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Originally posted at The Wandering Fangirl.
Fracture promises something chilly, a ride through the life of a girl who survives a should-be-fatal accident and ends up with some kind of weird power. When thinking of just those points, it did exactly what it set out to do; I was caught up in everything poor Delaney goes through, from her confusion about living to the despair and loneliness she feels as a result of being that miracle girl. She changes and grows, and not only because of the new power she has to sense death.
Delaney is a pretty decent protagonist, if you remember that she isn't meant to be someone who's all sunshine and roses the entire time. I found her friendship and sexual tension (That's a little much. Relationship tension?) with her best friend Decker really believable, which makes the creepiness of Troy's motives for befriending Delaney even worse.
The break from her family and friends that Delaney goes through is believable and I felt for her. I just wish the book had been a bit warmer in general, though that's an entirely personal opinion.
Fracture promises something chilly, a ride through the life of a girl who survives a should-be-fatal accident and ends up with some kind of weird power. When thinking of just those points, it did exactly what it set out to do; I was caught up in everything poor Delaney goes through, from her confusion about living to the despair and loneliness she feels as a result of being that miracle girl. She changes and grows, and not only because of the new power she has to sense death.
Delaney is a pretty decent protagonist, if you remember that she isn't meant to be someone who's all sunshine and roses the entire time. I found her friendship and sexual tension (That's a little much. Relationship tension?) with her best friend Decker really believable, which makes the creepiness of Troy's motives for befriending Delaney even worse.
The break from her family and friends that Delaney goes through is believable and I felt for her. I just wish the book had been a bit warmer in general, though that's an entirely personal opinion.
Originally posted at The Wandering Fangirl.
A really nice, lush vampire novel. The world building in this was fantastic, and I've gushed about the cover before. Though at times I felt it seemed to drag a bit under the weight of what Painter was trying to do with her characters and her world, Blood Rights was exactly the vampire novel I needed at the time. I could have done without the sexual tension between the main characters, but I enjoyed them both on their own. (Even if the angsty vampire who can't/won't drink blood is so overdone at this point.) I enjoyed it, and I'll be picking up the rest of the series when I can.
A really nice, lush vampire novel. The world building in this was fantastic, and I've gushed about the cover before. Though at times I felt it seemed to drag a bit under the weight of what Painter was trying to do with her characters and her world, Blood Rights was exactly the vampire novel I needed at the time. I could have done without the sexual tension between the main characters, but I enjoyed them both on their own. (Even if the angsty vampire who can't/won't drink blood is so overdone at this point.) I enjoyed it, and I'll be picking up the rest of the series when I can.
As of my 2012 movie anticipation re-read, have to bump this up to five stars. So good I re-read it all in about three hours. On to Catching Fire and Mockingjay!
Originally posted at The Wandering Fangirl.
I had really high hopes for this book since the first time I read the summary, and I'm really, really glad it lived up to my every expectation.
First off, I think the subject of Alex's date rape is handled with obvious care, but Daisy Whitney doesn't pull punches or try to pretend it's anything but what it is: a horrifying, disorienting, self-doubting experience that no girl or woman should ever have to go through. From the first page I was right there with Alex, and I felt for her in a way I haven't with any other female character in a long time.
The plot itself is fairly straightforward, with enough secrecy surrounding the Mockingbirds and how everything is handled to keep it from getting boring. Every character surrounding Alex seemed real and thoughtfully drawn out, each with their own lives going on but there wholeheartedly to support her when she needed it. I loved seeing a novel in a school setting where there weren't any Mean Girls for no reason at all, which happens way more than I'd like it to.
The Mockingbirds is a great read, something I recommend wholeheartedly, especially to teens. This is one of those books that is more important for the teen set than it is for us adults who love YA.
I had really high hopes for this book since the first time I read the summary, and I'm really, really glad it lived up to my every expectation.
First off, I think the subject of Alex's date rape is handled with obvious care, but Daisy Whitney doesn't pull punches or try to pretend it's anything but what it is: a horrifying, disorienting, self-doubting experience that no girl or woman should ever have to go through. From the first page I was right there with Alex, and I felt for her in a way I haven't with any other female character in a long time.
The plot itself is fairly straightforward, with enough secrecy surrounding the Mockingbirds and how everything is handled to keep it from getting boring. Every character surrounding Alex seemed real and thoughtfully drawn out, each with their own lives going on but there wholeheartedly to support her when she needed it. I loved seeing a novel in a school setting where there weren't any Mean Girls for no reason at all, which happens way more than I'd like it to.
The Mockingbirds is a great read, something I recommend wholeheartedly, especially to teens. This is one of those books that is more important for the teen set than it is for us adults who love YA.
Originally posted at The Wandering Fangirl.
While it seems totally superficial and maybe a tiny bit ridiculous at first, I enjoyed Shut Out enough to read it in one full sitting. It was a breezy, fun way to spend a couple of hours, and I was totally immersed in Lissa's world and what she was doing for herself and for the girls at her school.
Lissa is a smart girl, full of neuroses but still popular and surrounded by friends anyway. She's tired of a stupid feud between sports teams because it means her boyfriend makes her feel used, and her brilliant idea is to propose a sex strike. So much of this is plucked from the play Lysistrata, which Cash even points out to Lissa. (Juuuust because you point it out in the book doesn't mean you didn't yank the idea wholesale from the play, Keplinger. Just saying.)
Keplinger is a decent writer, but maybe not quite as fantastic as she could have been for writing this book. It didn't really need flowery prose or navel gazing, but something a little stronger would have made the book have more of an impact than it did when I finished reading. At times, it felt like Lissa was simply Keplinger's soapbox as she ranted about sexual stereotypes and patted herself on the back for questioning them and having Lissa's fellow classmates begin to find their own sexual identities along the way.
It was still a whole boatload of fun, however. I had my problems with parts of it, but I have to at least shake Keplinger's hand for writing a YA novel all about sex -- and not just about sex, but girls talking about and discussing what sex means to them so openly.
While it seems totally superficial and maybe a tiny bit ridiculous at first, I enjoyed Shut Out enough to read it in one full sitting. It was a breezy, fun way to spend a couple of hours, and I was totally immersed in Lissa's world and what she was doing for herself and for the girls at her school.
Lissa is a smart girl, full of neuroses but still popular and surrounded by friends anyway. She's tired of a stupid feud between sports teams because it means her boyfriend makes her feel used, and her brilliant idea is to propose a sex strike. So much of this is plucked from the play Lysistrata, which Cash even points out to Lissa. (Juuuust because you point it out in the book doesn't mean you didn't yank the idea wholesale from the play, Keplinger. Just saying.)
Keplinger is a decent writer, but maybe not quite as fantastic as she could have been for writing this book. It didn't really need flowery prose or navel gazing, but something a little stronger would have made the book have more of an impact than it did when I finished reading. At times, it felt like Lissa was simply Keplinger's soapbox as she ranted about sexual stereotypes and patted herself on the back for questioning them and having Lissa's fellow classmates begin to find their own sexual identities along the way.
It was still a whole boatload of fun, however. I had my problems with parts of it, but I have to at least shake Keplinger's hand for writing a YA novel all about sex -- and not just about sex, but girls talking about and discussing what sex means to them so openly.
Originally posted at The Wandering Fangirl.
Catching Jordan is a rather cute contemporary romance novel, featuring a tomboy who is not only the only female on her football team, but the star quarterback and captain. It was refreshing having someone like Jordan to read along with, and though I know little of and care even less for football, it never made reading this a task. Though I knew going in that it was pure romance, I wish there could have been a little more to it than Jordan falling at first sight for the new guy in town. All in all, it was a cute novel, something to read and enjoy on a great, sunny day.
Catching Jordan is a rather cute contemporary romance novel, featuring a tomboy who is not only the only female on her football team, but the star quarterback and captain. It was refreshing having someone like Jordan to read along with, and though I know little of and care even less for football, it never made reading this a task. Though I knew going in that it was pure romance, I wish there could have been a little more to it than Jordan falling at first sight for the new guy in town. All in all, it was a cute novel, something to read and enjoy on a great, sunny day.
Originally posted at The Wandering Fangirl.
I'd been looking forward to Born Wicked for quite some time, so when I finally got my hands on it, I was a bit disappointed. It was definitely interesting, at the least, and I liked reading about how different the three sisters were and how Cate, the oldest, dealt with being a stand-in mother for her siblings and how that affected their relationship. The rest of the plot seemed to move slow as molasses. I really couldn't have cared less for the weak love triangle, and none of the drama felt real because nothing felt like a threat the way Cate believed saw it. The writing could have been stronger. I think I'll probably pick up the rest of the series to see what happens, but it's not high on my want list.
I'd been looking forward to Born Wicked for quite some time, so when I finally got my hands on it, I was a bit disappointed. It was definitely interesting, at the least, and I liked reading about how different the three sisters were and how Cate, the oldest, dealt with being a stand-in mother for her siblings and how that affected their relationship. The rest of the plot seemed to move slow as molasses. I really couldn't have cared less for the weak love triangle, and none of the drama felt real because nothing felt like a threat the way Cate believed saw it. The writing could have been stronger. I think I'll probably pick up the rest of the series to see what happens, but it's not high on my want list.
Originally posted at The Wandering Fangirl.
I enjoyed Silent in the Grave, but I'm still not sure why. There were many things that should have stopped me from reading very early on: the writing was decent, but not very strong; the plot didn't really seem to matter because our protagonist kept doing other things; there was the most random acceptance of feminism and homosexuality for the time period; the lead male and possible romantic aspect was waaaay too Interesting and Different and Perfect. But I still read on. I STILL READ ON. Maybe it was Lady Julia herself, maybe it was the fact that she didn't just blunder into clues and when she did do something stupid, she got called out on it. I don't know. I just know that I still read and was interested in every single chapter despite my problems with it.
I enjoyed Silent in the Grave, but I'm still not sure why. There were many things that should have stopped me from reading very early on: the writing was decent, but not very strong; the plot didn't really seem to matter because our protagonist kept doing other things; there was the most random acceptance of feminism and homosexuality for the time period; the lead male and possible romantic aspect was waaaay too Interesting and Different and Perfect. But I still read on. I STILL READ ON. Maybe it was Lady Julia herself, maybe it was the fact that she didn't just blunder into clues and when she did do something stupid, she got called out on it. I don't know. I just know that I still read and was interested in every single chapter despite my problems with it.