Book Review - "The Near Witch" by Victoria Schwab

Publisher - Disney Hyperion
Release Date - August 2, 2011
Number of Pages - 282
Series - none

Summary:
 The Near Witch is only an old story told to frighten children.

If the wind calls at night, you must not listen.
The wind is lonely, and always looking for company.
And there are no strangers in the town of Near.

These are the truths that Lexi has heard all her life.

But when an actual stranger—a boy who seems to fade like smoke—appears outside her home on the moor at night, she knows that at least one of these sayings is no longer true.

The next night, the children of Near start disappearing from their beds, and the mysterious boy falls under suspicion. Still, he insists on helping Lexi search for them. Something tells her she can trust him.

As the hunt for the children intensifies, so does Lexi's need to know—about the witch that just might be more than a bedtime story, about the wind that seems to speak through the walls at night, and about the history of this nameless boy.


This book was absolutely wonderful! It was creepy, haunting...and beautiful.

Victoria Schwab spins the words together in a fashion that makes the story (or the Near Witch) appear at your mind (or your house). The writing was absolutely was amazing and it made the book spooky. It was definitely a high point of the book.

The main character was great and well developed, but she was very different from me, so it was hard for me to relate to her. Lexi was rebellious and I am usually not.

I also really loved the setting of the story. I absolutely love novels set in small towns, probably because I grew up in a small town. The author described it in a way that was very easy to visualize in my head and that made it a lot more real for me. I also loved this aspect of the story.

This book was very good and I definitely recommend this for everyone!

A-
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Book Review - "The Dark Divine" by Bree Despain

Publisher - Egmont USA
Release Date - Dec. 22, 2009
Number of Pages- 372
Series - The Dark Divine #1

Synopsis:
 Grace Divine, daughter of the local pastor, always knew something terrible happened the night Daniel Kalbi disappeared--the night she found her brother Jude collapsed on the porch, covered in his own blood--but she has no idea what a truly monstrous secret that night held.

The memories her family has tried to bury resurface when Daniel returns, three years later, and enrolls in Grace and Jude's high school. Despite promising Jude she'll stay away, Grace cannot deny her attraction to Daniel's shocking artistic abilities, his way of getting her to look at the world from new angles, and the strange, hungry glint in his eyes.

The closer Grace gets to Daniel, the more she jeopardizes her life, as her actions stir resentment in Jude and drive him to embrace the ancient evil Daniel unleashed that horrific night. Grace must discover the truth behind the boy's dark secret...and the cure that can save the ones she loves. But she may have to lay down the ultimate sacrifice to do it--her soul.



I did not know what to expect from this book when I picked it up, but I am glad to say that I enjoyed it quite a lot.

It is hard for me to pinpoint what I liked about the book, and what exactly made it enjoyable for me.

For one, I enjoyed the religious aspect of the novel. I have never read a book about a "preacher's kid" before, therefore that aspect of the novel was very interesting to me.

I also really liked Daniel and Grace's dad. They were very likeable and I enjoyed reading about them.

What I thought was very cool, were the headings at the beginnings of all the scenes. They made the book a lot more organized and easier to read. This was very good for me, because I hate being confused when reading. When I'm confused, I'm frustrated and I take out my frustrations on the book and because of that I don't like the book.

This book was a very enjoyable read, but not a mind blowing one.

B+

Happy Reading!

Book Review - "Shatter Me" by Tahereh Mafi

Publisher- Harper Collins
Release Date - Nov 15, 2011
Page Number - 338
Series - Shatter Me #1

Synopsis:
 Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war– and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.




What I liked the most about this book was the writing style. It was filled with beautiful prose, it was very fluid and beautiful to read. I really liked the strike-troughs that were used frequently in this novel, I htought that they were a very interesting part of the reading experience.

Also, I thought the characters in this novel were very well developed. Especially Warner. Despite being a villain, he was my favourite character, and I felt that there was a lot of depth to him and I hope that there will be more development to his character in the next books.

Juliette was also a great main character, she was very intelligent and brave. She was a strong, but a broken person, because of the events in her past, and I really enjoyed reading about her.

I loved the originality of Juliette's power. That aspect of the book was one I wanted to read in the first place.

I thought that the world building was pretty good, but I feel that there should have been more details about how it became so different from today's world.

I did not like the last scene (the one with the purple suit). It just felt so shallow, after an entire book about danger and destruction.

Shatter Me is definitely a book that I really enjoyed. I loved the characters, the unique writing style and the original premise, there were just a couple of things i did not like.

B+

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Book Review - "The Summer I Turned Pretty" by Jenny Han

Publisher - Simon & Schuster
Release Date - May 5, 2009
Number of Pages - 276
Series - The Summer #1

Belly measures her life in summers. Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August. Winters are simply a time to count the weeks until the next summer, a place away from the beach house, away from Susannah, and most importantly, away from Jeremiah and Conrad. They are the boys that Belly has known since her very first summer--they have been her brother figures, her crushes, and everything in between. But one summer, one terrible and wonderful summer, the more everything changes, the more it all ends up just the way it should have been all along.

My Thoughts:
1. This novel has a very authentic, summery feel. The setting is described very well and that makes the book very enjoyable and perfect for the beach.
2. I found the characters to be very realistic. However, I found Belly to be pouty at times, but fortunately that didn't ruin the book for me.
3. I have really enjoyed the flashbacks! I think they provided more depth to the characters. 
4. One thing that did irritate me, was some minor plotholes, ex. one thing happened when Belly was 14, and then 20 pages later it says that the thing happened when she was 13.  IRRITATING.


Rating - A-

Book Review - "Demonglass" by Rachel Hawkins

Publisher - Hyperion
Release Date - March 22, 2011
Number of Pages - 359
Series - Hex Hall #2

(Synopsis not included in order to avoid spoilers)

My Thoughts:
1. I really loved the characters in this one! Sophie was sassy and awesome, Archer seemed more likeable, Cal was just and amazing and Jenna is the coolest fictional vampire.
2.  The actiona scenes were written very well. It was very easy to imagine what was going on and it did not get confusing.
3. The setting, which was an old mansion in the English countryside, was totally awesome and it really fit the story.
4. The dialogue and the sarcastic remarks made this book very enjoyable.
5. Because of the ending, I MUST HAVE THE NEXT BOOK!

Overall, this is an amazing sequel and I recommend this series to everyone.
Rating - A+

Book Review - "Ashes, Ashes" by Jo Treggiari

Publisher - Scholastic
Release Date - June 1, 2011
Number of Pages - 344
Series - I am really surprised this is not a series. I could have sworn it was a series, but Goodreads suggests otherwise.

A thrilling tale of adventure, romance, and one girl's unyielding courage through the darkest of nightmares.
Epidemics, floods, droughts--for sixteen-year-old Lucy, the end of the world came and went, taking 99% of the population with it. As the weather continues to rage out of control, and Sweepers clean the streets of plague victims, Lucy survives alone in the wilds of Central Park. But when she's rescued from a pack of hunting dogs by a mysterious boy named Aidan, she reluctantly realizes she can't continue on her own. She joins his band of survivors, yet, a new danger awaits her: the Sweepers are looking for her. There's something special about Lucy, and they will stop at nothing to have her.


My Thoughts:

1. This was another book that I have read for White Pine, and while it was not terrible I had a few problems with it.

2. The first and the biggest problem I had with this book was the lack of character development. I think that this book was focusing so much on the action, mystery and plot and therefore it managed to completely omit any chances of character development. For example, Aidan, the main love interest, was supposed to be the one of the most important characters. At the end of the book I felt like I just met him.

3. Another problem I had with this book, was that at times there way too much descriptive writing. In the first chapter, it was described how Lucy was taking out guts from a turtle (ewwww).

4. However, I thought that a lot of minor characters were very likeable. In particular Grammalie, who called everyone an animal in Polish, Sammy and Henry, who were just nice and fun.

Rating - B-

Book Review - "Runaway" by Meg Cabot

Publisher - Scholastic
Release Date - May 1, 2010
Number of Pages - 310
Series - Airhead #3

Synopsis is not included in this review because of potential spoilers to previous books.

My Thoughts:
 1. The plot was very nicely formulated in this book, it was not confusing which made everything clear. There are always those books that sometimes confuse(Usually if there is a lot of action) but this was not the case.

2. This was the last book in the series,and in my opinion all the loose ends were very nicely tied up.

3. In some series, you don't get to find out what happened to secondary characters (Mockingjay, I'm talking to you) however, in Runaway you get to know the fate of most characters, which I thought was awesome.

4. In the entire series, Meg Cabot did a very good job of describing various aspects of a life of a celebrity, which the book even more awesome.

Rating - A
 

Book Review - "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" by Jonathan Safran Foer

Publisher - Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Release Date - April 4, 2006
Number of Pages - 336

 Nine-year-old Oskar Schell has embarked on an urgent, secret mission that will take him through the five boroughs of New York. His goal is to find the lock that matches a mysterious key that belonged to his father, who died in the World Trade Center on the morning of September 11. This seemingly impossible task will bring Oskar into contact with survivors of all sorts on an exhilarating, affecting, often hilarious, and ultimately healing journey.


My Thoughts:
1. The writing was absolutely beautiful in this book! It was beautifully structured and the prose flowed really well.
2. What made this book very interesting was that it was not only narrative,m but it also included things like pictures, letters, articles etc. It made the book more realistic in my opinion.
3. I think that the ending of this book was very effective and well written.
4. Oskar was portrayed as a very eccentric and "broken" character, which I think fit the book perfectly well.


Overall, it was very well written with very good characters.


Rating - A

Book Review - "Swim the Fly'' by Don Calame

Publisher - Candlewick Press
Release Date - April 14, 2009
Number of Pages - 368
Series - Swim the Fly #1

Fifteen-year-old Matt Gratton and his two best friends, Coop and Sean, always set themselves a summertime goal. This year's? To see a real-live naked girl for the first time — quite a challenge, given that none of the guys has the nerve to even ask a girl out on a date. But catching a girl in the buff starts to look easy compared to Matt's other summertime aspiration: to swim the 100-yard butterfly (the hardest stroke known to God or man) as a way to impress Kelly West, the sizzling new star of the swim team. In the spirit of Hollywood’s blockbuster comedies, screenwriter-turned-YA-novelist Don Calame unleashes a true ode to the adolescent male: characters who are side-splittingly funny, sometimes crude, yet always full of heart.

My Thoughts:
 1.This was fun and hilarious! SO much different from regular YA. It felt like an adventure book, but without dragons, beasts and unicorns.
2. The main character and his sidekicks were awesome, very realistic and definitely not flat.
3. Unlike most YA books, it did not end on a cliffhanger. The ending was very clear.
4. I recommend this to everyone. Even to those who refuse to read anything that does not have vampires in it.


Rating - A+






 

Book Review - "The Time Traveller's Wife" by Audrey Nieffenegger

Publisher - MacAdamCage
Release Date - 2003
Number of Pages - 518

 When Henry meets Clare, he is twenty-eight and she is twenty. Henry has never met Clare before; Clare has known Henry since she was six. Impossible but true, because Henry finds himself periodically displaced in time, pulled to moments of emotional gravity from his life, past and future. Henry and Clare's attempts to live normal lives are threatened by a force they can neither prevent nor control, making their passionate love story intensely moving and entirely unforgettable. The Time Traveler's Wife is a story of fate, hope and belief, and more than that, it's about the power of love to endure beyond the bounds of time

My Thoughts:

1. The first 100 pages, were very good. I have really enjoyed the chemistry between young Clare and Henry from the future.
2. However, after the first 100 pages, I started getting bored. The story was not as interesting and it was less relatable.
3. I found there to be way too many references to pop culture, names, terms and other stuff like that.
4. I could not finish it, because it was starting to be very draggy and slow.


 
Overall, I thought it was just OK. It started off well, but then it just became more boring.

Rating - C+

Book Review - "The Lover's Dictionary" by David Levithan

Publisher -Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Release Date - January 4, 2011
Number of Pages - 211
Series - n/a

Summary:
 How does one talk about love? Do we even have the right words to describe something that can be both utterly mundane and completely transcendent, pulling us out of our everyday lives and making us feel a part of something greater than ourselves? Taking a unique approach to this problem, the nameless narrator of David Levithan’s The Lover’s Dictionary has constructed the story of his relationship as a dictionary. Through these short entries, he provides an intimate window into the great events and quotidian trifles of being within a couple, giving us an indelible and deeply moving portrait of love in our time.


My Thoughts:
1. The biggest highlight of this novel was definitely the writing. The heart-wrenching, beautiful writing. Here are some passages fromt he book to show you wha I'm talking about.
      "Love is one kind of abstraction. And then there are those nights when I sleep alone, when I curl into a pillow that isn't you, when I hear the tiptoe sounds that aren't yours. It's not as if I can conjure you up completely. I must embrace the idea of you instead.” 

   " Even when I detach, I care. You can be separate from a thing and still care about it. If I wanted to detach completely, I would move my body away. I would stop the conversation midsentence. I would leave the bed. Instead, I hover over it for a second. I glance off in another direction. But I always glance back at you.”

    “The key to a successful relationship isn’t just in the words, it’s in the choice of punctuation. When you’re in love with someone, a well-placed question mark can be the difference between bliss and disaster, and a deeply respected period or a cleverly inserted ellipsis can prevent all kinds of exclamations.” 

2. This book is such a quick read! I read it in about an hour and a half.

3. This novel is very realistic. It does not portray the romance like a fairy tale, and yet the emotions described are out of this world.

4. The concept of this book is just so unique and original. I never heard of any other book that is told through dictionary definitions,a nd still contain and amazing story.


Overall, this is a dictionary that you want to read cover to cover.

A 

Book Review - "City of Fallen Angels" by Cassandra Clare

Publisher - Margaret K. McElderry
Release Date - April 5, 2011
Number of Pages - 424
Series - Mortal Instruments #4

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS NO MAJOR SPOILERS TO THE PREVIOUS BOOKS IN THE SERIES.

My Thoughts:

1. I was really glad to see some of Jace's sarcasm and wittiness return, after his moodiness in the previous two books.

2. According to the synopsis, one of the main points of this book was suupoosed to be the Shadowhunters getting murdered. But instead, it seemed like the book was focused more on the relationship and angst.

3. The ending was amazing! Very exciting and I love how it turned out. It creates a great conflict for the next two books in the series.

4. I have one thing to say that does nto have anything to do with the story itself, but with the cover. Clary's are eyes are just way too creepy. I hate it.

5. Clare's writing remains just as good as it was before.


Overall, it was pretty good. Not super amazing, and definitely not the best in the series, but still worth the read.

B+

Book Review - "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins

Publisher - Scholastic Press
Release Date - September 1, 2009
Number of Pages - 391
Series - Hunger Games #2

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS NO SPOILERS FOR THE PREVIOUS BOOK(S) IN THE SERIES

My Thoughts:

1. I thought Hunger Games was like the most amazing book when I read it, but this one was even better! It was intense, crazy and I could not put it down!

2. I loved that Gale was actually around in this book. I t was great getting to know his character better, since he was'nt around much in THG.

3. All the political issues that were explored in this book were amazing. It really added to the book and showed us, the readers, the corruption of governments in dystopian societies.

4. The twists. Oh the crazy mind-blowing twists.

5. CLIFFHANGER!!!!!!!!!!! This was honestly one of the hugest, craziest, evilest(is that even a word?) cliffhanger ever. Thankfully I have purchased Mockingjay already.


Overall this book was supermegafoxyawesomehot

A+

Book Review - "Clockwork Angel" by Cassandra Clare

Publisher - Margaret K. McElderry
Release Date - August 31, 2010
Number of Pages - 476
Series - Infernal Devices #1

Synopsis:
Magic is dangerous--but love is more dangerous still.

When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London's Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep order amidst the chaos.

Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What's more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa's power for his own.

Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by--and torn between--two best friends: James, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and volatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm's length...everyone, that is, but Tessa. As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world...and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all.

My Thoughts:

1. The best part of the book were the well developed, engrossing, likeable characters. They all had very distinct personalities and they all seem to have secrets...
2. The plot was full of twists, turns and surprises. One moment I thought I was figuring something out and then something crazy happens and I just have no words to describe it.
3. Very rich, interesting and descriptive setting. Really captured the atmosphere of Victorian London well.
4. A thing I did not like...the automatons, clockwork people, robots, however you want to call them. I just did not like the whole concept of them. Too sci-fi for me.
5. I'm very excited to read the sequel. I can't wait to find out more about Will...

Overall, this book was really good and  recomend if robots from 19th century and arrogant mysterious characters are your thing.

Rating - A-

Book Review - "The Sweetest Thing" by Christina Mandelski

Publisher - Egmont USA
Release Date - May 10, 2011
Number of Pages- 352
Source - Netgalley

In the world of Sheridan Wells, life is perfect when she's decorating a cake. Unfortunately everything else is a complete mess: her mom ran off years ago, her dad is more interested in his restaurant, and the idea of a boyfriend is laughable.

But Sheridan is convinced finding her mom will solve all her problems - only her dad's about to get a cooking show in New York, which means her dream of a perfect family will be dashed. 

It's 3:30 AM, as I'm writing this, because I just had to stay up and finish the book. Just like Sheridan's cakes this book was pure perfection.

I expected this book to be a very light read, and in most parts it was, but there were some dark and depressing moments.

I loved all the food references in the book, it really complimented the theme and it made it even more fun to read because I love it when books have something that makes it stand apart from other novels in this genre.

I absolutely loved Jack and Lori. They just had really awesome personalities and were always there for Sheridan.

The setting, writing and pacing of this book is perfectly done as well.(I'm not elaborating because there is not much to say about them)

Overall this book is a beautiful coming- of- age story, that I recommend to anyone who likes food.

Rating - A+

Book Review - "Anna and the French Kiss"

Publisher - Dutton
Release Date - December 2, 2010
Number of Pages - 372
Source - Library

Anna is 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. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris - until she meets Etienne St. Clair: perfect, Parisian (and English and American, which makes for a swoon-worthy accent), and utterly irresistible. The only problem is that he's taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her almost-relationship back home.

As winter melts into spring, will a year of romantic near - misses end with the French kiss Anna - and readers - have long awaited?



AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

holy crap, this is like  the best book ever!
It is like a perfect sundae. The characters are the awesome scoops of ice-cream, the plot is like hot fudge, the setting is like a pretty umbrella with awesome writing and perfect pacing sprinkled on top. You gotta read it.

Rating - A+ 

Book Review - "Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray

Publisher - Scholastic Press
Release Date - May 24, 2011
Number of Pages - 390
Source - Bought

The fifty contestants in the Miss Teen Dream pageant thought this was going to be a fun trip to the beach, where they could parade in their state-appropriate costumes and compete in front of the cameras. But sadly, their airplane had another idea crashing on a desert island and leaving the survivors stranded with little food, little water, and practically no eyeliner.

What's a beauty queen to do? Continue to practice for the talent portion of the program--or wrestle snakes to the ground? Get a perfect tan--or learn to run wild? And what should happen when the sexy pirates show up?

Welcome to the heart of non-exfoliated darkness. Your tour guide? None other than Libba Bray, the hilarious, sensational, Printz Award-winning author of A Great and Terrible Beauty and Going Bovine. The result is a novel that will make you laugh, make you think, and make you never see beauty the same way again.



I purchased this book because of the amazingness of "A Great and Terrible Beauty" and the wonderful concept. I used to be obsessed with pageants when I wa s younger, so I knew that I need to pick this up. Overall, "Beauty Queens" was like an amazing trip with a few bumps in the road.

First of all, the story idea is original and fun! The plot is interesting in most places, but slow and boring in a moment or two. The characters definitely rule the book! They are all different, and they blend in with each other. As the story goes on, we find out more things about them and also their back story, which I thought was awesome!


Libba's writing style in this book was very satiric, which made reading even more fun. But the best part of this book is the format. There are not only the regular story chapters, but also commercial breaks, footnotes, confidential chapters, words from sponsors and profile pages! That has really made the book a great experience.

This book explores some really taboo issues and has a lot of girl power. It also felt like an episode of CSI sometimes.

However, this book has had a bunch of slow and boring moments, and towards the end, the footnotes were starting to get annoying.


Overall, this is a great summery book and I definitely recommend, despite these small downfalls.
Rating: A-