Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Some books are so good that you can ramble on and on for days about every little thing inside of them. All of it's information has been poured into you and you are overflowing with such intensity to share it with someone. Anyone.



Other books are so powerful that you can't say a word. It's very pages have sunk deep into your heart and mind and will continue to sit there until it is etched into your soul. It whispers to you. There aren't any words good enough to describe what you have just experienced.



DELIRIUM by Lauren Oliver happens to be one of the most powerful books I have ever read.



And the only words I can seem to come up with are...



More than amazing... More than five stars... Beautiful in every way.





It comes out in February of 2011. Read it.



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Jane by April Lindner

Surprised myself by finishing this in a storm of two days. Eh, technically 24 hours. Truly amazing.

Jane by April Lindner

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I've never read Bronte's JANE EYRE. It's a classic. And they're usually awesome for a reason. But I've never had the opportunity. We didn't read it in school.



Now... I wish I had.



JANE by April Lindner is a MARVELOUS retelling of what I know is one of the greatest romances of all time. She completely revamped it for modern standards too. Mr. Rochester turned into a world famous rockstar? Yeah. I believe it now.



The character of Jane Moore was just so relatable and... fresh. It was nice to finally read about an OLDER and more mature young adult, versus the usual onslaught of sixteen year olds who are stuck in the high school rut. Jane's basically an adult. She thinks about adult things like money, jobs, where she's going to live, how she's going to pay for college, why her family treats her the way they do. I mean YES! Someone I can relate to! Not that I don't love a good high school fiction once in a while, but now that I'm 20, it's nice to read about someone my own age. It puts me back in that head of mine and lets me relate to the character and say "yeah, I'm going through that too" versus "yeah I kinda remember that".



And I just loved the relationship that grew between Jane and Nico. It felt real. Sure when they finally revealed their feelings for one another it felt just a smidge rushed, but yet believable. This is a rock star! Why would he be patient? Just awesome. All I can say is that if Lindner continues on like this, she just found herself a very loyal and enthusiastic fan!



How I wish that there could be a sequel for this one...



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Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Okay, I'm actually going to try and put into words how awesome this book is.



It's been about a month or so since I read it, sooo forgive me if this review lacks in details.



I would also like to start off by thanking HarperTeen for sending me an ARC so that I may review this amazing book before it hits stores.



UNEARTHLY by Cynthia Hand is undefinable. Debut? Yes. Really freaking awesome debut? Yes. First part of a trilogy? Yes. Can't wait a whole year for book two? Of course I can't! It's a new take on Angels (or Angel-bloods in this case) and if you're a sucker for romance, well here you go. A chance to get weak in the knees and laugh at the same time because of it. The story itself is quite a journey. Clara is our main character. She has a purpose to fulfill. She must save a mysterious boy from a forest fire. This purpose relocates her mother and younger brother to the town of Jackson Hole, Wyoming. And thus, we meet Christian. The boy she must save. Of course Clara has a crush on him right away. Who wouldn't when he's a handsome, popular skiier who plays a part in your own destiny? But alas, he is dating Miss Popular Kay. Insert some epic drama there. But it's not just about Christian these days. Clara's mother can't help but hold back a lot of important information from her daughter and there are loads that Clara has to figure out on her own, or with the help of an angel-blood that she meets in her new school. Add in a plot-twisting cowboy with the intention to either irritate Clara to death or finally get her on his side and I am completely and totally signed up.



It surprised me how much I liked this book. Not only did it have the heart-ache and mystery that I love- both subtle and yet complex in their own rights- but it provided a well-rounded debut with a character that any girl can relate to. I really loved the humor that Hand uses and there were plenty of down right embarrassing moments that would make any reader 'face-palm'. I would also like to add that I lived in Boise, Idaho for two years back in elementary school and it's nice to finally find an author who lived around that same place. The scenery up there is just down right gorgeous and I think that Hand really captured it well.



Waiting impatiently for the sequel and totally completely Team Tucker,

Katie.



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Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick

Ha! Finally got one done! (Just don't expect another review soon, unfortunately. I'm behind on my NaNoWriMo writing.)

Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


CRESCENDO was everything it lived up to be. There was action, heart-ache (popular with most YA sequels these days), and mystery. The characters developed just as they should have in this sequel. I was very surprised to find that I liked Nora and Patch much better in CRESCENDO than I did in HUSH, HUSH. I mean, honestly I wasn't that big of a fan of the setting and mystery in the first book. I'm just not a mystery fan. However, I will say that Ms. Fitzpatrick executes it wonderfully. She deserves props for this genre, folks.



For some reason, Patch's bad boy image wasn't sticking too well with me from the first book. Like others, I felt that he was more of a jerk. But then again, he was sort of the bad guy in the plot. In CRESCENDO however, this image was as bright and vivid as the summer sun. Completely believable. I loved that he and Nora wouldn't compromise in their relationship. It proved that they were strong characters and not just paper cut-outs stuck in a book.



The Marcie Millar factor and the story behind that was also beautifully done. Though I will say that I'm a little tired of hearing how the rich cheerleader in school is such a witch with a capital B. It would be nice if the sixteen year olds in YA would grow up a little bit.



And with that, I found another issue I have. Sixteen year olds in serious relationships. Sure, it can be done. But it's hard to make it last forever. The undying romance and maturity of this genre forced upon a budding junior in high school just seems a little bit of a stretch to me. But of course, Nora is no ordinary girl!



All in all though, I give CRESCENDO 4.5 stars. It was interesting, it kept me turning the pages, and after that cliffhanger of an ending, I am SO ready for TEMPEST. I just hope that it gets here soon enough so I don't forget major plot points again.



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November's Not for Reading...

Hey everyone!

I just thought I should let y'all know that I won't be reading as many books this month. I have two reviews that I plan on writing for books that I finished in October. Delirium by Lauren Oliver and Unearthly by Cynthia Hand. They are amazing and I couldn't quite put into words how much so- hence why there are no reviews about them on this blog currently.

You see, I joined NaNoWriMo AND NaNoWraMo (See Sara McClung's blog for that second one mentioned). Which means I need 50,000 words by November 30th. Of my own writing. In my own novel. Yeah. I can barely write 40,000 words in two years sooo we'll see how this goes.

Anyway, this is why I won't be posting many reviews this month. I'm currently reading Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick, but I've been on that for about a week now which is really, really slow for me. I'll try to post as many as I can, but writing takes priority this month.

Wish me luck! And happy reading!

Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton

This one was an action-packed thrill ride. It was different from a lot of YA books out there.

Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Alright. Now I'm ready to review ANGELFIRE.



First thing I should say is, this book was good. It really was. If you're a fan of heart-stopping action, forbidden romance, the search for self identity, and a little bit of teenage angst all rolled up into one... well, this is your book right here. I think my only problem was reading it after finishing UNEARTHLY. It's like reading Shakespeare and then picking up a Where's Waldo book. It wasn't really fair to ANGELFIRE. UNEARTHLY was everything I could ask for and more with a dash of surprise. And in comparison, ANGELFIRE was good, but not when another book was still running through my head.



The pace was intense. It seemed like in every chapter, someone was getting head-butted or decapitated, or impaled. Which is nonetheless awesome! But I would've liked a good breather once in a while. It seemed like Ellie, the main character, learned and accepted her purpose in life a bit too quickly. But then again, with all of these reapers swooping down on her, trying to end her life, I guess that's forgiveable.



Ellie was cool. She's like an action hero that still shops for designer clothing. I just felt that some of the things she was upset about, and wanted to lament over, were all complained about before in other books. Every young adult novel has that character that "just wants to be normal" "why can't I be normal?" spiel. It's understandable, given each of their circumstances, but after you've read these lines over and over again in previous novels, it gets a little annoying. Ellie wasn't all about complaining though. She learned to accept things and move on. She had a lot of strength, which was admirable.



Will was pretty awesome as well. It was refreshing to see a guy REALLY try to put distance between himself and the love interest. He didn't succumb to Ellie's every whim, which gives him a lot of points in my book. And I really loved that they had a strong friendship.



The reapers were just a bit too generic for me. Like the demons in The Mortal Instruments series, they just didn't scare me. These are supposed to be monsters. Hell spawn. Apocalypse worthy soldiers. And yet... I find myself yawning at them. Oooh! You have two rows of sharp teeth! Scarrrry! I liked that Ellie still felt guilt over killing them though. It proved that she had a shred of humanity left.



Overall though, I really liked it. It was nice to read a book with this much action. A breather would've been nice, but it was not without it's breathless moments, and that's what makes a good book in my opinion. I'm excited to see where these characters go in the sequel and will definitely be picking up a copy!



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Halo by Alexandra Adornetto

A refreshing look at angels and a good read. I might elaborate on this review more later.

Halo by Alexandra Adornetto

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


HALO was good.



I hadn't expected much if I was being perfectly honest. When I first stumbled across the cover on Goodreads, I'd been jittery with excitement! I mean it's about angels and the cover art is just stunning. And who doesn't love a good love story, right? But then as the release date loomed closer, I started reading some bad reviews. Many people seem to hate this book or dislike it because of the religious themes and the over-exaggerated romance. I can see where they're coming from, but would like to make a note to all future readers:



Don't pick up a book about angels and expect christianity not to be mentioned!!!



I mean come on, folks... They kind of go hand in hand.



The religious aspect doesn't bother me at all. I'm a christian. I believe in angels. I thought it was brave and original to incorporate such strong points from this into the book. Especially for an author who is so young (eighteen) and has only published three books prior. It was refreshing to read about angels in a more traditional sense.



What I didn't like about HALO?



The romance was a bit much. I mean, I forgot how old Bethany is, but she's only around 16 or 17 I think and Xavier is only 18. At first, I was excited, because he seemed like a real guy. Not the Edward Cullen type that becomes overprotective, crazy in love with his girlfriend, and strangely generous in every aspect of their relationship type guy. It started off sweet. Bethany too- she seemed to be the angelic type of girl thrust into the world of humanity and dealing with all of the experiences and emotions that she had been barred from in the Kingdom of Heaven. But as soon as these two meet, and seemingly develop into an official relationship, things started becoming a little less believable.



For me, the romance in a story has to be sold right. If things are rushed, unbelievable, or over dramatic, I just can't get into it as much. And seeing as how this book is all about love, there were a few flaws in the romance area. Xavier developed into the Edward Cullen type. Bethany developed into the Bella Swan type. And the ladder really hurt the story in my eyes. Bethany is an angel. She shouldn't be as petty as she sometimes comes across in HALO. Overall, this subject and their relationship were just a little too ROMEO & JULIET for me.



Some things that Adornetto goes into detail about in this book seemed too trivial for me. These angels are on a mission to better a community. Why do I need to know what three or four brainless girls are chatting about constantly at lunch? Why do I need to know in accurate detail the prom dresses that they shop for, or Bethany's dream prom dress described right down to the beaded neckline? It just seemed petty in comparison to the bigger picture...



I liked HALO a lot, despite the fact that a lot of aspects were over played or even petty at times. And though the characters got a little out of hand for my taste, I was still invested in how their stories went. I will most likely be reading the sequel HADES when it comes out next.



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