Books Read - September 2009
70. Fire, by Kristin Cashore. YA Fantasy. 352 pages.
71. Salt, by Maurice Gee. YA Fantasy/SF. 240 pages. *
72. Before I Fall, by Lauren Oliver. YA Fiction. 480 pages. * Review here.
73. The Spook's Tale and Other Horrors, by Joseph Delaney. Juv Horror.
74. Gwenhwyfar: The White Spirit, by Mercedes Lackey. Fantasy. 400 pages. *
75. Timelock (Caretaker Trilogy Book Three), by David Klass. YA Fantasy/SF. 256 pages.
76. Heart's Blood, by Juliet Marillier. Fantasy. 416 pages. *
*reviewed in Booklist
Best book I read this month: Wow, this is a tough one. I read too many excellent books: Fire, Gwenhwyfar, and Heart's Blood were all amazing. Excellent writing, deep stories, and complex character development. Before I Fall, however, was an extra special read because I thought it was going to be horrible (Samantha dies at the beginning in a car accident and then is forced to repeat the day over and over, and as she tries to figure out what's going on, she starts to notice things about her life, her friends, and her family that she never noticed before). It could have been twee and sentimental, or utterly depressing, but it turned out to be extremely moving, complex, beautiful. I highly recommend it, especially as its a debut novel. What's with all the super good debut novels in YA lately?
Worst book I read this month: I hate to say this, because I loved the other two Caretaker books, but the conclusion in Timelock was disappointing. The plot was crowded, jumbled, and at times ridiculous, and it was missing the focus on the environment that I really appreciated about the first two. After going through some serious character development in the other two, Jack in this one felt paper thin, and though all of the other characters had scenes with him, they didn't feel as if they were really there. Maybe that was because the action movie pacing was so over the top that entire dangerous battles would take place in two sentences, and then bam! another battle scene, rinse and repeat. The stakes were supposed to be the future of the planet (in the future, the environment is ruined, and Jack has to save his father and battle the Dark Lord to save it), but despite all the action, it kind of felt like nothing was happening at all. Sad.
71. Salt, by Maurice Gee. YA Fantasy/SF. 240 pages. *
72. Before I Fall, by Lauren Oliver. YA Fiction. 480 pages. * Review here.
73. The Spook's Tale and Other Horrors, by Joseph Delaney. Juv Horror.
74. Gwenhwyfar: The White Spirit, by Mercedes Lackey. Fantasy. 400 pages. *
75. Timelock (Caretaker Trilogy Book Three), by David Klass. YA Fantasy/SF. 256 pages.
76. Heart's Blood, by Juliet Marillier. Fantasy. 416 pages. *
*reviewed in Booklist
Best book I read this month: Wow, this is a tough one. I read too many excellent books: Fire, Gwenhwyfar, and Heart's Blood were all amazing. Excellent writing, deep stories, and complex character development. Before I Fall, however, was an extra special read because I thought it was going to be horrible (Samantha dies at the beginning in a car accident and then is forced to repeat the day over and over, and as she tries to figure out what's going on, she starts to notice things about her life, her friends, and her family that she never noticed before). It could have been twee and sentimental, or utterly depressing, but it turned out to be extremely moving, complex, beautiful. I highly recommend it, especially as its a debut novel. What's with all the super good debut novels in YA lately?
Worst book I read this month: I hate to say this, because I loved the other two Caretaker books, but the conclusion in Timelock was disappointing. The plot was crowded, jumbled, and at times ridiculous, and it was missing the focus on the environment that I really appreciated about the first two. After going through some serious character development in the other two, Jack in this one felt paper thin, and though all of the other characters had scenes with him, they didn't feel as if they were really there. Maybe that was because the action movie pacing was so over the top that entire dangerous battles would take place in two sentences, and then bam! another battle scene, rinse and repeat. The stakes were supposed to be the future of the planet (in the future, the environment is ruined, and Jack has to save his father and battle the Dark Lord to save it), but despite all the action, it kind of felt like nothing was happening at all. Sad.