Thursday, October 31, 2013
October Wrap Up and November TBR | 2013
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer
Michelle Hodkin
Genre: YA, Paranormal, Romance
Series: The Mara Dyer Trilogy, #1
Publication Date: 27 September 2011
Number of Pages: 452
Source: Purchased
My Rating: ★★★★★
Mara Dyer doesn’t think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.
It can.
She believes there must be more to the accident she can’t remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.
There is.
She doesn’t believe that after everything she’s been through, she can fall in love.
She’s wrong. (Goodreads)
Mara Dyer doesn’t think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.
It can.
She believes there must be more to the accident she can’t remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.
There is.
She doesn’t believe that after everything she’s been through, she can fall in love.
She’s wrong. (Goodreads)
I was a little afraid to read this book for two reasons. One, I had been told it was creepy and I'm a baby and get scared very easily. And two, it got a lot of hype. A lot. Books that get hyped up make me nervous because I get all these expectations and I don't want to be let down. And let me tell you, I was not let down. This book was great. It was a little creepy at times, but in a good way.
First of all, Michelle Hodkin's writing is fabulous. The way she writes from Mara's point of view makes the entire book suspenseful and intriguing. Half the time I was worried that what happened didn't actually happen. All of the characters are great, the family dynamic in the book is well developed and believable. So is the school dynamic and all the rest of the settings and character interactions. Basically the entire book is believable.
As I've said in previous reviews, I generally don't get into the romantic books, but I think reading from the point of view of a potentially crazy person made it way more interesting. Basically Mara is awesome. Also Noah is pretty awesome. He's got a good mix of mystery and crazy. I'm not saying I trust him or like him. But I'm saying I like him.
I gave The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer a full 5 out of 5 stars. I'm really looking forward to reading the next in the series and I'm pretty sure the final book comes out pretty soon here. Let me know in the comments if you've read it and what you thought or anything else!
NaBloPoMo 2013!
Alright everyone, so November is coming and while most of you are gearing up for NaNoWriMo, I'm preparing for NaBloPoMo. What is it? National Blog Posting Month! I've thought a lot about doing NaNoWriMo and, sadly, this is the first year in 6 years that I will not be participating. I really don't think I'll have the time to do it. I don't have any new ideas and I've found that forcing one out usually ends in total disaster.
However, I do want to do something. And I like to do things to help me get my content out. This seems like fun. I've never done it before, but there's a first time for everything! A lot, if not all, of my posts will continue to be about books. But I'll be branching out from just reviews and video updates, which is something I've wanted and planned to do for a while. This will just get the ball rolling finally!
It'd be great if some of you wanted to do it along with me. (They're even giving away some iPad minis as a prize if you need some incentive.) Everything's more fun with friends! Okay, maybe not everything, but most things.
So you can click on the badge above to take you to the website, or click here to read more about what's going on.
Monday, October 28, 2013
Catching Fire Final Trailer Reaction
I am so excited for this movie I can't even explain it to you. The final trailer for Catching Fire came out today and it's a short one, but there's so much packed into it! This is my reaction. Enjoy!
Watch the Trailer:
Saturday, October 26, 2013
October 2013 Book Haul
I managed to stay on my book buying ban for a whole 3 weeks, but I finally broke on Thursday and got some books so here they all are! Let me know in the comments if you've read any of these and what you thought of them or if you want to read any of them!
Books Mentioned in This Video:
Micro by Michael Crichton and Richard Preston
The Dangerous Animals Club by Stephen Tobolowsky
House of Hades by Rick Riordan
Allegiant by Veronica Roth
The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket
Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
Allegiant by Veronica Roth | Book Review
Allegiant
Veronica Roth
Genre: YA, Dystopia, Romance
Series: Divergent trilogy, #3
Publication Date: 22 October 2013
Number of Pages: 526
Source: Purchased
My Rating: ★★★★★
(There are a couple spoilers from the first 2 books in this review. You have been warned.)
The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered—fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she’s known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and painful memories.
But Tris’s new reality is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend the complexities of human nature—and of herself—while facing impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice, and love. (Goodreads)
(There are a couple spoilers from the first 2 books in this review. You have been warned.)
The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered—fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she’s known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and painful memories.
But Tris’s new reality is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend the complexities of human nature—and of herself—while facing impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice, and love. (Goodreads)
Well Veronica Roth certainly knows how to go out with a
bang. Allegiant, the final book in
the Divergent trilogy, did not fail to disappoint. It was slower paced than the
first two in the series, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t intense at all. At the
end of Insurgent, we found out from a video of Tris’s ancestor that Chicago is
an experimental city run by someone on the outside. Allegiant picks up right after that and takes everyone out of the
city.
Out of anything, I really admire Veronica Roth’s character
development. I know I’m fairly alone in this opinion, but in Divergent, I can’t stand Tris. I love
the book and in a way I love Tris, but I was always really frustrated with her
decisions. I was even more frustrated with her decisions in Insurgent, but in Allegiant, I actually found myself liking Tris. She grew a lot
after events of Insurgent and started
making a lot smarter decisions. Also Evelyn’s character development was
probably the most impressive and coolest thing to read.
I also really enjoyed the mental obstacles and prejudices
characters struggled to get over in this book, like the absence of factions. And
other things that I will not mention to save you from spoilers. If you want tohear more about that, you should go watch my Book Talk about Allegiant which may or may not even be up yet.
This book also takes place from both Tris and Four’s point
of view, which was probably the biggest obstacle for me to get around. Because
both points of view were written in first person and Tris and Four’s voices
sound fairly similar, it was sometimes hard to keep track of who was narrating
at any given time. In the end I did like hearing from Four’s voice and gaining
a lot of insight of things from his perspective.
All in all I gave Allegiant a shining 5 out of 5 stars. Let me know in the comments what you thought!
Thursday, October 17, 2013
House of Hades by Rick Riordan | Book Review
House of Hades
Rick Riordan
Genre: Fantasy, Mythology, Adventure
Series: The Heroes of Olympus (#4)
Publication Date: 8 October 2013
Number of Pages: 597
Source: Purchased
My Rating: ★★★★★
At the conclusion of The Mark of Athena, Annabeth and Percy tumble into a pit leading straight to the Underworld. The other five demigods have to put aside their grief and follow Percy’s instructions to find the mortal side of the Doors of Death. If they can fight their way through the Gaea’s forces, and Percy and Annabeth can survive the House of Hades, then the Seven will be able to seal the Doors both sides and prevent the giants from raising Gaea. But, Leo wonders, if the Doors are sealed, how will Percy and Annabeth be able to escape?
They have no choice. If the demigods don’t succeed, Gaea’s armies will never die. They have no time. In about a month, the Romans will march on Camp Half-Blood. The stakes are higher than ever in this adventure that dives into the depths of Tartarus.
Two words: Character development. I think one of the reasons Riordan's books are so great is the amazing character development in all of his characters. For a book with so many points of view, I was never once confused by who was talking. Every single character has a very unique voice and personality. Not only that, but the side characters also all have development. It's always wonderful to see a story that has so much thought put into it.
Another two words: Plot development. Let's be real, Rick Riordan is the master of his stories and very much knows what he is doing. The story doesn't get slow and by about three quarters of the way through I'm sure everyone was on the edge of their seats. There were numerous times where I had to stop reading the book because I couldn't read fast enough. Which is the only reason I didn't finish the book a week ago.
And a final word: Realistic. Yes, I know this is a story about demigods. But there are a lot of realistic problems and thoughts that characters go through that I feel are left out of a lot of stories. The physical pain and struggle that characters push through that gets ignored most times is pointed out. The emotional conflicts that everyone goes through with such tough decisions. The panic experienced in battles even if the character has fought before. It is all very satisfying to see the (not so) small things pointed out throughout that add just that much more depth to the story.
My favorite character is definitely Nico and although he was in the story, I wish that there was more from his perspective. He is by far one of the most intriguing characters to me in the entire Greek and Roman world that Riordan has created. I cannot wait to see what else happens with him and where his character goes in the next book.
Like everyone else I am eagerly awaiting the next book in the series to see what happens. I gave House of Hades a shining 5 out of 5 stars and strongly think that there is something in this story for just about everyone to enjoy.
At the conclusion of The Mark of Athena, Annabeth and Percy tumble into a pit leading straight to the Underworld. The other five demigods have to put aside their grief and follow Percy’s instructions to find the mortal side of the Doors of Death. If they can fight their way through the Gaea’s forces, and Percy and Annabeth can survive the House of Hades, then the Seven will be able to seal the Doors both sides and prevent the giants from raising Gaea. But, Leo wonders, if the Doors are sealed, how will Percy and Annabeth be able to escape?
They have no choice. If the demigods don’t succeed, Gaea’s armies will never die. They have no time. In about a month, the Romans will march on Camp Half-Blood. The stakes are higher than ever in this adventure that dives into the depths of Tartarus.
Two words: Character development. I think one of the reasons Riordan's books are so great is the amazing character development in all of his characters. For a book with so many points of view, I was never once confused by who was talking. Every single character has a very unique voice and personality. Not only that, but the side characters also all have development. It's always wonderful to see a story that has so much thought put into it.
Another two words: Plot development. Let's be real, Rick Riordan is the master of his stories and very much knows what he is doing. The story doesn't get slow and by about three quarters of the way through I'm sure everyone was on the edge of their seats. There were numerous times where I had to stop reading the book because I couldn't read fast enough. Which is the only reason I didn't finish the book a week ago.
And a final word: Realistic. Yes, I know this is a story about demigods. But there are a lot of realistic problems and thoughts that characters go through that I feel are left out of a lot of stories. The physical pain and struggle that characters push through that gets ignored most times is pointed out. The emotional conflicts that everyone goes through with such tough decisions. The panic experienced in battles even if the character has fought before. It is all very satisfying to see the (not so) small things pointed out throughout that add just that much more depth to the story.
My favorite character is definitely Nico and although he was in the story, I wish that there was more from his perspective. He is by far one of the most intriguing characters to me in the entire Greek and Roman world that Riordan has created. I cannot wait to see what else happens with him and where his character goes in the next book.
Like everyone else I am eagerly awaiting the next book in the series to see what happens. I gave House of Hades a shining 5 out of 5 stars and strongly think that there is something in this story for just about everyone to enjoy.
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