mynameismarines's reviews
1076 reviews

I loved Just One Day and had been looking forward to this companion novel since I turned the last page of the first. Perhaps it was too much anticipation. I did not love Just One Year the same way.

A few things:

- The first book represented a more believable set of unlikely events. So many "accidents" happen to Willem that it truly starts to feel like the work of the plot more than anything I could fully believe or get into.

- Allyson was my preferred narrator for this story. I felt for her and related to her and I didn't always for Willem. That's not to put down the whole story-- he came to conclusions that hit close to home. It's just another reason why this book rates below the first in the series.

- I personally felt like this, while a good story, and one that I read in about four hours on a Sunday night, didn't do much to add to the story introduced in Just One Day. Sure, now we know what Willem was doing while Allyson was floundering, but at the end of the day, it didn't add much value to what was already a wonderful and full story.

- I really wanted to know more PAST "My name is Allyson." Really, really, really. And I know that what I want is just that, but I couldn't help but be disappointed that this book didn't give us as much as a scrap. Booooooo.

In the end, it was a good story, but one that doesn't quite compare to its predecessor. I will probably revisit Just One Day, but I don't feel the same need to come back to this book.

I love Patrick Ness and I love him for writing some of my favorite things of all time. I was beyond excited to pick up his new book, and I wasn't disappointed even if this book wasn't exactly my cup of tea.

More Than This tells the story of Seth, a teenaged boy who dies after drowning in the ocean. He dies and then he wakes up somewhere new. We follow Seth as he tries to survive, tries to make sense of his new existence, his old life, and how the two are related.

One thing about Ness books is that I shouldn't tell you much more. Ness has a way of keeping you off balance for the entire story. You never settle into the story as much as you allow yourself to be jerked along by it. It makes for an exciting read. I never once found a, "this is a good place to stop for the night," spot. I was always tearing myself from the world after something else was just revealed.

Ness' writing style can range from downright poetic, to the style in this book which is very simple, stripped down and to the point. This book asks big WHAT IS LIFE? questions, and it does so in so many words. I mean, it is titled More Than This. The story is existential, but I love that it never gets preachy. Ness presents the story, builds up his questions around it and sort of puts his hands up and tells you to infer your own answers at your leisure.

Perhaps other reviews won't treat these as spoilers, but [spoiler] I liked the supporting characters for what they added to the story, though I don't think there was one built to be loved. They are all flawed, quirky people, dropped in this deep and dark setting. Also, I applaud Ness for his use and portrayal of a gay protagonist. This isn't "revealed" into some ways into the story, so I don't want to take that away from anyone.[/spoilers]

So why couldn't I bring myself to rate this 5 stars? The ending. It wasn't bad by any stretch of the imagination. I was looking at my Kindle seeing 99% and thinking, "OH MY GOSH HOW WILL HE FIX THIS?" But he does. Kind of. Reading this book was like a winding path uphill and the end leaves you right at the top of the hill. You turn the last page, and kind of look around all, "now what?" You know, I'd even say that's part of the charm of this book, but it isn't something I particularly like. So that missing star (and probably closer to half star) is a personal preference thing.

Worth the read and will definitely end up as one of the best things I've read this year.

In a lot of ways, Fangirl seems like a book tailor-made for Internet lovers: an introvert with social anxieties sets off for college where she's often forced to defend Internet culture, community and fanfiction.

And, I mean, the plot is a little more involved than just Cath and her fanfiction, but the charm of this book is in the details, the realism and the injection of this culture we know and so love.

While romance is at the heart of this book, it isn't a book solely about a girl's freshman year romance. I have a soft spot for books that tackle on sistership, and Fangirl does that in a heartbreaking manner. My chest ached for Cath and for the way she stayed so steady while her sister floated away. I loved how their building conflict was resolved,

Spoiler

because it wasn't almost directly addressed. They talked a little about it, but mostly, they both accepted that it was over and they didn't want to be so far apart. It reminded me so much of trying to stay mad at my sisters, but ending up realizing that I needed to share something with them, be somewhere with them, do something with them. The anger always evaporates and you fall into synch once again.

The supporting characters in Fangirl were just as (if not more) intriguing than Cath. Reagan and her brand of blunt was fantastic, and never felt too mean or bitchy. Particularly because that sort of strong, unshakeable personality is what Cath needed most at one point.

Levi was also great to read about. I'm always weird and super picky about love interests in stories, but Levi was refreshing. He was nice (though not perfect) and he was flawed (but not mean) and we was good to Cath. It was a well paced romance, one that never felt forced and that was grounded in lovely moments like a Kanye dance party and reading out loud and the sharing of one's passion.

The writing was smooth and natural, often peppered with lines that struck me right in the feels, because I'm pretty sure Rowell was talking about me. She was talking about my life. The only down side for me where the longer snippets of fanfiction. Don't get me wrong-- I loved that Cath was a fanfiction writer and Rowell has a fine understanding of what that means for her character, but I didn't care a lick about Simon Snow. Reading so much about him only seemed like longer interruptions to the story I wanted to be reading.

When I turned the last page, I knew how nice the book was but it wasn't until this morning that I realized how much it managed to settle into my skin and into my brain. I didn't expect this book to have so much staying power, but it does. I'm still thinking about it and I was sad to leave Cath and Wren and Levi and Reagan behind.

I had to read this for a class, and since I will have to discuss it there more than I ever wish to, this will not be a full, true review. I must say the following however:

This book offended me more than I ever imagined it could. It offended me as a worker. It offended me as a woman. It offended me as a minority. It offended me as a Christian. It offended me as someone who has worked for minimum wage. It offended me as someone who does not have a PhD. It offended my intelligence.

Nickel and Dimed is not without its interesting observation or two, however it is presented in an insulting, faux-scientific way. Ehrenrich set out to show some truths about the low wage work world and only succeeded in showing us her own bigoted, patronizing thoughts on the low wage work world. It's a story, a poor sampling, offers very few facts and relies on very little evidence.

That her grand conclusion was "not having money is hard?" Congratulations, Ehrenreich. We are all astounded by this conclusion.

I want to like this book more than I actually do. The promise is in its premise, and there are occasional spots of 4-star worth story telling. The big picture, however, falls short of that "really liked it" mark.

I loved the idea of Coldtowns. I find it strangely believable that people would be addicted to the live feeds coming out of the Coldtowns, drawn to the macabre and using them as a means of escaping a terrifying reality. Wouldn't there just be people willing to turn themselves in for the promise of a good time or immortality? I'm not a huge vampire fan, so I have no strong opinions on the lore or how it was portrayed here. I did appreciate that it was gory and that vampires were not entirely bad and definitely not good.

The opening scene was fantastic. In some ways, I think it set a pace and expectation that the rest of the story failed to live up to. The pacing overall was inconsistent and there were times when Black flashed to the past and completely halted the momentum of her story.

I liked Tana well enough. She was a flawed heroine, but I loved her brand of bravery. She had to push herself to do things, but she did them. She saved people, but she also defended herself and fought for her life. She had a little bit of a sarcastic bite, though her characterization wasn't such that I feel like I know much more about her.

Gavriel was interesting, especially if you like your romantic hero tall, dark, and crazy. For most of the book, the relationship between Tana and Gavriel was nicely developed and paced, especially since it was heightened in the midst of the craziness of their situation. I do wish, however, that it didn't fall into the insta-love trap somewhere near the end. You've been alive forever, Gavriel, and you've known Tana like 3 days. Calm it down.

The dialogue was sometimes cheesy. Also, I feel like sometimes the reactions of the MC were a little understated considering the blood and guts galore she was a part of.

The writing was okay, if a little cliched. I mean, the chapters all started with quotes about death. Also, there were phrases that Black just (I'm about to pun) sucked dry. I can't tell you how many times Tana was holding back a hysterical giggle. By the 80% mark I was yelling at her to just freakin' laugh already. Between Aiden and Gavriel, there was a lot of sexual smiling and one corner of the mouth turning up.

I had a fun time reading it, though I don't know how memorable it will be in the long run. It's almost a shame that Holly Black didn't do more with this interesting take on vampirism.

This book is 1 star because it's terrible and 5 stars because it's trying to be. There were so many times I was reading and I couldn't help but think, "huh. That's exactly how it happened in Fifty Shades."

I laughed out loud a few times and skipped large chunks of useless descriptions a few more. I cried when Cthulhu said he couldn't be Andi's boyfriend, but probably not for the same reason Andi did.

Overall, an interesting premise (from inception to finish) that's probably something better left discussed else where. I think what I'm supposed to write here is:

STILL A BETTER LOVE STORY THAN TWILIGHT.

Perhaps:

RILEY BAY IS FOINE. I DON'T EVEN CARE IF HE HAS TENTACLES.

Something like that.

Marking this three stars is strange, because this is a well crafted book, if not one that you enjoy reading. It's short, and relatively easy to read, though it does take on hefty topics like drug abuse, drinking, and rape. I've read complaints about this book "trying too hard" but I enjoyed the way JCO played with words and structure. It gives the book a duality: flimsy, yet gritty, much like the life of our protagonist after she's involved in a fatal car accident.

I understood Jenna all throughout the book, even when I wanted to slap her.

I liked the character of Crow, but his involvement in the storyline was the weakest part for me, and the most forced thing. There was a bridge scene that had me rolling my eyes, because it takes Crow like 10 minutes to get Jenna through some issues she's been battling all book long. Okay.

Either way, I can appreciate this book for it's merit and substance.

I'm so glad I finally got around to reading this title, that seemed to be forever on my to-read list. A lot of what people list as negative aspects about this book, I loved-- the game details, all of the time spent in the battle room, the old for their age children-- and it was such a fast paced and thrilling read for me. What's equally impressive is that it was also very introspective. It left me thinking, especially about the effects of war and of the "greater good."

I loved Ender and I felt for him and a lot of the times I feared him and the sort of weapon he was made into.

The only thing I would complain about is the speed of the ending. The big reveal was there in the blink of an eye, and then it felt like it was over not long after that. It's a minor thing, because things are resolved, but just in a broad way, which didn't fit in with how closely and in detail we'd followed Ender and the story previously.

I think this is a deceptive book, as good children's books often are. It's a simple story just on top of deeper truths and commentary on humanity, war, government, and jeez, even PTSD. If you're like me and you've been sitting on this title for a while, do yourself the favor and get around to it.

Basically a superficial poolside read. I don't know what to say about this other than I had a good day at the pool and it's another one for my read count.