stuck.at.seven: [while awkwardly aiming for ten]
In five words: Quick, witty, funny, explicit, honest.
 - Edmund Christopher McCombs, Stephanie Meyers)
The Kite Runner
I think what this really opened my eyes to was not just the situation in Afghanistan, but what a writer can do to impact the world. Because, really, why should every story be set in the Western World, Space or the Future when there are things happening right now in corners of the world that half the people I know wouldn't be able to find on a map? It's not only our right to know - we need to know. Even if all we can do is shoot up a prayer, these people and these issues should not go unnoticed and forgottenIn this sense, the Kite Runner is more than riveting, heart-breaking entertainment; it's an example of what literature can be, and what it can do. It's a story, but it's more than a story. I plan on reading more books like this one.
Clockwork Prince (Infernal Devices)
I LOVED this book. I like the Infernal Devices way more than I like the Mortal Instruments. I prefer how it's written, I prefer the setting and I prefer the characters. I love that in this book we see the 'human' side of Will, and I am rooting for Will and Tessa to end up together. Which seems a little unlikely since Jem and Tessa are engaged but...Cassandra Clare, please make it happen!I get so into these books, and I just adore all the characters. Jessamine is amazingly bitter, Magnus and Ragnor Fell are amazing, and I cannot put into words how much I love Charlotte and Henry. There is just so much to love about this book.The whole book seems really well planned - all the way through I'm wondering for what purpose Ms. Clare has written things, and there is always a reason, which I love.And wow, the ending? They eat dinner, then it's like, "Hey, we're getting married! ", "Hey, we're having a baby!", "Hey, I'm Will's sister! " The end. I was just sitting there like - woah.For all the love I've given this book, Cassandra Clare better make Will and Tessa end up together in the Clockwork Princess. Else I shall be cross.
The Power of Six (Lorien Legacies Series #2)
I think this guy has a thing for spectacular battle finales. I love it!So I liked this book pretty much as much as I liked I am Number Four, although I thought there was less information-dumping, which was good. I loved Marina and Ella, and I was impressed with how, even getting to know Six,she was still ridiculously cool.If there was one thing I would ask him to change it would be this: John likes Sarah and Six, Six likes John and Sam. Sam, John and Six all know this and are all cool with it. That really made no sense to me.But...yes. I really struggled to put this book down and I very much enjoyed it. I can't wait to read the next one.
The Maze Runner (Maze Runner Series #1)
It's always easier to start with the things I didn't like, and there were a few. The main thing was I disliked the main character. Tom. He annoyed me because he seemed a bit self-absorbed, pushy and very set on being the only hero. I mean, all that was OK - the really frustrating part was when pretty much every other character suddenly became best buddies with this guy. The other thing I thought could have been better was the community feel. There's nearly fifty boys who have been living together for two years; they're going to know each others' names, right? Well, in the book, we hear about five of them. And it's those five boys who do everything - the rest of them are a character-less mass of life that do nothing except what they're told. All that aside, this book was extremely fun to read. The whole mystery of it kept me reading all the way through, I cried my eyes out when Chuck died, and the ending was amazing. A cliff hanger without leaving the story unfinished is really hard to achieve, and Dashner rocked it.Yes, this book is really good. I do think, though, that it is more for a male audience, so whatever the comments say on the back, I still like the Hunger Games better.The majority of this review is negative because it's easy to complain. You may notice, however, that I gave this book five stars. No book is perfect, but James Dashner has done a very good job.
Bzrk
It was good...I think the science put me off. There is a ton of sciencey words in here that just went totally over my head.It's a really good - if slightly disturbing - idea, and the plot was really good. I must admit I was hoping to see whether Grant could carry a story from the POV of just one person, maybe even write in first person, just because it would be so different to the Gone series. But, I was disappointed in that respect.But...yeah. I think Michael Grant relishes the prospect of writing stories with as much gore as possible, but I also think he balanced it out quite well here.I also quite liked having the 'Artifacts' every now and again (even if I didn't always quite understand the science parts) - I thought they worked really well.So, yeah. Good book. Not as much my thing as I'd thought it would be.
Emerald
I normally really like this sort of thing, but this one didn't leave a great impression on me. All I could think of was things that didn't seem quite right. For example, Emerald and Sam fall desperately in love after having...what, two conversations? And they never even argue.Also, Karen Wallace had a great plot going for her, with secrets and lies and mysteries to unravel, but I couldn't feel the tension. Wallace is a good writer, but I honestly think she could have played it up a bit more. One character I did absolutely love though, was Meg. I loved her accent, I loved her personality, and I loved her relationships with Emerald, Sarah and Hetty. The ending was nice. I thought it could have been a little more exciting than a conversation with the servants, but it was happy. Everything was resolved, perhaps a little too well.I'm good at complaining about books, but in all honesty this - although it could have been better - could have easily been a lot worse.
The Tomorrow Code
Picture this: 15 year old girl, from New Zealand. She's driving a jeep. Being chased by fog. Which turns into jellyfish and snowmen. Which signals the end of the world. She's giving the military orders via walkie talkie. Oh, and did I mention there's a chimpanzee in the passenger seat?If that sounds appealing to you, then you'll probably like this book.I preferred the first part of the book; the second one got a bit ridiculous, and - although I'll be the first to say I'm no scientist - not believable. At all.But hey, each to their own.
Sovay
Well, this should have been two books, at least. It was a good plot, but the trip to France should never have been squeezed into the same novel.So you hate the Love Triangle? Meet Celia Rees, breaking stereotypes: introducing the Love Hexagon. It's not as bad as it could have been, to be honest, but seriously - this girl has guys falling in love with her left right and centre wherever she goes, and she doesn't settle until what, the second to last page?It took me a while to get into. I don't know if it was the writing that threw me off, or the high expectations I had for Celia Rees. I read The Stone Testament a few years ago and remember it as ridiculously good, so Sovay was a little disappointing.It was okay. The gothic twist somewhere in the middle of her second big adventure was unexpected, but I quite enjoyed it. Not that it was particularly original. I think it should have ended there, though.
Halo
OK, so technically this is probably a kid's/young teens book. But I really liked it! OK, so the writing is a little simplistic, OK so maybe a few too many coincidences happen for it to be believable, but I loved it all the same :)Set in Ancient Greece - little Halo is brought up by the centaurs who find her washed up on the beach. When she's about 12 she gets stolen into the world of man and there's a huge adventure in trying to escape, trying to find out who her parents are...Stuff :)But, I really liked it. I've read the Lionboy series by the same authors (I think I'm right in saying Zizou Corder is the pen name of two people working together?), and I liked that they were dealing with new plot components, like the main character falling in love, and serious illness and suffering.But yeah. It's not heavy stuff, but it's totally morally upright; I guess you could say it challenges your views on war and stuff, but it doesn't really delve too deep. It's light reading, fun, and I really loved it.
Where I Belong
I really really enjoyed this. I liked the four-point narration, and that Cross had obviously done some good research. I love books about other cultures, and I felt that this book did a good job.
Prisoner of the Inquisition
Wow. Stunning plot, I thought. I wasn't crazy about her style of writing. It drove me crazy waiting for Saulo and Zarita to actually meet...Chapter 37! I know!Tragic, tragic ending, and in general a really interesting book. I really enjoyed it, but it's not one of my favourites.
Heist Society (Heist Society Novels)
Ah, hard to rate. It took me ages to get into this, but when I finally did I really enjoyed it. I'll definitely read the sequel. I loved her little 'gang' - the brothers, Simon, Gabrielle, Hale(
Deep Secret
This was such an unbelievably sad book. Oh my word.Never having been a twin, I can't know how realistic their relationship was, but it certainly came across well.Doherty's 'writing voice' is the sort that I would normally write off as a Script of Things not Deep (never having read any books by her before), but what she's pulled off in this book is something special. She's got loss, love and village life all rolled into one spectacular story. So why only four stars, if I'm having trouble thinking of something negative to say about it? Well, it's not really my type of thing. It was good, I'm glad I read it, but...yeah, not my genre.
City of Ashes: Mortal Instruments 02
I enjoyed this more than the first, possibly because I didn't need to spend time getting to know the characters.The plot was good. Not absolutely the most amazing thing I've ever read, but good. It kept me reading long enough for me to finish and to want to read the next one. As soon as possible. Which can only be a good thing.So, I may just be in a good mood, but I did like this book.
Revolution
Well, 4.45 stars.I really liked this book. It's a great book. Character development, check. Interesting plot, check. Good standard of writing, check. So what made me drop the 0.55 star? Not that the narrator was self-pitying to the extreme. Not that some aspects of the plot, like Truman's key, didn't seem sensible to me. Not even the strange plot twist where Andi finds herself in Eighteenth Century France. It was, if I'm honest, the utterly depressing side of the story. Girl's brother dies, she becomes suicidal. If it wasn't so well written, and so very addictive, I may never have read this book.The ending, however, was very much a happy one. I had to read it twice to check. Maybe it was a little cliche, maybe it all worked out too well...but I don't care. It made me happy.I may have overdone it trying to explain the parts of this book I din't like so let me just clarify - this is an absolutely amazing book. I really love it, and I would read it again. Because hey, what book is perfect?
