Title: Rippler
Author: Cindy Swanson
Book #: 1st of Trilogy
Publisher: Williams Press
Publish Date: June 15th 2011
Pages: 288
Format: Kindle Edition
Date Read (Throwback):
November 26th 2012
Rating: ★★ / out of 5
Summary:
After a freak disappearing act on a school trip, Sam discovers something terrifying about herself- she has the Rippler gene and there are people who want her dead because of it.
Along with her bestfriend, Will, and his sister, Mickie, she searches to discover the answers to their problems.
And, what they are willing to do to keep each other safe.
Review:
Pros
• The main idea behind the story is decent. I prefer reading stories about people with powers (such as invisibility, flying, laser vision, ect.) to people with shape-shifting powers. This book gave me just that! In the novel, there are people who have a even rarer version of the already rare disease called Helmann's Disease. This super rare variation is called Rippler Syndrome or the Chameleon gene. These few people are hunted and killed, as well as anyone who was studying the disease. (view spoiler)
• The characters are pretty enjoyable. Sam, the main character, is relate-able being that she is just a normal teenage girl. She runs, has a stepmother, crushes on her best-friend, gets into a fight with her other best-friend, blends in at school. Typical teenage girl status. Will is a semi-typical, more of a rare find, kinda guy. He has a family member who is dealing with a drug problem, gives off mixed signals, great personality, charming but not enough to make me gag. Mickie, who is Will's super funny and slightly over protective older sister. She is hilarious and I loved the scenes where her and Will would bicker. Gwyn, eh. At least every book has a "best friend" character that mirrors the main character. That is exactly what Gwyn is, really. She cares about Sam very much though, which is good.
• The conflict was borderline thrilling. Sam, Will and Mickie are hiding from the people who are killing off anyone who has had any association with Rippler's Syndrome. That means to Sam: no telling parent's or best friends (AKA, Gwyn) which is hard for Sam not to give in to. (view spoiler) It's pretty exciting!
Cons
• Will, poor Will. This paragraph is mostly going to be directed at you. I did not like how much information he gave so early on into the novel! It is the one thing I despise when reading. A simple fix would be to just add a few more pages in. There needs to be more development of the story before so much information is revealed. Having all those details hidden later on in the book is what makes you want to read it more! So you can find out what the heck is going on.
• The writing style felt a little off to me. I don't recall many grammatical errors, but there were places where I thought "that could be worded a lot better". Another thing that bothered me was how the word guffawed seemed to be used so many times. It was only really used 11 times throughout the book, but it was such a strange word that it stuck out at me every time I read it. It also feels like things were missing from the writing. It felt semi choppy. I was able to stand it, but I wasn't really able to enjoy it.I don't want anyone reading this review to take what I just mentioned here to heart. That is not my intent. Every author has a different style, and I just did not like this one. That does not mean that the majority of people who read this will not, as well.
• Some things just didn't make sense!
Overall, I thought the book had a good central idea, as well as a nice platform of characters. However, I felt it lacked in wording and flow. I would still recommend it, though, I don't know if I will be reading the next book!
On My Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/439535363
Title: Once
Author: Anna Carey
Book #: 2nd of Trilogy
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publish Date: July 3rd 2012
Pages: 354
Format: Hardcover
Date Read (Throwback): November 15th 2012
Rating: ★★★★ / out of 5
We stood side by side, and for that minute, in the stillness of that room, he was not the King. I was not not the Princess, taken against her will to the City. We were two people trying to forget.
Summary: After finally making it to safety, Even thinks all will be well. If only she could get back to Caleb.When she hears a rumor of his appearance nearby, Eve leaves the safe haven of Califa in search of him.Suddenly, one thing leads to another and Eve turns out not to be the only one who needs saving this time.Review:So, overall, I did enjoy the book. I kept putting it off because I was concerned that it wouldn't measure up to Eve, but when I did start reading it, I finished it in a day!My feelings toward this book, however, are mixed. It seemed like it was going well for Eve, and then it looked as if it would possibly get even better.. but then things just kept getting worse and worse and worse. And most of the time, it was her own fault. Or, perhaps I just want to blame her because everything was constantly going from good to bad and it was extremely unfortunate.There was a lot of hope at the end though. (view spoiler) Eve still has a shot at changing things. Overall, I just hope she matures more in the third novel. I can't wait to read it and find out!Quotes:"You do anything for the person you love,” she said finally."And then when you don’t think you can give any more of yourself, you do. You keep going. Because it would kill you not to."
On My Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/404709721
Title: Graceling
Author: Kristin Cashore
Book #: 1st of Trilogy
Publisher: Harcourt
Publish Date: October 1st 2008
Pages: 471
Format: Hardcover
Date Read (Throwback): November 11th 2012
Rating: ★★★★★ / out of 5
When a monster stopped behaving like a monster, did it stop being a monster? Did it become something else?
Summary:
In a world where people born with an extreme skill - called a Grace - are feared and exploited, Katsa carries the burden of the skill even she despises: the Grace of killing. She lives under the command of her uncle Randa, King of the Middluns, and is expected to execute his dirty work, punishing and torturing anyone who displeases him.
When she first meets Prince Po, who is Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change.
She never expects to become Po's friend.
She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace - or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away...a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone.
(Summary taken from Goodreads)
Review:
This book had a very Medieval feel. The way the characters talked, the settings, and the transportation! It was a very refreshing break from all the Sci-fi novels I have been reading.
The characters were amazing, as well! Every one was perfectly crafted, and many had witty personalities that kept me entertained. The romance between Po and Katsa, the friendship between Katsa and Raff, and the sister-like behavior of Bitterblue and Katsa, all left me heart-warmed and made it extremely relate-able.
I was happy about the way the book started, thrilled by the way it progressed, and satisfied with the ending. I only hope the best for Katsa as she returns to Randa's castle to face him. I also wish that her and Po stay together, but not by marriage, of course.
I know that the third book in this series is titled Bitterblue so I only assume that Bitterblue will be the center of attention in it. I was a bit disappointed when I found out that the series wouldn't be continuing from Katsa's point of view. But, at the same time, I loved Bitterblue's character just as much and cannot wait to learn more of her and the new characters in the second book.
Overall, I love love this book. You must read it.
Quotes:
"Katsa. Is it too much for you to understand that a man might be hungry after you've beaten him half to death?"
"Your eyes are beautiful."
"The notion of having a lover was to Katsa something like discovering a limb she'd never noticed before."
How absurd it was that in all seven kingdoms, the weakest and most vulnerable of people - girls, women - went unarmed and were taught nothing of fighting, while the strong were trained to the highest reaches of their skill.
On My Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/405445009
Title: Forbidden
Author: Syrie Hames & Ryan M. James
Book #: Standalone
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publish Date: January 24th 2012
Pages: 410
Format: Paperback
Date Read (Throwback): November 8th 2012
Rating: ★★★★★ / out of 5
"Let's not think about the worst. I believe that anything worth having is worth fighting for."
Summary:
Claire is the main character. It's her Mom and her; it always has been just the two of them. They have moved from place to place since before she can remember, but now, they finally seemed to have settled down a bit. She is enjoying her life as it is with her two best friends and school life at the prestigious Emerson Academy. Though, she has always wondered what kind of person her Dad was, and why he just.. left.
Then, she meets the sexy Scottish boy Alec. He lives by himself, has a guarded past, and doesn't really say much. Yet, Claire and her two best friends adopt him as their own. The four get along great and Claire can't help but feel herself falling for him oh so slightly.
All of the sudden, she starts getting strange visions and her world turns upside down ndsıpǝ poʍu.
Together, Claire, Alec, Brian, and Erica discover who Clairereally is and if they can save her before it's too late.
Review:
I thought this book was great!
All the characters were extremely easy to get along with. Claire was open with her two best friends and they were very supportive of her. They stood up for her and watched her back. Alec was a great guy, too, and I couldn't help but feel myself fall for him as Claire did. The romance wasn't super sappy. It went slow and gradually developed. By the end of the book, they only said "I love you" when everything was said and done. And they actually meant it.
The idea, though not completely original, was better played in this book. It all seemed like it fell into place. There wasn't too much information being dumped on you at once, yet it wasn't slow at all. I felt myself gliding through pages.
Overall, I loved it so much, and I would recommend it to everyone!
On My Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/439777725
Title: Insanity
Author: Lauren Hammond
Book #: 1st of Trilogy
Publisher: S.B. Addison Books
Publish Date: May 8th 2012
Pages: 190
Format: Kindle Edition
Date Read (Throwback): November 7th 2012
Rating: ★★★★★ / out of 5
Life is pain. Life is chaos. It's never easy. Always a struggle.
Summary:
Adelaide Carmichael and Damien Allen couldn't be more opposite.
Adelaide is broken down from her mother's abandonment and her father's constant abuse. Damien has a wealthy family and a bright future to look forward to. Despite what everyone says, the two fall deeply in love and plan to runaway together, living against society's rules.
That is.. until Addie wakes up in an insane asylum with no memory as to how she got there. All she knows is that she wants out.
As she pieces together what took place, she comes to the conclusion that things aren't always what they seem and sometimes true love really never dies.
Review:
My brain is swarming with thoughts, my body pumping with energy, my fingers itching to write this review.. and I don't even know where to begin! I don't even believe that a "wow", or a "holy crapola" will explain my feelings for this book and give it the justice it so fairly deserves.
I guess I should start with the first thing everyone sees when they look at a book: The cover.
This book should win a "Cover of the Year" award. I mean, seriously! This is the most beautifully breathtaking cover I have ever seen. Ever. It is so simple, yet at the same time a millions words could be said about it. The way the wind is blowing and covering her face makes you ask "Who is that girl? What does her face look like?" And the white dress she wears, how white symbolizes pureness. Is it irony or symbolism? And then the field of wheat she is standing in. We know from reading the book that she grew up someplace near a field of tall grass, but from the perspective of someone who has not read it yet, the field could represent being stranded or isolated, or in this case the time period and social class of the main character, as well.
__________
Powerful
If I had to describe this book in one word, that would be it.
The talent this author has to be able to construct such a book is beyond me! If only this were a paperback book. This would be something worth getting signed by the author, herself.
A few chapters into the book, and I felt myself fully tuning into Adelaide's emotions, thoughts, and behaviors. There were times when I wished that I could only start screaming and kicking like she was, when they started to hold her down and restrain her. And, not only did I feel for her when she was going through the things she did in the Asylum during the "After", my heart also broke for what she went through in her home during the "Before".
__________
Her Father's drinking, her Mother's disappearance (view spoiler), and being beaten by her "Daddy". These were very strong emotions that the author brought into the novel, creating a sense that Addy was truly lost, hopeless, and broken.
Then Damien comes along. At first, I was upset about their relationship. I wish the book was a bit longer, and that it went into more detail about how they fell in love. That is always my favorite part about romance novels. When you see the characters spending more time together, and when you hear the "click" go off in their minds when they realize they love each-other. That was sadly missing from this book. However, we do know that what ever happened in the beginning, they are deeply in love.
As the story goes by, I find myself in a trance. I desperately want to know how she got in the asylum, and is there is really a way out.
Overall: Speechless!
Quotes:
"There was a brief moments, days after his death that I thought I might be okay. That I might be able to always remember our love, but be able to move on."
Note:
I did notice two small grammatical errors, throughout the book. I also kept wondering why there where awkward breaks in between conversations in the text.
On My Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/439541253
Title: Fire
Author: Terra Harmony
Book #: 2nd of Series
Publisher: Createspace
Publish Date: October 15th 2012
Pages: 366
Format: Paperback
Date Read (Throwback): November 4th 2012
Rating: ★★★★★ / out of 5
Summary:
The Seven has another leader, Kaitlyn is a new mother, and everyone is busy building their armies. During one battle, the secret to Akasha is discovered, and the race to master it is on. With all eyes on the prize, what matters most gets left behind. It is up to Kaitlyn to preserve the planet in the wake of the pure destructive power of Akasha, and the humans who wield it.
(Synopsis taken from GoodReads)
Review:
This book is yet another reason for me to declare my love for this series, and for the author who wrote it.
This book kicks off right where the second one ended, and we finally meet the little baby! Her name, of course, is Bee. At first, I was as skeptical as Micah and Shawn were when they first heard the name. I kept assuming that it was just temporary and that she would eventually give her an actual name, but that just wasn't the case. And, honestly, I kinda grew into liking it. I mean, it is cute and adorable; just like she is!
This book, again like the others, gives us a deeper look into the lives of "super-powered-tree-huggers" in the most fascinating and complimentary way possible. It really made me think about all the things that we do that are destroying the Earth; things that we do on a daily basis without even giving it a second though. Like, for example, turning on the lights and using power.
I love this entire series.
The main character and I share names, which of course is totally and extremely awesome!
Overall, I love reading super-hero like stories, and when their powers are based on the elements I always find it even more interesting. The covers are so simple yet beautiful! The characters are all witty and enjoyable. (As much as I detest Shawn, he does have his "OK, that was pretty funny" moments)
On My Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/406044128
Title: Perfect Ruin
Author: Lauren DeStefano
Book #: 1st of Trilogy
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Publish Date: October 1st 2013
Pages: 356
Format: Hardcover
Date Read: November 15th 2013
Rating: ★★★★ / out of 5
Below us, is the ground just a larger version of what we have up here? Is there a bigger train that goes in a bigger circle? Do the people on the ground also fear stepping over their edge? What if there's a bigger ground below them? What if everything is floating in the sky?
Summary:
On Internment, the floating island in the clouds where 16-year-old Morgan Stockhour lives, getting too close to the edge can lead to madness. Even though Morgan's older brother, Lex, was a Jumper, Morgan vows never to end up like him. She tries her best not to mind that her life is orderly and boring, and if she ever wonders about the ground, and why it is forbidden, she takes solace in best friend Pen and her betrothed, Basil.
Then a murder, the first in a generation, rocks the city. With whispers swirling and fear on the wind, Morgan can no longer stop herself from investigating. Secrets lay at the heart of Internment, but nothing can prepare Morgan for what she will find — or who she will lose.
(Synopsis taken from Goodreads)
Thoughts:
I honestly just have no words. The amount of progress this author made from her first series to this second, new one is unbelievable Here, DeStefano has completely rewritten herself as potentially one of my all time favorite authors.
__________
Since my thoughts are mostly going to be positive, I'm going to dish out the bad news, first: There are still plot holes.
The main problem I had with the Wither was that it contained a major plot hole, one that really disagreed with the entire story itself. I applaud DeStefano now, though, for while there are still plot holes in Perfect Ruin, they are minor and don't really cause too much conflict.
Mostly, the plot holes are small things like, for example: The people of Internment studying the life on the ground to advance their technologies, including their knowledge of how to set wires underground and using indoor plumbing, yet they are not allowed to create a scope advanced enough to see people on the ground.
The Characters:
Morgan was a pretty decent protagonist, and when I say that I mean she is likeable. I wouldn't say that she is rolemodel like, because she wasn't very tough, or strong, or sure of herself. She was flawed, and she was a dreamer. She is not satisfied with now knowing, and questions her life and the life of people on the ground.
"Even if we do make it to the ground," I say, "who's to say it's any better? What if there's another king no less corrupt than ours? Or what if the ground is just another city floating of an even bigger one, and so on?"
"Then at least we'll be the wiser," she says. "I'd rather be disappointed than oblivious."
I think that's why I liked her, though. Her voice really added unique sound to the writing style. Her persistence to know these things, though, is what eventually causes life as she knows it to crumble. But I like that she didn't know. There are so many things that she is unaware of, and us too, for the most part, and as she learns them, we do, as well.
Then, of course, we have Pen, the best friend, and Basil, the love interest. Both, I felt, were great characters. Basil and caring and supportive, and so if Pen, but she is also strongly rooted in her believes that Internment is enough. As we get through the book, we learn about the personal demons that each of these characters are fighting, and it helped me to really see them as people, and not just being "there." We see how deep their relationships lie, and I know I will be devastated if anything happens to them in the books to come.
Now, Morgan's family is quite similar. Again, we have these relationships among characters that just feel so palpable and real. We don't really see too much of her father and mother, but what we hear about them through glimpses into her past, and through words shared between her and her brother, their love for their children is not nonexistent. What we mostly see are the ties that bind Morgan to her bother, Lex, and her sister in law, Alice. These three are always there looking after each other and we see some very tender moments occur between them.
The other, less focused on characters, including the rebels and the villains were, again I thought, well developed. We see, at first, how things appear to be a certain way and then how they are actually not how they seem at all. Especially after the conclusion of the book, I am looking forward to seeing how our current group of characters will react to their current circumstance.
The Story:
I think this is what got me the most. Despite those little plot holes, I found the story to be absolutely intriguing. And the world building is beautiful and fantastic. What I enjoy most, though, beyond the superbly realistic feeling added to the story that make life on this rock a fantasy yet also completely believable, is the fact that we still don't know how and why Internment came to be.
Yes, as I have seen other's point out, it gets a little sloppy towards the second half, but I also found that at that point I was flying through the book even faster than I was before. There is never really a point where it is made definite that the characters are going to find a way to leave Internment, but the idea of it is also not abolished. Through those last chapters, I found myself wondering, at which point will the book end? Will they make it off? Will they be caught just before? I think the author did a great job with her ending, though I could kill because of that cliff-hanger!
The Writing Style:
I normally don't talk specifically just about the writing in a book. Normally, I will briefly mention either how much I either enjoyed it or how much I did not. But, in the case of this book, I really just want to dedicate a bit more of my time to really appreciate the beauty in the words of this book.
There was one phrase that I was not to fond of:
Her burden of eyelashes (page 105)
I don't know why, but this just didn't agree with me. Looking beyond that one line, though, we get passages like this:
The evening sun catches every bold and scrap of metal on the train, and for an instance we are suspended in an atmosphere of stars.
The lake is serene.
It cases a flawless reflection of the stars, as though it isn't a lake at all, but a hole in the city itself.
Who decides what is good and what is bad? Who decides what is saved and what is lost from our souls?
In my fully honestly opinion, the writing in this book just as good as the writing I admire in the books in The Raven Cycle and the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series.
Overall, I am immensely satisfied with this first book in what seems to be a very promising new series.
Quotes:
I stare at the edge of my desk and imagine it's the end of my little world.
I could imagine such great and impossible things there. Things I didn't have words for.
The madness of youth made me unafraid.
I close my eyes, trying to pretend that I'm blind, trying to understand what it means to be in this world without seeing any of it, now knowing where anyone is, if they're safe.
The only one who could quell this restlessness was Alice, always Alice, who swears she was born already in love with him.
We're both trying to quiet out laughter so as not to disrupt the solemn mood of the train.
"Is this what passes for romance between you two?" Pen says.
"Yes," I say. "And we like it this way, don't we, Basil?"
"Quite," he says.
Every star has been set in the sky. We mistakenly think they were put there for us.
"But those are intangible," Basil says. "Spiritual. What I mean is, what if there's more land up there? What if there are people living on the stars?"
I don't know why this makes me feel at peace. Like everything is connected in some way, that humans are just that, whether they're on the ground or in the sky, and that we all belong to the same greater something.
Sometimes Pen destroys her art, and when I see the crumpled pages enter the recycling tube, I feel that a piece of her is gone forever.
"Nothing is infinite," Pen says.
"How do you know something that doesn't exist to be known?"
"Forget who are you are and what you think is there, and you'll discover things that don't exist to be known."
She is everything I've grown up waiting to be, and as the sunset steals through the curtains, it sets her hair ablaze with auburns and golds. She's unbreakable.
I lean against her and she wraps her arms around me. "Oh, Morgan," she sighs. "What's to be done?"
We've always been alike, Alice and I. We're fixers and messengers and helpers, and when things are greater than we can manage, we can't rest until all is right again.
Plenty of rules are laid out for us in our history book. They were discovered by first being broken.
She loves my brother entirely, even the parts of him he'd like to forget.
"I'll be a mapmaker by then," she says, "penning maps by candlelight until all hours. Maybe I'll turn irrational. But not the bumbling, stupid irrational. The quiet sort, whispering things to glass jars as through they'll hold my secrets. No one will ever know."
But I've learned not to take stock in what people say.
I've seen no proof, only words, but words can be powerful. Words can be what puts a boy to death.
He knows that I'm not like other girls- the normal ones- that part of me is slipping off this floating city, and he doesn't care. He doesn't care.
Maybe we're both beyond saving.
Love should be a staple in our history book. Wasn't it an act of love when the god of the sky chose to keep us? Isn't love what makes living bearable, and unbearable?
"But we aren't ghosts," he says.
"No," I say. "Not for a log time."
"Sixty years," he says.
"A thousand," I counter, and tug him by the collar until he's kissing me, and everything we believe is true, and everything in the world is ours.
"We didn't make ourselves," she says. "We aren't the greatest things to exist. I can't believe that. I won't believe that. We have too many faults."
Death is the end of some things. Not everything.
I think of the white, frozen dust that falls from the clouds and covers the ground. How green and new the world must be when the sun melts it all away.
We accept gods that don't speak to us. We accept gods that place us in a world filled with injustices and do nothing as we struggle. It's easier than accepting that there's nothing out there at all, and that, in our darkest moments, we are truly alone.
Please, he's said.
"Please," he says now.
I'm a little girl in the trees. I can't find the footholds to return down to him. I can't go back to that day and undo it.
I'm sorry. I didn't want to hurt you. I'm sorry.
They'll find pieces of a girl who followed the rules.
That girl is now gone.
I love you.
Is this what love means? That the rules aren't the reason you stay together?
There's a bright moon tonight, split to pieces by branches. It's an organ with veins and arteries. A non-beating heart. If there's a god at all, he's dead in his sky.
He won't ever stop searching for her, even if they tell him she's dead. But that search will be fruitless, and Pen knows it. When she thinks I'm not watching, her lips move.
"I'm sorry," is what they say.
"But we must be brave, remember?"
Free will isn't quite the same as freedom.
We are taught that curiosity is a thing to be feared. But our first trains came from curious minds. As did medicine, and clocks, and first kisses.
Her hair is full of icy wind and daylight. She is every princess, every queen, in the history book. In this instant, I don't see a bratty princess, but rather I see greatness in her.
She doesn't bother with the ladder. She turns to face the strange world beyond the door, and she jumps.
Discussion Questions:
1. What do you make of the religious aspect of the book? Are you on the side that believes there will be spiritual powers at work to keep Internment in the sky, or do you think there must be a science behind it?
2. Do you for-see a love triangle coming on between Basil, Judas and Morgan?
On My Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/703697322
