of Cabot's books because I think that they lack depth, but the story was interesting enough.

Rating: 4 Stars

Cold Hands by Cassandra Clare

TEAM ZOMBIE

As much as I don't like Clare and her books, I must admit that her short story was very interesting even though it almost completely revolved around love. And I can't help but think of Jace when I see James's name. But, as much as I hate to, I have to give it a decent rating.

Rating: 4 Stars

The Third Virgin by Kathleen Duey

TEAM UNICORN

I think its very creative that Duey decided to use a unicorn POV. But I couldn't help but cringe at what our dear unicorn was trying to do to itself. It made me really sad.

Rating: 3.5 Stars

Prom Night by Libba Bray

TEAM ZOMBIE

Our concluding zombie story was a big downer. It was really, really boring to the point where I can't even tell you what it was about or how it ends.

Rating: 1 Stars

So, to figure out what team I'm on, I've totaled up the number of stars per team, and which ever one has the largest number of stars wins.

Team Zombie: 17/30
Team Unicorn: 22/30

I'm Team Unicorn!!!!

It's obviously the better team anyway. 

And finally, for the total book rating, I have averaged all the scores. So, drumroll please, I am rating it...

3.2 Stars!

---

Read the original post here!

Book Blog #24: Scarlet by Marissa Meyers

Title: Scarlet
Author: Marissa Meyer
# of Pages: 452 (hardcover)
Genre: YA, Science Fiction, Romance
Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis: The fates of Cinder and Scarlet collide as a Lunar threat spreads across the Earth...

Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She's trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she'll be the Commonwealth's most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn't know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother's whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.

Review: Yay! I finally got the sequel!

The cover isn't as stunning as Cinder. I wish there was just the cape/red hood on the cover and not that little hint of...person.

The content had the same wow factor as the cover. It's not awful, but its not fantastic either. I wouldn't score it higher than Cinder's rating (4 stars).

Prince, ahem, I mean Emperor Kai is as annoying as ever. It's obvious that Kai has some sort of (positive) feelings for Cinder. Wolf, a new male character in Scarlet, is a bit of an improvement. More the action-y type, y'know?

In contrast to Wolf, Thorne is so...dumb. I can't believe he couldn't put two and two together and figure out that Cinder might be, just might be, the princess. But it didn't even seem to cross his mind!

You know what I thought was really, really cheesy? The Wolf and Scarlet romance. It was near the end was Wolf is all like "Be my alpha female!" It made me sick. Even so, I wish there was a lot less of Cinder. I mean, this is Scarlet's book! Cinder needs to butt out. I get that Meyer wants to inform the reader about what Cinder is doing, but she could have done that through new feeds and what not. Just a little hint of Cinder. And then all the characters could have met up at the end.

So, like I said, Scarlet was nothing special. But I did think that the relationship in between Scarlet and the original Little Red Ridding Hood story were clever. So I'll give it...3 and 3/4 stars.

---

Read the original post here!

Book Blog #23: The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Title: The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Author: Stephen Chbosky
# of Pages: 216 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary
Rating:★★★☆☆
Synopsis: Charlie is a freshman.

And while he's not the biggest geek in the school, he is by no means popular. Shy, introspective, intelligent beyond his year yet socially awkward, he is a wallflower, caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it. 

 Charlie is attempting to navigate his way through uncharted territory: the world of first dates and mix tapes, family dramas and new friends; the world of sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, when all one requires is that perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinite. But he can't stay on the sidelines forever. Standing on the fringes of life offers a unique perspective. But there comes a time to see what it looks like from the dance floor. 

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a deeply affecting coming-of-age story that will spirit you back to those wild and poignant roller-coaster days known as growing up.

Review: Let's see, there were characters smoking pot, underage drinking, abuse, and not to mention...the nasty.

Ah, the cruelties of life.

The movie cover is actually better than the original cover. I just don't get the latter one. It's butt ugly.

Sometimes I forget that this book took place in 1991. I was surprised that Charlie (our lovely narrator) wasnt as worldly as the rest of us. And then I remembered that Google wasn't invented yet.

Charlie is far from a roll model. He hangs our with seniors when he's only a freshmen  (but since he get held back a grade, he's technically a sophmore) and makes a lot of bad decisions. I was cringing throughout the book.
But I guess that just goes to show that I haven't read that many books that show the reality of high school students. It was really eye-opening to think that some people actually live like this.

I'm sorry about this really short review, but I don't really have anything to say. I'm a bit speechless, y'know? I might edit this after I've watched the movie, but for right now...

---

Read the original post here!

Book Blog #22: Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson

Title: Forge
Author: Laurie Halse Anderson
# of Pages: 297 (hardcover)
Genre: YA, Historical Fiction, War
Rating: ★★★★★
Synopsis: In this compelling sequel to Chains, a National Book Award Finalist and winner of the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction, acclaimed author Laurie Halse Anderson shifts perspective from Isabel to Curzon and brings to the page the tale of what it takes for runaway slaves to forge their own paths in a world of obstacles—and in the midst of the American Revolution. The Patriot Army was shaped and strengthened by the desperate circumstances of the Valley Forge winter. This is where Curzon the boy becomes Curzon the young man. In addition to the hardships of soldiering, he lives with the fear of discovery, for he is an escaped slave passing for free. And then there is Isabel, who is also at Valley Forge—against her will. She and Curzon have to sort out the tangled threads of their friendship while figuring out what stands between the two of them and true freedom.

Review: ...I think this is one of the only times I've read a 200+ page book in a day. Not that it's at all healthy; I keep seeing words all over the place. Maybe I should stop reading books for today.

Nah. I want to finish The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

So. You're probably wondering why I started reading this when I was already reading another book. Well, settle down children and I'll tell you.

I have this friend who's a really, REALLY slow reader (no offense or anything. It's just the truth). Anyway, he happened to be reading this book. And THIS book just so happens to be the sequel to Chains (if I ever reread that book, I'll post a review on it). At the time when he first started reading, I wasn't as interested as I should have. I was probably reading a really go book or something. But three weeks came and went and he was STILL reading the book. So I borrowed (*cough*stole*cough*) the book from he for a little bit and read the first thirty ages or so. But I STILL wasn't interested. It wasn't until my friend practically spoiled the whole book that I decided to check it out of the library this morning. And to force myself to get through it, I made it my personal goal to finish it before him. Which I think I did.

Onto the review.

I like the simplicity of the cover! The style is very much like Chains's cover (but I think I like that one better).  But I really wish the title was BIGGER!!!

The writing style was alright. It really brought me back to that period, y'know? I would rather read medieval stuff more, though, so you can imagine that is was my cup of tea. Speaking of tea, I love all the food they talked about. It's my favorite part of the book, as it is for most books. It kinda reminds me of the latest Black Butler I read (number five). Its main focus was curry and OH MY GOSH I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO DIE OF HUNGER IT LOOKED SO GOOD!!! Ahem. Anyway, even that firecake sounded good. But the best part was when they ate the beans. When I read, "Instead of sleeping, we farted all night long..." I almost burst out laughing because ITS SO TRUE!!! A relatable experience, I must say.

I actually think (for the first time) that I like this book, the sequel, better than the first book. That doesn't usually happen, but I guess it just did. So, I'll go ahead and give it the highest rating I can.

---

Read the original post here!

Book Blog #21: The Emperor of Nihon-ja by John Flanagan

Title: The Emperor of Nihon-ja
Author: John Flanagan
# of Pages: 435 (hardback)
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Adventure
Rating:★★★★☆
Synopsis: In his brief time as an Araluen warrior, Horace has traveled the known world and fought countless bloody battles. All for his country, his king, and his friends. For all that is right.

When Horace travels to the exotic land of Nihon-Ja to study the Senshi fighting technique, it isn't long before he finds himself pulled into a battle that is not his - but one he knows in his heart he must wage. The Nihon-Ja emperor, a defender of the common man, has been forcibly dethroned, and only Horace, Will, and their Araluen friends, along with a group of untrained woodcutters and farmers, can restore the emperor to the throne.

In this final battle in the worldwide phenomenon that is Ranger's Apprentice, a kingdom teeters on the edge of chaos, victory lies in the hands of an inexperienced group of fighters, and it's anybody's guess who will make the journey home to Araluen.

Review: It's funny; I don't think John Flanagan was planning on writing twelve books. He wrote this one (with a little circle that says "The Final Battle" in the center, if you look on the cover. Doesn't that mean that it's suppose to be the last book?) and the Lost Stories, which is, I guess, the "eleventh" book. But it's not REALLY the eleventh book; my copy doesn't have "eleven" written anywhere on it. Then again, maybe he DID know he was going to write twelve books. After all, he didn't write much of an epilogue.

As always, I'm going to start with the cover. It's pretty awesome looking with the lighting and the detail. But that crazy guy that's about to cut someones head off is a little...scary. If you get my meaning.

I was surprise of the amount of fighting in this book (even though Flanagan made it pretty clear by the cover). He tosses you in the thick of everything, and there's all kinds of action right off the bat. If you've read any of my previous reviews, you'll know that me + detailed action scenes = madness.
And when I say detail action scenes, I mean DETAILED action scenes. No, not the graphic blood and gore type of detail, more like battle arrangement detail. The characters are traveling all over the place to the point where I can't quite keep up with the scenery. And in the big finally ending, all I can remember is that the good guys won.

This was not my favorite Ranger's Apprentice book. Actually, it's far from it. I wanted to see more of Will and Halt. I know, I know, they made A LOT of appearances in the book, but I wanted to see them fighting! Not instructing others to fight. Y'know, more bow action! And I missed Tug.

The princess (I can't even remember her name...that Cassandra person) annoys the heck out of me. I feel like I should like her more than Alyssa, but I don't. Maybe it's because she's the princess or because I keep picturing her as some squat little munchkin from the Wizard of Oz. I don't know.

Well, since I didn't love, love, love this book, I'm going to nock off a star. Four stars is pretty good, right?

---

Read the original post here!