/ Blogger's Bookshelf

Sunday, 3 March 2013

Beautiful Creatures | Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl | Review

Beautiful Creatures (Caster Chronicles, #1)

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!

1 comment

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.

1 comment

Wednesday, 27 February 2013

The Reapers Are The Angels | Alden Bell | Review

“...a noisy parade of memories that frustrate her because of the way they play themselves out. These memories-it feels like she's back there in the moment, like she has the moment to do over and make different choices than she made. But she can't, because they're just memories and they're set down permanent as if they were chiseled in marble, and so she just has to watch herself do the same things over and over and it's a condemnation if it's anything.” - Alden Bell, The Reapers are the Angels.

The Reapers are the Angels is a story about a fifteen-year-old girl's journey through a country that has turned into a zombie-filled wasteland. But this story is so much more than what meets the eye, because this is not your classic zombie novel about gore, action and a desperate fight for survival. This story is about such more...

There might be a few new readers here so I have to start of by making one thing clear to everyone. I'm a huge fan of zombie fiction. That being said I really think this is a book that anyone could really enjoy (not only zombie fans). But you should still keep my zombie fandom in mind while reading this review, because to be honest, I get a bit excited even by the thought of a zombie apocalypse (I'm a bit weird like that). But I'll try my best to keep that excitement at a normal level and give you an honest and objective review of The Reapers are the Angels by Alden Bell.

Okay, so you might have already guess it. I really loved this book. Wow, It's honestly such a different, engaging, weird, wonderful, cruel and beautiful story (yes, I just used the word beautiful to describe a zombie novel). The whole book has a special, almost magical feeling to it. I've heard it being describe as a magical western roadtrip and I think I have to agree with that description. And let me tell you a little about the main character Temple. She's such a weird, smart, broken, wonderful, strong, confusing and awesome character! The characters are always a big part of me liking or not liking a book. I don't have to like the character's personalities but there has to be some depth to them and Temple is a perfect example of that. She makes sense to me but there's also some kind of mystery around her that I quite can't wrap my head around. The other characters in this book were portrayed in an equally enjoyable way. One other thing I really liked about The Reapers are the Angels was Alden Bell's writing. It's a very classic and beautiful kind of story telling and that's unusual and a fresh touch to the zombie genre.

So yes, I really loved The Reapers are the Angels and recommend it to everyone (like I said, it's not only for zombie fans)! So please give this a try because this is such a different and beautiful read. I can even go as far as saying that it's one of my favorite books of all time. So... I guess my rating of The Reapers are the Angels is pretty obvious, 5/5 stars.

This post was written by regular reviewer Niina, get to know her here.

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Monday, 25 February 2013

Dear John | Nicholas Sparks | Review

Let me start of by saying I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with this book (and might I add the film). I also broke one of my many rules and watched the film before I read the book (because I failed to realise it was a book until after I’d seen the film). Not that you really needed to know any of that, now let’s go right back to the start and maybe I can explain my thoughts on this book a little more clearly.

Dear John, by Nicholas Sparks, introduces us to the main character John who has gone into the Army after dropping out of school and having a distinctive distant relationship with his Father. Whilst he is on leave for a couple of weeks, he inevitably meets Savannah who he falls hopelessly in love with (Yes this book is of course a love story). The novel tells of the trials and tribulations of their relationship, coping with months apart whilst John returns to the Army with the effects of 9/11 playing a huge role in the strength of their bond.

Although this couple are the focus point of this story, it is John’s relationship with his father which I found most intriguing. A coin collector and single Father, who shows signs of autism, John’s Dad proves to be an interesting character which I wish was focused more upon in the story.

I do absolutely adore this couple, both the characters separately and together are likable and appealing through their relationship which struggles through many twists and turns. Although I did mention this was a love story, it is not your typical love story, forget your fairy tales with happy endings which leaves your heart warm. The ending of this story was somewhat depressing, frustrating yet believable. It may not be the ending your heart craves but it certainly shows a more realistic side to love, war and life.

That being said, my rating somewhat reflects on this ending, I could not give Dear John 5/5 stars because it did leave me feeling frustrated and depressed. Now let’s be honest I read book partly to escape into another world, and no matter how realistic this book was, I’d of loved a happy ending!
4/5 stars

This post was written by regular reviewer Laura, get to know her here.
*Photo © Laura

2 comments

Sunday, 24 February 2013

Tempest | Julie Cross | Review

Apparently Tempest was super popular and everyone was reading it when it first in 2012, but I hadn’t even heard of it until I saw it on Goodreads. I must have been living under a rock.

“Today: Jackson and Holly are in love. Tomorrow: She will lie bleeding in his arms. Yesterday: Jackson must undo it all.”

Tempest is a time travelling story. Jackson, the main character, is a 19 year old time traveler who, after he and his girlfriend, Holly, are attacked in his dorm room (and she is lying bleeding on the floor) jumps back in time two years by accident and gets stuck in the past. In the past (2007), he meets Holly, and even though she is his girlfriend in 2009, they have never actually met before. Jackson’s best friend Adam is the only one who knows about Jackson’s time travelling abilities (or so they think) and they are constantly running experiments (in 2009) to try and figure out why it is that Jackson can do the impossible. In 2007, Adam and Jackson aren't friends. They don’t even know each other. After persistence on Jackson's part, they become acquaintances and Jackson tells 2007 Adam what he and 2009 Adam were up to in the future. Basically, it gets confusing often with all the time jumping. One tip: Pay attention to the note at the beginning of each chapter; it tells you exactly when Jackson is (not where, when).

With jumps between time lines, baddies, goodies, the CIA, a lying father, Jackson’s twin sister and near death experiences, you’d think that this should be an un-put-downable-read. But I could put it down, and I did. It took me quite a bit of time to read this book, not because it was horrific to read, but maybe because it was a bit predictable. Although it’s written in first person, from Jackson’s point of view, the only character I actually liked was Adam. Don’t get me wrong, I did enjoy it – gotta love a bit of time travel and a romance stretching on for years (Times Traveler’s Wife, anyone?) – but I think it could have been better.

The end was strange. Predictable in an unpredictable sort of way – I do realise that doesn't make much sense but just go with it for now. I expected something to happen at the end that would change everything, and it did, but I found it was just super annoying. I have just discovered that there’s another book after this one (thankfully, because there were so many unanswered questions!), and even though I did enjoy this one, I won’t be rushing to read the next one. If I run out of other things to read, I may read it, but it won’t be at the top of my list. I’ve given Tempest 3 stars, because I liked the concept and some of the ideas in it, but I feel it had more potential.

1 comment

Saturday, 23 February 2013