B.
Bray, Libba - A Great and Terrible Beauty (Gemma Doyle Trilogy, Book 1) 5/5
Bray, Libba - Rebel Angels (Gemma Doyle Trilogy, Book 2) 5/5
Bray, Libba - The Sweet Far Thing (Gemma Doyle Trilogy, Book 3) 5/5
C.
Child, Lincoln - Terminal Freeze 3.5/5
D.
Downs, Tim - Head Game 4.5/5
E.
F.
G.
H.
I.
J.
Johnson, Maureen - 13 Little Blue Envelopes 3/5
K.
Kilmer-Purcell, Josh - I Am Not Myself These Days: A Memoir 4/5
Koontz, Dean - One Door Away From Heaven 2/5
L.
M.
Maberry, Jonathan - Patient Zero 5/5
McCormick, Patricia - Cut 4/5
N.
O.
P.
Q.
R.
S.
T.
U.
V.
X.
Y.
Z.
- Mood:creative
Author: Tim Downs
Pages: 307
Rating: 4.5
Genre: Suspense, psychological
Summary: Someone wants you dead. But he doesn’t want to kill you. He wants you to do it for him.
He watches your every move. He studies you like a mouse in a maze. He knows everything about you—every dream, every hunger, every weakness and strength. He knows what you long for, and he knows what you fear most. He knows what you live for, and what you cannot live without. He plans to take these things away from you one at a time, invisibly manipulating the events of your life until there is nothing left to live for. Then he wants you to take the final step.
Or is it all in your head?
Is he just a figment of your irrational fear, a face you’ve given to your terrible misfortune? Is he really out there—or is the real enemy inside of you? Everything you love is slipping away. You want to fight back, but who do you fight against?
Let the head game begin. (From the back of the book)
Review: Let me say that the summary from the back of the books isn’t really accurate about what the book is about. Yes, there is a head game going on, but it’s slightly different. I didn’t see a lot of internal struggle, but its not a big deal, just wanted to point that out.
Now, another half review. I don’t want to do these often, but I felt like I did with this one. I’m torn on whether to give it a 4 or 5, so I took the easy road. I didn’t really have a huge problem with this book, it’s just I can’t really give it a 5 since I don’t know how much I’ll actually be able to reread it. It’s just one of those books that has so many twists and turns and “I DID NOT SEE THAT COMING” parts in it that knowing them ruins half the fun. But I’ll be able to read it again in a few years, so not too much of a loss.
This was a really great book. Once I got about halfway through it I could not put it down for the life of me. That’s not to say the first half isn’t enticing as well, but the last half really pulls you in. The characters did have some depth to them, but not as much as other books, but that wasn’t a big deal really. You still felt for them, and you still cared about what happened to them. The characters were pretty 3D too, at some points you could actually feel bad for the bad guy.
Overall, a great book that I recommend to anyone who enjoys suspense and doesn’t mind having a head game played on them. This book definitely lives up to its title; it had my head spinning when I stopped reading.
I'm putting this behind a cut because it rides that line of being a spoiler and not being one. It didn't ruin the story for me knowing this, but I know some people don't like to know anything. I'm one of them so I was a little miffed when my boyfriend told me, but I got over it after a few chapters since it didn't look like it ruined anything. :-) I put a bunch of spaces at the end incase someone wanted to post a comment and still not see it.
( Spoiler )
Author: Lincoln Child
Pages: 320
Rating: 3.5/5
Genre: Paranormal/Science Fiction, Suspense
Summary: Two hundred miles north of the Arctic Circle lies Alaska’s Federal Wildlife Zone, one of the most remote and inhospitable places on Earth. But for paleoecologist Evan Marshall and a small group of fellow scientists, an expedition to the Zone represents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to study the effects of global warming.
Everything about the expedition changes, however, with an astonishing find. On a routine exploration of a glacial ice cave, the group discovers an enormous ancient animal, encased in solid ice. The media conglomerate sponsoring their research immediately intervenes and arranges the ultimate spectacle—the creature will be cut from the ice, thawed, and revealed live on television. Despite dire warnings from the local Native American village and the scientific concerns of Marshall and his team, the “docudrama” plows ahead…until the scientists make one more horrifying discovery. The beast is no regular specimen—it may be an ancient killing machine. And they may be premature in believing it dead. (From the inside flap of the book)
Review: I’ll try not to do split ratings, but with this book I had too. It started off too slow for my tastes; I actually read and finished another book reading the beginning portion of the book. But I decided to go back to this book and give it another try. Plus I had my boyfriend nagging me about reading it since he read it and loved it. :-) I’m going to say I’m glad he pushed me to read it, because it ended up being a decent book.
Now the reason for the aforementioned split rating of 3.5. While I liked this book enough to get the “great book, with some minor issues” rating of a 4, the first half of the book was too slow to get that, but it matched well with the” nothing amazing” part of a rating of 3. Also there is quite a bit of scientific talk and at times it got a bit much to handle if you don’t know it, I got the general gist. Also, the description of the beast was too….strange for me to picture. I kept seeing Zoidburg from Futurama, look him up if you don’t know who he is, as the monster. This made it comical, so the monster didn’t scare me much. Up until they did the description of the monster though I was scared.
Maybe another reason why this wasn’t an amazing book in my eyes is that I love books that suck you in. This book doesn’t do that, it doesn’t really get personal enough with the characters to make you feel with them. I love feeling the emotions of the characters, but I didn’t here. It felt more like watching a movie than reading a book. Although Child obviously favors Marshall over all the other characters, you really only go a few feet into his psyche.
Overall, meh. It wasn’t my favorite book, but it was a nice book. I’m not thrilled that I read it, but I don’t feel like I wasted my time. While it has some paranormal aspects in it, it also has science and, interestingly, they can explain all the paranormal stuff with science. I do like that trick that Child does. If you’re into Sci Fi, I’d say give it a go.
Author: Maureen Johnson
Pages: 352
Rating: 3/5
Genre: Young Adult, Chick Lit
Summary: This whirlwind adventure begins as Ginny, 17, reads a letter from her free-spirited, unpredictable Aunt Peg, who has recently passed away. She is given several destinations, four rules, and the instruction to open one envelope upon her arrival at each place. Thus begins a rapid tour of Europe as the teen struggles to accomplish the tasks established by her aunt. The motivation: Ginny wants to understand the woman's wanderlust and, possibly, she just wants a connection to her beloved relative. Throughout her adventures in Rome, Paris, Greece, England, and the Netherlands, the teen collects pieces of Peg's past and learns more about her rapid departure. She also learns much about herself. (From Amazon)
Review: I read this book a few years ago and completely forgot about it until it popped up in the suggestions area on Amazon. While I don’t remember much about the book, I do know that I liked it. It’s a light read when you want to go on some adventure with not much thought. This is a book that I wouldn’t mind to read again, but I won’t really go out of my way to get it. My only problem was with the ending, that greatly annoyed me, but life goes on.
Overall it’s a nice light read for when you’re by the beach or just having a lazy day. It’s a cute, sweet story, that will put a smile on your face.
Author: Patricia McCormick
Pages: 151
Rating: 4/5
Genre: Young Adult, Fiction
Summary: Callie cuts herself. Never too deep, never enough to die. But enough to feel the pain. Enough to feel the scream inside. Now she’s at Sea Pines, a “residential treatment facility” filled with girls struggling with problems of their own. Callie doesn’t want to have anything to do with them. She doesn’t want to have anything to do with anyone. She won’t even speak. But Callie can only stay silent for so long…(From the back of the book)
Review: I first read this book back in middle school and I remembered I really liked it. This book had a big impact on me at that point in my life because I was going through a lot of tough issues and going through some of the same things Callie was. When I decided to reread this many years later I wondered if I would still feel the same way about the book, if it would have the same impact.
While it didn’t necessarily have the same impact, it still had one on it. It’s still a great book. It’s written in a very strange and different way that I found very interesting. The entire book is written towards the psychologist and the psychologist was always referred to as “you”. I’ve never seen a book written like this and that added a different aspect. Here’s a paragraph from the book to show it:
"You say it’s up to me to do the talking. You lean forward, place a box of tissues in front of me, and your black leather chair groans like a living thing. Like the cow it used to be before somebody killed it and turned it into a chair in a shrinks office in a loony bin."
This is a short read, but it’s a good one. I would recommend this to any young girl going through a hard time in her life, or someone who knows someone going through a hard time. Anyone that’s dealing with cutting as well, I think this book could help. Occasionally this book reminded me of the movie A Girl Interrupted, with some of it characters. Overall a great book that I intend to keep and reread whenever I feel compelled.
Author: Libba Bray
Pages: 819
Rating: 5/5
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Summary: It has been a year of change since Gemma Doyle arrived at the foreboding Spence Academy. Her mother murdered, her father a laudanum addict, Gemma has relied on an unsuspected strength to turn catty schoolgirls into loyal friends, and has discovered an ability to travel to an enchanted world called the realms, where dark magic runs wild. Despite certain peril, Gemma has bound the magic to herself and forged unlikely new alliances with headstrong Felicity and timid Ann; with Kartik, an exotic young Indian man whose companionship is forbidden; and with the fearsome creatures of the realms. Now, as Gemma approaches her London debut, the time has could to test these bonds…
Review: This series just continued to amaze me until the very end. This book is even better than the last two and if I could give it a 20/10 score I would. It just blew my mind and any book I’ve read recently out of the water. It was stunning and pure pleasure for my eyes. I became so connected to these characters that I felt like they were real, and my friends. I could put myself in Gemma’s shoes; feel what she felt, laughed when she laughed, cried when she cried. It was powerful.
Again, Bray shows her amazing use of language and characterization to give these characters even more depth. They wrestle with some big issues like fate, destiny, sexuality, and find themselves when they are told to be this cookie cutter image. You get to see different sides of characters that you previous met and didn’t know they could even be capable of such change. And of course this book was full of drama, scandal and action. It was nonstop action from start to finish, but it was never too much. I never felt like there was too much going on, and that was amazing.
Overall, this is a series I am going to read over and over again. Even though I’ll know what happens, it was written in such a way I know it will still hold that magic of a new book. I have a feeling that it will keep me just as captivated. Bray did say that she doesn’t know if this is the last book in the Gemma Doyle Trilogy, and I hope it isn’t. While she does a good job at tying up loose ends, she did leave it open enough to have another book. A girl can dream.
Author: Josh Kilmer-Purcell
Pages: 336
Rating: 4/5
Genre: Memoire
Summary: “It’s the truth in drag.” (From the first page) This is a story about one mans experience with drag, drug, sex, and relationships. This is a glimpse into a very turbulent time in his life.
Review: I enjoyed reading this, which sounds strange since this book deals with some very dark and intense things. I found it to be very well written and captivating. I finished it quicker than I expected and was upset when it was over. I’d gotten so attached to Josh and rejoiced when he was happy, and almost cried when he was in pain. I found that I even read the back P.S. that he wrote to know even more.
I was sucked into this world the second I started, and I really look for that in a book. Please note that this book isn’t for the overly modest people. This does dive right into gay relationships, sex, drugs, drag, male call boys and more with no reservations. This book has a very raw feel, and has the power to really get emotions out of you while you read. This worked for me because I love raw stories, and I love getting pulled in. This is a really great memoir, but I know it’s not for everyone.
Author: Libba Bray
Pages: 548
Rating: 5/5
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Summary: Ah, Christmas! Gemma Doyleis looking forward to a holiday from Spence Academy—spending time with her friends in the city, attending balls in fancy gowns with plunging necklines, and dallying with the handsome Simon Middleton. Yet amid these distractions, her visions intensify—visions of three girls dressed in white, to whom something horrific has happened that only the realms can explain.
The lure is strong, and soon Gemma, Felicity, and Ann are turning flowers into butterflies in the enchanted world to which Gemma takes them. To the girls’ great joy, their beloved Pippa is there as well, eager to complete their circle of friendship.
But all is not well in the realms—or out. Kartik is back, desperately insisting to Gemma that she must bind the magic, lest colossal disaster befall her. Gemma is willing to comply, for this would bring her face to face with her late mother’s greatest friend, now Gemma’s foe—Circe. Until Circe is destroyed, Gemma cannot live out her destiny. But finding Circe proves a most perilous task… (Back of the book)
Review: Oh. My. Gosh. I loved this book!! It’s amazing. It definitely didn’t disappoint like some sequels’, and I was very glad. The characters are still fetching and the adventure even more daring! With even more thrills and scandal than the first one, it definitely kept me hooked.
There was more background on the characters, and more insight into them as people. It made me feel like I was watching a movie about real people instead of reading a book of fictional characters. It was very fun “watching” the characters grow and learn so much through this book, and it didn’t feel cramped. They did learn and discover a lot about themselves in a short amount of time, but it was realistic.
There were quite a few twists and turns and they were all awesome. With one part I thought it was too predictable, but it turns out I was wrong! Tricky Libba Bray, she made it seem in your face about something and then completely turned the world upside down. It was fantastic!
An amazing book, and I can’t wait to start the third. This is definitely a series that I see being in my top list. Stunning visual pictures, fun for the imagination.
Author: Libba Bray
Pages: 403
Rating: 5/5
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Summary: Gemma Doyle isn’t like other girls. Girls with impassable manners, who speak when spoken to, who remember their station, and who will lie back and think of England when it’s required of them.
No, sixteen-year-old Gemma is an island unto herself, sent to the Spence Academy in London after tragedy strikes her family in India. Lonely, guilt-ridden, and prone to visions of the future that have an uncomfortable habit of coming true, Gemma finds a chilly reception. But she’s not completely alone…she’s been followed by a mysterious young man, who warn her to close her mind against the visions.
For it’s at Spence that Gemma’s power to attract the supernatural unfolds; there she becomes entangled with the school’s most powerful girls and discovers her mother’s connection to a shadowy group called The Order. It’s there that her destiny waits…if only she can believe in it. (Back of the book)
Summery: I loved this book! I loved how it was written, and the great detail that was in it. It’s set in the late 1800s, and I felt like I was there. Libba Bray definitely did her research on that time and it made it enjoyable.
While it is a teen book, I’ll venture to say it’s a mature teen book. It had wonderful language, and it wasn’t too simple. It has adventure and scandal, making it fun and thrilling to read. The characters were good, they all seemed well-rounded to me. While some of them got annoying, none of them came to be too much to deal with.
Overall not much to say about this book other than I loved it. I’m eagerly awaiting to get my hands on the second book, since this is the first in the trilogy. I can tell this is a book that I will enjoy reading over and over.
Author: Jonathan Maberry
Pages: 421
Rating: 5/5
Genre: Sci-Fi, Action
Summary: Monday, 1300 hours: Joe Ledger kills terrorist Javad Mustapha, aka Patient Zero, with two point-blank shots from his glock .45.
Wednesday, 0800 hours: Patient Zero rises from the dead…
When you have to kill the same terrorist twice in one week, there’s either something wrong with your world or something wrong with your skills…and there’s nothing wrong with Joe Ledger’s skills. Ledger, a Baltimore detective assigned to a counterterrorism task force, is recruited by the government to lead a new ultrasecret rapid-response group called the Department of Military Science (DMS) to help stop a group of terrorists from releasing a dreadful bioweapon that can turn ordinary people into zombies.
Review: I loved this book!!! I cannot say that enough or recommend this book enough to anyone who loves zombies. This is not only an awesome zombie book, but a mature zombie book as well. Maberry is able to blend science, action, zombies and secret agencies of the government and still keep it exciting and easy enough to follow. I did get a little lost during the longer parts that were about the science of this, but that may be because I zone out when it comes to science. Even with me not giving it my full attention I was able to get the gist of what was being talked about.
The books chapters tended to switch between the characters to give the reader quite a few points of view, but it never got overwhelming or annoying. I enjoyed how he did that, because at some parts I wanted to keep reading about the certain point a view I was on, and then it would stay with that character for the next few chapters. Other times he would be in some big action and keep switching views but that just helped the story and made it more exciting. It definitely kept me turning the pages and really reluctant to stop.
The characters were all really fleshed out and likable, but not perfect. Everyone had their flaws and that was refreshing; although a bit scary since it makes this story seem all the more realistic. There were a lot of characters, but not enough to get overwhelming. Plus they were all different enough to make you remember them and be able to keep tract of them.
Overall, again, I really loved this book. I can definitely tell that this will be a book I re-read and re-read because of how exciting it is. Not only that, but it’s the start of a series and I can’t wait. I’m not sure if it’s going to be a series based off of this book, or just a series about Joe Ledger, but I’m excited and can’t wait for the next book!
Author: Dean Koontz
Genre: Suspense, Paranormal
Pages: 681
Rating: 2/5
Summary: Michelina Bellsong is on a mission. She is following a missing family to the edge of America…to a place she never knew existed—a place of terror, wonder, and shattering revelation.
What awaits her there will change her life and the life of everyone she knows—if she can find the key to survival.
At stakes are a young girl of extraordinary goodness, a young boy with killers on his trail, and Micky’s own wounded soul. (From the back of the book)
Review: I’m gonna have to say, not one of my favorites by Koontz. I tend to love all but a few books by him, and this is one of the few. Every chapter is on a different characters point of view, which I sometimes like, but in this instance it seemed to take me out of the book. Sometimes a chapter would end at a very climactic point and then it wouldn’t be until a few chapters later that we got back to that part. It would just take me out of the book and not make me really care to know what’s happening. I would at first, then the chapter would end and I’d go “well now I have to wait 3 chapters to find out…”
I also only got really interested in two of the characters. There were quite a few characters, but some just weren’t my cup of tea. So I would be excited reading about their chapters, and then not interested when reading the other characters chapters. One of the characters I would actually forget about since he was mentioned in the very beginning of the book, and then not again until in the last third of it. While he was apart of the action in the end and did have some importance, I felt he was unnecessary to the book as a whole, and could’ve been left out. I also noticed that while most of his characters were 3 dimensional, the main “bad guy” was very 2D, and he was only severely bad and too good at everything he did. That bugged the crap out of me to no end and I couldn’t stand it when it was his few chapters.
Overall though, not a bad book, just not up to the standards of what I expect from Koontz. My boyfriend read it and loved it, and he’s the one who got me into Koontz books. Just wasn’t my type, but still a good book. I read all the way through and it held my interest enough to make me want to know what would happen.
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