Category: Book Review
Wake by Amanda Hocking
(Cover picture courtesy of Effortlessly Reading.)
Fall under the spell of Wake—the first book in an achingly beautiful new series by celebrated author Amanda Hocking—and lose yourself to the Watersong.
Gorgeous. Fearless. Dangerous. They’re the kind of girls you envy; the kind of girls you want to hate. Strangers in town for the summer, Penn, Lexi and Thea have caught everyone’s attention—but it’s Gemma who’s attracted theirs. She’s the one they’ve chosen to be part of their group.
Gemma seems to have it all—she’s carefree, pretty, and falling in love with Alex, the boy next door. He’s always been just a friend, but this summer they’ve taken their relationship to the next level, and now there’s no going back. Then one night, Gemma’s ordinary life changes forever. She’s taking a late night swim under the stars when she finds Penn, Lexi and Thea partying on the cove. They invite her to join them, and the next morning she wakes up on the beach feeling groggy and sick, knowing something is different.
Suddenly Gemma is stronger, faster, and more beautiful than ever. But her new powers come with a terrifying price. And as she uncovers the truth, she’s is forced to choose between staying with those she loves—or entering a new world brimming with dark hungers and unimaginable secrets.
After the disaster that was Hollowland I felt a little more hopeful about Wake. Zombies clearly aren’t Amanda Hocking’s strength but mythical creatures like trolls definitely are. That’s why I thought she could handle sirens a little better than Elisa Freilich. Unfortunately that was not the case.
I felt like banging my head against the wall because in the beginning nothing happened. Really, the first 200 pages of this 300 page book were spent setting up Gemma and Harper’s lives in their small town. We don’t actually get any siren action until the very last chapters of the novel and then it ends on a cliffhanger that’s just shameless. I mean, really? Ending the book just when it gets to the point of the whole Watersong series is just crass commercialism.
Despite the slow pacing I did like some of the characters. Harper, the over-protective older sister is my kind of character. (Myself being the aforementioned over-protective older sister.) I love her struggle with her attraction toward Daniel and the mind vs. heart idea behind it all. I can completely identify with that. However, Gemma’s relationship Alex is just so…awkward. It’s awkward even for teenage love, believe me. It’s like they don’t really have anything in common besides the fact that Alex is Harper’s friend and it’s awkward to have your friend dating your little sister.
Once we finally got the explanation for the sirens I was interested. Amanda Hocking did a great job with the backstory, but it was too little too late. The book was well past the hope of salvation, despite the obvious effort that was put into developing a realistic backstory for the sirens. Their cynical attitude toward men was fascinating and sort of understandable given the circumstances; I just wish we had gotten to know them on a deeper level sooner.
Basically: meh. So much potential, but I was so let down.
I give this book 2.5/5 stars.
Emperor of Thorns by Mark Lawrence
(Cover picture courtesy of The Royal Library.)
The path to the throne is broken – only the broken may walk it.
To reach the throne requires that a man journey. Even a path paved with good intentions can lead to hell, and my intentions were never good.
The Hundred converge for Congression to politic upon the corpse of Empire, and while they talk the Dead King makes his move, and I make mine. The world is cracked, time has run through, leaving us clutching at the end days, the future so bright that those who see it are the first to burn. These are the days that have waited for us all our lives. These are my days. I will stand before the Hundred and they will listen. I will take the throne whoever seeks to thwart me, living or dead, and if I must be the last emperor then I will make of it such an ending.
This is where the wise man turns away. This is where the holy kneel and call on God. These are the last miles, my brothers. Don’t look to me to save you. Don’t think I will not spend you. Run if you have the wit. Pray if you have the soul. Stand your ground if courage is yours. But don’t follow me.
Follow me, and I will break your heart.
Um, wow? There’s really nothing else to say about this. What a stunning conclusion to such an unusual trilogy.
First off, Jorg is his usual horrible/awesome/ruthless/sarcastic self. He really makes no apologies for who he is and doesn’t even try to become a better person now that his child bride Miana is expecting a child. The plot flips between his actions and adventures five years ago and his current trek for the Congression in order to become Emperor of the Broken Empire. It’s reminiscent of Don Carlo’s character in Ernani except without the whole vowing to be a better person if he becomes emperor.
What I did like the most about Jorg’s character is that despite his all-around awfulness, you get the feeling that he’s broken on the inside as well and is fully aware of it. Even with those limitations on his character he grows within those limits quite well. As the end draws nearer you can feel his need to fulfill the purpose Fexler told him about despite the consequences. And how he fulfills that promise and solves the whole Dead King problem is absolutely brilliant on Mark Lawrence’s part. The epilogue also sticks to how Jorg’s character is and imagines a realistic ending for such a broken man.
As usual the world-building in The Broken Empire trilogy is amazing. We get to see all kinds of new places, learn about the promised lands where the radiation from the nuclear bombs went off and see all kinds of new characters that have grown out of the dark underbelly of the broken empire. What I found particularly interesting were not only how certain religions survived, but also the cult of mystery that surrounds ‘mathemagicians’. In a place that has essentially reverted back to the Middle Ages I suppose advanced math would be sort of magical.
The plot wasn’t nearly as confusing as it was in King of Thorns. I found the switches between different points of view had a more natural transition and that the little subplots were better explained. Overall it was a little more fast-paced because of that and Mark Lawrence kept me guessing until the end. Even in the epilogue I wasn’t sure what was going to happen to Jorg until it was revealed within the narrative. Now that is the mark of a good storyteller.
I give this book 5/5 stars.
The Space Between by Brenna Yovanoff
(Cover picture courtesy of Bookyurt.)
Everything is made of steel, even the flowers. How can you love anything in a place like this?
Daphne is the half-demon, half-fallen angel daughter of Lucifer and Lilith. Life for her is an endless expanse of time, until her brother Obie is kidnapped – and Daphne realizes she may be partially responsible. Determined to find him, Daphne travels from her home in Pandemonium to the vast streets of Earth, where everything is colder and more terrifying. With the help of the human boy she believes was the last person to see her brother alive, Daphne glimpses into his dreams, discovering clues to Obie’s whereabouts. As she delves deeper into her demonic powers, she must navigate the jealousies and alliances of the violent archangels who stand in her way. But she also discovers, unexpectedly, what it means to love and be human in a world where human is the hardest thing to be.
This second novel by rising star Brenna Yovanoff is a story of identity, discovery, and a troubled love between two people struggling to find their place both in our world and theirs.
After reading and hating The Replacement I was pretty skeptical about reading another Brenna Yovanoff book. But hey, the cover was awesome and the first chapter had a little more promise than her debut novel.
I liked the main character in The Space Between so much more than I did in her first book. Daphne lacks emotion and this time it’s not because of poor writing but rather that’s how her character should be (and is). She’s the daughter of Lilith and Lucifer and her rather alien perspective on the human world makes sense in that context. When she starts falling in love it’s interesting to see the war she goes through with herself as she tries to discover if she really is capable of love, unlike her half-sisters the Lilim. Overall I felt her love for Obie her brother was stronger than her love for Truman, but that’s really minor. I did enjoy Daphne as a character.
What I liked this time is Brenna Yovanoff’s world-building. She actually tried to explain certain elements and while she didn’t explain everything to my satisfaction, I could actually understand what was going on. I loved meeting Beelzebub, Lilith and Lucifer and thoroughly enjoyed how tired old heaven and hell tropes had new twists put on them. The ambiguous nature of both sides instead of the traditional good vs. evil was refreshing.
What I didn’t like, however, was the plot. It seemed to slow down to a crawl in the most unnecessary places and then was completely rushed where I wanted to know more. Some of the motives for the characters weren’t very believable to me, but I can’t tell you about that without any unnecessary spoilers. Let’s just say that I’m not surprised about Truman’s father but his father’s actions are poorly justified when we learn what they are. The ending was incredibly rushed and I’m still not sure I entirely understand it. Perhaps that’s just me or perhaps Brenna Yovanoff still needs to work on conveying her story more.
Would I recommend The Space Between? Sure, it wouldn’t hurt to give it a try. But should you go out, buy it immediately and read it all without taking a break? No, it’s not one of those books. It’s good, but not great.
I give this book 3.5/5 stars.
The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
(Cover picture courtesy of Book Box Daily.)
It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die.
At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them.
Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn’t given her much of a chance. So she enters the competition — the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen.
Well I suppose that The Scorpio Races at least has good descriptions. That’s pretty much all the praise I can give this book.
This is the first book I’ve read by Maggie Stiefvater and it will very likely be the last. The Scorpio Races is a book that’s 404 pages long that tells a non-existent story. (Spoilers ahead.) Puck, or Kate as she’s properly called, is a young girl living on a mysterious island that has caipall uisce. Essentially they’re vicious, flesh-eating horses that live in the water. And the crazy people on the island (the ones that stay there anyway) race them on the first of every single November. Kate’s older brother is leaving for the mainland to make a better life for himself and his orphaned siblings but oh no, Kate can’t have that! She decides, on a whim, to enter the Scorpio Races in order to delay her brother’s departure…by one whole month. Yep, that’s her great plan. Maggie Stiefvater later inserts further drama about the house coming close to being foreclosed on but it just seems like a lame justification for Kate’s stupidity.
I should have liked Sean as a character but I couldn’t muster up the energy to give a crap about him. He works for an awful man because he wants to buy the horse he’s become attached to. That’s it. He often speaks with the mainland horse buyer George Holly, but Holly’s main purpose as a character is to offer exposition and generally pad the length of the novel. He serves no useful purpose, believe me. And it seems the only purpose Sean has in the end is to save Kate’s stupid butt when she decides to enter the Scorpio Races on a regular horse. Amongst flesh-eating caipall uisce. Does her stupidity have no end?
I nearly fell asleep by the time the races started. The races start on page 380 in a book that’s 404 pages long. The rest of the novel is meaningless ‘training’ sequences that always seem to end in forced, awkward ‘romance’ between Kate and Sean. It just seems like added drama rather than a genuine romance. I mean, if George Holly hadn’t said that Sean and Kate obviously had feelings for each other I really don’t think I would have noticed. There’s a fine line between subtle and non-existent.
Ugh, for a novel with a great premise, The Scorpio Races was a complete bomb. To be honest I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone.
I give this book 0.5/5 stars.
Living with Your Body and Other Things You Hate by Emily Sandoz and Troy DuFrene
(Cover picture courtesy of Target.)
Let’s be honest: most people are unhappy with at least some aspect of their physical appearance. Just think of all the money we spend each year trying to improve our looks! But if worrying about your appearance is getting in the way of living, maybe it’s time to start thinking about body image in a completely new way.
Based in proven-effective acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), Living with Your Body and Other Things You Hate offers a unique approach to addressing your struggle with body image. In this book, you will not be told that your self-perceptions are wrong, that your thoughts are irrational, or that your feelings are misguided. Instead, you will learn to live with the reality that these often painful thoughts and beliefs about yourself will arise from time to time, and that what is really important is accepting these distressing thoughts without allowing them to dominate your life.
You know what it’s like to constantly be checking the mirror, to avoid certain social situations where your body may be exposed, or to gaze longingly at a fashion model in a magazine and think, “Why can’t I be her?” But what you may not know is that people who struggle with negative body image are at an increased risk for depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and low self-esteem. Body image problems can even lead to major financial issues. By focusing on your appearance and little else, you are hurting yourself in more ways than one.
If you are ready to find a purpose in life that is more important than the pain you feel about your appearance, this book provides a truthful, powerful resource.
*Possible body image related triggers*
[Full disclosure: I received a free ebook through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]
I’ll be honest with you guys: this was one of the hardest books I’ve ever had to read. I picked it up on NetGalley with the intention of reading it and keeping my thoughts to myself because like a lot of people, I’ve struggled with my body image for a long time. However I felt I had to share my thoughts on the book.
While I don’t necessarily think this book is for everyone, it certainly helped me. It taught me how your attention span can either be scattered or stuck and that being stuck on your appearance can affect your whole life in ways you’ve never really noticed. It taught me how to accept my appearance and not be repulsed by the areas of my body that I hate. In truth, it taught me so much more than that but those are the main areas that I felt are important if you want to decide to buy the book or not.
What makes this book effective is that after every little section there’s an activity you can choose to do to help you in your body image journey. There’s audio tapes you can download to go along with these exercises and if you’re serious about the book I’d highly recommend using them. Yes, some of these exercises are going to bring up painful memories. Yet some of them will bring up a time way back when you were a child that wasn’t concerned with your body image. It’ll teach you how to accept that sometimes you’ll feel badly about your body and that those thoughts are okay as long as you stop letting them run your life.
Really, there’s not much more I can say. Living with Your Body and Other Things You Hate is one of the more effective self-help books I’ve personally read and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with giving it a try. It worked for me but it might not work for everyone.
I give this book 5/5 stars.