tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49151697689902694332024-02-21T01:08:51.245-08:00AfterwordsNitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.comBlogger213125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-47634425015323298862019-04-01T13:23:00.001-07:002019-04-01T13:23:27.462-07:00Wicked Sexy Liar by Christina Lauren | A Review in Bullet Points<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="https://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=drucalboo-20&language=en_US&l=li3&o=1&a=B012OS8XLI" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /><br />
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Wicked-Sexy-Liar-Wild-Seasons-ebook/dp/B012OS8XLI/ref=as_li_ss_il?crid=1G232WMJ7EQM6&keywords=wicked+sexy+liar&qid=1554150023&s=digital-text&sprefix=wicked+sexy+lia,digital-text,287&sr=1-1-catcorr&linkCode=li3&tag=drucalboo-20&linkId=47603cdd4c8a32420cf13bdedcce14e1&language=en_US" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B012OS8XLI&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=drucalboo-20&language=en_US" /></a><b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25964108-wicked-sexy-liar">Wicked Sexy Liar</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6556689.Christina_Lauren" style="text-align: left;">Christina Lauren</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/116838-wild-seasons">Wild Season #4</a></div>
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Kindle Edition</div>
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Adult, Contemporary Romance</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i>
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For two people ambivalent about dating and love, they sure get naked around each other an awful lot . . .<br />
London Hughes is very content to surf daily, tend bar, hang out with her group of friends, and slowly orient herself in the years after college. Everything’s going great and according to the non-plan.<br />
But when a wave knocks her for a loop one morning, then Luke Sutter’s flirtatious smile knocks her for another that evening, she veers slightly off course…and into his path. Sure, he’s a total player, but the Why not—it’s only one night is a persistent voice in her ear.<br />
For his part, Luke’s been on hookup autopilot for so long that he rarely ever pauses to consider what he’s doing. But after an amazing time with London, he realizes that he hasn’t been moving on from a devastating heartbreak so much as he’s been drifting to wherever—and whomever—the current takes him. With London he wants more.<br />
Every relationship involves two people…plus their pasts. And as much as she enjoys her fling with Luke, when London learns about his past—more specifically, who’s in it—everything becomes the brand of complicated she strives to avoid. It’s up to Luke then to change some things in order to try and ensure he’s not something she’ll outright avoid as well.</blockquote>
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This book slump has been killing me, but <i>Wicked Sexy Liar </i>was just what the doctor ordered! That being said, I am so behind on life that I can't write a proper review, but what I CAN do is utilize my bullet points! Muhahah!<br />
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<li>The title is a lie. This is no "liar" in this novel, but instead, two people who are very honest with themselves and their feelings and IT'S SO REFRESHING. I'm <i>so </i>here for stories like this. </li>
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<li>I accept the title of "wicked sexy" though *wink wink*</li>
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<li>Luke was the BEST. I mean, he's sweet, he's teasing, he's too sexy for this shirt and he knows it, and when he falls in love--he falls hard and with no reservations. Good for you, my man, good for you!</li>
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<li>Logan--I mean, London--was wonderful as well. I really liked that she was doing what the fuck she wanted to do with her life until she was ready to do otherwise. Mad respect for not caving under pressure! Although I kind of wanted a scene of her slapping her ex. And also, a scene where her mother finds out what a douche he was because for crying out loud I <i>hate </i>mothers choosing the ex's side. It's not right! lol</li>
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<li>The sex is not the main focus of the story, but something that symbolizes and enhances these two's relationship and I LOVED that. It's so often the other way around. Gah. </li>
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<li>Very sexy, but towards the end, I kind of "tuned it out" in the form of skipping ahead. I mean, it's definitely fun, but I've always been more of a plot gal ¯\_(ツ)_/¯</li>
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<li>It's pretty impressive to see Christina Lauren's improvement in the plot department! Their first book, Beautiful Bastard, was pretty much just a glorified porno. By which I mean, it was skimpier than a bikini. Again, fun, and passed the time, but for me it wasn't really a "romance". This one, though? ALL ROMANCE.</li>
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<li>Swoon!</li>
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<li>BANTER! God, how much I love banter.</li>
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<li>#FamilyGoals</li>
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<li>#Squad</li>
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I am honestly, no exaggeration, so HAPPY I decided to pick this one. I couldn't have made a better choice!</div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-75329413880291188972018-06-09T16:30:00.000-07:002019-03-25T04:25:43.724-07:00Illuminae by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman | Who Needs A Heart, Anyways?<div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BiE9qXhlvi9/"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="560" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7_AiCbtucaI2_MtcOsKnQ3OyT9_sdPLu3zZQQRB1aHnvtRR-_4EKMS3gFdXZ80nEKjAP1k8982930qERmbstpHKkDdcZ4czmcYMZ2Iyo6sc1FCx3K72t6VVdXo4HTRYgnJsoQ7aKtduDj/s1600/Illuminae.png" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo2bJJdbzotlxeARiv3N7u1ffniXwJ63fPyxgGBZx1jhx8ubhaJK03eWmAkHq87nku9tbD91tLYGSXofdk0VF0_d0Q0E2W8wvyjSzZaOXWBnzy6Dxz1uay9kjNjDoupUd9eR0-x8xnudGu/s1600/Illuminae.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1046" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo2bJJdbzotlxeARiv3N7u1ffniXwJ63fPyxgGBZx1jhx8ubhaJK03eWmAkHq87nku9tbD91tLYGSXofdk0VF0_d0Q0E2W8wvyjSzZaOXWBnzy6Dxz1uay9kjNjDoupUd9eR0-x8xnudGu/s320/Illuminae.jpg" width="209" /></a><b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2086300386">Illuminae</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4735144.Jay_Kristoff" style="text-align: left;">Jay Kristoff</a> and <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5360335.Amie_Kaufman">Amie Kaufman</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/116078-the-illuminae-files">The Illuminae Files #1</a><br />
Date Read: April 21 to 25, 2018</div>
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First Published: 2015</div>
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Hardcover, Kindle</div>
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Young Adult, Sci-fi</div>
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Rating:<i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-half-o"></i></div>
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Re-Readability:<i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-half"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i></div>
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This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do. This afternoon, her planet was invaded.<br />
The year is 2575, and two rival megacorporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than an ice-covered speck at the edge of the universe. Too bad nobody thought to warn the people living on it. With enemy fire raining down on them, Kady and Ezra—who are barely even talking to each other—are forced to fight their way onto an evacuating fleet, with an enemy warship in hot pursuit.<br />
But their problems are just getting started. A deadly plague has broken out and is mutating, with terrifying results; the fleet's AI, which should be protecting them, may actually be their enemy; and nobody in charge will say what’s really going on. As Kady hacks into a tangled web of data to find the truth, it's clear only one person can help her bring it all to light: the ex-boyfriend she swore she'd never speak to again.<br />
BRIEFING NOTE: Told through a fascinating dossier of hacked documents—including emails, schematics, military files, IMs, medical reports, interviews, and more—Illuminae is the first book in a heart-stopping, high-octane trilogy about lives interrupted, the price of truth, and the courage of everyday heroes.</blockquote>
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<script async="" defer="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script> Hey, I actually loved an extremely hyped book! SCORE!<br />
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Clearly, <b>I was a tiny bit hesitant to start reading this one</b>. Which is code for EXTREMELY SCARED TO. Like, <b>the hype is daunting af</b>. What if I end up not loving it the same way everyone else does? With this kind of Captial H Hype I tend to go the Schrodinger's cat route. Just don't open the box. With this one, it was so easy to go there because <b>it's also a <i>massive piece of literature</i>. </b>600 pages are no laughing manner, but my inability to open big books is.<br />
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<i>*singing* I'm scared of big books and I cannot lie.</i><br />
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Obviously, I have bested the fear and opened the book. And you know what? THE CAT IS ALIVE!<br />
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<b>This book is such a strange amalgamation of formats and styles and voices, and what's even stranger is that it <i>works</i>.</b> And not only does it work, it works <i>gloriously</i>. It might take you a couple of files to get into the rhythm of things like it did me, but once you're in it, you're <i>in it</i>.<br />
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<b>I think it's a testament to these two authors' skills that each character managed to shine through and have its own voice</b>, even though very little of it is told through their eyes or in a direct manner. And I'm not talking just about our mains Kady and Ezra, I'm talking about the side characters as well, from friends to co-workers to captains and commanders.<br />
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And not only will you get a very firm grasp of the characters, <b>you will also get a heavy case of the Feels. </b>Mostly very painful feels, feels that will make you wonder if you really needed your heart for something because clearly it's gone and hopefully that didn't damage something too vital. <b>FEELS for DAYS.</b><br />
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Okay, wait, let's talk a minute about the details of the story. Because <b>it's one of the most terrifying things I've ever read of. </b>It's a combination of <i><b>all the things I hate the most</b> </i>because they make me so fucking terrified. But at the same time, I couldn't look away???<br />
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Nitzan's "I Hate This!" Checklist:<br />
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<li><b>The Big Bad is a giant corporation - ✓</b><br />Really, I prefer supervillain stories or even tyrant stories and things of that nature because you can just kill the man and it ends, and because things are usually more out in the open as opposed to secret schemes. <b>But corporations tend to be</b> sticky, sneaky business that always feels <b>so much harder to truly kill. They're kind of like hydras. </b>Blah</li>
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<li><b>BIOWEAPON - ✓</b><br />Oh, goody. My favorite thing. Not. Gosh,<b> it brought literal chills</b>. Bioweapons are such terrible things no matter their iteration, and this one actually turns people into monsters. Like, NO, please. <br />(side note- <b>I do hope they explore this topic more in <i>Gemina </i>though </b>because it was very strange that everyone, on the one hand, reacted "differently" to it and had different psychosis and on the other, they all suffered similar specific symptom like the "don't look at me" part. What is the virus attacking to make them <i>all </i>averse to that?)</li>
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<li><b>A.I GONE MAD - ✓</b><br />Like, whhhhy? Wasn't it scary enough before the artificial intelligence that controls <i>everything </i>lost his mind and overrode all safety protocols in a crazed attempt to follow his core directive, no matter the consequences? WASN'T IT?! <br />(*whispers: <b>I kind of liked AIDAN, though, the psycho</b>*)</li>
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<b><br /></b> <b>ALL THE CHECK MARKS. ALL OF THEM. </b></div>
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Seriously, <b>this is like someone wrote this book <i>just </i>to scare the bejesus out of me.</b></div>
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And <b>you know who're facing these gigantic mega-sized problems?? TEENAGERS! TWO LOVE-SICK TEENAGERS!</b> I'm going to have a heart attack!!! Oh, this book is EXCELLENT in making you see the other people working around it (i.e the grownups and commanders), but unfortunately, <b>those people are not the main characters so for the most part, their fate is unguaranteed. Or guaranteed to be bad.</b> The ones who are going to sort-of-maybe-in-a-way beat it are the teens. <b>And it... works? It does. </b>Fantastically. Amazing.</div>
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Although, let's be honest for a minute. Ezra Mason is kind of a secondary main character. <b>THIS IS KADY GRANT'S STORY. </b>The guy is there, and maybe he'll have a bigger part to play in the future (actually, that's almost guaranteed), but <b><i>Illuminae </i>is 100% Kady's heroic journey. </b>SHE'S the one who does everything, the one who is focused on, the one we get to see the world through her eyes on occasion. She's the one we watch grow into herself, and more importantly, grow to mean something to other people around her. Heck, the final 20% or so of the novel is pretty much Kady on her own. </div>
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And <b>you know what? I get it. I get people falling in love with this girl. I get her being the main character. </b>She is<b> fierce</b>, she is <b>smart</b>, and she is<b> unyielding</b>. She is<b> strong </b>and <b>loyal </b>and <b>near unbreakable</b>. She is <b>willing to sacrifice </b>for the greater good, <b>but </b>she <b>doesn't do it blindly.</b> In fact, she follows nothing blindly, except maybe her own heart. And she's also a pretty teenager with pink hair so <b>QUIRKY</b>. If this was an anime just the pink hair will be a glowing red arrow proclaiming "this is the protagonist". </div>
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In comparison, <b>Ezra Mason is just a cool guy. </b>He's <b>loyal</b>, <b>charming</b>, a <b>good friend</b>, and is very much in love with his ex even six months later. He's an <b>athlete </b>with <b>good reflexes</b> who is <b>comfortable following orders</b>. A rebel he is not. And that's most of what I feel like I know about this guy. </div>
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Which is where the half star went. <b>The least well-developed part of this giant work of art is Kady and Ezra's relationship. </b>We didn't get to see any part of it, which sucked big time because it's <i>the motivation for this entire book</i>. Like, seriously. <b>We meet these two <i>after </i>the breakup, and what's worse... we barely hear about their shared past as a couple. </b>We don't get to experience anything of what made them fall in love or why. We don't even really get to understand the scope of their emotions to one another.</div>
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Don't get me wrong, <b>their banter was a winning point, and I was all here for it, but... I still didn't quite get it. </b>Why they loved each other so much to give up so much. <b>I want to </b>be <i>right there with them</i>. To<b> feel like I would sacrifice myself in their stead as well because of how powerful their love is. </b>Instead, all of that was locked behind things that had already happened but weren't shown to me, so I was kind of left to assume that it was justified.</div>
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Final note, in relation to the size fear thing. <b>Illuminae is pretty much a 300 pages of a "traditional" story, told in a graphic manner spanning over 600 pages.</b> It's a <b>visual experience </b>that can be read extremely quickly. some pages are made of one sentence or a word in a stylized manner that gives it more force or meaning. So, even though it's 600 pages, <b>it flies very quickly and doesn't feel the length. </b></div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-8037388851541290572018-05-06T17:00:00.000-07:002019-03-25T04:30:30.516-07:00The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller | Mythology is Gay AF, My Friends<div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2117080334">The Song of Achilles</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/176372.Madeline_Miller" style="text-align: left;">Madeline Miller</a></div>
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Date Read: April 16 to 19, 2018</div>
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First Published: 2011</div>
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Adult, Mythology</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-half-o"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i></div>
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Re-Readability: <i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Greece in the age of Heroes. Patroclus, an awkward young prince, has been exiled to the kingdom of Phthia. Here he is nobody, just another unwanted boy living in the shadow of King Peleus and his golden son, Achilles.<br />
Achilles, ‘best of all the Greeks', is everything Patroclus is not — strong, beautiful, the child of a goddess — and by all rights their paths should never cross. Yet one day, Achilles takes the shamed prince under his wing and soon their tentative companionship gives way to a steadfast friendship. As they grow into young men skilled in the arts of war and medicine, their bond blossoms into something far deeper — despite the displeasure of Achilles's mother Thetis, a cruel and deathly pale sea goddess with a hatred of mortals.<br />
Fate is never far from the heels of Achilles. When word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped, the men of Greece are called upon to lay siege to Troy in her name. Seduced by the promise of a glorious destiny, Achilles joins their cause, Torn between love and fear for his friend, Patroclus follows Achilles into war, little knowing that the years that follow will test everything they have learned, everything they hold dear. And that, before he is ready, he will be forced to surrender his friend to the hands of Fate.<br />
Profoundly moving and breathtakingly original, this rendering of the epic Trojan War is a dazzling feat of the imagination, a devastating love story, and an almighty battle between gods and kings, peace and glory, immortal fame and the human heart.</blockquote>
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So, <b>here is the thing about putting <i>expectations </i>on a book.</b> Sometimes, it works out great. But for the most part, it doesn't. Unfortunately, this case is of the latter. Look, <b>I'm not going to say this is a bad book, because it's <i>not</i>.</b> So no need to fight me to the death on this one.<br />
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But be that as it may... <b>I felt disappointed.</b> It simply wasn't the life-altering experience I was let to believe I would have, and in some cases, it wasn't what I wanted it to be at all. <b>I wholeheartedly, unabashedly blame Tumblr.</b> <b>I have seen so many Patroclus and Achilles posts, usually in connection to some of my all-time favorite couples</b> (Pynch, Andriel, and Evak, for example), that I have already decided I am going to fall in love with Patroclus and Achilles and their story before I opened the first page.<br />
<br />
And I did... but I didn't. You see, <b>the thing I loved most about those other couples</b> was how long we spent watching the two become what they are. We watched them become friends, we watched them react to each other and with each other, and <b>by the time they were together, we didn't need words or confirmations of love because <i>we knew it in our bones</i>. </b>There was no doubt, no questioning, that they were meant for each other--forever and always. <b>We were shown, not told. </b>That's the kind of storytelling that <i>I </i>love.<br />
<br />
<b>In THE SONG OF ACHILLES, things were different. </b>I felt like <b>I was <i>told </i>of everything, instead of being shown and drawing my own conclusion.</b> I was told "after that, they were best friends". I was told that they "talked about this, and this, and this". But I didn't actually get to see these interactions happen. I didn't get to see them as best friends, inseparable companions. <b>I felt like I was robbed of many of their conversations and interactions</b> - scenes that would make me <i>feel </i>their friendship and love and fully believe in it. Instead, I was simply told that they happened and was expected to understand that their strong love grew from these mysterious, shared memories that I wasn't privy to.<br />
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Now, <b>it's not that I didn't believe their love</b>, or that I didn't cry there at the end, because I DID. Not gonna lie. <b>It's just that I felt like it could have been told in a better way.</b><br />
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But enough about that. Let's talk about things I loved. For example, the way <b>Achilles was fiercely protective of their relationship and adamant that no one will take it from them.</b> It's 2018 and still, for some incomprehensible reason, gay relationships are not accepted everywhere--and this story takes place in Ancient Greece. <b>Got to love a hero who isn't afraid to love, until death and beyond.</b> And while I'm still a bit skeptical that no one seemed to care about this illicit relationship, <b>I was so there for mutual love and support!</b><br />
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I general, <b>I think the lasting and unshakable relationship between Patroclus and Achilles is the strongest part of this novel. </b>No matter what or who comes in their way, these two will be together. Protecting each other and understanding each other.<br />
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That being said, <b>there was a lot of things I wanted to see outside of this relationship.</b> Like Patroclus becoming a valuable part of this war, and perhaps understanding his own worth a bit better. There was precious little of this, and I wanted to see (NOT BE TOLD) of people appreciating his medical abilities and his kind nature. I also wanted to see him interacting with more people in general.<br />
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Especially since <b>I <i>knew </i>this story will not get a happy ending.</b> Not with Achilles as one of the main characters. So, at the very least, I wanted my heroes to be happier throughout it. Though I have to admit, some of my trepidation about reading a novel that could only end in tragedy was lessened by the characters aware of their own fate. <b>It would have been so much more difficult to know what is to come while they rushed at it blindly.</b><br />
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And finally, the writing. <b>I have seen people praise it to mars and back, totally enamored with Miller's style and composition. </b>I am, unfortunately, not one of those folks. While I did find Miller's style to be beautiful at times, <b>I mostly felt like it was <i>too damn much</i>. </b>Too flowery or trying too much, to the point that <b>I would literally cringe.</b> I'm kind of sad to be alone in this because it seems like everyone loves it so damned much, but I could not get used to sentences like;<br />
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"One by one, Achilles caught the remaining fruits, returned them to the table with a performer’s flourish. Except for the last, which he ate, <u>the dark flesh parting to pink seeds under his teeth</u>. The fruit was <u>perfectly ripe, the juice brimming</u>. Without thinking, I brought the one he had thrown me to my lips. <u>Its burst of grainy sweetness filled my mouth; the skin was downy on my tongue.</u>"</blockquote>
Or<br />
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I kissed his neck, the span of his chest, and tasted the salt. <u>He seemed to swell beneath my touch, to ripen. </u>He smelled like almonds and earth. He pressed against me, <u>crushing my lips to wine.</u></blockquote>
<b>Like... why?</b> Why take such a long time describing figs in such a cringe-worthy way? And I didn't need to know Achilles "ripened", thank you very much. I'm okay with the good ol' "hardened". <b>This writing literally made the coming together of two characters I loved feel awkward, overly done and weird. </b>And can someone please explain to me <b>what some of this even means? </b>"Crushing my lips to wine"???<br />
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<b>I can't even.</b></div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-14026058013911681432018-05-03T17:00:00.000-07:002019-03-25T04:30:15.015-07:00Moon Called by Patricia Briggs | I've Missed This World! <div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/328078165">Moon Called</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/40563.Patricia_Briggs" style="text-align: left;">Patricia Briggs</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/123299-mercy-thompson-world---complete">Mercy Thompson Universe #1</a><br />
Date Read: May 19, 2012 & March 12 to 13, 2018</div>
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First Published: 2006</div>
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Paperback</div>
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Adult, Urban Fantasy</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i></div>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Mercedes Thompson, aka Mercy, is a talented Volkswagen mechanic living in the Tri-Cities area of Washington. She also happens to be a walker, a magical being with the power to shift into a coyote at will. Mercy's next-door neighbor is a werewolf. Her former boss is a gremlin. And she's fixing a bus for a vampire. This is the world of Mercy Thompson, one that looks a lot like ours but is populated by those things that go bump in the night. And Mercy's connection to those things is about to get her into some serious hot water...</blockquote>
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Re-Reading the Mercy Thompson series <b>feels a little bit like meeting up with your best friend again after years of being apart.</b><br />
<br />
It's an interesting thing, the process you go through with novels reading them a second (or third, because I'm fairly certain I did another re-read before this one) time. In the case of MOON CALLED, <b>I actually ended up enjoying the first installment in the series a lot more than I did the first time around.</b><br />
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Don't get me wrong - <b>I've always considered MOON CALLED to be a good book. </b>It's <b>a fantastic introduction to this world </b>as it immediately tells you this is a dark place (I'm still sad, okay?!), but it's told to you by such a fun storyteller that you almost forget that. It shows you how complex it is, but in a manner that makes everything crystal clear. And despite all this, despite the introduction to everything from werewolves to vampires, witches, and fae, <b>the world-building doesn't actually overpower the plot of the book</b>, and leaves enough room for it to be expended and dived into further in future installments.<br />
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And who is that fun storyteller? <b>Meet Mercedes Thompson - a mechanic, a walker, and the main character of the story. </b>But everyone just calls her Mercy. If you like <b>independent, strong-willed, and stubborn </b>ladies who would<b> sooner be the prince than the damsel in distress</b>, then you're are going to <i>love </i>this girl. Because <b>she is all of that and <i>more</i>.</b><br />
<br />
A girl like Mercy needs a good man by her side. Sadly, she has two, and she's not quite sure what to do with that. Let me warn you that this doesn't get resolved in this novel, but neither does Mercy string everyone along in a confusion ping-pong between the two men. So <b>love-triangle, but not quite that bad, you know what I'm saying?</b><br />
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Okay, so who are these guys? Entering stage left is <b>Adam Hauptman, Mercy's backdoor neighbor, alpha of the local pack, and all-around total book boyfriend!</b> If I was Mercy I would jump on this one in a <i>heartbeat. </i>He grabbed hold of my heart from the first time we <i>heard </i>of him, and for me he is the perfect match for Mercy - <b>he loves her wildness, he doesn't try to control her</b> (overly. He <i>is </i>an alpha, after all), <b>he appreciates her abilities and talents and isn't afraid to ask for her help</b>. Oh, and <b>he can banter with her like no one's business</b>. <i>Swoon</i>.<br />
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Entering stage right is <b>Samual Cornick</b>. My general reaction? <i>meh</i>. Look, this guy <i>should </i>be total crush material. <b>He's a healer, Mercy's first love, one of the most powerful werewolves in America, and he loves children. </b>What's not to like? Well, <b>this guy is <i>annoying</i></b>. I just kind of wanted him out of the picture. <b>I never felt like he really loved Mercy, the women. Rather, he loved what she symbolizes.</b> And for all that Sam knows Mercy really well, it doesn't feel like he wants her the way she is. <b>He wants her to change.</b> I don't like that in my couples, <i>at all. </i>So <b>Sam, an okay character on his own, is a total no-no as a romantic interest in my opinion.</b><br />
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Now, Adam is clearly my favorite and obviously, I adore Mercy, but <b>there were several <i>scene stealers </i></b>in this that are neither. First up is <b>WARREN</b>. <b>Let my swaggering gay sweetheart live his best life with Kyle and leave him alone!</b> Like, Warren is one of my favorite characters, and Kyle is his perfect match in every way. I<i> love </i>them. They are total <b>#relationshipgoals</b> and I wouldn't mind a book or two about <i>them</i>.<br />
<br />
Then, we have <b>BEN</b>. I know, I know, <b>what am I doing liking the asshole British guy?</b> Well, even the first time around, not knowing things to come, I found Ben an interesting character with surprising depth. The second time around I simply <i>loved </i>him.<b> Idk man, I just love this jerk.</b><br />
<br />
Some other noteworthy characters are <b>Stefan </b>the vampire, <b>Zee </b>the fae, and <b>Jesse</b>, Adam's daughter. All really fun and colorful characters, but this is not their book to shine. Although, Jesse kind of shines in every book.<br />
<br />
Honestly, <b>the thing I was most impressed with in this re-read is how many things Briggs actually set up in this one.</b> More than once I blinked at the novel in confusion because I thought this and that happened later on but nope, they were there from the very beginning and apparently Briggs knew exactly what she wanted to do with them. Kudos to that!<br />
<br />
Which is also kind of why <b>I am even <i>more </i>disappointed about the villain than I was the first time around</b>. Like, there are no hints for some of it. You've got this <i>really </i>elaborate plan, at the end of the day, searching for clues bore very little fruit, and that bums me out.<br />
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Still, a great novel all in all!</div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-78614921583587027152018-04-23T17:00:00.000-07:002019-03-25T04:32:11.816-07:00This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner | Enemies to Lovers IN SPACE<div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/943239958">This Shattered World</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5360335.Amie_Kaufman" style="text-align: left;">Amie Kaufman</a> and <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4615776.Meagan_Spooner">Meagan Spooner</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/70002-starbound">Starbound #2</a><br />
Date Read: Feb 27 to March 3, 2018</div>
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First Published: 2014</div>
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Hardcover</div>
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Young Adult, Sci-fi/Fantasy</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i></div>
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Re-Readability: <i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Jubilee Chase and Flynn Cormac should never have met.<br />
Lee is captain of the forces sent to Avon to crush the terraformed planet's rebellious colonists, but she has her own reasons for hating the insurgents.<br />
Rebellion is in Flynn's blood. Terraforming corporations make their fortune by recruiting colonists to make the inhospitable planets livable, with the promise of a better life for their children. But they never fulfilled their promise on Avon, and decades later, Flynn is leading the rebellion.<br />
Desperate for any advantage in a bloody and unrelentingly war, Flynn does the only thing that makes sense when he and Lee cross paths: he returns to base with her as prisoner. But as his fellow rebels prepare to execute this tough-talking girl with nerves of steel, Flynn makes another choice that will change him forever. He and Lee escape the rebel base together, caught between two sides of a senseless war.</blockquote>
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Wait, is this really happening??<b> Am I finally continuing with a series I started a few years back and loved but never touched again? YES, I AM!</b> Mom, aren't you proud of me???<br />
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Okay, jokes aside, I'm finally doing this. And while I <i>am </i>super happy with myself, I am also super confused about why it has taken me this long to do so in the first place. <b>These books are good. They blend fun with heavy themes and ideas. They don't shy away from death, but neither do they shy away from love and hope.</b><br />
<br />
We've seen all that in the first novel, and we're seeing it now in the second one. <b>THIS SHATTERED WORLD follows Jubilee Chase and Flynn Cormac</b>, and before I start this review lets just all take a second to admit to ourselves <b>how</b> <b>utterly fabulous the name Jubilee is.</b> Like, it's one of those names that make me just happy to read it and fuck if I know why but I ain't gonna complain either.<br />
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Okay, focus, Nitzan! This is serious reviewing time!<br />
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So, at first, you're going to wonder just <i>how </i>exactly does the story of Tarver and Lilac connect with that of Flynn and Jubilee. That will last all of, oh, I don't know... three chapters? Yeah. Then it's just going to be <b>kind of terrifying because you'll start to suspect a lot of things that don't bode well for anyone. </b>And, like, it's <i>exactly </i>where I thought the next "logical" step will be when I was reading THESE BROKEN STARS, and yet I was really hoping it won't because man, that's some bad shit.<br />
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But enough about that bad (but good bad) parts of the novel. Let's discuss some of the great things! First, Jubilee herself. <b>She's not just a kick-ass name, she's also a kick-ass army captain. </b>Yeah, you've read that right. The heroine is the one who gets to be <b>uncompromisingly badass, and yet, undoubtedly feminine. </b>I love that. A girl doesn't have to be manly to be strong. And Jubilee <i>is </i>that. Strong, and fierce, and compassionate. You'd think the long years in the army and the even longer years before that as a war orphan would have left her empty and cold, but despite what some rookies might think, she's the furthest thing away from that.<br />
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And it's Flynn Cormac who helps her believe in that part of herself again. Because <b>Flynn is a pacifist rebel. </b>Sounds a bit like an oxymoron, doesn't it? But Flynn manages to be both <b>entirely loyal to his planet, his people and their survival</b>--and they're his people, by right of birth and by his choice--<b>and yet wholly dedicated to the idea of ending the war without more bloodshed and death.</b> Literally, the only thing he wants (aside for Jubilee) is to bring peace to his people, no matter the cost to himself. <b>Altruistic guy alert!</b><br />
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<b>Seeing</b> <b>these two enemies grow closer </b>and learning to trust and lean on each other<b> as their loyalties and beliefs change and shift</b> to accommodate all the new information and ideas <b>is pretty awesome</b>, and the two make a good team.<b> Flynn as the heart, Jubilee as the muscle, and if you say you don't like the sound of that power balance, you're lying.</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
Now, amongst all the praise I can say about these novels, <b>there is <i>one </i>thing that really stands out to me as a negative</b>. Mainly, that <b>the books lack an impact of Death</b>, despite the fact there is plenty of that to go around. Like, people die. A lot of people. Some extremely innocent, like children. Things that normally make me cry just to think about them. But here... I felt no grief. The books <i>tell </i>me these death had impacts on the characters. <b>It <i>tells </i>me they grieve for them. But it doesn't make you--or at the very least, me--<i>feel </i>it. </b><br />
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And I feel like that's a HUGE miss. <b>These people who die mean something to these characters, presumably. But...</b> like, none of them get very established--definitely not enough for me to mourn their deaths on my own--so <b>I just felt <i>nothing </i>when they died</b>, aside for feeling like it's a pointless plot-point <i>because </i>I couldn't feel it. Like, yeah, it's war and there is senseless death but also it's a novel so at least a few of these deaths <i>should </i>have a point beyond "I need a way to move the plot further". Idk. It all boils down to me not feeling anything - I'm sure it would have worked better if I managed to muster some of that.<br />
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<b>I'm looking forward to finally finishing this series this year, and seeing how this all pans out!</b> </div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-88077407450897251362018-04-06T17:00:00.000-07:002019-03-25T04:32:00.403-07:00These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner | This Should Be Adapted into a Movie!<div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/756834902">These Broken Stars</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5360335.Amie_Kaufman" style="text-align: left;">Amie Kaufman</a> and <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4615776.Meagan_Spooner">Meagan Spooner</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/70002-starbound">Starbound #1</a><br />
Date Read: Feb 20 to 25, 2018</div>
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First Published: 2013</div>
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Hardcover</div>
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Young Adult, Fantasy</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i></div>
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It's a night like any other on board the Icarus. Then, catastrophe strikes: the massive luxury spaceliner is yanked out of hyperspace and plummets into the nearest planet. Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen survive. And they seem to be alone.<br />
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Lilac is the daughter of the richest man in the universe. Tarver comes from nothing, a young war hero who learned long ago that girls like Lilac are more trouble than they’re worth. But with only each other to rely on, Lilac and Tarver must work together, making a tortuous journey across the eerie, deserted terrain to seek help.<br />
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Then, against all odds, Lilac and Tarver find a strange blessing in the tragedy that has thrown them into each other’s arms. Without the hope of a future together in their own world, they begin to wonder—would they be better off staying here forever?<br />
Everything changes when they uncover the truth behind the chilling whispers that haunt their every step. Lilac and Tarver may find a way off this planet. But they won’t be the same people who landed on it.</blockquote>
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<b>I've originally read THESE BROKEN STARS in 2014 and <i>loved </i>it.</b> But as I did with <i>many </i>of the series I read back then (and now, too, but let's pretend this illness has gotten better, okay?) <b>I just kind of let the series dangle with no conscious intention to do so.</b><br />
<br />
<b>But 2018 is the year for change</b>, or at the very least the year to make myself feel slightly better about the abysmal state of my series reading, and <b>that starts right here, right now, with the <i>Starbound </i>trilogy.</b><br />
<br />
Now, I'm going to do something slightly different with this review. Mostly because, <b>as I was reading it a second time, I couldn't stop this feeling that THESE BROKEN STARS will lend itself <i>beautifully </i>to a cinematic adaptation. </b>Maybe by throwing this fact out there the gods of Hollywood will hear me and make it happen.<br />
<br />
Now, as books and movies definitely move in different rhythms, the pace will have to be adjusted. <b>The book illustrates the difficulty to survive, stranded on a deserted planet with no means of communication, by emphasizing the long journey.</b> The inherent tension of the travel as well as the tension between our characters. On how it <b>stretches them thin and threatens to destroy them mentally, more than physically.</b><br />
<br />
The movie, being a movie, will add more <b>mortal peril</b> to the whole experience because while <b>the book has <i>just </i>enough of that to be perfect</b>, the movie will just need <i>more</i>. So I'm certain we will see more of the strange wild-life the planet has to offer, perhaps more danger with the Whispers and certainly more injuries will be sustained (eek!)<br />
<br />
I'm okay with that. I'm okay with that because the movie wouldn't need to change much else.<br />
<br />
Like, take our main characters <b>Lilac </b>and <b>Tarver </b>for example; who <i>wouldn't </i>watch a movie about <b>the haughty, <i>beautiful </i>society girl who's just too afraid to let anyone too close</b> (for good reason), and <b>the ragged, kind-hearted, <i>handsome </i>young soldier and war hero </b>who get stranded together after a horrid spaceship crash à la the Titanic?<br />
<br />
Space is all the rage right now, Titanic has been a smashing box office success for a reason, Survivor is on its <i>36th </i>season, and we all enjoy watching good looking faces on big screens. A recipe for success!<br />
<br />
Then let's talk <b>dialogues</b>. You could keep them almost entirely intact (although let's be real they won't. Studios <i>love </i>changing dialogue. Sigh). <b>They're fun, they're banty, they're occasionally flirty and it's <i>so great </i>when they are</b>. And the <b><i>delicious </i>and <i>thinly veiled </i>sexual tension</b> throughout the whole thing is definitely something Hollywood would <i>love.</i><br />
<i><br /></i> And let's not forget the <b>contained and limited cast that allows you to explore two characters and their growing relationship, as well as the environment and the toll of isolation. </b>Now, sure, Hollywood does love having huge ensemble casts where each audience member can find a character to connect to, so that may deter them a little bit, <i>but </i>it's also cheaper to have a very limited amount of actors for 75% of the movie! lol<br />
<br />
Now, <b>the setting</b> is another thing that I think movie execs would love to pounce on. First of all, <b>there is a wonderful duality of beauty and cruelty in the setting</b>, as well as <b>two opposite backdrops that somehow blend seamlessly. </b>And holy hell would they be absolutely <i>stunning </i>on the big screen.<br />
<br />
First, we have<b> the Icarus, an advanced spaceship </b>traveling in hyperspace on a luxury cruise. Imagine our heroes traveling the deck, with the windows outside showing the smudged lights of the stars as the ship passes them by. Here and there floating trays will offer food and drinks, <b>screens and holograms will tell of news and sales.</b> And between all that <b>technological advances</b>, there are the upper floors of <b>the rich and famous</b>, where they<b> gallivant in Victorian dresses and corsets</b>, pretending to be something they have only read of in history books. Already extremely compelling, right?<br />
<br />
But then <b>it all comes crashing down</b>, in what would be an epic sequence of mayhem and horrifying destruction, and <b>all the slick and manufactured perfection will give space to a land abandoned by men</b>, where nature grows wild and creatures that shouldn't exist walk around. Where the sky breaks open and showers rain and snow. And death. <b>All equally beautiful, yet equally repelling.</b><br />
<br />
Admit it, I'm selling you over here.<br />
<br />
And then, <b>on top of all these great things, on top of a story of survival and love, bravery and redemption, of real versus fake, of people having more than one side to them, of right and wrong, there is a <i>mystery</i>.</b><br />
<br />
<b>Because the Icarus should have been indestructible -</b> what was its iceberg? Why is no one coming to save them? Why is the planet abandoned, when it shows clear signs of human interference. And if Lilac And Tarver <i>aren't </i>going mad... what is the source of those visions, of those... whispers?<br />
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You're completely sold on the movie?? Wonderful. It doesn't exist. Go read the book instead, it's better than the movie (could be) anyways ;)</div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-84473641115611297592018-04-02T17:00:00.000-07:002019-03-25T04:31:48.231-07:00The Failing Hours by Sara Ney | I'm... Kind of So-So About It?<div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2292422794">The Failing Hours</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7798960.Sara_Ney" style="text-align: left;">Sara Ney</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/188852-how-to-date-a-douchebag">How To Date A Douchebag #2</a><br />
Date Read: Feb 11 to 12, 2018</div>
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First Published: 2017</div>
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Kindle</div>
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New Adult, Romance</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i></div>
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Zeke Daniels isn't just a douchebag; he's an a**hole.<br />
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A total and complete jerk, Zeke keeps people at a distance. He has no interest in relationships—most a**holes don’t.<br />
<br />
Dating?<br />
Being part of a couple? Nope. Not for him.<br />
He's never given any thought to what he wants in a girlfriend, because he's never had any intention of having one. Shit, he barely has a relationship with his family, and they're related; his own friends don’t even like him.<br />
<br />
So why does he keep thinking about Violet DeLuca?<br />
Sweet, quiet Violet—his opposite in every sense of the word.<br />
The light to his dark, even her damn name sounds like rays of sunshine and happiness and shit.<br />
And that pisses him off, too.</blockquote>
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<b>So, I'm kind of torn when it comes to this book.</b><br />
<br />
On the one hand; <b>I really did like Zeke and Violet's relationship.</b> I like Zeke's character development and the way he goes from someone who won't let other people like him to someone who people can love and appreciate. I liked how Violet demanded his respect and overcome her fears throughout the novel.<br />
<br />
These two were a fun couple to follow, as <b>I truly felt like they made each other better</b>, different as they may be.<br />
<br />
That being said. THAT BEING SAID. <b>There were a lot of things I was iffy about.</b><br />
<br />
First of all,<b> I found myself wanting Ney to explore more of the things she set up in this book</b>, same as I did in the first one.<br />
<br />
Like the kids. <b>The kids are such a great addition to the story, yet Ney barely uses them at all. </b>They are something clearly added just to allow Violet and Zeke to interact more, and that <i>sucked</i>. Where are the adorable bonding scenes? Where are the small things that make Zeke love his little guy, and the little guy return in kind? They were so few and far between that I barely felt them, and so when the book told me at the end about Kyle and Zeke's relationship, I mostly scratched my head wondering why, again, all those great things apparently happened <i>off page</i>.<br />
<br />
Then, <b>I wanted Zeke's "friends" to recognize what is hidden under the surface</b> the way James, an outsider, was able to perceive. I wanted them to realize their mistake about him, and to stop acting like the dude had no soul.<br />
<br />
<b>I wanted to hear more of Zeke's and Violet's backgrounds</b> since that was another interesting topic that was barely touched upon, outside of the generic "that's why he/she has issues" bits.<br />
<br />
And <b>I wanted to see the outcomes of Zeke's various good deeds</b>, especially Brandon's case.<br />
<br />
<b>As you can tell, there is a lot of "want" attached to this book.</b><br />
<br />
<b>An even bigger issue I had is of Ney's definition of friendship because holly hell I feel like Zeke's friends suck. </b>Which is a shame because the biggest sucky of them all is Oz, and I really liked him in book one. Anyways, they pissed me so bad with their bad friendship and the way they somehow shifted the blame solely on Zeke for all of it.<br />
<br />
*Mark the spoilers with the mouse to see them!*<br />
**Profane language included because I feel really, really strongly about this rant**<br />
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<b><u>SPOILER</u></b><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></span> <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: white;">Like, <b>I literally wanted to choke Oz there at the end. </b>There he is, pressing <i>all </i>of Zeke's buttons. Nettling him and doing it in front of someone Zeke doesn't trust. When he KNOWS Zeke. <b>He knows that his defense mechanism is to become all dismissive and callous </b>since we have seen that happen multiple times throughout the book.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></span> <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: white;">And yet. AND YET. <b>Oz does so anyway</b>, and then Zeke does what Zeke always does and <b>Oz has the gall to act surprised</b>? To reprimand Zeke for it and<b> pretend as if he had absolutely nothing to do with the situation? </b>When he has absolutely no right to act disgusted?</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></span> <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: white;"><b>All Oz had to do is fucking leave well enough alone.</b> That's it. Those two would have not only started dating for realzies, but they would have reached the L word all on their own in no time, seeing how close Zeke already was to voice that thought.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></span> <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: white;">Like, seriously, give me a break, motherfucker. <b>Learn to treat yo friends better; real friends help each other succeed, not tear each other down and make them fail!</b></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></span> <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: white;"><b>How is this book praising and hailing Oz as this great friend??</b> His actions are those of a frienemy at <i>best</i>. It's either that, or he doesn't get Zeke at <i>all, </i>in which case start making a real effort you fucker or take your toxic attitude someplace else.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></span> <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: white;">My god!</span></span><br />
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<b><u>END SPOILER</u></b><br />
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Oh, and <b>can I also take a moment to rant about that Coach?</b> Like, why is this person represented as the good role model for these kids? <b>All he says to Zeke is filled with this undercurrent of resenting Zeke's wealth. </b>Well, screw that! The fact someone has money doesn't mean he hasn't experienced hardships, only that his hardships may not have been the same as yours. <b>And Coach <i>knows </i>of Zeke's issues. Knows of them and still acts like that towards him.</b><br />
<br />
<b>His actions themselves are good</b>, as they are forcing Zeke out of his own head, forcing him to help others, and that in turn helps him slowly let go of some of his issues. <b>But the dialogue. </b>MY GOD, THE DIALOGUE.<b> It had my blood boiling in rage and my hands itching to slap him</b>, long before I even gave a damn about Zeke.<br />
<br />
Again, <b>it's the whole concept of someone being mean and egging Zeke instead of showing him that he has someone in his corner who cares</b>, and who won't just give up on him.<br />
<br />
<b>Am I the only one who felt this way about these things? Did I imagine it? Am I crazy???</b><br />
<br />
I don't really know, and I don't really care. Everyone in this kind of pissed me off is the moral of this segment. </div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-60214157759709735652018-03-30T17:00:00.000-07:002019-03-25T04:34:15.155-07:00Fantasy In Death by J.D. Robb | This Case Made Me Sad<div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2283876824">Fantasy In Death</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17065.J_D_Robb" style="text-align: left;">J.D. Robb</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/41029-in-death">In Death #30</a><br />
Date Read: Feb 4 to 10, 2018</div>
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First Published: 2010</div>
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Hardcover</div>
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Adult, mystery</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i></div>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Bart Minnock, founder of the computer gaming giant U-Play, is found in his locked private playroom, in a pool of blood, his head separated from his body. Despite his violent end, Eve can’t find anyone—girlfriend and business partners included—who seemed to have a problem with the enthusiastic, high-spirited millionaire.<br />
Of course gaming, like any business, has its fierce rivalries and dirty tricks—as Eve’s husband, Roarke, one of U-Play’s competitors, knows well. But Minnock was not naïve, and he knew how to fight back in the real world as well as the virtual one.<br />
Eve and her team are about to enter the next level of police work, in a world where fantasy is the ultimate seduction—and the price of defeat is death...</blockquote>
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So, <b>I suppose it's no surprise to anyone that I love this series</b>, considering this is the 30th book in the series. Granted, I haven't read <i>all </i>the previous ones, but I have read... what, twenty? Clearly; I'm a fan.<br />
<br />
But <b>some mysteries hit me harder than others, and this is one of those cases.</b><br />
<br />
I know exactly what caused my fierce reaction; the theme of friendship. You see, <b>I am a very loyal friend</b>, and I have friends who I would die for... and I know they would die for me. Dramatic, maybe, but also fundamentally true.<br />
<br />
The friendship in this book reminded me of that. <b>The friends reacted so strongly to Bart's death that I <i>prayed</i> none of them did it.</b> I wanted Eve to be wrong, just this once. For the killer to be someone unrelated; not one of these friends that Bart loved, and trusted, and cherished. Not one of these friends that appeared so ravaged by his death.<br />
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<b>Their pain broke my heart, but the notion that one of them actually did it crushed the pieces into dust.</b><br />
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So... yeah. FANTASY IN DEATH was <b>such a hard, painful read for me.</b> It made my stomach churn and my anxiety level rise. It took me longer to read because <b>I was honestly scared to read who'd done it.</b><br />
<br />
<b>The only pleasant part of this novel was Eve, Roarke, and the wonderful supporting cast.</b> I have no idea how Robb does it, but these people are still as compelling 30 books later as they were in the first one. And<b> they are "people", not just characters on paper. </b>They are as real as you and me. The only difference is that they are fictional. I know that sounds contrary but just.. just think about it. You <i>know </i>what I mean.<br />
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Anyways, <b>how come this series hasn't been adapted for a tv series yet??</b> Some of the longest running shows are detective shows with romance undertones like Castle, The Mentalist, and Bones--this would be <i>perfect </i>for that.</div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-5984578518522476972018-03-26T17:00:00.000-07:002019-03-25T04:35:58.613-07:00Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling | I Forgot How Smart Harry Is?? <div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2265087821">Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1077326.J_K_Rowling" style="text-align: left;">J.K. Rowling</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/45175-harry-potter">Harry Potter #1</a><br />
Date Read: Jan 20 to Feb 3, 2018</div>
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First Published: 1997</div>
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Hardcover & Paperback</div>
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Middle Grade, Fantasy</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i></div>
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Harry Potter's life is miserable. His parents are dead and he's stuck with his heartless relatives, who force him to live in a tiny closet under the stairs. But his fortune changes when he receives a letter that tells him the truth about himself: he's a wizard. A mysterious visitor rescues him from his relatives and takes him to his new home, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.<br />
After a lifetime of bottling up his magical powers, Harry finally feels like a normal kid. But even within the Wizarding community, he is special. He is the boy who lived: the only person to have ever survived a killing curse inflicted by the evil Lord Voldemort, who launched a brutal takeover of the Wizarding world, only to vanish after failing to kill Harry.<br />
Though Harry's first year at Hogwarts is the best of his life, not everything is perfect. There is a dangerous secret object hidden within the castle walls, and Harry believes it's his responsibility to prevent it from falling into evil hands. But doing so will bring him into contact with forces more terrifying than he ever could have imagined.<br />
Full of sympathetic characters, wildly imaginative situations, and countless exciting details, the first installment in the series assembles an unforgettable magical world and sets the stage for many high-stakes adventures to come.</blockquote>
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So, obviously, this is not the first time I have read <i>HARRY POTTER AND THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE. </i>It's not the second or third or even eighth. <b>I have probably read this specific book in the series over two dozen times. </b>(That being said, I haven't done a full re-read of the series in years. I will try to do so this year because man do I miss it!)<br />
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And yet, somehow, <b>I found myself learning new things about this series</b>, and how I view it, with this re-read. <b>That is the greatness of the Harry Potter world. </b>That is part of what makes it so lasting. What makes my young cousin, who is just ten, love these books as much as I have, <i>twenty years </i>after the first came out.<br />
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<b>It's literal magic</b>.<br />
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I've got to admit that <b>part of my experience with these books will always be intertwined with that of the movies</b>, which is why I remember some things a bit differently than they really were. It's not an entirely bad thing; I love the movies, and I love the actors, and it definitely allows for some elements of the story to feel fresh every single time.<br />
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But with this specific re-read, since it really has been a while, or because I read it more slowly as part of the read-along I attempted to join, <b>I noticed this a lot more strongly than I normally do. </b>Like, <b>I honestly forgot that Harry is <i>smart</i>. </b>Yes, he is never going to be book clever like Hermione is (but let's be real, who is?). He's not the brightest wizard of his generation and so forth. But he <i>is </i>smart and clever, and intelligent. He connects the dots, he draws conclusions (and even when he's wrong, his reasoning is so sound you can never fault him because then you would have to fault yourself <i>because you made the same mistake too)</i>. <b>He figures most of the crucial parts of the book without needing anyone's help, and when he does need it he is always smart enough to ask for it. </b>That's so admirable!<br />
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Aside from being one smart cookie, <b>Harry is also sassy and funny, which is one thing that the movies kind of missed on a general basis.</b> Sassy Harry memes are some of my absolute favorites (although, Movie Harry's sass is also a lot of fun when it shines through).<br />
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And although he is brave and funny, and smart... <b>He does get scared, he does feel shame and embarrassment, and he does have regrets</b>... a lot of them. <b>Harry Potter is not perfect</b>--which, in turn, makes him an absolutely perfect protagonist<b>.</b> Because <b>he </b><i><b>chooses</b> </i>to be brave in the face of hardship. <b>He </b><i><b>chooses</b> </i>to do the right thing. He is only eleven years old, and already <b>he is actively choosing to</b> stand his grounds and fight. <b>Not just for himself. Actually, <i>very rarely </i>for himself.</b><br />
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<b>Harry Potter is an avenger, and a protector, and an incredibly loyal friend.</b> All from the age of eleven, when he has all the reasons in the world not to be on account of his shitty childhood. <b>Why do I see so many people dissing him so often on the internet? Why?? STOP IT.</b><br />
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So, yeah. <b>Rowling does an <i>amazing </i>job setting up the character of Harry</b>. Which, despite growing and evolving in the following books, keeps true to all his roots and the best things about him which are introduced here.<br />
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She does the same with <b>Ron - funny, loyal, easily excited Ron, who has an inferiority complex but for the most part constantly rises above it to be a good friend</b>, a helping hand and the person whom without Harry would probably not have survived emotionally throughout his school year. <b>He's kind of the heart of the group because he's mostly emotion, and I love him.</b><br />
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Then we have <b>Hermione, easily my favorite of the main trio. She's a strong, independent young girl who is viciously smart and clever, talented beyond belief, but also kind of lonely </b>as she comes across as somewhat of a know-it-all (mostly because she often <i>does </i>know it all). <b>She's mostly brain and logic, which is why she serves to center the other characters </b>when they would turn to their base emotions. <b>That doesn't mean she is not heartfelt and loyal and an amazing friend</b>, just that she would first weigh her feelings against what she knows, and when this two coincide she will go all out to protect and follow what she believes.<br />
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<b>And, fyi, I have shipped Ron and Hermione since I was seven and read this book for the first time. </b>Brains and Heart ships are some of my favorites, and I was certain these two would one day marry and have children who are viciously smart but also incredibly emotional since Ron made Hermione cry that first time. #myfirstship<br />
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Anyway, <b>these three friends create an incredible balance between them that is extremely hard to write and execute, never mind that Rowling makes it looks as easy and effortless as turning on the light. </b>All three have a role to fill and things only they can bring to the story as well as each other's development throughout this book and the series as a whole. You don't get to see these as much in the movies, since Harry is put as the single "hero" of that narrative, in a way that he isn't really in the books.<br />
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<b>As much as this is Harry Potter's story, it still has <i>three </i>heroes.</b> Not a main character and two main side characters, but <i>three </i>main characters, <b>whom without the story and world would not be able to exist.</b><br />
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And what a story that is...<b> PHILOSOPHER'S STONE builds up an incredible, magical, enchanting and captivating world, made all the more amazing by the complexity of the characters and the meticulous planning showcased by Rowling. </b>So many things that would pay up in future books, and yet not once do you feel like you are being set up for a sequel because that's not why they are there.<br />
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Honestly, my love for HP is as strong today as it was on the first read.<br />
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<b>That being said, this is the first time I've noticed some questions and possible plot holes in this first book. </b>I'll be the first one to defend anything I think is not fairly a plothole ((I mean, I do have an <a href="https://theafterwords.blogspot.co.il/2016/02/harry-potter-why-time-turners-are-not-plot-hole.html">entire post</a> dedicated to how time turners is not a real plothole (if you take out Cursed Child out of the canon because that thing threw everything Rowling established in the book series out the window) But I digress)), but there are legitimate questions.<br />
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<b>I'll be putting all those in spoiler tags on the off chance someone who hasn't read the books is reading this review,</b> even though I find it hard to believe. But please, please, if you love these books as much as I do come debate with me on whether my concerns are legitimate or could be explained!!<br />
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*Mark with the mouse to see the spoilers!*<br />
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<b><u>SPOILER</u></b><br />
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So, first thing's first... <b>HOW DID THE DURSLEYS GET OFF THAT ISLAND???</b> In case you missed it, for all intents and porpuses, <b>Hagrid has just stolen their only means of transportation. </b>We see no indication that he has somehow returned their boat or told anyone they may need help. And yet, the next time we see the Dursleys they: a. don't say anything about that or appear upset and b. are safe and whole in their nasty abode.<br />
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<b>Admittedly, it's a silly thing to wonder about, but it's out of characters for the Dursleys not to care and for Rowling not to address it lol</b><br />
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Second, <b>HARRY'S SCAR DOESN'T REALLY MAKE SENSE?</b> We have been taught, in this book and yes, the sequels, that Harry's scar reacts to Voldemort's presence. That's why it occasionally hurts, most noticeably when he looks at Snape and Quirrell talking. <b>But why doesn't it hurt more, or more consistently?</b> How come <b>Harry's scar isn't shooting pains in his forehead every Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson</b>, thus allowing him to ascertain Quirrell's guilt long before the finale? <b>We are told Voldy has been stuck on his nape since they met in Diagonally!</b><br />
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Another nagging wonder of mine is <b>WHY DID SNAPE SUSPECT QUIRRELL IN THE FIRST PLACE?</b> Aside from the fact it makes for one hell of a red-herring and an incredible twist, it makes little sense. <b>What would make Snape suspect poor, stuttering little Quirrell?</b> Is there a bad guy sign that Snape can read? And once Snape does suspect him, why doesn't Voldy reveal himself to Snape? As far as he knows, Snape is his loyal servant. Yet, he allows Snape to threaten Quirrell repeatedly uncontested, and that eventually leads to the downfall of his plan.<br />
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I would <i>love </i>to know more about the Snape and Quirrell's dynamics in this book!<br />
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<b><u>END SPOILER</u></b><br />
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Lots of interesting questions on this read, few answers to be found.<br />
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However,<b> for every detail that didn't work to complete perfection, there are seven that do. </b>Little sentences and moments that wow me again and again and again. Forget the fact I almost know this story by heart at this point. I am still awed and amazed by references that wouldn't connect for another few books, allusions to things that would be relevant 5000 pages later, details that seem irrelevant but aren't.<br />
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<b>It makes the entire book and series so beautifully crafted and expertly planned. </b>It feels like Rowling knew exactly where each character was headed before she even wrote the first word and <b>THAT is what makes it such an alleviated reading experience for me, time and time again. </b></div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-20124292053155308412018-03-24T17:00:00.000-07:002019-03-25T04:36:09.239-07:00The King's Men by Nora Sakavic | I Don't Want to Say Goodbye!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2318219733">The King's Men</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6896843.Nora_Sakavic" style="text-align: left;">Nora Sakavic</a>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/105824-all-for-the-game">All for the Game #3</a></div>
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First Published: 2014</div>
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Kindle</div>
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New Adult, Contemporary</div>
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Rating:<i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i></div>
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Re-Readability:<i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i></div>
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Neil Josten is out of time. He knew when he came to PSU he wouldn't survive the year, but with his death right around the corner he's got more reasons than ever to live.<br />
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Befriending the Foxes was inadvisable. Kissing one is unthinkable. Neil should know better than to get involved with anyone this close to the end, but Andrew's never been the easiest person to walk away from. If they both say it doesn't mean anything, maybe Neil won't regret losing it, but the one person Neil can't lie to is himself.<br />
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He's got promises to keep and a team to get to championships if he can just outrun Riko a little longer, but Riko's not the only monster in Neil's life. The truth might get them all killed—or be Neil's one shot at getting out of this alive.</blockquote>
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What? It's... it's over? It can't be over! <b>What am I supposed to do with my life now??</b> How am I supposed to continue living, and pushing air into my lungs, and just generally existing now that this series is over???<br />
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<b>The struggle is a bit too real for comfort, tbh.</b><br />
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There's no room for doubt, no room for second guesses, no room for error. This is your night. This is your game. This is your moment. Seize it with everything you've got. Pull out all the stops and lay it all on the line. Fight because you don't know how to die quietly. Win because you don't know how to lose. This king's ruled long enough—it's time to tear his castle down.</blockquote>
So... before I get into this--and I WILL get into this--<b>there are spoilers for SHIPS and END GAMES in this review. </b>Pfff. By this time you know I ain't gonna be able to properly review this anyways. But... yeah, spoilers.<b> I low key don't even want you to read my review before you read the book because</b> I'm gonna talk freely and <b>I kind of want you to experience everything for yourself.</b><br />
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<b>BECAUSE IT IS GLORIOUS.</b><br />
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Neil had been doing one stupid thing after another all year long and this had turned into the best year of his life.</blockquote>
Like, <i>The King's Men </i>doesn't lack for brutality. But <b>unlike the second book where the darkness gets all-consuming, this time there is light at the end of the tunnel. </b>There are people to lean on and trust, there are characters growing and evolving. There is strength and love to carry everything on. <b>Overwhelming love. </b>Most of it familial and friendly, but some of it... <b>some of it entirely romantic. </b>And that final one, especially, <b>makes everything so fucking <i>worth it</i>.</b><br />
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<b>This is literally an otp to top all otps. </b>This otp is standing right now at the <i>top of my otp list. </i>It will probably stay there for a very, very long time. <b>It's not perfect. It's not always healthy. It's a little bit violent and somewhat unexpected, and it swallows you whole with how <i>right </i>it is.</b> With how it makes two broken people... a little less broken. A lot happier. How the simple understanding between them makes everything better; all the pain and the suffering and the hurt.<br />
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The first time I read the <i>All for the Game </i>series <b>I started suspecting where this may be going on book two.</b> I held my breath, and let a small "it can't be" because as much as<b> it suddenly hit me that I <i>needed </i>that development to happen</b>, I wasn't sure it would go there. I wanted these two people to find each other. I wanted it with a ferocity that rocked me to my core. And <b>it would have been too heartbreaking if it didn't</b> <b>happen</b>.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
He withdrew completely, leaving just the memory of his heartbeat against Neil's mouth, and spun away.</blockquote>
Neil didn't show much interest up to that point, too busy surviving and compartmentalizing. Almost nothing before it suggested it might be possible. That's what I thought, at least, too absorbed by the first reading to see all the signs. <b>By my second read of the series, I realized how inevitable it has always been, from the very very first book, <i>how right</i>, with such sentences as this;</b><br />
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He touched Neil's back on his way by, fingers light enough to give Neil goose bumps</blockquote>
Cue the incessant squealing and delight.<br />
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<b>Andrew Minyard and Neil Josten are absolutely perfect together. </b>They are entirely broken individuals who are fractured beyond repair, but <b>their unique damages somehow make each other's pain more bearable. </b>Their "I love you"s are replaced by "I hate you"s, and for them... it works. They don't talk feelings or emotions because they don't need to. <b>Their actions and looks do all the necessary talking.</b> They aren't gentle, and<b> for the most part, they aren't sweet--although, fuck me, but I think some of their scenes are still some of the sweetest scenes I've ever read.</b> Like, the shower scene?? and the hotel scene?? And the protein bar scene?? And the two of them just talking and existing together, finding solace in each other's presence????<br />
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"Can you read lips?" Andrew pointed at his mouth as he spoke. "The next time someone comes for you, stand down and let me deal with it. Do you understand?"<br />
"If it means losing you, then no," Neil said.</blockquote>
<b>It's so much harder to convince a reader of a couple's love without using specific words</b>, but the best relationships depicted in books are often like this, because there is no easy out, no easy phrase to fall back on and shortcut your reader to that point<b> </b>(it's why a lot of romance novels don't <i>quite </i>work for me - they favour the words over the emotions), but Sakavic doesn't go there. Instead,<b> she silently builds Neil and Andrew's relationship BRILLIANTLY.</b><br />
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People, <b>I WILL FIGHT YOU for this couple.</b><br />
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<b>Their relationship is never going to be classified as "normal"</b>, same as neither one would ever be. But... they don't need normal. Both are far too scarred and far too ruined for that. <b>They create their own normal. </b>A normal just between the two of them. A normal that holds and protects and opens up. Just between them, just in the small moments. And it's enough. It's more than enough.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Andrew's disinterest in his psychological well-being was what had drawn Neil to him in the first place: the realization that Andrew would never flinch away from whatever poison was eating Neil alive.</blockquote>
Also, I was so happy there was no real "you're gay" / "I'm gay" conversation. There is no need to come out or even discuss the situation. <b>There is no fear in Neil when he tries this thing with Andrew; no second-guessing or questioning</b>, aside from the question of whether he's allowed such luxuries when he's going to die soon. <b>There is no judgment and no fanfare.</b> It's nothing worth talking about, anyway. The most we get is this;<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"I've said all year I don't swing and I meant it. Kissing you doesn't make me look at any of them differently. The only one I'm interested in is you."<br />
"Don't say stupid things."<br />
"Stop me," Neil returned. He buried his hands in Andrew's hair and tugged him in for a kiss.</blockquote>
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<div>
<b>I SAID IT WAS GLORIOUS, DIDN'T I???</b><br />
<br />
<b>Also also they are hot together. </b>I've got to admit, I wasn't expecting that, but I sure as hell am not complaining.<br />
<b><br /></b> <b>The whole thing was ENTIRELY BEAUTIFUL and it HURT SO GOOD.</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"I hate you."<br />
"Nine percent of the time you don't."<br />
"Nine percent of the time I don't want to kill you. I always hate you."<br />
"Every time you say that I believe you a little less."</blockquote>
</div>
<div>
<b>It's not the only thing that happens</b> - there is more physical pain in store for our foxes. There are dire discoveries and facing old ghosts. There is broken ground and broken bones. <b>There is CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT in abundance.</b> Andrew and Neil's for obvious reasons, but Kevin is a shining star in this one as well. And Allison. I really really really like what has become of Allison in these three books.<br />
<br />
But I like all my foxes. Not equally, because <b>I think I made it very clear Neil and Andrew are my problematic faves and I would die for them</b>, but I never said I was fair.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"This," Neil flicked his finger to indicate the two of them, "isn't worthless."<br />
"There is no 'this'. This is nothing."<br />
"And I am nothing," Neil prompted. When Andrew gestured confirmation, Neil said, "And as you've always said, you want nothing."</blockquote>
<b><i>The King's Men </i>was an amazing finale to this beautiful series</b>; it didn't solve all their problems, but then it never could. No one is fine by the end of it, but all of them are better. Their love for the game, and their love for each other--all of them--shines in a way to colors everything.<br />
<br />
And I'm not gonna lie; <b>I WILL BE READING THIS ONE AGAIN SOON!</b> Life's too short to deny yourself the small things that <strike>first completely break you but then</strike> make you happy.<br />
<br />
((I have so many delicious quotes of these two highlighted. I did warn that I was obsessed. OBSESSED.)) </div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-63256562364151179522018-03-22T17:00:00.000-07:002019-03-25T04:36:28.792-07:00The Raven King by Nora Sakavic | Well, That Was Soul Crushing<div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2317829937">The Raven King</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6896843.Nora_Sakavic" style="text-align: left;">Nora Sakavic</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/105824-all-for-the-game">All for the Game #2</a></div>
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<div style="text-align: start;">
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First Published: 2013</div>
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Kindle</div>
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New Adult, Contemporary</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i></div>
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Re-Readability: <i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The Foxes are a fractured mess, but their latest disaster might be the miracle they've always needed to come together as a team. The one person standing in their way is Andrew, and the only one who can break through his personal barriers is Neil.<br />
Except Andrew doesn't give up anything for free and Neil is terrible at trusting anyone but himself. The two don't have much time to come to terms with their situation before outside forces start tearing them apart. Riko is intent on destroying Neil's fragile new life, and the Foxes have just become collateral damage.<br />
Neil's days are numbered, but he's learning the hard way to go down fighting for what he believes in, and Neil believes in Andrew even if Andrew won't believe in himself.</blockquote>
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Do you guys hear that? what <i>IS </i>that sound? <b>Oh, it's just my heart breaking into a million pieces and my soul disintegrating? nvm then.</b><br />
<br />
Seriously, this book... THIS BOOK. Like, book one wasn't sunshine and rainbows. But it looks so bright and cheerful compared to this one???<b> This one is not just stepping up the ante and bringing the series to a new level, it shoots it out of the atmosphere.</b><br />
<br />
Sakavic is done being cuddly sweet with us. <b>Now the real thing begins, and it is fucking <i>brutal</i>.</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Look. Shit happened. Shit's going to keep happening. You don't need me to tell you life isn't fair. You're here because you know it isn't. Life doesn't care what we want out of it; it's up to us to fight for what we want with everything we've got.</blockquote>
Like, <b>I knew the series will get there. I just didn't know how fast it will and how truly awful it would be. </b>And on the one hand, <i>ouch</i>. And <b>on the other... it hurts so good??? idk man, this book ruined me, it really really did. </b>But I subjected myself to it <i>twice</i>. In three days. So... I guess... <b>I'm a masochist?</b><br />
<br />
You learn something new about yourself every day.<br />
<br />
So, yeah. <b>This book is all-caps PAIN.</b> Lots and lots of PAIN. <b>PAIN when you least expect it and PAIN when you definitely do.</b> Sing it with me; PAIN PAIN PAIN. Like... what? WHaT? <b>How is any of this okay?? </b>How is this---just no. No no no. STOP HURTING MY BABIES, YOU MONSTERS!<br />
<br />
Like, no joke,<b> this book is VICIOUS. But also perfect. BUT ALSO VICIOUS.</b><br />
<br />
Like, plot-wise, these things need to happen and holy hell the <b>BEAUTIFUL CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT WE'RE SEEING HERE IS GLORIOUS. </b>But from the unhealthy attached Nitzan point of view, these things should not be happening and <b>FUCKING STOP IT BEFORE I HURT YOU.</b><br />
<br />
<b>I am a GODDAMN MESS. </b>I am using way too much all caps and way too much "like"s for this to be considered any form of coherent thinking/writing. <b>I probably need to chill.</b> No, I most definitely do. <b>BUT I CAN'T AND I DON'T CARE IF YOU JUDGE ME.</b><br />
<br />
Like (again with that word...), <b>I loved Neil in book one. </b>You will too (the "or else" is implied). But Neil in book two?<b> Neil in book two is an entirely new beast. AND I AM LIVING FOR IT.</b> We saw glimpses of it in the first book; of who Neil could be if he let himself care, if he let himself set roots, if he chose to fight instead of flight. And Neil is getting there. <b>He is getting bolder, and stronger. He is learning to lean, and he's starting to want to be leaned <i>on</i>. </b>On court and off court. <b>Out of the nothing, starts to emerge <i>something</i>.</b><br />
<br />
<b>AND IT IS ABSOLUTELY STUNNING.</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
As he listened to them, Neil realized he was happy. It was such an unexpected and unfamiliar feeling he lost track of the conversation for a minute.</blockquote>
<b>As for Andrew, in book one I thought I was a bit cray cray for liking the short psychopath. In book two I'm judging everyone who <i>doesn't </i>like him. </b>Seriously, the guy is so messed up in the head and I love it?? Especially because <b>he is so unflinching and reliable and yeah way too violent and unstable but also absolutely honest and straightforward and loyal in his own messed up way??</b><br />
<br />
And we're getting to see the Neil we deserve because of him???<br />
<br />
And of course, there's the big THING there at the climax. <b>If you still hate Andrew after that or whatever I request you swiftly and quietly leave this review. </b>Someone is going to get hurt. And since I've never fought anyone before, it's bound to be me.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"We've all got different experiences, but we're used to needing help. We're just not used to getting it. But you've got us now."</blockquote>
<b>Neil and Andrew are not the only ones growing. Kevin is, too, veeeeery slowly.</b><br />
<br />
And my foxes. <b>MY PRECIOUS FOXES. Their friendship is as heartwarming as it is dysfunctional, especially because it <i>doesn't </i>go without saying.</b> Most of these people had lived rough lives. They are not strangers to the world being a fucked up place. They have not been raised to trust, or believe in, or support. If anything, they have been taught to be cold, and ugly, and solitary. And more often than not, not to believe in family.<br />
<br />
And also, some of them have been taught to be absolute bastards, and not everyone can or would care for such assholes (I'm looking at you, twins).<br />
<br />
<b>AND YET HERE THEY ARE, CARVING THEIR OWN LITTLE MESSED UP, MISMATCHED FAMILY. </b>They raly and protect each other, even when the other person is being a total dick to them. They respect each other's boundaries and limits, even as they try to find ways to reach them. Even if they don't quite <i>like </i>them. <b>Because family is not really about liking someone or not. When you're family, you just <i>are</i>.</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
He was their family. They were his. They were worth every cut and bruise and scream.</blockquote>
<b>NO, I'M NOT MAKING MYSELF CRY AT MY PRECIOUS REJECTS. STFU. </b></div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-1370328350363010532018-03-20T17:00:00.000-07:002019-03-25T04:36:20.427-07:00The Foxhole Court by Nora Sakavic | I Can't Get Enough of This Series!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2315922552">The Foxhole Court</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6896843.Nora_Sakavic" style="text-align: left;">Nora Sakavic</a>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/105824-all-for-the-game">All for the Game #1</a></div>
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<div style="text-align: start;">
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First Published: 2013</div>
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Kindle</div>
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New Adult, Contemporary</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i></div>
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Re-Readability: <i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Neil Josten is the newest addition to the Palmetto State University Exy team. He's short, he's fast, he's got a ton of potential—and he's the runaway son of the murderous crime lord known as The Butcher.<br />
Signing a contract with the PSU Foxes is the last thing a guy like Neil should do. The team is high profile and he doesn't need sports crews broadcasting pictures of his face around the nation. His lies will hold up only so long under this kind of scrutiny and the truth will get him killed.<br />
But Neil's not the only one with secrets on the team. One of Neil's new teammates is a friend from his old life, and Neil can't walk away from him a second time. Neil has survived the last eight years by running. Maybe he's finally found someone and something worth fighting for.</blockquote>
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<b>Look, I had no idea what I was getting into when I started reading THE FOXHOLE COURT.</b> I didn't know it will take over my life with alarming swiftness. I didn't know it will become one of my favorite series ever. I certainly didn't know it will become my next obsession.<br />
<br />
Heck, <b>I bought the books on a whim </b>after seeing <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1521058605?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1">Cait's</a> excitement on Instagram (I probably would have never looked at that ugly cover twice otherwise), and started reading immediately on impulse.<br />
<br />
<b>Best. Impulse. Ever.</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
If he inhaled slowly enough, he could almost taste the ghost of gasoline and fire.</blockquote>
<b>I don't think I ever had an experience with a book like I did with this series.</b> It's not as much this specific one as the series as a whole, but we're talking about the first book now so I'll leave that for the final review.<br />
<br />
So, here's what happened: I read this book in a day. Then I read books two <i>and </i>three the following day. And then... Then I opened book one again the day after and started reading from the very beginning and moved on to books two and three without pausing for a breath. I read the entirety of the <i>All for the Game </i>trilogy <i>twice </i>in six days.<b> <i>That never happens. </i></b><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>I'm no stranger to re-reads.</b> I do them often, as I find them comforting. <b>But I have never, <i>ever</i>, done so immediately after the first read.</b> That never happens. Except it did, with this series. And you know what? I am so, <i>so, </i>tempted to give them another re-read right now, as I am typing this.<br />
<br />
<b>It's safe to say THE FOXHOLE COURT is a one of a kind experience. </b>I'm honestly not entirely sure that it's a healthy one, due to my level of fixation, but I am not complaining.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
It sounded like a dream; it tasted like damnation.</blockquote>
<b>It's one of the most addictive books I have ever read. </b>If you told me to point a finger at what, specifically, makes it so unbelievably un-put-down-able, I would fumble with the answer. I would try to put into words the feelings that this book invoked, and I would fail.<br />
<br />
<b>It's so incredibly difficult to explain the magic of this book because, on the surface, there <i>shouldn't </i>be any. </b>It's a sports book, and<b> I'm no big fan of sports</b>. <b>It's a little on the far-fetched end of things </b>because it requires you to believe in a few things that feel a little impossible.<br />
<br />
Not the biggest of which the fact a team like the Foxes actually exists. In real life, wouldn't a coach that fails to deliver results for five years be fired instead of continually trusted and listened to? Wouldn't the University cut their losses early and reject our band of rejects in favor of good, <i>stable </i>athletes after they see their games? Talent shouldn't be enough.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"God damn it, Minyard. This is why we can't have nice things."<br />
"Oh, Coach," someone said over Neil's head. "If he was nice, he wouldn't be any use to us, would he?"</blockquote>
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<b>Normally, that would turn me off</b>, or at least make me skeptic. That's why when I see reviewers who <i>do </i>feel that way, I understand. But... on a personal level, it didn't matter to me. It simply became fact that our Foxes do exist in this world and that I much the better for it.<br />
<br />
<b>I am much the better for meeting Neil Josten. </b>Neil is a living lie, a person who doesn't really exist. He <i>can't</i>. Not if he wants to stay alive. Nothing about the boy is real; from his age to his name to his background. Nothing save for his undying love and passion for the sport called Exy, and everything we learn about him throughout the book through his actions and interactions;<b> Brave, broken, beaten Neil. Awkward Neil. Confused Neil. The Neil who doesn't understand friendships and doesn't believe in family because he never truly had either.</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Leaving meant living, but Neil's way of living was survival, nothing more.</blockquote>
<b>Neil is one of those characters that will make you want to read on and on.</b> You will want to soothe his pain and panic and wipe his fears away. You will want to cheer and clap when he shows his bravery and hot-headedness instead of hiding them beneath a facade.<b> You will want to scream of excitement every time he chooses to stay. To stay and fight.</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Keys meant Neil had explicit permission to be here and do what he liked. They meant he belonged.</blockquote>
Despite all of his deceptions, <b>Neil is extremely honest. </b>He voices his opinions without being afraid. He watches carefully and he notices things about those around him. And for the most part, <b>he is extremely free of judgment</b>. He would not begrudge you your vices, or your background, or your sexual orientation, or anything. For one, he has seen a lot in his short eighteen years. For another, it's none of his business. And it doesn't really matter.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Hope was a dangerous, disquieting thing, but he thought perhaps he liked it.</blockquote>
<b>The mess that is the foxes serve to highlight all of who Neil is without telling us.</b> <b>The weird, dysfunctional balance between them all comes crashing down more than once and yet somehow always manages to be shakingly restored.</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
People want to pretend people like us don't exist, you know? Everyone hopes we're someone else's problem to solve." He reached out and fingered the material. "They don't understand, so they don't know where to start. They feel overwhelmed and give up before they've taken the first step."</blockquote>
On the flip side, Neil served to highlight <i>their </i>traits, especially Kevin and Andrew. <b>Andrew is kind of my favorite, being a total messed up psycho half the time</b> who needs to chill out asap, as Cait put it in one of her reviews. But <b>there is something so compelling about him.</b> There is a reason everyone puts up with him; a reason Kevin trusts him to protect him; a reason his group listens to what he says. Part of it is fear, and part of it is that <i>something </i>about him underneath it all.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"I'm not a math problem."<br />
"But I'll still solve you."</blockquote>
But even though Andrew is my favorite, I love <i>all </i>my foxes.<b> I love Dan and Matt and their relationship </b>(#relationshipgoals anyone??).<b> I loved Nicky, the big flirt. I loved the way Aaron serves to show us more of Andrew,</b> even if Aaron himself is a little meh.<b> I loved Renee's weird serenity, and Seth's asshole ways, and Allison's Queen Bitch and Queen of the World attitude. I fiercely loved Coach</b>, who would give these kids as many chances as they needed,<b> and Abby, the only one among them that is allowed to worry about their physical well being </b>as their nurse.<br />
<br />
<b>No one in this book is perfect. </b>They are all messed up, and they will never really be fine, even if they might get better. <b>They don't always make the right choice, and they definitely don't always make the <i>good </i>choice. </b>Reading of all these people was like some kind of drug. Reading of Neil's love of the sport was addictive. Reading some of the horrifying realities these characters endured was fascinating and revolting.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"It's not the world that's cruel," Neil said. "It's the people in it."</blockquote>
<b>If you had asked me a week before if I thought I could love such an impossibly messed up group of people, I might have said no. I would have been a major, giant idiot.</b><br />
<br />
Moral of the story; don't be an idiot like I might have been. Read this book. It's FREE. </div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-73596001287153041332018-03-17T17:00:00.000-07:002019-03-25T04:36:50.820-07:00The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie | My First Christie Read! <div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/756835295">The Mysterious Affair at Styles</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/123715.Agatha_Christie" style="text-align: left;">Agatha Christie</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/51138-hercule-poirot">Hercule Poirot #1</a></div>
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First Published: 1920</div>
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Kindle</div>
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Adult, Mystery</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i></div>
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Re-Readability: <i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i></div>
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Agatha Christie’s first ever murder mystery. Includes an introduction by Christie archivist John Curran, and the original unpublished courtroom chapter as an alternate ending to the novel.<br />
‘Beware! Peril to the detective who says: “It is so small – it does not matter…” Everything matters.’<br />
After the Great War, life can never be the same again. Wounds need healing, and the horror of violent death banished into memory.<br />
Captain Arthur Hastings is invited to the rolling country estate of Styles to recuperate from injuries sustained at the Front. It is the last place he expects to encounter murder. Fortunately he knows a former detective, a Belgian refugee, who has grown bored of retirement …<br />
The first Hercule Poirot mystery, now published with a previously deleted chapter and introduced by Agatha Christie expert Dr John Curran.</blockquote>
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<b>So, obviously, there is a reason Christie is considered a mother effing QUEEN of mystery.</b><br />
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<b>She manages to make </b><i style="font-weight: bold;">everyone </i><b>a possible suspect to her reader, so subsequently... </b><i style="font-weight: bold;">no one </i><b>is. </b>I have suspected--out loud and in my mind--so many people during the course of this novel that by the end of it, I was both shocked and vindicated by the outcome.<br />
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<b>If you're looking for a great mystery with a quirky detective at the helm</b>, an interesting cast of supporting characters and fun narration, <b>definitely pick this one up</b>!<br />
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Speaking of which... <b>the narration kind of bothered me. </b>Don't get me wrong, it's great. <b>Hastings is a fun character to be experiencing, as he is prideful, condescending, and yet well-meaning and friendly.</b> He thinks he's doing and thinking the right things, even when he's not quite there.<br />
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<b>He would have been a perfect narrator, if not for <i>one tiny detail...</i></b><br />
<i><br /></i> By his own admission,<b> </b>on the very first page of the novel,<b> Hastings is writing this account <i>on request of Poirot and the family</i>. That means these people</b>,<b> who are spoken about very candidly </b>in his account,<b> will read this novel.</b><br />
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<b>That made the whole thing rather odd.</b><br />
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<b><i>Think </i>about it.</b> Let's say you go on a trip with your friends, and they ask you to write about your adventures. <b>Would you admit to thinking</b> those same friends are stupid or lack conversational skills? Would you share how you fancied their wives and offered marriage to their charges? Would you speak of how much better your intelligence, or wit, or cleverness is compared to theirs? <b>Or will you soften all those things?</b> Erase others. All because you <i>know </i>they will read this. This is not a story that will be locked in a drawer, but published or given to these very people.<br />
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And what about yourself? <b>Would you write yourself to be the foolish way you were</b>, with your condescending judgment? Would you have no fear of people seeing your flaws and therefore smooth them over; make yourself appear less dense, a little less dumb and prone to jumping to conclusions (since, by the time you are writing this, you already know how things have ended).<br />
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It's unrealistic. <b>Hastings would not have needed to change what had <i>happened </i>but simply what he thought <i>as it was happening </i>in order to both make himself look better </b>(because he comes across as extremely foolish, if well-meaning, throughout the story) <b>AND keep his relationships stable </b>(if I was one of his friends I would have thrown a pitcher in his face for some of the things he had written).<br />
<b><br /></b> <b>It's such a silly thing to be hung up on</b>, and if not for that one small sentence about why he's writing all of this it would have been nothing. <b>I have never thought before about <i>why </i>someone is narrating a story </b>or who is meant to read it in his or her world, since a narration is usually just that; a narration. A means to tell the story, basically. <b>But with one short line, those lines were blurred, and I could not be content to just accept it as it is.</b><br />
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I could not just accept his candid, honest account. Instead, I was confused by why he was giving it like that.<b> Am I the only one in this? Am I crazy??</b><br />
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And then,<b> I felt like the ending fell a little short.</b> I loved the big reveal; the wham bam and shock of it. But I was also left with far too many questions for it to be any form of satisfying?<br />
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*Mark the spoilers with the <span style="background-color: white;">mouse </span>if you want to read them*<br />
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<b><u><i>SPOILER</i></u></b> <span style="color: white;">As Poirot mentions himself;<b> there has to be motive for murder. </b>Why did Evie and Alfred kill her? How long did they plan it? Was Evie such a great actress, to be able to easily cry over the death she has planned herself or was a part of her genuinely sad after so many years with the woman? Why did no one question her hatred of her cousin throughout the book? Like, I literally forgot they were cousins because it was a throwaway comment at the very beginning and then it wasn't touched upon again. And this is something Christie could have used, like letting Evie say something like "I know he killed her; He's my cousin" to both bolster Evie's claims and give the reader a clue.</span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span> <span style="color: white;">And then... why? Why did Evie hate her mistress? Why did she wait ten years to call her cousin and do this?</span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span> <span style="color: white;">It's just...</span><b><span style="color: white;"> so many missing pieces with no way to piece them together!</span> <u><i>END SPOILER</i></u></b><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /></span> <span style="background-color: white;">Still,<b> an undeniably strong start to what would become Christie's incredible career</b>, and I am looking forward to both reading more from her and hoping some of the more open-ended and disjointed side plots from this one (ahemahemthespyahemahem) will be revisited in the future!</span></div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-77819426505546126162018-03-05T00:00:00.000-08:002019-03-25T04:36:43.706-07:00Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller | Oy Matey, Come Board My Ship!<div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2209777338">Daughter of the Pirate King</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14358948.Tricia_Levenseller" style="text-align: left;">Tricia Levenseller</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/196530-daughter-of-the-pirate-king">Daughter of the Pirate King #1</a><br />
Date Read: Jan 27 to 20, 2018</div>
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First Published: 2017</div>
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Hardcover</div>
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Young Adult, Fantasy</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-half-o"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i></div>
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Re-Readability: <i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-half"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i></div>
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There will be plenty of time for me to beat him soundly once I’ve gotten what I came for.<br />
Sent on a mission to retrieve an ancient hidden map—the key to a legendary treasure trove—seventeen-year-old pirate captain Alosa deliberately allows herself to be captured by her enemies, giving her the perfect opportunity to search their ship.<br />
More than a match for the ruthless pirate crew, Alosa has only one thing standing between her and the map: her captor, the unexpectedly clever and unfairly attractive first mate, Riden. But not to worry, for Alosa has a few tricks up her sleeve, and no lone pirate can stop the Daughter of the Pirate King.</blockquote>
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DAUGHTER OF THE PIRATE KING is <b>a really fun ride that had a lot of things I really like, and a few I really didn't.</b><br />
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First of all, <b>I really enjoyed our spunky heroine Alosa</b>. A fierce, brutal pirate with a heart, she's sarcastic, violent, petty and a whole lot of fun. Her abilities are rivaled by her pride only, her red hair matching perfectly with her feisty persona.<br />
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You will watch her kill men without a blink of an eye, but you will also watch her worry for her friends and struggle with her growing attachment to one of her handsome captures, Riden.<br />
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<b>Riden is smart, keen-eyed and strong. </b>Out of all the pirates in this book, he fits that title the least. Most of all because he's got a heart, and he doesn't like seeing people hurt, yet he is forced into that position due to his unwavering loyalty to his brother. On occasion, he can be a smug SOB. Which, not gonna lie, I really loved.<br />
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And<b> this two banter. A lot.</b> They clash wits and words and verbally fight for the upper hand, with most battles ending in a draw. And as far as YA couples go, <b>these two are definitely hot together. </b>There are some scenes in this one that may make you want to fan yourself a little bit! Be that as it may be... <b>this is kind of slow burn. </b>I may have said "YA couples" but these two aren't that... yet. I'm fully trusting Levenseller to set sail to my ship unquestionably in the follow-up, which I will be reading this March!<br />
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<b>Another character I am hoping to see more</b> fleshed out in the sequel<b> is actually Draxen</b>. Those of us who pre-ordered DAUGHTER OF THE SIREN QUEEN got a special bonus chapter from Riden's POV, and <b>I loved the humanity we got to see in this character </b>in that one, on top of the <b>obvious love he has for his brother</b> in DAUGHTER OF THE PIRATE KING. So.... <b>what would win - that love or the darkness? </b>Here's to hoping we get to find out!<br />
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<b>Now, the things that I didn't quite enjoy about this one...</b><br />
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First of all, <b>directly from the synopsis:</b> "Sent on a mission to retrieve an ancient hidden map--the key to a legendary treasure trove". <b>Yeah, don't expect much of that.</b> I mean, yeah, <b>that's the setup</b>. But <b>there is <i>very little </i>actual searching or information about this treasure trove. </b>I kind of wanted to experience a lot more of it with Alosa, as opposed to being mostly told about it. Like, this would have been <i>so </i>helpful to show us how capable she is, as well as illustrating her mounting panic and desperation as she fails to find it.<br />
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Then, <b>there were moments where the book intentionally dumbed Alosa down in order to keep tension, or simply to have a plot for the next book. And... I am not a big fan of that. At all. Ever.</b><br />
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*Mark the next parts with the cursor if you want to read the spoilers! Warning: it's a major rant so read only if you like those (I know I do lol)*<br />
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<b><u><i>SPOILER</i></u></b> <span style="color: white;">For example, <b>the book expects me to believe Alosa didn't figure out Theris was actually Vordan once on that island. </b>When I, a mere reader who has never experienced a Pirate's life called it from a mile away. And I'm not talking about reading hints in the story. I'm talking about good old-fashioned logic.</span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span> <span style="color: white;"><b>She is the <i>daughter </i>of the pirate king. </b>She has lived all her life under his thumb. She <i>knows </i>he would never defer to a simple spy--so why does she think "Vordan", a pirate lord like her father, would? Why doesn't it raise her suspicions? Then, there are moments when she discusses with herself the strangeness of things; how "Vordan" didn't want to experience her abilities for himself for some reason. That, coupled with the earlier point, should have <i>definitely </i>tipped her off. But it didn't. THEN <b>one of his men actually slips up and starts to call him "captain". AND SHE STILL DOESN'T REALIZE THE TRUTH.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span> <span style="color: white;">That made my blood boil. A<b>LOSA, freakin' daughter of the pirate king, would </b><i><b>know</b> </i>when someone is talking to their captain. She would <i>read </i>all of the signs. She would <i>see </i>the way they listen to everything Theris says carefully, never dismissing him. <b><i>She would fucking figure it out</i>.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span> <span style="color: white;"><b>But she doesn't, because the reveal is not half as shocking otherwise </b>(even though it's so obvious there is no reveal...), or something of that sorts. So instead, she is just dumb. Great.</span> <b><u><i>END SPOILER</i></u></b><br />
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Now, if that's not enough to get your blood boiling, <b>there is one thing that Alosa is made to do by the author in that sequence that made me <i>furious</i>.</b> Seeing red, blowing steam, sheeting mad. It was so upsetting because it was so out of character. Because it threw out everything that is smart and logical and in line with who Alosa was up to that point. <b>All because the author put herself it a pinch and had to solve it for the next book to exist.</b><br />
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It wasn't a result of our plot, but a direct response to what the plot of <i>the next book </i>needed to be. I FUCKING HATED THAT.<br />
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And<b> it wasn't even <i>well</i> <i>done</i>.</b> It was just <b>so incredibly sloppy and dumb </b>and I am <i>still </i>getting upset just thinking about it.<br />
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<b><u><i>SPOILER</i></u></b> <span style="color: white;">So let me paint you a picture: </span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span> <span style="color: white;">Alosa has just been freed from her cage with the help of Riden and goes after her captures, full Siren on. She tells herself how she doesn't feel remorse for their inability to protect themselves because that's what they would have done to her and Riden. Then... she stops, with Theris--AKA Vordan--and his two men still alive. <b>She stops so she can go search the body of a <i>freaking dead man</i>. </b>A dead man who would <i>still be lying there <u>after</u> she has killed the other three. </i>For God's sake, he is not going to go anywhere! <b>With the other three dead</b>, there will be no one alerted to her and Riden's escape. <b>She will literally have <i>all the time in the world</i> to search "Vordan"</b>, and take Riden to safety.</span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span> <span style="color: white;">No, <b>she stops for one reason only. She stops because she can't just kill Theris in book one because there will be no sequel and the story is not half done. </b>She stops for plot reasons. <b>Badly set up plot reasons. </b>That PISSED ME OFF SO BAD.</span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span> <span style="color: white;">And, again,<b> Alosa, fucking daughter of the pirate king, would <i>not </i>make this type of mistake.</b></span> <b><u><i>END SPOILER</i></u></b><br />
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I hate that. <b>I hate when authors decide to overlook logic and character personalities in order to set up the sequel.</b> There are so many other, better ways Levenseller could have handled that. A million and a half reasons for Alosa to stop, or for that character not to be there in that moment.<br />
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But no.<br />
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That one moment was enough to knock at least half a star from this novel. And<b> I <i>hate </i>when that happens to me with good books.</b></div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-78897623868774088272018-03-04T00:00:00.000-08:002019-03-25T04:36:36.616-07:00The Studying Hours by Sara Ney | a Fun Contemporary!<div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2239277892">The Studying Hours</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7798960.Sara_Ney" style="text-align: left;">Sara Ney</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/188852-how-to-date-a-douchebag">How to Date a Douchebag #1</a><br />
Date Read: Jan 26 to 27, 2018</div>
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First Published: 2016</div>
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Kindle</div>
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New Adult, Contemporary Romance</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-half-o"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i></div>
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Re-Readability: <i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i></div>
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CRUDE. ARROGANT. A**HOLE.<br />
No doubt about it, Sebastian ‘Oz’ Osborne is the university’s most celebrated student athlete—and possibly the biggest douchebag. A walking, talking cliché, he has a filthy mouth, a fantastic body, and doesn’t give a sh*t about what you or anyone else thinks.<br />
<br />
SMART. CLASSY. CONSERVATIVE.<br />
Make no mistake, Jameson Clarke may be the university’s most diligent student—but she is no prude. Spending most of her time in the hallowed halls of the library, James is wary of pervs, jocks, and douchebags—and Oz Osborne is all three.<br />
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She’s smart, sarcastic—and not what he expected.<br />
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…EVERY DOUCHBAG HAS HIS WEAKNESS.<br />
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He wants to be friends.<br />
He wants to spend time with her.<br />
He wants to drive her crazy.<br />
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He wants…<br />
<br />
Her.</blockquote>
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<b>If you're looking for a quick, fun contemporary romance with little angst </b>that focuses on two people getting to know each other and growing closer while bantering constantly, <b>THE STUDYING HOURS is the right read for you. </b><br />
<br />
I think I read THE STUDYING HOURS at exactly the right time for it; <b>I needed something light and easy to pick me up and it did just that! </b><br />
<br />
I loved that <b>our main female character, James, was studious and serious</b>, but that by no mean made her a prude. I loved that <b>she was not cowed</b> or intimidated by the <b>assholes </b>that make the wrestling team, including our hero <b>Oz</b>.<br />
<br />
Fair warning - <b>there is <i>a lot </i>of crude talk, courtesy of Oz's filthy mouth and no filter policy. </b>I really didn't connect with this part of him, and just wished he'd stop. It fits with who he is as a person, so I don't fault the author for making him like this, but<b> I sure wasn't a fan</b>.<br />
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<b>I <i>was </i>a fan of the chemistry between the two of them.</b> It really was sizzling and it's the type that just kind of makes you shout in frustration that it's time to <i>stop </i>being just friends and give in to the temptation to make out!<br />
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And <b>this relationship <i>does </i>take it's sweet ass time to get started.</b> Unfortunately, <b>there were a lot of things I <i>wanted </i>to see with our mains that seem to have happened off page</b>, frustratingly enough, despite how <b>deliciously long they take about getting romantic</b>.<br />
<br />
Like Oz sharing his sister's story with James, or James telling Oz about her family (which I literally know zero about. That's unfair--why does only Oz get to know??) or James and his sister texting... Those are all <b>things that would've added a lot of depth to their relationship</b>, on a non-sexual level. And they would have made great conversations to include! So why waste all these great things we didn't know in two random paragraphs at the end like an afterthought?<br />
<br />
Although, I probably shouldn't be surprised, since I <i>did </i>feel like<b> Ney wasn't quite sure how to end this book, so instead, we got an ending that felt <i>really </i>rushed</b>, which is not something I usually say about standalone ish contemporary romance novels. Especially not ones I would classify as "slow burn" like this one is. But, like, <b>there were things they had <i>just </i>started exploring or things that suddenly appeared out of nowhere</b>, and it gave me whiplash.<br />
<br />
Take for example <b>Zeke</b>. I felt like <b>that was <i>such </i>a sloppy way to set up his story</b>. Dear author, I would've been immensely interested in Zeke's story even without the sudden fights with Oz and the cryptic, uncalled for messages like "you don't know her" and "don't let her get into your head". Especially since <b>there is absolutely zero payout </b>for these, or basis, which makes this part absolutely meaningless to <i>this story</i>. And, in general, <b>I'm not a fan of unnecessary shit being thrown into</b> any form of storytelling (movies included) <b>just to set up the next installment, unless it's the after credit scene in a Marvel movie.</b> Hey, just keeping it real.<br />
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So, yeah, there were a few things that stopped it from being a full 4 star, but <b>if what I said in the first paragraph hold true to you, definitely check this one out! You're bound to enjoy it :)</b></div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-25468442856522725312018-03-02T00:00:00.000-08:002019-03-25T04:37:59.983-07:00Midnight Secretary Vol. 1 by Tomu Ohmi | YOU NEED THIS MANGA!<div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2200795778">Midnight Secretary Vol. 1</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5302476.Tomu_Ohmi" style="text-align: left;">Tomu Ohmi</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/59344-midnight-secretary">Midnight Secretary #1</a><br />
Date Read: Jan 26, 2018</div>
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First Published: 2008</div>
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Paperback</div>
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Adult, Fantasy Romance</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i></div>
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Re-Readability:<i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i></i></i></i></i></div>
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Kaya Satozuka prides herself on being an excellent secretary and a consummate professional, so she doesn’t even bat an eye when she’s reassigned to the office of her company’s difficult director, Kyohei Touma. He’s as prickly—and hot—as rumors paint him, but Kaya is unfazed…until she discovers that he’s a vampire!!
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Kaya quickly accustoms herself to scheduling his “dinner dates” and working odd hours, but can she handle it when Kyohei’s smoldering gaze starts turning her way?!</blockquote>
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Okay, so before we get on with this review, there is one thing I need to make clear: <b>this is one of my all time favorite manga. </b>This is not the first time I've read it. I first read it in 2009, and have returned to it time and again since.<br />
<br />
This is, however, my first time owning a copy of the series.<br />
<br />
So, some background. <b>Midnight Secretary tells the story of the hardworking and serious Kaya</b>, the titular secretary. <b>She begins working for a difficult boss </b>in her company, one<b> that works very hard but</b> also seems to<b> find time to entertain women in his office ALL THE TIME</b> (really, it's kind of a superpower).<br />
<br />
That's Kyouhei Touma*. And, <b>yes, he's a jerk, but he's also a major book crush of mine. Hey, at least I'm self-aware!! </b><br />
<br />
At first, these two are at odds. Then Kaya discovers the truth about her boss. <b>He's a fucking Vampire</b>. In this world, vampires are born, not made. As a result, they aren't killing machines. They don't need to--they only need a little bit of human blood to survive. Blood they usually ingest through intercourse with their "victim" none the wiser, experiencing sexual pleasure instead. They kind of have it good. Only, they're allergic to sunlight, and faith, and find humans beneath them. Which probably has to do with them <b>being beautiful and smart, and more often than not rich. </b><br />
<br />
Now, <b>half because she's blackmailed and half because she's the mother fucking boss of all secretaries, Kaya vows to be the perfect secretary for her boss.</b> That includes learning all she can about him, and helping him even when he refuses to admit he needs help. But that <b>doesn't include falling in love with him. AT ALL. </b><br />
<br />
<b>AT ALL I SAID.</b><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>Dammit. </b><br />
<br />
(lol)<br />
<br />
So, yes, <b>this is a love story.</b> If you love romance novels, you NEED this manga in your life. It's absolutely perfect. <b>It's mostly like a contemporary romance with fantasy settings and a smattering of fantastical elements</b> (nothing overpowering).<br />
<br />
<b>And it will give you THE FEELS.</b><br />
<br />
<b>Even in this first volume</b>, that serves to set up our characters, their predicament and the beginning of their unlikely romance, <b>you can sense that this is a story with a lot of heart</b>, about a woman making a hard man see that loving is not a weakness, and that admitting "defeat" doesn't damage your pride.<br />
<br />
And <b>Kyouhei and Kaya are one of my favorite otps of all time. </b>There's just something about these two people meeting and changing each other's lives that makes my heart pump like no other manga does!<br />
<br />
<b>PLEASE GO READ THIS MANGA AND THEN COME BACK AND DISCUSS WITH ME, I NEED DISCUSSION BUDDIES! </b><br />
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*Okay,<b> mini rant about the official translation... It's not the best??</b> First of all, why do they call Touma "Tohma"? It's written "とうまきょうへい" which is literally To-u-ma Kyo-u-he-i. Why would a professional manga translation company make this dumb a mistake?... (Also, based on how often it appears in manga and anime, Touma is a really common name in Japan).<br />
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Second, I found "Mr. Director" to be really awkward. I wish it would have been just "Director". Like, I guess I get it, but maybe because I got used to shachou (director/president in Japanesee) on its own it was, like, really weird. </div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-61808683335254037222018-02-27T00:00:00.000-08:002019-03-25T04:41:36.192-07:00This Adventure Ends by Emma Mills | Totally Frank Approved! <div class="" style="clear: both;">
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<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2247209483">This Adventure Ends</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5822460.Emma_Mills" style="text-align: left;">Emma Mills</a><br />
Date Read: Jan 24 to 26, 2018</div>
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First Published: 2016</div>
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Hardback</div>
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Young Adult, Contemporary</div>
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Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i></div>
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Re-Readability: <i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Sloane isn't expecting to fall in with a group of friends when she moves from New York to Florida—especially not a group of friends so intense, so in love, so all-consuming. Yet that's exactly what happens.<br />
Sloane becomes closest to Vera, a social-media star who lights up any room, and Gabe, Vera's twin brother and the most serious person Sloane's ever met. When a beloved painting by the twins' late mother goes missing, Sloane takes on the responsibility of tracking it down, a journey that takes her across state lines—and ever deeper into the twins' lives.<br />
Filled with intense and important friendships, a wonderful warts-and-all family, shiveringly good romantic developments, and sharp, witty dialogue, this story is about finding the people you never knew you needed.</blockquote>
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<b>This is a Frank Approved Book. </b><br />
<b><br /></b> I can't tell you I fell in love with this book the way I did Mills's <i>Foolish Hearts. </i>That book owned me--body and soul--from the very first pages. This one was more slow-burn; it started out rather cool, but slowly heated to the point of boiling. So <b>if you want to know the verdict ahead of time... Yes, I recommend this book. Yes, go get it. Yes, you're not going to regret it.</b><br />
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What I truly find fascinating about Mills is how <b>she manages to write <i>people</i>.</b> Like, I know that sounds stupid. Doesn't every book does it? No, not really. Not like this. Not in the way <b>her characters feel entirely too real, completely three dimensional and full of layers</b>, the way real people do. They're not a caricature or the way someone thinks a person could or should be. <b>They just... are.</b> Complete with imperfect lives, and issues that remain unsolved, and some that stay unexplored. I like that. I like that <i>a lot</i>.<br />
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Reading Mills's novels is <b>like being given a momentary peek into these people's lives.</b> It's almost as if<b> they will continue long after me, the same way the did long before me. </b>It's slightly depressing, and yet entirely uplifting.<br />
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But who are those enigmatic people? The main is, obviously, <b>Sloane</b>, who tells this story. At first, I felt mostly removed from her. Looking back, I feel like that might have been because <i>she's </i>like that with other people. <b>She is snarky, quiet and very forthcoming. </b>She cares a whole lot, without ever realizing she does. <b>She doesn't know how to do friendships and relationships and yet she somehow manages to stumble into quite a few of them.</b><br />
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<b>By the end of the novel, I was crying when she was crying, feeling crushed when she was, and desperate to give her a hug and promise her everything will be okay.</b><br />
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Now, the theme of this book is FRIENDSHIPS in all caps. And you know, <b>Emma Mills <i>slays </i>friendships the way Buffy slays Vampires, </b>making it look as easy to write as cutting butter.<br />
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"Just so you know," I say, "I would straight-up kill for you"</blockquote>
Sloane moves towns. She meets sunshine girl Vera. She meets her strong-and-silent twin brother Gabe. She meets Remy and Aubrey, their best friends, who used to be the golden couple. She meets party planner extraordinaire Frank. And <b>somehow, miraculously, she becomes part of the group. </b>She <i>expands </i>the group. Becomes a central piece of it. <b>Grows to love these people and be loved by them</b>, Even if she doesn't see it.<br />
<br />
<b>And that process... that process is <i>everything</i>. </b>It's a slow, steady, flowing river; one day you don't know each other. The next you may be friends. Then you're maybe possibly besties and then... then you <i>are</i>, no questions asked. <b>My heart overflows at this.</b><br />
<br />
<b>Mills writes friendships in a way that is really hard to describe. She makes them awkward and quirky and real. So fucking real.</b><br />
<br />
<b><i>Everything </i>about this book is real;</b> how life takes time. How sometimes you can be so <i>unsure </i>of everything. How sometimes you can be 100% certain. How sometimes parents fight and have issues 'cause they are not perfect. How dads can lose their muse, and maybe a little bit of themselves with it. How people die... and how people move on. How it's hard to care, but even harder to stop once you've started. How relationships can succeed.. but they can also fail. How a family can be born, but it can also be made. How you can learn to love. <b>How... everything.</b><br />
<br />
It was just all so realistic and complex, and I loved it. Loved, loved, loved it.<br />
<br />
However, <b>if you're here to read a romance book, I would suggest picking up <i>Foolish Hearts</i> or a Kasie West novel, because <i>THIS ADVENTURE ENDS </i>doesn't get there for a loooong time. </b>Mostly because, again, this book is about all caps FRIENDSHIP. But you <i>do </i>have a couple or two to root for, and it's definitely fun to see them form organically. And let me assure you right now, we <i>do </i>get kisses. I repeat: we do get kisses. Hang in there.<br />
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<b>P.S. I need a book about Frank.</b> That guy is pure, and great, and charming, and electrifying, and absolutely fabulous, and he NEEDS to be the hero of his own book!! Pretty please?</div>
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-55336828247701073022018-02-13T00:00:00.000-08:002019-03-25T04:41:50.370-07:00A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro | Such a FUN Book!<div class="" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbBHgKRm75vpzw0Y9LN89D-iQsxh7X415E94_l5kMJ629FSvhzCFJprbw8LF6RG8xED-3M3-n6em8ZjlriQLjxpyeYCP5c7WgqmS6JNv7bk3c0y51OeqQPePoUoGK7zAbT-GopDtjbHHE/s1600/study_in_charlotte.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1060" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbBHgKRm75vpzw0Y9LN89D-iQsxh7X415E94_l5kMJ629FSvhzCFJprbw8LF6RG8xED-3M3-n6em8ZjlriQLjxpyeYCP5c7WgqmS6JNv7bk3c0y51OeqQPePoUoGK7zAbT-GopDtjbHHE/s320/study_in_charlotte.jpg" width="211" /></a><b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2220181836">A Study in Charlotte</a> </b>by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6894322.Brittany_Cavallaro">Brittany Cavallaro</a></div>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/167543-charlotte-holmes">Charlotte Holmes #1</a><br />
Date Read: Jan 22 to 23, 2018<br />
First Published: 2016<br />
Kindle & Hardcover<br />
Young Adult, Alternate History<br />
Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-half-o"></i><br />
Re-Readability: <i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The last thing Jamie Watson wants is a rugby scholarship to Sherringford, a Connecticut prep school just an hour away from his estranged father. But that’s not the only complication: Sherringford is also home to Charlotte Holmes, the famous detective’s great-great-great-granddaughter, who has inherited not only Sherlock’s genius but also his volatile temperament. From everything Jamie has heard about Charlotte, it seems safer to admire her from afar.<br />
From the moment they meet, there’s a tense energy between them, and they seem more destined to be rivals than anything else. But when a Sherringford student dies under suspicious circumstances, ripped straight from the most terrifying of the Sherlock Holmes stories, Jamie can no longer afford to keep his distance. Jamie and Charlotte are being framed for murder, and only Charlotte can clear their names. But danger is mounting and nowhere is safe—and the only people they can trust are each other.</blockquote>
<b>Some books are just god damn, capital letters, FUN.</b><br />
<b><br /></b><span style="background-color: white;"> Of course, A STUDY IN CHARLOTTE is a lot of other things, too, but boy did I enjoy reading this one! <b>I knew roughly around the halfway mark that I wanted to own physical copies of this series. That's a really big deal, for me,</b> because I don't often purchase a book I have on kindle unless the book is both gorgeous and great... which, this one sure is (by the way, we're getting a <i>4th</i> <i>book </i>*does a happy dance*).</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span> Now, before I really begin and for transparency's sake,<b> I love Sherlock and Watson.</b> Not as much the original books themselves, but their various interpretations and reimagining in the media. I have watched the movies, the BBC series, Elementary, etc. The only shows I ever watch consistently are crime dramas with detectives and the likes. Those are my jam, and so are Sherlock and Watson.<br />
<br />
So <b>I didn't really need to know much about this book before picking it up. </b>Which is lucky, because looking at the GR page for it just now I realized almost all my friends gave it lukewarm reviews at best. This means I could have totally missed a book I ended up <i>loving</i>.<br />
<br />
Because, yes, as I've mentioned before, <b><i>I loved this one</i>.</b><br />
<br />
A STUDY IN CHARLOTTE is <b>set in a world where Sherlock and Watson weren't characters in a novel, but real life people. </b>Real life people who had kids, and those kids had kids and those kids had kids and... you get the picture. Now, two of those direct descendants meet in a boarding school. And then someone gets murdered, and they're the prime suspects. So... they do what Holmes and Watsons do best. They team up. They investigate. They form a relationship that is as balanced as it is unlikely.<br />
<br />
Have I sold you on this yet? Need more? Okay then.<br />
<br />
So, our precious mains. <b>First, we've got James</b> (not to be called Jamie!). As appropriate of a Watson, he tells the story. And <b>he's <i>adorable</i></b>. There, I said it. He wants to be a writer (#relatable, am I right??), he feels like a complete outsider, he's smart--but not obscenely smart and logic-oriented as Holmes. Which makes him <b>the heart </b>of the partnership.<br />
<br />
Then we have <b>the titular Charlotte</b>. As <b>the brains</b>. She's cold, rational, and messed up. Jaded and untrusting, but still with a glimmer of hope. Thinks herself the smartest person in the room... mostly because she is. Tries to pretend she doesn't care, when she does. Manipulative, kind of vengeful, but with a working sense of right and wrong that doesn't always scream at her loudly enough to notice. Again; messed up.<br />
<br />
<b>These two are far from perfect, but that's what makes it so fun to watch</b> their relationship evolves into friendship (and... maybe more. In fact, hopefully, more, because I ship it like FedEx). I loved how beautifully <b>Cavallaro captured the role Watsons have in the lives of Holmes.</b> They humanize them, become what they measure right and wrong, good and bad against. I'm curious, in this world, what a Holmes with a bad Watson would look like.<br />
<br />
Which is why, ultimately, <b>they may make such a great couple.</b> I've seen people put out by this fact; claiming it ruins the original dynamics. But firstly, this is <i>not </i>Sherlock and John. And secondly... I wholeheartedly disagree, for everything I said above and more.<br />
<br />
<b>I feel like this interpretation maintains the original power balance </b>(the banter, the quips, the roles each have in the other's life) but adds another layer to it. <b>There is a reason Watson and Sherlock are one of the most shipped pairings in the world</b>, and that reason manifests itself here in all its glory but also becomes 80% most likely to come to fruition.<br />
<br />
<b>Like, even though I am not an aggressive shipper, I've always shipped Johnlock in the way I ship Dan & Phil; </b>they're my ultimate brotp, but if they decided to make fangirls' dreams all over the world come true and announce they're together, I wouldn't mind. In fact, I may even squee a little. Perhaps I will tweet about how beautiful life is. Post photos and gifs of them from the years on Tumblr with the hashtags #relationshipgoals and #dreamcometrue.<br />
<br />
Hey, I'm just being honest.<br />
<br />
Moving on... <b>Aside for the two mains, I loved the contemporary boarding school settings, the character development and the general vibe of the whole book. </b>There is no other character I can describe as "stand out", but it's mostly because these two are scene stealers. They always have been, in any interpretation.<br />
<b><br /></b> <b>The only part I am lukewarm on is the actual mystery, and I wasn't at first.</b> I actually really liked it when I finished the book, especially since I couldn't figure it out until the very end (although, I did suspect ALL the guilty parties so boo ya!).<br />
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BUT <b>the further away I am from it the more I became kind of bummed that <i>this </i>was the first mystery. </b>Like, I feel like we may have needed the first mystery to be... less personal. It had to be because of the setting, but this was <i>too </i>personal. Which made it feel more appropriate for a second book, or even the third one. I'll have to go back to this point after reading the second book; we'll see how the mystery there will fare in comparison.<br />
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-64911590668229058812018-02-07T00:00:00.000-08:002019-03-25T04:41:56.979-07:00The Shadow Throne by Jennifer A. Nielsen | A Beautiful End to a Series *Spoilers*<div class="" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPGA1cOdlSucUrJdehF6i1710Q-4bV8dg6a-KhoplqZZ8i8BlqVprhBrb841407greuhY5LuQDxYPmOkKHE1j12BYo0PzoP5UuNlO0LSZvGb1kJI3DN2PmK9IJ0vh0-YOOIvDygW5KBFE/s1600/the+throne+shadow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="818" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPGA1cOdlSucUrJdehF6i1710Q-4bV8dg6a-KhoplqZZ8i8BlqVprhBrb841407greuhY5LuQDxYPmOkKHE1j12BYo0PzoP5UuNlO0LSZvGb1kJI3DN2PmK9IJ0vh0-YOOIvDygW5KBFE/s320/the+throne+shadow.jpg" width="218" /></a><b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2210330805">The Shadow Throne</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3267859.Jennifer_A_Nielsen" style="text-align: left;">Jennifer A. Nielsen</a></div>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/67722-the-ascendance-trilogy">The Ascendance Trilogy #3</a>
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Date Read: Jan 19 to 22, 2018<br />
<div style="text-align: start;">
First Published: 2014</div>
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Kindle</div>
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Young Adult, Fantasy<br />
Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
One war. Too many deadly battles. Can a king save his kingdom when his own survival seems unlikely?<br />
War has come to Carthya. It knocks at every door and window in the land. And when Jaron learns that King Vargan of Avenia has kidnapped Imogen in a plot to bring Carthya to its knees, Jaron knows it is up to him to embark on a daring rescue mission. But everything that can go wrong does.<br />
His friends are flung far and wide across Carthya and its neighbouring lands. In a last-ditch effort to stave off what looks to be a devastating loss for the kingdom, Jaron undertakes what may be his last journey to save everything and everyone he loves. But even with his lightning-quick wit, Jaron cannot forestall the terrible danger that descends on him and his country. Along the way, will he lose what matters most? And in the end, who will sit on Carthya's throne?</blockquote>
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Okay, so first things first... <b>I love this book and I love this series and I highly highly recommend you get it if you haven't yet!</b> You <i>will </i>fall in love with the main character and his journey, guaranteed!<br />
<br />
Speaking of Jaron's journey... <b>Can we take a minute to appreciate what Nielsen has done with this trilogy?</b> Some trilogies suffer from "second book syndrome", where the second book is kind of meh and filler. Not <i>The Ascendence Trilogy</i>. The first book was all about getting Jaron to the crown. The second is all about Jaron assembling his court in preparation for the war. And the third is said war, with Jaron as the proper and respected king of Carthya.<br />
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No book is filler, or there just for the sake of prolonging the series. <b>Each book is necessary to Jaron's development and the authentic flow of the story...</b> to making this final book satisfying and gratifying. To making Jaron's final triumph meaningful. And I don't consider this a spoiler because let's face it, did you really think <b>this precarious and precious king </b>would not succeed?<br />
<br />
And yes, <b>I am still as in love with Jaron as ever. </b>I love how kind and self-sacrificing he is. How all his actions are motivated by a single-minded desire to help others. I love how despite this he is not perfect; he is hot-headed and stubborn, and proud. And a little dense in certain aspects.<br />
<b><br /></b> <b>I truly wish more leaders were like Jaron</b> - because he definitely inspires a sense of loyalty and respect from everyone who encounters him; from his armies, his regents, his subjects, his friends and, of course, the readers.<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <b><i><u><span style="font-size: large;">He is a king you would proudly follow into battle.</span></u></i></b><br />
<br />
And <b>that battle... it was brilliantly written, as always.</b> I absolutely adored reading of Jaron's plans, schemes, and tricks, and Nielsen does an amazing job setting those up, allowing us to understand Jaron has <i>something </i>planned, but almost never enough for you to figure out exactly what before it happens.<br />
<br />
<b>The one weak point of this novel is</b> one that has been accompanying me since book one and that's <b>the romance. </b>Don't get me wrong--<b>Imogen and Jaron are cute together, no doubt about that.</b> Especially with the kisses at the end (like, that was totes adorable). <b>But since I never quite understood why and when they fell in love in book one, I failed to understand it here,</b> so I left still feeling like something was missing. Feeling like his reaction to her death is too monumental because their love was never properly based for me. Same goes for Tobias and the Princess.<br />
<br />
In this regards, <b>my re-read of the first book kind of did a disservice to this series. </b>I feel like had I not done that to refresh my memory, I would have gone forward in the books under the illusion those emotions have been explored better in book one, and therefore feeling more at peace with them. <b>Oh well, not everything about a book can be a win.</b><br />
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<b>I'm extremely sad to be saying goodbye to this world and characters, </b>but here's to hoping Nielsen's other protagonists are as incredible as Jaron was because I will be reading them for sure!<br />
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-10272343534469116412018-02-05T00:00:00.000-08:002019-03-25T04:43:30.889-07:00The Runaway King by Jennifer A. Nielsen | Book Review<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdaTRD5fI_2L3R5rNc0NnHVqWzzJwO4daarnDJNwXf3suiRYBsXhYsbWdli9eKNOenOvYmelMGhhopYSvgebQ6sGinmmVaf3qrBB-qIbxA5AOwjmlue2ULIV9bFeRw-7lQZwrdGGXZrUs/s1600/the+runaway+king.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="801" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdaTRD5fI_2L3R5rNc0NnHVqWzzJwO4daarnDJNwXf3suiRYBsXhYsbWdli9eKNOenOvYmelMGhhopYSvgebQ6sGinmmVaf3qrBB-qIbxA5AOwjmlue2ULIV9bFeRw-7lQZwrdGGXZrUs/s320/the+runaway+king.jpg" width="213" /></a><b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1134946474">The Runaway King</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3267859.Jennifer_A_Nielsen" style="text-align: left;">Jennifer A. Nielsen</a>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/67722-the-ascendance-trilogy">The Ascendance Trilogy #2</a>
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Date Read: Jan 13 to 15, 2018<br />
<div style="text-align: start;">
First Published: 2013</div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
Paperback</div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
Young Adult, Fantasy<br />
Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i>
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Re-Readability:<i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The thrilling sequel to Jennifer A. Nielsen's blockbuster NEW YORK TIMES bestseller THE FALSE PRINCE -- now in paperback!<br />
A kingdom teetering on the brink of destruction. A king gone missing. Who will survive?<br />
Just weeks after Jaron has taken the throne, an assassination attempt forces him into a deadly situation. Rumors of a coming war are winding their way between the castle walls, and Jaron feels the pressure quietly mounting within Carthya. Soon, it becomes clear that deserting the kingdom may be his only hope of saving it. But the further Jaron is forced to run from his identity, the more he wonders if it is possible to go too far. Will he ever be able to return home again? Or will he have to sacrifice his own life in order to save his kingdom?<br />
The stunning second installment of The Ascendance Trilogy takes readers on a roller coaster ride of treason and murder, thrills and peril, as they journey with the Runaway King.</blockquote>
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It's been a long time coming, but <b>I <i>finally </i>set down and read the book</b>. I've explained what happened with this series and me in my <i><a href="https://theafterwords.blogspot.co.il/2018/01/the-false-prince-jennifer-nielsen-review.html">The False Prince</a> </i>review so I won't go into details again, but short recap; <b>IT'S TOTALLY MY FAULT I DIDN'T READ IT SOONER, AND I REGRET IT, OKAY?</b><br />
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Phew, now that we've gotten the deep, shameful regret out of the way, let's talk <i>The Runaway King</i>.<br />
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So... the titular king. That's Jaron. I love Jaron. <b>Did I mention before that I love Jaron?</b> I feel like I did, once or twice. But just in case I didn't... I love Jaron. <b>Like, so freaking much. This boy gives me <i>life</i>, okay?</b><br />
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<b>I want to punch all those dumb people who deem him unfit </b>to be king solely based on his actions as a young prince. They think him to be <b>wild </b>and <b>reckless</b>. And, granted, they're not wrong, but that's not all he is. Because all those wild and reckless actions are taken <i>for other people's sakes</i>. Jaron <b>doesn't have a selfish, self-interested bone in his body.</b> Have you ever met a selfless <b>prideful </b>man? It's very rare. All he does... he does for his country. That's his top--and almost only--priority. <b>He has practically erased the word "self-preservation" from his vocabulary</b>, or at the very least made it into a curse, in order to <b>always put his country first</b>.<br />
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HOW CAN YOU NOT SEE IT? HOW CAN YOU FAULT HIM FOR THAT? <b>HOW CAN YOU DO ANYTHING <i>BUT </i>FOLLOW HIM!? </b>I'm really unclear on all these.<br />
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Except... I'm not. Because <b>this book is all about how Jaron wins over his people and assembles <i>his </i>court. </b>How he changes their perception of him not by using words, but by using actions. And <b>it is so extremely <i>satisfying</i></b><i>.</i> My favorite book in The Queen's Thief series (I haven't read the latest yet) is <i>The King of Attolia </i>for exactly that reason.<br />
<br />
There is something so gratifying about <b>seeing this smart, precious, clever boy surprise, overpower and generally prove people wrong about him. </b>It's incredibly inspiring to watch <b>all these men and women</b>, young or old, who have sneered in his face before, <b>come to respect, follow and swear their loyalty to him.</b><br />
<br />
<b>Jaron really is a wonderful character. He <i>makes </i>this series, and he makes it <i>great</i>.</b> Nielsen manages to make him a person you, as the reader, would like to follow. You are awed at his smartness. You are shocked by his bravery. You are wowed by his wit and humor, especially in the face of danger. And most of all, you are heartened by all he is willing to do for his people.<br />
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<b>He proves himself to be the great leader <i>no one </i>ever thought he could be.</b><br />
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Now, there is only one thing I would like to request. For god's sake,<b> PLEASE STOP HURTING MY BABY!!</b> Just... just let some good things happen to him once in a while, okay?? why is that so much to ask??<br />
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For some reason, <b>I have a feeling things are going to get worse before they get better. </b>Which is going to be painful to read of. So... wish me luck. I'm going to need it if I want to finish this series without killing some of the bad guys myself for <i><b>hurting my precious child, you monsters! </b></i><br />
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Speaking of,<b> the villain really sucked in this one.</b> Which, I guess, makes sense. This book really wasn't about that, after all. Still, he kind of felt disposable. And he was. Oh well.<br />
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-56899733540749619532018-02-03T00:00:00.000-08:002019-03-25T04:43:25.199-07:00Being Jamie Baker by Kelly Oram | An Old Favorite<div class="" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8ngoxCPhYixRuv_U65Cw38VJ7aIT27TsOp2H7jUKZVeT9ehW7klnMaGjYswuv-iIZgojTngVMvsekAnBTyeGyp_V3BNULi2LsIrSuLaHtTn_RDjtoYhLobe31Z-lRHHBsNXCcvmXOBiE/s1600/being+jamie+baker.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="404" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8ngoxCPhYixRuv_U65Cw38VJ7aIT27TsOp2H7jUKZVeT9ehW7klnMaGjYswuv-iIZgojTngVMvsekAnBTyeGyp_V3BNULi2LsIrSuLaHtTn_RDjtoYhLobe31Z-lRHHBsNXCcvmXOBiE/s320/being+jamie+baker.png" width="215" /></a><b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/325409974">Being Jamie Baker</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3203095.Kelly_Oram" style="text-align: left;">Kelly Oram</a></div>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/89397-jamie-baker">Jamie Baker #1</a>
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First Published: 2010</div>
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Kindle / Paperback</div>
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Young Adult, Fantasy<br />
Rating:<i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i></div>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
An accident that should end in tragedy instead gives seventeen-year-old Jamie Baker a slew of uncontrollable superhuman abilities. To keep her secret safe Jamie socially exiles herself, earning the title of Rocklin High's resident ice queen. But during a supercharged encounter with star quarterback Ryan Miller she literally kisses anonymity goodbye. Now the annoyingly irresistible Ryan will stop at nothing to melt the heart of the ice queen and find out what makes her so special. Unfortunately, Ryan is not the only person on to her secret. Will Jamie learn to contain her unstable powers before being discovered by the media or turned into a government lab rat? More importantly, can she throw Ryan Miller off her trail before falling in love with him?</blockquote>
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<b>You're having a rough week.</b> Life is taking its toll on you. <b>All you want to do is sit and relax</b>, laugh a little, feel warm inside again. <b>Maybe immerse yourself in someone else's life for a short while</b>. Someone else's relationship. God knows you need a good ship to board on this empty pier.<br />
<b><br /></b> <b>You pick up <i>Being Jamie Baker</i>. And it's <i>everything </i>you've wanted it to be.</b><br />
<br />
I've read this YA fantasy romance three times so far, each time in one sitting. I have forced my cousins to read it and fall in love with it as well. I have recommended it to anyone and everyone who would listen, and some who won't. Because <b>I seriously adore this book. </b>I dare you to read it and tell me you weren't grinning so widely your jaw hurt throughout it. DARE YOU.<br />
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<b>So, spoiler alert - you need to get this book. NOW. I'm saying this for your <i>own </i>good.</b><br />
<br />
The best thing about this book is that <b>it makes you desperately wish these characters were real people that you could meet in real life and have real conversations with. </b>And really, isn't that one of the best things a book can do to you?<br />
<br />
First, you've got <b>the titular Jamie. Her snark and sarcasm are her main choice of weapon... if you don't consider all the superpowers.</b> Oh, this girl. <b>I love how human she felt to me. </b>I loved how she made me laugh and smile. I loved how she sometimes made the wrong choices or did things I strongly disagreed with. I love how she grew throughout the book.<b> I love HER, okay?</b><br />
<br />
But<b> I am <i>in love </i>with Ryan Miller and their relationship.</b> Like, sometimes you want the book boyfriend all for yourself. And sometimes... sometimes you know you can never compare to their true love, would never fit him as well as she does, and that's okay. That's okay because you're a little bit in love with the both of them, and you love seeing the stars in their eyes when they look at each other and the way they move around and with each other as if they're the other's anchor and sun.<br />
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Still, <b>let it be noted that Ryan Miller is at the top of my book boyfriend list, even years later.</b> I fangirl over this guy, okay? it's this bad. Or this good. Depends on who you ask.<b> He is the perfect blend of adorable sweetness, with a shot of cockiness and a dash of condescension. In the best possible ways, I assure you. </b>This guy knows what--and who--he wants. He is not afraid to tell Jamie how she feels and he wills it to become reality just from the sheer, unwavering sureness he presents. And <b>he never gives up. Never. You might as well admit defeat before he starts because this mountain is not budging!</b><br />
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And as you've probably guessed, <b>I <i>adored </i>their romance. </b>It's the kind of romance that makes you sigh, and you don't know if it's because it just fills you with satisfaction or because you want a relationship like that for yourself and goddammit why can't you have this one little thing??<br />
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Okay, got sidetracked. Anyways, <b>Ryan and Jamie bring out the best in each other. And the chemistry between them is, shall we say, <i>electrifying. </i></b>Both figuratively and literally.<br />
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<b>And yes, this book is not perfect. </b>The reason Jamie got her superpowers is not quite satisfying. The villain is okay-ish and his plot is so-so. Neither of those things mattered a lick to me, since if you haven't figured yet, Ryan & Jamie gave me life and that's what I was here for, but I feel it's necessary to mention anyway.<br />
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<b>So... this book was perfect. For me. </b><br />
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-70267757251115446932018-02-01T00:00:00.000-08:002019-03-25T04:43:20.629-07:00Lumberjanes Vol. 1 by Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis, Shannon Watters, Brooke Allen | Comic Review <div class="" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEF9OF4dMtvOu5CHVew5xT-JsLMwyjr-IdSrLAfd1aRg-mlJWgNx2JqFIsd0BTGuSyDqWFLpEQCqioxBMlcHLcQyx0SllGyUaqrTYOMydDkp1vuKqiz7DpgilyMn_2171uKIFsu50raWA/s1600/lUMBERJANES-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="665" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEF9OF4dMtvOu5CHVew5xT-JsLMwyjr-IdSrLAfd1aRg-mlJWgNx2JqFIsd0BTGuSyDqWFLpEQCqioxBMlcHLcQyx0SllGyUaqrTYOMydDkp1vuKqiz7DpgilyMn_2171uKIFsu50raWA/s320/lUMBERJANES-1.jpg" width="207" /></a><b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2246419603">Lumberjanes Vol. 1</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6887314.Noelle_Stevenson" style="text-align: left;">Noelle Stevenson</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8202497.Grace_Ellis">Grace Ellis</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6928546.Shannon_Watters">Shannon Watters</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/288119.Brooke_Allen">Brooke Allen</a><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/162356-lumberjanes-collected-editions">Lumberjanes Collected Editions #1</a><br />
Date Read: Jan 15 to 17, 2018</div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
First Published: 2015</div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
Paperback</div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
Young Adult, Fantasy<br />
Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-half-o"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i></div>
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FRIENDSHIP TO THE MAX!<br />
At Miss Qiunzilla Thiskwin Penniquiqul Thistle Crumpet's camp for hard-core lady-types, things are not what they seem. Three-eyed foxes. Secret caves. Anagrams. Luckily, Jo, April, Mal, Molly, and Ripley are five rad, butt-kicking best pals determined to have an awesome summer together... And they're not gonna let a magical quest or an array of supernatural critters get in their way! The mystery keeps getting bigger, and it all begins here.<br />
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Collects Lumberjanes No. 1-4. </blockquote>
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<b>When I decided I wanted to read more graphic novels, I <i>knew </i>I had to pick up Lumberjanes.</b> For one, <b>I <i>adore </i>the art style.</b> It's so fun! For another, <b>I really liked the premise,</b> and <b>I heard a lot of great things</b> about it.<br />
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<b>Unfortunately, it did not live up to my expectations. </b>My official rating of it is somewhere between 2.5 to 3 stars, and<b> this is probably as far as I'll get with this particular series.</b><br />
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Now, I'm going to warn you. <b>You're going to hear a lot of complaints here and not a lot of good things. </b>That being said,<b> this is not a horrible graphic novel</b> or something like that. <b>There's a ton of </b>hijinks, characters to ship, cool designs, quirky atmosphere and setting. <b>Those are all good things.</b> So <b>don't go thinking I <i>hated </i>this.</b> But I guess my disappointment kind of colors everything, and I do want to say all I have to say. So... take that into consideration.<br />
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You see,<b> the main problem I had with this one is that I kept feeling like I opened the tv on an episode from season 2 of the show. </b>This general sense of "I've missed something that happened in the previous episodes" lingered throughout the entire read. <b>I didn't know who these people were and what their relationships were like and where we were, and yet I felt like I <i>was supposed to. </i></b><br />
<i><br /></i> I kept waiting for this feeling to dissipate, but it never did. Part of it, I think, is due to their reaction to all the monsters around them. They... well, they weren't freaked <i>enough. </i>Have they seen monsters in the past? Are they just a bunch of crazy girls? What is going on??<br />
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Another thing that kept bothering me is that <b>this felt kind of like a Gravity Falls ripoff. </b>And... well... <b>Gravity Falls does </b>the whole area with crazy monsters and schemes hiding in plain sight <b>a lot better. </b>Although <b>I should probably clarify that I <i>love </i>Gravity Falls to death.</b><br />
<br />
And then, <b>I felt like there wasn't much struggle in the story. </b>Every setback our heroines encounters got solved almost immediately by one of the Janes. <b>It was... too clean</b>. As a rule, I don't like clean problem-solving in stories.<b> It doesn't feel authentic. </b>And so... neither did <i>Lumberjanes. </i><br />
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-17039238082254381892018-01-30T00:00:00.000-08:002018-01-30T00:00:02.993-08:002018 Goals: Read a Book By At Least 10 of These Authors<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>This list will focus on my Authors to Read List (atr) that I have never read a book by, but I really want to!</b> Feel free to recommend which authors from this list I should focus on!<br />
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Again,<b> I'm taking it easy.</b> You will find a bazillion authors on this list (which I actually plan to re-visit every year from this point on until I have cleared all of these authors!), but I ain't gonna try to read a book by <i>all </i>of them this year. I'm not cray cray. But <b>10 authors seem doable, especially as some of them can double up with other goals I've put to myself... </b><br />
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Come back to this page throughout the year to see how I'm doing!</div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7581.Kelley_Armstrong"><b>Kelly Armstrong</b></a> - This author has been on my list of "should try out" for <i>years. </i>I hope this will be the year I will try some of her works.<br />
Books owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/322600777">The Gathering</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7549.Elizabeth_George_Speare"><b>Elizabeth George Speare</b></a> - Technically, I'm only (currently) interested in one book this author has written, but it's been on my tbr for so long I really want to get to it, and I finally own a copy of it! <br />
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Books owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/357627620">The Witch of Blackbird Pond</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/109354.Kirsten_Miller"><b>Kirsten Miller</b></a> - I've had one of Miller's books on my physical shelves for over 5 years and have recently acquired another one of hers (albeit one co-written) so I just feel like this should probably be the year to knock her out of my atr :)<br />
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Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/405046222">The Eternal Ones</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28238589-otherworld">Otherworld</a></div>
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/47104.Melina_Marchetta">Melina Marchetta</a> </b>- This author has been high on my atr for SO long. Her books are widely loved, and they sound unique and interesting. I hope this will be the year I will actually <i>read them</i>. lol<br />
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Books owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/756833980">On the Jellicoe Road</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/405089099">Finnikin of the Rock</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/836009.Sarah_Rees_Brennan"><b>Sarah Rees Brennan</b></a> - I have wanted to read her The Lynburn Legacy for <i>ages</i>, and I recently got all 3 books on Kindle for, like, $3.5 <i>total</i>. I know, crazy! (bts, if you want to find awesome kindle deals, don't forget to check our list! It updates regularly :P)<br />
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Books owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19230590-unspoken">Unspoken</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15801763-untold">Untold</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18309803-unmade">Unmake</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4086715.Kendare_Blake"><b>Kendare Blake</b></a> - She's just kind of been on my list for years... I'm not one for horror or things like that but I have heard so many <i>amazing </i>things about her books so I really want to see if this could be something I'll enjoy.<br />
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Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11663424-anna-dressed-in-blood">Anna Dressed in Blood</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4637369.Veronica_Rossi"><b>Veronica Rossi</b></a> - Yes, yes, I haven't read a Veronica Rossi novel. I KNOW! Well, I'm gonna change that!..... Maybe.</div>
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Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/406107894">Under the Never Sky</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/108424.Patrick_Rothfuss"><b>Patrick Rothfuss</b></a> - I have wanted to read <i>The Name of the Wind </i>for so long, but at the same time it's so intimidating and the fact it takes him years to write his novels is also frightening to me. Still, I hope I can finally get into this series this year!</div>
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Booked Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/291777754">The Name of the Wind</a>, The Wise Man's Fear</div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/374429.Carolyn_MacCullough"><b>Carolyn MacCullough</b></a> - I have been interested in reading her Once a Witch series for <i>ages </i>and I finally own the first novel and I just want to finally read it!<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/406869312">Once a Witch</a></div>
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4637539.Tahereh_Mafi">Tahereh Mafi</a> </b>- Welp. What can I say? I have not read a Tahereh Mafi book yet. It's true. I honestly didn't really mean to, because I don't like love triangle and the likes but... all the raving really got to me. So, I pick up Shatter Me. And here's to hoping I <i>love </i>it 'cause I really want an excuse to buy those gorgeous covers in physical copies!</div>
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Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/756832699">Shatter Me</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4039811.Veronica_Roth"><b>Veronica Roth</b></a> - Is it strange that I want to read <i>just </i>the first Divergent novel? Like, I know how that series ends and I'm not here for it, but I kind of do want to experience the first novel and I've heard you <i>can </i>kind of read it alone. What do you guys think? Will it work?<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/425127779">Divergent</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2193705318">Carve the Mark</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4342215.Marie_Lu"><b>Marie Lu</b></a> - Yes, another of those super duper popular authors I have never read! I need to get my shit together because this doesn't fly!<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/655322491">Legend</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2158652076">Champion</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077078982">The Young Elites</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077078609">The Rose Society</a>, <a class="" href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2239205881">Warcross</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3433047.Sarah_J_Maas"><b>Sarah J. Maas</b></a> - So I'll be honest... I don't really want to read a Maas book. I have tried the prequel to Throne of Glass and didn't really like it. That being said, I want to give one of her proper novels a shot, just so I can see once and for all if it was that specific book, or it's just generally her novels. That way, I can stop being all turned around because of all the hype lol</div>
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Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1340331112">The Assassin's Blade</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/659543902">Throne of Glass</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3681.Ann_Brashares"><b>Ann Brashares</b></a> - I have wanted to read Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants for so long, and this is the year! <div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/717215138">Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2239252849">My Name is Memory</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2936493.Lauren_Oliver"><b>Lauren Oliver</b></a> - This one has been on my list for <i>years</i>. I feel like I should finally give her a chance, you know?<div>
Book Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1213019083">Delirium</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2078091135">Pandemonium</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077040093">Before I Fall</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2158650799">Replica</a></div>
<br /><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/88506.Joe_Hill"><b>Joe Hill</b></a> - So, this one is an author I first noticed because Daniel Radcliff was in a movie adaptation of Horns. I love Dan, I want to watch the movie, and I can't until I read the book. Therefore, I must do so. But this author has <i>crazy </i>numbers on GR and that makes me excited... and fearful.<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2078086581">Horns</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1412983429">NOS4A2</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/753097.Robin_Benway"><b>Robin Benway</b></a> - Heard great things about this author, and I'm interested in finally reading one of her works!<div>
Book Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1389894353">Emmy & Oliver</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2261202368">Far From the Tree</a></div>
<b><br /><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2987125.Kiera_Cass">Kiera Cass</a> </b>- Okay, so I'm <i>never </i>going to read The Selection series. I'm just not about that life. And by "that life" I mean love triangles that drag. Anyways, that being said, since so many people rave about her series, I <i>do </i>want to read another novel by hers some time.<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2197486127">The Siren</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2740668.Dan_Wells"><b>Dan Wells</b></a> - It's been six years since I bought Partials. SIX YEARS! And by all accounts, those are six missed years because Wells is supposed to be awesome!<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/416905231">Partials</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2209947180">I Am Not A Serial Killer</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/504038.Anna_Banks"><b>Anna Banks</b></a> - I have wanted to read Of Poseidon for a really long time, but I've actually recently gotten hold of Nemesis by Banks, and I kind of want to try her own!<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2235256843">Nemesis</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19564.Neal_Shusterman"><b>Neal Shusterman</b></a> - Another author that has been on my list for <i>ages</i>. And I now own one of his books physically! It's time to kick it off my shelf!<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077081527">Everlost</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2245652601">Scythe</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5816.Darren_Shan"><b>Darren Shan</b></a><b> </b>- This author has been on my atr list since I joined GR, y'all! I have wanted to read his Cirque De Freak series for <i>years</i> and I have finally gotten hold of the first one!!<div>
Book Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2158650351">Cirque Du Freak</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/151371.Jenny_Han"><b>Jenny Han</b></a> - I'll be honest here... I'm kind of scared to read this author's works. I am NEVER going to read the Summer series. Three books of a love triangle? Sign me the heck out. But... people rave about her so much. And the cover for To all The Boys I've Loved Before is really pretty. And so is Burn for Burn. So... I own her books. Imma gonna read them.<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2245657110">To All The Boys I've Loved Before</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2265360188">Burn for Burn</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2265361493">Fire with Fire</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2265361296">Ashes to Ashes</a></div>
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5329.Brian_Jacques">Brian Jacques</a> </b>- I grew up on Redwall the animated series. Finding out this had a book series it was based on <i>blew my mind</i>. I've got to get in on this!<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077025207">Redwall</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077024957">Mossflower</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077024700">Mattimeo</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/359109.Jessica_Day_George"><b>Jessica Day George</b></a> - I just really like the sound of her novels! <div>
Book Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077045471">Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1327210874">Silver in the Blood</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3027554.Kiersten_White"><b>Kiersten White</b></a> - another one that has been on my list for soooo loooong.... *sigh*<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077065944">And I Darken</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/25307.Robin_Hobb"><b>Robin Hobb</b></a> - So I actually started one of her books and really really enjoyed it but I was in a really messed up place at the time and I dropped it half way through <i>for no reason</i>. I'm going to read her books this year, because <i>they're good.</i><div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/756834964">Assassin's Apprentice</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077087907">Fool's Assassin</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077087594">Fool's Errand</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2973783.Alexandra_Bracken"><b>Alexandra Bracken</b></a> - Heard just a ton of amazing things about this one.<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077092270">Passenger</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/266470.Sherry_Thomas"><b>Sherry Thomas</b></a> - I have owned the Elemental Trilogy for a long while now, and actually my mom loves these books so that tells me I must read them already.<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1408971584">The Burning Sky</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077098705">The Perilous Sea</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077098995">The Immortal Heights</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077040393">A Study in Scarlet Woman</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5295120.Morgan_Rhodes"><b>Morgan Rhodes</b></a> - I just heard this is an amazing fantasy writer, and I need to get a start on it!<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1232245047">Falling Kingdoms</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077720376">A Book of Spirits and Thieves</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4074051.Rae_Carson"><b>Rae Carson</b></a> - Another author I've just heard wonderful things about and I want to start on it!<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1600461840">The Girl of Fire and Thorns</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077821268">Walk on Earth a Stranger</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6540057.Andy_Weir"><b>Andy Weir</b></a><b> </b>- I want to watch the movie, okay?!<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1822869424">The Martian</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34928122-artemis">Artemis</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/338705.Catherynne_M_Valente"><b>Catherynne M. Valente</b></a> - I HAVE WANTED TO READ THESE BOOKS FOR SO LONG, OKAY?!<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1698993992">Six-Gun Snow White</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2077826462">The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making</a> </div>
<br /><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2821144.Ellen_Hopkins"><b>Ellen Hopkins</b></a> - *sigh* how many times can I say "another one that has been on my list for ages and I'm super excited for" before one of you comes out of the screen and strangles me?<div>
Books Owned: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1409028239">Tricks</a></div>
Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-63361080723399330112018-01-28T00:00:00.000-08:002019-03-25T04:45:29.038-07:00Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews | Relationship Status: It's Complicated! <div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV1NPoXWCZNOlqS6t6OLLNKicK58D7lvyjhXqIx21mo1ysTHgLMZQXfhv9ykmi-HBfJTC8V27VtvnD8q7CbwWcbJm6rF-TLusbfFILPchl0b_MgmoXGo7WUs62MgTdSlWhxKfQJHyCLUo/s1600/me+and+earl+and+the+dying+girl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1125" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV1NPoXWCZNOlqS6t6OLLNKicK58D7lvyjhXqIx21mo1ysTHgLMZQXfhv9ykmi-HBfJTC8V27VtvnD8q7CbwWcbJm6rF-TLusbfFILPchl0b_MgmoXGo7WUs62MgTdSlWhxKfQJHyCLUo/s320/me+and+earl+and+the+dying+girl.jpg" width="213" /></a><b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1324421408">Me and Early and the Dying Girl</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5227163.Jesse_Andrews" style="text-align: left;">Jesse Andrews</a><br />
Date Read: Jan 7 to 12, 2018</div>
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First Published: 2012</div>
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Kindle</div>
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Young Adult, Contemporary<br />
Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i><br />
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Re-Readability: <i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Greg Gaines is the last master of high school espionage, able to disappear at will into any social environment. He has only one friend, Earl, and together they spend their time making movies, their own incomprehensible versions of Coppola and Herzog cult classics.<br />
Until Greg’s mother forces him to rekindle his childhood friendship with Rachel.<br />
Rachel has been diagnosed with leukemia—-cue extreme adolescent awkwardness—-but a parental mandate has been issued and must be obeyed. When Rachel stops treatment, Greg and Earl decide the thing to do is to make a film for her, which turns into the Worst Film Ever Made and becomes a turning point in each of their lives.<br />
And all at once Greg must abandon invisibility and stand in the spotlight.</blockquote>
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<b>RELATIONSHIP STATUS: IT'S COMPLICATED </b><br />
<b><br /></b> It really, really is. <b>When I started out <i>Me and Earl and the Dying Girl </i>I genuinely had so much fun with it</b>, and I was absolutely certain I'm going to continue laughing out-loud until the final page and be blown away. Instead, <b>I slowly stopped laughing, until at the very end I was just relieved it was finally over. </b><br />
<br />
The thing is, <b>this book's biggest strength is also its biggest weakness.</b> At least for me.<br />
<br />
<b>The big, loud charm of this book is it's messed up writing style</b>; a mashup of a lot of things, concepts and ideas, in a very authentic manner to what a teenager who is not even very interested in writing a book might do... which, let's face it, <i>Greg is.<b> </b></i><b>It's quirky, unique, and fun.</b> For about the first 50%.<br />
<br />
But then, <b>because this is the approach this book takes, it kind of made it a <i>structural mess </i>with <i>no actual plot in sight</i>.</b> For me, who is a plot-driven reader, this made things kind of... difficult. <b>It was hard to invest a lot of time at once in this book's world because I had nothing to anchor myself to.</b> No questions I needed answered or a sense of wondering what are the things to come.<br />
<br />
So my first struggle with it was actually <i>reading </i>it instead of just meandering about.<br />
<br />
My second struggle was actually <i>enjoying </i>the read once I've decided to get my shit together and properly read it.<b> </b>There is something about actually sitting down and spending two hours straights in Greg's mind that just makes you realize how... <b>this book talks about nothing. </b>And even then, <b>it kind of takes really long to say that it has nothing to say. </b><br />
<br />
I have read the epilogue, and I still don't know if this book had something to say to me, or if, just as Greg basically <i>tells </i>the reader<span style="background-color: white;"> at t</span>he beginning, there is nothing there. So,<b> in big doses, you just kind of start to wonder... why? what's the point of all this?</b><br />
<br />
Not to mention, around the 50% mark, <b>the shine of the concept just... wore off. </b>It totally did. <b>Greg is not a great person.</b> He's not. <b>He's judgmental and weird and interprets life in such a strange way. </b>And while <b>at first, it was delightful</b>, and I laughed at his antics and style, <b>by the end I just didn't enjoy being in his head</b>, no matter the weird side thoughts, script format, bullet points, or whatever new thing he came up with. It just stops being funny.<br />
<br />
Now, <b><i>Me and Earl </i>often resorts to crass jokes and vulgar language. </b>I admit this is not the type of humor I normally enjoy, and after 50% of the novel, <b>I was over it. Completely. </b>Like, I get it. <b>It <i>fits </i>the character that is Greg</b>, and he <i>is </i>the one writing the story. But.. it got annoying. <b><i>He </i>got annoying. The <i>repetition </i>got annoying</b>; how many times can I read about someone calling themselves stupid, or unable to accept a compliment or filled with the need to fill the silence, before I just kind of want to strangle you so you'd shut up?<br />
<br />
Oh, <b>and can we talk about his dumb and stupid jokes and why the hell everyone is laughing at them?? </b>While <b>his narration is often hilarious</b>, the jokes Greg tell out loud baffled me, mostly because they're successful. Like, wtf? <b>I don't know what you Americans find funny, but none of that shit would fly in my high school.</b> I guess I should at least be thankful Greg is self away of this, to a point.<br />
<br />
Speaking of which... <b>The character of Greg is really odd.</b> In most cases when people think one thing and do another, it's for the worse. In Greg's case,<b> he thinks terrible things but does really nice things, even if for all the wrong reasons.</b><br />
<br />
But<b> I'm not sure if that's because that's who he is, or because he is a caricature of sorts, same as <i>all </i>the other people in this novel. </b>Every character <b>is defined by maybe one or two traits</b>, and that's basically what that person is for the rest of the novel - Hot, Smart, Sick, Crazy, Goth, etc. And most of it is hecka exaggerated, especially the way teenage boys think and act. I mean, my brother is in that Phase right now. I'm living this shit.<br />
<br />
<b>Now, this makes <i>sense. </i>A teenage is writing this story, and sometimes, especially as self-absorbed teens, people aren't really people.</b> They're That or This or Whatever. That being said, <b>I kind of hoped Greg would <i>stop </i>seeing them like that at some point, but that didn't really happen. I guess if it did, then this novel would have something to say and that's a no-no.</b><br />
<br />
Okay. So, basically, <b>even though a lot of my problems make sense in the context of the premise, it wasn't enough for me.</b> Being UNIQUE is not enough to be GOOD. Being INTERESTING is not enough to equate IMPORTANT. And so, even though I wish my reading experience had stayed constantly in the <i>great </i>zone, it didn't.<br />
<br />
<b>I needed more; more SUBSTANCE, more PLOT, more of a REASON to the entirety of it. </b><br />
<br />
And yes, sure. <b>The point <i>is </i>that there is no point, but that's just not the type of story I can connect to. </b>It's entirely on me, but it's also the way things just <i>are. </i><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06451601558768909469noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4915169768990269433.post-21741423428427602792018-01-26T00:00:00.000-08:002019-03-25T04:45:35.731-07:00The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen | Re-Read Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinemenIH2WTc-D4qYDpzOCNCn2nz6j9rjtSZwxac0ku9rc_hppte-8J5Jwe3i1Zyg7WN2DTpV_7fnncRFqukoRWVy9pdtrE8QKWDOUXvjY4OMk5LWdMLhradeJOHGYQoiHzYBP8Qk4wGo/s1600/the+false+prince.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="404" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinemenIH2WTc-D4qYDpzOCNCn2nz6j9rjtSZwxac0ku9rc_hppte-8J5Jwe3i1Zyg7WN2DTpV_7fnncRFqukoRWVy9pdtrE8QKWDOUXvjY4OMk5LWdMLhradeJOHGYQoiHzYBP8Qk4wGo/s320/the+false+prince.png" width="215" /></a></div>
<b style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1072014392">The False Prince</a> </b><span style="text-align: left;">by </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3267859.Jennifer_A_Nielsen" style="text-align: left;">Jennifer A. Nielsen</a><br />
<div style="text-align: start;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/67722-the-ascendance-trilogy">The Ascendance Trilogy #1</a><br />
Date Read: Dec 15 to 19, 2017</div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
First Published: 2012</div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
Paperback</div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
Young Adult, Fantasy<br />
Rating: <i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star"></i><i class="fa fa-star-o"></i></div>
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Re-Readability: <i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-full"></i><i aria-hidden="true" class="fa fa-battery-empty"></i><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
In this first book in a remarkable trilogy, an orphan is forced into a twisted game with deadly stakes.<br />
Choose to lie...or choose to die.<br />
In a discontent kingdom, civil war is brewing. To unify the divided people, Conner, a nobleman of the court, devises a cunning plan to find an impersonator of the king's long-lost son and install him as a puppet prince. Four orphans are recruited to compete for the role, including a defiant boy named Sage. Sage knows that Conner's motives are more than questionable, yet his life balances on a sword's point -- he must be chosen to play the prince or he will certainly be killed. But Sage's rivals have their own agendas as well.<br />
As Sage moves from a rundown orphanage to Conner's sumptuous palace, layer upon layer of treachery and deceit unfold, until finally, a truth is revealed that, in the end, may very well prove more dangerous than all of the lies taken together.<br />
An extraordinary adventure filled with danger and action, lies and deadly truths that will have readers clinging to the edge of their seats. </blockquote>
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Confession time: I start a shit ton of series but finish only a fraction of them. And it's only because they're bad about a third of the time. The rest is... well, because I'm stupid, okay?<br />
<br />
Take <i>The False Prince </i>for example. <b>I truly and honestly <i>loved </i>this book when I first read it in 2014. I finished it being wowed, and excited, and super interested in reading the rest of the series. <i>SUPER INTERESTED, </i>okay? </b><br />
<br />
But <b>then came the waiting period until the second book made it into my doorstep, and somehow,</b> by the time I got it, I had forgotten that I loved the first one. <b>Just... forgotten.</b> So I put it on the shelf and barely even looked at it from that day on.<br />
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<b>Finally, fate intervened. </b>The third and final book was available on Kindle for, like, 3 dollars, and I succumbed and bought it. <b>Now, I had no reason not to finish the series, and better yet, I was <i>thinking </i>of it again. </b>Now, I couldn't just start with the second book, could I? Naturally, I <i>had </i>to re-read the first book first.<b> And then it would be time for... THE BINGE!</b><br />
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<b>Now, originally, I had given this book a 5 star rating. </b>As I re-read this novel I had to concede that it was no longer a five star for me.<b> It's still a wonderful story that I highly recommend, which is why I gave it a very respectable 4 star, but there were some things that just fell short</b> considering I <i>knew </i>what was coming.<br />
<b><br /></b> <b>My experience with <i>The False Prince, </i>both times, started out slow. </b>This book doesn't immediately make me unable to put it down. It took a while, say eighty to a hundred pages, for me to <b>suddenly be grabbed by the <i>need </i>to read it. But then, when it came, it didn't let go until I finished reading</b>, so I guess all in all it's a definite win for the book.<br />
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<b>The strongest part of this novel is, hands down, Sage himself.</b> As far as main characters go, <b>he is a long way from perfect</b>, and that's actually why I loved him so much. He is a <b>brave</b>, <b>clever</b>, <b>headstrong</b> boy. Who is also <b>reckless</b>, <b>sharp-tongued</b> and <b>stubborn</b>, with far<b> too much ego </b>at times. But he has a <b>good heart</b>, and his actions are always derived from that place. In fact, <b>he almost never does anything for his own sake, but he always makes it appear like that's what he's all about</b>, which just... it just made him extra lovable in my eyes.<br />
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<b>Next to Sage is a cast of interesting characters</b>; first, we have <b>Tobias</b> and <b>Roden</b>, the other two orphans fighting for the title of prince. These two fought for my affection and hatred throughout the whole book, and <b>I honestly didn't know who I would end up loving and who I would end up disliking until the final chapters.</b><br />
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Then we have <b>Imogen</b>, a servant girl in Connor's house who catches Sage's attention. She is <b>a fierce lady</b> whom I loved, although <b>her storyline made less sense to me the second time around</b>. I remember feeling a bit baffled by the apparent affection between these two the first time around as well, but I definitely felt it stronger with this re-read. I just don't quite understand Sage's attachment and gratitude to her, seeing as she had very little to do with the actual plot.<br />
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It kind of felt the way it does when you listen to someone's conversation, then something distracts you and you return to listening at the end. You feel like you've missed something in the reasoning and progress of the story, even if you get the general gist of things. <b>I am curious to see how their relationship develops--if at all--throughout this series.</b><br />
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Then we've got <b>Mott</b>, Connor's loyal right-hand man, and <b>one of my favorite characters</b>. Mott and Sage start off on the wrong foot but boy does he prove himself to be a good man at the end there. He's kind of, like, the father figure Sage has always needed but never had, you know? And, speaking of the devil, <b>Connor himself was quite interesting as well.</b> I never liked the guy, but I never quite hated him, either, if that makes sense?<br />
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Now, <b>going into this novel the second time, I obviously knew what was coming.</b> And even though I pretty much called it on my first read as well, I had much more time to look for the clues... and not all of them add up. <b>Sometimes, Nielsen puts in paragraphs that make <i>no sense </i>in light of what's to come</b>, and that feels like a real flat attempt at misdirection that could've been solved if only things had been phrased a <i>little </i>differently. <b>I still feel things were very well done, but not as tidy as I originally thought they were.</b><br />
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Nitzan Schwarzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17911910716932341277noreply@blogger.com0