Thursday, April 30, 2015

Review: Paper Towns by John Green

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Format: Paperback
Pages: 304
Rating: 2 Stars
How I Got It: Purchased

I want to say that I like John Green as a person, but his books do not work for me. I don’t like to write highly negative reviews, so I’ll try to keep it short.

The thing I liked was Radar. He’s an interesting, likeable character. The rest of the characters don’t deserve his friendship.

All the other characters are selfish, flat, and unlikeable. In theory, I get that this could be about Q finding himself, but it doesn’t work. Q is a pretentious and ungrateful ass. And he doesn’t seem to ever feel bad for how he treats his “friends”. I don’t even want to get into Margo and her manic pixie dreamgirlness. And the literary references are way too heavy-handed.

Reading this book makes me even more upset than I normally am upon hearing that John Green saved YA. If anything he’s writing self-indulgent books that cheapen and simplify woman. Now that I think about it, I never hear about his decided lack of well-rounded female characters. But maybe stuff like that only matters if an author is female and writes romance because they seem to get shit all the time.

Again, I want to be clear: I like John Green and don’t think he hates women or anything like that, but his books definitely leave something to be desired.

Thanks for reading!
~Holly

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Review: Supernaturally by Kiersten White

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Series: Paranormalcy Book #2
Format: Paperback
Pages: 336
Rating: 4 Stars
How I Got It: Purchased

Honestly, this was a little bit of a let down. The first book was a lot to live up to and I just finished a bunch of books I really loved. It was still really good and I want to see what happens to Evie and the other characters.

I do still like Evie and think she’s an interesting character, but she was also my biggest issue. She was way too trusting to people-all people. I just don’t understand why she didn’t think through anything. She also did whole “I’m going to ruin my relationship by not talking.” I have not been shy about my dislike of this plot device.

But I did enjoy the plot overall and it was pretty fast-paced. And I like Lend even more, because he’s awesome. And I realized that there really isn’t a big bad in this book/series. It’s refreshing that Ms. White isn’t following all of the standards for a YA trilogy. There are larger plot points and character development, but it’s not about destroying one particular villain.

On to the next book.

Thanks for reading!
~Holly

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Review: Fall with Me by Jennifer L. Armentrout

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Series: Wait For You #4
Format: Paperback
Pages: 376
Rating: 4 Stars
How I Got It: Purchased

I got this book a couple days early and immediately started reading. It was a great continuation of the series, but I do have a few issues.

Roxy intrigued me in the previous book, so I was happy to get in her head. Oh, and this cover is great-she had glasses and purple streaks in her hair. Her character was funny and more than delivered on my expectations. I should be surprised, but she had a lot more going on than I expected, I was close to tears in like chapter one.

Then, there’s Reece. I like him, but he did a few things that bothered me. He calls her ‘babe’ all the time. Generally, I’m not a fan of endearments and I can usually just overlook them, but not here. And sometimes his time was too demanding/possessive. I think his past plays into this, but I didn’t get enough of that since this is a single first person story.

That being said, I like their romance. It is definitely steamy and went places I wasn’t expecting. There was some serious unrequited love, but it didn’t pull the story down for me. I do wish I knew stalking would play such a big role in the plot. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it makes me anxious so I always like a heads up.

There was a bunch of the past characters which I loved and hope for more of.  I also love Katie. I feel like it’ll never happen, but she could have her own book. Speaking of that: is it weird that I kind of want Henry to have a book?

And I’m crazy excited for the next book. I’ve wanted to know more about Steph since the first book and now I’ll have it. In September. Fingers crossed.

Thanks for reading!
~Holly

Monday, April 27, 2015

Review: Graceling by Kristin Cashore

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Series: Graceling Realm Book #1
Format: Paperback
Pages: 471
Rating: 5 Stars
How I Got It: Purchased

I love Po.

Oh, did you want an actual review?

This was a re-read and I won’t lie-I was a little worried this wouldn’t be as good as I remember it. But it totally was.

I think it’s a great fantasy story that’s paced exceptionally well. It’s not all fighting and action, but the characters’ personal journey are just as good.

Katsa is a great heroine and she’s very strong. I love that she is strong, but has personality weaknesses that she struggles with. I know some people have issues with her feelings on marriage and/or children, but I think it’s just a different perspective on societal expectations for women. And she reminds me a lot of Eon from that duology by Allison Goodman. They’re both women, but aren’t traditionally feminine.

Now, it’s time for Po. I remember liking Po a lot before, but now I have a different perspective. I’ve been reading more and have learned that a good Beta is just perfect for me and this is Po. He is also a strong and intelligent person, but he never feels like he has to defend his manhood. At one point he’s talking to Katsa about her being more powerful or something and he says that it wouldn’t humiliate him, but would humble him. That’s just perfect and I feel like really sums up his character.

I picked this up to get back in this world so I can finally read Bitterblue. And that plan completely worked. I’m very excited to read about a more grown up Bitterblue and spend more time in the world and with Ms. Cashore’s writing.

Thanks for reading!
~Holly

Sunday, April 26, 2015

Review: Addicted for Now by Krista and Becca Ritchie

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Series: Addicted Book #2
Format: Ebook
Rating: 5 Stars
How I Got It: Purchased

This is now a favorite. Unfortunately, I read the next two books too soon after finishing this one so they are starting to blend together.

I’ve just fallen completely in love with these characters and their story. I think my favorite thing is seeing Lily deal with her problems and start growing. This is also when I started to see this series was taking a stand against slut-shaming which is all so common in New Adult books.

Sorry, this was kind of a crappy review. I’ll try to write future reviews faster.

Thanks for reading!
~Holly

Friday, April 24, 2015

Review: Ricochet by Krista and Becca Ritchie

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Series: Addicted Book 1.5
Format: Ebook
Rating: 5 stars
How I Got It: Purchased

This series is on its way to being a favorite. I liked this one even more than the first book. The couple was barely together which normally bothers me, but it totally worked. I should stop being surprised by these authors.

I actually think it’s so important that Lily be apart from Lo. It gives her an opportunity to work on her issues and personal growth especially since they were fairly co-dependent. Plus, it allowed other characters to be more present like Rose, Daisy, Ryke, and Conner. I’m getting more invested in these characters which is good since they eventually get their own books. And Lily is able to grow those relationships.

I also liked seeing more of Lily and Lo’s past/childhood. This especially provides more insight into Lo’s character. And I already wanted them to have a happily ever after, but now I really want it.

The last book in this whole series isn’t out yet and it doesn’t have a release date, so I’m trying to read these slowly. It’s a great test of my will and I probably will fail.

Thanks for reading!
~Holly