Tag Archives: reviews

Book Review: This Is Not A Test

Posted in Audiobooks, Books by

This Is Not A Test CoverBook: This Is Not A Test by Courtney Summers, narrated by Stephanie Cannon

Published December 2012 by AudioGO Ltd|Run Time: 6 hours, 58 minutes

Where I Got: Audible!

Series: None

Genre: YA Post-Apocalyptic/Zombies

Goodreads|You Can Follow Courtney Summers On Twitter or Facebook

Goodreads Summary: It’s the end of the world. Six students have taken cover in Cortege High but shelter is little comfort when the dead outside won’t stop pounding on the doors. One bite is all it takes to kill a person and bring them back as a monstrous version of their former self.

To Sloane Price, that doesn’t sound so bad. Six months ago, her world collapsed and since then, she’s failed to find a reason to keep going. Now seems like the perfect time to give up. As Sloane eagerly waits for the barricades to fall, she’s forced to witness the apocalypse through the eyes of five people who actually want to live.

But as the days crawl by, the motivations for survival change in startling ways and soon the group’s fate is determined less and less by what’s happening outside and more and more by the unpredictable and violent bids for life—and death—inside. 

When everything is gone, what do you hold on to?

This Is Not A Test is one of the more interesting post-apocalyptic books I’ve read. There is some pretty typical zombie apocalypse stuff, but there are also a few elements that I wasn’t expecting.

For one thing, there are 6 students who are holed up in their high school.  Not a lot of time has passed since their arrival at the school and when things started happening, so they’re good on supplies for a while.  They have water and shelter, and they’re actually pretty safe at the school.  There’s no need for them to leave the relative safety of the school, so they’re not going out on supply runs or anything like that. They’re waiting to be rescued, and eventually decide to go to the closest safe zone. The only thing they can do is run, and they use whatever they can as weapons.  Their only gun is a last resort.  They don’t always get along, and there are major trust issues. Also, they spend a lot of time just wandering around the school or hanging out.  As weird as the hanging out seems, there really isn’t a lot for them to do once they were set up with things.

But all of that is why it’s so interesting.  They’re just a bunch of teens trying to survive.  They’re not automatically a bunch of weapon-wielding bad-asses who want to kick some zombie butt.  The events of the book take place over a relatively short period of time, and it’s hard for them.  They all have their issues: some ignore them, but it’s something they have to face while holed up in the school.  Personalities clash, and things aren’t peachy just because they’re pretty safe in their school.  They’re dealing with everything that’s happened, and what could happen.

Sloane is another reason why This Is Not A Test is so interesting.  She has no desire to stay alive or survive in a world where things have gone to hell in a handbasket.  Which is a very understandable reaction, considering everything that has happened to her. She did seem to have the teensiest bit of hope at the end, but I felt like her reaction to what was going on was pretty realistic.  I felt for her so much, but I understood completely why she had no will to live.

Zombies do make very random appearances throughout the book.  But This Is Not A Test is about more than the zombie apocalypse.  It’s about surviving and how to deal with it.  It’s more about the characters and how things can change so fast, and not about the event itself. When the zombies did make an appearance, you knew what was going on, and it was always a great reminder of what was going on. Because they don’t venture out very much, you don’t get a picture of what’s going on and if there are other survivors.

Actually, all of their zombie interactions are really unsettling.  Summers doesn’t go overboard with it, and she works them in so well that it’s creepy and a little terrifying.  you know they’re there, hovering in the background, and while it doesn’t seem like they’re a threat, they also remind you of their presence at the right times.  Summers really knew when to bring them in.

I listened to This Is Not A Test, and it felt so much more creepy and intense listening to it.  Also: Stephanie Cannon did an excellent job narrating, and I felt like she was the perfect choice for Sloane.

Final Thoughts: I didn’t love This Is Not A Test, but I really enjoyed it.  Well, as much as you can enjoy a book like this.  It’s definitely different than a lot of zombie books out there, and I liked how different it was.  This Is Not A Test gets 4 stars.

Gilmore Girls: Season 2 Wrap-Up

Posted in Season Two, Season Wrap-Up, The Gilmore Girls Project by

I finally finished Season 2!  It feels like it took forever…because it kind of did, but now it’s time for my season recap!

Numbers Time!

There are a total of 22 episodes, 2 of which got a rating of one mug of coffee, and 6 got 4 mugs of coffee.  Looking at season 2 overall, nothing really blew me away.  Or came close to blowing me away, which is probably why Season 2 got 2.81 mugs of coffee overall.

Also looking at overall ratings, this season was more on the side of meh.  It had some great moments, and some not so great moments, like anything else.  Which is interesting, because I felt like I enjoyed it even though it was more meh than I remembered/was expecting.

Relationships:

I am not a Rory/Dean fan, which I think is pretty evident.  I think Dean has a tendency to be super-jealous and sometimes I think he over-reacts to things.  But that’s just me…and if you have a different opinion, I’d actually be really interested to hear why.

Lorelei and Max only lasted a few episodes before Lorelei called off the wedding, which wasn’t a big surprise, because it seemed like there was a hint of getting married because it was expected.  I don’t doubt her feelings for Max, because it did seem like they were there.  It just felt like he was more interested in commitment than Lorelei ever was, so I’m actually glad she called it off before actually getting married and then realizing she didn’t want to be married.  Assuming that’s what was going on, because who knows if that’s what was really going on?

Also: Lorelei and Chris.  It just never seems to work out for them, in terms of timing. Although, I don’t like them as a couple, but I get that if they ever get together without something happening, they’ll be the family they should have been.

Other Stuff:

There were things that made no sense whatsoever.  Like, Lorelei’s bachelorette party. Why on earth would she have it a place where her 16-year-old daughter is old enough to attend?  Never mind the fact that Rory gets in for the sake of the episode, but considering how close they are, and that they’re best friends, you’d think Lorelei would take that into consideration.  Also, what would have happened if Rory couldn’t get in?  Would they have to go do something else, or would Rory go home?

And there’s Mia, who owns the Independence Inn.  I get that this was probably the best place to introduce her, but for someone who is so important to Lorelei, why is it that she’s never mentioned until now?

One of the biggest questions for me was why Emily and Richard never tried to bring Lorelei back home.  And why Mia never sent Lorelei home.  I can get Lorelei being resistant to not going home, so did Mia try to but decided not to push it, or did Mia just accept it, no questions asked?

The whole Jess thing: I feel like I’ve said everything I’ve wanted to say.  At least, from what we’ve seen so far.  Jess has issues, and he didn’t make a good impression on the people from Stars Hollow, and to some degree, I feel like they see what they want to see.  We do see a few moments where Jess is actually sort of nice, and I (sort of) wish people gave him a chance.

Bonus Features:

It didn’t occur to me until a few weeks ago, but I think it would be fun to watch all of the bonus features, and talk about them.  At some point, I’ll do season one, which really could pop up at any time.  There’s a compilation of the different arguments throughout the season, the film by Kirk from a few episodes ago, a few deleted scenes, and Gilmore Girls translated into other languages.  And one of the episodes had random trivia throughout the episode, which I haven’t watched yet.  The thing about Gilmore Girls being translated was really interesting, because how do you translate some of the pop culture stuff that’s specific to the U.S.?  Some of it doesn’t seem to translate well, and some stuff just doesn’t translate well to begin with, so it was interesting to see how Gilmore Girls was translated into French, Italian and German.

The most interesting deleted scene was from Sadie, Sadie, the first episode of the season.  Rory is making a pro/con list of why Lorelei should marry Max, and wants Lorelei to consider it.  It is a pretty big, serious, important decision, and Lorelei (understandably and responsibly) doesn’t want to make her decisions based off of a list of Rory’s.  What’s most interesting is that even in this scene, Lorelei doesn’t seem completely sure about getting married, and it seemed to me that her getting married because people expected her to say yes was a factor.  Or I’m reading too much into it.  So who knows?

Final Thoughts:

I already gave my overall rating for the season (2.81 mugs of coffee in case you’ve forgotten) and I think I’ve said pretty much everything I’ve wanted to say.  I do feel like I’ve gotten better at summarizing/recapping episodes and at balancing my thoughts with what happened in the episode.  Also, I feel like quite a few pop culture references went over my head.  It is fun to try to figure them out, but sometimes I feel like they are a bit too obscure.  At least for me.

I’ll be taking a break from all Gilmore Girls-related things next week, but my Season 3 recap will start on September 2.

Book Review: The Darwin Elevator

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The Darwin Elevator CoverBook: The Darwin Elevator by Jason Hough

Published July 2013 by Del Rey|Pages: 472

Where I Got It: Got the paperback at Mysterious Galaxy!

Series: Dire Earth Cycle #1

Genre: Adult Science Fiction

Goodreads|You can find Jason on goodreads and on facebook.

Goodreads Summary: In the mid-23rd century, Darwin, Australia, stands as the last human city on Earth. The world has succumbed to an alien plague, with most of the population transformed into mindless, savage creatures. The planet’s refugees flock to Darwin, where a space elevator—created by the architects of this apocalypse, the Builders—emits a plague-suppressing aura.

Skyler Luiken has a rare immunity to the plague. Backed by an international crew of fellow “immunes,” he leads missions into the dangerous wasteland beyond the aura’s edge to find the resources Darwin needs to stave off collapse. But when the Elevator starts to malfunction, Skyler is tapped—along with the brilliant scientist, Dr. Tania Sharma—to solve the mystery of the failing alien technology and save the ragged remnants of humanity.

I’ve been looking forward to The Darwin Elevator for a while, and it’s even the new release I’ve been the most excited about.  I feel like I should start off my review with the fact that I know Jason…and I promise this hasn’t influenced my review any way!

I really, really liked The Darwin Elevator!  I really am not kidding when I say that I’m not even sure where to start.

How about the space elevator itself?  More and more, I love the idea of a space elevator that has suppresses this alien plague.  Actually, I just like the idea of a space elevator.  The map of how the elevator is set up was pretty freaking cool because it made it a lot easier to picture what it actually looked liked.

Also cool: the fact that there are people who are immune.  No one can figure out why they’re immune.  And we’re not just talking about the immunity the aura provides. This group can go out in the world and not have to worry about the alien plague, and I really want to know why! They seem pretty low on the totem pole, which is kind of surprising, considering they can actually, like, go out into the world and everything. Or is that just me?  At any rate, I like the idea of some people having immunity, even though no one knows why.

Speaking of characters: anytime Kantro, Kip Osmak and Mr. Woon was mentioned…while the characters weren’t actually funny, I couldn’t help but smile and/or giggle every single time I saw them!  There’s definitely an assortment of characters, and I can’t wait to see how their stories turn out.  Actually, I really liked that you got to see some of the different characters.  Multiple perspectives don’t always work for me, but this is one case of when it does work really well.  Mostly because you get to see the overall picture, and not one piece of it.  Also: I liked that it’s a day-to-day thing but there’s always something interesting going on, so there’s none of the  same story, different day stuff going on.

I had a lot of fun reading it!  I couldn’t wait to find out what happened next, and everything made sense.  The science-fictiony parts were explained really well, and easy to understand, which is good for someone like me, who only reads YA science fiction every once in a while, which can be sort of fluffy and not super science-y.

Here’s something I want to know: I want to know what’s going on with the Builders!  I like that you know they’re out there, and that they have some sort of plan, and it’s such a mystery that it’s kind of fun to think about what’s going on with them.  But I also really want to know why earth and why the elevator and the plague and the other stuff that I’m not going to give away but be really vague about.

Final Thoughts:

I really am impressed!  I’m actually at a 4.5 in terms of a rating.  I really enjoyed The Darwin Elevator, but I’ve decided to round up and give it 5 stars!

Book Review: Speak

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Speak CoverBook: Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Published April 2000 by Puffin|Pages: 208

Where I Got It: Own the paperback!

Series: None

Genre: YA Contemporary

Goodreads|Check Out Laurie Halse Anderson’s Blog!

Goodreads Summary: Melinda Sordino busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops. Now her old friends won’t talk to her, and people she doesn’t even know hate her from a distance. The safest place to be is alone, inside her own head. But even that’s not safe. Because there’s something she’s trying not to think about, something about the night of the party that, if she let it in, would blow her carefully constructed disguise to smithereens. And then she would have to speak the truth. This extraordinary first novel has captured the imaginations of teenagers and adults across the country.

It’s been a very long time since I’ve read Speak, and so it seemed like a good time to re-visit it.  Speak is just as amazing as I remembered it, and Melinda is so easy to relate to.

There is something about finding our voice and speaking up that rings true.  There were points were I just wanted things to work out for Melinda, because I just wanted things to be okay for her.  I love how sarcastic she is but I also love that we spend so much time in her head. You see that the events of the party took a toll on her and how much she withdrew from the world, speaking only when absolutely necessary.

Mr. Freeman was another pretty awesome character, and he stood out as a character.  He’s a pretty awesome teacher, and I feel like being creative now!  But awesome teachers are pretty awesome, and it’s always great when you have that one teacher who’s cool.  Of course, there are teachers like “Mr. Neck,” “Hair Woman” and “Principal Principal” to round things out.

I didn’t pay too much attention to her relationship with her parents in previous reads, but now that I think about it…I’m not sure what to think about her relationship with her parents.  They did seem pretty absent, and while I think part of it is Melinda withdrawing from the world, I have to wonder if maybe they were maybe a little bit absent before Speak starts,  Because her grades go down drastically, she barely speaks and is withdrawn, and they don’t seem to put a lot of effort into why this has happened.  I’m sure it happens more than we’d like to think, and we see them through Melinda’s eyes.  And actually, her relationship with them is pretty believable, but I think I’m just irritated that they seemed to have no clue what was going on in her life.

Speak is such a powerful book, and definitely a must-read.  I feel like Laurie Halse Anderson handled all of the different issues so well, and I feel like she got it right with Speak.  She doesn’t sugar-coat things and pretend like things are perfect for teens, which is really nice.  Things seem to end on a pretty good note, even with a pretty big moment that isn’t completely resolved.  But I like that things are headed in a really good direction for Melinda, who finally seems ready to speak.

Before I forget: I totally love her art project for the year.  Trees might seem random, but it seemed to fit with Melinda, and how much she changed over the course of the school year.  And the cover might seem random at first, but I love that it fits with her art project.

Final Thoughts: I love Speak so much, and I think it’s one of those books that a lot of people can relate to in some way.  I just can’t seem to come up with words that will properly express how much I love Speak and how amazing I think it is.  Speak gets 5 stars.

Book Review: Siege And Storm

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Siege And Storm CoverBook: Siege And Storm by Leigh Bardugo

Published June 2013 by Henry Holt And Co.|Pages: 320

Where I Got It: Nook Store (e-book!)

Series: Grisha #2

Genre: YA Fantasy

Goodreads|You can find Leigh Bardugo at her blog, on Twitter and on Facebook

Goodreads Summary: Darkness never dies.

Hunted across the True Sea, haunted by the lives she took on the Fold, Alina must try to make a life with Mal in an unfamiliar land, all while keeping her identity as the Sun Summoner a secret. But she can’t outrun her past or her destiny for long.

The Darkling has emerged from the Shadow Fold with a terrifying new power and a dangerous plan that will test the very boundaries of the natural world. With the help of a notorious privateer, Alina returns to the country she abandoned, determined to fight the forces gathering against Ravka. But as her power grows, Alina slips deeper into the Darkling’s game of forbidden magic, and farther away from Mal. Somehow, she will have to choose between her country, her power, and the love she always thought would guide her–or risk losing everything to the oncoming storm.

Is it weird that I liked Siege And Storm a lot more than Shadow And Bone?  Because while I liked Shadow And Bone, I so completely loved Siege And Storm.

We have a lot of the characters from Shadow And Bone, but we also have new characters.  Like Sturmhond.  Is it weird that I like the idea of a romance between him and Alina?  Because I kind of like them together.  You could make better arguments for Mal and the Darkling, and I have the feeling that she’ll probably end up with Mal, but one can only hope, right?  Back to Sturmhond…he’s definitely eccentric but he’s also lovable, and I feel like he’s always going to do something unexpected.

Mal and Alina definitely grew apart, and there are a lot of obstacles they need to overcome if they’re going to be together.  But Alina’s power is stronger, and she and Mal seem like they’re too different to work out.

The Darkling…he’s pretty creepy.  Just as creepy in Siege And Storm as he was in Shadow And Bone.  He was there at the beginning and at the end, and only made a few appearances throughout the book.  How on earth did he manage that?  It did seem like Alina was losing it a little (and quite frankly, I don’t think I would have been surprised by that) but of course, he managed to make these random appearances himself.

There are quite a few things in Siege And Storm that were interesting.  Like, the possibilities of 3 amplifiers.  There are definitely two, and so i think it’s safe to assume that there really is a third, which is going to be the hardest to find, i think.  And that ending!  Totally unexpected, and I can’t even begin to think of what that’ll mean for…everything and everyone.

One thing about this trilogy is how Bardugo does the prologues and epilogues.  I didn’t pay too much attention to them in Shadow And Bone, but in Siege Storm…I’m not sure how I feel about them.  It’s done in a completely different style than the rest of the book, and while you get a good picture of what things are like for Alina before and after the events of the book take place, there’s also something about how it’s written that makes me feel like I’m watching what’s going on as opposed to experiencing what’s going on.

I definitely feel like I can’t properly review Siege And Storm, because there are so many things I don’t want to give away, but it far exceeded the high expectations I had after finishing Shadow And Bone.

Final Thoughts:

I loved Siege And Storm and with things ending the way they did, it’s going to be quite the wait for Ruin And Rising, which I’m totally looking forward to.  I just love the feel of this series and how detailed and imaginative it is.  Siege And Storm gets 5 stars.

Book Review: Cape Storm

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Cape Storm CoverBook: Cape Storm by Rachel Caine

Published August 2009 by Penguin|Pages: 320

Where I Got It: Nook store (e-book)

Series: Weather Warden #8

Genre: Adult Paranormal

Goodreads|You can find Rachel Caine On Twitter and Facebook

Goodreads Summary: Weather Warden Joanne Baldwin and her new husband, the Djinn David, are running from a malevolent hurricane bent on destroying her. Joined by an army of fellow Wardens and Djinn onboard a hijacked luxury liner, Joanne has lured the storm into furious pursuit. But even their combined magic may not be enough to stop it-nor the power-mad ex-Weather Warden controlling it…

Just when I thought things couldn’t get more interesting or strange or OMGWTF…they totally did!  Especially the OMGWTF because I did not see any of this coming.  

I don’t even know where to begin…Joanne is a good a place to start as anything else, I guess.  There were some totally great moments with David.  And Joanne did things I was not expecting at all.  And she did them with more glee than I ever expected, given everything that was going on.  Lewis had this master plan, and that was unexpected, because it’s a side of him that I never expected to come out.  It’s perfectly understandable, of course, because we are at the point where you cannot trust anyone.  Quite literally, I might add, because things that were put in place to make sure other things would happen and the results of said things made for 320 pages of unexpected awesomeness.

Back to Joanne: because of Bad Bob’s dark mark, she has an interesting change in personality.  Again, totally not expecting it, but I like that Caine is not scared to mess with her characters.

I am interested in how all of the loose ends are going to get tied up in Total Eclipse, which is the next (and last) book in this series.  Because I have no clue where things are headed or how things will get tied up and the realization that Joanne and David…have…certain issues that will have MAJOR consequences.

Cherise really shows why she’s an awesome friend, and Kevin is still himself.  And I will admit that there were a couple moments between Jo and Lewis that I really liked.

I also loved that Cape Storm took place on a cruise ship!  It’s definitely different than being on land, where all of the other books have taken place, but I liked the change in setting.  It definitely made things much more interesting than they already were.

Final Thoughts:

It should be no surprise that I loved Cape Storm!  This is such a fun series, and there was no way that I could have predicted anything that happened!  Cape Storm gets 5 stars.

Gilmore Girls 2×22: I Can’t Get Started

Posted in Season Two, The Gilmore Girls Project by

I Can’t Get Started originally aired May, 21, 2002.  This episode was written by Amy Sherman-Palladino and John Stephens and was directed by Amy Sherman-Palladino.

Gilmore Girls Season 2 Graphic

This episode opens with Sookie, Rory, Lorelei and Michel listening to the song that Sookie wants to walk down the aisle to.  A couple seats have opened up, so Sookie asks Lorelei and Rory if they have anyone else they want to add…and Lorelei says she’ll see if Richard and Emily want to come.

Friday Night Dinner: Lorelei talks about two funny words: oy and poodles.  She coins a new catchphrase: “Oy, with the poodles already,” which is the result of putting oy and poodles in the same sentence.  She also invites Richard and Emily to Sookie’s wedding, and they both think it’s a pity invite because somebody canceled a week before the wedding.

Lorelei finally makes her way into Luke’s, after taking over half an hour to get inside, but Rory and Dean ordered breakfast without her, and are ready to go by the time Lorelei sits down.  She apologizes to Luke for freaking out, which I kind of forgot about, but Luke was never mad at her.

Paris is running for student body president, and needs Rory to run as her vice-president so that she’ll get elected.  Paris pulls the Harvard card, knowing it’ll get Rory to run for vice-president.  Rory does agree, but isn’t sure about spending the summer in Washington D.C. for a leadership conference.  Rory also gets her cast off.

At the rehearsal dinner, we learn that wearing a kilt is a family tradition, and Jackson isn’t happy that Sookie is going along with it.  We also learn that Chris is having problems with Sherry, which is why he’s been around a little more.  The night before Sookie’s wedding, things change between Lorelei and Chris, and it seems like things are actually going to work out between them.  Or: things are headed in that direction.

At the diner, Luke goes up to his apartment, and finds Jess.  Jess actually wants to come back to Stars Hollow, and knows that things are going to have to be different. Mostly because Jess proved everyone right when Luke took Jess in.  As Jess leaves, Luke tells him that Rory and Dean are still together and that things are going well between them.

We finally get to Sookie’s wedding, where Emily and Richard do show up, because not attending would be rude.  Also: Sherry is pregnant, and any chance of Lorelei and Chris being together is effectively ruined.  Because Chris wants to do the right thing, and be there for this child.  He never forgave himself for missing out on being a part of Rory’s life, and so he goes back to Boston.

Rory sees Jess, kisses him, and then runs off, freaking out and not wanting Jess to say anything.  Rory shows up, tells Lorelei she’s going to Washington D.C. and the season ends with Lorelei and Rory walking down the aisle.

Thoughts:

We’ve finally arrived at the season finale!  I can’t believe I’m headed to season 3.

Oy with the poodles already!  This, for me, is a classic Gilmore Girls line, and I feel like it’s a secret handshake or something, because this is one of the most memorable lines of the entire series.  You know someone’s a Gilmore Girls fan if they understand what you mean when you say it.

Also: Rory kissing Jess.  I don’t know what to think, especially after the end of the last episode, where Rory is convinced that Dean is going to be her only boyfriend.  Even though Rory seems to feel something for Jess, it’s still a little weird to me that she would kiss Jess.  However, I understand not wanting him to say anything, and for her reaction afterwards.

However: Lorelei and Chris.  As for Chris not being around when Rory was growing up, I do sort of wonder how much of it was Chris being a 16-year-old and how much of it is Lorelei.  Because we know their parents wanted them to get married, and I’m pretty sure it’s been said that Chris wanted to get married but Lorelei didn’t.  Did Chris flake out, or did he not know where to find Lorelei after she left home, or did she not want him super-involved or something?  Actually, it seems like it took Chris a long time for him to get his life together, so that could be it.  It happened, and part of me wants to know why, but I don’t think we’ll get that question answered.  I get Lorelei being upset, because it did seem like things were going to work out between them for once, but I don’t blame Chris for wanting to do the right thing with Sherry. Especially after not being a part of Rory’s life for so long.

And one last thing: how on earth is Rory able to run for student body vice-president at the last minute?  It seems like something you have to do ahead of time, and not a few days before the actual election because Paris wants to better her chances of winning.

Favorite Line:

Lorelei: “Oy with the poodles already!”

Pop Culture:

Girl Interrupted, Little Debbie, Disney Princesses, Sleepless In Seattle, “Whatcha talkin’ ’bout Willis?”

Episode Wrap-Up:

It’s a pretty decent season finale, and we are ready to go for season 3!  Things were wrapped up pretty well, but there are some things that will make season 3 pretty interesting.  I Can’t Get Started gets 4 mugs of coffee.

 

Book Review: The Bookstore

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The Bookstore CoverBook: The Bookstore by Deborah Meyler

Expected Publication Is August 20, 2013 by Gallery Books|Expected Number Of Pages: 354

Series: None

Genre: Adult Fiction

Goodreads|Follow Deborah Meyler On Twitter

The Bookstore is a free e-arc from netgalley.com, which has not influenced my review in any way.

Goodreads Summary: Brilliant, idealistic Esme Garland moves to Manhattan armed with a prestigious scholarship at Columbia University. When Mitchell van Leuven— a New Yorker with the bluest of blue New York blood—captures her heart with his stunning good looks and a penchant for all things erotic, life seems truly glorious…until a thin blue line signals a wrinkle in Esme’s tidy plan. Before she has a chance to tell Mitchell about her pregnancy, he suddenly declares their sex life is as exciting as a cup of tea, and ends it all. 

Determined to master everything from Degas to diapers, Esme starts work at a small West Side bookstore, finding solace in George, the laconic owner addicted to spirulina, and Luke, the taciturn, guitar-playing night manager. The oddball customers are a welcome relief from Columbia’s high-pressure halls, but the store is struggling to survive in this city where nothing seems to last. 

When Mitchell recants his criticism, his passion and promises are hard to resist. But if Esme gives him a second chance, will she, like her beloved bookstore, lose more than she can handle? A sharply observed and evocative tale of learning to face reality without giving up on your dreams, The Bookstore is sheer enchantment from start to finish.

I was very much drawn to The Bookstore because Esme works in a bookstore! Initially, I wasn’t sure about The Bookstore, but I found myself falling in love with The Owl and the characters that frequent it.

Is it weird that The Owl is the shining star of the novel?  Because I was much more invested in this fictional bookstore and a lot of the really interesting characters that visit it than I was in Esme’s story.  Actually, it might be a little weird because Esme’s pregnancy is why she took the job at the bookstore in the first place.

Mitchell…I’m not going to say much about him, because I have the feeling I won’t be able to stop ranting about him and how irritating he was.  Goodness, he was so unlikeable, and I think he was supposed to be that way, but still.  So. Freaking. Irritating.

Esme: I don’t have a lot of thoughts about her.  She’s a pretty decent character.  She’s not completely awesome, but not completely horrible either.  I think I liked her best when she was at The Owl.

As for the staff and regular customers at The Owl: they were all so random but also pretty cool.  There were points when I thought that maybe Esme would end up with Luke, which, surprisingly, didn’t happen.  At least, it didn’t happen in the book, but there’s part of me that wants it to happen for them.  I did like how she faced her problems and how she would handle everything.  And how she did what she thought was right in regards to her child, even though Mitchell wanted something different.

And The Owl: For me, I was much more interested in the feel of The Owl, and what it meant to the people who shopped there.  It seemed like such a special place, and it was clearly important to the staff and regulars.  Everyone was colorful and memorable and made The Owl seem like a real place.

There are quite a few references throughout the book that went right over my head.  I didn’t look them up or anything, because it didn’t occur to me to do that while I was reading, but I may have to do that the next time I read it.  I liked that books and bookish places were so important but also how people come into our lives and change them forever.  And that it’s about the journey and the choices you make.  Well, that’s what I took away from it.

Final Thoughts:

I liked The Bookstore.  I liked Esme, even when she frustrated me, which did happen a few times.  But I very much liked The Owl and of the colorful people that flock to it and work there.  The Bookstore was a pretty good read for me, and so it gets 3 stars.

Book Review: Daughter Of Smoke And Bone

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Daughter Of Smoke And Bone CoverBook: Daughter Of Smoke And Bone by Laini Taylor

Published September 2011 by Little, Brown Books For Young Readers|Pages: 432

Where I Got It: Nook store

Series: Daughter Of Smoke And Bone #1

Genre: YA Fantasy

Goodreads|Check Out Laini Taylor’s Blog

Goodreads Summary: Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grown dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war.

Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real; she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious “errands”; she speaks many languages–not all of them human; and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.

When one of the strangers–beautiful, haunted Akiva–fixes his fire-colored eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself.

Daughter Of Smoke And Bone is definitely an interesting book.  Initially, I didn’t like it, but I decided to give a few more chapters.  Next thing you know, I’m totally sucked in to this very strange world.  It’s definitely unusual, but in a really good way, because I liked trying to figure out what was going on.

There was a point towards the end where I kind of figured out what was going on before it even came up, but other than that, I was pleasantly surprised with Daughter Of Smoke And Bone.  There are angels and demons who take on a life of their own, and I’m not even going to attempt to explain how they’re different than other angel/demon books out there.  Although…you can’t really say that Daughter Of Smoke And Bone is an angel/demon book, because it’s not.  There are monsters and other strange beings, and wishes that cause pain.

I thought Laini Taylor did a completely awesome job at creating this unforgettable world that makes me want to know more about it!  Seriously.  There were points where I was looking at my Nook wondering what was going on.  But everything had a purpose, and the details that you get have a point.  They are all important to the story, and they are not there just to be there.

The interesting thing about Daughter Of Smoke And Bone is that it totally seemed like it would be a paranormal book.  And I was wrong, because it is fantasy more than anything else.  I have no idea why, but I was expecting something more paranormal.  I definitely feel like the summary doesn’t do the book justice.  At all.  But Daughter Of Smoke And Bone is so much more than what you could hope for in a book, so it’s probably good I don’t read summaries before reading the book.

Final Thoughts:

I’m not in love with Daughter Of Smoke And Bone, but I really liked it.  It’s definitely different, and a little more…weird…than I was expecting, but overall, it was hard to not get pulled in.  There are some very memorable characters, and I don’t think I’ll be forgetting this one anytime soon.  Daughter Of Smoke And Bone gets 4 stars.

Book Review: Shadow And Bone

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Shadow And Bone CoverBook: Shadow And Bone by Leigh Bardugo

Published June 2012 by Henry Holt And Co.|Pages: 368

Where I Got It: E-book|Nook Store

Series: Grisha #1

Genre: YA Fantasy

Goodreads|Follow Leigh Bardugo On Twitter

Goodreads Summary: Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.

Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.

Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha…and the secrets of her heart.

I have no clue why it took me so long to read Shadow And Bone.  Seriously.  I really liked it, and pretty unique.

One interesting thing: Alina’s power that comes to life when her best friend is injured. Alina being the one to save Ravka, looking back, wasn’t that surprising, but what did surprise me was her power being used for evil instead of good.  Although…why was it dormant for so long?  What is it about this moment that triggered her power to come alive?  And as for Mal being an unusually good tracker…is he just really good at it, or is there more to it than we get in Shadow And Bone?

Bardugo created such an interesting world that I wanted to know so much more about Ravka and the Grisha.  She also gives the reader enough details to understand this world and what’s going on, but we also weren’t inundated with details.  There was quite a bit of information to take in at the beginning, but it was also done in a way that made you really interested.  And it helps you understand some of what goes on later in the book.

The Darkling.  He sounds so ominous, and is so charming…and is charming until he’s not.  He is a man who wants power, and has finally found the person who can change that.  By the way, The Fold is one crazy and dark place, and the plans that the Darkling has in store for everyone…oh my goodness!  I am having trouble wrapping my mind around this, and right now, it’s a little hard!

There’s something historical-feeling about Shadow And Bone, and there was something very Russian about some of the names and how Ravka was described.  Actually, it’s a little nice to have read a fantasy novel that feels Russian, as opposed to the more European feel that’s associated with a lot of fantasy.

Final Thoughts:

I really enjoyed Shadow And Bone!  I was pulled in so fast, and I am very much looking forward to reading Siege And Storm. I didn’t fall in love with Shadow And Bone, but I am glad that it lived up to all the hype and positivity surrounding it.  Shadow And Bone gets 4 stars.