Books, cats, and coffee

Danielle

Maintenant, je crois en le coup de foudre. Je ne devrais pas mais j'y crois parce que la connexion entre Willem et Allyson était si convaincante. Malheureusement, je n’aime pas la deuxième partie du roman Just One Day. Je devais quitter les belles descriptions de Paris à cause de Willem. Allyson se réveilla un matin et découvrit qu’il était parti. Elle n’avait aucune idée du pourquoi de son départ ni d'où il était allé. Elle est donc retournée aux Etats-Unis le cœur brisé. Bien que l’écriture de Forman fût formidable, j’étais ennuyée. Mais Just One Day est toujours une bonne lecture.

(Gifs source) Before entering this I read through some pages of the quotes in the 'quotes section' and knew--or so I thought--that this book was going to be sitting in my 'favourites'. Alas, I was unfortunately proven wrong. Here I am, sitting at a desk writing this 'review' of disappointment. The opening of If I Stay starts off colorfully: Forman's showing of Mia's happy family made me feel warm and happy. And I was crushed reading about the crash as Forman intended her readers to feel. The reading continued to give that atmospheric feeling as though I were present with Mia in that phantasmagoric state wandering about the hospital, then thrown back by the sudden flash of memories with Mia, her boyfriend, adorable Teddy, and Mia's loving parents, to feeling Mia's love for the cello (and classical music in general, really). Next thing I knew, that feeling was replaced with boredom--and I have no idea what went wrong. I can understand why many would like this book with its easily flowing words and somewhat poignant voice. I can understand why Mia is such a likable character, as are the others. This book isn't like most YA novels with its slut-shaming and my-best-friend-is-gorgeous-and-sexual-whilst-I'm-not Mary Sue concept. Music had been wonderfully woven together in this book. I understand. But this didn't sit well with me in the end despite the fact I wanted it to. I do not see myself giving this another go like I will for Just One Day. This does not mean I will be avoiding the rest of Forman's works. I am definitely looking forward to her future novels because her writing is amazing.

I just hate when it happens, hahaha. x) I'm glad you enjoyed my review, thank you! :D

-sighs- This book sucked. If you want to read something that's really about the Jazz Age, read The Diviners, Bright Young Things, and Vixen instead. I cannot believe I wasted $9 on this. SMH.

After seeing him, how could you not? (view spoiler) Karina Halle did a great job with Camden and basing his looks off this man above. I'm glad I'm not 16 anymore, because the 16-year-old me would have been turned-off at his tattoos (view spoiler). Don't ask me why, I was that uptight. Now, however, tattoos are one of the sexiest things a man could have. Not to mention an awesome sense of humour. And passion. And chivalry. And a gorgeous smile.... I'm going to shut up now. But read thisss!  I will be purchasing Shooting Scars ASAP.

I watch Amélie religiously because it's my all-time favourite film. I wanted to experience a read that was atmospheric, colourful and absolutely breath-taking like this film. I looked up "Books similar to Amélie" on Google and this book was recommended. Just because a novel/film takes place in Paris, it doesn't make it similar to another novel/film that takes place in Paris. It doesn't. The characters in The Elegance of the Hedgehog were flat and boring. None of them held my interest. I don't care that there's a precocious 12-year-old girl in here with "profound thoughts" and neither do I care about a boring concierge who's an autodidact. I think the reason for me liking the film a lot more than this is due to the fact the concierge and the little girl didn't talk so much. 

I’ve been meaning to read Christopher Pike’s work(s) for some time; whenever I went to the library I would see his novels sitting on the shelf. For some reason, I’ve never gotten around to checking them out. On Monday I finally forced myself to with this since I have been craving to read something with vampires. . . . I wish I could have avoided this book for a little while longer. I wish I never would have forced myself to do so—as I was clearly being held back from renting this out for a reason. If only I had kept making my way through the YA novels waiting to be read and checked out something else instead of reading this. The first thirty pages were absolutely awesome. I was enjoying the protagonist, Alisa Perne: she was witty, comfortable with her sexuality, and all around kick-ass. The opening of Thirst was very promising. My expectations soared and I was quite sure this would be in my ‘favourites’ shelf. As the story went on, I found my excitement gradually descending, felt the smile one my face slowly turning downwards and realised I started skimming the story around page four hundred or so. I flipped to the end and decided I was missing nothing special. Pike’s writing isn’t terrible, but his stories are. I honestly have no idea what the hell I just read because it was that silly.  I was neither pleased nor interested in the God/Krishna elements pervading the story—it wasn’t done well which rendered the novel even more ridiculous. I certainly wasn’t pleased with the constant flashbacks, as well. They were too long and too descriptive. I was expecting a new and original fun ride with this vamp protagonist and her story; unfortunately, all I received was a candy-wrapped, moral-of-the-story-is, Aesop’s Fables-ish ‘religious’ read. I wonder whether or not Pike trolled with this novel.  If you like your paranormal novels with modern day vampires in expensive name brand clothing, a foreign twist with religious beliefs and a ridiculous plethora of insta-love, by all means have a go at Thirst. 

I can understand why the protagonist, Ethan, was the way he was. Ethan Wate lives in a cliched southern town called Gatlin. His life is uninteresting and repetitive. You have your southern belles, the school's popular mean girls, the townspeople who hates anything weird and unusual, and a new student that arrived who is the niece of Oldman Ravenwood--the town's very own "Boo Radley." You know, those stories we've read countless times. Had I picked Beautiful Creatures up a few months ago, I probably would have given this 2/2.5 stars because of the aforementioned cliches written. However, I have not read a book since April and I was desperate to get my hands on a sappy banal teen novel; not only that, but there's something about this book that's really unique in its own cliched way. Doesn't make any sense, huh? Well, it's true. I really liked this book. I loved feeling as though I was in Gatlin dealing with an ever changing manour, I loved reading about the Casters, Ethan and Link's friendship, and that damned boring romance between Ethan and Lena. For a week it felt like I was in another world entirely different from my own.  I can excuse the things Ethan did in this book because of the boring and depressing (in my honest opinion) life he was living: his mom's death; his dad withdrawing from the world to be wrapped in his writings and no longer speaking to his son; the everyday routine of getting up, driving to school in his friend's car listening to his friend's crappy music, dealing with the popular mean girls and their judgments on other people, etc.; and trying to put up a front with being normal when all he really wanted was to be "different" . . . or at least had something interesting happening in life. I understand why Ethan would not mind his business with the Ravenwoods--hell, if I lived in Gatlin and a new mysterious kid arrived with some supernatural abilities I sure as hell wouldn't mind my business. This was a good story, but I'm still upset about that ending! It could be arguable that certain unexplained occurrences will be expounded in the next book; however, there were too many and it felt like the authors completely forgot about the important things they failed to elaborate on. Surely most--if not all--of it should have been due to the book's lengthy size. All the boring shit I've read could have been replaced with some explanations. Nevertheless, I am definitely looking forward to reading the next book. ***Not bad. Not bad at all.***

"Come ride with me/ Through the veins of history/ I’ll show you why God/ Falls asleep on the job/ And how can we win/ When fools can be kings/ Don’t waste your time/ Or time will waste you” After the last sentence of The Assassin’s Blade, Muse immediately popped in my head and I thought the lyrics were rather fitting. Sarah J. Maas is a fantastic writer. Her books are loads of fun and not once was I bored. If you're looking for a book to read that will leave you thinking profoundly about life and whatnot, this isn't the book; however, if you want something light, fast-paced, action packed, and a damn good fun read, don't hesitate to pick this up.Leave your troubles and stress behind and travel through scorching hot deserts riding on feral Asterian horses, rescue innocent lives from pirates, battle with thieves, get drunk on sparkly wine at amazingly fun parties, and plan assassinations on twisted crooks and murderers with Celaena and Sam...this is all a piece of what you'll receive. Trust me, The Assassin's Blade is an awesome read. It's official: Celaena Sardothien is the best YA heroine I've ever encountered... ever. She's witty, bad ass, and highly enjoyable. She isn't perfect, she'll make a lot of mistakes but she'll redeem herself. I don't know, I would usually compare novels and say "fans of _____ would definitely enjoy this book", but I wouldn't say so in this case. Sarah J. Maas' books are something new brought to the table in YA literature, in my honest opinion. The world-building is fantastically crafted; it makes you feel as though you're really there embarking on wild adventures with Ardalan's notorious assassin. I recommend reading these novellas first if you have yet to pick up Throne of Glass. After reading these novellas it makes me want re-read ToG and Crown of Midnight. Now I understand why Throne of Glass didn't have assassinations and the phrases Celaena was telling herself here and there; now I understand and really feel the hurt Celaena felt regarding (view spoiler) and my heart clinches thinking about it.(view spoiler) This book is comprised of five novellas; I can't say which was my favourite, but one really related to me: The Assassin and the Healer. Well, not the novella entirely, but one character in particular--Yrene. This character hit home with me.  "Let me give you a bit of advice," [Celaena] said bitterly, "from one working girl to another: Life isn't easy, no matter where you are. You'll make choices you think are right, and then suffer for them... So if you're going to be miserable, you might as well go to Antica and be miserable in the shadow of Torre Cesme." I'm tucking this quote in my mind. I need more of Maas' stories--when can I get the third installment?

***Final rating is 3.5 stars.*** There's something about Katie McGarry's writing that sort of holds on to you until you're finished with the book--there's a lot of potential with her stories; then again there's a lot missing and maybe if those missing pieces were there, I'd enjoy this book a hell of a lot more. How could I possibly start this review? There are so many things I want to write about.... Let me start with this: I have four older brothers and a younger sister; growing up, my brothers were (and still is...but to an extent) protective of me and my sister. They didn't want us having a boyfriend because we were too young (not that we cared, I was too busy reading books and my sister too busy drawing). They're good guys and I love them; now that I'm older they can't really tell me a damn thing about who I should and shouldn't date and my third eldest brother told me that last I spoke to him--of course, he was reluctant to say that because "I'm still his baby sister no matter how old I am", but I am old enough to make my own decisions and they trust me. It's unfortunate the same cannot be said for our protagonist's, Rachel, brothers. She's seventeen and they hover over her like a pack of starved hyenas surrounding a bunny; and if anyone tries to go near that only bunny they have, they'll rip the opposing animal to shreds. That's how her brother were and they annoyed the hell out of me. They didn't trust her with boys--hell--they didn't trust her talking and being near boys, they were extremely possessive; given the chance, if one of the brothers' best friend tried to flirt with their sister they would beat the shit out of them. I wish I were kidding.  I can understand, at times, why they were protective (though it was too much). Rachel Young has problems. She has panic attacks; being in front of a crowd or having to stand up in front of the class literally freaks her the fuck out. She'd start dry heaving and vomiting (sometimes vomiting blood) or she'd faint. It happened to the point where she ended up in the hospital for a bit. So yes, I can understand why they're protective, but at least they should let her makes some mistakes so she can become stronger. At least let her speak to guys. I think the reason for her panic attacks is the high expectations her mother, father, and brothers place on her shoulders. The fact that she has to put up a front and pretend to be someone she's not. The fact that her mother was constantly comparing her to Colleen--the older sister who died of leukemia before Rachel was born... the fact that Rachel's a replacement. I get it and I disliked her family for it, but I also disliked Rachel for not handling it right and the fact she was hypocritical on many, many different occasions. At times Rachel made me want to strangle her for being ungrateful...yet at times I wanted to hug her and praise her for being strong and understanding. Rachel's a good protagonist, she is, but she's also imperfect.  Rachel loves cars--she knows more about them than most guys. Her eyes shine when the subject comes up, but she has to keep quiet about it from her parents. On nights she goes for a drive to clear her mind and be who she really is. Behind the wheel, Rachel forgets she's the rich freak at her school, she forgets about her possessive brothers. It's only her and her car. I simply adored McGarry's passages and scenes regarding drag racing, speeding, and cars. This book was such an adrenaline rush. I'm glad Crash Into You was nothing like Dare You To. It's 10x better and more entertaining. And the romance.... Isaiah, Isaiah, Isaiah. What an awesome character. I have to admit, I was rather nervous to pick this book up: I was afraid Isaiah wasn't going to be an amiable character whom I loved in Pushing the Limits and Dare You To. In fact, maybe a lot of readers thought he was a bit crazy in McGarry's previous books. If you're nervous that he's going to be in here, don't be. He's not. We read his story and learn why his life is so fucked up thanks to the mother that was never in his life as well as the father he never knew. But he stays strong. He fights hard to protect the very few people he loves. I love Noah and Isaiah's relationship as friends and as brothers. They're all about tough love and understanding.  McGarry's stories keep me entertained and I'm honestly never bored. HOWEVER, I'm disappointed with the tag along characters in this book that I found so important and wanted to know where the hell their story ends. Beth: she's there at times but I felt she was just thrown in here to please us. She was there, but she's not really there. I know where she stands now with Isaiah, but what about after? The same goes for Logan who I was really starting to like, but I don't know where he goes from here. We're introduced to him but we quickly have to say goodbye. Beth and Logan's role in here were transitory. I can understand why, but I'm sad to see them go... well, I'm sad to see Logan go. All in all, Crash Into You was a good story. I cried, but I'm satisfied that the story wrapped up perfectly. Now, where and when can I get Take Me On? Read a sneak peek of it and I have a feeling it's going to be better than Pushing the Limits.

2.5 stars If you loved Another Little Piece by Kate Karyus Quinn then don’t hesitate to pick this book up; they both give off the same dark gothic-like atmosphere when reading. Well… this is going to be hard to review because I’m feeling this “I like this book, but I don’t like it” pull whenever I look at it. Nathan has a hard and abusive life due to the fact he’s a Half Code (half White Witch, half Black). He cannot communicate with anyone accept his family, he cannot leave without having permission from the Council, he’s watched everywhere he goes, and every five years or so he has to be assessed by the Council to see if he would be considered a White Witch or a Black one by the time of his seventeenth birthday. He hasn’t met his father, but he knows the Council is searching for him because he’s a notorious Black Witch… and a murderer. To add on to his problems, he can neither read nor write... and he's on the run. There’s a division between the two witches and you can pretty much guess who are the dominant rulers: ”Whites hate Black Witches for their anarchy and lunacy. They don’t integrate withing fain (human/non-witches) communities but don’t have a community of their own. Their marriages never last, often ending in abrupt violence. They usually live alone, hate fains and fain technology. Their Gifts are strong.” The Whites assembled a Council and Hunters (White Witches [W.W.] who hunts and captures Black Withces [B.W.]) for Black Witches — to enslave them, tortured them, and eventually kill them. Oh, the hypocrisy coming from the W.W. It makes me think the B.W. are the good ones instead. These witches have very interesting Gifts, but I don’t consider them it to be “magical”, it feels more like Fantastic Four than Harry Potter. ***A list of the "magic" the witches receive on their 17th birthday*** + Potion making ( PASS ) + Breathing fire and sending fire from hands ( FAIL ) + Invisibility ( FAIL ) + Moving objects by thought (PASS/FAIL - it can be some form of witchcraft, then again I think of some superhero) + Seeing the future ( PASS ) + Disguising oneself as any human being, male or female (FAIL - I'm going to have to give this one a fail, despite the fact glamour can be used in witchcraft; however, Mystique from X-Men keeps popping up in my head... again, superpower ) + Flying (PASS/FAIL - I'll see how that plays out in the next book) + Making plants grow or die ( PASS ) + Sending electricity from the body (FAIL - how the hell is this magic?) + Healing others (PASS/FAIL - mehhh, maybe. Depends.) + Bending and controlling metal objects ( FAIL ) + Slowing time ( FAIL ) And here's what disappoints me: the majority of them are not being used; we're merely given a list of the "magic". Only the potion making, healing, and disguising are used here and there throughout the novel. Unfortunately, I did not like the worldbuilding; it didn't feel as though I were in Wales, Scotland, and London (the places Nathan went to). We're given very little description which felt more like telling rather than showing. Half Bad has so much potential and I'm really upset I didn't enjoy like I hoped. This would have been 2/2.5 stars, but the last 30 pages were really good. Very curious to read the next book. ***Before I leave, there are couple of things I found interesting*** + Becoming a witch: on the whets' (a witch under the age of seventeen) 17th birthday, the guardian of the whet has to give three gifts and perform some ceremony for the coming-of-age witch. When spells are exchanged, the whet has to drink the blood of the guardian to receive their Gift a.k.a "power". I should be disgusted, but that felt like witchcraft to me.  + A witch can steal another witch's power by killing them and eating their heart. Creepy, huh? That reminded me of Another Little Piece. 

4.5 stars  I took a shitload of notes, I've used sticky notes to mark certain pages; yet, I still don't know what to say about this book. I'm trying to form all of it into a review and it's hard because there are so many things I want to talk about. So, I'm going to start off with this: This book is nothing like the fucking Hunger Games. I wish these damn publishers would stop claiming every Dystopia novel that gets published as "the next Hunger Games!" "a reminiscent of the Hunger Games!" "if you loved the Hunger Games, you'll love this!" (Suzanne Collins is not the creator of survival and rebellions. That shit goes back to the birth of humankind when Eve decided to eat the apple... or, if you don't believe in that, when one of the apes decided he ain't gon' stay an ape anymore and evolved into a man*.) So STOP. Just stop. I hated the HG; saying that almost made me run in the other direction. The reason why I didn't was because of Litchick's review. I usually hate made up swear words, but I'm going to let the ones in here slide (also, I seem to being saying bloodydamn a lot). I must admit, some of these made up terms for objects could get a little confusing in the beginning, but I promise you'll get used to it around page 40. The characters in Red Rising are so believable. I've grown attached to Sevro and Pax (view spoiler) They are my absolute favourites. There's a particular character in here that I'm really looking forward to seeing more of in the next installment: Cassius. When we're first introduced to him he's a total Draco Malfoy; you'd think Darrow would pull a Harry Potter and turn away from him, but he doesn't. He befriends him; pretty soon, you really start to understand Cassius and can't help but like him. I loved that Pierce Brown did this -- not making the "bad guys" out to be bad guys at all.  I really loved that Darrow was not some fearless character even though at times he may come off as that; however, inside he's absolutely terrified.  "I should want to kill him; instead, I want to run and hide at the thought of his name." No. I'm not saying he's a coward throughout the book. He had enough courage to fight and stand up for himself even though he didn't want to; that's what makes this protagonist a believable character, because not everyone is fearless -- everyone is afraid, but our morals and purpose are what gives us the strength to fight and stand up for ourselves. That's what makes us courageous.  "I would have lived in peace. But my enemies brought me war. I am no Gold. I am a Red." Darrow wasn't always a Gold. He was a Helldiver, a Red, on Mars digging at the bottom of the planet for Laurels. Reds are the lowColors, the lowest of the color cast system. They are not considered humans, they are slaves to the higher Colors (Gold being the highest, of course. Rulers). The Reds have never seen the stars and skies. They don't eat much, but they have each other. Darrow had Eo and was perfectly fine with that... until tragedy struck his life and discover the truth that has been obscured for hundreds of years. "The city is one of spires, parks, rivers, garden, and fountains. It is a city of dreams, a city of blue water and green life on a red planet that is supposed to be as barren as the cruelest desert. This is not the Mars they show on the HolocCam. It is a place of lies, wealth, and immense abundance." What would you do if you found out everything you've been told was a lie? The cities your rulers said were destroyed, but discover it's still thriving with wealth and people?  I don't understand how Pierce Brown made mythology and Dystopia work together. They shouldn't be in the same book, but it is in here and it all makes sense. Red Rising is more than just fighting -- it's about cleverly crafted manipulation, alliances, friendships, and hidden truths. The romance? What romance? There is none in here (view spoiler) and that's what makes this book even more fucking awesome. No insta-love, no fucking angst, no love triangles. NONE.  This book has gore, loads of it. My stomach was constantly clenching and I found myself crying out in horror at times. I thought I should warn you in case you're not into gore; even if you aren't, still give this a shot.... ***I hope y'all enjoy this book!*** * If you got offended, I'm sorry. I'm trying to be funny. I have nothing against everyone's beliefs/non-beliefs.

"Time stops for no one." I'm jealous of anyone living in Europe. Since I was eight, I've always wanted to live in France. If you ask some of the people I hang out with, they'll most likely tell you I never shut up about it. France is my home. I want to go backpacking all over Europe to experience so many wonderful cultures, get to know the people, their religion, their food and language... Italy, Belgium, the UK, Sweden, Greece, Spain, etc. Europe is fucking perfect, no one will ever change my view on this. I'd pretty much do anything for a damn trip to certain countries in Europe and be happy about it... I'm still wondering why the hell this protagonist, Allyson, was so reluctant to go on this trip of a lifetime. In the beginning, I wanted to shake Allyson and scream, "Why are you so damn ungrateful?!" For a couple of pages, she pretty much complained that her parents and her best friend dragged her on this trip that she had no desire to go on. I tried to tell myself some people hate travelling and leaving their country, but I can't even understand that. I'm not judging, I'm just... never mind. Anyway, I'm glad Allyson started to appreciate what was given to her and did what I would have done: go to Paris. I'm still going crazy over the fact it takes two hours to get to Paris from London... two hours.  "... everything is happening all the time, but if you don't put yourself in the path of it, you miss it." Is it possible for a novel to make me more wanderlust than I already am? I’m pretty sure Just One Day did just that. Forman’s writing is gorgeous; it felt as though I was in Paris for that one day with Willem and Allyson. I've never read any of Ms Forman's previous works; after reading this, I'm looking forward to doing so. I now believe in the possibility of falling in love with someone in one day. I shouldn't, but I do thanks to Willem and Allyson. That's how cute and amazing Part One of Just One Day was... how believable, too. Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling Part Two much, I'm guessing due to the fact Allyson is back in America and in college. We had to leave the beautiful descriptions of Paris; the bubbly feeling of adoration from the romance. Don't get me wrong, Part Two was more about Allyson realising who she was and that was done right, but I felt it was a bit slow and most of it was redundant. However, the last one hundred pages makes up for it all... just thinking about that ending makes my eyes water. Oh my god. I give Part One: Just One Day 5 beautifully wanderlust stars and Part Two: Just One Year 3/3.5 stars. (sighs) I knew Gayle Forman wrote this book just for me. I knew it.

4.5 stars "Downton Abbey meets The Selection in this dystopian tale of love and betrayal." What a misleading caption. I really hate the fact they're making this out to be like any other dystopian novels -- full of love. Landry Park was so much more than that. Many dystopian novels are not done well, and I'm very cautious to pick these up; however, in here we receive an ubiquitous amount of history about the Landry's and their importance to the new United States. I could not put this down. Apart from the history there are balls, gorgeous descriptions of dresses, romance (not predominately so, mind you), rebellions, amazing world building, and a very dark secret.  This book became a little intense and I clawed through the pages until the late hours of the morning reading this. For a time, Madeline Landry -- the protagonist -- was a nuisance. I really wanted to put this book down because of her; then again, what's a novel without stirring up some kind of frustration from the readers? Madeline wasn't always a pain, she can be quirky and strong-willed. For the most part I liked her; the characters in here are very believable.  I have so much more to say, but I know I'm going to spoil it and I don't want to. I cannot wait to get my hands on the next installment. I recommend this.