This will be a short and sweet review. Despite my feelings and how relative large the negative part of my review will be, I did enjoy Ask me How I GotThis will be a short and sweet review. Despite my feelings and how relative large the negative part of my review will be, I did enjoy Ask me How I Got Here. It's cute, funny even. It's not at all like most young adult books because it doesn't waste time on unnecessary details. Still it does need work, things are not fleshed out. But I liked it. It's a solid read.
The characters aren't fleshed out well enough. Juliana comes into the story and into Addie's life. It's not a smooth transition and seems like she was added into the story as a second thought. There are also connections made between Addie and The Virgin Mary, however I was expecting more from it. I was expecting their stories to line up not perfectly, but better. Especially with their relationships with men, their emotions towards family, etc. As I read through all of my notes for this one, my biggest problem is with the characters. It sucks when a novel, beautifully written in verse fails to translate enough emotion through the characters. Claire and the brother should have been better. They fell flat and were not able to support Addie, the protagonist as much as they should have.
I loved Addie's voice. No bullshit from her. It's beautiful as she uses references from the Bible to explain her life through The Virgin Mary. Although I'm not at all religious, the way Heppermann weaves this into the story is lovely. I really enjoyed it.
Ask Me How I Got Here is an in between novel for me. It's not bad but it isn't particularly good either. If characters play the largest part of a novel for you, this might not be a novel for you. Nonetheless, it's a story that's not really talked about, especially in young adult. Teenagers do indeed get abortions, shit happens. Which also aides in my overall opinion of the book....more
I've read Schwab's other story, The Archived and really enjoyed it so I was super pumped to read This Savage Song. But, like, no. S
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3 Stars
I've read Schwab's other story, The Archived and really enjoyed it so I was super pumped to read This Savage Song. But, like, no. So monotone, so unemotional, and just...sad. Pretty much, all I was thinking while reading this was:
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Nothing matters in the book. And by this, I mean I could not have cared less if the whole city got eaten by monsters. The characters are not well-developed, are extremely flat, and annoying. An example would have to be August himself as he's supposed to be watching Kate, understanding her tactics, and reporting everything back to his dad yet he doesn't (or rarely ever does) report a damn thing. He just waits for her to show up. Again,
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On top of this, the relationship between Kate and August is so fucking contrived which is pointless Since there is nothing to care about here.
But, I did like the setting. Schwab seems to spend ample amounts of time on world building, which is great because the setting is the best. Monsters! Crawling everywhere! No one is safe. I could completely believe it, feel the atmosphere of the things that go bump in the night, unfortunately, it quickly died because of everything else. Moreover, the only character I actually enjoyed was Ilsa because she is so strange yet cool and AHHH!! Picturing the stars all over her body is just so beautiful and perfect. But then again, maybe I don't actually like the character, maybe I like the idea of this character. Either way, I'm giving Schwab points for it.
This Savage Song is flat-out a 'meh' book. The characters are shit with Leo leading the pack. When he did anything, I took it all in without hesitation or emotion. Moreover, because of this, the plot twists are shit, the writing is okay, and the world is excellent. Although I do recommend this book, I also recommend to go into it with an open mind as you will most likely be let down otherwise....more
The writing is spot on, I must admit. It held my attention, lost it, and then snatched it right back up. However, that's about all it has going for2.5
The writing is spot on, I must admit. It held my attention, lost it, and then snatched it right back up. However, that's about all it has going for it. The characters are so...boring. I had so many questions for the relationship between Micah and Janie how they stayed friends, why hey stayed friends...I just...didn't get any of it. Also the pacing is off. I had no clue what I was reading, what I was supposed to understand. I loved how Zhang wrote this, I just wanted a little bit more information....more
But actually...what even is the point of this novel? Because I've had a few weeks to think about it and....nothing. I seriously don't know. But actually...what even is the point of this novel? Because I've had a few weeks to think about it and....nothing. I seriously don't know. ...more
Look, let's just get straight to the point. Was I mad by the end of this book? Not quite. Did I still have a lot of questions, like how some loser conLook, let's just get straight to the point. Was I mad by the end of this book? Not quite. Did I still have a lot of questions, like how some loser conned more than two dozen people into giving him pretty much everything? Fuck yes. But more than that, I was disappointed. I felt so underwhelmed by every aspect of No Parking at the End Times, even during the parts where there should have been a lot of religious insight,fuck, any kind of insight, I got nothing. You're better off skimming a pamphlet on the 'New World' rather than read this book.
Why? Because nothing happens. And when something does happen, it's 77% into the book, where no shits are given anymore. Don't get me wrong, I love a good build-up, leaving room for nothing but suspense however this is ridiculous. And when you pair a boring book and awkward writing that's full of unnecessary words, well, the outcome isn't pretty. Moreover, for a novel that has so much on the Now, there's almost nothing on the Then part. The book is mostly surrounded on the decisions that Abigail's father has made and still making, how his mistakes have caused the family to lose greatly. So when I was reading and found close to nothing, honest to God, nothing on what made him switch gears and decide to listen to Brother John, I couldn't help but scream. Adding onto this, the characters aren't fleshed out. Abigail, I could understand for the most part because I could relate to her but only to a point. Halfway done, I stopped caring about her as well as the other characters. They just don't stick out, especially Brother John, who is supposed to be this magnificent man sent down from God. Obviously he's not but I did not see the appeal of him. He always gave generic answers, didn't read any fucking verses from the Bible despite always having it on hand, and all around, didn't even act like he was really into it. As a con artist you have to at least fake to have your heart in it, this guy gave no fucks. Now, does that sound like a man two relatively responsible adults with two children would give everything to? It doesn't to me, I still don't understand where Bliss was going with him.
Nonetheless, there are some mediocre things that I didn't mind. One of them being the Before chapters albeit short and mostly pointless because they tell only snippets of what happened, of how they got to California rather than giving the whole picture.
No Parking at the End Times might have been great since most books about the Rapture don't really go into after the 'event', only about two weeks later. What made me even more disappointed is the fact that the beginning is so good. Like, guys, it's so good. It's intense, mysterious, and exciting. I was giddy with pleasure (that died like two or three chapters later). Would I recommend this novel? No, like I said before, I got more information from a pamphlet, hell, even the damn internet than I did on the actual Rapture, or on anything religious. This should tell you something about how badly this book is written when I have to complain multiple times about the religion aspect of it. And I don't even like religion.
I am far too lazy to actually explain what's wrong with this book while reading only 8% of it. So, if you really wanna know, go r[image]
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I am far too lazy to actually explain what's wrong with this book while reading only 8% of it. So, if you really wanna know, go read Blythe's or Gillian's review.
I actually don’t know what to say about this one. It’s not a bad novel, it’s just…childish. Or at least it is during the beginning. Emmy and 3.5 Stars
I actually don’t know what to say about this one. It’s not a bad novel, it’s just…childish. Or at least it is during the beginning. Emmy and Oliver’s relationship has this huge ten-year gap because Oliver’s kidnapping and I think this is why I had such a hard time liking the story. Since he left when they were still little children, it just picks up where they left off. It’s all, “Emmy does this” and, “Oliver does that.” If stuff like this doesn’t bother you, it’s actually a great novel that’s very sweet, however if it does, maybe just skim until the middle.
Or even skim the first chapter because it’s the summary only more in-depth. Oliver left, there was a note, Emmy misses him. And although the story is Emmy’s, I feel like there should have been more to it. Like, Oliver talks about his life, about what he did during those years however, it’s hard to truly picture it since he only says snippets and then that’s it. I did feel for him and his pain however, I wanted to know more so that I could relate more to him. Also, the blow-ups that happen between Oliver and his mother happen too quickly. As a person who has gone through bad shit and seen my friends go through bad shit, parents just aren’t that quick to ground people over small things. Another thing that’s lacking is the town. Like, what town? There is no town. I didn’t get the small feeling of people watching his every move, the ‘think this way,’ or anything. It just fades into the background so whenever Emmy mentions something about their town, it’s always confusing because WHAT TOWN IS THERE?!
But Emmy & Oliver is a sweet novel. The characters are strong and witty, especially Drew who honestly killed me every time he opens his mouth. The relationship between Emmy and Oliver is cute. It’s more of a friendship than anything else and I enjoyed reading about it. I also liked the relationship between Oliver and his father. It’s not your typical one, it’s a strange and realistic relation between two people who need time to figure out their feelings. I got that and I loved it. One of the best relationships ever. The small in between chapters that tell of secrets and memories between Emmy and Oliver also helps paint the picture of how close these two were when they were younger. It put me in a memory of my own childhood where I would always make up weird sayings that only my friends and I understood. Actually, now that I think about it, I don’t think any of us actually knew what we were saying to each other but we still understood, deep down.
Would I recommend this book? Yes I would because it’s focused on more than just romance and I love that about books. Although the execution at times is sloppy and annoying, it does get its footing and tells an amazing story about time. So, yeah. Go pick this one up it’s cute and sad and summer friendly....more
The only way to describe this book is with a saying my friend, James says about certain art--It's a shitty painting with a really1.5/ Messed Up Clouds
The only way to describe this book is with a saying my friend, James says about certain art--It's a shitty painting with a really nice frame.
The idea for this book is really cool. It's all mysterious and enticing, however the actual work, is all over the place. There's insta-love and boring characters that literally have no lives except to hang out with Graham or talk about him. There are sisters that, honest to god, only compare each other and point out how different they are from one another. And on top of that, the writing is so unbelievably bad, half the time, I didn't know if I was reading the book as things were happening or as the characters reflected back on the shit that just happened. I just didn't know.
To make matters worse, this book tries so hard. It tries so hard to keep it interesting by changing up the POVs and adding random thingss here and there as well as adding a strange love triangle. However, despite the really nice frame (idea), a shitty painting will always be a shitty painting.
Bottom line, just skip this one. It's not worth it....more
I'm in love with Hannah Moskowitz. I love her writing, her characters, the way that I feel like I personally know her solely from reading her books. II'm in love with Hannah Moskowitz. I love her writing, her characters, the way that I feel like I personally know her solely from reading her books. I feel like she puts a lot of herself into her stories. Not Otherwise Specified isn't... a bad book by any means. But it is a what the fuck just happened ? kind of book. From the setting to the dialogue, all the way to the fucking cover I just...
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I don't think I ever encountered a book by an author I loved that has had info-dumping, but Not Otherwise Specified has it to the max. I'm not even kidding. Sure there are a lot of witty comments that make some of the several info-dumping parts bearable but just barely. Also, the dialogue is really bad. It's all cookie cutter edge with 'he says' or 'I say' 'she says'. They say a lot of shit, I get it. Now make it interesting by adding actions. And I don't know if it's just me but all anyone talks about are eating disorders and theater and a dash of the LGBT community thus making the characters not as fleshed out as I would have liked. I got bored quite easily reading this one because I was waiting for something out of the ordinary. It didn't really come. Anyway, the relationship between Bianca and Etta is so crazy and unbelievable that I had a hard time taking to it. Bianca barely talks and somehow, she's clinging to Etta for dear life after like a month? Of course these scenarios happen, but I'm sorry there's just so much planning that could have made it seem realistic. Bianca has too much to lose (I think) to just allow Etta into her life instantly.
Still, this is Hannah Moskowitz and after a while, the random-all-over-the-place-but-not-really-I-don't-know writing didn't stand out so much to me. In addition to this, Etta is such a handful, not only for the secondary characters but for readers as well but I liked her for the most part. She's loud, confused, happy, and pissed off. I liked her because of how strong she is and how strong she makes the other characters. The struggle that goes on in the story is so true. She tries so hard to work on herself, so hard to get her old friends back, to get healthy, to get in really that I felt for her. It's so hard to really 'fit' in somewhere and I felt as if Etta is the memory for all of us, because I'm sure that everyone has felt like a sore thumb at least once in their life.
Let me say it again: I love Hannah Moskowitz and I believe that this love for her has made me second guess my thoughts on the book. I really want to believe that I got a faulty copy because it just didn't work for me. Especially the cover, just looking at it makes me mad not because of the person on it, but just the fact that the publisher probably paid a lot of money for something that looks thrown together in ten minutes. It's poorly photoshoped, poorly lighted, and just all around, poor colour choices. I know for a fact, they could have done better. But anyway, yes, I think I would still recommend it solely because it is Hannah Moskowitz and she's awesome but Not Otherwise Specified is not that great. It's a solid, 'meh' book with 'meh' characters and a 'meh' setting....more
Quite frankly, I've never been a fan of Lauren Barnholdt nor have I ever really enjoyed her books and I've read like three or four of them.
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Quite frankly, I've never been a fan of Lauren Barnholdt nor have I ever really enjoyed her books and I've read like three or four of them. Her books lack that realistic, raw feel that a teenager has during a relationship and in a romance. Her books are mostly fluff and toned down which infuriates me to no end. I'm not a fucking child. The audience for her stories are not fucking toddlers so I don't understand why she makes everything fluffy and light and boring. Through to You is the exact same as all of the others with the same problems. Barnholdt tries to make this one a bit more edgier with one of the main character's being very broken. Sadly, it doesn't work in her favour and by the end of the story, I felt disappointed and tired.
This story tries too hard, it really does. The story is typical-the good girl with a million phobias of anything fun falls for the bad boy who's biggest fan is trouble. It's annoying because the story is fluff, and the characters are underdeveloped. The main characters have rough problems, sure, but neither of them feel realistic and are mentioned off-handedly during the book which makes this book try to be important and moving. It's not. Furthermore, Harper is flat-out annoying, I had a very hard time caring for her and her problems. Adding on to that, the relationship between these two is odd. I found it hard to believe that after never feeling anything for a girl, (that wasn't sexual) Penn is flipping out over Harper and when they break up three weeks later, he's still obsessing over her and her every move in their shared class. Plus, there's close to nothing about Harper that seemed it would make Penn care about her even weeks after they break up. I'm sorry, but no.
Well, at least the cover matches the characters more. Also, the writing is all right in the middle of the story, the descriptions are mediocre but didn't bother me. I wasn't furious while reading this one like I was while reading The Thing About the Truth.
Through to You isn't as bad as some of Barnholdt's other novels, believe it or not. The beginning is confusing and dual perspectives isn't properly done, but I didn't feel overly angry while reading this one. However, I still wouldn't recommend it to anyone since the characters are not developed, the romance is forced and close to pointless, and the whole story is extremely predictable that I'm getting sleepy just thinking about it.
I hate how I can't categorize this book properly. It's not extremely serious however, it's not a light read. It's cute but then it's forced. I just caI hate how I can't categorize this book properly. It's not extremely serious however, it's not a light read. It's cute but then it's forced. I just can't find the right words to express how I feel for this book. Although I enjoyed the comics and the friendships, I didn't like the romance or the writing. And quite frankly, I had a hard time connecting with Andrew just because of the fact that he draws everything out to the extent that caring is asking far too much of me. Anyway, it's a 'meh' type of novel but then it's not because it's more. I'm not sure, review to come soon. ...more
I've been on the swim team. My school is the official swimming pool in Toronto so I know how insane it can get with everyone needing to win
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I've been on the swim team. My school is the official swimming pool in Toronto so I know how insane it can get with everyone needing to win and swim and shit like that. In Deep had me excited. I rarely read books about swimming and whenever I do, I usually want it to be light and funny but with McVoy, I expected insanity, betrayal, love, and above all, victory. Can you believe what I got?
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Crap. If anything at all. There are contrived and stupid moments between Brynn and Gavin. Same with the betrayal between Brynn and Grier. All of it is fake and forced and stupid. Almost none of it makes sense and it tries so hard to be bold and thoughtful. Unfortunately it's not.
The beginning of the story is just one huge info-dump about useless crap. Brynn only cares about swimming but Terra McVoy doesn't explain her swimming or how she pushes off the wall, how she pushes herself further and all that stuff that would come along with something so meaningful. Instead, it's all, "Van made us do 4 250 of free, freestyle, breast, and butterfly. I did them all really well, I'm the best." It doesn't say or explain how she felt about it. Readers are forced to assume that she loves swimming with all of her life even though it feels fake. The characters are also underdeveloped and very forgettable. I didn't care about any of them, especially for their relationships between one another. With Brynn and Grier, their friendship is so fake, they have close to nothing in common except for swimming which Grier isn't even that thrilled about. And as far as the relationship between Brynn and Gavin goes...
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It's worse than two toddlers playing house for the first time. Nothing. It might be the worst romantic relationship I have ever read about. Not only are they shoved together with nothing in common except swimming, but it's done in a way that makes me feel absolutely nothing for them. They suck, their affair sucks, and their emotionless behaviours suck even more.
In Deep is a poorly written novel with close to nothing properly explained, weak characters and even weaker relationships. I don't recommend this book to anyone because it's too awful with no redeeming qualities....more
The worst kinds of books are the ones that start out promising and then just decide not to deliver anything good in the end. The S
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1.5 Stars
The worst kinds of books are the ones that start out promising and then just decide not to deliver anything good in the end. The Secrets of Lily Graves is that kind of book. It starts out pretty good, there's a creepy girl who likes to hang out in the cemetery and wear black all day with a dark sense of humour. The author could have made this novel fucking golden yet decided that she wanted an idiot main character who does stupid things because she's in love with a stupid boy. All in all, don't read this because you will be let down depending on how much you enjoy different main characters.
My first problem with this book is when Erin is dead. Not much details are told about it yet Lily somehow knows how she died. Lily also doesn't even suspect that Matt could be the killer, not even for s second because she knows him for a few months and that he never would do anything like that. This leads to my next problem with the novel-Lily. For someone so smart they're awfully stupid. I don't want to give anything away if you decide you may want to check this out but for fuck's sake, why would you stand there with incriminating evidence in your hands and then try to walk away with it in plain fucking sight when someone sees you? Do you not know how people work? Do you need a brain to understand that you run and then ask questions later before someone sees you? Stupid. I also had a problem with the romance because it feels extremely contrived and fake. The feelings Matt have for Lily feels too forced to be real and it didn't help that he says, "I'm so sorry. I won't let anything happen to you. I'll explain everything. I really, really like you," everything second her gets (which is every second he's in the story). Adding onto that, the pacing of the novel is slow and everything is boring, even when the killer is caught, things are resolved fairly quickly. The ending is actually kind of predictable and so is the killer if you actually think about it.
Although I didn't like this book as a whole, I did enjoy the sarcasm. It's funny, dark, and refreshing. Moreover, I liked that some things happen in the cemetery because it's quite a different scene and gives this book a bit of originality.
The Secrets of Lily Graves isn't the best mystery book. It's more about the forced romance than anything. Lily felt forced to solve the murder to me than actually doing it for a good reason. The police didn't even suspect her until she kept digging and she just met Matt, who cares about him. Overall, I don't recommend reading this unless you're in the mood for some good humour and nothing else....more
For many people, touching others or being touched really freaks them out. Even for myself, there are times that I cr
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3.5 Interesting Clouds!
For many people, touching others or being touched really freaks them out. Even for myself, there are times that I cringe whenever a friend comes in to give me a hug which isn't as severe as what Caddie has however, it does make her easy to relate to. Rachel M. Wilson's début is quite touching, (no pun intended) and obsessive disorder that has gone too far and a friend who is intent on proving that it's not everything. Don't Touch is a lovely story that I really liked with characters that are hilarious and kept my entertained.
Although Don't Touch is a great debut, it does have a few flaws for instance, the romance. I really hated just how big of a role it plays in the book because for half the book, it's the reason why the plot keeps moving. I wanted Caddie to get out of her comfort zone not because she has a crush but because she misses and needs her best friend. Another problem that I had with Caddie is how much she rushes through talking about her dad. I get that talking about someone who has hurt you is very hard, but the only way for a reader to completely understand the pain is by telling us a few stories about it, about the past and the memories that were shared, yet I never got the chance to experience this because it's rarely showed.
Anyway, I really could connect with Caddie on most things, she's realistic and her story is quite touching, something a I think most kids want when their parents split up. The way and process that Caddie uses to play the role of Ophelia as well as to get through life is amazing and beautifully done in a way that's pretty moving. Moreover, I liked her group of friends because they are so funny.
Don't Touch is a story about a girl with an illness. Believe me, I know how much of an overused story idea this is but Wilson takes a different approach that make it this book refreshing. I didn't feel too annoyed with it. I recommend this to anyone who likes this story idea or is interested in books about plays....more
Feral is a story about two girls told in third person. This, right here, is my first problem with this book. Lately, a lot o
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1 Lonely Cloud.
Feral is a story about two girls told in third person. This, right here, is my first problem with this book. Lately, a lot of mystery/ thrillers are using third person which is great if you have a bunch of characters but Feral only has two. Two! More accurately, one and a half so there's no point for it. If the first thing about the novel pissed me off, can you imagine how many other things did also?
A lot, that's how many.
Not a lot happens in Feral, which makes it a half-assed novel in my books. Seriously, from 10/15% all the way to like, 85% it's all just boring high school crap. Moreover, the killer is beyond obvious. It's so obvious that my cat could have figured it out ! The second they come into the story, the author doesn't even try to hide who it is, instead, she leaves such obvious hints about it to make sure that everyone knows who it is. IN COMING SPOILER!
In addition to this unrealistic bullshit, Serena gets turned in a cat, (I'm assuming for the first time in her life) yet she gracefully knows how to walk and hiss and be a legit cat without ever stumbling, falling, freaking out, or anything at all that would even remotely suggest that she has no idea what she's doing as a cat. Ridiculous.
End of spoiler!
The characters are really forgettable and annoying. They barely do anything at all but complain. The whole town is boring. Nothing happens and then there are all of these random ass cats that doesn't even add the creepy feeling that Schindler is trying so fucking hard to achieve.
Somehow, however, I had managed to find a couple of nice/mediocre things this book has like Serena's perspective as a dead person is pretty cool at first. I also liked Claire's past and how big or a role it plays in the story.
Holly Schindler could have made Feral into a much better book if only she made it more realistic and all around more creative and suspenseful. I don't recommend this one to anyone because of how completely pointless it is....more
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