Thursday, September 30, 2010

Taken by Storm by Angela Morrison

Summary:(from back of book) Sometimes only love can save you. Leesie thinks she has her whole life planned out:to get into the school of her dreams, write her poems,meet the perfect guy and settle down. Then she meets Michael- a boy whose parents were killed in a diving accident during a terrible storm. Michael is drowning in tragedy. And all Leesie wants is to save him. With each day her heart hurts more, Could it be, perfect Leesie is falling from grace? or is she just falling in love?
Review: I really enjoyed this book. I picked this one up because I had absolutely loved Sing Me to Sleep and thought that I should give it a try. I have to say I'm glad I did. This book alternates points of view between Michael and Leesie. I think that because of that the reader wasn't forced to take sides in the relationship because readers are able to know what each character is thinking and feeling and it made their relationship a lot less one sided.
  I also like the unique way that each character tells their story. All of Michael's chapters begin with an entry in  his dive log and a lot of Leesie's story is told through her poems. I liked the fact that both of these characters had extremely different views on the meaning of love and being in a relationship and yet they were still in love and tried hard to make their relationship last. I thought the ending was good and I'll be interested to see where their relationship can go from there.
  I really enjoyed both characters. I liked Leesie's strength and determination to help Michael in his time of sadness. Michael was also a really great character. I felt bad for him throughout most of the book. He went through a lot of changes during the course of the book and I really liked the ways his character developed.
 My only problem with that the plot kind of dragged and some parts of it were kind of predictable. Overall, though I liked this book and will be interested to see where their relationship goes in the sequel. I reccomend this book to anyone who is looking for a sweet romantic read and i should also mention that you won't be dissapointed in Sing Me to Sleep either.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

The Year of Secret Assignments by Jaclyn Moriarty

Summary:( from book jacket) Lydia, Emily and Cassie have always shared everything- guy problems, skipping school,even significant secret assignments. But when they're given pen pals at rival Brookfield High, they write forth in individual style. it turns out their pen pals are just as distinctive. Sebastian is a sensitive artist with a major soccer obsession. Charlie is a part time car thief and a completely sweet guy. But Matthew... well, he's either a psychopath or a figment of Cassie's imagination, neither of which is a good thing. And what starts out as a simple letter exchange leads to spy missions, false alarms, lock picking, legal drama, parental edicts, mistaken identities, and an all out war between the schools- not to mention Dates with Girls and some really excellent kissing.
Review: This book was interesting. There were certain things that I liked about it and others that I didn't. I liked the fact that the entire book is told through letters and journal entries of the characters. It was a different way of telling a story and I liked that. However, the problem I had with it was I only got to experience their characters through their own writing. for example their were parts of the book where a character would write something like "Hey we should hang out this weekend", and then in the next letter it would be "I had a lot of fun hanging out this weekend". It made me feel like I was missing something and that bothered me.
 I liked a lot of the characters in this book especially Charlie and Seb. But i didn't really feel like I got to know any of the characters on a deeper level. Because the entire book is told in letters the reader is never really inside the characters head entirely and it affected the way I felt about them. other than that thought they were all really funny and entertaining characters.
  My only other problem was that in the first half of the book the plot moves really slowly. There is almost no plot development. The later parts in the book are a lot more exciting and entertaining. Once the plot does pick up this book keeps you reading. So all in all this book was not one of my favorites but still a fairly good read if you can keep reading long enough to get sucked in.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers

Summary: ( from back of book). Climbing to the top of the social ladder is hard- falling from it is even harder. Regina Afton used to be a member of the Fearsome Fivesome, an all- girl clique both feared and revered by the students at Hollowell High...that is, until vicious rumors about her and her best friend's boyfriend started going around. Now Regina's been "frozen out" and her ex- best friends are out for revenge. If Regina was guilty, it would be one thing, but the rumors are far from the terrifying truth and the bullying is getting more intense by the day. She takes solace in the company of Micheal Hayden, a misfit with a tragic past whom she herself used to bully. friendship doesn't come easily for these onetime enemies, and as Regina works hard to make amends for her past, she realizes Micheal could be more than just a friend... if threats from the Fearsome Foursome don't break them both first.
Review: I had mixed feeling about this book. Throughout the beginning of the book, I couldn't help but feel like it was just overdone high school drama. The book was centered around hatred between girls who used to be friends. I felt like it was a little bit shallow and when I first started reading it and didn't know if i would be able to get into it. But I easily became sucked into the story and only put the book down to eat and sleep until I was done. Towards the end of the book there were moments full of tension and I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen next.
  Despite this there were a few things that bothered me about it. First of all, this is one of the few books that I've read where I wasn't really rooting for the main character. Regina feels hurt and betrayed by her friends for what they did to her but she did the same thing to other people. She's just as bad as her friends and that made it hard to sympathize with her. Another problem I had was the fact that, as I said before, the book was entirely hate and revenge. Although most of the book takes place at school Regina hardly ever goes to class and when she was at home her parents were never home. There was nothing to detract from the latest revenge scheme. I also wish there had been a little more background on what had happened to Micheal and Liz. Another thing was I felt like nothing had really been resolved or changed by the end of the book.
  As for the characters the only one I really liked was Michael. He was the only one who came across as being a decent person(and I'm not exaggerating when I say the only one). Although he does have his own issues to deal with.
  So overall, I thought this book was exciting and entertaining but I didn't really like the story behind all the excitement.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Everwild by Neal Shusterman

 This review may contain spoilers if you haven't read Everlost.
Summary: Everlost, the limbo land of dead children, is at war. Nick the "Chocolate Ogre" wants to help the children of Everlost reach the light at the end of the tunnel. Mary Hightower, self-proclaimed queen of lost children and dangerous fanatic, is determined to keep Everlost's children trapped within it's limbo for all eternity. Traveling in the memory of the Hindenburg, Mary is spreading her propaganda and attracting Afterlights to her cause at frightening speed. Meanwhile, Allie the Outcast travels home to seek out her parents, along with Mikey, who was once the terrifying monster the McGill. Allie is tempted by the seductive thrill of skinjacking the living, until she learns a shocking secret: Those who skinjack are not actually dead.
Review: This is the second book in the Skinjackers Trilogy and so far I love it. This story is full of unique ideas and I enjoyed getting to learn about the world of Everlost and how it works.  There a lot of unique concepts in this story and getting to discover them really added a lot to the story.
I liked the fact that the story alternates point's of view between Nick, Allie and Mary. All three characters are on their own mission in this book. It makes it harder to decide which side to take when readers have come to know and love these characters.  I have to say that Nick is probably my favorite though. I love his detemination and belief that he is helping all the children in Everlost. Plus, I've always been a fan of chocolate. I always liked the way that Mary's character had developed so much over the course of two books. She at first came across as one of the good guys but at the end of this book I was a little afraid of her.
  My only complaint was the fact that by the end of this book it didn't feel like anything had really been accomplished by either side in the war. Of course, both Nick and Mary were affected by what happened it didn't really seem like there was actually a war between them.
Anyway, I really liked this unique and exciting series and can't wait to find out how it ends.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins



This review may contain spoilers if you haven't read previous book in the series.
Summary: (from book jacket) Katniss Everdeen, girl on fire, has survived, even though her home has been destroyed. Gale has escaped. Katniss's family is safe. Peeta has been captured by the Capitol. District 13 really does exist. There are rebels. There are new leaders. A revolution is unfolding. It is by design that Katniss was rescued from the arena in the cruel and haunting Quarter Quell, and it is by design that she has long been part of the revolution without knowing it. District 13 has come out of the shadows and is plotting to overthrow the Capitol. Everyone, it seems, has had a hand in the carefully laid plans- except Katniss. The success of the rebellion hinges in Katniss's willingness to be a pawn, to accept responsibility for countless lives, and to change the course of the future of Panem. To do this she must put aside her feelings of anger and distrust. She must become the rebels Mockingjay- no matter what the personal cost.
Review: This book was so awesome. It was an exciting and action packed conclusion to one of my favorite series. This book focuses on the war against the capitol. I loved the fact that it really felt like the characters were in the middle of the war. The characters were amazing as always. This book centers on Katniss's feelings about the war effort,the destruction of her home and the fatcthat hse has become the center of thr rebellion. I was glad that Gale was in it a lot more than the previous books. i really got to know him better in this book.
  I liked the epilogue. It shows what has happened to the charcters since the end of the war. I wish that this didn't have to be the end. I love this series and MockingJay was no exception. I'm also anxious to know what other fans of the series thought.