text:
bookshelvesall (565)
|num pages
|avg rating
|num ratings
|date pub
|date pub (ed.)
|my rating
|read count
|date started
|date read
|date purchased
|purchase location
Jan 01, 2011
Jan 11, 2011
This one is actually getting 1.5 stars NOT 2-- THAT'S how much I loath you Kelsey Hayes-- you can take your dumb "love-p
This one is actually getting 1.5 stars NOT 2-- THAT'S how much I loath you Kelsey Hayes-- you can take your dumb "love-plant" and SHOVE IT.
What would you do if someone offered you an all-expenses-paid trip to India with a mysterious white tiger who also happens to be a handsome Indian prince? Eighteen-year old Kelsey Hayes is faced with just this offer after spending 2 weeks working as a hired hand at a local circus one summer-- and her life will never be the same.
Soooo.... I had pretty much been *dying* to read this book for ages, and after reading review after raving review, I FINALLY picked it up off the shelves. I was so positively sure that I was going to absolutely love this book, that by the end, I would be in raptures and stumbling over myself trying to say enough good things about it.
I don't know what the hell happened, but this book turned out to be an absolute joke.
I KNOW, and I hate saying this, but I have to be honest. There were some things I liked about Tiger's Curse, but they were all completely overshadowed by some of the worst characterization I've ever encountered in a book. OK, here we go...
So first, let me talk a little about Kelsey Hayes, the main character. At the beginning, I actually liked her. Laid-back, down-to-earth, and slightly quirky, she was a fun character to follow in the story.
But then things started to go down hill-- rapidly.
I noticed about a hundred pages in that Kelsey's way of talking and thinking could be *extremely* juvenile at times-- juvenile and annoying. I don't know if anyone else thought the same thing, but as I made my way through this book, I just didn't feel like I was reading from an 18-year old's perspective. Some of the expressions she uses (my FAVE was when she exclaimed, "You wily scoundrel!" when Kishan tries to kiss her- DUDE. FIND ME SOMEONE WHO TALKS LIKE THIS), the way she addresses people ("oh hey there Mister!" -- seriously? Is your main character from The Little Rascals?), and just her whole way of thinking seemed more like that of an immature little kid than an adult...
And things only went from bad to worse when Ren the Prince stepped into the picture. If Kelsey was slightly childish and annoying to begin with, it was nothing compared to the infantile monstrosity she turns into in the last half of the book. The immaturity levels reached astronomical proportions. How you ask? Here are a few examples:
1.) She pouted and threw tiny tantrums when she was displeased about pretty much anything-- and rather than be an ADULT and communicate with Ren about how conflicted she was feeling, she turned into a cold and standoffish little biotch. Then, when the poor guy asks her what's wrong, she says "nothing" (in that way where it's obviously something) and goes right back to being Ice Queen Supreme. Clearly, this is an awesome way to treat people.
2.) She had the *exceedingly* annoying defense mechanism of needing to make sarcastic quips every 5 seconds, and the more defensive she got, the less likely it became for her to be serious or mature at crucial points in the story. I mean, the girl almost dies and the first thing she does upon waking up is crack a few dumb jokes-- well I'm sorry, but I don't want to read about a main character who acts like she's constantly auditioning at a comedy club (and failing miserably, I might add)-- I want her to have a grown-up, serious side too! It was just too much. There is no way in hell this chick was 18-- maybe 12? Maybe.... even that's pushing it.
3.) I just love how Kelsey was absolutely shocked and appalled when she sees Ren the Tiger-version and his brother hunt for food. She does realize that "hunting" involves killing something right?? And that tigers have a tendency towards being carnivores? And that tasty meat often comes from cute animals? I mean the girl had to actually sing herself to sleep to get over it-- no, I'm not making this up, she sings herself to sleep ("happy songs" from The Wizard of Oz) because the tigers killed an antelope. Then she has nightmares about it. And she's eighteen -_-
4.) Kelsey just LOVES to continually tell us about her little "love-plant" for Ren-- because you know, normal people talk like this. By the end I wanted to take some pesticide spray and a blow torch to Kelsey's freaking love-plant and incinerate the damn thing into the ground...
(I won't even get into the fact that she was dumb as a brick and could barely tie her own shoes without Ren holding her hand. But wait, you say! The book says she loves reading Shakespeare, well then she MUST be a total rocket scientist, no?? Give me a fa-reaking break Colleen- sorry my dear, but saying that your main protag reads Shakespeare does NOT make her smart and clever and oh-so-different from everyone else, because she comes across as a complete dumbass in everything else she thinks, does, and says. Need I mention how she nearly gets herself killed near Kishindha? Because she goes to grab a pretty sparkly diamond out of the water, moments after she and Ren nearly died because DUH the prophesy TOLD you not to believe your eyes and that things weren't as they seemed! GAWD she's like freaking Abu the monkey in Aladdin, literally that is who she reminded me of! **slaps forehead in total frustration**)
But I think that out of all the things that bothered me about Kelsey, the VERY WORST was the fact that she made such a snap judgement about Ren-- without even giving him the chance to prove that he was a good guy-- and then proceeded to treat him like total crap for the rest of the book, all for absolutely NO REASON other than her own stinking insecurity that "she wasn't good enough for him." Kelsey Hayes, you were to put it bluntly, one of THE most immature characters I have ever read about, and you need to go find yourself a therapist. Pronto.
So... Let's just say that by the end of this book, I had never wanted to punch a main character in the face quite so badly as Kelsey "Boo-Hoo I'll Never Be Good Enough So I'll Just Act Like a Bitch 24/7" Hayes.
While we're sitting in on How to Make Your Characters As Unlikable as Possible 101, let's take a look at Ren. Overall, the guy wasn't too bad when you stand back and see him over the course of the book-- but I still couldn't stand him. And the thing is, he wouldn't have been such an unlikable character if the author hadn't set him up to be totally unlikable . To prove my point, here are just a few of the phrases used to describe Ren's actions in this book:
-Laughed "acerbically"
-Smiled "mockingly" and "malevolently"
-grinned "maliciously"
-scoffed and smirked
-was "annoyingly happy"
Now you tell me-- would you like a character whose behavior is described this way?? The guy is annoying even when he's happy for crying out loud, and the rest of the time he's described as being a total ass-hat, and I'm supposed to be falling in love with him?!? I mean he sounds like a complete douche, amirite?? There's only two explanations for this kind of character portrayal:
1.) Ren is, in fact, a douche-- in which case I can't stand him and hope he jumps off a cliff, or
2.) Ren is actually a good guy and all of this is Kelsey's perception of him-- in which case Kelsey is *psycho cray cray* and I hope she jumps off a cliff.
In either case, I'm really not rooting for your characters.
Then there's the fact that Ren is-- according to the story-- hundreds of years old. And it seems like in every YA story where one of the characters has been around for a long time (Twilight, Fallen...) we're just supposed to forget this fact and think it makes total sense for them to act like immature teenagers and have character dialogue that's somewhere along the lines of "Ohemgee totally!!." I mean here we have this 300-year old Indian prince and he's referring to Kelsey as "Kells??" Are you freaking kidding me??? So yes, this made Ren even MORE obnoxious as a main character, if that's even possible.
(And oh, hey-- let's not even get into the glaring "ick" factor that this kind of plot point brings up: a 300-year old guy is flirting and trying to get with an 18-year old girl.
Really. THINK ABOUT IT.)
I also felt like the pacing of the plot was slightly off. Overall, I thought that the story itself was pretty good-- I loved the Indian setting and the adventurous element it had going on-- but there was just a lot of superfluous description that got in the way for me. For example, when Kelsey gets on the plane to go to India, I thought we were never going to hear the end of all the luxurious details of the plane's interior and the food they ate. Don't get me wrong, I think that adding vivid description to your story is wonderful and sets the backdrop for all the action, but I also think there is a way to describe a scene while still leaving something up to the reader's imagination! I mean, do I *really* care what color hair ribbon Kelsey ties in her braids every day? And by the by, how many 18-year-olds do YOU know who tie hair ribbons in their braids? Or walk around with their blanket like they're freaking Linus from Charlie Brown?? JUST SAYING.
Besides plot pacing being off, many parts of the plot made ZERO SENSE. Tell me, how many foster parents do you know, who seem to be fairly sensible and, oh I don't know, **SANE** let their foster-daughter go off on a trip to INDIA with a strange older man and a tiger, after meeting said man ONE TIME?? This is basically how things played out:
1.) Kelsey works 2 weeks as a hired hand at a circus (WHICH she got from some super-shady work placement company)
2.) Kelsey reads Shakespeare to the tiger at said circus (Hmm yeah, that's totally normal) and then a strange Indian man shows up and tells Kelsey she is PERFECT for taking care of the tiger, if she can only GO TO INDIA to put tiger in a nature reserve (***RED FLAGS GOING OFF HERE***).
3.) Kelsey's parents AGREE TO LET HER GO TO INDIA with strange older man after meeting him once, and within a WEEK Kelsey has all her documentation, passports, vaccines, etc. taken care of and is on a plane to India to take care of a rare white tiger species because 2 weeks of sweeping up crap at a circus has turned her into an animal GENIUS.
**Insert dumb-founded expression HERE 0_o**
Also-- and this is something I didn't even fully realize until awhile after I finished reading it-- but this book is BEYOND RACIST. It basically portrays Indian people as pathetic simpletons with horrible broken English (Ummm guess what Colleen? Many Indian people know how to speak English, and those who don't aren't idiots who you can write about as though they're incoherent monkeys...) Mr. Kadam, the Indian man employed by Prince Ren, basically spends the entire book kissing the ground Kelsey Hayes walks on, waxing eloquent about how amazing she is. WHY?? What the flying you-know-what is so awesome about Kelsey Hayes?? She's a vapid, lazy and stuck-up wish fulfillment device who is glorified by everyone for no good reason. Pretty much everyone in this book who is NOT WHITE AMERICAN is ignorantly and disrespectfully portrayed like a cartoon, exaggerated to the point of being comical-- except that it ISN'T FUNNY because it's straight-up RACISM. Then we have Kelsey- the White Girl Who Saves the Day- someone with absolutely no qualifications or connection to Indian culture, who we find out is actually the "Chosen One" of the Indian goddess Durga. YEAH YOU HEARD ME RIGHT. Kelsey, the most ignorant and brain-dead character ever conceived for YA fiction, the lazy American white girl who acts like a spoiled whiny little brat for 400+ freaking pages- is the savior of the Indian people. Excuse me while I very loudly exclaim:
As far as the romance goes, well if you're a fan of train wrecks, you're going to be in 7th heaven because this was just about as dysfunctional as they come. It was like watching two cars heading for a straight-on collision, and not being able to do a damn thing about it, so you just sit there with the same horrified expression on your face that you'd have if you accidentally swallowed a mouthful of spoiled milk. Three-month-old spoiled milk. I've already described Kelsey's emotional constipation and total lack of ability to do anything remotely mature, but I also didn't like how possessive Ren got of Kelsey as the story went on. Protective tiger-- awesome, Possessive love interest-- HELL to the NO. Not a fan. I was also pretty annoyed at the good ol' YA ploy of presenting the main character as Ms. I'm-Totally-Average-But-Every-Guy-Who-Sees-Me-Falls-Inexplicably-Yet-Madly-In-Love-With-Me-Tee-Hee!-- because it's been done SO many times. In fact, it's gotten to be about as cliche as being Disney-Princess-Perfect. Which brings me to...
**************** My Brief Bookish Rant ****************
Yeah so after all that, you're probably wondering what the heck else I have to rant about. (Do not underestimate my ranting skills *whahahaha!*) So here is my totally random gripe-- and trust me, this is random-- that I have to get off my shoulders. And I'm not trying to pick on this book specifically, it's more of a general trend that I see again and again in YA books-- and my slightly annoyed question is this:
WHY do authors always make a POINT of telling us that their main female characters never or seldom wear makeup?
I know, I know, this is such a dumb thing to rant about, but for *some reason* it bothers me. I mean, is there something bad about wearing makeup or doing your hair on a regular basis? Do they think that makeup makes their protagonist seem stupid or fake? Do they assume that readers won't relate to a character who wears makeup because... I don't know, people who read don't wear makeup? Like why does it even need to be mentioned? It's like they expect me the reader to go, "Ohh, she doesn't wear makeup! Well I can respect her a lot more now!" And then on the other side of things, the "mean girl" or the bitchy back-stabber is often described as wearing makeup or being super tan or having the latest fashions. WHY?? Is it a given that if a girl cares about her appearance she must be less of a person? If the main character is a frumpy Plain-Jane who's never worn heels and who thinks at best she's "average," am I supposed to like her more? What exactly are you trying to convey to me the reader when you tell me that your main character doesn't wear makeup? I just don't see what the heck this has to do with the characterization of someone, and personally I couldn't care less whether the main character wears makeup or not, so stop bringing it up like it's a determining factor in whether or not I'll relate to/like/respect that character more!
(I will mention that Kelsey does get dolled up a few times in the book, but what irked me was her complete inability to see herself as being attractive, no matter what. This is not a good character trait. Insecurity and false modesty are NOT attractive in anyone-- it's extremely immature and I CAN'T STAND characters that constantly use self-pity and self-deprecation to excuse themselves from acting grown-up. SO STOP IT RIGHT NOW!!)
OK, rant over. I feel much better now!
~Final Thoughts~
Tiger's Curse is one of those books that I think appeals to a large group of people because it has a lot of great things going on-- romance, adventure, travel, mystery, an ancient curse-- I mean, what's not to love about that? BUT-- and this is a big but-- none of them, in my opinion, were executed well. The romance devolved into two spoiled teenagers acting like juvenile brats, the adventure and mystery were bogged down by way too much description, and honestly, by the end I was so fed up with the main characters that I really couldn't care less about where the story was going-- I just wanted it to end so I didn't have to constantly fight the temptation to throw the book out the window of a 50-story building.
So my final word with this one is- proceed with caution. While I can see the appeal for many readers, if you are like me and can't stand pointless drama, immature dialogue, and characters who act much younger than their years, you might want to think twice before picking this one up. On the other hand, the ratings overall for Tiger's Curse are extremely good, so this may very well be a case of me just personally not liking it. Read what other people had to say about this book, you might end up loving it-- I, unfortunately, was not one of those people.
~Lea @ LC's Adventures in Libraryland ...more
Notes are private!
Jan 28, 2013
Feb 05, 2013
Mar 29, 2012
Jan 01, 2012
Apr 24, 2012
[**NOTE: This review was not affected by online drama or controversy. Everything I have to say here is based on my own personal opinion about the boo .
[**NOTE: This review was not affected by online drama or controversy. Everything I have to say here is based on my own personal opinion about the book itself, even though I definitely think Cass needs a new publicist.]
[**NOTE #2: All the captions in the non-animated picture memes were made by me-- because, you know, I'm just THAT brilliantly witty. So please don't use them without asking my permission first. Thanks :)]
Now with a story premise like that, honestly I thought it would take a lot to ruin this book for me. 35 girls all competing for one crown and the heart of one handsome prince? Sign me up and bring on the popcorn! However, The Selection turned out to be one of those unfortunate books that had about twenty-dozen little things in it that just aggravated the crap out of me, with the end result being that I was entertained by it for all the wrong reasons.
So first, a word about love triangles. I honestly don't mind them IF they are done well. But in this case, the love triangle was SO freaking forced, cliche, and angsty, I was ready to tear my hair out strand by strand. The whole thing between America, Aspen, and Maxon was just completely ridiculous (ALMOST as ridiculous as those names), and the motivations behind their actions made absolutely no sense whatsoever. There were so many instances of juvenile misunderstanding, miscommunication, etc. that I'm not even going to bother going into specifics. All I have to say is: STOP TRYING TO MAKE THE LOVE TRIANGLE HAPPEN.
Moving on, America as a main character was just about two steps away from being completely intolerable. She was-- to put it simply-- extremely annoying (Highlight, underline, and bold extremely). I *might* have been able to stand her if all the little things that were supposed to make her seem like a fun and feisty redhead hadn't come across as painfully redundant and irritating (Oh and by the way- I'm a genuine redhead, so I can tell you right now, we don't act like America Singer). So yeah, by the end, I was pretty much incredibly offended that my redheaded-ness was portrayed in such a pathetic and crappy light. For example, she denies ad nauseum that she's beautiful even though she clearly is. (Please note, America: False modesty does not make you more attractive-- it makes people want to punch you in the face.) She makes constant quips and remarks about the stuffy life that Maxon leads and he finds it to be cute (it's not). She's got the whole cliche tom-boy thing going on while every other girl is a Stepford clone-- It was just like, OK, I get it, she's one of those totally-gorgeous-but-she's-the-only-one-who-thinks-she's-not girls. And ironically? She stands out in the story because she's so "different" from the other girls, while simultaneously being about as cliche as they come.
As for the rest of the girls in the book? Well, let's just say that added to the exasperating America Singer, this book just made me hate girls. For real. Even more than ANTM.
And the guys weren't any better. Probably because they were about as manly as:
Sexy, amirite?
Prince Maxon was seriously one of the most awkward characters I've ever encountered-- and not in that adorable, hott kind of way either. In typical Disney prince fashion, he was so perfect and nice that I couldn't even take him seriously. He bored me to tears and was overly-sheltered to the point of being pathetic. And his behavior? It made NO SENSE. Let's review: America wrongly assumes that Maxon is about to rape her-- then she proceeds to knee him in the royal jewels-- then he pretty much brushes it off like a day later and goes back to let's-be-best-friends-because-I-don't-have-any mode. Seriously dude? I've never watched The Bachelor, but I'm thinking that if some strange girl told the guy that she had zero interest in him, that she was in love with somebody else, that she was only there for the food (no I'm not making this up) AND THEN wrongly accused him of being a rapist, I'm going to take a **wild guess** that he would've kicked her out of the mansion on the spot. I mean, that's a pretty serious way to offend someone, no?
But then when America tries to explain to him that Celeste the Biotch is sabotaging the rest of the girls, he throws a hissy fit being all like, "YOU WILL RESPECT MAH AUTHORATAH!" -- and almost sends her home. Whhhhhaaaatttt???
However, Prince Maxon wasn't nearly as douche-baggy as Aspen, the chauvinistic jerk-wad who gets his panties all in a bunch when America tries to make him dinner and then immediately bails on her because he can't handle the helpless, little woman being the one providing for him. This guy seriously needed to grow a pair.
Another beef I had with this book was that I couldn't find any context for the kind of society that America Singer lives in. HOW did Illea come to be the way it is? What major events led up to the creation of a society where there's a monarchy, an eight-tiered caste system, and two different groups of rebel forces trying to bring it down? And why again was The Selection created?? (Vague explanation: it creates hope. okaaayyyy...) And don't even get me started on "The History Lesson" that was randomly thrown in, because it made absolutely NO SENSE (The American State of China? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA). Apparently there was a Third and Fourth World War where the US was invaded by China and then Russia because it couldn't pay off its massive debt. Riiiiiiiiiiight... Explain that one to me, please-- last time I checked, major international superpowers don't behave like 4th graders trying to steal someone's lunch money by giving them a massive wedgie. So, in a nutshell, the "history lesson" that attempted to establish the world of Illea explained nothing.
So for me, it was difficult to find a connection to this world because it wasn't built on any solid foundation that would have made it remotely believable. And I'm sorry, but if a book can't manage to adequately explain how a society came to be and what the motivation is behind the ones leading it or trying to tear it down (**cough, cough** Matched! **cough, cough**), that for me is a major dystopian FAIL. In the end, I just had to take Illea for what it was-- a make-believe fairy-tale kind of setting that had no plausible explanation for why it exists or how it came to be.
Now if the long-awaited, delicious drama of a 35-girl competition had actually happened, I really wouldn't have cared about the absence of a thought-provoking dystopia. But where the heck was the crazy competition part of the story?? That whole Bachelor spin-off was the number one reason I was looking forward to reading this book in the first place! And the entire thing ended up being one big snoozefest. There were some random acts of cattiness and backstabbing, a few girls got kicked off, a few dresses got ruined, but hardly anything was explained and there was little to no build-up. What happened to--
Not only was there no drama, but I honestly couldn't have cared less about who got kicked off and who stayed. Note to the author: If you aren't going to even bother telling your readers WHO your characters are, WE AREN'T GOING TO GIVE A CRAP WHEN THEY GET BUMPED OFF. We have ZERO investment in them. So faceless, never-before-mentioned Girls #1, 2 and 3 got the ax? Umm, yeah don't care. No shock value. And Celeste the spoiled little rich girl? C'mon now, she was one big glaring stereotype and had about as much personality as a thumbtack. It was boring!! And one of the girls was named Tiny. I'm sorry, but how can I take a book seriously with character names like Tiny, Tuesday, King Clarkson, and Maxon Schreave? (Answer: I can't.) And when the only thing in your dystopia that comes across as being even slightly disturbing is the prospect that one day we will be moronic enough to name our kids "Tiny" and "America," well, you've messed up something pretty badly. Just sayin'.
So for me, the only thing that this book had going for it was that it was *mildly* entertaining in a mindless kind of way, and there was nothing about it that made me want to seriously punch a hole in the wall. But the rest was either very confusing or highly predictable. Everything from the characters, to the love triangle, to most of the outcomes of The Selection were all very easy to see coming from miles away. I'm sorry, but I really couldn't find anything about this book that was terribly exceptional or interesting and overall, I just wasn't impressed.
After this, I think I'll be picking up a book about killer dragons. Or bioengineered war beasts. That really sounds like a good idea right about now...
~Lea @ LC's Adventures in Libraryland ...more
Notes are private!
May 14, 2012
May 17, 2012
Sep 19, 2011
Jun 12, 2012
Jun 12, 2012
**NOTE: This actually got 2.5 stars on my blog
So... This is one book that was really difficult for me to review. On one hand, there were some things a **NOTE: This actually got 2.5 stars on my blog
So... This is one book that was really difficult for me to review. On one hand, there were some things about it that I really didn't like, but then on the other hand the story was loosely based off of Jane Austen's book Persuasion, which I've never read, so I feel like it's almost unfair of me to rate this book low considering that I may have missed a lot of the point of this story and its characters since I don't know anything about the classic it's based off of...
So because I have to critique this book more as a stand-alone and not as a new take on a classic, this review probably won't be as good or accurate as someone who has read Persuasion. If you were thinking about reading this one, it would be a good idea to read some other reviews for it as well!
OK, here we go...
So to begin with, my biggest problem with this book was that I didn't like the characters much at all-- and I absolutely despised whatever the heck was going on between Elliot and Kai. I wouldn't even call it a romance-- it was more just a desperate attempt on Elliot's part to hold on to a guy who acted like she was totally worthless through three-quarters of the book.
And I really need to emphasize that I seriously dislike it when girls in books come across as being desperate-- wait, scratch that-- I absolutely hate it when girls come across as being desperate! And Elliot was one of the most desperate characters I've ever read about. I mean, she was a total insecure mess and let Kai control and manipulate her, because she just could not cope with the idea of being without him. It really got to be pathetic to be perfectly honest. Elliot was like that girl friend you have who's stuck in a horrible relationship with a crappy guy, and you try to tell her that she's worth better, but she just won't listen. Except it's even more frustrating because you're reading about this train wreck of a relationship and can't stop it!
I also thought that Elliot's thought processes could be totally unrealistic to the point of seeming ridiculous-- She was just so insecure! As one example, there is a part where Benedict tells Elliot that her mother had left his father for Baron North. Immediately, Elliot jumps to the conclusion that her mother was only out to get money from the Baron, and it was no wonder Kai had tried to bribe her, Elliot, with money to stay quiet because she came from a long line of women who would do anything to get rich. Umm... what?? How the heck did you surmise that?? Do you really have that little confidence in your mother and yourself? I just didn't get it. It was such a strange conclusion to jump to, and I was seriously baffled.
Then there were the letters back and forth between Elliot and Kai, which were also ridiculous. They went something like this:
Dear Kai,
Please don't ever leave me. I am totally head over heels in love with you and would die if you ever went away.
Your friend,
Dear Elliot,
You're a stinking Luddite with no brains. Bring me stuff and maybe I'll still hang out with you.
Your friend,
Dear Kai,
I hate you.
Not Your friend,
Dear Elliot,
Yeah well, I hated you first.
Not Your friend,
Yeah, no joke, that's basically in a nutshell how the letters came across to me. There was no affection, just misunderstanding and immature insults. For me the reader, it was impossible to feel the same loss as Elliot did when Kai left, because there was nothing between her and Kai to lose in the first place!
So let's talk about Kai-- where do I even begin? In this book, Kai is a total jerk who acts selfish, manipulative, and immature. Until the very end, there is never a moment where I got to see a sweet side to him, where I might've thought to myself, OK I get why Elliot likes him, even if he can be mean and rude, I can understand her attraction. No. He was a douche to her throughout almost the whole book-- even in all the letters-- there was nothing revealed about him to make him seem worthy of Elliot's love and attention. And from the moment he and Elliot are reunited, he's badmouthing her and her family. But this was the kicker-- he was staying on their property. Yeah! He's staying on Elliot's family's property and he thinks it's OK to badmouth her and her family and treat her like dirt! If I was Elliot? I would've been like, you know what dude? If you don't like me and my family, why don't you pack your bags and get the heck off our land. OR, if that would have threatened the Fleet staying there and paying rent, I would have gone to the admiral of the Fleet and let him know to put Kai in line because getting insulted on a continual basis wasn't part of the deal. Why did Elliot just stay quiet and take his abuse? And why on earth did Elliot feel so guilty for making the clear responsible choice of staying behind on the estate and taking care of business instead of running off with Kai four years ago?
So in case you're a bit confused, the whole "thing" between Elliot and Kai went something like this:
Elliot was born a Luddite and Kai was born a child of "The Reduced," which are the lower class who serve the Luddites. Elliot and Kai grew up as "friends" (even though in their letters I never saw anything revealed of friendship, it was just Kai being resentful and trying to take advantage of Elliot) and then four years ago, Kai asked Elliot to leave her home, family and the estate she's ultimately responsible for to be with him. Elliot made the tough decision to stay behind because she had to take care of the farm and the people who depended on and worked for her family. So Kai left anyways, and then comes back one day as a member of a Sea Fleet which is renting land from Elliot's grandfather to build a new ship. And the rest of the story is about Kai trying to make Elliot feel sorry for not leaving everything for him and bringing her down for trying to be responsible... Well hey Kai, guess what? Not everyone is as selfish and immature as you-- some people actually understand that there are obligations and responsibilities in life and people that depend on them and things they're accountable for and they can't just up and leave because they're in love with you. And if you weren't such a selfish ass throughout the entire flipping book, maybe you would have realized that Elliot not leaving was because she was objective and wise when you were being a delusional idiot. The world doesn't freaking revolve around you buddy, sorry! Seriously, grow up already because you act like a spoiled little brat throughout the entire stinking story. You wanting Elliot to leave with you in the first place was not romantic-- it was foolish, selfish, and irresponsible.
[Whoa. Glad I got that off my shoulders!]
And really, I didn't understand why Eliot was constantly lamenting the fact that Kai was no longer "her Kai," how he was no longer the "old Kai," and how now he was this horrible person. Because in reality, he was just as much of an ass even way back when-- in all his letters to Elliot, he just came across as being totally selfish and immature and didn't care about Elliot unless she was completely under his control. It was one unhealthy and twisted relationship, and you'd think that after 4 YEARS of mulling it over, Elliot would have had time to figure this out. She acts like she's lost this amazing person who used to love her, when actually, Kai treated her like crap even before he left the estate. And lo and behold, he still acts like a child having a temper-tantrum now that he's 18.
I also didn't understand Elliot and her sister Tatiana's hate for one another. To me, there was no motivation behind it and was just added in as another point of conflict to the plot. Why couldn't they stand each other again? I mean it would have been one thing if Elliot and Tatiana just annoyed each other but in the end really loved one another, but they were completely estranged, with absolutely no sisterly bond or affection. It just didn't seem natural to me. I have a sister and we don't always get along or see eye to eye, but I don't see how you could dislike your sister as much as Tatiana and Elliot did.
OK, so what did I like about this book, you're probably wondering... Well, I did like the world building, and I thought it was really interesting to take a Post-Apocalyptic society and put them in a classic storyline. It almost came across as Steampunk because the characters acted Victorian in their manners and speech, but then there were futuristic elements as well. So that aspect of the book was very interesting and creative.
Also, the ending of this book did save it for me *somewhat.* Kai redeems himself for the most part, even though any explanation for why he was a jerk did not justify his attitude and behavior in my opinion, and if there was any explanation for why he all of a sudden pulled a 180 and became this awesome kind and caring guy, well-- I missed it. Basically, the strings were all tied together but it seemed a bit too convenient for me. But at the very least, Kai did change by the end and Elliot didn't end up with the jerk he started out as.
So all in all, I wasn't a big fan of this book, but I feel like my opinion isn't the best one to be taking because like I said, I'm totally clueless about the book it is based off of. Maybe if I read Persuasion by Jane Austen I would have a better understanding for the motivations behind the characters and why they acted the way they did, but on the other hand I think that a book should be able to stand alone and be likable whether I read the classic it was based off of or not. I guess it just wasn't for me, unfortunately!
~Lea @ LC's Adventures in Libraryland ...more
Notes are private!
Jun 15, 2012
Jun 22, 2012
Sep 19, 2011
Sep 01, 2011
Sep 06, 2011
CAUTION: RANTING AHEAD. (Not the whole thing, but I had a lot to get off my chest lol)
First I need to say just how much I love the covers for these bo CAUTION: RANTING AHEAD. (Not the whole thing, but I had a lot to get off my chest lol)
First I need to say just how much I love the covers for these books so far-- I really liked Firelight's, but I think I like Vanish's even more-- and when you put the two side-by-side, it's just like, **wow.** Love them! So now we know what Jacinda and Tamra look like, I wonder who we will be seeing on the third cover?!
Alright, so now onto the actual story.
The number one reason that I enjoyed Vanish so much more than Firelight was because I accepted some basic truths about the series before I started reading:
Truth #1.) It is a teenage love story-- therefore yes, there will be teen angst, love triangles, whining-and-pining, hormones galore, and lots o' drama.
Truth #2.) It will be cheesy as all get out-- embrace it and enjoy.
Truth #3.) It will not be a high-fantasy adventure with lots of battles a la Lord of the Rings. Deal with it.
Now with Firelight, I had assumed that this series was going to be something totally different than what it actually was, which led to a lot of ranting from yours truly. But I wanted to give the series another chance. So as I started reading Vanish, I told myself: "OK, I'm just going to enjoy this story for what it is instead of trying to turn it into something its not. Embrace the teen angst and love triangles and Mary Sue-esque main character!"
And you know what? Once I did just that, I started to appreciate the series a lot more. That is not to say I won't be indulging in some mild ranting here-- like with Lauren Kate's Fallen series, I liked reading Firelight and Vanish, not so much for their literary merit, but more because they're purely entertaining. Maybe that's unfair of me, but I'll try to fill you in as best I can on what I did and didn't like about this latest draki drama-fest.
So Vanish begins with Jacinda, Tamra, and their mother being taken back to the draki pride after the whole face-off with the hunters at the end of the first book. Jacinda-- the pride's only fire-breathing draki-- is in deep trouble for not only revealing herself to hunters, but also for falling in love with Will, one of the hunters who kill draki for their skins. Once taken back to the pride, Jacinda is treated like an outcast and her mother becomes depressed for making the mistake of leaving in the first place. And Tamra, Jacinda's twin sister, is revealed to be-- oops, I'm not saying, that would spoil the BIG surprise in the beginning!! You'll just have to read it for yourself ;)
First of all, I think that most of the characters seemed slightly more multi-dimensional in this book than the first one, and we really get to see their strengths and weaknesses and more interaction between them. Cassian became a lot more vulnerable and likable while Will became a whole lot more of a controlling and manipulative jerk-wad. I really can't decide which I like or dislike more to be perfectly honest, but I don't understand at all why Jacinda is so convinced that Will is "it," when there is nothing there between them but physical attraction-- Cassian cares about her just as much, if not more than Will does. Sorry, I just don't get Jacinda's head-over-heels fascination with Will. He's kind of a creep-- and the only major connection they shared in the entire book was a make-out session that I'll talk more about in just a minute...
Second, the relationships in Vanish became a lot more interesting-- Tamra is still in love with Cassian, but Cassian only has eyes for Jacinda, and Jacinda only wants to be with Will-- she thinks! Love triangles abound, and I found that if I just accepted the whole love triangle plot line instead of getting annoyed with it, I actually started to enjoy seeing the dynamics play out between all the characters. I was also really happy that this story took place in the draki pride and not so much in the human world, like the first book did (this was my biggest beef with Firelight).
Finally, this book transitioned extremely well from the first one-- I never felt lost or confused about what had happened in Firelight and thought that the plot ran very smoothly and was easy to follow from one book to the next.
Oh yes, that is a big however.
I have some things I need to discuss about this book-- some large, glaring things that just beg to be addressed.
I know I said I accepted Jacinda, the Mary Sue draki, but still, I'm going to rag on her a little. C'mon now, I swear it's all in good fun.
Why, you ask?
Because I have no clue why everyone is so in love with her.
Cassian's obsessed with her, Will's obsessed with her, Corbin's creepy-stalker obsessed with her-- and do we know why? Nope! Not really. She's a fire-breather, but other than that there isn't anything terribly special about good ol' Jacinda. She's whiny and angsty and pretty darned selfish. She likes to fly, which doesn't seem too out of the ordinary, considering the fact that she has wings. The only other thing she does in her spare time is sit around and watch TV and occasionally cook dinner. Oh, and fantasize about Will. No other hobbies, special talents, desire to help others... I wish we could see something interesting or fierce or noble about her, but really all we have are endless angsty descriptions about how she wants to live her own life and be free and independent, while in the meantime she makes incredibly stupid decisions that get her and everyone else in deep trouble.
Oh yes-- and she whines and pines about Will.
Also, the draki pride really, really annoyed me. As a group, they make zero sense to me. I mean, first they're dead set on clipping Jacinda's wings off with a pair of garden shears because she's put everyone in danger so many times, and next thing you know they're leaving muffins on her doorstep when she does what they want by "bonding" with Cassian. Kind of ridiculous in my opinion. Oh, and Cassian and Jacinda living together? Awwkwaarrrrd!! That's all I'll say about that-- you could cut that tension with a plastic butter knife. (I kind of feel sorry for poor Cassian- that's one draki who won't be getting any action any time soon...)
ALSO, despite my great attempts to start loving this series, I have to mention my numero uno MAJOR dislike-- which goes for any book-- and it's called the "Too Much Information Love Scene."
Yes, I know that Sophie Jordan writes adult romance novels-- complete with your run-of-the-mill covers featuring shirtless guys with rippling muscles (oh yes, they ripple) and doe-eyed gals who look like they're about to pass out...
I just wish she left all the hot-and-heavy action OUT of her teen books, because I'm seriously not interested in reading detailed accounts about people getting it on. If I wanted to do that, I'd go pick up some 99-cent Harlequin Romance in the check-out line at the grocery store, you know?? Lines like "his warm palm a rasp on my cheek as he swallows up my moan" and "the mere texture and taste of his mouth completely devastating me" just make me want to vomit. **Blech!** Please, spare me the details, this is waaayyyy more than I want to know!
Oh, and it only gets better...
"My body cradles his, instinctively welcoming him. I breathe a greedy sound, not even thinking we might be moving too far, too fast. There's only need. Hunger. I'm tired of being denied." ~p.202
Oh good lord, seriously?!? Gag me with a freaking spoon. Dearest fellow readers, if you're like me and can't stand the TMI love scenes, I recommend just skipping chapter 20 altogether... I mean really, Jacinda actually starts growling while they're making out. And then Will starts growling right back.
Yup, growling.
Not speaking-- growling.
And breathing greedy sounds.
I'm not making this up, so please humor me here and tell me this is freaking weird. Growling??? Is this supposed to be sexy or romantic or something? Because it just makes me think Jacinda and Will need to go to the doctor's, maybe get on some meds. Not hot. Just ridiculous and hilarious to read about. Sorry, maybe it's just me-- but I don't want to hear about moaning, growling, swollen lips, tender spots-- just yuck.
In fact, you know what?? I'm taking a whole star off just for the TMI make-out sessions. Yup, sorry, it's my review, and that's how I roll.
That's what you get for grossing me out Jacinda.
I think for the heck of it I'm going to actually practice breathing greedy sounds a little later today and see what happens-- I'm guessing I'll probably scare the living bejeezus out of some random people...
And holy crap, repeat yourself much?? There have got to be like half a dozen recycled lines in these books that are re-worded but basically stating the same darned thing over and over (and over) again.
I can think of a few right off the top of my head!
"I could feel my inner draki."
"I tensed and had to release my inner draki."
"About 300 more interchangeable lines about MY INNER DRAKI."
"I could sense Will nearby."
"I missed Will. He loved me for me."
"I missed Cassian. He loved me for me."
"Don't leave, he growled."
Shall I go on? No, OK I'll spare you.
And last but not least, I thought the ending was frustratingly anti-climactic. The last half of the book was building up to some big, action-packed event (which I won't give away) and then in the last few pages we learn that, oh sorry! You'll have to wait to see what happens in the next book because CLEARLY two books just can't contain THIS much awesome.
So we'll end this one with Will and Jacinda sitting around a campfire eating Twinkies.
No, I'm not making this up.
Will and Cassian roll on the ground for like 15 minutes and a less-than-menacing black bear makes a brief appearance for about 2 paragraphs-- and that's pretty much the extent of the action in this book.
Alright, so now that I've gotten all that out of my system (and have tried numerous times to erase the memory of Jacinda and Will growling at each other), I will conclude with this-- When you approach a book or series with preconceived notions about what it "should" be-- and then it turns out to be something totally different-- I think it's important to re-think what the book is trying to accomplish. Otherwise, you'll probably end up annoyed and disliking it because you tried to force it into a genre that it's not even in. But if you can appreciate the book simply for what it is and not for what you think it should be, it becomes a lot easier to just enjoy it.
So I embraced the cheesiness.
I embraced the angst-iness.
I embraced the Mary Sue-ishness.
Yes, I still ranted about it, but making-out aside, Vanish was still a huge improvement over Firelight, with greater character development and a refreshing change of scenery.
And yes, I am looking forward to the last book in this trilogy!
I'm also dying to get my hands on Rapture by Lauren Kate. Such are my guilty pleasures and cheap thrills in reading.
Lea @ LC's Adventures in Libraryland ...more
Notes are private!
Oct 09, 2011
Oct 12, 2011
Sep 03, 2011
Jul 26, 2011
Jul 26, 2011
Yep, so in a nutshell, I was not a fan of this book. Like, at all.
My main issue with Wildefire was that I didn't like the main character.
Wait, scrat .
Yep, so in a nutshell, I was not a fan of this book. Like, at all.
My main issue with Wildefire was that I didn't like the main character.
Wait, scratch that-- I could not stand the main character.
Wait, scratch that again-- I wish the main character had taken a running dive off of a cliff and spontaneously combusted in mid-free fall, or met any other catastrophe a la Wile E. Coyote.
Like so:
Yes, that's how much I detested Ashline Wilde-- I had to whip out some visuals of her cartoon-ish demise.
Why you ask? Well, first of all she was violent and abusive, and walked all over everyone and treated them like crap. She was super-aggressive and mean and made me wish someone would slap her into next week. Because of this, she was impossible to relate to or sympathize with.
Not to mention, she was absolutely, positively crazy. Let me elaborate on this point by saying that, in the prologue, Ashline beats up some girl that supposedly "stole" her boyfriend-- she actually punches the girl so hard that she's knocked unconscious and loses a tooth. Now, this begs the question, why didn't Ashline confront her unfaithful, loser boyfriend first instead of taking out her rage on the girl? And second, um hello! She just committed serious physical assault! And you now want me to be on this girl's side?! She's a psycho! I'm not on her side, she should be headed to a JV detention center for crying out loud! Not cool.
Her craziness continued throughout the book with many random outbursts, leaving me thinking, "um... ok?" And finally, she just wasn't girly. If her name wasn't Ashline, I would've sworn she was a dude. Which made me wonder, why didn't Karsten Knight just make his protagonist a boy? Since he is a guy himself, he would have been able to create a much more believable protag. All in all, Ashline just came across as both unbelievable as a character and really nasty as a person, so I never felt any connection to her in the story. In fact, I was sort of rooting against her.
I wish I could say that the secondary characters made up for Ashline's complete douche-baggery, but they were equally nasty, annoying and immature. The only one I liked somewhat was Colt, but I still couldn't understand for the life of me why he was so smitten with Ashline, who was beyond obnoxious and belittled him every chance she got. The guy doted on her like a love-sick puppy. Really?! Nope, not buying it. Ashline was a real you-know-what. In real life, he would've ditched her without a second thought.
Call me a wimp, but I also wasn't a big fan of all the gratuitous violence thrown into the story, much of which seemed pretty unnecessary, especially the prologue and the whole fiasco with Lizzie Jacobs (Which, by the by, sounds like such a fake name). Maybe that's just me, but really, you are going to be pretty hard-pressed getting me to like a character who commits serious physical assault within the first few pages of the book. Yeah. Major turn off.
Next on the list: The dialogue between the characters was positively dripping with sarcasm and undisguised venom, also for no apparent reason. Now I don't mind a little snark here and there, that livens up the interactions between the characters, but having every line be some biting comment or come back? Nobody talks like that first of all, at least not anyone that I know, and second it comes across as very forced and artificial. It was like the author was thinking as he wrote: how cruddy and mean can I make these characters without them actually killing each other off? So yeah, I definitely got annoyed with the heavy-handed sarcasm after awhile.
Finally, and I've heard other people say this too but I had the same experience-- it took me a long time to really get into this story. There just wasn't a whole lot to keep me interested until a little over halfway through the book. Unfortunately by that point, I was so fed up with the characters that I didn't really care anymore anyways.
So altogether, this book was a fail for me. Not only wasn't I invested in any of the characters, I couldn't stand them. The sarcastic dialogue got really old about half-way through the story and finally, I didn't think that the graphic violence did anything for the plot. The one redeeming aspect of this book was the ending-- not just because it meant I could stop reading, but it was admittedly quite the cliffhanger. I think that for anyone who did enjoy this book and the characters, it was the perfect ending to entice them into reading the next book.
Unfortunately-- and this probably won't come as a big surprise-- I won't be reading the sequel.
Lea @ LC's Adventures in Libraryland ...more
Notes are private!
Nov 19, 2011
Nov 22, 2011
Aug 11, 2011
Sep 20, 2011
Sep 20, 2011
[NOTE: I gave this book 1 1/2 stars on my blog...]
Hmmmm... OK, so... I wasn't a huge fan of this book. Cold Kiss tells the story of Wren, a high schoo [NOTE: I gave this book 1 1/2 stars on my blog...]
Hmmmm... OK, so... I wasn't a huge fan of this book. Cold Kiss tells the story of Wren, a high school girl, who happens to have magic powers that her mom has kept a secret from her all her life-- until her boyfriend Danny dies in a car accident, and Wren finds out that she can use her powers to bring him back to life. The problem is that once she does, Danny isn't the same...
When I first read the premise for this book, I was thinking to myself alright, this could either go one way and be really awesome, or it could just fall flat as a pancake. Unfortunately, I felt like it did the second of those two. I had numerous problems with it almost from the beginning, and even though I kept hoping the story and characters were going to get better, it all just kept getting worse.
So my first and biggest problem with this book was the main character Wren. She was completely unlikable. Wait, scratch that-- she was a miserable, stuck-up, ungrateful little toerag who I just wanted to slap into next week for being so incredibly selfish, mean, and bratty. And what really ground my gears about her, besides her insufferable and immature attitude, was her delusional belief that after raising her dead boyfriend back to life and basically turning him into a brain-dead zombie who lives in an abandoned garage, she still somehow thought that she had everything under control and refused to let anyone help her! Gah! So frustrating!
Alright, I will give the girl a little credit-- Wren does understand the horrible consequences of her decisions and she knows that she has to fix things somehow-- I just didn't like the way she went about it. I also get that Wren was incredibly frustrated because she has these crazy powers and no one-- not even her own mother-- will explain them to her. So I guess in a way it's no wonder that she ended up using them in one of the worst ways possible. But despite all of this? She still came across to me as a really crappy person.
Danny, Wren's undead boyfriend, was not much better. Honestly, he was laughable-- and not in a good way, because I feel like the author was trying to make him seem like this super-tragic, sexy undead guy, but instead he just came across as ridiculous and pathetic. I didn't feel sorry for him, which I know as the reader, I was supposed to. And this made me feel like a big, unsympathetic jerk.
Then we have Gabriel, the new hott guy in town who wants to help Wren out of her situation. He annoyed the crap out of me too-- why? Because he's only known Wren for what, like a couple weeks? And he's inexplicably bending over backwards to help out a girl who only responds to him with venomous retorts and ice-queen attitude. Why the heck is he even attracted to her? She treats him like complete and utter crap! This is not realistic at all, and I hate when books portray these totally unrealistic relationships that make zero sense. Almost every interaction was Gab acting like a love-sick puppy towards Wren, who only threw bitchy comments at him if he so much as looked at her the wrong way, and then Wren wondering why Gab likes her so much (a question I also had). It just baffled me that Gab continually took Wren's abuse and was so willing to help her out of a situation that she had selfishly gotten herself into in the first place.
Besides the annoying main characters whom I either hated or couldn't stop laughing at, the ideas in the story were very vague and wishy-washy. Based on the fact that Wren brought Danny back from the dead and that she has had some kind of "power" ever since she became a teenager, the reader would assume that she's a witch, right? But this was only hinted at throughout the book with a few mentions of spells and magic, and nothing was ever really developed too deeply. I don't think Wren even mentioned being an actual "witch" until Chapter 21! This made the whole paranormal aspect of the story really confusing for me.
Finally, I think that this book just took itself too seriously-- it tried to make some deep, meaningful, romantic story out of a premise that is to begin with pretty ridiculous. I would have liked it so much better if it was a comic, light-hearted story about some teenage witch and her undead zombie boyfriend getting into all kinds of shenanigans (love that word) and ending with a touching, happy ending. Unfortunately, any humor that was in the story seemed like it was just awkwardly thrown in as an afterthought, so it didn't come across as actually being funny. (Fail.)
So I don't know, Cold Kiss was readable, it's not like I ever felt like I wasn't going to be able to finish it, but it was one of those unfortunate cases where I just didn't like or wasn't interested in the characters-- and if I'm not invested in the characters, the rest of the story isn't going to do much for me. Let me also state however, that there are many readers out there who did like this book and thought that the characters were really well-done and multi-dimensional. Even though I wasn't a fan, you might want to check out some positive reviews on it because you might end up really liking it!
Lea @ LC's Adventures in Libraryland ...more
Notes are private!
Jan 22, 2012
Jan 25, 2012
Jul 20, 2011
Jun 14, 2011
Sigh... OK, ready for this?
So, as you may know, the Fallen series is definitely not one of my favorites-- but I am inexplicably draw **SOME SPOILERS**
Sigh... OK, ready for this?
So, as you may know, the Fallen series is definitely not one of my favorites-- but I am inexplicably drawn to them like a moth to a flame, or a fat guy to a doughnut-- and I keep reading, in the vain hope that someday, somehow I will finally understand what was going through LK's head when she wrote these books...
so, here we go:
~Brief Summary~
At the end of the last book, Luce had had enough of absolutely no one telling her what the heck was going on with the curse between her and Daniel (OK, we were ALL fed up with not knowing what was going on) so at the last moment she peaced-out by stepping into an Announcer and back into her past lives to figure things out on her own. Passion follows Luce's "Quest" to find out why she and Daniel are cursed, so that she can break it. Along the way, she meets her new little Disney-sidekick Bill, who helps her while adding comic relief throughout. Luce and Bill travel from Moscow during WWII to England in the mid-1800's, to Versailles, to the Globe Theater during Shakespeare's time, to the Mayan civilization, all the way back to ancient Egypt. Meanwhile, Daniel goes back in time to try and find Luce and make sure she doesn't
When I started getting into Passion, I was thinking, hey! So far, this isn't so bad! Not nearly as painful and cringe-inducing as Torment! The plot was moving along, there was a fun, new secondary character, we finally got to see Daniel's point of view and he wasn't such a tremendous butt-face, and even 2-D, cardboard Luce seemed to take on some life... and THEN there was the ending.
Oh good lord, the ending.
But before I get all down on the Fallen books again, let me say what I did like about Passion. And also, let me just state for the record, that this is definitely the best book in the series so far. (Not sure that's saying much, but whatevs.)
Alrighty, let's do this in good old-fashioned bullet points, shall we?
* First, the prologue was mysterious and downright creepy. We realize that the Elders still exist (even though they fell out of the plot in the second book and then disappear again for the rest of this book) and they are now teaming up with the Outcasts to get their hands on Luce.
* Second, LK has FINALLY picked up the pace. The story line, while not heart-stoppingly amazing, was at least not as painfully put-you-in-a-coma slow as the first two books.
* Third, we finally get to see things from Daniel's point of view. Up to this point he's been a self-centered, irritating, nasty, chauvinistic jerk-wad who you want to give a nice, swift kick in the crotch. Here we get to see another side of him-- awesome! Now he has two sides ;)
* I personally liked snarky, fun, quirky, potentially gay, admittedly cheesy Bill-- um, that is, until the end. Don't worry-- that's not really a spoiler-- if you have half a teaspoon of brains, you have a pretty good idea from the get-go who "Bill" actually is... unless you're Luce Price. Yeeeah, she's definitely not known for her ability to put two and two together...
But let's not get TOO carried away: there were definitely things about this book that left me with an unpleasant eye-twitch and something reminiscent of a bad hangover-- such as:
* We are still no closer to understanding WHY Luce and Daniel "love" each other-- or WHY they fell in love in the first place. Classic case here of telling and not showing-- we're told a bazillion times that Luce loves Daniel and Daniel loves Luce, but gosh darn it, we sure haven't seen anything yet beyond a bunch of goo-goo eyed stares and passionate lip-locking. Sorry, but if you want Me the Reader to believe in this magical, eternal bond of love between the two main characters, you need to give me something more to base it on than teenage sighs and making out. FAIL #1.
* To elaborate on my last point, when a "CERTAIN SOMEONE" asks Luce exactly why she loves Daniel so much, here is the response we get: "A million reasons. I just do." (p. 388) I just do?? REALLY?? So... you're telling me that after 1200+ PAGES this is the best explanation we get for why Luce loves Daniel?? She just does? So basically... they love each other-- because they love each other. **slaps forehead in TOTAL frustration** FAIL #2.
* As if the plot wasn't confusing enough, now we have TIME TRAVEL thrown into the mix. And multiple versions of the main characters. AND other major characters and plot elements that have just completely disappeared altogether with no explanation for why they're no longer there. But the time travel was the worst-- it was just one big, inconsistent mess that leaves you staring blankly into the space-time continuum. Now, I'm no Stephen Hawking, but I'm pretty darned sure this isn't how time travel goes down. Seriously, by the last few chapters I was so freaking confused I had to pop a couple Tylenol PM just so that I wasn't up all night racking my brains over what the hell had just happened. And considering that this series already has more plot holes than I can count on fingers and toes, time travel just didn't seem like a really smart move to me. FAIL #3.
* Let's talk about Luce Price for a minute. Will Luce EVER learn that she has zero instinct or ability to read people? How many times now has her gullible butt been duped because she blindly skips after the bad guy like he's the freaking Pied Piper? She can pass quantum physics but she thinks following a creepy gargoyle who won't let anyone but her see him is a GOOD idea?? EARTH TO LUCE!! Stay away from strangers trying to lure you to your death! They're bad-news bears, K?? Really, if she's going to be THIS stupid over and over again, do I really even care at this point what happens to her? Not to mention that, up to this point, Luce's sole existence is based on being head-over-heels in love with Daniel. That's it. End of story. The girl has no other purpose. Luce Price= FAIL #4.
* The writing style, while somewhat better, is still pretty sloppy, confusing, and all over the place. (I SWEAR I'm trying to not be a total jerk here! It IS better than the first two! There IS improvement!!) But still, the transitions between each chapter and each new time period visited are about as graceful as falling down a flight of stairs. Also, maybe an OUTLINE would have helped before just taking the "write-as-you-go" approach and then conveniently taking the easy way out with pretty much EVERY aspect of the plot. I'm not expecting this to be Shakespeare, but I would appreciate at least being able to follow some remotely logical series of events... FAIL #5.
* Speaking of which! Did you know that Luce knew SHAKESPEARE in another lifetime and SHE'S the reason why the Globe Theater burned down?? Hey! Neither did I!! Oh Lord, the history re-writing in this book just cracks me up... Slightly Amusing FAIL #6.
* Back to that "CERTAIN SOMEONE," all I can say is-- Wow. Congrats LK, on managing to take the evilest being of all time and turn him into a cliche villain about as scary and intimidating as one of those 1920's silent-film guys-- you know, the one with the monocle and top hat? He's all, MUAHAHAHA!!! Then cue a lot of eeveell pacing back and forth as he
* At the end of this book-- guess what? We STILL have NO IDEA what the EFF is going on. No joke! NOTHING is ever explained, and the ending contained about 297 plot holes. NO ONE has a motive in this series, NOTHING is ever given a logical explanation, and everything is all chalked up to DESTINY. Isn't this what we call a cop-out? Why yes, yes it is! The worst of it is, the book was set up to make it sound like we would FINALLY get some answers to major questions, and then the last few chapters just made no sense at all. Is this some kind of joke Ms. Kate?? Because after a thousand plus pages it just isn't funny anymore. What exactly was the POINT of Luce's "Quest"? What was she trying to find? So far, the whole plot is completely meaningless to the reader. I went back and tried to re-read whole sections thinking I must have missed something, and I'm STILL totally lost. I honestly want to believe that there is more to this plot and these characters than meets the eye-- but at this point, I'm not holding my breath. FAIL #8.
* This was literally my favorite line in the whole book: "Finally, things were beginning to make sense." (p. 400) Really? They ARE?? Could've fooled me! I'm seriously going to have a brain aneurism if I spend one more minute trying to make sense of this story. This is honest-to-goodness THE most convoluted mess of a plot I have ever read! Does the author even know what's going on here?? But yeah, I LOVED that line. It made me chuckle. FAIL #9.
* Random question: Does the kiss you've been dreaming about your whole life include knocking your teeth into somebody else's? No? Huh, me neither. Just wondering. FAIL #10.
* We honestly can't get though a Fallen book without someone "waggling" or "wagging" their eyebrows-- seriously LK, why? How many people actually "waggle" their eyebrows on a regular basis? Are people going to look at me all crazy if I attempt this? Why is eyebrow-waggling so necessary to this story? I am so dang confused. FAIL #11.
* What the hell happened to Trevor? Remember, the poor sap who spontaneously-combusted thanks to Luce back in Book 1? Like, shouldn't someone in the story sort of, you know, care that some kid ended up as a human tiki torch?? If LK thought we were all just going to conveniently forget about Trevor's tragic demise as quickly as brain-dead Luce just because heart-throb Daniel steps onto the scene, she was sorely mistaken. Way to totally ignore the fact that your main character caused someone to burst into flames Lauren, might've been a good idea to tie up loose ends with that unfortunate event instead of conveniently dropping it out of the plot altogether... FAIL #12
So, all in all, another utterly confusing masterpiece! Maybe it's just me, but there is precious little that makes sense in this series. If you have read these books and have figured out what the heck is going on, please let me know. I would greatly appreciate it. Otherwise, I'm still entertained. AND this book was, despite everything, still better than the first two. Sorry, that's all I've got.
See more excessive ranting for Rapture , the finale to the Fallen series! :D
~Lea @ LC's Adventures in Libraryland ...more
Notes are private!
Jun 25, 2011
Jun 29, 2011
Jun 16, 2011
Dec 08, 2011
Dec 08, 2011
Warning: If you don't like reading rants about books, especially for ones that you liked or think you're going to like, then you aren't going to like Warning: If you don't like reading rants about books, especially for ones that you liked or think you're going to like, then you aren't going to like this review, because I've honestly never been more pissed off at a YA book before. If you do like reading rants about books, well then, this should probably be pretty darned entertaining...
OK, so let me start off by just saying, I really tried to like this book, honestly I did.
I tried up until the very last page to have hope that something was going to happen that would redeem the entire thing for me.
But it just.
[Insert sad face here.]
Maybe I should blame my OCD tendency to finish a book no matter what. Because even when I absolutely can't stand a book, I have to finish it. I'm not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing. I really did consider DNF-ing this book about halfway through because I just could not take much more of Lenzi's weak character-- she was literally making me sad and angry at the same time-- but then, I thought well, maaayyybeeee she'll get better, maybe she'll have some kind of major revelation and turn into this super awesome character, transforming into a strong, confident, kick-butt kinda gal who can stand on her own two feet without a man to validate her entire existence.
But alas! It was not to be.
And I can honestly say, probably more than I can for any other book I've read, that I quite literally HATED this one. It was absolute torture to read, and the only thing that got me through to the end was knowing that I'd get to write this outraged and rant-astic review afterwards.
~Brief Summary~
Lenzi's dad has recently died-- committed suicide-- because he couldn't get rid of the voices in his head. Now 16, Lenzi is starting to not only hear voices, but see things too. Her musician boyfriend Zac can't help her. Alden, the strange guy she meets in a graveyard one night, tells Lenzi that she is a Speaker-- she can speak to lost souls and help them to find rest in death by freeing them from the problems that keep them bound to Earth. Alden is her Protector-- he protects her from Malevolents, violent spirits who don't want to be helped, but who could potentially possess Lenzi's body, using it to take out their rage or revenge. But Lenzi has no recollection about her past lives as a Speaker, and now there is a really dangerous Malevolent who wants revenge on her for something Lenzi can't even remember...
Now, seriously, with a plot synopsis like that, I really thought this book was going to knock my socks off. Well, read below before you make the same mistake that I did.
~My Thoughts~
So the number one reason why I could not stand this book was because I could NOT stand Lenzi. The girl absolutely annoyed the living crap out of me, and it was downright painful having to read from her whiny, immature point of view. Yes, I can understand her frustration and fear after finding out that she's supposed to talk to the dead and help them out of Earthly purgatory, but really? If I had just found out that I could talk to dead people AND it was up to me to save them from eternal damnation, I'm pretty darned sure my number one concern wouldn't be which boy I'm currently dating. For real.
Now, this seriously drove me crazy, because all Lenzi ever did was: A.) Drool over how gorgeous and beautiful Zak and Alden were, or B.) whine and complain about how sucky her life was.
That's it, the girl had no other thoughts.
Oh, but she can fold origami-- lots of origameeee!
(Because, you know, the main character has to have a "hobby" to make her seem "smart" and "interesting.")
Meanwhile, the immaturity levels reached astronomical proportions-- I'm talking whining and complaining galore. And when she does finally try to be the mature adult? She gets about as far as donning a pair of "tan slacks and cream-colored turtleneck"-- yes, that is an actual description of what she wears, I'm not making this up-- because clearly you have to dress like a flipping geriatric to appear "grown up." Slap on a pair of Velcro Easy Strides and Lenzi is good to go. Terrific!
OK, so on a more serious note, my main beef is that I thought the message Lenzi sends out to readers was absolutely horrible-- I found nothing about this character that was respectable, admirable or worth emulating: she was lazy, whiny, vapid, annoying, willingly ignorant, and worst of all, completely and desperately dependent on the acceptance of a guy-- no matter how controlling or abusive-- to validate her existence and her sense of self-worth.
I'm sorry, but that is a crap-tastic way to present a character.
If you're going to write about a self-deprecating girl who constantly belittles and demeans herself, you need to at least let her eventually come to the realization that she doesn't have to debase herself, and that she really is worthy of respect and healthy male attention. But if this never happens? If the main character never learns to respect herself? How am I the reader supposed to respect her? I honestly wish that Lenzi had developed into a strong and confident character. But this never happened. And it made me sad. Really, it did.
And then there's Reason Number Two why I didn't like this book-- Zak.
Whom I affectionately like to call Zak the Asshat.
Where do I even begin with how much I loathed this crappy excuse for a love interest?
Zak (the Asshat) was hands down the biggest jerk-wad I think I have ever read about. And what's worse, he was passed off as actually being in the running for Lenzi's heart! I mean if this is any indicator of what a cruddy little weasel he was-- the guy got drunk on page 40, tried to feel up Lenzi at her father's GRAVE and then abandoned her in a cemetery at night, in a bad neighborhood, on her freaking BIRTHDAY.
Say whaaaaat?!?
Oh, you heard me right.
Which brings me to what I hated most about this book-- the dysfunctional, abusive and completely NOT romantic relationship between Lenzi and Zak. So after everything that Zak puts her through, Lenzi goes right back to him so she can appease her mountain of insecurity, essentially turning into a total doormat and making out with the ground he walks on for the next 20-something chapters.
Because, you know, God forbid she lose this absolutely perfect specimen of male chivalry.
Yes, I know she goes off with Alden to do her whole Ghost-Speaker thing, but here's what grinds my gears: Lenzi never gets a clue about what a dirt bag this guy really was-- and what really scared me was that the author never seemed to have a clue either, because even by the very end, Lenzi was still spouting about how Zak was such a "cool guy" and her only "real friend."
Well, NO, no he wasn't.
Actually, he was a controlling, possessive, alcoholic, and even dangerous and abusive psycho. And I'm not OK with that never being addressed. I'm NOT OK with that kind of a person being passed off to potentially young and impressionable readers as being romantic or attractive.
To hammer home my point, there is even one point at the end of the book where Lenzi gets into a car with drunk Zak (told you she's not the brightest crayon in the box), and tells him it's all her fault that their relationship failed and that she's a freak who isn't good enough for him-- this is the same guy, I'll mention one more time, who abandoned her in a bad neighborhood at night on her birthday, and possessively stalked her to the point where the police should have been involved! Umm, NOT OK!!
[Side Note: If I had to hear Zak say "babe" at the end of one more sentence, the book would have gotten hurled across Starbucks. (Not really, it was a library book-- and I wouldn't want to knock over anyone's triple venti macchiato-- but you know, in theory). Seriously, give me a fa-reaking break.]
Oh but wait ladies and gentlemen-- there's more douche-baggery ahead!
Let me introduce you to Alden, Lenzi's second love interest, whom I affectionately like to refer to as Asshat #2. Alden is Lenzi's Protector who keeps her safe from all the big, bad Malevolents. Except for the fact that he never tells her anything, keeps her completely in the dark, and did I mention that he is TURNED ON by Lenzi's fear and pain? Yes, I kid you not, it actually says in the book that Alden Asshat #2 is turned on by Lenzi's fear and pain.
I'm sorry, but isn't that the definition of sadism? Why yes, yes it is! And how lovely-- it's being passed off as hott, sexy and romantic!
[This is the part where I take a long, deep breath and try not to FLIP THE CRAP OUT.]
Alrighty, so added to all this wonderfully disturbing twistedness, the book was also full of some of the most bizarre and ridiculous one-liners that I've ever read, which illicited reactions running the gamut from bursting out laughing hysterically to slapping my forehead in total frustration to looking up from the pages like someone had just run across my yard wearing nothing but a thong and a cowboy hat.
Oh, I know you're curious now! Well here are a few little gems that I couldn't resist mentioning:
"Even lifeless, he was hot." ~p.80 (OooooooK, that's a little creepy...)
"I wasn't addicted to Xanax, but I could certainly become addicted to Alden." ~p.116 (I literally burst out laughing for a good 5 minutes after reading this.)
"Should I shake his hand or kiss him good night on the cheek? Maybe I should act like Spook and just lick his face." ~p.138 (No comment-- I'll just let you soak in the sheer awkwardness of this quote.)
We also have a wonderful villain in the story, named Smith. Smith is a crazed lunatic from the 19th century who is out to whack Lenzi due to a century-old grudge he has because Lenzi jilted him in some past lifetime. (Totally by coincidence, Smith was the only character in the book I liked.)
Finally-- and this is a HUGE pet peeve of mine in YA literature-- I HATE when the protagonist comes across as mind-numbingly vapid and completely useless.
Now I don't want to beat a dead horse because I've already ranted about Lenzi, but I'm still not quite over her character and how she came across as being 115 pounds of pure dead-weight. Throughout the whole book, Lenzi is just thrown around by events outside her control and by the people (in this case, the boys) around her, and she reacts-- no real thought or action on her part changes the plot all that much, so she's basically a pretty- albeit whiny- little puppet.
And what's worse? It comes across as though Lenzi's entire sense of identity is wrapped up in whether she has a guy to fawn over. This bothers me big time, because not only is it annoying for me to have to read about; I think it sends a really bad message to readers in general. I mean, if you look at this story, Lenzi basically lets herself be a doormat for Zac to wipe his dirty boots on for the first half of the book, and the second half of the book is Lenzi pathetically trying to be a good Speaker just so she can impress Alden and live up to his expectations. AND she's also cheating on Zak, who yes, does win Asshat of the Year, but still, I was not at all impressed with our girl Lenzi throwing herself at Alden when *technically* she was still with Asshat-- I mean, Zak.
So yeah, I don't like any of that. Why couldn't she have wanted to be a kick-ass Speaker to make herself happy, to increase her own self-confidence, based on what she's capable of and not what some dude thinks of her? Not to stand on a feminist soap-box, but I'm just saying, I would have liked to see Lenzi be more independent, strong-willed and confident, without the whole "I'm nothing without a man" attitude.
In the end, Lenzi made Bella look like a combo between Einstein and Daenerys Targaryen in comparison-- yes, THAT is how awful and pathetic she was.
Sigh... OK, so after that tirade, it's now time to say something positive about this book. It's a policy of mine that no matter how much I disliked a book, I won't leave a review without stating at least ONE thing that I did like about it. So I will say that the action scenes in this book were really well done, and the concept of the Speakers and Protectors freeing the Hindered and fighting the Malevolents was a really good one-- I thought it was interesting and creative.
Honestly, I did, I'm not just saying that to avoid getting the stink-eye numerous times for being a total jerk about this book...
So to wrap up this really long review, I will just say that there were lots of readers out there who adored Shattered Souls. I totally respect their opinions, and know that my review is only one of many. And even though I didn't like it, that doesn't mean that you won't! I can't recommend this book myself, but I would suggest checking out other reviewer's opinions of it to see whether it's something you want to get into.
[**NOTE: Also, read what my girl Jennifer had to say in her review -- I really couldn't agree with her more, and I'm actually confounded that out of 280+ reviews, no one has really bothered to mention this disturbing aspect of the book that she so accurately points out.]
[FINAL NOTE: To fully appreciate my feelings and reactions to this book, it's best to read my Goodreads status updates-- in fact, if I didn't get all of this off my chest while I was reading the book, I'm pretty sure I would've had an aneurysm, no joke. So a big thank-you to Goodreads for helping me to maintain my sanity.]
Lea @ LC's Adventures in Libraryland ...more
Notes are private!
Feb 20, 2012
Feb 22, 2012
Jun 09, 2011
Sep 27, 2011
Sep 27, 2011
To be perfectly honest, this book was just OK for me; I just really wasn't a huge fan. I'm not sure if it's the genre, but sometimes I feel like if yo To be perfectly honest, this book was just OK for me; I just really wasn't a huge fan. I'm not sure if it's the genre, but sometimes I feel like if you've read one fallen angel book you've pretty much read them all. Now yes, there are some that are better than others, for example I loved Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick but then I wanted to hurl Fallen by Lauren Kate against a wall. A Beautiful Dark falls somewhere in between those two extremes for me.
The biggest let-down in this book for me was the characters. The plot was good, the pacing worked well, the suspense built up, and some of the writing was really good. But unfortunately, I thought that the character development was extremely lacking.
So, let's talk about the characters first since this is where I had the biggest issue. The main character is Skye Parker, who just turned seventeen. Skye's favorite food to get in the school cafeteria is a turkey sandwich and an apple. Why do I mention this, you ask? Well, because I think it sums her up in a nutshell-- she's sort of unremarkable and bland-- nice and appealing, but not terribly awesome or interesting. Like a turkey sandwich.
I know, I'm a freaking genius with the analogies.
So anyways, Skye is also good at skiing, she wants to go to Columbia or some Ivy League school, and she predictably becomes obsessed with the two new boys that move to her Colorado town, Asher and Devin. The one trait that I was not a fan of with Skye was that she was also extremely self-centered to the point of me wanting someone in the story to give her a nice swift kick in the pants.
(Oh yes, and sometimes her eyes turn into molten silver-- now that part? Not gonna lie, that was pretty freaking sweet.)
Then we have the two hunky boy interests, Asher and Devin, who are both very mysterious and apparently yum-a-licious. Asher is supposed to be the dark, brooding bad boy and Devin is the quiet, nice one. Once again, it's not that I didn't like these two characters but they just weren't very memorable. And what's more, even though we are told over and over again how completely different the two of them are, how they are polar opposites, there really wasn't anything that distinguished the one from the other in my opinion. Physically they looked different, but they were pretty much the same otherwise. Asher was more of a jerk I guess, but that's about it. And really, I wasn't buying Skye's relationship with either of them.
Cassie is Skye's best friend and holy crap, was she annoying. OK so this is the part where I take a moment to rant about an irritating YA cliche known as "The Annoying Best Friend/Sidekick." I really get tired of air-headed BFFs in YA books who get all their wisdom from Cosmo and can't walk 5 five steps without drooling over some guy. And Cassie was no exception-- she was incredibly ditzy, boy-crazy and did I mention annoying? It's almost as though we're supposed to compare the main character to this chick and think, "Wow! Skye is like so much smarter! Skye wants to go to an Ivy League school and Cassie is a brain-dead idiot!" Yep, not buying it. Skye wasn't much of a smartypants either, so unfortunately, making the main character's best friend dumb as dirt really didn't make the main character look like an Einstein in comparison.
Finally, Dan and Ian were sort of just thrown into the mix as Skye and Cassie's guy friends to bring in some more romance and drama.They were more of a side-note than anything else it seemed.
So onto the wonderful Love Quadrangle-- oh yes, you heard me right! There is not ONE, not TWO, but THREE guys all hopelessly vying for the lovely Skye's attention in this novel. We've got Asher and Devin, two otherworldly celestial beings, and then there was poor Ian who pretty much doesn't stand a chance with Skye because-- well, because he's ordinary. And honestly, this kind of bugged me. (Oh crap here comes another rant, watch out.) Skye was completely obsessed with both Asher and Devin, going back and forth ad nauseum about who she liked more, even though she just met them and knows almost nothing about either of them. And then with Ian-- who by the way has been her best friend since forever and really cares about her-- she completely ignores him and is just like, "Oh good for him for finally finding a nice girl who actually gives him the time of day!" Aaaand... that's the last we hear about him. I really felt bad for Ian.
Fortunately, the plot and the ending are what made this book work for me. Joceleyn Davies is one serious story-teller, that is for darned sure! I don't want to give anything away, but I really did love the overall story about who Skye really is and what her powers are, and who is good and bad-- I could have done without all the high school drama, but honestly, the last 4-5 chapters totally had me on the edge of my seat, and the ending was a major cliff hanger that just had me dying to get my hands on the sequel!
The book did a fabulous job of building up the mystery and suspense to the plot-- pretty much nothing major is revealed about who Asher and Devin are until around page 175, and since I had not read any reviews about this book before picking it up, I had no clue what was going to happen. I won't give too much away here, but I personally liked the slower build up before revealing the main plot twist. While some aspects of this book were a bit predictable, I really enjoyed not knowing right away what was going to happen.
In the end-- even though the characters really did nothing for me and I thought that some parts were slightly cliche-- I did enjoy reading A Beautiful Dark. If there had been some greater character development, I would say that this was actually a really good book. Unfortunately, some things did fall flat. I would recommend this one to any angel book lovers out there, and to anyone who loves those tricky love triangles, because this one has tons!
Lea @ LC's Adventures in Libraryland ...more
Notes are private!
Nov 30, 2011
Dec 03, 2011
Jun 08, 2011
Mar 16, 2010
Mar 16, 2010
This was a like-- and a dislike, in some ways. But let's talk about the good stuff first.
So... I pretty much could not put this book down. This was on This was a like-- and a dislike, in some ways. But let's talk about the good stuff first.
So... I pretty much could not put this book down. This was one of those books that you start and then find yourself reading in between meals, work shifts, first thing when you wake up and way into the late hours of the night. Seriously, could not put it down!
The main character is Violet, who has the super creepy ability to sense the "echoes" or imprints of people who have been murdered. She can also sense their presence lingering on whoever happened to kill them. At first, Violet only used her ability when she was little to find dead animals in the woods and give them a proper burial so they can be at rest. Eventually, their echoes would slowly fade into the background. But then, when she's eight years old, Violet discovers the body of a dead girl in the woods...
Fast forward eight years later, and Violet is now in high-school. Suddenly, more girls are going missing from around her small town in the Pacific Southwest, and Violet finds herself being inexplicably drawn to the bodies. She knows that she is the only one with the special ability to track down the serial killer and put an end to the terror for good. Unfortunately, her secret gift puts her in even more danger than anyone else, and she soon becomes the target of the killer, who will do whatever it takes to not get caught.
The plot of this book was so amazing, and I loved how the author switches between Violet's point of view and the serial killer's-- that was so creepy! It was also a very unique idea to create a character who has the ability to sense those who've been murdered and be able to know their killers based on imprints they leave behind.
The only problem I had with this book was the subplot between Violet and her longtime best friend Jay. I liked how their relationship worked **spoiler alert** before they became a couple-- it was interesting to see the dynamics play out between them, and I could definitely relate to Violet's internal struggle as she worries about telling Jay how much she likes him and potentially ruining their friendship. However, once they actually got together it just became so freaking sappy and cliche and overdone that I found myself cringing. I was just like, c'mon now, this is seriously straight out of some cheap paperback romance from the drugstore. Yes, I know what puppy love is like and being a hormonal teenager and all, but geez, I don't want to sit there and read about them making out and getting all hot 'n heavy, it's just icky!! And also, Jay became waaayyy too perfect, which seemed like "wish fulfillment" writing to me-- I'd much rather have realistic, flawed characters that make sense and are more interesting, anyways.
And finally-- just as a warning for my more sensitive readers-- there is quite a bit of swearing, teen drinking/partying, and some "innuendo" type things that go on throughout this book, so I would rate it more PG-13 level. Just so you're aware! Sometimes, even though I don't necessarily mind explicit writing, it can throw me off a little when I'm not expecting it, so here's the heads up!
Besides a few issues I had, this was an awesome book and I really enjoyed reading it. Could have done without all the make-out scenes, but other than that the plot was thoroughly gripping and I would definitely read the sequel.
Lea @ LC's Adventures in Libraryland ...more
Notes are private!
Jul 27, 2011
Jul 30, 2011
May 21, 2011
Sep 28, 2010
**spoiler alert** Torment took me a little while to get into, simply because I had long forgotten pretty much everything that had happened in the firs **spoiler alert** Torment took me a little while to get into, simply because I had long forgotten pretty much everything that had happened in the first book, Fallen. To refresh your memory (and mine) Luce is the main character and she has been haunted her whole life by what she calls "the Shadows." She is caught between two guys that she meets at Sword & Cross reform school: Daniel and Cam. Daniel is an angel and Cam is a demon-- but it was never really made clear who was distinctly good or evil. Book One ended with a lot of unanswered questions-- and **spoiler** so does Book Two.
~Brief Synopsis~
We quickly learn that there is some new evil trying to kill Luce besides the Elders from Book One, called the Outcasts, and they are the very worst kind of angels. Caught between Heaven and Hell, they control the deadliest weapon known to angels and demons alike. To protect Luce from the Outcasts, Daniel and Cam form a Truce that will last 18 days. Meanwhile, Luce is sent to another school in California called "Shoreline," where the students are made up of celestial beings called "Nephilim"-- the offspring of angels and humans. Luce then spends the whole book trying to figure out her past lives with Daniel and why he has left her at this new school...
I need to preface this review by saying that, even though I do have major issues with the Fallen series (and this book in particular), I still for some unknown reason enjoy reading these books. (And even more, I love reading what people have to say about them.) The whole human-girl-falls-for-fallen-angel-and-now-celestial-beings-are-trying-to-destroy-her plot line is intriguing, even though poorly done. That being said, Torment was an obnoxious repeat of the first book. So... let the ranting begin!
1.) It felt like Luce did nothing but pine away after Daniel-- Yes, she missed him while she was at the new school, but holy crap, did we have to be reminded every other paragraph? You're going to see him in 18 days! It got real old real quick, having to listen to Luce go on and on (and on and on) about how much she misses Daniel, she wishes Daniel was there, she can't stop thinking about Daniel, Daniel is so beautiful, oh my god, Daniel! Really, it's like, get a grip already.
2.) While we're on the subject, seriously don't even get me started on brooding, chauvinistic
3.) Why did the author have to make Luce such a clueless, dimwitted airhead? Like when she fell for the obviously shady fake note supposedly written by Daniel to lure her outside of school grounds-- um, hello, he just warned you like 5 pages back NOT to leave the school, and then you immediately catch a bus into town after finding a TYPED note at your door telling you to leave the school, and almost die! WAY TO GO. I get that the author wanted to set up a situation where Luce runs into Cam again and learns about the Outcasts, but did she have to do it at the expense of making Luce seem like the biggest idiot ever? If you are going to throw your heroine into dangerous, life-threatening situations where she has to be rescued again and again, can't you at least give her a little credit and not make everything the result of her own stupidity?
4.) I wish I could describe Luce's character without using the term "Mary Sue" but gosh darn it, I just can't. She's a Mary Sue, through and through. I mean she and Bella could be twin sisters for crying out loud. She thinks she isn't good-looking, yet she has every stinking guy drooling over her, she's continually in trouble and needs to be rescued, she has a mind-numbingly vapid personality, and she's also continually psycho-obsessive over her uber-controlling boyfriend. And speaking of Twilight references, Torment is also full of insanely unnecessary details (literally, there are like 2 pages dedicated to what Luce and her friends order to eat at an IHOP in Las Vegas. I swear I'm not making this up.)
5.) Speaking of unnecessary, did we really need yet another jealous guy falling all over Luce? Isn't Miles just another version of Cam? A guy to distract Luce from Daniel? Now we have three guys vying for Luce's love and attention. Seriously guys, this is getting out of control.
6.) And here is one of the biggest issues that I have with this series thus far: The titles, the cover art, the summaries-- all of these things market the Fallen series as being serious, dark, and Gothic. But when you read the actual books they're... how do I put this... corny as all get out? The characters are just so unbelievable and their dialog and actions are so ridiculously dorky to me, that I just couldn't take them or the story seriously. (LK: How does one "waggle" their eyebrows? PLEASE explain to me what on earth you mean when you say this because it's driving me insane!)I must have rolled my eyes a couple hundred different times throughout the book, due to the fact that it was such an enormous cheese-fest. And I'm sorry, but it takes more than insanely gorgeous cover art to make a good series. I'm over the cover art already.
So at this point you may be asking yourself: If you weren't all that pumped about Fallen, why the heck did you pick up Torment? Well, despite my rants, I am still entertained by this series, and might take just the slightest of guilty pleasures in saying what irks me about them. I know, it's horrible to take pleasure in writing ranting reviews, but I do it with the disclaimer that I am still ultimately and inexplicably attracted to these books. Even though it's a total hot mess, I just can't look away. I will probably still read both Passion and Rapture when they come out, even though my expectations are about 2 millimeters above my toes, and there's pretty much no way I can take these books seriously in any sense of the word. This series is truly epic for all the wrong reasons.
Lea @ LC's Adventures in Libraryland ...more
Notes are private!
Jun 11, 2011
Jun 16, 2011
Mar 22, 2011
Jan 01, 2009
Dec 08, 2009
I'm new to YA fiction but I have to say, I really liked this book, despite all the bad reviews it's gotten and accusations that it's a bad knock-off o I'm new to YA fiction but I have to say, I really liked this book, despite all the bad reviews it's gotten and accusations that it's a bad knock-off of Twilight. Twilight is the only other YA I've read recently (about a month ago) and I thought that this book was WAY better.
Here are some things I liked:
* The story unfolds in mid-19th century England and from the beginning draws you in—there is something intriguing and mysterious that keeps you reading
* Luce's character is portrayed well- she is an actual living, breathing, thinking human being—vulnerable, innocent… she has some depth to her and her thoughts and reactions very often echo those of the reader (ex: "Why is everyone at this school so weird?" p.52). I could relate to a lot of the things she goes through at the reform school and her reactions generally make sense.
* The scenes of Luce being thrown into the hellish world of Sword & Cross reform school reminded me slightly of Mr. Brocklehurst's school in Jane Eyre-- and Kate does a really good job at painting vivid pictures that are dark, brooding- and at times pretty sexual/erotic-- the perfect mix for a Gothic story of doomed lovers. But there is nothing cheap or trashy with the way Kate describes the interactions between Luce and Cam/Daniel- they are heavy and deep, pained and other-worldly, all at the same time.
* The book cover is freaking gorgeous.
Here's what turned me off about Fallen:
* The dialogue was at times very forced- and forced dialogue always winds up sounding incredibly cheesy…(phrases like "nice digs," "capiche," "He has the hots for you," "absolute lame-o's"-- Who talks like that???)
* Daniel was a bit too Edward-esque-- too perfect and a super a-hole. But Kate does a pretty good job at giving a reason for why he's such a jerk to Luce towards the end of the story-- and it makes sense. (Well, it did to me anyways). He redeems himself.
* Luce's parents are clueless, apathetic, unloving and fake—not to mention bordering on sadistic in their absolute negligence of their daughter. I kinda wish they had spontaneously combusted to be honest…
Still, despite the negative things, I'm more ready to give this 4 stars than 3 stars. I thought the ending was really good, I couldn't put the book down-- and for me, that's what redeemed this book, despite some pretty cliche and cheesy parts in the beginning and middle... a good Gothic read overall :)
Looking forward to reading Torment...
Check out my full book review! http://lcsadventuresinlibraryland.blo... ...more
Notes are private!
Mar 21, 2011
Mar 24, 2011
Mar 21, 2011
12 of 12 loadedMore books shelved as 'annoying-romance,demon-hunters' »
© 2015 Goodreads Inc
- about us
- advertise
- author program
- jobs
- api
- our blog
- terms
- privacy
- help
- switch to: mobile version