Books of May (not so late this time)

I have no idea what happened to May. I look at what I read and think to myself, is that ALL?? Then I look at how much I accomplished on my various WsIP and I ask myself, is that ALL?? I hope to get more done this coming month, including a review or two. In the meantime, here's my book list for May...

29. Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone by JK Rowling** Obviously this is a re-read for me, but it was one of the most fun re-reads I've ever done because I read it OUT LOUD to my daughter. I put that in bold because reading out loud has never been my cuppa. I don't think I have a good reading voice and doing Hagrid's accent was rather challenging. But why this was so much fun was seeing my daughter's reaction when things would happen (even though she's seen the movie) and how excited she would get knowing that certain characters were coming up. We're currently on book 2 and I hope to keep going with her, and re-read the whole series that way. Though by the time we get to book 5, I may be pulling my hair out because those later books get loooong.

30. Mila 2.0 by Debra Dizra* This one had a very teenage-ry voice and a cool premise that I think will resonate really well with the younger set. For me, I usually like my romance to be a bit more in depth and not quite so instantaneous, if you will. I guess I was kind of hoping for less on the romance side of things and more on the action side (because it is supposed to be a sci-fi story about an android and evil government scientists and all). That's not to say that there wasn't some action and some very tense scenes, but I think that I just wanted... more? In all it was entertaining, just maybe not what I expected.

31. The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey** I'd heard so many good things about this book, including that it could be the next Hunger Games. I'm not sure if I'd go that far, although I wasn't as crazy about the first Hunger Games book as I was by the others, so you never know. At any rate this was still a 5 star read for me. I loved the characters and I thought the premise was outstanding. I also really appreciated that for an apocalyptic book, the author didn't go into many of the cliche things that happen during an apocalypse (people stockpiling, jumping off buildings, religious fanatics, etc). There were a few parts that seemed a bit too convenient, but I overlooked them because of the other things that stood out for me--Cassie's voice, the prose, etc. I highly recommend this one and look forward to the next.

32. Blood Promise by Richelle Mead* I was just so-so with this 4th installment of Vampire Academy. I actually enjoyed the first half of it, but when she gets to the point where Dimtrius is trying to lure Rose into changing into a Strigoi, I sort of lost interest. I think part of it was that there was too much telling of how Rose was feeling and not enough showing. The idea of Rose being an addict just didn't worked very well for me, though that's not to say that I don't appreciate her trying to show Rose making more mistakes. It just didn't work, again because I think there was too much telling and I wasn't feeling the emotions of what an addict is truly like. Also, I'm getting the impression that this series is stealing a lot from Buffy at this point, and I feel like I know too well where this is going. I do have the 5th book and decided to start it already because I do want to finish up the series. If I wait as long as I did with this one I'm unlikely to ever get back to it. 

Books of April (again a bit late)

But better late than never right? I have so many books on my TBR list now that I cry a little every time I see how much I actually read as opposed to how much I want to read. Why do we have 5 day work weeks instead of 4? Why can't we all retire at age 35? Mysteries of the universe, right? Or maybe the musings of a wanna be lottery winner (hey, I'm not nearly as bad as my husband). I did manage to read a bit more this month, but not nearly as much as I wanted. And I tried once again to expand into the middle grade and lower middle grade areas. Take what you will from this list...

 The Amazing Days of Abby Hayes #1 ** LMG This was a super cute book for girls age 7-8, told in alternating journal form and with a 3rd person narrator. I loved Abby's personality. She's a determined girl who doesn't realize just how special she is. And she's a writer! I've told my daughter she needs to read this one. 

22. Just One Day by Gayle Forman** I heard a lot of friends comment that this book just didn't do it for them, but I really loved it. It reminded me a lot of Wanderlove by Kirstin Hubbard, with the main character finding independence and confidence by going out and exploring the world. I did think the ending had an unexpected turn that wasn't particularly satisfying. Though I do love Gayle Forman's writing, and I found myself reminiscing about my college days and wishing I could experience some of that again. Looking forward to the sequel.

23. A Corner of White by Jaclyn Moriarty** Intriguing! Unusual! Though just a bit all over the place. I found A Corner of White difficult to traverse in places because I kept asking myself, now why is this important? And isn't this a YA book, why am I being given such an in depth look at what's going on in the sheriff's office? And what's with this newspaper-style column written by the princesses? It does all come together in the end, and I felt satisfied overall. It's a unique premise, and I really enjoyed the creativity that went into describing the colors. I guess it would lean more toward 4.5 stars for me though because I felt a bit lost at times and all of the non-YA stuff didn't keep me engaged in the story. I will most likely read the sequel. Got to say that I do love that cover though!

24. Splintered by AG Howard** A very cool take on Alice In Wonderland that really shows it's YA flavor, unlike Frank Beddor's The Looking Glass Wars (where you really have to search for it). The author did a particularly good job making me like the bad guy because there was just the right amount of good in him. If you like Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, you'll probably fall in love with Morpheus (even though  he's a fairy, not a vamp. Or maybe he's a caterpillar. Hmm....)

25. Quintana of Charyn  by Melina Marchetta** OMG DIES!!!!!! Review is here. READ IT!!!

26. The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan* Rick Riordan's books are beginning to be one of those where you feel like you want to read the next one by the time you get to the end, but then once you start the next one you feel like you've been fooled into reading something you've read before. I still love The Lightning Thief, and I find myself wishing that I would have thought of the idea of teenage demi-gods, but... I'm getting tired of them. I guess I'll wait to see if my son wants the next one in the series, or... well, dang it Percy and Annabeth are stuck in the underworld so maybe I will have to find out what happens to next. *sigh* See what I mean?

27. Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta** After finishing Quintana, I had to go back and re-acquaint myself with the first book. I marched through it in two days and plan to read Froi again too. I just love this series so much. The characters and humor give me that optimistic, "feel good" feeling, despite the darker moments that drive the story forward. I want everyone to read this series. Won't you, please?

28. The Eleventh Plague by Jeff Hirsch* My 5th grader bought this last year at the book fair and since he hadn't read it yet, I decided to pick it up (because you know how I hate to feel like my money has been wasted). I did enjoy the story, but the first half was a bit hard for me. I could understand the main character's motivations, but relating to him was difficult. If I hadn't know that this was a MG read and therefore that the character would have to undergo some major change, I probably would have put the book down. I did end up really loving the second half of the book. I even shed a few sprinkles of tears. Not sure how the author managed to do that in just 250 pages, but he did and so I give him a kudos for that.

Review - Quintana of Charyn

Separated from the girl he loves and has sworn to protect, Froi must travel through Charyn to search for Quintana, the mother of Charyn's unborn king, and protect her against those who will do anything to gain power. But what happens when loyalty to family and country conflict? When the forces marshalled in Charyn's war gather and threaten to involve the whole of the land, including Lumatere, only Froi can set things right, with the help of those he loves.

Since finishing Quintana 4 days ago, I've been trying to think of a way to explain why this book resonates with me so well. Little did I know that Marchetta explains it herself in the back of the first book in the series, Finnikin of the Rock. She writes:

"I was told often that I couldn't write fantasy unless I had read all the greats and knew the conventions well, but I think the first step to writing good fantasy is knowing this world we live in well. I wanted to look closely at that world-- where loss of faith, loss of homeland and identity, displacement of spirit, and breakdown of community are common-- because these are the scenes in today's media that affect me the most."

Her words are spot on. The story told in the Lumatere chronicles feels so familiar and real because to a certain extent it is real. We only need to turn on the news to see it. But this story also has something which I think gets lost in real life. Hope. And heroism. Combining those two elements -- a real world reflection and heroic "feel good" fantasy elements-- are what make this series stand out for me.

Plotwise: With the second book in the series, it seemed as though some of the subplots were getting in the way of the main story. Not the case here. In the third book, Quintana, queen of Charyn, is in hiding and pregnant with Charyn's prophesized "little prince". Bestiano, the man after the crown, will execute her if he finds her. Meanwhile, Froi is also desperate to find Quintana. Worried for her safety, he's trying to find an army who will fight for her and bring her back to her homeland, knowing that even if he succeeds, he'll never be allowed to raise his son himself. Marchetta moves back and forth between Quintana's story and Froi's story with ease. But in addition, several subplots weave amongst these two points of view. Queen Isaboe can't let go of her hatred for the Charyn empire, and Lucien is embroiled in a complex love story as well. Somehow Marchetta manages to tie both subplots into the main plot so that by the end everything comes together. Seen as a whole, I'd say there wasn't much to the story that was unexpected. It followed a well laid and satisfying path. Individual scenes however were unique. There were definite moments when the reader is thinking, how is Froi (or insert name) going to get out of this one? The expectation is always there that he/she will, but seeing how they do it was always exciting.

Characters: By the third book we're well acquainted with most of them, but I think one of Marchetta's talents is that she lets us see "new" sides to these characters that we don't expect, like in the case of Queen Isaboe. It's hard to see Isaboe treating Quintana so unsympathetically -- we love both our heroines! But Marchetta makes a great effort to help us understand why, and then even more spectacularly, she lets Isaboe's character grow in such a way that she becomes a hero all over again (as said above, it was expected, but how it was done was truly masterful). Other characters are explored with more depth as well. With Froi, we see more of his tender side. With Finnikin, we see more of his insecurity. With Lucien, we see his stubbornness but also his willingness to admit he made a mistake. With all of them, we see a passion for life and love and kinship that endears them to us. Fifty pages into the book, I sat back and just thought, wow, to have such passion for the world, for country, for my kinsmen, for family, what would that be like? Not that I'm a cold and unfeeling person, but in modern society with friendships that come and go, a busy work life that doesn't leave much time for family, and moving around to other countries with relative ease, it's easy to feel disconnected. Marchetta's characters reminded me of how things ought to be, and how I want them to be.

Dialogue: I can't convey enough how the dialogue and humor in this story affected me. Reading along, I smiled to myself. I grinned. I even laughed out loud from time to time. My romantic bone was tickled and I sighed with contentment. So, so many good lines are present in this book, one only needs to open to any of the five hundred pages to find one. In many respects it reminded me of the movie Robin Hood in the way that the story combined high adventure with slapstick humor (in a medieval sort way of course). This series NEEDS to be made into a movie. 


Overall verdict: 10 out of 5 stars.  Even when I love a series, it is rare that I will finish the last book and eagerly grab for the first one again so that I can read it all over. With Quintana, I did. I actually finished Finnikin of the Rock two days ago and plan to move back through Froi in another week. And then, I think I'll do one more read of Quintana. There are a lot of characters in this series, and I admit that I lost track of who all of them were. A thorough read-through of the whole series is warranted. Then, maybe I'll have gotten enough. Maybe I'll be satisfied until some Hollywood movie producer gets off his butt and starts casting. Or... maybe I won't.

Final note: Special thanks to Erika Denn and Candlewick Press for providing me with an Advanced Reader Copy of this book!! :)

Review - No Ordinary Hero

The world is set to explode in three months.

The source: a lonely girl with an extreme superpower fueled by the negative emotions inside her.

The solution: send fourteen year old superhero-in-training Kale Zenith to be her friend and give her a reason to smile.

The problem? The girl trusts no one.

With the fate of the world in Kale’s hands, quitting is not an option. Perseverance is key to knocking down the many walls around her, and soon he gets to know Lindsay as more than just the girl who will destroy the planet.

But there’s trouble back home. A secret plot is brewing inside his superhero League, and it’s up to Kale to expose the traitor. But that takes time away from Lindsay when she needs him most. Can he save her and the world before it’s too late?

If you're a fan of superheroes like the X-men, Spider, Iron Men (and judging by how huge these types of shows are in the box office then I think many of you probably are) then you'll love No Ordinary Hero, particularly because Kale is no ordinary hero. What the summary fails to mention (and what we discover in the first few chapters) is that Kale really doesn't have super powers like his father and friends, and that's exactly why they need him to save the world. Neat twist, huh? The emotions that such a kid would encounter in this situation are spot on. Kale wants so badly to succeed, to show everyone that he can save them. At the same time, he's just a kid. An ORDINARY kid. No pressure there, right? He's scared and he makes some mistakes, but he learns from them and his character grows. I loved Kale, and I enjoyed all of the supporting characters too. Some of them have powers that we've seen before in DC comics, but Stone manages to give these characters unique personalities -- teen personalities -- so that they come alive and we find ourselves wishing we had friends like that.

I did think the plot went a little astray with the troubles that were brewing in the background. It seemed like they became the main focus of the book, and the story would have been a bit tighter if Stone had kept the problem with Lindsey in the forefront. At the same time, I think the subplot kept my attention and made me want to keep reading. It's just that I was often thinking to myself, but what about Lindsey? When do we get back to her (and some cute kissy scenes). :) That said, it all came together in the end, and  I really loved the last few chapters, in particular a scene with the main character's mom.

Overall, this was a fun read that I think would appeal particularly to boys (age 9 and up), though it's also fun for adults. Can't wait for the sequel!

Books of March (a little late)

OYYYYY!!!!! So I think this is my shortest list ever. Just two books. I would love to be able to say that I got a lot of writing done this month, but I can't really say that either! What's going on, you ask? Well, I've been doing a lot of therapy for the soul, writing down my thoughts and trying to deconstruct them (cognitive behavior therapy, in case you're wondering) and then I'm exercising more, and making lists to organize my life better. It's all rather time consuming, as you can see because I'm writing this six days late! Oh, and I did do a couple of amazing beta reads for friends this month, so there's that. I'm hoping to get back on the ball with my reading and writing soon, and start posting more. In the meantime, here's my list for this month.

1. We Were Here by Matt de la Pena**  This is an amazing book, and I'm surprised that I hadn't heard of this author until a friend pointed him out. His writing is very raw and very real. Most of characters are Latino. I cried in the middle. I cried in the end. I snickered sometimes and felt the most awful flush of embarrassment for the main character. Oh, and then there's Lenny. I mean, Rondell. I mean Lenny. You remember Lenny, right? The character from John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men? Matt de la Pena's version of this character is Rondell, a huge black kid with a baby afro who becomes the main character's best friend. Sometimes you really wonder if the guy should be locked up. Yet, you don't want him to be because that would just be...sad. Five stars for this one, I particularly recommend it if you're looking for contemporary books with minority characters.

2. The Kill Order by James Dashner. This is the prequel to the Maze Runner series, which I really loved. This one was... meh?? It explains all about the sun flares and why the virus was released in the first place, which I think was probably already mentioned in book 3, only this one goes into more detail. The characters we've come to know in the other books are barely in this one, and the terrifying techno-monsters that really made book 1 and 2 come alive aren't there at all. Basically, it's an apocalyptic thriller about how a virus takes over the world, with the type of crazy stuff that you would expect to see in such a story. They encounter people, there's fighting, they barely escape, they encounter more people, wash, rinse repeat until the end. I can't really give this one a recommendation because it was so stinking cliche. You're better off stopping at book 3.