forevermorepages's Reviews (811)

This book is literally candy. It had no substance whatsoever, but I enjoyed it nonetheless (I did read it in a day, you know). And I started it this afternoon, so I'm going to consider that #skills. Anyway, I probably won't write a review for this because *Shrug* it isn't going to long or worth my time to write one.

-Book Hugger

For real reviews, check out my blog at http://www.bookhuggerreviews.com

It's kind of nice rereading my teacher's favorite books. It'll be six years since she's passed in April.

I still have the same problem with this book that I did when I was eleven—Mia never learns not to lie and is never caught, but I still love how precious the story is, how sweet. In a way that kind of makes up for the problems.

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I read this book three years ago (or so) and it was amazing, literally amazing ahhhhh

Despite the gorgeous cover (and my edition being signed!), I couldn't bring myself to love this book. Just as a disclaimer here, the main reason is because I don't believe in love at first sight, so this book contradicted everything I have ever believed. I believe in true love, but that love is gradual; you don't just fall in love at first glance. Maybe it's just because I have only been in love once and it wasn't right off the bat or maybe it's because I'm only fifteen and have so much more to learn about the world. So, maybe you'll like this book more than me. Of course, that wasn't my only problem with it, but I think if it wasn't so unrealistic, I would have enjoyed it more. The main characters met and fell in love, essentially, in less than twenty-four hours. I'm sorry, but what?? Just what??

I also really couldn't stand the writing. I don't like present tense because it sounds awkward unless written well. This book sounded so awkward and disjointed. Some of the sentences just didn't flow and the writing wasn't all that beautiful. I'm one for beautiful, poetic writing; long sentences that flow like a river. This book had none of that and I was pretty disappointed, especially since there are people who really like Nicola Yoon's writing.

The only thing that really kept me going with this book was how addictive it was. I couldn't just put it down and be comfortable seeing it lying on my desk, mocking me. No matter how much I hated the writing and the plot, I was addicted to it. The chapters are really short, which made me more inclined to binge-read one hundred pages in a sitting (at least it makes sense to me).

I also did like Daniel and I really understood his problems. Even without going through the same problems, I was able to sympathize with him. Some of my friends have had similar issues with their parents, so maybe that's where I was coming from. The whole entire book I was hoping he would get the happy ending he deserved. Gah, that's what books like these turn me into--some kind of "we all need happy endings" person. No matter how much I don't believe in them.

If you do believe in love at first sight and happen to like Yoon's writing, then go ahead and read it. You'll probably love it. This book just wasn't the one for me. I guess while I fell in love with the cover upon first sight, I didn't like the inside--which is really what matters.

-Book Hugger

For more reviews like this, check out my blog at http://www.bookhuggerreviews.com

Sadly, I didn’t find The Da Vinci Code as entertaining as I had hoped. It took me more than two weeks to read when it should have taken me a week at most. I couldn’t bring myself to read for more than fifteen minutes because nothing about this book captured my attention. At some points, I felt as though it was interesting enough, but my opinions never went farther than that. Overall, I was extremely disappointed with this book.

THINGS I LIKED

I found the premise of the book really interesting, which is why I was compelled to read it in the first place. I once watched a documentary that was also about the Holy Grail and this book. Since I enjoyed the documentary (surprisingly, I’m not actually a documentary person).

I enjoyed the occasional chapter or so because they were sometimes interesting. I’m a sucker for a good mystery when it comes down to it, so I found some parts decent enough to rate it two stars instead of one.

That’s about it for the parts of The Da Vinci Code that I liked, but I honestly wish there were more. Rating a book with this few of stars really disappoints me.

THINGS I DISLIKED

Dan Brown wrote this book as though he held up a thesaurus during the editing process and replaced every word with a synonym of it. From the first paragraph, I was already annoyed.

The chapters were really short. I’m not actually sure what my opinion on chapter size lengths is. I suppose, I don’t like them drastically long (think, thirty pages) or obnoxiously short (think, three pages). I like something in between that. This book’s chapters were in between one page and six pages, with maybe one or two actually making a comfortable size length for me. When I read books with short chapters, I feel like everything’s too rushed and it messes with the pacing way too much.

I didn’t like the romance that much either because I seemed really contrived. I don’t exactly believe that every book needs to have a love interest in it, not if it’s not essential to the plot. Love was not essential to the plot in this book.

I found the writing bland and the story boring. I went into it hoping for an exciting mystery, especially with my mom raving about it. It wasn’t exciting. I just found everything rather plain. Maybe I needed more magic or maybe I was hoping for more character development (I live for character development).

Lastly, I found all the constant switching from point of view confusing and unnecessary. Some authors can switch POV really well, but Dan Brown is not one of them. The worst part about POV switches is when you can’t stand reading one of the character’s parts. That was how I felt about reading Silas’s POV. His part was dry and unexciting (a trend here).

OVERALL

Like I said, this book was a huge disappointment to me. I don’t really recommend it, unless you want to be disappointed as well (or maybe not, it depends on who you are). Also, I’m not sure if I’m interested in watching the movie anymore, not when the book fell so flat for me.

-Book Hugger

HEY GUYS, I CHANGED MY POSTING FORMAT, BE PROUD

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You might be wondering why I'm reading this or why it's taken me so long to read this and allow me to tell you a brief story. When I was in sixth grade, we had the choice between band and literary...something. I did band, not because I didn't enjoy reading, but because I liked flute and my friends were doing it and it was just the "thing to do." Of course, I ended up hating flute, but that's another story. My sixth grade teacher had the rest of the class (those that weren't in band) read Where the Red Fern Grows. I was close to this teacher, we both shared a love of literature, knew each other's families, and she really pushed me as a writer and acknowledged my talent. She told me that even though I hadn't read it with the class, I should read Where the Red Fern Grows. She passed away the next year. I still haven't read it, but I go to college in less than two weeks and I think she's probably up in Heaven shaking her fist at me for having not read it yet, so this is for her, honestly. I hope I love it, even though I know how it ends. It would just feel wrong of me to hate it.

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I have since finished and while it is definitely not going to become a favorite of mine, it will nevertheless hold a place in my heart. I am glad to have read it.

-Book Hugger

It's been so long since I've written a review (so many apologies for this) and it's been ages since I finished King's Cage, but let's see how I can do here!

As usual, I LOVED this Victoria Aveyard masterpiece. It was filled with plot twists and angst and Maven Calore. Unfortunately, I cannot stand the primary love-interest Cal, who is as flat as a piece of cardboard...so, I go for Maven, the troubled and sadistic guy. I think I have a problem, but no shame, right? I'm also a member of the I-Don't-Hate-Mare-Barrow Club. I still can't really see why people find her irritating. Sure, she complained a fair amount in Glass Sword, but it was 100% called for. She had been through a TON and of course she was a bit damaged. Though, if you didn't find her likable then, never fear, she really has grown since then and was a million times more strong in King's Cage.

My main problem is that I feel as though I read it too quickly to understand a lot of what happened. The plot is complex and detailed, which means that if I don't pay attention to every single word, I'll probably end up a little confused. I can't really rate this lower for that because that was my fault...maybe I'll just reread this series before book four.

A slight complaint as well, but I really didn't enjoy reading about Cameron. I also was confused here because 1-I didn't remember her at all from Glass Sword and 2-I thought she was a guy for a decent amount of time. Both of those are my fault, but it was not my fault that she lacked personality and complained way too much. I lived for Mare's chapters, which were EVERYTHING (and usually Maven was present).

I also started liking Evangeline? What can I say, things have changed. One thing Aveyard does really well is her character arcs and she builds really, really realistic characters. Applause to her for that! And when we found out Evangeline's love interest, I was so so surprised (but not in a bad way, don't worry)!!

Last little thing, but I loved the "subtle" references to other authors. Some of the soldiers were named after Aveyard's friends and I thought it was so cute. Author goals, if you ask me!

Anyway, I highly recommend this series! It's not for everyone, but it's definitely for me! At least give it a shot, you might end up falling in love with it (and Maven Calore). Not to mention, WHERE'S THE NEXT BOOK??? I DO NOT LIKE CLIFFHANGERS!!!

-Book Hugger

For more reviews like this, check out my blog at http://www.bookhuggerreviews.com

Rating: ***** Suggested Age: 8

My friends and I swear that Rick Riordan only wrote The Hidden Oracle to appease the fangirls. This book has all the couples getting together (hopefully that's not a spoiler) and all the ideas the fandom had for the future becoming real. Of course, I'm not complaining as I loved every second of it. I literally marked the pages with interactions between my favorite couple (no regrets).

While I wouldn't say that this book is absolutely fantastic for someone my age, I loved it so very much. I've tired of the humor that young children find funny, but I haven't tired of the character dynamics nor the action. Riordan's books are so creative and I find a deeper love for mythology every time I read one of them. His books are simple, especially since they're for elementary school age children, but they're filled to the brim with excitement. There wasn't a dull moment with this book. I finished it within a few days of starting it.

Furthermore, Apollo has to be one of the best narrators he could have chosen. I have never met a person with as big of an ego and couldn't help laughing out loud at his haikus or his complaints about having "flab". Some of the humor in this book did get to me, I see.

These books are exciting for all ages, even if you're too old for the humor. I highly recommend trying his books out, you won't regret it.

-Book Hugger

For more reviews like this, check out my blog at http://www.bookhuggerreviews.com

First, just a comment, but I know everyone has said that the characters are purely platonic...but...I'm not positive I see that. I know they're platonic now, but are we sure that's going to last forever? Is there proof from Victoria Shwab that says they're platonic ONLY??

"I mean, most people want to escape. Get out of their heads. Out of their lives. Stories are the easiest way to do that." -Kate, page 305

Anyway, with that out, I absolutely loved this book. It reminded me of a tv show in a way because you usually don't see plots like this in a book and it almost read like one. I don't exactly know how to explain it, but I got this really weird tv show vibe. I definitely don't have a problem with that because everything about this book was perfect. It did start a little slow, but once I got past the beginning, I loved it.

The characters are the best part of this book. August is so sweet and innocent, despite being a monster. I love him with every bit of my soul (date me please?). He didn't want to be evil and it hurt him so much. That's what I loved the most about him, his complete purity toward killing. He never wanted to be a monster and I found that so depressing. Then there's Kate, who's almost a monster in her own way, despite being completely human. It's like they had the roles switched *lightbulb goes off*. I loved Kate, though. She was wicked, but it was because of her past, which only hints were given to. You finally understand what happened at the end, but that's for you to find out.

And then there's the plot. I loved the plot too, but characters always come first to me. This plot was definitely epic, though. I have never read a single book like it before and it certainly wasn't what I expected. It was violent, but not in an in your face way. It was beautiful, but not in a romantic way. Schwab has a way with words and I was practically swooning with delight at her figurative language. What can I say? I love words.

"It doesn't matter if you're monster or human. Living hurts." -Kate, page 352

Not to mention, Schwab understands teenagers and life and struggles. I may not have monstrous abilities, but I found pieces of myself within her words.

I highly recommend you pick this one up. It's a beautiful, but cruel book and you won't regret it (I hope, please don't hold me to this).

-Book Hugger

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This book made me cry and let me tell you something that you've probably heard from me before: that does not happen often. I went into this with the knowledge that this book was supposed to make me bawl my eyes out, but I was a little stubborn there, wanting to not cry.

Yeah that didn't happen.

The Kite Runner is devastating, as expected by Khaled Hosseini. It was actually a lot different from his other book A Thousand Splendid Suns, dealing with completely different topics, even if they both take place in the same region. I'm really glad it wasn't all that similar though because this only strengthened my understanding of the culture and the devastation in Kabul.

Hosseini is a beautiful writer. He painted a world so clearly in my mind, carried the themes so wonderfully, and really drew me into Amir's story. I didn't love Amir, but I think that was the point. In the beginning, I hated Amir and loved Hassan. Of course, as the story progressed, I felt for Amir and his guilt over his past actions. I kept hoping he would be able to redeem himself, but I'm beginning to wonder if Hosseini knows how to write happy books. This was quite the opposite from happy. The ending was...hopeful? But it was no where near happy. 

I'm really gratefully Hosseini doesn't sugarcoat anything, though. He shows the darkness, the sadness, and anger of life, especially life under the Taliban. It's such a difficult topic to handle, but I found Hosseini handled it extraordinarily well, never leaving out a detail, but managing to keep it just slightly under hopeless. 

I highly recommend reading The Kite Runner, or A Thousand Splendid Suns. I am so glad I have.

-Book Hugger

Reviews: http://www.bookhuggerreviews.com

Okay, as good as this was, the ending was really disappointing; I expected something more powerful, but instead it ended abruptly giving me no closure to their situations.

Review to come.

-Book Hugger