All posts tagged book review

Two Romantic Reads That I Wouldn’t Read Again

They were cute, but without much else going for them, these are books that you should not buy, but rather borrow.

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

I thought the title of this book was really cute. The story was too, although very predictable. It was reminiscent of a Disney Chanel Original movie: Cute girl with daddy issues meets a sweet Brit on a plane. They bond over the flight. Part uncertainly. Wind up together anyways.

I don’t really have much to say about this book because there isn’t much to say about it. That summary may have been a spoiler, but it’s very clearly your average romantic comedy so it kind of spoils itself. The characters are average, the backstories ever so slightly unique. However, when the characters delve into their backstories, I sort of skimmed them and got a little disappointed because I ended up skimming a significant portion of the book— there are a lot of flashbacks.

I think if you were sitting in a hammock with nothing to think about, this book could solve your problems; I wouldn’t say it was good for much else.

2/5

Bittersweet by Sarah Ockler

Here’s another little romantic comedy. It was a fuller story than the one above, and it did have some unexpected twists. But like, will I remember this story in a few months? Nope. It’s about a girl whose parents are divorced. Her mom runs a struggling diner, and she used to ice-skate but quit and now she bakes cupcakes. There’s a poor love triangle and a sweet little romance in the background.

The main girl figures out her problems and what she really wants out of life. I recall the ending being not exactly what I expected, but fairly close. Again, Disney might get good viewership from this. Maybe even a TV show? Regardless, I wouldn’t say it made for a particularly good read.

 2/5

0. Couldn’t get past chapter one for fear of wanting to kill myself. Book induced suicide…

1: Yuck. Ew. Below Average. Probably didn’t even read the middle and skipped to the end.

2. Ok. Would’ve been better if I’d written the ending and everything else.

3. Not bad at all. Very enjoyable. Quite nice. Recommendable.

4. My kind of book. Near ideal, but something was a little off (annoying names, bad ending, that sort of thing).

5. WOW. Makes me wonder why people watch T.V when this is out there. Really liked it. Don’t expect to see this often.

6 and above. What I want my book to be.

1 Comment
by Ri on May 5, 2012  •  Permalink
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Posted by Ri on May 5, 2012

http://thespottedmushroom.com/2012/05/05/two-romantic-reads-that-i-wouldnt-read-again/

Anna and the French Kiss Book Review

Anna was looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. So she’s less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris—until she meets Étienne St. Clair.

-Front Flap

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Hey. Hey guys. I cheated. I put basically the entire plot of that book in the quote section. Go ahead and hate me for it, but I’m not going to waste time describing it again.

So this review is going to be shorter, because I really don’t have much to say about this novel. Have you ever read a harlequin romance? They’re fairly cheesy and take place all over the world. This was basically one of them, except it didn’t smell like the 80′s.

So Anna goes to France. Paris specifically. You know this, not because of authentic descriptions, real immersion into the setting or any kind of information about the area provided. You know because every single somewhat hipster thing is described as being  very Parisian. It’s almost as if the city of Paris isn’t even French, because I’m pretty sure nothing was described as French. Not. A single. Thing.

Also, description? Not her best suit. I didn’t fee like anything was uniquely French. This story could have easily taken place in China. Or New York. I mean, I stayed exactly where Anna was supposed to have– in the Latin Quarter. But none of the little perks of the area made it into the book. Unfortunately.

I’m not going to even pretend this book had any kind of character growth or meaning behind its plot. It’s a simple romance story. Frankly, though, I didn’t even think it did that well.

Anna, our main character and narrator, sounded like she was writing in her diary for some reason, despite this being impossible because she was talking in present tense and there was no indication of it being a journal. But that’s how it sounded. Especially when she busted out the ALL CAPS ANGER STATEMENTS.

Those were irritating. It’s not Star Wars. There is no newly formed Darth Vader that needs to scream out “NOOOOOOOO,” because Padme just died. Every time those came up, it was like reading something I wrote back in forth grade. Ugg.

Anyways, Anna is simple, obvious, and boring. I can’t describe her because she had very little personality. She claimed to like movies and wanted to be a critic of them as a career, but she never came across as the type of person who likes to watch a lot of movies. If that had been the case, it would have been cute to have her make lots of references to classic films, or use them in analogies and similes. Never happened. So I didn’t believe for one second she was film critic material. She’s lying to us. Clearly.

Also, her last name is Oliphant. All I could think of was Lord of the Rings’ Oliphaunts. I’m sure the average reader of this book will not experience the same problem, but still. It was there.

 Étienne was an average dude. I mean, I guess he was supposed to be good-looking and stuff, but he was so flaky and says he liked Anna the entire time, yet took 300+ pages to get with her and leave his old girlfriend. Also, why like Anna? I never saw the attraction.

Plot-wise, it was long. Too long. I just didn’t care what happened to these people. I did for the first fifty or so pages, but as everyone got duller and duller and the plot dragged and the chemistry between the characters died it was so much effort to care that I had to stop. The last 100 pages? Didn’t read ‘em. I read the last one. Anna ends up with Étienne. Big surprise.

This book is titled Anna and the French Kiss. When that happens, it isn’t that great. In fact, the moment is ruined almost instantly. This book is full of misses and no hits. I think that was slightly annoying. Like, why bother caring about their relationship if it never moves on?

 I figure the joy from this book was not to come from shocks, thrills, excitement, or drama. It’s like those Harlequins: quick and easy romances, where pleasure is derived from an exotic location, a loveable love interest and lots of squeal-worthy romantic moments. This book got a C in all of those categories.

Sure, you can read it. Lots of girls will and they’ll call it great. But if you really want to enjoy what you read, I’d suggest looking elsewhere.

Ri’s Rating:

Q.5/QQQQQ
1.5/5


0. Couldn’t get past chapter one for fear of wanting to kill myself. Book induced suicide…

1: Yuck. Ew. Below Average. Probably didn’t even read the middle and skipped to the end.

2. Ok. Would’ve been better if I’d written the ending and everything else.

3. Not bad at all. Very enjoyable. Quite nice. Recommendable.

4. My kind of book. Near ideal, but something was a little off (annoying names, bad ending, that sort of thing).

5. WOW. Makes me wonder why people watch T.V when this is out there. Really liked it. Don’t expect to see this often.

6 and above. What I want my book to be.

1 Comment
by Ri on June 22, 2011  •  Permalink
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Posted by Ri on June 22, 2011

http://thespottedmushroom.com/2011/06/22/anna-and-the-french-kiss-book-review/

The Throne of Fire Book Review

Other books in the Kane Chronicles:  The Red Pyramid

“Welcome, children,” he called across the water. “Come. Join me for the end of the world.”
pg. 398

The Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan

I finished this book a few days ago and I don’t really have a good reason why I didn’t review it the day I got it. I should have because now I’m behind the crowd. Everyone who wanted to read it probably already has. Anyone who wanted a review has probably gone elsewhere. Knowing this hurts; still, I’ve managed to gather enough strength to move on.

In Throne of Fire, Sadie and Carter continue their adventures with the Egyptian gods. Basically, they are trying to stop Apophis—the ultimate evil—from rising to power before it’s too late. It is classic adventures and quests. Myths and modern day. Siblings trying to save the world.

So, what did I like about this book? Quite a lot actually. Let me just recap what I didn’t like about the last book. First, Sadie hogged all the cool bits and I didn’t enjoy her as a narrator as much as Carter, her brother. Second, I thought there were way too many mini quests and quests within quests within quests. Nothing seemed to just happen straightforward and it was a little too long.

This book was better. The story was more straightforward. Like I said, they’re trying to stop Apophis from rising and with such a clear focus they stay on track and the story doesn’t take eons to get to the action. The pacing was just better.

Sadie still isn’t my favorite narrator. She still bothers me. A lot. I think it has to do with the fact that she is 12 (she turns 13 somewhere in the book, but still) she’s just a kid, and yet, she’s crushing on boys like all over the place. What is this? Seriously. What. Is. This. I just don’t get what authors are trying to do. I mean, I have nothing against a romance, or even a crush.

But here’s the thing: they’re just kids. I thought parents were concerned with their daughters and sons growing up too fast. Well, this is kinda going against that.

And honestly, it’s not a hard problem to fix. Just start your characters off older. Youth worked with Percy Jackson because he had a year or so in between each of his adventures so he grew up. But this story barely has weeks. So I know Sadie and Carter will be pursing love at the tender ages of 13 and 14 respectively, but it would have made so much more sense if they had been 15 and 16. It’s not as if all the children reading Percy Jackson or Harry Potter stopped reading when the character grew older than them. So logically, having an older character wouldn’t stop them from reading books to begin with. So, to the authors of the world: Can we please just stop the underage romance? It creeps me out, and I promise you everyone will still read your books if your characters are a little older.

Yeah. So Sadie. Too young.  Anyways, other than that Sadie is a vibrant and well crafted character that I just can’t stand and I’m not going to lie: when she narrated, I would skim a bit.

Carter is not that different from Sadie but I liked him more. I can’t really put my finger on why, but I did. I thought he was just nicer to read about. And I like his adventures more. He is also a well crafted and vibrant character.

All of Riordan’s characters are. I mean, I really think this guy has a talent for telling a story in largely simple terms and still managing to get a movie play through my head. Sometimes modern authors like to get to wordy in their present day books. I really really really hate that. The people will be talking with their “likes,” and “ums,” and “so yeahs,” and then they’ll pause for a moment and ponder the meaning of life and beauty of the moon in near Shakespearian language. And it sounds so out of place and silly that it’s just a total buzz-kill.

Riordan, he sticks with the times. His kids sound like kids; this guy really does know his audience. He knows exactly how we talk and what kinds of things will make us laugh. And I’m not kidding when I say that there were times when I just had to stop reading because I was laughing to hard. I also love how he recreates the gods. That’s some of the most fun this book has to offer—especially if you know your Egyptian mythology. Which I am pleased to say that I do because I wanted to be an Egyptologist when I was younger. Yeah…I just radiate cool all over the place.

Anyways, seeing these characters come to life—Set in a red Disco suite, Isis who is gorgeous with gossamer wings, Horus as an arrogant king— it’s just fun. Also the fact that Riordan is always close to the existing mythos makes these books fairly reliable for getting kids interested in ancient stories. I think they do justice to the original legends, and certainly make them available to a younger audience.

The one thing I didn’t like with this story (apart from Sadie) was that when big things happened sometimes the scene would be too short. Usually Riordan has a flare for the awesome. But there was a point when someone that Carter was looking for was found and a god was released and it was like, if I had blinked I would have missed what happened. That sort of thing popped up once or twice and it was just jarring, because I was expecting more.

Wow, well guys, I’ve officially rambled my brains out. In short, this book was more concise and a better read than the first one. I thought the end was exciting and the twists and turns definitely kept me entertained. I’m pretty excited for the next book because I think it’s the last one and I’m really interested to see how Riordan’s going to wrap it up. There are so many paths he could take…

Anyways, fans of the series won’t be disappointed. I really think that any of Riordan’s books are a great read for kids, not only to teach them about ancient myths and expose to them new things, but also just to get them into reading. Because these books are fun, no matter your age they are just simply fun.

Ri’s Rating:

QQQ/QQQQQ
3/5


0. Couldn’t get past chapter one for fear of wanting to kill myself. Book induced suicide…

1: Yuck. Ew. Below Average. Probably didn’t even read the middle and skipped to the end.

2. Ok. Would’ve been better if I’d written the ending and everything else.

3. Not bad at all. Very enjoyable. Quite nice. Recommendable.

4. My kind of book. Near ideal, but something was a little off (annoying names, bad ending, that sort of thing).

5. WOW. Makes me wonder why people watch T.V when this is out there. Really liked it. Don’t expect to see this often.

6 and above. What I want my book to be.

7 Comments
by Ri on May 12, 2011  •  Permalink
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Posted by Ri on May 12, 2011

http://thespottedmushroom.com/2011/05/12/the-throne-of-fire-book-review/

Ship Breaker Book Review

A gritty, high-stakes adventure set in a futuristic world where oil is scarce, but loyalty is scarcer.

–Amazon Book Description

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

 

From the inside cover: In America’s Gulf Coast region, where grounded oil tankers are being broken down for parts, Nailer, a teenage boy, works a light crew, scavenging for copper wiring just to make quota— and hopefully live to see another day. But when, by luck or chance, he discovers an exquisite clipper ship beached during a recent hurricane, Nailer faces the most important decision of his life: Strip the ship for all it’s worth or rescue its lone survivor, a beautiful and wealthy girl who lead him to a better life.  In this powerful novel, award-winning author Paolo Bacigalupi delivers a thrilling fast-paced adventure set in a vivid and raw uncertain future.

So. I didn’t quite find this book to be any of these things. Then again, it’s not like I could make it through enough chapters to find out. It sort of sounded interesting and I borrowed it from the library thinking that I might have discovered a gem.

Ha. Yeah…

Let’s just say this was average in almost every way. It didn’t grip me. I couldn’t get over the fact that the main character’s name was Nailer, which sounds like this Bionicle character my brother made up (a combination of Napuru and Jailer). The beginning was boring. It wasn’t anything I hadn’t heard in a dystopian novel. It kind of reminded me of the Storm Thief, except that was interesting.

I’m sure some people will enjoy this. It wasn’t unreadable, but for a kid pressed for time, it was not worth it. I actually, I don’t know if it’s worth anyone’s time unless you already enjoy the sort of run of the mill writing this guys does.

It seems to take forever for the book to pick up, for any of those “thrilling” events to happen. The end is about as cheesy as they get. It’s the sort you come across five or six times when you read a lot. The Iamhome/myfutureisbright sort of end. Where you just know everything is going to be okay.

Yes, I admit to having skimmed the middle. I’m guilty, but I would forever regret any time I spent reading this. It was just mind-numbingly average. And I’ve got better things to do than indulge in the mundane.

For better dystopian novels for teen with a similar theme, I suggest The Storm Thief by Chris Wooding.

Ri’s Rating:

QQ/QQQQQ
 
2/5
 

0. Couldn’t get past chapter one for fear of wanting to kill myself. Book induced suicide…

1: Yuck. Ew. Below Average. Probably didn’t even read the middle and skipped to the end.

2. Ok. Would’ve been better if I’d written the ending and everything else.

3. Not bad at all. Very enjoyable. Quite nice. Recommendable.

4. My kind of book. Near ideal, but something was a little off (annoying names, bad ending, that sort of thing).

5. WOW. Makes me wonder why people watch T.V when this is out there. Really liked it. Don’t expect to see this often.

6 and above. What I want my book to be.

4 Comments
by Ri on October 10, 2010  •  Permalink
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Posted by Ri on October 10, 2010

http://thespottedmushroom.com/2010/10/10/ship-breaker-book-review/

Mockingjay Book Review

My name is Katniss Everdeen.

Why am I not dead?

I should be dead.

–front flap

 Also in this series: Book 1: The Hunger Games, Book Two: Catching Fire

If you, like me, wanted a moment of true romance between the final couple, click here for my solution.

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Well, I finished Mockinjay about two hours ago. It’s 12:51 a.m here and I really should be sleeping. But I don’t want to forget how I feel about this book, so I’m going to start writing about it now. (As I meditate on this book, I may add edits to this review.)

First, for the summary, I think we all know that it is about the rebellion. Peeta’s been captured. District 12 is in upset. Katniss must lead the rebels.

Once you know that, I can’t give away any more without ruining things, and you’re set anyways.

So, my thoughts on the book.

Well, first, I am for Peeta and Katniss. I never liked Gale. He seemed too angry and shallow for me. But, I promise you, no spoilers.

However, I will say that all of the characters that Collins has created go through a great deal of emotional change and trauma. It’s not easy to read about, and it actually had me crying at times because, as I was so attached to certain people, it was like watching close friends hurt and being unable to help them.

Sometimes, this kind of deep emotional trouble is good for a story, but I will have to say that this book certainly pushed me to my limits. With some books, like the Book Thief  (which I loved), you can read about this kind of stuff, and it makes you cry, but you know it’s right. But here, sometimes it felt like overkill. Probably becuase some of that characters were snuffed out too quickly, without much thought.

I suppose some people will call the ending true to how war really goes. Well sure. It is. It makes absolute sense the way things turn out. I can’t dispute that.

But I do wish that she had left her characters a little more patched up. She hints at it, but in this case I wish she had said it straight out, just given a little more detail in that last paragraph (where she talks about who ends up with who), and made Katniss seem a little more at peace.

But I must say, regardless of who I wanted to end up together, live, or die (I was pleased with some, not with others) the ending was still good.

It did wrap up things nicely; it made a lot of sense. I think only one or two characters’ ending were never totally explained, which is good for a book with a cast this size. There were some things that I totally called. Some were a surprise. It was interesting to see how Collins pulled off this highly anticipated book.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t always interesting. There was a middle part of the book reminiscent the beginning of the second book, where not a lot happens. It’s slow. Katniss, our hero, doesn’t do a lot. Every time something big happens, it seems that she blacks out, and then someone explains it to us as she wakes up.

On one hand, it was nice that Katniss didn’t take part in jobs she obviously wasn’t ready for because that made more sense. On the other hand, it was a little dull to be on the sidelines all the time.

The rest of the book was well-written. The characters were strong. Collins still manages to slam a few things in our face, make us want more. The ending hundred pages were very fascinating. As were the first one hundred.  There were definitely a lot of things I never saw coming. Ever. And those were very, very fun to read.

This book was incredibly emotional and powerful. It’s a rare thing that I get attached to so many characters from the same cast, but here I was feeling every bit of pain and happiness that they did. It sometimes feels as if they are– dare I say it?– real.

Yes, Collins has created people I geniuely care for and the story she worked around them was bloody, gritty, heartwrenching, and real. By the time you get to the end, you’re broken. But Collins gives us something to hold on to. A little hope, a small happiness.

And when you’re done, you feel complete. This is what you waited for. This is what you’ve always wanted. Collins, hats off to you: this series was inredible.

Ri’s Rating

QQQ.5/QQQQQ

3.5 /5

0. Couldn’t get past chapter one for fear of wanting to kill myself. Book induced suicide…

1: Yuck. Ew. Below Average. Probably didn’t even read the middle and skipped to the end.

2. Ok. Would’ve been better if I’d written the ending and everything else.

3. Not bad at all. Very enjoyable. Quite nice. Recommendable.

4. My kind of book. Near ideal, but something was a little off (annoying names, bad ending, that sort of thing).

5. WOW. Makes me wonder why people watch T.V when this is out there. Really liked it. Don’t expect to see this often.

6 and above. What I want my book to be.

14 Comments
by Ri on August 25, 2010  •  Permalink
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Posted by Ri on August 25, 2010

http://thespottedmushroom.com/2010/08/25/mockingjay-book-review/

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