Tuesday, 13 November 2012
Book on Trial #39: [We’ve] Reached [the end.]
Note: I’ll keep this short, unlike this book (not as bad as Insurgent though).
Spoilers are highly likely.
Title: Reached
Author: Condie, Ally
Keywords: Deserts, rebels, government, adventure, YA, teen, dystopia, love, friendship, disease, cure, society, rising, disappointment, betrayal, science, fish.
Recommended For: 12+
Rating: 
Sentence: I sentence Ally Condie to the same mundane existence as the Pilot.
Review:
I can’t say I disliked this book, but I also cannot say I liked it. While I had high hopes after the first installment, I came to realize very soon after that the books are drier than a pile of old bones…in a desert. There’s no humour in times of disease; no light at the end of this transition; no passion, though there’s art, its creation and appreciation.
I can’t feel for the characters because I barely like them. Xander and Indie might be the only two characters I felt comfortable enough to feel for. Everything about this book is nostalgic and annoyingly stuck on how people have failed.
So the Society is the Rising? Isn’t that the story with any extreme forms of government? They are both the same, even if they try not to be. (Although in this case the Society actually literally inserts itself into the Rising so it seems like a different government, but it isn’t.)
The sad part is that Condie has so much to say that I can really appreciate. Choices; good, bad and the grey bits in between; rebellion, but also knowing when it should be about people rather than the war. It’s great in that sense, but things are not laid out completely. These are all half-baked ideas that could’ve been so much more passionate.
On top of all that, the reader will remember bits and pieces of what Cassia has lost and can already conclude things for her even before she has, which is super annoying. Even without the full story, it’s easy to see that Cassia is focused on the wrong questions, and when she does get the answers, how do they help anything?
And I have to complain, how is Cassia not pissed at being used so much? She seems indifferent to me, and I don’t trust that. I do not trust a head Archivist that punishes their own trader for stealing, but gets away with it herself. I don’t trust a pilot that is not the Pilot everyone needs.
I liked the introduction of voting and Anna being a person for the people. But there was not much expansion. I think I’d be more interested in an expanded story/look at the people struggling to the Otherlands. I want to see the Otherlands. I want to read about the vanishings. I want more from Indie’s perspective. And Caleb. And the Pilot (as annoyingly unimportant as he was, in the end). These seem like interesting stories, while Cassia’s is all about her curing Ky and remembering.
The author’s words felt as empty as Xander, when he as faced by the judgement of Oker’s people. It feels like she was tired and so over this. But at least it’s sort of over. It was like the biggest okay guy moment ever.
Posted 6 months ago
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Thursday, 8 November 2012
Book Review: The Raven Boys
Note: I’ve decided I do not have enough time for the book on trial layout for this really, really quick review I did on GR. I am working 45 hours per week and am back in school. Although it is online, it is decidedly time-consuming. So it’s lucky when I even post once a week.
There are sort of spoilers. Though the book spoils things from the beginning. Things we haven’t even seen yet! :D
I know many people love Stiefvater’s Mercy Falls trilogy, but I have to say that I am glad she has come out with these brilliant plot-focused teen books. They stray away from the wishy-washy (and lovey-dovey) nature of the Mercy Falls trilogy and become more about the characters and the story that needs to be told. I am a huge fan of The Scorpio Races, and now The Raven Boys. Seriously, Maggie, this shit is golden.
The funny thing about this first installment is that it actually is about its namesake. Four raven boys, all tousled, scarred and touched in different ways by a girl named Blue and this quest for something magical, and bigger than them.
In some ways, Maggie’s storytelling reminds me of the late DWJ, which I highly recommended she take as a compliment (don’t even ask how much money I have spent gathering up her original UK firsts). DWJ would include romance, to be sure, but it wasn’t straightforward, and it wasn’t about creating a love triangle. It was a story that flowed out from somewhere deep. And my literary-god, do I love my damaged characters. Especially when I am so unfamiliar with their situation, but somehow the writing makes me feel enough compassion to actually be hurt when those characters are hurt.
I know that is a lot of emotion, but I just feel like there is something about Maggie’s writing (mostly) that gets me and what I want to read. I don’t think this will be true of most people. I just think that everyone has some author’s writing that they connect with instantly, especially at a certain point in their life. Mine has always been DWJ and Neil Gaiman, but occasionally someone else will come along, and practically have me on a lead.
Now it sounds like a raving review (haha) for ONLY a four-star rating, but that’s only because I like to be honest (not usually, lol). I really, really love Maggie’s writing and the idea of this story, but I was not entirely satisfied with this book. But that’s okay, I suspect this trilogy will wow me in ways those damn wolves couldn’t. Ravens, ftw!
Also the ending was very reminiscent of Nevermore by Kelly Creagh with the whole creating Chainsaw bsns.
Posted 6 months ago
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Thursday, 25 October 2012
Book on Trial #38: Rebel Heart
Note: Random House Canada did not pay me to endorse or review this book.
SPOILERS TO BE HAD.
Title: Rebel Heart
Author: Young, Moira
Keywords: Deserts, rebels, government, Tonton, opium, chaal, Saba, YA, teen, wreckers, post-apocalyptic, western, adventure, romance, awesome, Canadian, sexual maturation, abuse, hurt, deceit, betrayal, mysticism, prophets, tattoos, brands, New Eden, attempting dystopian, Near and Middle Eastern lifestyle, horrible spelling and grammar.
Recommended For: 14+, Firefly, Westerns, Middle Eastern–style dystopia fans.
Rating:
Sentence: I sentence Lugh to a six-month journey through the Wraithway, that ungrateful, chaal-snorting lout. (I couldn’t be bothered to sentence Moira Young as I was far too fixated on Lugh.)
Review:
As far as middle books go, this one was pretty standard. A separation of young lovers; too much travelling without a consistent destination; and an overview of the “bigger picture”.
That being said, the bigger picture is not much to look at in this book. On the one hand, you see a little more of DeMalo; and on the other, readers are only getting to skim the surface of New Eden and the cleansing of the lands. It seems like a pretty vague allusion to Hitler and eugenics, but without a real motivation other than these “visions” of the past (us, Wreckers) and the future (the “purebred”). I liked the bigger picture when it was about drugs, gangs and Western-style fighting. It didn’t really need all this extra…whatever it is.
Anyway, for those who just want a brief summary of what to expect in this book, do not wait for a femme fatale level of badassery. In fact, just do not expect much action from our protagonist at all. Let’s just say this once-upon-a-time badass, Angel of Death (who is, fittingly, dead to the world), is no longer open for business. She’s a simpering, lovesick and mentally disturbed teenager. Not that I’m saying she should not be mentally unstable after everything she has done, but this whole flip-side thing does not suit her. She’s too sad and open to betrayal. It makes me really feel for her, sure, but I’m also rolling my eyes as I read about her inability to cope.
This installment is all about finding Jack and “saving” him. Really it’s about how Saba can’t seem to live without him for more than two months until she finally believes he has betrayed her, and sleeps with the first man she stumbles across (thank you Lugh for planting the doubt from the get-go). Okay, okay. He’s not just ANY man. He is THE man. The Pathfinder. All that sexual tension finally sort of messing up everything! And, honestly, I was glad for it. I know it’s not the exciting thrill of action readers get from Blood Red Road, but goddamn it’s some kind of action. And I’d probably respond no different. A sexy, powerful man that has just saved you from drowning yourself and then shows you a better world in front of all his creepy human-breeding-farm-people? Okay, so maybe I wouldn’t be so quick to jump in the sack, but still…she’s human. And that’s one of the greatest things that drew me to Saba in the first book. Despite being an asshole that can kick ass, she has all the faults I enjoy seeing in characters. She’s a fuck up. She is selfish (and sometimes she’s self-sacrificing). She’s also confused and self-doubting. I can deal with that. I just want to grab her face and stare right into her eyes and say “Gurddammit Saba. You bin gittin into a whole lotta trubbel fer a gerl yore aij. But I kan unnerstand it. I kan git behind yooz an try’ta givya sum gud advice. I ain’t gunna maik ‘em decisions for ya, but I’mma try’ta guide yoo.”
Okay, so I just spent like twenty minutes on that. I need to stop or I’ll revert back to my NOLA accent (I miss that beautiful-weird city so much—okay, just the French Quarter).
Also, she keeps ending up in different colour dresses. How is no one pressing her (harder) on that situation? If I were Maev I’d be on that like redheads on the Doctor.
Don’t even get me started on the stupidity of Lugh. He was so not worth saving. Actually, I don’t know what he’s been through, but if it’s worse than Molly, Saba and Emmi combined, I’d be willing to understand why he is such a dick.
The entire plot was not as slow as I had initially expected it to be, but there were a few pointless mini adventures and random psychic, lightning-witch/seer moments. Seriously, where were we going with that if Saba’s having little prophetic dreams without Auriel’s help?
Basically, I have determined this series is wrought with too many YA elements, if that makes sense. Its got the drug trafficking, Western adventure, mysticism, twins, twin fallout, attempts at a Utopian society, rebellion, and fantastical creatures (see giant worms). I can’t even begin to pinpoint the genre of this series and not in a good way. As soon as a new element or previous element is brought in, the others are forgotten. I wouldn’t be surprised if by the third book it’s all steampunk and we’ve forgotten about star-reading and seers.
I still liked this book despite all of the complaints I have. It’s solid writing and I’m already pretty attached to the characters. I just can’t get enough of them.
FINALLY, I know the Tonton are people that work for the Pathfinder, but how can anyone not picture people dressed as tauntauns? I just want to slice one open and sleep in his/her entrails.
Posted 6 months ago
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Friday, 17 August 2012
Book on Trial #36: Dark Star
Note: I find my standards slowly decreasing and my like for these low standards increasing. It is the sad state of literature today. Who am I kidding? I read YA novel for the immediate satisfaction and lack of effect on the state of my thinking about my current life. I like that it is simple, dumb and fanciful. Idealistic about the future of the human race, even. I even like when it is dark, negative and tears are shed over the depressing nature of it all. I like teen books because they are unrealistic, much like Disney movies, and do not require me to think. On the rare occasions that they do, I am pleasantly surprised (or mightily displeased). So heed my warning, readers, though I gave this book a low rating, I still enjoyed reading it.
SPOILERS BELOW.
Title: Dark Star
Author: Frenette, Bethany
Keywords: Minneapolis, dark star, morning star, single mother, teen drama, best friends, powers, small community, demons.
Recommended For: 12+, fans of The Demon-Trapper’s Daughter, Illuminate, and Hemlock.
Rating: 
Sentence: I sentence Bethany Frenette to life as a mime trapped in a real box, because that is what this kind of first-person perspective does to a reader.
Review: I will keep this review short since I read this book in about an hour and a half. This was a fast read because there was not much to it. This uses a recycled plot and recycled “surprises”.
For those who liked the feel of The Demon-Trapper’s Daughter, this book can provide that. It’s a small, close-knit community of people with power called the “Kin” who are likely ruled by some sort of council or elders or someshit I’ve heard before. They are responsible for the safety of Earth or the large city they reside in and murders be happenin’ all over the place (more than usual for the amount of demons they deal with regularly). So hide yo kids, hide yo wives and hide yo husbands, ‘cause they cuttin’ errybody’s ankles out hurr!
Something goes wrong and naturally the “daughter” or MC of this goddamn story must meddle because she is curious as fuck and the only real part of her personality is her incessant questioning, which is also a recycled trait.
The MC gets hurt/learns the grisly details behind her mother’s “crime-fighting” and gets ragged on by not only her mother, but her obviously to-be-lover. Daddy issues, much? He follows her around, protects her, annoys her, clearly checks her out and then pretends to be an oppressive jackass (actually, I don’t think he was pretending), when everyone should know she’s going to do something stupid that’ll get her hurt anyway.
Everyone she goddamn knows/has heard about is some sort of “Kin” or part-Kin and pretty much the only surprise is that she isn’t the Remnant (this everyone-might-be-Kin bit is very similar to my everybody-might-be-a-lycan complaint about Hemlock).
Now, you’re probably wondering why I’m complaining so much if I said I liked it. The answer is simple: I expect more and better from the next book; I expect more romancing; and I expect a Remnant to be found. Also Iris. Let’s get this Iris plot twist all untangled.
The reason I was able to stand this book was because the writing wasn’t awful, there was a baking-cake-fight scene and possibly the cutest, clumsiest kiss scene. That’s it. Now frak off.
I’m exhausted and I’m still goddamn reading The Rise of Nine.
Posted 9 months ago
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Friday, 10 August 2012
Book on Trial #35: Insignia
Note: I tried to keep spoilers to a minimum. I only reveal the ending (just a brief point about something that is not really important for the plot…yet), so I still feel pretty evil about it. :D
Title: Insignia
Author: Kincaid, S. J.
Keywords: School, tactics, military, teen, young adult, cyber-tactics, corporations, power, corruption, government, economic collapse, globalization, alliances, war, technology, stocks, investments, future, enterprises, friendship, education, video games, gaming, neural processor, brain invasion, viruses, hacking.
Recommended For: 12+, fans of Harry Potter, The Matrix, Ready Player One, Erebos, season four of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (The UC Sunnydale/Initiative days).
Rating: 
Sentence: I sentence S. J. Kincaid to an across-the-US-road-trip (or across the UK would be ten times better) where all we listen to is the Harry Potter audio books, as read by the brilliant Stephen Fry. It’s only torture if you let it be. We can even stop for bathroom breaks and food, but I’ll be blasting the speakers, I swear it on my first edition copy of Howl’s Moving Castle.
Review: If I could love this book more I would [Note: I initially gave this book four plums before I had read the ending]. There was just something so fantastic about the entire premise, plot and even info-dumping. Those who read and loved Dan Wells’ Partials will recognize this form of info-dumping and explanation as a valuable introduction to what appears to be a totally new world (but not quite). Kincaid gives it to us easy in the form of education through the classroom.
At first the thought about having to read about how these countries (corporations) formed alliances and the entire globalization process made me want to sleep. But once I started reading about this fictional future of our world I just couldn’t seem to get enough of it.
This entire dystopian-esque setting revolves around one of my favourite and most feared possibilities in the future of this planet, after zombies and the earth being destroyed by some space-shit of course: corporations taking over the government completely. We are an economy-driven world and power now lies in the politics of the economy.
I do not want to reveal much about the book, except that the little blurb on the jacket does not do it justice at all. In fact, I put off reading it because it didn’t sound like something I’d want to read. I am so glad I decided to pick it up anyway. This is a soft version of science fiction, for sure, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as it lacks the intense cheesiness of much of SFF. This leaves room to appreciate Kincaid’s actual humour and some of her more serious topics and themes in the book.
So, if you’re like me and all you got from the jacket blurb was BAD FATHER and GAMBLING, I am here to tell you ignore all that crap. Instead take this away from the book: CHIPS IN YOUR BRAINS, VIRUSES MAKING PEOPLE ACT LIKE DOGS, GAMING IN MYTHOLOGY, and JACKASS COVERED IN SEWAGE. And if you began this book thinking it was like The Hunger Games due to representation of certain companies/countries through these teens, you are sorely mistaken (and I am glad for it).
I’ll be honest though, I couldn’t give Kincaid a full five stars out of hesitation. The feel of the book was like a really elaborate fan-fiction sometimes, because of the eerie similarities I could draw to some Harry Potter characters (and situations). But that is my own feeling about it and I may just be in an HP frame of mind right now.
If Kincaid did borrow some things from pop culture today (who doesn’t?), she sure is goddamn classy about it. My only concerns with the borrowing, really, were some of the character developments and personalities (I love HP characters, even evil, so I am biased to begin with). Beamer resembles Ron Weasley (and sometimes Marvin the Paranoid Android) a little, especially being a ginger and having a younger sister that reminded me of Ginny from the first book. Tom and his sadly unstable home life resembles Harry Potter and his non-home-home situation, including that feeling of sympathy when it’s the day that parents come to visit their kids and all he’s [Tom] got is an asshole company man representing his absent mother. Blackburn is like a weird hybrid of Moody and Snape (keen on torturing Potter Tom, but in a way that’ll help him defend himself against the unforgiveable curses and legilimency neural viruses). Elliot is a dead ringer for Gilderoy Lockhart, in my opinion, except somehow Elliot comes off more legitimate if that’s possible. And also likeable.
It left me with a bit of a hollow feeling at first, because I didn’t see any parallels to the Weasley twins or Dumbledore (my favourites). Kincaid, WHERE IS DUMBLEDORE?! It certainly is not Marsh. I refuse to believe it! Okay, so I should probably just feed my need for HP through fan-fiction, but alternate universe versions of it. Like HP Arthurian Legend or HP Nancy Drew 
or HP Steve Jobs’ biography. Why am I so off topic?
I really loved this book because I couldn’t always see where it was going. Much of the characters’ actions were a surprise for me and I appreciated it. In fact, when Tom was asking about seeing what Medusa looked like physically, I felt a heavy burden that comes with disappointment. This had happened before, after all, in books like Ready Player One, where the main love interest turns out to be normal looking or absolutely gorgeous (although Cline countered that with his unexpected best friend IRL being a robust black chick in an RV—AMAZING). As soon as Tom said something about girls being prettier IRL when they say they aren’t, I was in agreement with him, thinking “this is so typical”. And then Kincaid hits you with the big one.
Medusa is not pretty at all. Well, she might be pretty under all the burns or whatever is going on, on her face, but Tom still really likes her even though his expectations have been shattered. And that is the main reason I changed my mind about this book. I will give it 4.5 for giving the middle finger to conventional expectations of what the main love interest should look like. This is something, I hope, cannot be fixed. It’s not that I want her to suffer from the judgment of society and perhaps Tom (we shall have to see in the next book); I want her to rise above that. And Tom too.
But seriously, where is Dumbledore?
Posted 9 months ago
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Saturday, 14 July 2012
Book on Trial #34: Shadow and Bone
I don’t think there are really any spoilers in this “review”, but be wary anyway.
Author: Bardugo, Leigh
Title: Shadow and Bone
Keywords: Powers, light, summoning, castes, fantasy, young adult, teen, love, darkness.
Recommended For: 15+, fans of Tolkien, Paolini, Laini Taylor, George R. R. Martin.
Rating: 
Sentence: I sentence Leigh Bardugo to making me look half as pretty as Genya. I guarantee it’ll take hours. Get to work!
Review: Take a fraction of the complex politics of A Song of Ice and Fire with a folk-ish and historical feel of Eastern Europe, as well as the influence of Asian culture and you have Shadow and Bone.
I was impressed by Bardugo’s mastery of making you believe in all these other cultures and languages, let alone monsters and beings of power. For damnation’s sake, I wanted to see the frakking clothes they were wearing, so I could better understand keftas and whether these Grisha were actually wearing what appeared to be Japanese boys’ school uniforms with coloured capes (I think my mind twisted the descriptions a little).
I guess maybe that’s why I can’t take anyone seriously, but sort of can. It doesn’t help that the main duo are being chanted in my head as “Al and Mal. Al and Mal. Al and Mal.”
Anyway, there were similarities to other fantasy and YA fiction, but not to an extent that I disliked it. Alina’s relationship with the Darkling seems kind of like a submissive-dominance thing; appearing to give them both a thrill, which I guess will appeal to the Fifty Shades of Grey crowd. Oh yes, ladies, there is even a collar involved. But that is the extent of the similarities to that fodder.
I think my only issue with it was how Alina failed to see that someone with the title DARKLING could be evil. Let’s get real for a second. Actually, I really thought him harmless for like two pages when I misread “Darkling” as “Darkwing” and forever the handsome 120 year old now looks like this in my head:
I seriously need to know whether keftas can include capes. You can whip them about snobbily.
I think I need to take a break from any young adult fantasy. I’ll dunk my head in some overrated, hedonistic teen romance. That’ll give me some perspective, I’m sure.
Posted 10 months ago
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Thursday, 12 July 2012
Book on Trial #33: Seraphina
Author: Hartman, Rachel
Title: Seraphina
Keywords: Dragons, half-breeds, love, philosophers.
Recommended For: 13+, fans of Tamora Pierce, Paolini, Diana Wynne Jones, Tolkien, Rowling.
Rating: 
Sentence: I sentence Rachel Hartman to have the ability to solve many sexy equations and also a crime-free life in Vancouver. That shit be scary.
Review: I’ll try to make this review pretty short, since I had barely a complaint. Actually, if I had a complaint I cannot recall it anymore because I am baffled by Hartman. I should say this is an extremely rare occurrence. I never give out five stars.
This novel started at a relatively slow pace, but with good reason. The characters and world building painted an entirely different world from what I’ve read before and did an extremely good job at it. I had complex questions about the history of some character or saint or weapon or even family with no doubts to there actually being a story. It’s like the world has existed for so long and this story is just a minor occurrence in the history of it. A minor story I rather enjoyed, but only minor in the sense of looking at the broader picture of everything.
This is one of those rare reads where you find the two main love interests arguing about philosophers to be some sort of sexy, chemistry-filled conversation. I was practically salivating for more about Archiboros and his pompous ass. Maybe even more about Pontheus, the jurisprudence philosopher; later said to be either genius or mad.
But seriously, how is this turning me on? It must be all that intelligent talk and whatnot.
I also thoroughly enjoyed Seraphina storming about and trying to be pricklier than she is. She’s brave, but shy and intrepid. She contradicts herself by loving others, despite their grotesqueness, and having trouble loving her own self.
The characters throughout this entire novel are so well built that it’s only too easy to find their imperfections rather than the things that make them flat. Even the “soulless” saarantras and quigutl had me amused, laughing, and possibly crying a little. Even the Ardmagar Cormonot was confusing with his Cybermen-like reactions to emotion.
Okay, but srsly, this spoke to my heart (don’t laugh): “do not underestimate the seductive power of math.”
Basically, I have nothing else to say except GIMME MORE. And also: 
Yeah, come at me dragons. I’m looking pretty sexy now, aren’t I?
Posted 10 months ago
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Friday, 6 July 2012
Book on Trial #32: City of Lost Souls
At least there is only one more book until it’s finally over.
Author: Clare, Cassandra
Title: City of Lost Souls
Keywords: Werewolves, wizards, murder, best friends, vampires, teen, depressing, ghosts, demons, powers, assault, evil family members.
Recommended For: 14+
Rating: 
Sentence: I sentence Cassandra Clare to a completely new series in which she can finally move on with her life…or career. I like you Cassie, but goddamn it, I want something new. If I see anymore of this Mortal Instruments/Infernal Devices nonsense after both series’ are over, I’m running in the opposite direction.
Review: It took me about 100 pages to actually get into this book. While I loved Clare expanding beyond Clary’s POV, I could have done without Jordan and Maya or whatever their names are.
I did, however, find myself completely immersed in Alec and Magnus. Alec finally is beefing up with his own, surprisingly insecure personality. The little bouts of jealousy combined with desperation at getting a handle on Magnus, who he feels is too beyond his reach, endears him to me.
I just wanna pat him on the back and be that understanding friend that could possibly advise him against most stupid mistakes.
Anyway, while I was a little indifferent about the whole Clary and Jace situation, I found a total opposite reaction to the Clary-Seb situ.
I am hoping for a complete re-hash and appropriate reaction to this whole abusive, sexually-assaulting brother business. I know a lot of readers were iffy about it, but I liked that it was real, sick, twisted and dark. Sexual assault occurs much more often than people realize and I think that teen fiction needs more discussion of it. It needs to be addressed rather than avoided and perhaps even dealt with (appropriately and inappropriately) within books. As Clare said in the piece she wrote on her website/blog, just because there is abuse in books, does not mean that the authors of such works promote violence and rape. Writing is a form of storytelling and stories are an escape and sometimes a fantastical metaphor used to deal with real life issues.
Maybe I am taking this whole thing much too seriously, but books like Speak and The Perks of Being a Wallflower are relatable for a reason; they don’t try to pretend the darker aspects of young adult life do not exist or are uncommon.
If teens were left to read happy and sappy romances, happily-ever-after scenarios and non-violent versions of everything perhaps their expectations would be set a little too high and their interest in reading diminished. Teens are angsty, over-dramatic creatures.
Alright, so I sort of went off on a tangent, but my point is that City of Lost Souls is great in that sense. It made me weep, the fight scenes were decent for once (Clary uses some quick thinking, which was an excellent change) and you feel for the characters you don’t really think you like (Sebastian, Maya, etc.)
My only points of issue with this book were:
-Maya and Jordan; who really cares?
-Simon loves Iz, but he is way too attached to Clary still. I don’t trust that shit.
-Magnus must realize how tough it is for Alec. He is oddly unforgiving for someone who has hundreds of years of experience versus the kid that is dating a guy for the first time.
-Why does Sebastian always miraculously get away? I feel like I’m watching Scooby Doo but Sebastian is Shaggy surrounded by a dozen monsters with only one door out and he accidentally trips into Fred’s trap which slingshots him out of a random skylight I didn’t notice before.
Anyway, I highly recommend reading this book, even if you hated the last one. In fact, pretend the last one didn’t happen and enjoy this book as it is. Not as great as the original trilogy, but worth checking out.
Posted 10 months ago
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Thursday, 7 June 2012
Book on Trial #31: Hemlock
I think I should be honest that I am partial to werewolf stories, especially if “real” politics are involved. Also, the spoilers are bound to be endless.
Author: Peacock, Kathleen
Title: Hemlock
Keywords: Werewolves, shapeshifting, murder, best friends, love triangles, dead parents, teen, depressing, ghosts, dreams, typical young adult.
Recommended For: 12+, fans of Rachel Caine, Charlaine Harris, and the show Teen Wolf (junk supernatural)
Rating: 
Sentence: I sentence Kathleen Peacock to a prophetic, teenage dream every morning, where everyone she knows turns into a werewolf and is in love with her.
Review: Basically I liked this enough to stay up all night reading it, but it was more of a resigned “let’s get this over with” read. There was nothing really wrong with this book. Like I said in my recommendations, this book will appeal to people that are big on teenage drama, junk supernatural, with that twist of not-really-clever mystery. And, to be honest, I fall under all those categories (when I’m really bored). For that, I gave Hemlock three solid plums.
Besides, Peacock is one of the better YA authors I have read in awhile. Her articulation is spot on and she doesn’t get attached to words she does not know how to correctly use.
That being said, the inconsistencies are way too noticeable. Here’s a small example:
“Tess slid out of the boot and dropped a couple of bills on the table, even though she’d barely touched her food.” (p.14)
And then, on the same frakking page:
“I glanced down at the empty salad bowl and scooped up the crumpled bills.” (P.14)
Light editing is all it takes, my friend. I started to over-think the missing salad situation, wondering if it would make a come back later in the book and be explained. Like maybe Ben was secretly eating people’s leftovers because he’s really poor or something. I convinced myself it was too simple of an inconsistency to be made on the same goddamn page. It had to be a salad-stealing werewolf, right? Or the ghost of Amy—maybe Amy really was a ghost and little clues like this would be left behind. SPOILER: She is not a ghost. Just a dream or figment of Mac’s nightmares.
But do not be fooled as easily as I was, by my over-active imagination. A mistake is just a mistake sometimes.
There was one particular inconsistency that made me literally rip a bit of my hair out. I would like to think it was actually Mac’s stubbornness and disability in recognizing her deteriorating emotional state.
“I hated crying in front of other people.” (p.5) She says this, but that doesn’t mean she does not cry at all (which I noted down). But it’s like the people she knows don’t see when she’s in distress, even if she walks away, shaking and trying not to cry (p.57).
“It’s like you don’t care she’s dead…” (p.78 ) How dumb is this Jason kid?
“Tears blurred my vision…” (p.79)
“Tears and snot ran down my face.” (p.93) Attractive, but awesome since she’s legit in danger.
“Tears streamed down my face.” (p.97)
“My vision blurred and I closed my eyes. I would not cry in front of him.” (p.121)
“My eyes filled with tears…it wasn’t fair to cry…sight of crying girl was scarier than anything that had happened” (p.138-9).
“I cried like my heart was breaking.” (p.151)
“A tear slid down my cheek…” (p.172)
“My vision blurred.” (p.182)
“Tears filled my eyes and spilled over…For once I wanted someone to see me cry.” (p.223)
“I wiped my eyes with the sleeve of my jacket.” (p.253)
“You’re still crying,” (p.267)
“I realized I was crying.” (p.290)
“Tears filled my eyes…” (p.300)
“My eyes with tears so hot they burned.” (p.302)
“I closed my eyes and tears leaked out from under my lids.” (p.303)
“And then I was crying—so hard and so fast that it hurt.” (p.305)
“My eyes filled with tears.” (p.323-4)
“I swallowed and blinked away tears.” (p.363)
“I bit my lip and blinked away tears.” (p.393)
“I didn’t want to explain to ess why I was crying.” (p.396)
“The tears coursing down my cheeks…” (p.396)
I think it’s fair to say that Mac cries a lot. Not sure about pre-Amy’s death, but post-Amy’s death all she can talk about is crying and trying not to cry, which makes you really notice when she’s crying.
It also turns out that almost everyone in Hemlock is a frakking werewolf. I wouldn’t be surprised, if by the end, Mac and Jason end up being werewolves too. Or Tess. At this rate, the whole world will be infested with werewolves faster than herpes at this shady club on my favourite street.
You know what I love about this author? She doesn’t pretend she has never read a book in her life. She acknowledges that ideas and images come from somewhere, especially popular literature. She mentions Harry Potter, references Judy Blume and doesn’t shy away from using an Outsiders-like geographical standard of living and separation (different sides of the river instead, p. 17).
Hemlock is a combination of all the things you could love and hate about young adult stuff. It starts off with that typical, life-endangering dream. Hemlock, turns into what appears to be a combination of Bon Temps (Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris) and Morganville (Morganville Vampires series by Rachel Caine); little town dealing with worldwide, supernatural problems. Much of the politics and bills being passed reminded me more of the show True Blood. The Trackers, on the other hand, felt like an exact replica of the Hunters from Teen Wolf or I suppose from one of those L. J. Smith series’, except they all seem to be bad guys or in over their heads. There appear to be no Buffy-like slayers/hunters. Where’s a bad-ass girl when you need one?
Anyway, so our weak little Mac has her dead best friend trying to help her solve mysteries (this is, of course, Mac’s subconscious trying to “help” her), which is reminiscent of early Veronica Mars and Lilly (Amanda Seyfried) prancing around keeping dangerous secrets that need to be pried from her cold, dead fingers.
It had just about as much romantic (and otherwise) drama as Veronica Mars. One second it’s all about the platonic-ness of everyone and then suddenly Kyle is glued to her lips, then tosses her aside and then picks her up again and tells Mackenzie (not Mac anymore) he loves her. Jason finally admits to loving her “ever since Christmas last year” and Mac is all like “OMG, everything is my fault. Amy probs hated me before she died, because the world revolves around what people think of me, even though I can’t seem to figure it all out on my own and have to be spoon-fed emotions I should understand.”
And then I was like:
Basically this book could only illicit one emotion from me: mild amusement. It was like trying to watch this ginger kid eat ice cream.
Fascinating.
But actually, the mild amusement led to mild enjoyment. So yeah, read it or something, while I watch this kid eat ice cream like a boss.
Also, my favourite: “Without thinking, I hurled my book at his chest.” (p. 164) That’s exactly what every good teen book needs. A little bit of hurling of objects and books so that you can possibly deal with the stupidity.
Posted 11 months ago
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Wednesday, 9 May 2012
Book on Trial #29: Ready Player One
NOTE: SPOILER BOSS. Unable to be destroyed. Also, prepare to geek-gasm without prior warning.
Author: Cline, Ernest
Title: Ready Player One
Keywords: Video games, 1980s, rat pack, John Hughes, Back to the Future, vintage, OASIS, corporate control, dystopian, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, science fiction, geek, Ladyhawke, Legend, quests, billions, money, winning.
Recommended For: 13+
Rating: 
Sentence: I sentence Ernest Cline to a perfect game of Pac-Man.
Review: Ready Player One, at its best, is a story of individual freedoms and love over the binding, capitalist control of corporations and money. At its worst it is a jumble of idealistic, pro-vanguard working class notions mashed together with Ernie’s seemingly infinite knowledge of 80s pop culture and geekery.
And, to be perfectly honest, I couldn’t give less of a coprolite. Writing is a means of communication to others and an author has the right to say whatever the frak they want, through their storytelling. I mean the only reason you’d have to fear their ideals voiced in their writing is if you lack the ability to think for yourself and can be brainwashed by anything you read.
That being said, I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. I’m a huge fan of the 80s and loved the little tidbits (or giant morsels) spotted throughout OASIS.
At its core, Ready Player One has many exaggerated ideas and failures that I don’t believe we’d quite get to by 2044 (hopefully finding alternatives for certain issues like energy), but ones we can all imagine being very real.
Readers will find themselves unable to stop until Wade/Parzival has figured out the next riddle and cleared its respective gate. I was cheering him on and then berating him for wasting his time. I was hoping Art3mis would see sense and accept Wade, but at the same time I was torn between her and Parzival winning.
The story is simple and reads much like a young adult novel, so audiences have no need to be intimidated by the label “science fiction”. Sure, there’s plenty of 80s junk in there, but Ernie does a great job explaining it for those unsure. He also inserts little trajectories about “Endorians” (Ewoks) and the joys of Ladyhawke for 80s geek culture aficionados. And I will admit, throughout this entire Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ordeal, readers will come across some infodumps that they may or may not understand. I encountered various things about video games I just will never comprehend. For all my geekery, I am not a gamer; unless we’re talkin’ classic board games or Tetris. There were also many strange technicalities, which were either for real or part of the OASIS technology, but either way I couldn’t tell you.
Wade seems like a genuinely good guy that is cleverer than he lets on. He single-handedly gains access to incriminating evidence against the big, evil IOI and gets the girl (Art3mis). Of course whether or not they “save the world from hunger” is likely a more complicated story in itself, so I would not say it was entirely the happiest of endings.
There was not much room to be surprised, though each chapter became increasingly urgent to finish and the need to discover whether Sorrento had bested the “High Five” more crucial. I have to admit the only surprise was Aech turning out to be a “young African American woman”, as Wade put it. Though, this is not something I haven’t seen before.
I tip my hat off to you, Ernie, and hope to see this better manifested as a movie (not that I’m saying the film would be better than the book, but it would make a goddamn good frakking movie, possibly with the feel of Minority Report meets John Hughes).
Posted 1 year ago
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Excelsior, fellow book lovers!
Sometimes I wonder why my books haven't asked for my parents' blessings yet.
You don't need to know who I am. Only that I like things. Like books. I am also a bookseller, which is why my hands are so dry to the point of them peeling off like snake-skin.
This blog is meant to be as ridiculous and funny as it is serious. I love books, reviewing them, discussing them, and analyzing them, but I'm also a fan of awesome things that make me laugh.
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