The Maze Runner (Book #1 in The Maze Runner Series)

By James Dashner

"When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. His memory is blank. But he’s not alone. When the lift’s doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade—a large, open expanse surrounded by stone walls.
Just like Thomas, the Gladers don’t know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night they’ve closed tight. And every thirty days a new boy has been delivered in the lift.
Thomas was expected. But the next day, a girl is sent up—the first girl to ever arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers.
Thomas might be more important than he could ever guess. If only he could unlock the dark secrets buried within his mind."

The maze Runner started out slow.  I had a hard time getting into it until maybe 17 chapters in. From there, it was exciting and action packed and I had a hard time putting it down.  That being said, I thought the book was excruciatingly predictable.  There were very few times my eyebrows tilted together in surprise and all of those small twists were ones that I immediately saw in hindsight.

The characters were well developed and Dashner did a great job giving each endless Glader a personality, but there were just too many to keep track of.  Teresa seemed to get the short end of the stick in the personality development. I actually really liked the specialized slang of the Gladers and the way they had banded together to create a "normal" semblance of society.  I kept forgetting these were prepubescents running the "world".

The end of the book was a little anti-climactic for me.  I was also left a little confused; more questions than answers.  I understand that he's setting up for two more books, but there should be a few "ah ha" bits of information that lead into the next book, not just more mystery piled onto the end of book one. Interested to see how the next book plays out.

Turned, Loved, Betrayed, Destined, Desired

Novels 1-5 in The Vampire Journals Series
By Morgan Rice


"In TURNED (Book #1 of the Vampire Journals series), eighteen year old Caitlin Paine finds herself uprooted from her nice suburb and forced to attend a dangerous New York City high school when her Mom moves again. The one ray of light in her new surroundings is Jonah, a new classmate who takes an instant liking to her.

But before their romance can blossom, Caitlin suddenly finds herself changing. She is overcome by a superhuman strength, a sensitivity to light, a desire to feed--by feelings she does not understand. She seeks answers to what’s happening to her, and her cravings lead her to the wrong place at the wrong time. Her eyes are opened to a hidden world, right beneath her feet, thriving underground in New York City. She finds herself caught between two dangerous covens, right in the middle of a vampire war.

It is at this moment that Caitlin meets Caleb, a mysterious and powerful vampire who rescues her from the dark forces. He needs her to help lead him to the legendary lost artifact. And she needs him for answers, and for protection. Together, they will need to answer one crucial question: who was her real father?

But Caitlin finds herself caught between two men as something else arises between them: a forbidden love. A love between the races that will risk both of their lives, and will force them to decide whether to risk it all for each other..."

The plot continues... with seven sequential books.  If there was ever a series written for no other reason than to make money, this is it.  I keep reading them, HOPING that things will get better, but I really don't think I can keep going.

 

First off, let's discuss the writing: It is horrendous.  If you're going to write a book... No, I'll even forgive the author... if you're going to PUBLISH a book, for the love of God, PLEASE PROOF READ IT!  If you're going to write a book, gift yourself a thesaurus. The writing is so frustrating.  It is redundant and stale and cheesy.  I find myself mentally rewriting it. 

However, even that is impossible, since the characters are under-developed and, frankly, dim witted. I don't think there is a single character, and there are a great many, that I even like.  Maybe that's the problem; there are too many people in this book. Rice is name dropping like you can't believe.  Between cities and countries spanning the globe, at least three villains at a time, a whole island of identifiable vampires, she's dragging in historical figures like Marie Antoinette and Napoleon. 

The books are harried and lack attention to detail. It's like watching a three year old play: one minute she's wrapped up in dolls, the next, she's watching Sesame Street, and before they even have time to announce the number of the day, she's all caught up with sidewalk chalk. There is absolutely no reasonable amount of time for the characters to be so wrapped up in each other. They spend two minutes together and suddenly they are best friends, worst enemies or soul mates.

The story is a mishmash of events and people and motivations.  I think the underlying journey for Caitlin to find her father is going to end up the ultimate point, but from a few reviews that I've read which contained spoilers, I honestly think that if I finish this series, I will roll my eyes and laugh out loud over the ridiculousness of it. Seriously, It's worse than the House of Night series, and I have definite issues with that one.

I really can't think of one redeeming quality of this series.  The reason I keep picking them up is because I have an OCD compulsion to finish what I start. I think The Vampire Journals series will lead to my imminent institutionalization, because I just don't think I can read one more sentence!

Before I Fall

By Lauren Oliver

"What if you had only one day to live? What would you do? Who would you kiss? And how far would you go to save your own life?
Samantha Kingston has it all: the world's most crush-worthy boyfriend, three amazing best friends, and first pick of everything at Thomas Jefferson High—from the best table in the cafeteria to the choicest parking spot. Friday, February 12, should be just another day in her charmed life.
Instead, it turns out to be her last.
Then she gets a second chance. Seven chances, in fact. Reliving her last day during one miraculous week, she will untangle the mystery surrounding her death—and discover the true value of everything she is in danger of losing."

I saw another review that said this book was basically "Groundhog Day" meets "Mean Girls". Nailed it. That's about it, review done.

Okay, I guess I could go into this a little bit more deeply.  It bothers me that Sam completely changed and did a 180 in less than a week. That she fell in love with someone she hadn't spoken to in seven years, in less than a week. The reason behind her death and ultimately the sacrifice of her life, was beautiful and tragic and worthwhile. Sam's friendships, however vapid seeming, were actually extremely precious and substantial. I did like the premise and the book, overall, was not a waste of time.

Alice in Zombieland

By Gena Showalter

"She won’t rest until she’s sent every walking corpse back to its grave. Forever.
Had anyone told Alice Bell that her entire life would change course between one heartbeat and the next, she would have laughed. From blissful to tragic, innocent to ruined? Please. But that’s all it took. One heartbeat. A blink, a breath, a second, and everything she knew and loved was gone.
Her father was right. The monsters are real….
To avenge her family, Ali must learn to fight the undead. To survive, she must learn to trust the baddest of the bad boys, Cole Holland. But Cole has secrets of his own, and if Ali isn’t careful, those secrets might just prove to be more dangerous than the zombies….
I wish I could go back and do a thousand things differently.
I'd tell my sister no.
I'd never beg my mother to talk to my dad.
I'd zip my lips and swallow those hateful words.

Or, barring all of that, I'd hug my sister, my mom and my dad one last time.

                                                                        I'd tell them I love them. I wish... Yeah, I wish"

I don't know exactly what I was expecting from this book, but I wasn't expecting what it is. Gena Showalter does have some very interesting ideas and unique takes that vary the paranormal genre. This book is no exception.  Right away, her concept of zombies that are spirit, not undead flesh and bone, had me captivated. The idea that only some individuals can see these monsters and that one can only fight them by leaving their body and duking it out in the spirit realm, is a pretty great twist.

The characters... Alice is not a particularly strong heroine, but she does have good, real qualities: here vulnerability wen it comes to her sister, her regret over how she treated her father, her desire to avenge her family's death. I really liked her ability to stand up for herself, even against the gang-like group of hardened zombie slayers. Her loyalty to Kat scores points for her. Also, the fact that she and Cole, although confronted with an obvious connection and attraction, tried to create a relationship slowly, was something I enjoyed seeing progress. I love that Showalter made Ali's grandparents so sassy, trying out teen lingo and discussing sex, drinking and drugs openly.

There was a lot of emotion in this book. There were unavoidable and irreversible events leading to death and sorrow and defeat. The thing that I was irritated about was how anti-climatic her reunion was with her zombified father. Also, it was lacking in the promised malevolence that was indicated by Emma. I know this is a series, but there were too many unanswered questions. Jury is still out pending book two of The White Rabbit Chronicles.

Twisted

By Gena Showalter

"Sixteen-year-old Aden Stone has had a hell of a week. He's been:
Tortured by angry witches. Hypnotized by a vengeful fairy. Spied on by the most powerful vampire in existence. And, oh, yeah, killed—twice.
His vampire girlfriend might have brought him back to life, but he's never felt more out of control. There's a darkness within him, something taking over…changing him. Worse, because he was meant to die, death now stalks him at every turn. Any day could be his last.
Once upon a time, the three souls trapped inside his head could have helped him. He could have protected himself. But as the darkness grows stronger, the souls grow weaker—just like his girlfriend. The more vampire Aden becomes, the more human Victoria becomes, until everything they know and love is threatened."

Book three in Gena Showalter's Intertwined series left me excited for the final book in the series.  With that said, wow, was Twisted difficult to get through!

I like these characters, that's already been established.  However, I was a little irked when from page one, Aden wasn't really Aden.  It took nearly half of the book for him to fight off whatever vampire change induced douchebaggery he had been victim to. I also was unimpressed by Mary Ann's little adventure, and the fact that she magically came back to herself at the conclusion of the book.  Why?  What happened there? I did enjoy Victoria's foray into the land of mortality.  She needs some humility in her life. That, and I like the duality of her and Aden, switching places so to speak, instead of becoming vampirisms power couple.
I was glad that there was a focus on the souls; I was irritated when nothing progressed there in the second book. I found Julien's release cathartic, although his story was a little less emotional or realistic than Eve's. I was also happy to see Aden's parents and back story furthered in book three.  It did surprise me that his father was so intent on keeping Aden out of his life, but seemed to know an awful lot about what he insisted he hates. I would have liked a tad more closure there.

About three quarters of the way through, it finally became a page turner, and that's saying something since the  book is over 500 pages.  I've seen a few reviews rampaging over the ending and Aden's decision to rewind everything (which I think would be a good name for the 4th book if it really does go that way), but I'm actually intrigued by how Showalter's going to bind up all these loose ends.  It really was quite a disaster at the end of Twisted, everyone dead or injured or becoming human; things were dire. It will be interesting to see what happens, if Eve and Julien will be back inside Aden, etc. All in all, seemed a little like an interim book, just stringing things out unnecessarily to get to the end.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone

By Laini Taylor

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

I literally could not put this book down.  It was so beautifully written, all I could think of was Eva Ibbotson's flawless imagery.  The setting of Prague was an excellent choice of setting for this strange tale.

Right away, I fell in love with Karou.  No simpering, lovesick little girl, but a smart and capable woman, even at the age of 17.  This character was neither unrealistically savvy, nor pathetically incapable.  Karou has sass, smarts, and incredible sense of self.  Her awareness that something seems to be missing is proof of that.  Akiva is a character that I was determined not to like.  However, his story, his strength and pain and the realization of his dreams of peace pulled me onto his side.  I enjoyed the glimpses of his vulnerability when he was around Karou, which stemmed from his love of Madrigal.  As a supporting character, I have to mention that I really loved Zuzanna as well.  She is a remarkable example of friendship.   I could go into all of the characters, they were really very well developed, but instead I'll just leave it at that.

As the story unfolds, mystery is stacked upon intrigue until the reader is salivating over the inevitable fitting together of this puzzle.  Taylor does an incredible job of creating a world outside of our world, playing off of myth and religion and legend to create something almost tangible within a pocket of the heavens.  I absolutely loved that she told the story of Karou, which was followed by an entirely different story of Madrigal, which all fit together seamlessly.

I can't fully articulate how much I enjoyed this book, I'd just end up rambling for another six paragraphs. I loved it.  Can't wait to find out what happens next.

Touched

By Cyn Balog

"Nick Cross always listens to the voice in his head. Because if he doesn't? Things can go really, really wrong. Like the day he decided to go off script and saved a girl from being run over . . . and let another one drown. Trying to change the future doesn't work. But this summer at the Jersey Shore, something's about to happen that Nick never could have predicted. He meets a girl named Taryn and finds out about the Book of Touch. Now the path that he thought he was on begins to shift . . . and there's no way to stop things from happening. Or is there? In a life where there are no surprises, nothing has prepared Nick for what he's about to discover--or the choice he will be forced to make. . . ."

I really enjoyed this book. I think that the premise was extremely unique. Nick's constant inner monologue could have gotten confusing, but Balog managed to keep the story controlled. I like the characters of Nick and Taryn, although their romance seemed a little rushed and out of nowhere, which is admittedly the case in most YA romance novels, especially in the supernatural genre. Nick, specifically was a very likable character. I was definitely rooting for him throughout the book.

The resolution of the book was beautiful. The sacrifice that Nick's grandmother made for her family was touching and a very fitting ending. It bothered me a little bit that Nick was the only one that remembered everything, which wasn't really explained. I liked this book so much, that I can overlook that detail.