Guest Review | Paper Towns | John Green

Thursday, 7 March 2013

Guest Review | Paper Towns | John Green

The Paper Towns' blurb goes like this: "Who is the real Margo? Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs into his life - dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge - he follows. After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. She has disappeared. Q soon learns that there are clues in her disappearance ...and they are for him. Trailing Margo's disconnected path across the USA, the closer Q gets, the less sure he is of who he is looking for." 

It's about a teenage girl who I think it is fair to say is a little bit lost and looks at life in a very different way, and a boy who learns that not everybody can be saved, one of the most important lessons to learn. 

 Green writes wonderfully; in my experience of his writing I've found that he depicts adolescents perfectly, which is not as easy to do as it may seem. His characters are incredibly believable and I found myself desperate to find out where the story ended up. I don't want to write too much about it, but it made me think. 

Just as I've written before, when I visited the theatre, I love it when things make me think. Not in the simple sense of the word, as humans we're constantly thinking about something or other, but when something makes me think more profoundly about the world we're living in, I cannot recommend it enough. And Paper Towns did just that for me, it's a lot about not knowing where you're going, a feeling of not belonging and a fear of the unknown, something I think we can all relate to. I'm not going to write about vocabulary, or plot, or imagery, that's not really me, but I doubt I will forget this book in a hurry. 

This post was written by guest blogger Anna, find her blog Reasoning My Soul here.
Photo c/o Anna

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The Culling | Steven dos Santos | Review

Wednesday, 6 March 2013

The Culling | Steven dos Santos | Review

 

“Lucian "Lucky" Spark has been recruited for training by the totalitarian government known as the Establishment. According to Establishment rules, if a recruit fails any level of the violent training competitions, a family member is brutally killed . . . and the recruit has to choose which one. As the five recruits form uneasy alliances in the hellish wasteland that is the training ground, an undeniable attraction develops between Lucky and the rebellious Digory Tycho. But the rules of the training ensure that only one will survive--the strongest recruits receive accolades, wealth, and power while the weakest receive death. With Cole--Lucky's four-year-old brother--being held as "incentive," Lucky must marshal all his skills and use his wits to keep himself alive, no matter what the cost.” Source 

The Culling is the first book in a new YA dystopian series which takes place in a society where five teens are forced to compete against each other in a series of trials. In this particular world the stakes are high, each candidate also has two ‘incentives’ who are family members or friends that mean the most to them. 

You may be thinking to yourselves that this setup sounds a little familiar and whether intentional on the part of the author or not there are various similarities to one of the most popular books of the genre; The Hunger Games. Amongst other things Lucky’s reasons for his determination seem to revolve around his younger brother much like Katniss’ need to protect Prim, not to mention the potential romance between competitors in the trials just like in The Hunger Games arena. 

As is often the case when starting a new series the first time I picked up the book I was disappointed, the story didn’t captivate me right from the beginning and it wasn’t until a little later that I began to enjoy it more. The actual trials themselves kick in around two thirds of the way through and that’s when the story becomes much more engaging as the writing is fast-paced to match the action. The trials themselves were truly horrible and gripping with so much at stake for each candidate. The substance of each trial varied and the ideas were creative and interesting; something which is difficult to achieve in such an overcrowded genre. Of course with every task came the dreaded moment where the loser would have to select which of their incentives would be killed and the various methods of doing so could be fairly graphic. The book has its fair share of twists and turns throughout although none of them are particularly surprising. 

Aside from Lucky and Digory we also get to know the other three candidates as well as an important character from Lucky’s past. There was a lot of information to take in not just about each character but also the world itself within which I found the locations confusing at times. While I didn’t love any of the characters I did find it particularly interesting to find out a bit more about each of their backgrounds which was mainly achieved through the reveals of who their incentives were and their choices when faced with which one would be executed. 

I would recommend this book for fans of The Maze Runner series and of course The Hunger Games as you will most likely enjoy The Culling too, although in my personal opinion it isn’t as good as either of those. I will be picking up the second book in the series as I’m intrigued to find out where the plot was headed as part of a bigger picture rather than just the initial trials. 

There were a few things here and there that didn’t make sense to me and I did find the setting difficult to get used to but overall I’m glad I read The Culling. If the characters had been more developed and the first third of the book stronger then I would have enjoyed it a lot more but as it stands I think Steven dos Santos’ Young Adult debut deserves a 3/5 

*Review of an eARC c/o Netgalley: Although I received a copy of this book free of charge this has not influenced my opinion and my review, as always, is 100% honest.

This post was written by regular reviewer Erin, get to know her here.
Image via Goodreads

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Guest Review | Graceling | Kristin Cashore

Tuesday, 5 March 2013

Guest Review | Graceling | Kristin Cashore

An average young woman’s life consists of the same simple elements: education; friends; crushes; heartbreak. Katsa, however, is not an average young woman, nor does she have an average life.

In the Seven Kingdoms there are people gifted with abilities that outmatch any human. These come about the day their eyes settle two different colours and can range from simply being able to swim like a fish or climb like a squirrel, to being Graced with the ability to control people’s minds. Because the Graced are so different from regular humans they live a cruel life, shunned by many and exploited by the rest.

Katsa is cursed with the worst Grace of all – the Grace of Killing. Not only is her Grace terrible enough, she’s also the niece of the terrible tyrant, King Randa, who uses her to send a message to those that wrong him. These messages generally warrant a broken bone or the removal of a finger or limb. But under the King’s order if he tells her to jump, she jumps. If he tells her to kill, she kills without hesitation. 

This is where the story gets interesting however. When the King of Lienid’s father goes missing she makes it her duty to locate and bring him back to safety without her uncle knowing about it. This brings about a whole new mystery that provides a chance to free herself from Randa’s hold, only to discover something far more sinister lurking in the shadows and rumours of a malicious one-eyed King. 

Along comes the next thing I love about books – romance. Unbelievably it does exist quite prominently in this book, and in the rest of the Seven Kingdoms trilogy. Apart from their first slightly violent encounter as he searched for his grandfather, Katsa finds Prince Po of Lienid’s company quite acceptable – possibly because he’s the only person that can match up to her fighting ability. With one eye of gold and the other silver, Po is Graced with hand-to-hand combat, though the waters run deep and as we find out later on in the book, there may be more to both his and Katsa’s Graces as they take to the wild in search of the one-eyed King. 

As a writer-in-training (har-har), I’ve always found it ironic that I’m so picky with the books I enjoy reading but Graceling is everything I love about the art of writing. Its short-tempered, stubborn-as-a-mule protagonist is a strong woman who, despite her Grace, has an innate desire to do good rather than evil. Even with her terrifying reputation she manages to build a secret society dedicated to protecting those oppressed by the unjust Kings and quickly develops a collection of loyal friends, despite her stating she’d no need for them. Cashore may not be the most imaginative, risky, or intricate writer, but her love for storytelling is obvious to the reader. So many well thought-out characters and a strong sense of story run through Graceling like electrolytes, and create an all-together excellent thrill ride, full of excitement, anxiety, and love. 

My overall opinion on the book: I’ve read it over fifteen times and I’ll read it again and again and again until the damn thing breaks, Graceling is an excellent first installment and is a wonderfully easy read for fantasy lovers and non-fantasy lovers alike. 

This review was written by guest blogger Emily.
*image via GoodReads

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Struck By Lightning | Chris Colfer | Review

Monday, 4 March 2013

Struck By Lightning | Chris Colfer | Review

“...Once upon a time,
there was a boy who flew.”

Struck By Lightning is the novel companion to the movie of the same name (still to come out in the UK unfortunately) written by actor (and screenplay writer of the film) Chris Colfer.

Meet Carson Philips, a highly ambitious high school outcast, hell-bent on heading to Northwestern University to study and one day become a writer for The New Yorker. But first he has to get out of his small town of Clover and bolster his college application by submitting a literary journal. The problem is he hates everyone in this town and he's pretty sure he's one of the least popular guys in schools thanks his Holden-esque attitude on life - not that he actually cares. His dreams, however, are bigger than his obstacles so he and his friend Malorie set out a plan...blackmail the most popular students in the school to contribute and the rest will follow suit.

The story pans out as Carson delves into the lives of his fellow classmates, discovering some reputation altering secrets and using them to his advantage. All the while he's managing his broken home life, alcoholic, drug addicted mother, and M.I.A. father, with his only respite being his grandmother, who suffers from Alzheimer's. Despite his malicious and selfish intent Carson finds that he's not the only one with problems and dreams of getting out of town.

So what's my verdict?

Writing this as unbiased as I can, and believe me as a Colfer-fan this is hard, I have to say the novel was just okay. It's a simple young adult story of a boy who just wants to get out of town, Carson himself isn't a very likable character at the beginning but he is relatable especially towards the end and his moments of sheer annoyance at his fellow classmates are something I'm sure many of us have felt. The humour in the novel reeks of Chris Colfer's natural sarcastic tone but the subtle moments of emotional dialogue are definitely heartfelt. The secondary characters are both ridiculous and hilarious, Marlorie in particular has some of the best lines in the book, and Carson's relationship with his ailing grandmother and his mother is really well done. The book won't shake the earth in terms of originality but the story carries through nicely, and will leave you with a bittersweet feeling at the end.

As a backwards screen-to-book adaptation I do feel like I should have seen the movie before hand, as the screenplay alongside the actors' own personal improvisational lines aid the story's humour and emotional arc. That being said I would definitely recommend this for any who wants a quick read or is curious about Colfer's writing style.

Soundtrack:

Dirty Little Secret: All American Rejects; Everyday Is Like Sunday: Morrisey; It's Only Life: Kate Voegele; Teenagers: My Chemical Romance; Bad Reputation: Joan Jett; 

For lovers of

Will Grayson/Will Grayson, Catcher In The Rye, John Hughes movies and Chris Colfer (and I mean CHRIS COLFER, if your reading for Kurt Hummel you're not gonna find him here). Also check out the SBL trailer here (warning, be prepared for lots of LoLs)

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Beautiful Creatures | Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl | Review

Sunday, 3 March 2013

Beautiful Creatures | Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl | Review

Ethan Lawson Wate is just your average sixteen year old, living in a small town in  the American South. He has friends and goes to school like a normal teenager. But when Lena Duchannes arrives in town, his whole world turns upside down.

Lena Duchannes lives with her mysterious uncle Macon Ravenwood and this fact does not go unnoticed for the rest of the town. Macon lives in a massive Gothic mansion and has not been seen leaving it in years. On Lena's first day at school, Lena soon discovers that the town of Gatlin does not take kindly to strangers and makes her know exactly where she stands. Ethan however finds her very extraordinary and there's something about her face which is very familiar. They become friends and as their friendship grows stronger, Ethan learns that Lena is a Caster, a being which can cast magic. However Lena has a problem. She is on the countdown to her sixteenth birthday where she will find out if she will turn to the Light or the Dark for her Claiming.

Sit tight and be prepared for a read, full of witches, both Light and Dark, and a love story like no other.

I really enjoyed Beautiful Creatures. The main reason why I picked it up was because I wanted to read it before the movie came out. I really enjoy anything to do with magic and to read something that was quite different to other books involving magic was a real joy. The only disadvantage I have to give is Ethan himself was a bit of a fanciful boyfriend. Like he was doing all of these things when you really think about it, most boyfriends wouldn't usually do. So when I was reading these bits I wasn't really feeling it if you know what I mean. However, it was a good narration and the authors did a good job talking from a male perspective.

I'm giving this a four and a half star rating. It is much better than the movie version. In the movie version they basically take a chunk of the book out of the movie and make things up which have nothing to do with the storyline. If you enjoy reading things to do with witches and other mystical beings then this is the book for you. It's really very good and I can't wait to read the rest of this series!

This book was reviewed by regular reviewer Lucy, get to know her here!

Photo by Goodreads!

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The Vow | Kim Carpenter | Review

Friday, 1 March 2013

The Vow | Kim Carpenter | Review

Each one of us is the sum total of every moment that we’ve ever experienced with all the people we’ve ever known.' - Kim Carpenter.

When a tragic car accident leaves Krickitt Carpenter with a serious brain injury just two months after her wedding to the love of her life, her new husband, Kim, thinks she's in the clear when she makes a miraculous recovery. Unfortunately for the Carpenters, this was only the beginning of their problems; Krickitt has amnesia, and, as a result of the accident, can't remember meeting, or marrying, Kim, leaving her isolated and scared, and Kim living with a woman who doesn't remember loving him. A true story, The Vow, follows Kim and Krickitt as they attempt to recover both physically and mentally from the accident which they miraculously survived - the only question is, will their marriage be a fatality?

Generally, when a novel is turned into a movie, I point-blank refuse to watch the film before I read the book; I genuinely believe that, 99% of the time, the book is better, by miles (the 1% comprising of The Time Traveller's Wife, which was a serious let-down for me, in print...), but I was caught off guard by The Vow. It's not the kind of film I'd generally sit down to watch, and, whilst I was aware that a book existed, I didn't even know who it was by, much less considered reading it.

However, I found myself settling down to the Rachel McAdams/Channing Tatum flick a few weeks ago, and absolutely falling in love with the story; and then, as the credits rolled, all was revealed - The Vow was based on a true story - and was available in book form. A little digging soon revealed the author to be the husband from the story, whose wife had completely forgotten his existence. Of course, I had to order it, and had made it through the first three chapters on my Kindle that same evening.

I realise how promising the fact that I was 3 chapters in such a short space of time sounds, but, unfortunately, this wasn't the case; I got through the book in record time, just because I wanted it to be over and done with. I've mentioned before, on Bloggers' Bookshelf, that I'm not a particularly religious person, and The Vow is, for the most part, an evangelical book; both Kim and Krickitt Carpenter are very devout Christians, and attribute much of the outcome of their story to their faith, which I can obviously appreciate, but in book form, the result is that we get very little actual story - few details or anecdotes about their lives before or after the event, and more conjecture on what Kim feels kept him and Krickitt going through her recovery.

Don't get me wrong, both the Carpenters' love for one another, their faith in their vows, and their faith in general, is very inspiring, but The Vow doesn't feel like it does Kim and Krickitt's story much justice. The narrative is in-cohesive, and jumps forwards and backwards without much of an explanation, and the text feels stilted, forced, as though the author's having trouble expressing himself; understandable, considering the book is penned by Kim, but considering John Perry was also along to assist the writing, I can't help but feel slightly let down by the novel.

1/5 stars

This review was written by regular reviewer Francesca, get to know her here.
Photo © Francesca Sophia.

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