Charm & Strange (Galley) Book Review

Hi Guys,
I know, I know... I haven't been posting reviews like I need to, I apologize. I can't help it, my schedule has been hectic this semester, and things are just starting to die down now that I only have two exams left to take. Although, you guys should be pleased to learn that I've been reading quite a few books since I last posted a review. I would also like to say that I've been on an amazing book streak, every book I've read in the past month has been phenomenal. One of those phenomenal books just so happens to be the book I'll be reviewing today: Charm & Strange by Stephanie Kuehn. I received this a few weeks before it was released as a galley from the publisher. So I want to give a huge thanks to St. Martins Griffin publishers, I really appreciate the opportunity to read this book early. Here's the synopsis from Goodreads:

When you’ve been kept caged in the dark, it’s impossible to see the forest for the trees. It’s impossible to see anything, really. Not without bars . . .
Andrew Winston Winters is at war with himself.
He’s part Win, the lonely teenager exiled to a remote Vermont boarding school in the wake of a family tragedy. The guy who shuts all his classmates out, no matter the cost.
He’s part Drew, the angry young boy with violent impulses that control him. The boy who spent a fateful, long-ago summer with his brother and teenage cousins, only to endure a secret so monstrous it led three children to do the unthinkable.
Over the course of one night, while stuck at a party deep in the New England woods, Andrew battles both the pain of his past and the isolation of his present.
Before the sun rises, he’ll either surrender his sanity to the wild darkness inside his mind or make peace with the most elemental of truths—that choosing to live can mean so much more than not dying.

My first impression of this novel was that it was going to be really good. I e-mailed the publishers, and they sent me a galley copy of this, and I was very excited. This book starts off very weird, but amazing. I read the first half of the book in an hour, and I didn't want to put it down. This book is separated by alternating chapters, matter and anti-matter. Matter being what is presently happening to Win, and anti-matter being something that Win has previously experienced. The further I got in this novel, the more I understood, but with every one thing I understood, I got ten more questions about Win and his circumstances. This is definitely a good mystery novel, not because Win is trying to find a killer, or a thief, but because he is trying to find himself. I went through half of this book believing one thing about Win, and the other half questioning my belief and trying to make sense of the information the book gave. This book has several plot twists, and I loved learning about Win, and how he came to be the way he is. I loved this book so much, it is eerily amazing, and unbelievably dark. It is like a slightly more dark and sinister version of The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. Before reading this book, I was in a slump, and this novel definately brought me out of it. I give this book 4/5 stars, not for any particular reason, it just didn't seem like a 5-star book to me. You guys definately have to check this book out when it is released on June 11th. This book has impacted me immensely, and I find myself thinking about it, even now, a month after reading it. It's dark and impactful nature definitely makes this book one of my favorites. Mark your calendars, June 11th.

US v.s. UK (1)

Hi guys,
            I'm sorry for not posting anything for the past couple weeks... so much for my new year's resolution right... I feel disappointed in myself. There's not much of an excuse, I've been busy, but most of all, I think it's out of pure laziness... not laziness for not posting, but for not reading. I was trying to think of posts to post, and the only ones I really felt like doing were book reviews, but I just couldn't since I haven't read anything lately. I'm starting to read more, I'm currently reading, and loving, Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick. So today I saw a very unique post my Emily's Crammed Bookshelf called US v.s. UK, and here's the info on it: "US vs UK is a meme hosted by Book Passion for Life.  In this meme, I will post a US and UK cover from the same book, and you guys will vote which one you like best."

The first book cover battle is going to be on The Hunt by Andrew Fukuda. This is a novel I've started reading but had to put down because I was in a book slump, but I hope to pick it up again soon because it was amazingly original.  Without further ado, here are the covers...

             US                                 v.s.                            UK

 My Vote: 

This is not a hard choice for me at all, I prefer The Hunt... UK EDITION! I don't think this will be a hard choice for you guys either. The US edition just doesn't express the mood of the book in my opinion. The UK edition however expresses that immensely, especially with the pack of vampires, showing that it's Gene (a human) against a world of vampires. 

Let me know which book cover you guys prefer, US or UK? I hope you guys enjoyed reading this feature, I really loved doing it, and I have TONS of book covers that I would love to do this with, this is just scratching the surface. I hope to post another review this week, but I don't know if I will be able to. HOPEFULLY I can! Until next time, check out this book if you haven't already. 

Fade Book Review

 Hi Guys, 
This week's review will be of Fade by Lisa McMann, the second book in the Dream Catcher series. A story about a girl who can enter others' dreams, whether joyful, embarrassing, or nightmarish. Here's the synopsis from Goodreads:

SOME NIGHTMARES NEVER END.
For Janie and Cabel, real life is getting tougher than the dreams. They're just trying to carve out a little (secret) time together, but no such luck.
Disturbing things are happening at Fieldridge High, yet nobody's talking. When Janie taps into a classmate's violent nightmares, the case finally breaks open -- but nothing goes as planned. Not even close. Janie's in way over her head, and Cabe's shocking behavior has grave consequences for them both.
Worse yet, Janie learns the truth about herself and her ability -- and it's bleak. Seriously, brutally bleak. Not only is her fate as a dream catcher sealed, but what's to come is way darker than she'd feared....

My first impression of this book was that the cover for Fade was so much better than the cover for Wake. I don't know why, but there's something about the ominous objects on the covers of these books, it really draws my eye, and makes me want to read it more. Aside from the cover, the synopsis of this book was also better than the synopsis of Wake. The synopsis doesn't really cover exactly what really happens in the book, what they mention have very little significance in this novel, in my opinion. It took a little while to get into this book, it was just a tad bit boring in the beginning, but once Janie and Cabel decide to become Narcs, it starts to get really interesting. This novel takes two very serious situations that seem to be happening more and more in our world: drugs and alcohol with teens, and teacher-student affairs. Janie and Cabel work with the police to find out exactly what is happening in both scenarios, and they both get into very dangerous situations. I really loved the action and suspense of this book. You also got to learn more about Janie's condition, and more about her relationship with Cabel. It's very interesting, and I couldn't wait to read Gone, the third and final installment in this series. I give this book 4/5 stars, just because of the slow start. Besides that, it was a very interesting read. The story line was still a little depressing, but nowhere close to the depression I felt while reading Wake. It picks up a lot, and you guys should read it, it's pretty short. I think it has around 250 pages, but I can't really remember. You guys should really check out this series, if you didn't like Wake, keep reading the series, it picks up so much from Wake. CHECK IT OUT, NOW!

Wake Book Review

Hi Guys,
This week's book review is going to be on a book I finished in a couple hours over the summer, Wake by Lisa McMann. I don't know why I'm just now posting a review, I guess I just forgot to review it when I finished the series. This is the first book in the Dream Catcher trilogy, and here's the synopsis from Goodreads:

NOT ALL DREAMS ARE SWEET.
For seventeen-year-old Janie, getting sucked into other people's dreams is getting old. Especially the falling dreams, the naked-but-nobody-notices dreams, and the sex-crazed dreams. Janie's seen enough fantasy booty to last her a lifetime.She can't tell anybody about what she does -- they'd never believe her, or worse, they'd think she's a freak. So Janie lives on the fringe, cursed with an ability she doesn't want and can't control.Then she falls into a gruesome nightmare, one that chills her to the bone. For the first time, Janie is more than a witness to someone else's twisted psyche. She is a participant....
  
My first impression of this book was that it was original, and I love the ominous cover. Janie's ability is one unread about in books, yet everyone has thought about the possibility of going into other people's dreams. We all think it would be very amazing seeing what others dream about, but in this book it shows the negative side-effects of this ability. I read it very quickly, it's only 210 pages, and I found it easy to read with the way the book itself was structured. I longed to learn everything about Janie and her ability, and eventually about Cabel. The characters were amazing, you either loved them or hated them with a passion. When I was reading about Cabel's dream, I was a little scared, it definitely made me look over my shoulder a few times. Overall, though, this book was very depressing, I was expecting a fun, light hearted, story about  a girl who can visit other people's dreams, but this was not that type of book. This depressed me to the core, I was looking forward to it picking up and getting better, but it never did. I liked learning about the characters, and Janie's condition, but I didn't know how much longer I would be able to take the depression of this book. I give this book 3/5 stars, which is an "average" rating. I didn't hate this book by any means, I thought it was very good, but the depression of this book definitely made a four starred book become a three starred one. I would still check it out if you don't have a problem with the depressing storyline. The characters are really good, and so is the mystery around Janie's condition, but it lacked something that I was looking for. If you've read this novel, let me know what you thought of this book in the comments.

Pretty Little Liars Book Review

Hi Guys,
I'm sorry I didn't post a review this weekend. It's been because of homework/projects/events going on during my weekend. Anyway, this week's book review will be on a book I read a few summers ago, Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard. I know, you're probably thinking, "This is really girly, I mean just look at the cover, why would you read this?" This is exactly what I thought about it until I heard more. Here's the synopsis from Goodreads:

Everyone has something to hide-especially high school juniors Spencer, Aria, Emily and Hanna.
Spencer covets her sister's boyfriend. Aria's fantasizing about her English teacher. Emily's crushing on the new girl at school. Hanna uses some ugly tricks to stay beautiful. But they've all kept an even bigger secret since their friend Alison vanished.
How do I know? Because I know everything about the bad girls they were, the naughty girls they are, and the dirty secrets they've kept. And guess what? I'm telling.
-A

My first impression of this was that it was definitely a "chick-book", I don't see me, or any other guy, ever picking this up to read. This reaction was apparently just made off of the cover alone. One day in class my friend was talking about an all new show that was really good, and would "beat out the Vampire Diaries TV show," (close, but no cigar). At the time I didn't think I would watch it because I saw the cover of the book at a book store, I knew it would be girly... well, one day while at home, I had absolutely nothing to do, and the first episode of this show was on for a re-run, and I decided I might as well, and I've been watching the show ever since. The show is inevitably what made me want to read the book in the first place. The show is amazing, and although I've only read the first book, I continue to watch the show every Tuesday night. This definitely has some "girly" aspects to it, but overall it isn't really too girly. There are a lot of  secrets, mystery, suspense, and characters. My favorite character to read about is Aria, then a close second is Spencer (she kind of reminds me of myself a little). The other characters kind of fell flat to me in this novel, on the show however, I like all of them. The events that happen in this novel are basically what happens within the first three episodes. I like this book I give it 4/5 stars, just because it had some things that I just got bored reading about. If you haven't checked out this series/show... do it now, they're really good. Guys, don't be afraid that it looks to "girly", it isn't too bad, and it's probably the best mystery book I've ever read. I really need to catch up on these books, they're already in season 3 of the show... Yikes, I'm quite a slacker when it comes to this series. If you guys want me to put the next couple books of these higher on my TBR, just comment letting me know, otherwise it's about midway through my TBR pile, but don't fret, I at least have it bought on my new kindle, so I could start it any time.

The Rise of Nine Book Review

Hi Guys,
I'm sorry I'm a couple days late on the review, I've been a little busy this week. But, I didn't forget, so here is the review for The Rise of Nine by Pittacus Lore, the third book in the I am Number Four series. This was another amazing installment in this book, and I can't wait to review it. Here is the synopsis from the Goodreads:

Until the day I met John Smith, Number Four, I'd been on the run alone, hiding and fighting to stay alive. Together, we are much more powerful. But it could only last so long before we had to separate to find the others. . . . I went to Spain to find Seven, and I found even more, including a tenth member of the Garde who escaped from Lorien alive. Ella is younger than the rest of us, but just as brave. Now we're looking for the others--including John. But so are they. They caught Number One in Malaysia. Number Two in England. And Number Three in Kenya. They caught me in New York--but I escaped. I am Number Six. They want to finish what they started.
But they'll have to fight us first.

My first impression of this book was that it didn't really look like the other covers, I liked the first two, but this one kind of fell flat to me. When I bought the book, I noticed that the cover felt strange too, I didn't like that either... I'm also confused as to whether the book cover is a rock, or sand. I thought it was sand at first, but I've heard people say it was a rock, so I don't know. Besides the cover, I was hoping this would be a good book, I loved the I am Number Four, but The Power of Six was below average for me. I started reading this in August of 2012, but I just finished this past Saturday. I wasn't reading it the whole time, I set it down to read some other books, and I just got back around to it. It was an easy read for the last 150 pages or so. Although, it was a little boring in parts in the middle. The plot wasn't very interesting, the only new thing was the vision of Setrakus Raa (#Spellcheck) by each member of the Garde. There were also some "surprise" plot twists (I guess that by the quotation marks, you guys understand that they weren't very surprising). I loved the additional new characters, Nine has instantly become one of my favorite fictional characters ever, and Eight was likable enough, but I felt something that made him seem like the "Judas" of the story, but I don't know how it'll turn out. The action of this book was amazing, and the suspense left me on the edge of my seat. I'm really looking forward to what happens in the future books, I want for Five to be introduced, and I WANT TO KNOW WHERE/HOW SAM IS!!! Sam is one of my favorite characters of this series, and I need to read about him some more, I miss his hilarious wit. I also liked some of the new legacies introduced in the book. I give this book 4/5 stars. It was better than the Power of Six, but nowhere close to I am Number Four. The reason I gave it four stars, is because of the boring parts, and that's about it. I can't wait for the next novel, and I hope it's the best one yet! Check this book series out, if you haven't already, It's AMAZING!!!

The Queen's Army Short Story Review

Hi Guys,
This week was another "chill" week for me, I only had to go to school Monday-Wednesday because of teacher workdays, and this coming Monday I don't have to go because of Martin Luther King Jr. day. I love long weekends, and this is one of the longest. So far this break I haven't really read a whole lot, I've been doing the last little bit of homework I had, and watching the first 18 episodes of Supernatural on Netflix. I hope to get some reading done guys, I promise. I'm about 50 pages into The Hunt, about 50 pages into The Immortal Rules, 240 pages into The Rise of Nine, and 11 pages into Game of Thrones. So maybe I'll finish 1 or 2 of these books this week. But I don't know, Supernatural is getting really interesting... sorry I'm a little late on that band-wagon... 8 seasons late I think. Anyway, This week's review is on The Queen's Army, another short-story by Marissa Meyer, and this is based in the same world as her novel Cinder, and her other short story, Glitches. Here is the synopsis from Goodreads:

It is time. The boy must leave his family to serve in the Queen’s army. To be chosen is an honor. To decline is impossible. The boy is modified. He is trained for several years, and learns to fight to the death. He proves to the Queen -- and to himself -- that he is capable of evil. He is just the kind of soldier the Queen wants: the alpha of his pack.

My first impression was good, since I already read Glitches and pretty much liked it, I thought I would like this as well... but I didn't. I LOVED IT! This was so good, it was fast-paced, it had enough of a story-line to keep you interested, and had some of the best characters I've read about. Meyer has the ability to captivate you with a character, I wanted to know everything about the main character, whose name I've forgotten. He was very interesting, and I loved learning about the wolves as well. I loved how his brother was brought into everything, I loved the ending... I LITERALLY LOVED EVERYTHING!!! I can't think of anything I didn't like about this story. I give this book, if you haven't guessed already, 5/5 stars, because, in my eyes, it was perfect. I can't wait to read Cinder and Scarlet if this is what one of Meyer's short stories is like. I understand that Scarlet isn't in the POV of this character, but I think I'll still enjoy at least reading about him again. I'm so ready to start this series! You guys should definitely check this out, it has tons of action, plot-twists, character development, humor, anything you would want in a story... except for romance. So go read it NOW! It's only like a dollar on amazon. NOW!!!

Glitches Short Story Review

Hi Guys,
This week has gone pretty smoothly for me, thank you God! With exams, and the alternative scheduling of my classes, I've had no homework, and very little classwork. So I have no altercation with posting this week's review... this week. This is going to be the first Short Story review on my blog, and I'm quite excited about it. I really liked this short story, and I look forward to reading the novel that follows this story. I read this short story on my kindle for free a few weeks ago, the name of it is Glitches, and it was written by Marissa Meyer. It is book 0.5 in the Lunar Chronicles series, the first book being Cinder by Meyer, which was released around mid-2012. Here's the synopsis of this short story from Goodreads:

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. In “Glitches,” a short prequel story to Cinder, we see the results of that illness play out, and the emotional toll that takes on Cinder. Something that may, or may not, be a glitch...

My first impression of this story was that I really didn't know what to expect... I mean I've wanted to read Cinder since it's release, but I've yet to read it. I got this all because of the fact that it was free on my kindle, I didn't know if it would be fine for me to read this before Cinder, but I did anyway. Don't worry guys, it's perfectly fine to read this without reading Cinder... it just basically gives her back-story.  When I started reading this story, I was enveloped in the character of Cinder. I wanted to know EVERYTHING about her immediately. Once she arrived in Japan, however, I got a little bored. The only thing I was really interested in was the friendship between Cinder and her new step-sister. This went on for a few pages, before it started to pick up again. When Cinder started to mend the broken android, I was captivated yet again, and not long after that scene, her step-father became very ill, making it very interesting to me once more. I wanted to know what disease he had, and what some of the symptoms/treatments were. Thankfully it gave you a brief bit of information on the sickness right before the story ended. I give this story 4/5 stars for the lack of interest I had during the middle. Overall, however, it was a good read, it had great characters, a wonderful scenery, and a very original re-telling idea. I enjoyed it, and I believe you guys would too, so check this story out. You will still be able to read this story if you haven't read Cinder, so this is for ANYONE to read! The next review will also be on a short story by Marissa Meyer, The Queen's Army (book 1.5 of the Lunar Chronicles).

Lockdown Book Review

Hi Guys,
I'm trying my best to keep up with doing at least one post a week for the new year. I don't know how it'll work out, but so far, it's working. I know I said I was going to do a review of Glitches next, but I decided to do a book I finished a few days ago instead.This is the first book I finished in 2013, and for those of you are follow me on Goodreads might have seen this on my 2013 Challenge. For those of you who haven't seen it the name of the book is Lockdown by Alexander Gordon Smith, and it's the first novel in the Escape from Furnace series. I've heard several people talk about this book, and I've heard mixed reviews... but the good reviews, plus the strangely awesome cover, led to me picking this book up. This is also the third book I read on my kindle paperwhite (I'm still loving it guys!). Here's the synopsis of Lockdown from Goodreads:

Furnace Penitentiary: the world’s most secure prison for young offenders, buried a mile beneath the earth’s surface. Convicted of a murder he didn’t commit, sentenced to life without parole, “new fish” Alex Sawyer knows he has two choices: find a way out, or resign himself to a death behind bars, in the darkness at the bottom of the world. Except in Furnace, death is the least of his worries. Soon Alex discovers that the prison is a place of pure evil, where inhuman creatures in gas masks stalk the corridors at night, where giants in black suits drag screaming inmates into the shadows, where deformed beasts can be heard howling from the blood-drenched tunnels below. And behind everything is the mysterious, all-powerful warden, a man as cruel and dangerous as the devil himself, whose unthinkable acts have consequences that stretch far beyond the walls of the prison. Together with a bunch of inmates—some innocent kids who have been framed, others cold-blooded killers—Alex plans an escape. But as he starts to uncover the truth about Furnace’s deeper, darker purpose, Alex’s actions grow ever more dangerous, and he must risk everything to expose this nightmare that’s hidden from the eyes of the world.

My first impression of this book was that it looked scary... and that's not a bad thing, but I just don't really read a lot of horror fiction, not that I don't want to, it's just that there are very few horror books I'm interested in.  Once I read the synopsis, I realized that it seemed like a book I might like, so I kept it in the back of my mind. Then I saw CassJayTuck do a review of the first three books in the series, and she seems to like some of the same books I like, so I put it a little higher on my TBR list, but still wasn't in a real hurry to read it. But once I got my paperwhite, one of the books I saw recommended for me in the kindle shop was this, and I figured, "Why not?", so I bought it right then. So when I started to read it, I found that I didn't want to put it down. Before too long, I'd finished and LOVED it. This is one of my favorite books now, and I can't believe I waited so long to read it. The characters, the plot, the setting, the action, and the writing of this novel left me breathless, and I can't wait to read the next book. My favorite character was Donovan, he seemed like a very sensible guy, and I like how he helped Alex as much as he could, even if he didn't want to half the time. I'm a little shocked about what happened to him at the end of the book, but it just makes me want to read the next book more to find out what happened to him. I give this book 5/5 stars, I didn't see anything wrong with it at all... I mean, it got a little gory at times, but I'm a guy, so I liked it. Like I said before, I can't wait to read the next couple books in the series, and I was left on a cliff-hanger at the end of this book, and I need to know what happens next! I wish the next book were free so I could already read it and review it, but I'll just have to wait until I feel like I want to buy another kindle book (since I got so many for Christmas). I just can't wait to read Solitary!!! I NEED IT!!! Anyway, hopefully next week I will have another review for you guys, and it probably will be Glitches this time, but "the world may never know." Until next time guys, keep reading, and PICK UP THIS NOVEL!!!

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl Book Review

Hi guys,
I'm sorry I haven't posted in FOREVER, it's just that my schedule is ridiculous. I've been staying up until 2 in the morning almost every night doing homework and projects. I've hardly had any time to read. That's why I'm glad for Christmas Break (even if it is only a week long this year (thanks a lot school board!!!)) Anyway, for Christmas I bought the new kindle paperwhite, and I LOVE IT! It's so much better than my old kindle. I definitely recommend it. When I got my kindle I bought a few books on it, one of which was Me and Earl and the Dying Girl. I haven't read a book since Ten, even though I've tried, but I've been too swamped. So when my parents announced we were going to Baltimore for a few days to see some relatives, I knew I would get some reading done. I heard so much about this book that's one reason I bought it, the main reason I bought it though, was because everyone said it was one of the funniest books they'd ever read. Here's the synopsis from Goodreads:

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.
Until Greg’s mother forces him to rekindle his childhood friendship with Rachel.
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.
And all at once Greg must abandon invisibility and stand in the spotlight.

My first impression of this book was really good because of the cover, which is awesome (I love the colors, and the Scrapbook-y feel to it) and I also had a good first impression of this book because of the book review of it by Raeleen from Padfoot and Occasionally Prongs. I love all the characters in this book, they all add to the story line so well. I, obviously, like the three main characters the most, but all the other characters really made this book more life-like. There's really nothing to say about this book that hasn't already been put in the synopsis except that the awkward chemistry between Greg and Rachel is hilarious. My favorite part of the book was there conversation about Pillows... it's the funniest thing I've ever read. I loved the humor of this book up until about the half-way point from then on out some of the jokes started to get a little repetitive and not as funny, but there were some funny parts of the second half of this book. Also, this book is very vulgar, and you guys know I don't really like that... but somehow this book kind of made it work for me, I don't know how, but it did... so that didn't cause a large deduction of star rating power. One thing I didn't like about his book was that it ended too abruptly for me it kind of built up with all the humor and everything going on that once the thing, which you've been expecting the whole time, happens, it just sort of ends... there wasn't a large revelation, or change of heart, or anything... so I guess that's what makes it more like real life, but I just didn't like the ending. So I give this book 4/5 stars because of the annoying humor from the second half, and the abrupt ending. Except for those two things, I loved this book, and I'm glad it got me out of my reading slump. I can't wait to, hopefully, start reviewing more frequently, and my next review will be on Glitches, which will be my first short-story review. This is the prequel to the book Cinder by Marissa Meyer, and I hope to review it soon. Check out Me and Earl and the Dying Girl... it will make you laugh harder than you have ever laughed during a book, I swear! READ IT NOW!