Books Archives - Page 67 of 71

Yzabel / August 17, 2012

Review: Entangled

My rating: [rating=4]

Summary:

Two months after dying, seventeen-year-old witch Graylee Perez wakes up in her twin sister Charlene’s body.

Until Gray finds a way back inside her own body, she’s stuck being Charlene every twenty-hour hours. Her sister has left precise instructions on how Gray should dress and behave. Looking like a prep isn’t half as bad as hanging out with Charlene’s snotty friends and gropey boyfriend.

The “normals” of McKinley High might be quick to write her behavior off as post-traumatic stress, but warlock Raj McKenna is the only person who suspects Gray has returned from the dead.

Now Gray has to solve the mystery of her death and resurrection and disentangle herself from Charlene’s body before she disappears for good.

***Entangled is a young adult paranormal fantasy romance suitable for ages 15 and up.***

Review:

Although I had to spread the reading of this book over two days, it went fast and smoothly, and turned to be highly addictive. The first chapters may have been a little slow—what was needed, I suppose, to set the backdrop for Gray and Charlene’s ‘ordinary’ life, and thus contrast Gray’s sudden death against it. But past that point, I was hooked. Firstly because of the themes tackled throughout the story: revenge, deception, resentment, grief, death, how do people cope with it and to what lengths would they be ready to go if they had a chance to have a beloved one back… Secondly, while those themes are of the dark kind, the narrative itself doesn’t feel desperate nor gloomy, therefore making for a lighter reading moment no matter what. Last but not least, because I wanted to know how things would unfold, all that simply (already suspecting the kind of outcome the author would come up with didn’t detract from my reading pleasure: it’s the kind of predictable I appreciate).

The characters were both archetypal for that kind of novel (the popular bitchy sister, the nice and hard-working one, the boy with a bad reputation but a heart of gold, the sidekick ready to do everything for the one he has his eyes on…), yet at the same time convincing enough. They behaved with the kind of intensity in feelings and actions that tend to seem fitting for teenage characters, and there were often some darker, secret areas to their personalities. After all, when the girl intent on snagging her boyfriend back is also a witch, can things really go as normally as they would if she wasn’t? When she’s jealous of someone, and want to hamper that someone’s efforts, why stop at just feeling frustrated? And yet, some of those traits may also become understandable: I can understand how suddenly having her dead sister snatch her body one day out of two, putting a regular dent in her life, may feel extremely hard to bear for Charlene. (Alright, this said, she was still an absolute bitch who deserved to be slapped around with a trout full of long, pointy nails. Seriously. Borderline psychopathic much?)

I also liked that the story followed not only Gray, but Raj as well. He was by far my favourite character, being an actual good guy, respectful of others, even though he kept entertaining a facade that in the end hurt himself the most. (And Adrian. Why, Adrian, always full of smiles: I hope you do realize that you’re so creepy, man! And that I love it.)

What I was less satisfied with in “Entangled” was some unanswered questions. The reason to Gray’s death wasn’t so clear (not to mention that it was pretty stupid, to the point of little old me wondering if the ‘culprit’ didn’t act so dumb on purpose, knowing that of course it was just but an accident waiting to happen). And I admit I didn’t really understand what happened with Raj and his mother at the end—well, I *think* I understood, only that part went too fast for me to be certain I really did; more details about that (and the role of the Zippo lighter) would have been appreciated.

Nevertheless, I liked this book, and definitely want to read the next installment.

Yzabel / August 16, 2012

Review: City of Bones

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder — much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It’s hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing — not even a smear of blood — to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary’s first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It’s also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace’s world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know. . .

Review:

As weird as it may seem, before reading this book, I had no idea who Cassandra Clare was, nor about her ties with the Harry Potter fandom. One of the first things I thought when reading the first chapters was that I could feel a strong HP influence in it, probably too strong (even in the family names: Lightwood/Rookwood). The whole Circle thing reminded me of the Death Eaters, Jace was enough of a blond jackass to smack of Draco, Simon might just have well have been Ron… I won’t list other parallels I drew, since they’d be spoilers, but I felt them nonetheless. This, I must said, irked me a little: not that I dislike J.K. Rowling’s series (on the contrary!), just because at first it seemed, well, too much like fanfiction turned into original fiction at the last moment. This sometimes detracted me from the story’s intrinsic values, and it was too bad (probably, also, what partly explains why I’m not giving it a higher grade).

On the other hand, I still managed to enjoy “City of Bones” in the end, so there are clearly good things about it.

The story is pretty much built along traditional plot lines, that anyone familiar with Campbell’s “journey of the Hero” will likely recognize, because they’re as old as humanity itself. Some may be bothered by this, some may like it, some may not care. As far as I’m concerned, as long as it works in terms of storytelling, I enjoy that. And it worked here, so it’s all good for me, even though it makes it a little easier to predict where things are going (for instance, “J.C.”: alright, who couldn’t see at least that one coming?). It also worked in HP, by the way. It’s not something that prevents me from enjoying a piece of writing. I found many interesting things in the novel as a whole, such as the beginning scene (among other things: the killers that nobody but Clary can’t see; the Shadowhunters who’re clearly not such nice guys; where all the non-human originate from). All in all, it was an entertaining read, meaning I didn’t have to think too much, wanted to see the plot progress, kept turning the pages, and thought at the end: “OK, I kind of what to pick up the second book.”

Oh yes, I forgot to mention the author’s writing itself, which I found good enough, even though she sometimes makes use of weird similes. ften the dialogues made me smile or even chuckle, and it was pleasant. (Yes, there were lighter moments in the darker plot; those are never a bad thing, in my opinion.)

Unfortunately, I was less than thrilled about the characters, whose main flaw was that they lacked substance. They’re likeable in their own ways, but didn’t feel ‘present’ enough throughout the story—as if the substance was here, underneath, but not fleshed out enough. I don’t think it has to do with the fact that they pretty much fit archetypes that are often seen in YA novels or TV series in general—I’m convinced that archetypes, if made deep enough, can be very interesting. It’s just that they struck me as bland at times. Jace often came too much as a jackass (oh, boy, you’re not as witty as you think you are, and no, you’re clearly not more witty than Simon, and putting him down all the time won’t make you appear more badasse). Isabelle seemed too cookie-cutter. Alec would’ve deserved more attention. Clary was a nice girl, but didn’t stand out more than the supporting characters (and I kept on wanting to smack her head because she was so blind to what was so evident from the beginning). Poor Simon was really played for the resident butt-monkey, when he’d deserve to be treated better. I think I liked Magnus Bane best; too bad he got only minimal screen time.

All in all, this novel was enjoyable. I’m quite tempted to go on reading “The Mortal Instruments”, or at least the next installment, because there *is* room for improvement, and it may very well still happen. In spite of what I didn’t like in it, it isn’t enough to drive me off the series.

Yzabel / August 13, 2012

Review: Tiger Lily

Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson

My rating: 3

Summary:

Before Peter Pan belonged to Wendy, he belonged to the girl with the crow feather in her hair. . . .

Fifteen-year-old Tiger Lily doesn’t believe in love stories or happy endings. Then she meets the alluring teenage Peter Pan in the forbidden woods of Neverland and immediately falls under his spell.

Peter is unlike anyone she’s ever known. Impetuous and brave, he both scares and enthralls her. As the leader of the Lost Boys, the most fearsome of Neverland’s inhabitants, Peter is an unthinkable match for Tiger Lily. Soon, she is risking everything—her family, her future—to be with him. When she is faced with marriage to a terrible man in her own tribe, she must choose between the life she’s always known and running away to an uncertain future with Peter.

With enemies threatening to tear them apart, the lovers seem doomed. But it’s the arrival of Wendy Darling, an English girl who’s everything Tiger Lily is not, that leads Tiger Lily to discover that the most dangerous enemies can live inside even the most loyal and loving heart.

Review:

I read the original Peter Pan story a long, long time ago (over 15 years), and so I can’t tell honestly that I remember its every little detail—therefore I can’t tell if this retelling is especially good or bad, compared to J.M. Barrie’s piece. This point notwithstanding, “Tiger Lily” was for me what I’d call an average pleasant book: neither detestable nor excellent.

I liked that the author chose to have the story told from Tinkerbell’s point of view; in itself, this was an interesting idea, and I found her character actually more likeable here than I remember having perceived it in the original tale. Besides, having the faeries be able to feel people’s thoughts and emotional states justified her comments about Tiger Lily’s and Peter’s story. Said story was touching, and never all black nor all white (especially considering the presence of darker themes like rape and suicide), which is something I prefer to clear-cut morality in my reading in general. Tiger Lily herself was strong, independent, able to face a lot of hardships, yet those very strengths in her were also what made her vulnerable, what prevented her from finding the right words to say. In fact, I found several other characters were really likeable, especially Tik Tok the shaman, and the issues his ways of living raise in terms of acceptance and difference.

On the other hand, the very choice of point of view I mentioned above may have made things a little too far-fetched at times: could Tink *really* know everything, be in the protagonists’ heads with such efficiency? There were a few moments when I found maintaining my suspension of disbelief rather… difficult. Second, while the story was touching, its pace was too slow, and dragged now and then. I also regretted the way certain events seemed to be rushed, such as what happens with Moon Eye or Tik Tok; in my opinion, they’d have deserved something better, just like the pirates would have deserved more spotlight. Finally, I want to say: where was the magic? Just like Nevereland here wasn’t the magical place I expected, save for the presence of mermaids and faeries, and the fact that the tribes’ people wouldn’t age, I felt that it lacked just that little touch that would have allowed me to really like this book, more than just ‘like’ it.

Yzabel / August 12, 2012

Review: Angel Evolution

Angel Evolution by David Estes

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

When Taylor meets Gabriel at college, she is in awe of the subtle glow that surrounds him. No one else, not even her best friend, seems to notice.

Something about him scares her.

Is all as it appears? While Taylor struggles for answers, she finds herself in the middle of a century old war centered on one miraculous revelation: evolution.

Review:

I had had this novel on my radar for some time, and finally got to read it in July (although I hadn’t posted my review yet). I must say it made me spend a good moment, even though it has its flaws.

I think the major problem for me as a reader was that I found connecting with the characters a little hard. Especially the main female character, Taylor, who remained quite bland for a good deal of the story, until she finally grew something of a spine. Besides, she accepted Gabriel’s story so quickly! It would’ve been more believable if she had been more of a skeptic, asked more questions, be warier of him, kept a distance at first… not fall into his arms so soon. I didn’t know where to stand regarding Gabriel either, couldn’t decide if he was suffering from chronic lying disorder, or was just brainwashed, or tried to convince himself he believed in all of that. I guess this is part of his evolution, of how he goes from obeying orders to standing for what he thinks is really right, but it still came off as shaky.

On the other hand, the story itself was enjoyable, with an original twist about angels and demons. Well, alright, at first I wasn’t sure whether I would’ve wanted those to be closer to their original myths, or not; however, now that I’ve finished the book, it feels like a positive aspect, that provides a nice change from more classical retellings of such fights. It’s a good thing that there is no God here to steer the ship; we are presented with people who, all in all, are still human, or at least evolved from humans, and as such, who are prone to mistakes (but then, there’s the black snake… will more be revealed about its role later on?). The ending of this first novel leaves several doors open, regarding various possibilities of action for the characters; I feel like it doesn’t have to end in a full-blown war… yet it could just as well… or there could be yet another path to follow. At this point, the outcome is not predictable, and I like that.

What I appreciated most was that there was more than met the eye to the two sides of the war. The angels whom everyone expects to be ‘pure’ and ‘good’ actually have their lot of bastards, double-standards, lies and downright crass goals; while the demons, supposedly evil and dark, probably have their lot of ambiguous characters and darker aims as well (I don’t know what’s going to be tackled in the two other novels, after all), yet were clearly not the totally bad guys they were made to look like. In fact, the character I liked the most throughout the whole novel was Chris, and I hope we get to see more of him in book 2! Even Jonas had a nice side to him, in spite of not being shown under the best light in the world.

Although I’m not giving full marks to this novel, I am positive that its setting and story have strong bases, and that the author’s next works can only evolve in an even better direction. (See my review of The Moon Dwellers for more David Estes.)

Yzabel / August 7, 2012

Review: Crushed

Crushed by K.C. Blake

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Summary:

The Noah sisters rule Titan High with their beauty, brains, and magical powers. Each year they play a secret game: Crushed. The girls pick their targets carefully and blow enchanted dust into the boy’s faces, charming them, but this year Kristen makes a grave mistake. She chooses the wrong boy and almost dies that same day. Coincidence? Maybe. But something isn’t quite right about Zach Bevian. He doesn’t behave like a boy who’s been Crushed. He goes from hot to cold, from looking at her with contempt to asking her out on a date. She doesn’t know what to think. Does he hate her or is he truly falling for her? Is he trying to kill her, or is he trying to save her?

Review:

(Book provided through ARR #27 in the We ♥ YA Books! group, in exchange for an honest review.)

Although I didn’t find this book exceptional, it made me spend a good time. Its good sides managed to balance the peeves I had with it.

The characters were fun and pleasant to read about. While they appear as cookie-cutter high school caricatures at first (the bitchy twin-nice twin pair, the perfect popular girl, the tall, dark and scary guy with a bad reputation…), they all proved to be deeper and more complex people by the end of the novel, each with his or her motives to act the way they did. They had their strengths and weaknesses, and both of those played a role in how the story evolved. The relationship between Zach and Morgan was pretty touching, the ‘bad boy’ act being pretty much a way of keeping people at bay and protecting what was dearest to him. And I liked how Kristen managed to grow up emotionally and mentally, her experience allowing her to understand what she should do and not do.

The Crushed game itself (complete with rules stated at the beginning of the book) was intriguing, and has the potential to raise a lot of questions in the reader’s mind. As in, ‘would I be happy to have a boy obey my every whim like that’, ‘would I do it if I could’, ‘how would I react if I knew I had been under such a spell’… While those may seem evident to a mature audience, I think their answers aren’t so obvious no matter what, especially for younger readers. And I’m always up for anything that challenges people’s opinions and makes them reflect, whether they’re teens, young adults or older.

I found the plot to be not overly complex, but with enough twists and turns to keep me wanting to know who did what and who was influencing who in the end. There’s clearly a game of power and influence here, one that makes use of emotions and beliefs in order to deceive, and that’s why the relationships between the main characters were made all the more important: if it had only rested on paranormal means, it wouldn’t have been as interesting.

A few things prevented me from giving this novel a higher mark, though. First, I would really have wanted to read more about the Crushed game itself—to see more of the girls toying with people, perhaps, more of Kristen and Zack trying to fool each other, before falling in love. From the summary, I expected more in that regard. The first half of the story also had lengths, especially towards the middle. I also wondered about Kristen’s reaction during her ‘cold war’ with her sister (shouldn’t she have put up more of a fight, as the perfectionist and overachiever that she was, and not just give up like that on her reputation?). Finally, there were a couple of occurrences when I felt something was missing, and I had to read again to make sure it wasn’t my mind playing tricks on me (I’m thinking more particularly about a chapter that ends with one of the sisters telling the other “your aura is black”, which didn’t seem to bode well… but then, the next chapter, they’re sitting and talking together as if nothing had ever happened?)

That said, it’s a story that has a serious potential of appealing to younger audiences. I think age also affected my views on it: it’s the kind of book I’d have loved when I was a teenager, but am just feeling a little more detached from, now that I’m older. My actual grade would be more a 3.5 than 3/5.

Yzabel / August 6, 2012

Review: Vengeance of the Wolf

Vengeance of the Wolf by Solitaire Parke

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

Detective John Yardley and FBI agent Frank Williams are on a quest. They are determined to stop a manipulative, unknown mass murderer, whose targets seem to be specific politicians in a bizarre and maniacal killing spree…one that draws them into a world of dreams and nightmares beyond their wildest imaginations. Awaiting them are unbelievable terrors, chilling twists and turns, and a scope of destruction that they would never have believed possible.

Review:

(Book provided through Read It & Reap in the Shut Up & Read group, in exchange for an honest review.)

3.5/5 stars. I might have given it a 4, only it was frustrating in some aspects.

I was drawn to this book by the concept of dreams and nightmares, which is something that usually catches my interest, and I indeed found the method of killing quite interesting as well as thrilling. Troubling as this may be, seeing the killer in action, the way he picked at his victims and toyed with them, the way he thought, was just as interesting. The chilling feeling I got out of those scenes was reinforced by the descriptions, which were detailed enough to allow me to easily picture places and dreamscape. The ‘bad guy’ is clearly pretty deranged here; there was something almost touching to the reason behind his killing spree—a tiny spark that could’ve died quickly, that might even have seemed laughable to many people, yet blossomed instead into something terrifying, served by means beyond normal human scope. (The nursery rhymes quoted at the beginning of each chapter made me feel this even more strongly: they’re definitely reminiscent of something child-like, with an added creepy edge.)

All the characters had their part to play in the plot, with more or less spotlight, of course. Although it took me some time to get a real liking to Yardley and Williams, they are interesting personae, with spunk and potential, along with willpower and resiliency (how many people would’ve gone on trying to put an end to such an eluding case?). There were a few moments when I was confused at whose point of view I was following (in instances where “IT” and “the man” appeared); otherwise, the dates, places and POVs were clear and evident.

Overall, I had a good time reading this story, and wanted to know how it went from beginning to end (the epilogue was chilly, by the way—it screams for a catastrophe in the making, really). However, I remained frustrated at some things that I wished would have been more elaborated on. For instance, Celeste and her family (there’s something mysterious here, and I was hoping to learn more); the exact mechanism of the killer’s abilities; or Anthony’s motives and involvement, that were partly explained only, in my opinion. I think I’d have enjoyed the novel more if those loose ends had been tied. Last but not least, I managed to guess who the killer was fairly early; once I had it in my head, my hypothesis kept on being validated regularly. I’d have wanted that mystery to last longer.

Yzabel / August 4, 2012

Review: Sweet Blood Of Mine

Sweet Blood of Mine by John Corwin

My rating: [rating=4]

Summary:

From Mega Nerd to Super Stud.

Justin Case and women do not mix. Man boobs, a love of Kings and Castles, and being tight with the “nerd” crowd certainly don’t win him any points either. After rescuing Katie, his crush, it turns out she might not be the girl he thought she was, while Elyssa, the school’s Goth Girl, turns out to be more. Can high school get any more confusing?

Determined to improve himself, he joins a gym and meets a sexy girl that just oozes a “come hither, Justin” vibe. Until she attacks him in the parking lot, and Justin realizes she’s no ordinary girl but a being with supernatural speed and strength. After a narrow escape and an excruciating migraine headache, he wakes up with supernatural abilities all his own: speed, strength, and the ability to seduce every woman he sees.

While that might sound like the perfect combo for any hormonal teen, Justin is a hopeless romantic who wants his first time to be special. Is that too much to ask for? But he doesn’t know what he is or how to stop his carnal urges. One thing is clear: If he doesn’t find answers there are other more sinister supernaturals who would like nothing better than to make him their eternal plaything and do far worse than kill him.

Review:

I admit it took me some time to wrap my mind around the idea of a protagonist called ‘Justin Case’… yes, yes, I know, it’s a pun, I’m just not too fond of puns on characters’ names. Anyway, I managed to get over it after a while, and since I had never read anything by John Corwin before, I had no strong bias towards this book, which is always a good thing. Besides, the plot summary seemed interesting, and I always like to see male perspectives in such stories.

There were moments I smiled and chuckled, because the author’s packed his story with references to various ‘geeky’ elements—and I’m a glutton for cameos of all sorts. (I’m positive I even saw a Wheel of Time reference in there, about one of the very things that made me roll my eyes at the original books.) This all fits pretty well with the ‘nerd hero’ theme, and I appreciated that John Corwin made him think and react along such lines, because I feel it’s precisely the kind of comparisons and thoughts that’d come to Justin’s mind. And although there were moments, too, when Justin veered a little too much on self-pitying (I guess it’s no wonder, given what a train wreck his life has become), fortunately he regularly catches himself up and decides to act and keep his head high (and his sense of humour going) no matter what.

I enjoyed a lot of the characters, even secondary ones. The boys from the Goth gang, who even when things got tight in their group still stuck with Justin and didn’t just stop talking to him (which is something that could’ve happened in ‘high school politics’, from what I’ve already witnessed in real life). Elyssa, who was able to hold out her hand to someone who’s been trampled on, and to do it again in spite of the odds, and let’s not forget that she’s quite badass. Stacey, too, with her quirks and manners, not so much the evil character she could become, and pretty touching in her own ways. Well, alright, I didn’t care much for the average pupils at school (Katie and her friends were annoying), but this is probably on purpose—this is not where Justin’s true friends are meant to be.

I also liked the Overworld developed here. At the end of this first installment, we are far from knowing everything about it, but enough already has been revealed for readers to realize that there is strong support underneath to carry the plot. Vampires, for instance, aren’t just here looking cool, they have their own society, with their own politics and dissenssions. Same goes for sorcerers, and, I’m sure, other supernatural factions.

However, there are a couple of things I liked less in the book were, first, that the story seemed to drag a little around the middle—the hardest part in every book, in my opinion. It picked up again in the last third, and the end was great, but that middle part wasn’t so fun to read. The second thing was some aspects of the ‘nerd community’, and the corruption going on with football at school. It seemed to me like there was too much of a collection of clichés (fat geeks, rejected at school, you can’t be popular if you play LARPs, etc), and the teachers’ and administration’s attitude towards Justin and his friends was bordering on unbelievable (at least, the way it was shown made it appear so; I don’t doubt that such biases do exist in many places, though).

Other than that, I really enjoyed “Sweet Blood of Mine”, and will likely pick up the next novel in line.

Yzabel / August 2, 2012

Review: Dreams Of Darkness

Dreams of Darkness by Barry James

My rating: [rating=2]

Summary:

Jordan Hanson was having a bad day. His girlfriend was acting distant, his cat had run off, his car was leaking oil, there was something screwy with the electrical system in his new house, and to top it all off he got caught in a storm. By the end of the day, though, Jordan would have given anything to get his old life back. Or any life at all, for that matter. Even an undead existence in which he was not about to be used as a tool to end the world would have been better than nothing….

Review:

I had a hard time deciding on what to write in this review. I’ve been editing my stars from 3 to 2, from 2 to 3… I really have no idea. It’s not a bad book. It contains a lot of things that I liked, yet at the same time, it still didn’t cut it for me in the end. I would’ve given it a 2.5/5, but for want of such flexibility in the marks here, I will leave it at 2. Although what “didn’t cut it for me” is way more subjective than through any fault of the novel itself, I feel it also plays a part in one’s enjoyment of a book, and as such, I can’t really leave it out of my review.

There’s quite an amount of pros in favour of “Dreams of Darkness”. The author created a believable mythos for his world, one that is detailed and well-explained, and that flows together believably. The descriptions are very vivid, making it extremely easy to picture what’s happening; same goes for the action scenes. In fact, I’m positive this novel would make a great movie or mini-TV series. It is quite a ‘visual’ story—and a graphic one, too, in its depiction of the horrors that are the demons, their actions, and the people that command them! (This is not a negative point, by the way. I thought it was clear from the start that there would be gory aspects to it, and they didn’t shock me; on the contrary, given the themes tackled in it, they were logical and expected.) The story deals with interesting questions, namely Jordan’s humanity (can he remain sane and human enough, in spite of what he is?), whether one’s nature will necessarily determine one’s destiny, or the influence of power on one’s psyche. Also, the plot is complex, yet not confusing, and the characters appropriate to its development.

So why did I write that the book didn’t do it for me in the end? That’s the tricky part: I still have no precise idea why. I think it had to do with the writing, that I felt was a little ‘dry’, but not in terms of description of details—it was more a feeling than anything else. My rational mind was satisfied, but not my emotional one, if I may say so. I couldn’t really root for the characters, for instance, as if there was a very thin, invisible wall between them and me. It took me too much time to finish this book, too, when I actually had plenty of time to do so; I kept on putting it down, thinking it wasn’t for me; the parts between the action scenes dragged a little, too (the background information regularly given by some of the characters sometimes felt too much like info-dumping, which didn’t help). However, at the same time, I kept going back to it, because, let’s be honest, I still wanted to know how the story would go on. The last quarter or so of the book got me in for good; unfortunately, this came too late in my reading.

Yzabel / July 25, 2012

Review: A Strange Fire

A Strange Fire by L.H. Cosway

My rating: [rating=4]

(Book provided through ARR #24 in the We ♥ YA Books! group, in exchange for an honest review.)

After years of abuse at the hands of her father, 17-year-old Florence Vaine is suddenly sent to live in Chesterport with her grandmother, a kind woman who may at last give her the affection and life she never had before. And her life sure hasn’t been easy, between her constant fear of her father, the stammer that afflicts her as soon as is in stressful situations, and her strange, unexplained power that allows her to see people’s emotions through their auras. Although Flo meets nice people who may become friends, she also finds herself the target of bullying because of her speech impediment. One student, Frank, immediately stands for her, attracting her attention: for his aura, as well as that of her brothers, are of a fiery kind Flo has never seen before.

Such a beginning had me a little scared : a girl arriving in a new, small town in which she doesn’t know anyone, but is from the start attracted towards the band of mysterious, different yet gorgeous pupils who always keep to themselves, have various rumours floating around them, and to whom there is clearly much more than meets the eye. This could have been the beginning of another “Twilight” (a novel I didn’t like). Fortunately for “A Strange Fire”, it wasn’t the case at all. First because Frank is nothing creepy like Edward Cullen, and is on the contrary a very sweet boy whose odd reputation hides an otherwise brave and nice persona; as the story unfolds, so does the relationship between Flo and him, in a believable way—he is attracted to her, but respects her reactions and feelings, and doesn’t force himself upon her, instead doing his best to win her friendship and trust first. His brothers, in spite of who they all really are, seemed to be good people overall, doing their best to live with what had been imposed to them from their birth.

As for Florence, I think she was portrayed in a realistic way, considering her powers, personality and past life. She’s a young woman, still a girl in some aspects, who has suffered a lot of abuse. She’s mature enough to realize how fearful this has made her, and to acknowledge how difficult it has made things for her; at the same time, she still struggles with the resulting lack of self-esteem, her need for medication, her wariness regarding people in general. During the story, she tries to overcome those hurdles, and this in turn helps her growing, getting stronger. It’s too bad that the ending couldn’t be the happy-ever-after one she would have deserved, but at the same time, I feel it was appropriate: now that she has her newly found inner strength and power, she can probably face and come to terms with what awaits her, and not just turn her back on it and run away.

There were a couple of things that left me wanting, though. I wish we would have seen or learnt more about some of the characters: Ross, for instance, who was a little bland compared to Frank and Alex; or Caroline,who was exactly the kind of nice friend Flo had always needed… but after a while, this budding friendship seemed to have retreated in the background. Also, the overall plot with the witches may have benefitted from being a tad bit more present. And what was revealed about the true nature of Frank and his family was weird—actually, it’s probably how it was introduced and explained that felt a little off.

Regardless of those few gripes, “A Strange Fire” is a book I thoroughly enjoyed, and would recommend. It was my first foray into L.H. Cosway’s works, but likely not the last one.

Yzabel / July 25, 2012

Review: The Christmas Throwaway

The Christmas Throwaway by R.J. Scott

My rating: [rating=3]

Count on me to read season-themed stories at the exact opposite time of the year. I’m just like that. On the other hand, past midnight was still a good moment to give in to the sudden urge.

Short of his 18th birthday, Zach is thrown out of his home by his father after years of abuse, for the ‘crimes’ of being gay and not wanting to follow the career path said father has always laid out for him. As he finds shelter on a bench in a churchyard, dreaming of the perfect Christmas he never had, he is woken up by police officer Ben Hamilton, who decides to bring him home and shelter him, at least until he’s an adult in the eyes of the law. Zach is welcomed by Ben’s family, particularly his caring mother and spunky little sister, and slowly comes to realize that there may still be something ahead for him—that the dreams he had discarded could still come true someday. Far from the dire straits of his life on the streets, he can now face his fears, heal from his wounds, psychological and physical, and think about how to help his own little sister, who still lives his abusive father. All the while, Ben and his family and friends are here to help him and provide him with support, until the feelings between both men finally blossom for good.

I found “The Christmas Throwaway” to be a lovely story. Probably not too close to reality (unfortunately: there are such young people thrown in the streets in such circumstances, and our world could sure do with more gentle people like Ben and his family), and a little too sweet to my usual taste, but I didn’t really care about that in the end, which means suspension of disbelief worked well enough nonetheless. Anyway, what I wanted when I picked this ebook was a Christmas story (the whole ‘Christmas spirit’ and ‘Christmas miracle’), and it was exactly that. Zach was an adorable young man, nice and polite, who had been kicked so much that he was left with little to no self-confidence, and seeing him rebuild that little by little, thanks to the presence of friendly fellow human beings, was a very positive sight; I couldn’t help but root for this character no matter what. Ben did what so few people would (as evidenced by his brother’s initial reaction of instant wariness), and remained throughout the story a strong shoulder on which Zach could lean; at the same time, he also behaved very responsibly, refusing to take advantage on Zach’s frailty to get into his pants.

The one thing I really regret about this novel was its second part, which felt rushed and too short. The first part deals with the Christmas days themselves, and shows us how Zach gradually manages to open up and feel at ease with this nexw ‘family’ of his. But the rest of the book dealt with what happens over the span of the next two years—Ben clearly waiting for Zach to sort his problems before making a definite move—until finally getting to the part where both men can be fully together, physically as well. To be honest, by this point, I had mostly forgotten about any potential sex scene, because the emotional side was so cute and enjoyable that I wanted to see more of it. I think this story would have benefitted from more development here, giving the reader more time to see Ben and Zach’s relationship evolve once Zach had started not only rebuilding himself, but also making progress in his new life.