prioryofprose's Reviews (1.06k)

I didn’t really know what I was getting into with Big Fat Disaster but I liked the cover and had read some fairly good reviews, so I thought “why the heck not?” I have been trying to add more contemporary YA into my reading schedule to get some diversity.

Likes:

I liked the view from inside the political family from Belle, so I thought this was really interesting to see it from another perspective.

Colby’s body images and eating disorder were real things and I think they were portrayed in a good way. I have struggled with food forever. I occasionally find myself running to food when I am stressed, upset or even happy. It is a struggle and I have always weighed more than I wanted to. I really thought the book brought out the issues in a real way and could make people who do not struggle with food realize what a battle it is.

Colby’s mom is awful, but a lot of people see binge-eating and overeating as a personal problem, not as a mental issue. She would tell Colby she needs to “push away” from the table or count calories. Colby was using food as a way to connect to her father, as solace when she was upset, not because she was hungry.

I really liked Leah’s character. She was strong, had been pushed down, but still stood up for herself when everyone, including her family, treated her awfully.

Gripes:

More and more bad kept coming to Colby, it felt like it was overkill. I think the relationship with her mother and her father’s scandal would be hard enough, it just seemed a little crazy to keep piling it on.

The whole situation that happened to Ryan (trying not to spoil here) seemed so unnecessary to me. I almost put the down the book because it was just not needed. It seemed to take the path in the book off course. I think the message could have been the same without that situation.

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A Flurry of Ponderings

I have fallen in love with Karou, Zuzana and Mik. They have to be some of my favorite book characters ever. I was so excited to get my hands on the final book in the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series, Dreams of Gods and Monsters. When I went to pick it up at the library I almost fell over. The book is huge! It is like Harry Potter huge with smaller text! Uff-da!

Likes:

I never really liked Karou and Akiva in the first two books, but this one I could really finally see them being together.

The changes to the story were interesting, I liked how Eliza was added to the story. It was a good way to see the human and other reality perspective.

I was happy with the way the series ended. I wasn’t really why the whole Akiva situation needed to happen, but it worked out fine. I almost wonder if it gave her an edge to write a spin-off series or something.

It was need seeing Brimestone’s hopes come to life in this book. I really wish there was more Brimstone, but at least his legacy shines through Karou and Issa.

Gripes:

I listened to the first two books and I really felt like I connected with the book a lot better with the audio version. Sometimes with the written version I felt like it was so jumpy. It sometimes felt like Laini was speaking with a train of conciseness, so I think I related better to that having someone read it to me rather than reading the book. I almost wish I would have done the audio version instead.

There was not enough Zuzana and Mik! I was so sad that Zuzana really took a back seat and this book really was lacking the original spunk and wit that I loved in the first two books in the series.

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A Flurry of Ponderings

The summary of Broken Arrows by Chelsey Butler was so intriguing, I just had to review the book. It was a whimsical, cute little read. I am glad I got a spot on this tour!

Likes:

The town of Fable was so neat, it was a really unique concept. Although a tad bit cheesy, it was still a super cute concept.

Cari was fun! She owns a bed and breakfast plus is the offspring of Cupid. She was funny, inventive, a little aloof, but lots of fun as a main character.

The side characters, Roxy, Hope, Emma, Carter, and Mike were awesome. I loved learning how the little town worked and I really want to live there. I feel like I keep relating books to Hart of Dixie, but it definitely how I pictured the town.

I am so excited to keep reading this series, I could not get enough of it.

The story was so easy-going and fast-paced. I finished it in one sitting!

Gripes:

The only gripe I have it that is ends abruptly. I literally thought I had to have a bad copy of the eBook. I read quite a few reviews on Goodreads that said the same thing, so at least I know I did get to read the ending, but seriously! I hope the second book comes out soon, because I have no closure!

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A Flurry of Ponderings

I have just really started to get into the YA Sci-fi genre with Across the Universe and These Broken Stars, so I thought I would give Protostar a chance. Plus, it is written by a male in a genre that is dominated by females. I really wanted to see his take on the genre.

Likes:

The story was original, I have never read anything like it and was intrigued on where the story was going to go.

I enjoyed both the main characters, William and Sydney. I enjoyed their chemistry and personalities. Sydney was funny, kind and caring. William was strong, but gentle at the same time.

I always love the Romeo & Juliet feel to stories, loving your enemy, crossing racism and discrimination. The world needs to come together and love each other, so I always love story lines like this J World peace, everyone.

The writing was really well-done. Although I have to admit, complex at times, it was good. I thought even his writing on really intriguing when he was writing from Sydney’s POV.

Gripes:

Sometimes the jargon was over my head, especially with space and space ship talk.

There were a few points, especially toward the end I felt the book got a little long-winded. I really wanted the action and to know the outcome quickly. I just might not have been in the right mood either and read it impatiently.

Disclaimer: A complimentary copy of the ebook was provided to me by the author and publisher in exchange of an honest review. The views expressed above are entirely my own and are in, no way, affected by the source of this book.

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A Flurry of Ponderings

Screaming Divas was an intriguing story, it was like Lemonade Mouth meets Rent. It definitely was not what I was expecting, it wasn’t a bad read, it was just not really my style.

Likes:

The story had good pacing. It was a quick read I finished in a couple hours.

The writing was interesting, there were some parts that I really enjoyed, especially because of the writing style.

Each character was well-developed and you were given a good view of who they really were.

The characters were sexually diverse. I have not really read books with characters who are homosexual, so it is good to have diversity in books for those who desire to read more stories with characters that are not the mainstream.

Gripes:

I would call this a YA book with the ages of the characters, but it almost seemed like new adult in action. A few of the characters lived on their own, even though they were still in high school.

There was more graphic details in the book than I am used to in this genre, including sex and drugs. I really do not enjoy “erotica” myself and tend to shy away from books that have sexual acts in detail, although this was mild, it was still not my cup of tea.

I was really thinking the book would be more “Lemonade Mouth” than it is. It was more a Disney book in my head, so that was really my fault coming into the story not really knowing what I was getting into.

Favorite Quote:

“Their sound made Trudy think of a funeral in a Gothic cathedral, or the spooky look of the low country at dusk, Spanish moss hanging like cobwebs, bats flitting around. Noel’s voice was low and menacing. He stood at the center of the stage, his hands cupped around the mic. From time to time he pressed his palms to his temples as if he were trying to quell demon voices. Although he barely moved, his body was tensed. Trudy expected him to pounce into the crowd like a panther.

Disclaimer: A complimentary copy of the ebook was provided to me by the author and publisher in exchange of an honest review. The views expressed above are entirely my own and are in, no way, affected by the source of this book.

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A Flurry of Ponderings

Sweet Evil was one of those “cover” picks. I didn’t really know much about it, but needed an audiobook for my drive to quilt retreat. I was pleasantly surprised that I actually enjoyed it. The audiobook was 11 hours, 44 minutes long and read by Erin Mallon.

Likes:

The whole good vs. evil, demons vs. angels always intrigues me.

I am a Christian and believe in God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit. I still really enjoyed this book and didn’t feel like it was trying to challenge my faith or lead me in one direction or the other.

That forbidden love thing gets me, love between enemy lines, or in this case spiritual lines, was interesting.

I love road trips!

The demons, Kaidan and his friends were really unique. It made you think about social pressures, temptations and hearing those voices in your head whispering for you to do good or bad things. It was easy to visualize.

I liked Anna, I could see a lot of myself in her. She was a character I would be friends with.

The book had really interesting views on the Holy Spirit and per-destination.

Gripes:

There was some first book syndrome – I definitely did not feel closure with this part of the story. The library doesn’t have any more of the series as audio, so I think I will have to get the written books.


Have you read the series? Should I continue? How did you feel about the spiritual aspects of this book?

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A Flurry of Ponderings

Even though I did not love The Great Gatsby, I definitely was captivated by the story. I was so excited when I hear about Great, a modern day retelling with a gender switch was such a neat idea!

Likes:

I really liked Naomi. I thought she was an interesting character, especially with the background between her mother and father.

Naomi’s mother was out-of-control, I loved her character and her desire to be famous and loved. She pushed herself so hard and was at the beck and call to the rich and famous.

Jacinta (the Gatsby) character was well done, she was similar but different enough that the story was redundant. There was also a diverse romance that helps modernize the book and give a young adult story that some would feel is lacking (trying not to spoil the whole story).

I liked all the side characters, Teddy, Giovanni, Misti, Delilah, ect. The characters really brought the story to life.

The Hamptons always fascinate me. I love Revenge and Gossip Girl and the whole concept of the Hamptons. The rich and beautiful fleeing the city to go to the beach and their huge lake houses.

Gripes:

The story was good, but not great. Sometimes the writing seems cliche but it was definitely enjoyable and readable, but it won’t be a classic.

There were only really two big parties! I wanted more glitz and glamor.

Favorite Quote:
"That place at the beach with all your mother's fancy friends - it's another world. I'm not saying it's a bad one. It's just different. But whether you're in this world or that one, you still have to live with yourself. Remember that you can't be one person in one place and a totally different person in another place. Right is right and wrong is wrong, no matter where you are."

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A Flurry of Ponderings

I have always been very interested in Hitler and the story surrounding how he was able to convince so many people that the Jews were the enemy. The history is such a stain on humanity and I have always wondered how people would so easily dismiss the value of each other because of what I person says. I realize in this time period moral was at an all-time low, people were starving and struggling to get by, it just seems so awful that people turned and put their hope in Hitler. I started gravitating toward books on Nazi Germany since I first read The Book Thief.

Likes:

Gretchen was an awesome main character. She grew up hearing that her father was a hero who jumped in front of Hitler and took a bullet for him. She had such a close relationship with Hitler that she called him Uncle Dolf. But as she starts to realize the truth about who Hitler really is and what he is trying to accomplish, doubt seeps in and she realizes that Uncle Dolf may not be the man she thought he is.

David is a Jewish reporter that finds out that Gretchen’s family may not have died the way she was told. He joins forces with Gretchen, although she struggles with the fact that he is a Jew and she is going against the National Socialist party. David helps Gretchen realize that Hitler is trying to exterminate the Jews instead of just make them leave Germany.

The author used real, historical characters and time periods in the book. It was so interested to see how she weaved true life into her fictional story. She stated that she started to wonder what it would be like to be a young girl in Nazi after hearing about Geli, Hitler’s half niece. Geli’s history wove so seamlessly into the story that it really sounds like Gretchen could have been a real person.

Gripes:

I truly loved the book and thought the writing was excellent, the only downfall is that the book ends in a bit of a cliffhanger. I always hate having to wait for more until the next book comes out – but Anne Blankman did her job, I cannot wait to read the next book in the series.

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A Flurry of Ponderings

I am not sure why I picked up The Treatment, but The Program really didn’t entice me, but I was glad that I enjoyed The Treatment a lot more than I thought I would. It was kinda fun reading a duo series where most are at least three or more books.

Likes:

Sloane and James were nowhere near as annoying as they were in the first book. They seemed so corny in The Program, but I felt like their relationship was a lot more realistic in The Treatment.

I always have liked the “on the run” feel in dystopian literature. I love the way it moves along and the fear it creates. The thought of barely being able to sleep for the fear of being found gives a little thrill.

Dallas and Cas were interesting new additions to the story. I loved the way Dallas entwined with Sloane and Michael’s storyline.

I feel like the writing “matured” in this book, that the experience of writing The Program really helped Suzanne Young drive into The Treatment head-first and create a more in-depth story with better prose.

The “love triangle” situation that bothered me a lot more in The Program really wrapped up well in The Treatment.

Gripes:

As much as the writing in The Treatment grew on me, it still felt a little lacking in the emotional connection. I wanted more and I felt the writing held the story just on the surface.

I was really surprised by the lack of parental communication in the book. I do not think that realistically Sloane’s parents would sit back and do nothing as their daughter was on the run. I know I look to far into things, but sometimes I feel like family plays such a minor role in young adult novels and I think it is an area that really needs more growth.

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A Flurry of Ponderings

Dairy Queen kept popping up on my list of audiobooks from the library, so I finally decided to go on Goodreads and see what it was all about. I was really surprised when it ended up having a lot of favorable review. The cover does nothing for this book, seriously! I understand the direction they took, but I was not screaming to read it because the cover was so amazing. The audiobook was read by Natalie Moore and was 6 hours, 7 minutes long.

Likes:

The story was original, I had no idea what I was going to get into with the book, but it was a fun, easy ride that kept me listening.

The reader gave the story the Midwest accent. There was quite a few times I was smiling because it did sound like Minnesota / Wisconsin speak. There is definitely a distinct dialect in our area and this book added that right in.

The whole analogy with the cows, just going through the motions and doing what we are told was really interesting. I definitely feel like every day I am “herded” to work, to the grocery store, home, ect, and then go back to do it all over again. The theme of the book was really to stand out and I liked that.

By the time the story came to a close, I really liked the ending and the way the story wrapped up.

Gripes:

It was another one of those good book, but not one that leaves you with a million feelings, stuck in your head for weeks. So really, there are no gripes. It was a good, fun book. It was perfect for my little road trip!

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A Flurry of Ponderings