Book Blog #170: The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez

Title: The Book of Unknown Americans
Author: Cristina Henriquez
# of Pages: 286 (paperback)
Genre: Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Romance
Rating: ★★☆☆☆
Synopsis: When fifteen-year-old Maribel Rivera sustains a terrible injury, the Riveras leave behind a comfortable life in Mexico and risk everything to come to the United States so that Maribel can have the care she needs. Once they arrive, it’s not long before Maribel attracts the attention of Mayor Toro, the son of one of their new neighbors, who sees a kindred spirit in this beautiful, damaged outsider. Their love story sets in motion events that will have profound repercussions for everyone involved.
Review: This book could have been so good.

I loved reading about Maribel's story and learning about her relationship with Mayor. Concentrating on Maribel and her family's life in the United States would have made this a very interesting story that would appeal to both teen and adults.

However, there was point-of-view switching. And while I usually strongly dislike POV switching, it was so much worse in Henriquez books. Henriquez switches between not two people, not three people, but TEN people. "Henríquez seamlessly interweaves the story of these star-crossed lovers, and of the Rivera and Toro families, with the testimonials of men and women who have come to the United States from all over Latin America"? The stories are far from seamless. It took me over a week to finish this book, which is way longer than the two days I had anticipated. Part of the reason why it took me so long was because I was uninterested with the random stories from other characters. It disrupted the flow of the Maribel's story. If Henriquez had cut down the POV to Alma and Mayor, it would have so much better.

If this book wasn't given to me as a gift, and I knew beforehand that there was so much POV switching, I wouldn't have read it. While it's not the worst book I've every read, I still wouldn't highly recommend it.

Book Blog #169: Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews

Title: Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
Author: Jesse Andrews
# of Pages: 295 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Contemporary, Humor
Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis: This is the funniest book you’ll ever read about death.

It is a universally acknowledged truth that high school sucks. But on the first day of his senior year, Greg Gaines thinks he’s figured it out. The answer to the basic existential question: How is it possible to exist in a place that sucks so bad? His strategy: remain at the periphery at all times. Keep an insanely low profile. Make mediocre films with the one person who is even sort of his friend, Earl. This plan works for exactly eight hours. Then Greg’s mom forces him to become friends with a girl who has cancer. This brings about the destruction of Greg’s entire life.
Review: I have no idea how to write this stupid review.

Seriously, this book was a strange combination of funny and general weirdness that I don't know what to think. One moment I was mentally hating on the crazy formatting (scripts/bullet points/lists), and the next I was literally laughing out loud.  I almost gave this book three stars instead of four because I was really getting an "Average Joe" vibe. I'd say the actual rating is three and a half stars.

"Though this novel begs...comparisons to John Green's The Fault in Our Stars, it stands on its own in inventiveness, humor, and heart." -Kirkus Reviews

At first glance, this book seems like TFIOS. There's a "dying girl", the writing style and characters are a bit quirky, and both are realistic fictional stories about teenagers. But that's basically where the similarities end.

"This book contains precisely zero Important Life Lessons, or Little-Known Facts About Love, or sappy tear-jerking Moments When We Knew We Had Left Our Childhood Behind for Good" (Andrews 3). 

 TFIOS is definitely more emotionally engaging (fall in love with Gus and Hazel's relationships and then cry at the end) while MEDG is mostly for the laughs. I wasn't even remotely close to crying at the end of Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, and I don't think you're necessarily suppose to.

I actually wanted to be more emotionally engaged so that's part of the reason why I didn't give it a perfect score/rating. The other reason was because the ending was incredibly underwhelming.

This book is great for teens age 14+, or people who can tolerate profanities and crude(?) humor. And MEDG is GREAT for people who trying to get into reading.

Book Blog #168: Fallen by Lauren Kate

Title: Fallen
Author: Lauren Kate
# of Pages: 452 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Paranormal, Romance
Rating: ★★☆☆☆
Synopsis: There's something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori.

Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price's attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He's the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move.

Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce--and goes out of his way to make that very clear--she can't let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret . . . even if it kills her.
Review: I had really low expectations for this one. With only a 3.75 star average and a page load of one and two star reviews, there wasn't much hope left for this book as far as first expectations.

I'll give it a little bit of credit; it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. With everyone comparing it to Twilight, I was expecting Twilight-quality or less. But I must have gotten soft or something (because I've always been a harsh critique, scrutinizing even the smallest, insignificant details and whatnot). For some reason, I didn't think this book was quite as bad as the infamous vampire romance we all love to hate. And that's why it's getting two stars instead of one.

But why didn't it get three? Just because it's better than Twilight doesn't mean that it's even remotely close to any of  the other books I've rated two stars, let alone three. It's better than Twilight, but just barely. And don't worry; I'll tell you why.

1. The Plot

I found it a  little funny that I happened to read Fallen right after I read Vampire Academy. Both struggle from the same problem; the plot lacks structure. Just as Vampire Academy was revolved around rumors, Fallen revolved around stalking. Kate tried to keep Daniel so mysterious so she could make this grand reveal at the end....only for it to fall flat. It's pretty obvious what Daniel  is; if you can't figure it out by the title or the EXTREMELY obvious hints throughout the story, it basically tells you in the Goodreads genre list.

Seriously.

2. The Protagonist

Typical damsel in distress. Luce cries way too much, can't seem to make good decisions, and doesn't even really try that hard to defend herself. She's not a good role model; the way she handles the love triangle business was...terrible, for the lack of a better word. But, somehow, Kate expects me to believe her character is amazing academically with "a full academic scholarship at the best college-prep school in the country" (326)?  And if that wasn't good for you, she supposedly knows Latin, French, won the science fair three years in a row, AND does the Sunday crossword puzzle (sometimes) under an hour.  While her little list of achievements is only mildly impressive (because there are some students out there who are ACTUALLY amazing and have a lot longer list than Luce), it's the fact that the author/Luce lists it out in such an immodest way that bugs me. I surprised she could accomplish half of the stuff on her list.

3. Twilight Similarities

Once I saw a few reviews that mentioned how this book was similar to Twilight, I began comparing the two. There's the life-threatening situation that remind me of Twilight. In Twilight, it was Edward stopping the truck from hitting Bella. In Fallen, it's Daniel saving Luce from the falling statue. Also, Luce is pale like Bella ["In a landscape of southern sunbathers, Luce's paleness had always made her feel self-conscious" (148)]. And both Bella and Luce do Internet research on their love interests like a stalker. Both Bella and Luce aren't very good at being the strong, empowered women who I like to read about.

4. The Setting

The whole setting at the Sword and Cross school is kinda unbelievable. The school uniform is all BLACK? The campus is rundown and has mismatched buildings? This school is totally catering towards the whole delinquent image, which is unrealistic. If I were creating a dress code for children criminals, black would be one of the last colors I would choose; I'd pick some brighter color so it's easier to keep an eye on them.

5. Repetition

For example, Kate can't seem to stop mentioning that the gym used to be a church.

"'Over here, you'll find out state-of-the-art gymnasium...[a shrink] donated a shit-ton of money so they'd covert it into a gym'" (33).

"It was a large Gothic structure with flying buttresses and fieldstone turrets that made it look more like a church than a place where one would go to break a sweat" (124). (big surprise there, since it USED TO BE a church)

"The pool had been set down right in the middle of what used to be a massive church" (129).

I get it. It used to be a church, but now it's a gym. Telling me once was sufficient.

I haven't decided whether I'm going to continue reading this series or not. You could better send your time reading something else. Not recommended.

Book Blog #167: Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Title: Vampire Academy
Author: Richelle Mead
# of Pages: 332 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Paranormal, Fantasy
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Synopsis: Lissa Dragomir is a Moroi princess: a mortal vampire with a rare gift for harnessing the earth's magic. She must be protected at all times from Strigoi; the fiercest vampires - the ones who never die. The powerful blend of human and vampire blood that flows through Rose Hathaway, Lissa's best friend, makes her a dhampir. Rose is dedicated to a dangerous life of protecting Lissa from the Strigoi, who are hell-bent on making Lissa one of them.

After two years of freedom, Rose and Lissa are caught and dragged back to St. Vladimir's Academy, a school for vampire royalty and their guardians-to-be, hidden in the deep forests of Montana. But inside the iron gates, life is even more fraught with danger... and the Strigoi are always close by.

Rose and Lissa must navigate their dangerous world, confront the temptations of forbidden love, and never once let their guard down, lest the evil undead make Lissa one of them forever...
Review: I was a little surprised when I saw the average rating on Goodreads was 4.15 stars. Whenever I see the word "vampire" in the title, and the book is young adult, my expectations drop A LOT. I was expecting (without reading the synopsis) a female teenage vampire protagonist who attends an academy (duh) and falls in love with some hot guy. It's the basic young adult vampire romance format.

But I was kinda wrong. The romance bit with the protagonist wasn't as big of a component as I thought it would. Instead, I found there was some kind of womance (like a bromance?) going on between Lissa and Rose. I know they're best friends and all, but I mean they were closer than normal, even with the paranormal-fantasy aspect of their characters. But, hey, you do you.  It's just not what I was expecting nor was it what I really was interested in reading about. I was all ready to read a cheesy romance novel, but I guess that's what happens when I don't read the synopsis.

I didn't particularly care for the protagonist, Rose. She's not someone I can admire or even relate to...and her ignorance was mildly irritating. Sometimes she just doesn't know certain facts that I would hope everyone at her age would know. Some examples:

"'I had to do a report on Russia and the R.S.S.R.'" (122).

"'Was...was there anything else?' [Rose] stammered. He shook his head. 'No. You probably need some primary sources, but we don't have any here.' 'Primary what?'" (136).

The plot lacked structure. Every once in a while, I would ask myself, "What's the point in all of this? What's this leading up to?" It's really just a slice of life type of book but paranormal fantasy style that has an exciting conclusion that I wasn't really expecting.

And I think this line sums up how I feel about Rose's love relationship/crush. I think Dimitri stated it well:

 "'Rose, I'm seven years older than you. In ten years, that won't mean so much, but for now, it's huge. I'm an adult. You're a child'" (313).

One of the less interesting books I've read recently, but still somewhat entertaining. I'm hoping that the series will improve as it goes along since I've heard so many good things about Vampire Academy and Bloodlines. If your on the fence, I suppose I would recommend it. I'm not even sure myself at the moment.

OTS #14: Seventh Son, the Movie

This morning, I finished reading Curse of the Bane by Joseph Delaney, the second book in The Last Apprentice Series. I had the 2-in-1 copy of the book, which also included Revenge of the Witch, and it had the movie cover on it. So I decided to watch the Seventh Son movie.

If I didn't recognize the name of the characters, I wouldn't even know the movie and the books were related. There were some many differences that the plot was practically unrecognizable.

MOVIE AND BOOK SPOILERS AHEAD

The way Mother Malkin was freed from the pit, which was a huge part of the first book, was a very small and insignificant detail in the movie. Supposedly, Mother Malkin and the Spook were in some sort of relationship way back when (but in the book, Spook didn't have any love relations with her).

One detail that most disturbed me was how passionate the Spook was for burning witches. It was made very clear in the book that he thought of burning as a very cruel way to kill someone, and his compassionate nature had rubbed off on Tom, which is why he stopped  Alice from burning Mother Malkin. But in the movie, the Spooks is more than willing to burn them. When Tom was sympathetic to witches, the Spook became angry. Tom had said he wasn't like the Spook, and the Spook he replied that if he didn't learn to burn witches, he was of no use to him.

This was wrong on so many levels. There are so many ways a Spook can be useful and deal with witches without killing them (e.g. putting them in a pit, because they usually can't break out like Mother Malkin did in the movie). In the end, Tom burns Mother Malkin, finally becoming more like the movie Spook, which is far from a good thing.

Other less significant differences include the death of Tom's mam by Mother Malkin and the necklace (which wasn't in the book at all), Tom's and Alice's ages, etc.

MOVIE AND BOOK SPOILERS END

I understand that there are some necessary changes when going from a book to a movie. The change in the ages of the characters, for example, is understandable. But when the important qualities of characters are changed to the point where they're unrecognizable? That's unacceptable. 

Book Blog #166: Curse of the Bane by Joseph Delaney

Title: Curse of the Bane
Author: Joseph Delaney
# of Pages: 455 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Horror
Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis: The Spook and his apprentice, Thomas Ward, rid the county of witches, ghosts, boggarts, and other creatures of the dark. And there's some unfinished business to attend to in Priestown. Deep in the catacombs lurks a creature the Spook has never been able to defeat; a force so evil that the whole county is in danger. The Bane!

But the Bane is not their only enemy. The Quisitor arrives, intent on hunting down anyone who meddles with the dark. Thomas Ward and the Spook must prepare for the battle of their lives.
Review: Pretty much enjoyed the sequel as much as the first one.

To address the horror aspect of the book, most of it's more gross than scary. While Delaney is a good writer, he's not at writing horror (but you won't see me complaining). I read this book at night, and it wasn't scary like I expected it to be. The "horror" scenes lack the build up of suspense that usually freak me out. It has the grotesqueness I would expect from the genre but not the scariness.

The Last Apprentice series reminds me a lot of The Ranger's Apprentice series (which shouldn't be surprising). Both books were published within the same year, so neither author copied the other. The reason why I'm bringing this up is because I think the reason why I like The Last Apprentice so much is partially because I enjoyed The Ranger's Apprentice. Don't get me wrong; they both have very different aspects (for one, I didn't have to worry about reading Ranger's Apprentice at night, and I find Halt more admirable than the Spook). But if you like Ranger's Apprentice, you'll like this series too (and vice versa).

Like the first book, it's a very quick read. I finished it within 24 hours. Recommended.

Book Blog #165: Revenge of the Witch by Joseph Delaney

Title: Revenge of the Witch
Author: Joseph Delaney
# of Pages: 294 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Horror, Paranormal
Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis: For years, Old Gregory has been the Spook for the county, ridding the local villages of evil. Now his time is coming to an end. But who will take over for him? Twenty-nine apprentices have tried—some floundered, some fled, some failed to stay alive.

Only Thomas Ward is left. He's the last hope, the last apprentice.
Review: I usually avoid horror books at all costs.

My scare tolerance is extremely low. Both the book and Disney movie for A Christmas Carol gave me nightmares (I only got two pages into the book before I threw it out of my room. I later gave the book to a friend; I didn't even want it in my house. As a general rule, I avoid any book in the "horror" or "thriller" genre.

When I first saw this book in the department store, I didn't know it was considered to be a horror book. I had heard that it was made into a movie and that the Last Apprentice series was suppose to be pretty good. I read the first half of the first chapter and loved it (the description of the food may have had something to do with it, but that's unimportant. As I usually do before buying a new book, I looked up the book on Goodreads.

When I saw the genre, I was disappointed. After reading a few reviews, I came under the impression that it was going to be scarier than Stephen King books (who's books I've avoided even looking at). I didn't buy the book that day.

Weeks later, I was still thinking about the book. I went to the book store again and read the beginning of the second chapter. Then, against all better judgement, I bought it. But I set a few ground rules; I would only read it during the day when I wasn't alone, and I would definitely not read it once it got dark.

Apparently, these rules worked pretty well because I didn't find it very scary at all. Sure, the "scary" parts would have undoubtably been scary if I read it in the dark at 3 am, but I didnt, so it wasn't. Delaney's writing flowed well and was an easy and quick read.

However, Delaney would unnecessarily explain the definition of words; if he thinks the reader won't understand them, then he shouldn't use them. Even if he did it to show how young and naive Tom is, it doesn't make it any less annoying to the reader.

EX: "'Malevolent means evil,' he explained. 'Benign means good.'" (84-85).
"The Spook had told me that the main topic in an apprentice's first year was boggarts, together with such subjects as botany, which meant learning all about plants.." (99).
"'Mr. Gregory called it the definitive work,' I said, "which means it's the best book ever written on the subject.' [Alice] looked up from the book then, and to my surprise her eyes were filled with anger. 'I know what definitive means,' she said. 'Think I'm stupid or something?'" (228).

Took the words right out of my mouth, Alice.

Otherwise, I loved this book! I'll be reading the second book. Recommended!

Book Blog #164: City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare

Title: City of Heavenly Fire
Author: Cassandra Clare
# of Pages: 725 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Paranormal-Romance, Fantasy
Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis: Lives will be lost, love sacrificed, and the whole world changed in the sixth and last instalment of the internationally bestselling The Mortal Instruments series. Erchomai, Sebastian had said. I am coming. Darkness returns to the Shadowhunter world. As their society falls apart around them, Clary, Jace, Simon and their friends must band together to fight the greatest evil the Nephilim have ever faced: Clary's own brother. Nothing in this world can defeat him - must they journey to another world to find the chance?
Review: I've stayed up late in order to finish this book, so I'm going to try to portray what I am feeling right now as accurately but quickly as possible.

The first hundred pages were hard to get into. I was a little thrown off by the prologue with Emma and Julian, two characters who weren't very important in the previous book and who I had not recollection of. What threw me off even more is how big their role was in the book. The problem is, I didn't drag my way through five books just to hear about some random 12 year-olds. They wasted my time and made the book just that much longer.

The book really didn't need to be as long as it is. Most scenes could have been condensed with an exception to the final scene/climax. Clare's writing style is still rough in some areas (e.g. I didn't like how she wrote some of the dialogue for Emma, especially when she talks to Clary; 12 year-olds may be young, but they aren't THAT young).

I had been torn between three stars and four stars because of my continued dislike for Clare and Alec, along with the reasons I have mentioned above, but decided to go with the latter. The reason was because the last two hundred pages flowed really well. I was not expecting to read over three hundred pages today (my goal  was to read 150), but I was engaged in the plot.

I was a little upset for a while about Simon; I hated Clare for taking his memories away. I was ranting to anyone who would listen; why did she have to do it to SIMON of all people? She couldn't have settled for Clary or Jace or Alec or evnn Magnus? But I shouldn't have been so quick to judge because the epilogue made me extremely satisfied.

But the epilogue also felt like a giant ad for the rest of Clare's books. She mentions the Codex, hints at the Bane Chronicles, and the whole book was leading up to The Dark Artifices series. The only series I'm interested in reading is The Infernal Devices, which was also viciously advertised through mentions of Tessa and her mysterious relationships with various people CoHF.

Overall, one of the better books of the series, despite its unnecessary length. While I expect most of you to be TMI fans who I going to read the book regardless of what I say, I recommend it.

Book Blog #163: Magonia by Maria Dahvana Headley

Title: Magonia
Author: Maria Dahvana Headley
# of Pages: 320 (hardback)
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Science Fiction
Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis: Aza Ray is drowning in thin air.

Since she was a baby, Aza has suffered from a mysterious lung disease that makes it ever harder for her to breathe, to speak—to live. So when Aza catches a glimpse of a ship in the sky, her family chalks it up to a cruel side effect of her medication. But Aza doesn't think this is a hallucination. She can hear someone on the ship calling her name. Only her best friend, Jason, listens. Jason, who’s always been there. Jason, for whom she might have more-than-friendly feelings. But before Aza can consider that thrilling idea, something goes terribly wrong. Aza is lost to our world—and found, by another. Magonia.

Above the clouds, in a land of trading ships, Aza is not the weak and dying thing she was. In Magonia, she can breathe for the first time. Better, she has immense power—and as she navigates her new life, she discovers that war is coming. Magonia and Earth are on the cusp of a reckoning. And in Aza’s hands lies the fate of the whole of humanity—including the boy who loves her. Where do her loyalties lie?
Review: I'm genuinely impressed.

I bought this book in a spur of the moment decision and only looked at the synopsis/ratings after I got home. It worried me because the average rating was 3.76, and the plot didn't seem like something I'd be interested in. Nevertheless, as it was one of  the smaller (therefore quicker) reads on my shelf, I began to read  it.

Magonia has been called a combination between The Fault in Our Stars and Neil Gaiman's Stardust. While I haven't read Stardust, I read Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book and loved it. With The Fault in Our Stars being one of my favorite books, Magonia had big shoes to fill.

The writing style, especially in the beginning, is somewhat similar to John Green's. Aza seems to be a quirky teenage girl who unfortunately suffers from a mysterious disease, which is strikingly similar to Hazel in TFIOS. The writing style and tone of the story in the beginning is different from the rest of the book, and Headley makes it her own.

I loved this book because I was really engaged in the plot, and I felt connected to the characters. There are some POV changes, which always irks me and was unnecessary.

I recommend reading Magonia! If there will be a sequel, I definitely plan on reading it.