Review: Luminous - Dawn Metcalf

Where I got it: ARC from Publisher for review

Rating: 2 stars  

Cover Rating: 5 stars (Gorgeous!)  

Genre: Young Adult

Publication Date: June 30, 2011

Publisher: Dutton Juvenile

Page Count: 367 p.

Buy it: Book Depository / Amazon

"Know Thyself" Consuela hears these words whispered out to her from a changing room mirror. This is when her life starts to change. She goes home to take a bath and when she wakes up everything it different. She finds herself in a place called the Flow. Here are people that are somewhere between life and death and are called upon to save others from death. Consuela finds that to help with her saving people, she can remove her own skin and make a new one out of practically anything; fire, feathers, air, all become her wardrobe. Everyone in the Flow is happy and helpful, and though she misses home, she doesn't totally mind being in the Flow. Then the murders start and everything spins into chaos. No one knows what is happening or who is doing it. If they aren't stopped though, the Flow could be completely destroyed along with everyone in it.

This was a very interesting concept, it is a nice take on near-death experience. It would be fantastic to change and create skins as Consuela does, so much freedom and adventure. So there are a couple of reasons I had to rate this low. One thing that bugged me was that Dawn Metcalf tends to repeat herself a lot throughout the whole novel. It is an ARC, and maybe all the repeats are cut out in the finished copy, but I doubt it. There just seems to be a tendency to reiterate things that had already been said within the same chapter, page or paragraph. "He wasn't here, yet, but like a shark with blood in the water, Tender could smell betrayal in the Flow. Wish knew—Tender wasn't here, but would be soon. And, like a shark, Tender was made for killing." That sort of thing happened more often than I would have liked. Characters would come to a conclusion and then come to that conclusion a few pages later and so on and so forth. The book could have been much shorter if the unnecessary repetition was removed.
The names were fairly odd, but lent to the whole weird dream-like world. After a while of reading this I had to put it down. It was just taking me forever to get through it and I never wanted to read it. I read a few more books, and then picked this one back up. I did love the descriptions. The flowery part of the writing was awesome, which is what kept me reading for so long. I wouldn't have finished this if I hadn't already gotten so far into it. I did thing about not finishing it a few times, but decided to just get it done with. There was a lot of world building, without too much happening in the beginning, and then the conflict and resolution seemed rushed. All of a sudden lots of stuff was happening and nothing was throughly explained. I felt like the ending was disappointing and mostly left me feeling a bit confused. I'm not really sure what happened to most of the characters, as it was never properly explained. Some explanations were alluded to, but nothing definitive. This book had a fantastic cover and some great descriptive writing, I may pick up another novel by this author, but I'm not excited about it.

First Line:
"Consuela wrestled with an armload of jeans, trying to catch the hangers on insufficient hooks."


Favorite Lines:
"Consuela knew that if she tried on a skin again, felt the rush of powerful freedom-thought, she'd understand; but the seduction was like a drug."


"Everything in her room was cold, but the candlewicks along the bath shimmered, whispers of wanting—light called to light, two flames become one—as simple as two magnets kissing with a click."

Review: Witches of East End - Melissa de la Cruz

Where I got it: ARC from Amazon Vine

Rating: 4 stars  

Cover Rating: 4 stars (This is a photograph from the lovely Marta Bevacqua, who did my old header photograph.)  

Genre: Adult

Publication Date: June 21, 2011

Publisher: Hyperion

Page Count: 272 p.

Buy it: Book Depository / Amazon

Three witches, left to live out their immortal lives without use of their powers settle down in North Hampton. There's something a little different about this town, so they can easily fit in. Things start getting really weird though when people start turning up missing or dead. There's also a weird substance in the water that scientists can't identify. The three women know that their powers might be of some use, but they have struggles of their own to deal with too. They have a wedding to plan and a library to save. There might be some other people that mean to do harm to this town, or maybe even the world.

What a fantastic read, I loved all the mythology. There is even an appearance of Blue Bloods, which I love when author's share characters throughout their books. This book would be great for older YAs, as there are some fairly graphic sex scenes, but the story was easily something that teens would love. There aren't that many fantastic witch stories that I've seen, but this one is definitely up there. I really did love all the folklore and mythology that went into this story. Everything was nicely connected and just played out well. The ending seemed a bit too tidy, but then the epilogue blew it apart. So mostly I'm torn on the ending, because everything was finished but then all of a sudden now there's a new piece of the puzzle. It makes me really want to read the next book, but now it feels like I have to. I really enjoyed the characters and how different the sisters seemed at first. There is Ingrid the quiet librarian and Freya the wild bartender. They were both fabulous in their own ways. It was interesting to see multiple sides of the characters too, it made them less one dimensional, and also kept me on my toes throughout. You never knew who would stab someone in the back and could never tell who was really innocent. The mystery bits were lovely and the whole story just flowed along at a great pace. I would definitely recommend you check this out, even if you weren't a fan of the Blue Bloods series (I could never get past the first couple chapters of those). I very much look forward to the next book.

First Line:

"North Hampton did not exist on any map, which made locating the small insular community on the very edge of the Atlantic coast something of a conundrum to outsiders, who were known to wander in by chance only to find it impossible to return; so that place, with its remarkably empty silver-sand beaches, rolling green fields, and imposing, rambling farmhouses, became more of a half-remembered dream than a memory."

Favorite Lines:

"But a library was not a bedroom, or a motel room, it was a place to read, to study , to be quiet. While the kids did try to comply with the last rule, heavy breathing was sometimes the loudest noise of all."

"Freya returned his kisses eagerly, and fell headfirst into the abyss."

In My Mailbox #101

In My Mailbox brought to you by The Story Siren

For Review: from Amazon Vine

Daughter of Smoke and Bone - Laini Taylor (!!!So freakin' excited!!!)

Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil's supply of human teeth grown dangerously low.

 Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real; she's prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands"; she speaks many languages—not all of them human; and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she's about to find out. 

When one of the strangers—beautiful, haunted Akiva—fixes his fire-colored eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherworldly war.

You Against Me - Jenny Downham

If someone hurts your sister and you’re any kind of man, you seek revenge, right? If your brother’s accused of a terrible crime but says he didn’t do it, you defend him, don’t you? 

When Mikey’s sister claims a boy assaulted her, his world begins to fall apart. When Ellie’s brother is charged with the offence, her world begins to unravel. When Mikey and Ellie meet, two worlds collide.This is a brave and unflinching novel from the bestselling author of Before I Die. It’s a book about loyalty and the choices that come with it. But above all it’s a book about love.

Bought/Swapped:

Wolfsbane - Andrea Cremer

Circle 9 - Anne Heltzel

Bones of Faerie - Janni Lee Simner

Rival - Sara Bennett Wealer

For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/ When the Rainbow is Enuf - Ntozake Shange

Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side - Beth Fantaskey

So that's what I got this week. What did you all get?

Review: The Poison Eaters - Holly Black

Where I got it: My Collection

Rating:  4.5 stars  

Cover Rating: 4.5 stars (Dark and creepy, the girls face is perfectly dead looking.)

Genre: Young Adult

Publication Date: February 23, 2010

Publisher: Big Mouth House

Page Count: 212 p.

Buy it: Book Depository / Amazon

Creepy tales of girls whose kisses will kill you. Vampires who are stalking the night. Fairies that want to keep you forever. This is a collection you won't want to miss if you're a fan of Holly Black or things that go bump in the night and day.

This was a great collection there were only a couple of stories in this that were previously unpublished, but I had not read any of them. It was a real treat. They will all sort of dark, almost spooky tales of all sorts of odd things. I didn't like the story "Virgin," which was too bad because it was about unicorns. I just found it to be a bit hard to follow. I was never really sure what the characters were doing. My three favorite though were "The Night Market," "The Coat of Stars" and "Paper Cuts Scissors." "The Night Market" had a sort of  voodoo feel to it. I liked the idea of a fairy in a tree that makes you fall in love with it. It's perfectly mischievous. "The Coat of Stars" was about a boy who's boyfriend got taken by fairies when they were teens. He comes back and makes these beautiful garments to try to entice the fairies into letting his boyfriend go. I thought it was a sweet story and I loved  the main character. "Paper Cuts Scissors" I love because I love books, and the Dewey decimal system. In this story, the book characters intermingled within each other's stories, causing all sorts of interesting twists in the classics. The main characters girlfriend has a way of being able to put things in books, and eventually folds herself into one. I loved the whole concept of this story, and would love to see more added to it, or maybe have a short story collection on altered classics. All in all this was a fantastic little collection, and I recommend it highly to fans of the genre and Holly's other work.

First Line:
"Matilda was drunk, but she was always drunk anymore."


Favorite Lines:
"'Mayhaps.' Roiben tried not to let anything show on his face."

I really love this cover too, it goes along with the title story very well.

There's a video on youtube of Holly reading from The Poison Eaters here.

Review: Mockingjay - Suzanne Collins

Where I got it: My Collection

Rating: 4.5 stars  

Cover Rating: 3.5 stars 

Genre: Young Adult

Publication Date: August 24, 2010

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Page Count: 390 p.

Buy it: Book Depository / Amazon

Sequel to The Hunger Games and Catching Fire

It's official, President Snow hates Katniss and Katniss sparked a revolution. When Katniss is rescued form the arena by rebels, she's not sure who she can trust. She thought she knew who the enemy was, but now she's not as positive. So for now she's staying in District 13, with the survivors from the air raid on District 12. Peeta was captured by the Capitol and is being held and tortured. Katniss just wants to get him back and make Snow pay. She may not get a chance though, when she's held back by District 13's President Coin.  Katniss may have more enemies than she thinks, and far fewer allies than she hoped.

**This review will probably be quite spoiler-y so read at your own risk, if you haven't read Mockingjay**

I was sort of frustrated with this book in a lot of ways, there were just so many things that infuriate me. I also didn't like the ending, not the resolution, just the style of it. Katniss was in and out of a daze most of the time, so the end of the book seemed very disjointed and I had a hard time piecing together what was going on. I also was just so frustrated with Katniss. Her love triangle was mostly just an angle. She didn't really seem to love either of them. It is hard though, because the Katniss Gale knew and love died in the first Hunger Games, meanwhile Katniss and Peeta grew closer, but she distanced herself. I also am still not sure who Katniss can trust, everyone seems to be keeping a lot of secrets. I'm not sure who did drop those parachutes. Was it the Rebels? Was it the Capitol? If it was the Rebels why weren't they shot out of the air, why did the medics go in to help? This brings me to the thing that killed me the most about this book. Prim dying. What!?! I guess it's a circle, the series started with Katniss taking Prim's place to save her life, so I guess she had to die, but it was just cruel. There was really no happy ending in this book. Not that a book needs a happy ending, but I feel like something nice could have happened. The whole society was a mess though, so I guess it only makes since. No one had a happy ending, why should the hero? So even though after I'm finished I am loaded with questions and theories, I guess it means that this was an incredible series. If everything was cut and dry, what would we have to talk about? It would have left nothing to mull over days and weeks after. Nothing to debate passionately about with other readers. This was such a great series, I think I may have to reread this one in the new future.

First Line:
"I stare down at my shoes, watching as a fine layer of ash settles on the worn leather."


Favorite Lines:
"The scream starts in my lower back and works its way up through my body only to jam in my throat. I am Avox mute, choking on my grief."

Review: The Magnificent 12: The Trap - Michael Grant

Where I got it: ARC from publisher for review

Rating: 3.5 stars  

Cover Rating: 3 stars (Matches book 1 nicely.)  

Genre: Young Adult

Publication Date: August 23, 2011

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

Page Count:  294 p.

Buy it: Book Depository / Amazon
Sequel to: The Call

Mack and his friends are still at it. They must assemble the Magnificent 12 before the Pale Queen rises, which is only a few days away. They find dragons, get followed by an ancient man in green, visit Thor and encounter all sorts of freaky creatures along the way. No matter how defeated they think they might be, they have to pull it together to save the world.

The one thing that bugged me a lot about this book was all the product placement. There was quite often a lot of name dropping be it electronics or otherwise. I just think this dates a book and tries to grasp too hard at being cool. Besides that flaw, I loved this book as much as the first one. It was still quite humorous; Mack and his buddies are a lot of fun. I like the new characters we get to meet as more of the Magnifica are gathered. Some of them are a little annoying, but bring a certain charm to the group regardless. I still think that this book should be in the hands of middle grade boys and girls alike. I imagine that once they read it they will eagerly anticipate the next book and the next book. I know I'm waiting!

First Line:
"Grimluk—looking as grim as ever—said the following while appearing as an indistinct image in a shiny chrome object in a bathroom in Sydney, Australia: 'I cannot guide you much further, Mack of the Magnifica.'"

Favorite Lines:
"The philosophy at Donghuamen seemed to be: Is it really gross? Okay then, put it on a stick."

THE MAGNIFICENT 12: THE TRAP BLOG TOUR Stop #4

THE MAGNIFICENT 12: THE TRAP (on-sale tomorrow!) is another fast-paced episode in New York Times bestselling author Michael Grant’s hilarious fantasy adventure series. Mack MacAvoy already answered The Call. Now he must assemble the Magnificent Twelve and avoid The Trap if he’s to save the world from the wicked Pale Queen. But time is short—the Pale Queen’s banishment ends in 35 days and she will be free to destroy the world! Can Mack assemble the Twelve and avoid The Trap? You can check out my review here tomorrow! Go here to see my review of the first book in the series.

To join the adventure, read along as Michael Grant introduces characters new and old from the world of The Magnificent 12 and gives sneak peeks at their adventures in THE TRAP. Each post will also reveal a clue about a worldly location the Magnificent Twelve visit in THE TRAP. Follow Michael Grant and the characters to each blog until you’ve discovered all eight locations. At the final stop on the blog tour, enter all eight locations to win a signed copy of both MAGNIFICENT 12 books!

Join The Magnificent 12 online community: Play free games, create an avatar, enter sweepstakes, and earn points at www.themag12.com!

Ready to get your Mag 12 on? Here’s your fourth character and clue:

Post #4: Jarrah Major
The last thing you can call Jarrah Major is a girly-girl. She wears her blonde hair in a pony-tail, drinks her coffee in one long gulp, and will never say no to some good old-fashioned physical work. She has strong shoulders, a direct gaze, and an unnerving way of saying exactly what she means. She’s also a bit of a dare-devil. There’s nothing she likes more than flying through the air in a dune buggy, making every single one of her bones rattle inside her. This makes her pretty much the opposite of Mack in every way, except that they are both part of The Magnificent Twelve, something they figured out during a particularly eventful trip to Australia’s famous Uluru in THE CALL. In THE TRAP, this Australian thrill-seeker is off on another adventure with Mack, looking for the rest of the Twelve . . . and trying to avoid getting killed by Princess Risky.

Clue: THE TRAP location #4: This location is an ancient distinctive rock formation in Germany. It’s sort of like the German equivalent of Uluru, which you might remember from BOOK 1: THE CALL. Giant rocks. Gotta love ’em.

Find the next clue Wednesday at  Alison's Bookmarks!

And just in case you missed the first three clues, we’ll fill you in:

Clue: THE TRAP location #1: If you’re in Beijing, China and craving deep-fried crickets, centipedes, and lizards for dinner, this is the place to go. Hint: it’s not McDonald’s!

Clue: THE TRAP location #2: With 9,999 rooms, this is the world’s largest surviving palace complex. For 9,999 bonus points, memorize a map of this place. (Note: We lied—there aren’t any bonus points. But if you still want to memorize a map of 9,999 rooms . . . you’re crazy.)

Clue: THE TRAP location #3: People say you can see this Chinese monument from space. We’ve never been to space, so we can’t say for sure if that’s true, but it’s definitely HUGE. For a bonus point, build a model of this monument out of 1 million Popsicle sticks. (Note: We lied again. No bonus points. But we’ll help you eat Popsicles if you want.)

In My Mailbox #100

In My Mailbox brought to you by The Story Siren

Could it be? Is it really my 100th IMM!?!?! Guess that means contest. Just say that you would like to win in the comments telling me which book you'd like to win and one lucky person can win any one of the books that I got this week. 

(I will be ordering new copies of any of these books so ARCs will be pre-orders, Open international, ends 8/27/11)

For Review: Thanks Macmillan and Bloomsbury

The Death Catchers - Jennifer Anne Kogler

On her fourteenth Halloween, Lizzy Mortimer sees her first death-specter.
Confused at first, Lizzy soon learns from her grandmother Bizzy that as Death Catchers, they must prevent fate from taking its course when an unjust death is planned-a mission that has been passed down from their ancestor, Morgan le Fay. Only, Lizzy doesn't expect one of her first cases to land her in the middle of a feud older than time between Morgan le Fay and her sister Vivienne le Mort. Vivienne hopes to hasten the end of the world by preventing Lizzy from saving King Arthur's last descendant-humanity's greatest hope for survival. It's up to Lizzy, as Morgan's earthly advocate, to outwit fate before it's too late. With its unique spin on Arthurian legend, this fresh, smartly written story will stand out in the paranormal genre.

All These Things I've Done - Gabrielle Zevin

In 2083, chocolate and coffee are illegal, paper is hard to find, water is carefully rationed, and New York City is rife with crime and poverty. And yet, for Anya Balanchine, the sixteen-year-old daughter of the city's most notorious (and dead) crime boss, life is fairly routine. It consists of going to school, taking care of her siblings and her dying grandmother, trying to avoid falling in love with the new assistant D.A.'s son, and avoiding her loser ex-boyfriend. That is until her ex is accidentally poisoned by the chocolate her family manufactures and the police think she's to blame. Suddenly, Anya finds herself thrust unwillingly into the spotlight--at school, in the news, and most importantly, within her mafia family. 

Bought/Swapped:

The Nimrod Flipout - Etgar Keret

Possession - Elena Johnson

Haunting Violet - Alyxandra Harvey

So Shelly - Ty Roth (my review)

So that's what I got this week. What did you all get?

Review: Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins

Where I got it: My Collection

Rating: 5 stars  

Cover Rating: 3.5 stars (Again nice original concept, but I don't know there's just something I don't love about it. )  

Genre: Young Adult

Publication Date: September 1, 2009

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Page Count: 391 p.

Buy it: Book Depository / Amazon

Sequel to The Hunger Games

So Peeta and Katniss have become victors of the Hunger Games and are paraded around for praise. President Snow is not happy about it though, and let's Katniss in on a little secret; if she does not convince him that she is in love with Peeta, he will kill all of the people that they love. Katniss tries the best she can, but no performance is enough. Then she hears up uprisings in the other districts, rumors flying that District 13 is alive and well. Katniss realizes that she was the catalyst of this revolution sweeping to the Capitol and there is little she can do to stop it. She might just have to fuel it if she wants to survive. 

Just as amazing as the first book, Catching Fire was a fantastic sequel. I will try to be brief, so I can get on to reading Mockingjay. This book added more wonderful characters and a lot more fire to an already fast paced story line. Cinna once again crafts jaw-dropping wardrobes, that may or may not be little incites into rebellion. This book left me bitting my nails until the very end, there was just so much happening. Rebellions are always quite exciting, especially in a dystopian-y type of world. These people are treated like crap all the time, and the slightest spark, sets the fire roaring. I really cannot wait to tear into the last book and see how this all plays out. Again, all the characters were flawlessly crafted to play off each other with their fears and jokes weaving in and out smoothly. The emotions ran high in this sequel, and I can only imagine that they will pique in the next book to nearly unbearable levels. This book was a surprise and it turned out better than I hoped. Seriously read this series, it was a mistake that I waited so long. 

First Line:

"I clasp the flask between my hands even though warmth from the tea has long since leached into the frozen air."

Favorite Line:

"There is nothing in this world that could break me faster at this moment than these three faces."

Friday Favorites

So I thought that today I would talk about some of my favorite books I've read this year. 2011 was really a fantastic YA year thus far, and there are tons of books I'm looking forward to in the fall. For now, I thought I'd share some of the books I think you have to read before summer is over.

Invincible Summer by Hannah Moskowitz was amazing. It had all the best elements of writing packed into a book with a powerful punch. The characters still visit me in my dreams, and I find myself thinking of Chase and Camus often. When I see someone signing, I immediately picture Gideon's tiny, defiant hands communicating thoughts way beyond his years. Few books stay in my mind like this one did. "I want to tell her not to speak, want to say it, but her lips are on mine again and I taste me and I taste her and I don't taste what we're saying and I don't taste Noah. I taste Camus—I owe to such evenings the idea I have of innocence."

Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma was a bizzarre story with so many twists and turns that you were delightfully tangled until you read the last words. The dynamic between the two sisters was perfect and they both shined. I often think of the town and the strange events that took place there. I think of the underwater city with people who refused to move on, even when their lives were in danger. Ruby's character not only enchanted the people within the story, I too find myself entranced and thinking of her words. Ruby was just a creature all her own with weird ideas and a supernatural charisma.  Nova Ren Suma is an author I will be keeping my eye on."...I sat there in the boat under her stars and her moon, gated on all sides by the mountains, watching the last bits of her breath float up and away."

Don't Stop Now by Julie Halpern is the third book of Julie's and the one I love the best. The character's in this story fell together with an effortless air about them. They bantered without a single forced comment. Lillian and Josh were just hilarious and fantastic, and I am a sucker for the whole road-trip/growing as a person metaphor. This was a great journey with an interesting destination and nobody's expectation were in the right places. I really thought this was the best road-trip book I've read. "I'm on my knees in the woodchips, trying to make sense of the Penny messages."

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Cathrynne M. Valente, has a title that leaves you winded and a story that leaves you breathless. This story was so much more fun then I could've imagined. September was just such an interesting girl and the whole of fairyland was not what I expected at all. At times it was downright frightening hearing of the odd things she encountered. The Wyvern she befriends is a good sort too and I enjoyed his knowledge of all things beginning with a letter from the first part of the alphabet."(It is well known that reading quickens the growth of a heart like nothing else.)"

And Then Things Fall Apart by Arlaina Tibensky is the ultimate book to reread, especially if you are feeling under the weather. Keek has chicken pox throughout the novel, and that makes her a little delirious, but come to fantastic conclusion about life. At least she doesn't have to worry about how sick her life makes her, when the chicken pox makes her scratch away. I loved listening to Keek rattle on about Sylvia Plath and her Bell Jar. This book will make you smile whether you are feeling a bit ill or just in need of a fantastic story. "Cute as a fucking button. Esther/Sylvia was as serious as a nuclear bomb."

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray is the bonus book this round, because it was completely hilarious. Seriously, everyone should read this book, unless you are easily offended. This book might offended you, but mostly only if you're a corporate schmuck or a certain dimwitted governor of a certain far away state. Regardless, this book had so many laugh out loud moments that you will not want to read this in public. "'What kind of person doesn't let you have gummi bears?'"

Review: The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins

Where I got it: My Collection

Rating: 5 stars  

Cover Rating: 3.5 stars (I like it and it's original and relevant, but it isn't as eye-catching as I usually go for. )  

Genre: Young Adult

Publication Date: September 14, 2008

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Page Count: 374 p.

Buy it: Book Depository / Amazon

In The Seam, a part of District 12, life isn't always easy. Food and money don't fall from the sky, and the Capitol looks down on hunting in the forest. Katniss ignores this last bit along with her friend Gale, they both have a family to feed after all. Both of them have many slips with their name on them in the raffle for The Hunger Games. This event, brought to you by the Capitol, pits two kids from each district against one another in a fight to the death. This is the Capitol's way of keeping everyone in line and preventing a revolution from rising. Katniss steps forward to take her sister's place when they draw names at the reaping. Katniss can not let her sister die, even if it means she must die herself. Katniss has been surviving quite well in The Seam though, so many she has enough instincts and will to survive The Hunger Games.

The beginning of this novel seemed slow to me, but it could be because I was trying my hardest not to love this book. I failed miserably and absolutely loved every minute of this book and did not want to put it down. The writing was just fantastic and the characters memorable and expressive. Each person came alive with Suzanne Collins' writing. I felt like I was actually there with them, or at least a spectator of the sport. There were many shocking things that happened, even though I sort of knew what the outcome would be early on. That didn't stop this book from surprising me in many ways. I really enjoyed Katniss, she was a survivor and it showed in everything she did. I love that she becomes The Girl Who Was on Fire, with a flaming entrance to the pre-game events. It is truly horrible that the Capitol would make all these young people fight to the death. Why couldn't they have adults do it? I guess it's not as tragic then, maybe wouldn't keep people in line as well. It's terrible that a small twelve-year-old girl could be matched up against a bunch of large, surly eighteen-year-old brutes. Peeta was an interesting character too, I can never quite tell what he was thinking. I could never be sure whether or not Katniss could trust him, or if he was telling the truth. I have already started Catching Fire, and am eager to see what happens next with everyone. I am looking forward to hearing more from the other characters that weren't too present in The hunger Games. If you have not read this yet, I would do it soon, especially before the movie comes out.

First Line:

"When I wake up, the other side of the bed is cold."

Favorite Line:

"The birds fall silent."

Review: An Abundance of Katherines - John Green

Where I got it: My Collection

Rating: 4.5 stars  

Cover Rating: 3.5 stars (Interesting, but meh...cover didn't make me pick it up.)  

Genre: Young Adult

Publication Date: August 14, 2008

Publisher: Speak

Page Count: 228 p.

Buy it: Book Depository / Amazon

Colin Singelton was just dumped by his 19th Katherine. This was one he really loved and so he is considerably upset. He doesn't understand why he is such a Dumpee and all the Katherine's are Dumpers. Colin is a prodigy, not a genius, but he figures his Eureka moment has come when he decides to develop a formula(based on his experience with The Katherines) that will be able to determine and predict any relationship between two people. He comes to this while his friend Hassan and him are on a road trip. They stop in a town called Gutshot to sight-see, but they end up staying and finding out a lot more about themselves as they interview the residences of the town.

This book was quite humorous. Colin Singleton is amusingly, socially awkward, which makes for entertaining situations. Hassan was sort of a jerk sometimes, but that's just how his personality is. He always has to look out for Colin after Colin gets dumped but yet another Katherine, and Hassan always has to let Colin know when he's being uninteresting. Colin will often go off on tangents about facts he finds fascinating, but that make other people's eyes gloss over. I really liked how we got to hear about each of the Katherines, it's strangely fascinating that one person (fictional or not) could date 19 people with the same first name. It's madness. I really enjoyed the footnotes too, footnotes add a certain something to a fun novel. The math parts didn't make a whole heck of a lot of sense too me, but there were visuals that most people will be able to understand. I really enjoyed this book and you can tell it was written by a complete nerd. Just the way the characters are with each other, they are smart and that let's them be cleverly sarcastic and sort of confuse everyone, nerd-like. This book remind me a lot of Julie Halpern's writing. She has the same clever, fun and intelligent characters, that flawlessly fit together. Make sure if you haven't read this book yet, you put it on you pile to read soon.

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First Line:
"The morning after noted child prodigy Colin Singleton graduated from high school and got dumped for the nineteenth time by a girl named Katherine, he took a bath."


Favorite Lines:
"Books are the ultimate Dumpees: put them down and they'll wait for you forever; pay attention to them and they always love you back."


"'...AkhhhhEchhhAhhhh. Kahhh. Ehhhhhh. Wow. Wow. Man. It's like French-kissing a dragon.'"