Tag Archives: 2014 books

ARC Book Review: Witchfall

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Witchfall CoverBook: Witchfall by Victoria Lamb

Expected publication is March 25, 2014 by Harlequin Teen|Expected Number Of Pages: 328

Where I Got It: From netgalley.com, which hasn’t influenced my review in any way.  Promise!

Series: The Tudor Witch Trilogy #2

Genre: YA Historical Fiction With A Bit Of Fantasy

You can find Witchfall on goodreads & Victoria Lamb on Twitter and her website

Goodreads Summary: 

Her darkest dreams are coming true…

In Tudor England, 1555, Meg Lytton has learned how powerful her magick gift can be. But danger surrounds her and her mistress, the outcast Princess Elizabeth. Nowhere is safe in the court of Elizabeth’s fanatical sister, Queen Mary. And as the Spanish Inquisition’s merciless priests slowly tighten their grip on the court, Meg’s very dreams are disturbed by the ever-vengeful witchfinder Marcus Dent.

Even as Meg tries to use her powers to find guidance, something evil arises, impervious to Meg’s spells and hungry to control England’s fate. As Meg desperately tries to keep her secret betrothed, the Spanish priest Alejandro de Castillo, out of harm’s way, caution wars with their forbidden desire. And with her most powerful enemy poised to strike, Meg’s only chance is a heartbreaking sacrifice.

What I Thought:

I’m really enjoying this series!  It’s such a refreshing take on the time period, and I love reading about Meg and Alejandro. Witchfall is such a good continuation of the series, and it’s such a good middle book!

Everything I loved about Witchstruck is why I loved Witchfall.  I thought Meg’s abilities in Witchfall were even more interesting in Witchfall, especially given some of the things that happen in the book.  Like, Meg’s been having some problems with her powers because of things that happened in Witchstruck.  And I like Meg’s relationship with Alejandro and how different they are (but also how much I want things to work out for them).

There’s a lot of mystery and intrigue as Meg deals with Marcus Dent and John Dee and his apprentice, Richard.  Meg and Richard working together seems to make Alejandro uncomfortable- and I don’t blame him at all- but it did make me wonder if a love triangle is going to pop up at all, because Meg and Richard do have things in common.  It doesn’t seem headed in a love triangle sort of direction, so I think I’d be slightly surprised if it did happen…things are still very much the same between Meg and Alejandro, but I’m hoping that the events of Witchfall will change things between them.

I’m really looking forward to seeing if Meg really does marry Alejandro and how she’ll defeat Marcus Dent.  I have quite a few questions I’m hoping are answered in the last book besides the two things I just mentioned.  Like, whether Elizabeth will be queen by the end of the series and what her relationship with Meg will be like, and if Meg keeps her magic or gives it up. And if she’ll be caught using her magic, resulting in something really bad for her.

I really like how everything comes together, and Meg being a witch in service to Elizabeth, while Mary is queen, works so well for this time period, and really makes the Inquisition come alive because it’s like you’re seeing what could happen first hand.

Let’s Rate It: 

I really liked Witchfall!  I love how well the magical elements blend with the historical elements, and the magical elements work really well with what’s going on during this time.  Witchfall gets 4 stars.

Audio Book Review: Stiff: The Curious Lives Of Human Cadavers

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Stiff CoverBook: Stiff: The Curious Lives Of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach, narrated by Shelly Frasier

Published February 2004 by Tantor Audio|Run Time: 7 hours, 59 minutes

Where I Got It: audible.com

Series: None

Genre: Adult Non-Fiction- Science/Medicine

You can find Stiff on goodreads & Mary Roach on twitter and her website

Goodreads Summary: 

An oddly compelling, often hilarious exploration of the strange lives of our bodies postmortem.

For 2,000 years, cadavers—some willingly, some unwittingly—have been involved in science’s boldest strides and weirdest undertakings. They’ve tested France’s first guillotines, ridden the NASA Space Shuttle, been crucified in a Parisian laboratory to test the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin, and helped solve the mystery of TWA Flight 800. For every new surgical procedure—from heart transplants to gender reassignment surgery—cadavers have been there alongside surgeons, making history in their quiet way.

In this fascinating, ennobling account, Mary Roach visits the good deeds of cadavers over the centuries—from the anatomy labs and human-sourced pharmacies of medieval and nineteenth-century Europe to a human decay research facility in Tennessee, to a plastic surgery practice lab, to a Scandinavian funeral directors’ conference on human composting. In her droll, inimitable voice, Roach tells the engrossing story of our bodies when we are no longer with them.

What I Thought:

Stiff is definitely one of the strangest books I’ve ever read or listened to!  But in a totally good way because it was fascinating, and I couldn’t listen to it fast enough.  What’s super-interesting about Stiff is that it’s not something you normally think about.  I know you can donate your organs and body to science, but it’s not like I spend time thinking about all the people who donate themselves to science or what happens to the body itself after death.

One of the things I found really interesting was the chapter about the crash-test cadavers.  I know there are crash-test times, and I never even considered the possibility that cadavers are used.  It makes total sense that a dummy can only tell you so much, and that cadavers would be used to see how the crash simulations impact an actual human body.  And even how airplanes can be made safer by studying how it affects the human body.

There are so many interesting little tidbits throughout the book, and while it might not be a good book to read when you’re eating, it’s not a book that will make you squeamish.  I would know, since I have a tendency to get grossed out by stuff, and I didn’t find Stiff to be like that at all.

It’s actually pretty entertaining, and Roach has a way of making it humorous and interesting while also being educational. Like, there’s a best preserved body contest.  I think it’s hosted by an embalming company.  Or the research done by a university that has a field of decomposed bodies to better understand how different things affect the stages of decomposition.  Or even the plastic surgeons who were practicing some techniques on severed heads, and how it’s a good way for them to practice because there’s less pressure than during an actual surgery on an actual person.

It is astounding to me, and achingly sad, that with eighty thousand people on the waiting list for donated hearts and livers and kidneys, with sixteen a day dying there on that list, that more then half of the people in the position H’s family was in will say no, will choose to burn those organs or let them rot. We abide the surgeon’s scalpel to save our own lives, out loved ones’ lives, but not to save a stranger’s life. H has no heart, but heartless is the last thing you’d call her.

This is definitely one of the things that as stayed with me and jumped out at me when I was listening to Stiff.  I knew for sure I wanted to donate my organs before I even read Stiff…and I like that it came up naturally.  Then again, it’s not hard to with a book like this.

So, I listened to Stiff, which in itself is odd, because I don’t normally listen to non-fiction.  Still, it’s fun enough to listen to, and if I did listen to more non-fiction on audio, I think I’d go with something like Stiff.  The narrator was okay- not completely amazing, but she wasn’t completely horrible either.

Let’s Rate It:

Stiff is definitely one of the more interesting books I’ve listened to in quite a while.  It’s an odd topic, for sure, but Roach made it really fun to listen to, and I feel like I’ve learned a lot about something I don’t normally think about.  Stiff gets 4 stars.

Book Review: Witchstruck

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Witchstruck CoverBook: Witchstruck by Victoria Lamb

Published September 2013 by HarlequinTeen|237 pages

Where I Got It: Nook Store

Series: The Tudor Witch Trilogy #1

Genre: YA Paranormal/Fantasy/Historical Fiction

You can find Witchstruck on goodreads & Victoria Lamb on Twitter and her website

Goodreads Summary:

If she sink, she be no witch and shall be drowned.

If she float, she be a witch and must be hanged.

Meg Lytton has always known she is different–that she bears a dark and powerful gift. But in 1554 England, in service at Woodstock Palace to the banished Tudor princess Elizabeth, it has never been more dangerous to practise witchcraft. Meg knows she must guard her secret carefully from the many suspicious eyes watching over the princess and her companions. One wrong move could mean her life, and the life of Elizabeth, rightful heir to the English throne.

With witchfinder Marcus Dent determined to have Meg’s hand in marriage, and Meg’s own family conspiring against the English queen, there isn’t a single person Meg can trust. Certainly not the enigmatic young Spanish priest Alejandro de Castillo, despite her undeniable feelings. But when all the world turns against her, Meg must open her heart to a dangerous choice.

The Secret Circle meets The Other Boleyn Girl in Witchstruck, the first book of the magical Tudor Witch trilogy.

What I Thought: 

If there’s something I love, it’s Tudor history, and when I saw Witchstruck, I knew I had to read it!  I love the element of witches and magic in this book, and given that Mary is still Queen…I just love that Elizabeth has a lady-in-waiting who is a witch.  I actually found it all really believable!

Lamb definitely had some elements that I wasn’t expecting- one being Meg being a witch, which worked really well with the book.  Also interesting was her love interest- a priest-in-training from Spain, so there’s an element of a very-forbidden romance.  And yet, it didn’t feel overdone and was actually believable.  Especially because his order does allow priests to get married.  Which sounds like it wouldn’t work or be believable, but I really thought it was something that worked really well.

Alejandro is a great character, and I loved that he was so willing to help Meg, even though he knew what she was capable of and even knowing of her magical abilities.  They have their differences (obviously) but I liked that there was such differences between them.

Even though Meg is a lady-in-waiting to Elizabeth I, it’s much more about Meg and her journey.  Still, Elizabeth is interesting in this book, and I liked her relationship with Meg.  I do like that Lamb doesn’t seem to take sides in Witchstruck.  The book felt pretty neutral towards both Elizabeth and Mary, and you don’t really get a lot of the conflict between them that you’d see in other historical fiction about them.  I’m not sure if it’s because they’re not in the same place for most of the book, or if there’s another reason for it, but I liked that the conflict between them was minimized.

Let’s Rate It:

I found Witchstruck to be really believable, even with the paranormal/magical elements of the book.  They really did work well with the book and everything going on during this time period.  I love all of the historical details in the book, and I really feel like Lamb knows her stuff in regards to the history.  Witchstruck gets 4 stars.

Book Review: Awry

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Awry CoverBook: Awry by Chelsea Fine

Published June 2012 by Firefall Publishing|236 pages

Where I Got It: Nook store

Series: Archers Of Avalon #2

Genre: YA Paranormal/Fantasy

You can find Awry on goodreads & Chelsea Fine on Twitter, Facebook, and her website

Goodreads Summary: 

Three curses. Two brothers. One love triangle.

Sometimes love is meant to be. But sometimes…love is the death of you.

Seventeen-year-old Scarlet has just died. Only, dying isn’t unusual for a girl under a centuries old curse that left her semi-immortal. 

This time, though, she comes back to her current life instead of awaking in a new one, and she realizes her curse is changing. With the help of the immortal Archer brothers, Scarlet tries to piece together her life and break the curse before her impending death comes again.

What I Thought:

So, back when I read Anew, the first book in the series, I thought that the curse was really different and unique, and in Awry, we learn more about the curse and how Scarlet meet Gabriel and Tristan.  I really liked seeing how she met them and how Raven, the girl who cast the curse fits into the picture.

Oh, and remember when I said that there is more to Scarlet’s guardian than what we saw in Anew?  We definitely learn more about her guardian in Anew.  And not good things (naturally).  Still, I feel like her part in things is not over, and that we’ll get the last bits and pieces of her story in the last book.

I really liked the flashbacks and how they were incorporated.  It really added to the romance and the curse, and it really made the curse have more of an impact because you know the history behind everything.  There’s so much there, and all of the details and history seem so real, and well thought out, and not there just to be there.  Plus, the flashbacks really made the relationships between everyone easier to understand because you know where everyone is coming from.

I really like how everything is coming together, and how they’re still trying to figure out everything…but also how they’re getting closer to finding the Fountain Of Youth.  There are still some missing pieces, of course, but I have this strong feeling that Fine will wrap everything up really well.

Let’s Rate It:

I really liked Awry and how it built on the world that Fine created in Anew.  I’m definitely looking forward to seeing how everything comes together.  Awry gets 4 stars.

Mini Book Review: Shadowspell

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Shadowspell CoverBook: Shadowspell by Jenna Black

Published January 2011 by St. Martin’s Press|224 pages

Where I Got It: Nook store

Series: Fairiewalker #2

Genre: YA Paranormal- Fairies

You can find Shadowspell on goodreads & Jenna Black on twitter & her website

Goodreads Summary: 

On top of spending most of her time in a bunker-like safe house and having her dates hijacked by a formidable Fae bodyguard, Faeriewalker Dana Hathaway is in for some more bad news: the Erlking and his pack of murderous minions known as the Wild Hunt have descended upon Avalon. With his homicidal appetite and immortal powers, the Erlking have long been the nightmare of the Fae realm. 

A fragile treaty with the Faerie Queen, sealed with a mysterious spell, is the one thing that keeps him from hunting unchecked in Avalon, the only place on Earth where humans and Fae live together. Which means Dana’s in trouble, since it’s common knowledge that the Faerie Queen wants her – and her rare Faeriewalker powers – dead. The smoldering, sexy Erlking’s got his sights set on Dana, but does he only seek to kill her, or does he have something much darker in mind?

What I Thought:

I was pleasantly surprised with Shadowspell, but I definitely liked it a lot more than Glimmerglass.  I thought that the addition of the Erlking was interesting and his backstory was also interesting, but it also fits with the story really well. I’m really curious to see what role the Erlking will play in the next book and how a certain deal he and Dana made will play out. Still, I find that deal particularly interesting because of an ability of his and how it’ll work because of Dana being a Fairiewalker.

I’m not sure how I feel about Dana in this book.  I think I’m feeling pretty neutral about her, and I feel pretty neutral about a lot of the other characters.  I get why Dana has a lot of issues but the only character who is really standing out right now is the Erlking.  I think his interest in her to be really interesting.

I really like the world that Black has created.  There’s so much going on in this world and there’s so much there!  It’s definitely a good second book and it really adds to the series.  Dana learns more about her abilities as a Fairiewalker, and she’s clearly not just any Fairiewalker.  That, combined with everything else going on, makes me feel like there’s a lot more going on than what we’re seeing.

Let’s Rate It:

I really liked Shadowspell and I can’t wait to read the next book!  To be honest, I’m not completely sure why I liked this one so much, but it was a really enjoyable read.  Shadowspell gets 4 stars.

Books I Couldn’t Finish: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

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The Book Thief CoverEarlier this month, I decided it was time to read The Book Thief.  I’ve seen so many good reviews about The Book Thief, and I’ve seen it pop up on so many Top Ten Tuesdays that I finally starting reading it…only to not be able to get through it.  It’s rare for me to not finish a book, and even rarer for me to talk about the books I don’t finish.  But The Book Thief is such a big book in YA that I felt like I really needed to talk about why I had to not finish it.

I think I’d like to start off by saying that I got to page 155 in the Nook edition of the book.  I know numbering can be a little weird depending on what edition you’re reading, but the best I can tell, I got about a third of the way through.

I think the biggest problem for me is that I went in with such high expectations of The Book Thief that it was likely not going to live up to.  It definitely suffered from me really hyping it up.  I’ve seen so many raves that I wanted to love it.  And, of course, be able to finish it.

Here’s what it really comes down to.  The Book Thief is just not the book for me.  It definitely seems like it would be something I would like.  In fact, let’s start off with what The Book Thief is about, since that is one of the reasons why I didn’t finish it.

It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.

By her brother’s graveside, Liesel Meminger’s life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Grave Digger’s Handbook, left there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery. So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordion-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor’s wife’s library, wherever there are books to be found.

But these are dangerous times. When Liesel’s foster family hides a Jew in their basement, Liesel’s world is both opened up and closed down.”

So, I honestly thought that books would have a much bigger role than they really did.  Granted, I really didn’t look at the summary before I started reading.  And all I knew was that it was set during World War Two.  Keeping in mind I got through a third of the book before giving up, I really felt like books were much more important in the summary than they were in the part I read.  I have no problem admitting that I put it down, and that book thievery played a bigger role later on in the book.  But I really didn’t get a sense of a love affair with books.

Another thing that didn’t work for me was Death, who narrated the book.  It’s definitely different and unique, but not a different and unique that worked for me.  It felt like I was passively observing what was going on, instead of actively participating.  And because I felt like I was casually observing, I felt very disconnected from what was going on…and something about it seemed a little clinical to me.

Death as a narrator wasn’t completely horrible, but I felt like he went off on some random tangents that had nothing to do with the story, and the random bolded headlines and lists throughout the novel broke up the flow of the novel for me.  It was something I found really distracting.

When I was deciding whether or not I should DNF The Book Thief, I considered whether it was a book that I wasn’t reading at the right time.  Because sometimes, when I’m reading a book, I’m totally reading it at the wrong time, and need to read it when I’m in the right frame of mind for it.  And The Book Thief was not one of those books.  I usually know when that happens- I don’t know how, but I just do.

And I also considered whether I was reading in the right format: sometimes, print books or e-books don’t work for me, but I’ll totally listen to something on audio book.  However, The Book Thief was also not one of those books.

What I came to realize was that I was dreading having to read it and didn’t want to pick it up.  I was also forcing myself to read something I wasn’t into because seemingly everyone under the sun seems to love this book.  That was really when I knew I had to not finish it.  Yes, everyone seems to love it, and that’s okay, because I don’t have to love something just because everyone else does, you know?

I will say that there are a couple things I appreciate about The Book Thief.

I really like that it’s actually SET IN GERMANY.  I don’t read much historical fiction set during World War 2, but I feel like something set in Germany, about a German girl is rare.  Then again, I’m not too familiar with that part of historical fiction so I could be wrong.  I like that it focuses on what life was like in Germany during that time.

Overall, I did like the idea of Death narrating the novel- and especially narrating something during World War 2.  While I didn’t like it in this case, it’s an interesting way to narrate the novel.

While it didn’t resonate with me at all, I’d definitely recommend it if you haven’t read it yet.

Book Review: Providence

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Providence CoverBook: Providence by Lisa Colozza Cocca

Expected Publication is March 18, 2014 by Merit Press|Expected Number Of Pages: 256

Where I Got It: I got an e-ARC from netgalley.com, which hasn’t influenced my review in any way.  Promise!

Series: None

Genre: YA Contemporary

You can find Providence on goodreads & you can find Lisa Colozza Cocca on Twitter, Facebook and her website

Goodreads Summary: 

The eldest of ten children on a dirt-poor farm, Becky trudges through life as a full-time babysitter, trying to avoid her father’s periodic violent rages. When the family’s barn burns down, her father lays the blame on Becky, and her own mother tells her to run for it. Run she does, hopping into an empty freight car. There, in a duffel bag, Becky finds an abandoned baby girl, only hours old. After years of tending to her siblings, sixteen-year-old Becky knows just what a baby needs. This baby needs a mother. With no mother around, Becky decides, at least temporarily, this baby needs her. When Becky hops off the train in a small Georgia town, it’s with baby “Georgia” in her arms. When she meets Rosie, an eccentric thrift-shop owner, who comes to value and love Becky as no one ever has, Becky rashly claims the baby as her own. Not everyone in town is as welcoming as Rosie, though. Many suspect Becky and her baby are not what they seem. Among the doubters is a beautiful, reclusive woman with her own terrible loss and a long history with Rosie. As Becky’s life becomes entangled with the lives of the people in town, including a handsome boy who suspects Becky is hiding something from her past, she finds her secrets more difficult to keep. Becky should grab the baby and run, but her newfound home and job with Rosie have given Becky the family she’s never known. Despite her guilt over leaving her mother alone, she is happy for the first time. But it’s a happiness not meant to last. When the truth comes out, Becky has the biggest decision of her life to make. Should she run away again? Should she stay–and fight? Or lie? What does the future hold for Becky and Georgia? With a greatness of heart and a stubborn insistence on hope found in few novels of any genre, “Providence” proves that home is where you find it, love is an active verb, and family is more than just a word.

What I Thought:

When I first started to read Providence, I wasn’t sure about it- initially, it seemed like something I wouldn’t like.  But as I kept reading,I started to get drawn into Becky’s world.

I felt for Becky, who had to grow up fast.  And finding a newborn on a train, and taking her in, and finding a place that becomes her home…Becky had to grow up even more.  I’m glad Georgia had people who cared for her, and I’m glad Becky found the same.  Something that didn’t set well with me was how Becky’s parents didn’t seem to care that she was gone and that we don’t see them fighting to get Becky back.  Still, it fit with why she left and never went back.  There is a part of me that wanted to see more of Becky’s life with her parents and life at home because I wanted more to see how much her new life contrasted with her old one.

I loved Rosie and how kind she was.  She really did give Becky and Georgia a home and they felt very much like a family. I’m not sure how I feel about Lily, especially with how the book ended.  On the one hand, I’m glad Becky and Georgia did find someone who cared about them and would take them in…but at the same time, I loved how Becky did what she needed to do in order to take care of Georgia.  Becky really did change a lot over the course of the book, and she has a really bright future ahead of her.  Still, it did seem like it was the best decision for everyone.

I will say that I kept picturing the book taking place in the 1950’s.  There’s something very old-timey about the town, and it was hard to imagine it taking place in present time.  Then again, I’ve never lived in a small town like the one Becky came across, so for all I know, small towns have that good-ole-day kind of feel.

Let’s Rate It:

I have a few issues with Providence, but overall, I really liked it!  I liked seeing Becky deal with and overcome some of the things she had happen.  And I like how welcoming people were to Becky.  Providence gets 4 stars.

Book Review: We’ll Always Have Summer

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We'll Always Have Summer CoverBook: We’ll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han

Published April 2011 by Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers|304 pages

Where I Got It: the Nook store

Series: Summer #3

Genre: YA Contemporary

You can find We’ll Always Have Summer on goodreads & Jenny Han on Twitter, Facebook and her website

Goodreads Summary: 

It’s been two years since Conrad told Belly to go with Jeremiah. She and Jeremiah have been inseparable ever since, even attending the same college– only, their relationship hasn’t exactly been the happily ever after Belly had hoped it would be. And when Jeremiah makes the worst mistake a boy can make, Belly is forced to question what she thought was true love. Does she really have a future with Jeremiah? Has she ever gotten over Conrad? It’s time for Belly to decide, once and for all, who has her heart forever.

What I Thought:

This series has such a special place in my heart now!  I just LOVED We’ll Always Have Summer!

I’ll admit, it’s slightly weird to see Belly in a place that’s not Cousin’s.  Cousin’s really is a special place, and so much has happened there.  But I also liked seeing Belly at college and how she’s really growing up, and how she’s not the same girl as she was when she was 16.  She had such a hard decision to make in We’ll Always Have Summer, but I think anyone who has read the series will be able to figure out who she chooses in the end.

Which is also interesting, because I’ve gone back and forth on who I wanted Belly to be with.  But as much as I liked her with Jeremiah at one point, this book really showed that he and Belly aren’t meant to be, no matter how much he cares about her.  There were things he did that made it feel like he was more in love with the idea of being with Belly than he actually loved her.  I’m sure he did love her, but he just seemed like a completely different Jeremiah in this book.

I just love the relationships we see in this book- the one between Belly and her brother, the one between Belly and her mom, Belly and Conrad…and there is even that part of me that liked Jeremiah and Belly, because I think it took being with Jeremiah and spending time at Cousin’s with Conrad for both Belly and Jeremiah to realize that it wasn’t going to work out.

We’ll Always Have Summer made me want Susannah back SO MUCH!  I couldn’t help but wonder what Susannah would think, and how different things would be if Susannah were still alive.  I love that she left a letter for Belly to read on her wedding day!  Speaking of Susannah…it really does seem like everyone’s made peace with her death.

I also like that we see happened two years after the events of the book, and that we get the resolution we’ve really been waiting for- assuming you wanted things to go that way, of course.  And I’m glad my copy of We’ll Always Have Summer included Conrad’s letters to Belly- I loved reading them!

Let’s Rate It:

I loved We’ll Always Have Summer, and this series makes me feel so nostalgic and wistful.  I’m glad things worked out the way they did, and Cousin’s is such a special place.  We’ll Always Have Summer gets 5 stars.

Book Review: The Impossible Knife Of Memory

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The Impossible Knife Of Memory CoverBook: The Impossible Knife Of Memory by Laurie Halse Anderson

Published January 2014 by Penguin Group|400 pages

Where I Got It: Nook store

Series: None

Genre: YA Contemporary

You can find The Impossible Knife Of Memory on goodreads & Laurie Halse Anderson on Twitter, Facebook and her website

Goodreads Summary: 

For the past five years, Hayley Kincaid and her father, Andy, have been on the road, never staying long in one place as he struggles to escape the demons that have tortured him since his return from Iraq. Now they are back in the town where he grew up so Hayley can attend school. Perhaps, for the first time, Hayley can have a normal life, put aside her own painful memories, even have a relationship with Finn, the hot guy who obviously likes her but is hiding secrets of his own.

Will being back home help Andy’s PTSD, or will his terrible memories drag him to the edge of hell, and drugs push him over? The Impossible Knife of Memory is Laurie Halse Anderson at her finest: compelling, surprising, and impossible to put down.

What I Thought:

When I saw that Laurie Halse Anderson had a new book, I knew I had to read it!  It’s right up there with Speak as one of my favorite Laurie Halse Anderson books, and I couldn’t help but relate to Hayley.

Hayley has so much going on at home with her dad, and she definitely has a lot of her own issues to deal with, not to mean everything her dad is going through.  Hayley’s dad isn’t the only going through things.

What really stuck with me was how we’d see a chapter from Andy’s POV every once in a while.  It struck me as something really different because you don’t normally see anything from the POV of the parent, and it really added to what was going on with both Andy and Hayley.

I felt like Anderson handled Andy’s PTSD and his experiences as a soldier so well and with so much care.  I’m glad Hayley has good friends in Grace and Finn and that she realized she can count on Trish, even with Trish leaving them years earlier. It’s such a great look at PTSD and how everyone deals with it and that it’s not limited to the person with PTSD but their friends and family as well.

My only complaint- which is a minor one- is that the ending wrapped up a little too nicely, especially with everything that happened in the book.  I did expect a happy-ish/hopeful ending, which we definitely got, but…something about it was a little too nice and neat.  Still, I so very much loved everything about this book, and I’m willing to overlook the ending because Laurie Halse Anderson has done such a good job at making both Hayley and her dad easy to relate to and understand.

Let’s Rate It:

The Impossible Knife Of Memory is another amazing book by Laurie Halse Anderson.  She does such a great job at creating characters who seem like real people and are so easy to relate to, even if you’ve never been through what they’re going through.  I love the few chapters from Andy’s point of view, and it really adds to Hayley’s story.  The Impossible Knife Of Memory gets 5 stars.

Book Review: Ignite Me

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Ignite Me CoverBook: Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi

Published February 2014 by HarperCollins|416 pages

Where I Got It: the Nook store

Series: Shatter Me #3

Genre: YA Paranormal Dystopic

You can find Ignite Me on goodreads & Tahereh Mafi on Twitter, Facebook and her website

Goodreads Summary: 

Juliette now knows she may be the only one who can stop the Reestablishment. But to take them down, she’ll need the help of the one person she never thought she could trust: Warner. And as they work together, Juliette will discover that everything she thought she knew – about Warner, her abilities, and even Adam – was wrong.

What I Thought:

I can’t believe it’s all over!  But it’s such a good ending for all of the characters, and I can’t imagine it ending any other way. I really can’t.  

Ignite Me starts where Unravel Me left off, and only a chapter in, we got a moment that had me going “oh my god, what just happened, did Warner really say that, oh my god, how could that possibly happen?”  And I knew at that moment that I needed to not read this book during lunch, because I manage to not yell at my Nook, even though I really wanted to.  And of course, everything turned out okay in regards to that particular revelation.  

I just love Juliette and how much she’s changed and grown as a person since we saw her in Shatter Me.  She’s come to accept her abilities and what she has to do in order change things.  I just love her friendship with Kenji, who is still such a great character.  I’m still not sure how I feel about Adam or Warner, but I will say that Warner has grown on me, and Adam was slightly irritating.  After reading Ignite Me, though, I’m pretty sold on Warner and Juliette.  They really are good for each and bring out the best in each other.  Still, I’m wondering if my neutrality towards Warner and Adam is because I haven’t read the novellas yet.  

The ending!  It fit, but I think part of me was expecting something different.  I like that the book ends with a feeling of hope and that things are going to be different, but at the same time, part of me wanted a glimpse of what things were like after the big battle happened.  

I do miss the strike throughs we saw in the other books, but there is still the repetition of certain words and the interesting placement of some of the text that we saw in Shatter Me and Unravel Me.  I still love that we see Juliette’s thoughts so well, and I still felt like we were experiencing what she was experiencing.  

Let’s Rate It:

Ignite Me is such a good ending to a series that I’ve come to love!  I’m sad to see it come to an end, but I love how much Juliette changed over the course of the series.  Ignite Me gets 5 stars.