Sunday, March 31, 2013

A Review of The Rose Throne

The Rose ThroneThe Rose Throne by Mette Ivie Harrison
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This story almost has the feel of alternate history, only...it isn't. There are a lot of similarities here to the idea of Henry the VIII and his daughter, Elizabeth. Ailsbet is red-haired, her father was a charmer in his youth but a dangerous, paranoid, man as he ages, with his girth ever growing. The king gets rid of a wife who doesn't please him, and Ailsbet must tread carefully, committing her heart to no man. And of course, there's the title, The Rose Throne...

I actually sort of liked Ailsbet because she wasn't the typical heroine, and both she and her brother had a lot of growth throughout the novel. The princess I had more of a problem with was Marissa. I understood she was from a poorer, lesser kingdom, but I had serious problems with the way she just accepted the insults Kellin hurled at her. And her father, the king, let Kellin! And in the midst of her statements of , "oh yes you're right, I'm so sorry," and "I'm so naive and terrible," they're suddenly saying they shouldn't be in love. I felt like I missed the chapter where they actually fell in love and started appreciating each other. I get the idea of a love-hate relationship, and I even like them when they're done right, but this almost just felt like an abusive relationship.

I also liked the world set up, with the gender-specific magic, though I didn't entirely understand why only the islands seemed to have magic. I was also very curious about Ailsbet's flute-playing as I felt there was more to that than was explored--it would be great to see a book go further into this and all the magic.

In fact, another book is pretty much necessary at this point. After seeing so much growth with Ailsbet, I really hope to see it with Issa as well, and not just in the love area. And maybe the author will draw out the developments a little more in the next novel--this one was good, but at times, it felt like the author just wanted to rush through certain areas and get to "the good parts."

This digital copy of The Rose Throne was given to me by NetGalley & Egmont USA in exchange for an honest review.

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Thursday, March 21, 2013

A (admittedly ranting) Review of The Summer Prince

The Summer PrinceThe Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I have so many bones to pick with this book, but I'd do my best to start at the beginning. First off, why the Summer Prince as the title? Enki, the man June loves, is a Summer King or a Moon Prince (i'm not entirely sure what the difference is, since the author was never very clear), but he was definitely never a summer prince.

And that's where I get into my next issue. I have never had to guess so much about what was going on while reading. I had NO idea at times, and would just sort of assume things since I knew there was never going to be a definitive answer. The lack of description during action scenes and the random Portuguese words with no context clues....

*deep breath.* Okay. I'm going to try to be fair and at least state what i feel are definitive facts about this book. It is poetically, artistically written. It has beautiful imagery. Its action scenes are poorly written. Its plot meanders. The world-building lacks grounding in reality. It is NOT YA appropriate.

So let's start with the first few points, the reason I gave it anything more than one start. The writing is very pretty. It flowed well. Yet I think it's the first time I've encountered beautiful imagery that actually failed to create an image for me. We get a general sense of a glass pyramid above green vats, but that's about it. I can't figure out how June can see through the different levels int he pyramid when things like walls, flowers, grass, also exist. The author, caught up in the character's head, also seemed to have trouble clarifying anything for the reader that June was unclear about or that June already knew enough about that she never bothered to explain it. It was very frustrating.

The plot drove me crazy because I couldn't quite figure out what the point of it was, other than that we were all waiting for the summer king to die, and this was a sad thing. Yet it was hard to feel sad for him when he became super hedonistic and elf-centered (yet all this was supposedly because he loved too much). I got the feeling we were supposed to adore the main characters, but I couldn't connect with any of them, because their choices made no sense to me.

Which brings me to the next issue, the lack of realism. Everyone in this world seems to be pan-sexual, and have little feelings about it. You have sex early, often, and with whoever feels like having it with you. It's okay if someone you loves has sex with someone else you love. Jealousy? Ha, a thing of the past, apparently. And this is also where I really don't agree with this book being categorized as YA. Sure, the characters are the right age, but that's about it. I know I would never recommend my cousins or students read this--their parents would be horrified with me. And in all likelihood, they would get bored before they got to the sex scenes anyways, having given up on trying to understand the book.

It's a prettily-written book, and probably likeable if you can ignore that half the book doesn't really work. Unfortunately, I can't.

This digital copy of Dear Cassie was given to me by NetGalley & Scholastic Inc. in exchange for an honest review.



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A Review of Dear Cassie (from someone who knows this world)

Dear CassieDear Cassie by Lisa Burstein
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was intrigued by the premise of this book from the start, because I work as a counselor at a therapeutic boarding school, a place many kids end up attending after going to a wilderness experience like the one Cassie is sent to.

Because of that, I found this book generally hit-or-miss. It didn't matter that I hadn't ready the first book, Pretty Amy, which I definitely consider a positive point. Cassie is one of those girls who's tough on the outside but all soft of the inside. A mix of messed-up emotions and unfocused determination. She knows what she wants, realizes that what she wants might be more complicated than she initially thought, then has to deal with that realization. The book doesn't have some neat bow wrapping it all up, leaving us with a perfectly healed girl, but that's life. That's real.

One of the "misses" I found with this book though was the actual therapeutic aspect of her wilderness experience. I don't know of any therapeutic program that would have boys and girls camps so close to each other (really? Half of the problems these kids have is with boundaries and relationships)--I felt like this was just stuck in there so Cassie could have an opportunity for romance. And this need for romance also bothered me because while totally swearing off boys isn't the answer, Cassie still does need to discover who she is without a guy. I felt like the author went through the motions of creating the wilderness setting (hikes, journaling, hard work), but didn't actually have the program delve very far into the issues the girls and guys were working with.

Either way, it was still good to see this world explored somewhat, and I found myself highlighting some of the passages. I think this book could be good for teens struggling with things in their own lives, as long as they're open to it. And I think they could be, because the author doesn't come off as preach at all. In fact, things like the main character's vulgarity (possibly a shocker to some readers) would possible make her more relateable to troubled teens.

Well-written ad interesting, I was tempted to give it four stars, but ended up giving it three because I think it could have done more than it did, and I definitely wasn't a fan of the abrupt, 'what the heck' ending. It was an okay place to end, just not enough questions had been answered.

This ARC digital copy of Dear Cassie was given to me by NetGalley & Entangled Publishing in exchange for an honest review.


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Saturday, March 16, 2013

Review of The Deepest Night

The Deepest Night (The Sweetest Dark, #2)The Deepest Night by Shana Abe
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was admittedly very excited to receive the e-copy of this so soon after reading the first one. I approached The Deepest Night with some hesitation, however, because I wasn't sure how Abe was going to pull off the Amrmand-Lora love that was destined to happen. They are both drakon, after all, and with all the other drakon books that creates an instant attraction. But as the book opens, it's clear Lora is still dealing with Jesse's death, and I didn't want to see her overcome that too easily either.

I would say Abe did a pretty good job of handling it all. Lora wasn't entirely prostrate with grief the way I thought she should be, but some time had passed since the last book, and she did have Armand to keep her company, after all. Her true love is gone, but that doesn't mean there isn't room for more love on the horizon (and perhaps a more possible love).

The tone of this story is fast-paced and full of action, much like the end of the last book, only less rushed. SO be prepared for more war, soldiers, bullets, and brief glimpses into the darker side of human nature. We even visit an asylum, which frankly, gave me the creeps. But also definitely made me feel for Lora even more.

If you're a fan of Armand, you're going to enjoy this book--A LOT. If you're anxious to learn more about Lora's past, you will be rewarded with a few small tidbits. And when you're done, you're really, really going to want to know more about not only her origins, but what happened to the rest of the drakon as well.


This ARC copy of The Deepest Night was given to me by NetGalley & Random House - Bantam Dell.

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Thursday, March 7, 2013

Review of Obsidian Mirror

The Obsidian MirrorThe Obsidian Mirror by Catherine Fisher
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

As a fan of Incarceron, I wanted to like this book, I really did. And it was decent, but...like Incarceron, it had its issues.

The book starts off with a fascinating premise--a boy out for revenge, a mysterious guardian. The name Oberon (Midsummer Night's Dream, anyone?) is already a clue that there might be some fae magic going on, so when more sci-fi elements get brought in, its a pleasant surprise. I personally always love to see the two combined, and I was also looking forward to Jake as a central character, since many YA books are written from the girl's point of view.

Jake initially intrigued me at first, but unfortunately, I quickly became and bored of and disappointed in him. He starts off as a dangerous teenage boy, willing to do anything to get expelled from school. Eager to see why, I read on, only to discover that my questions were answered all too quickly as he immediately opened up to a teacher he barely knew. All of the sudden Jake was a big softy with little spine and a willingness to accept whatever explanation was told to him. Every now and then he went back to that fierce determination, but I saw nothing else of the dangerous boy I glimpsed in the first few pages.

The story was fast-paced, the plot interesting, but I think half the problem with this book is that there are so many plot points and sub-plots that the characters get lost in the story Fisher is trying to tell. I had a similar feeling with Incarceron and Sapphique, where there were so many mysteries that I lost track of them, and sometimes when secrets were "revealed," I still didn't really understand their significance. It's much the same with this book, where big "reveals" don't seem important to me, and all the information I really want to know is still being held out, hopefully for the next book. By the end I started to get confused about which character was doing what, as the POV kept switching so much and I just wanted to yell at them to start asking the right questions!

I obviously got a bit worked up by this book, but part of that is because I did still get into the story. I do still want to see what happens, and find out more answers. So if you're willing to get through the parts where the characters drive you a little bonkers, then I say go for it. In all likelihood, you'll still enjoy the read.

I received this advance ebook copy from NetGalley

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