Book Post April
The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games 1) by Suzanne Collins
2,5 out of 5 stars
Sometime in the future after the destruction of North America in a nation known as Panem, the 74th Hunger Games begins.
As punishment for a previous rebellion against the Capitol, every year, one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 from each district are selected by lottery and forced to participate in the Hunger Games, a televised event in which the participants, or "tributes," must fight to the death in a dangerous, outdoor arena, controlled by the Capitol, until only one remains. The difference this year is District 12 has had it's first volunteer probably in the whole history of the District... Katniss Everdeen, who volunteered to take the place of her younger sister, Prim; and she's already making an impression
I honestly struggled with this book in the first halve of it. A lot of this has to do with the I point of view and Katniss. I am just not a fan of Katniss. I am also no fan of I point of view unless they are done extremely well and feel like I am glimpsing inside the character's soul and development. That certainly was not the case here. This is a very simple written I point of view. Which can work for some people to read but not for me.
The second halve of the book was a bit better though mostly when Katniss was interacting with Rue and Peeta. I noticed in other reviews that people complained about her lack of response to the deaths of people. I can understand Katniss not truly reflecting on killing people until she is back home. The environment was not there for her to reflect on, she was so caught up in everything happening there and in staying alive there was just no room for it in her head yet. Though it would have been nice if this had been hinted at a little more instead of her moving on so quickly as she did. Hence also why she wasn't questioning what she was doing with Peeta until they truly came out of the arena.
As for the whole love thing between Katniss and Peeta, I feel more towards Katniss with Gale than with Peeta at this point.
First Day of the rest of your Life (The Morganville Vampires 0,5) by Rachel Caine
3 out of 5 stars
Eve Rosser is turning eighteen. Does she accept the Protection or go without?
An okay prequel to the Glass House. It was nice to see how Eve got to live with Michael and what Eve has been through. It also offers a little more insight on Morganville. Not sure if I like the way the death of her three friends was dealt with on the emotional side.
A short story you can find online for free. :)
City of Ashes (The Mortal Instruments 2) by Cassandra Clare
4 out of 5 stars
Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal. But what's normal when you're a demon-slaying Shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? If Clary left the world of the Shadowhunters behind, it would mean more time with her best friend, Simon, who's becoming more than a friend. But the Shadowhunting world isn't ready to let her go - especially her handsome, infuriating, newfound brother, Jace. And Clary's only chance to help her mother is to track down rogue Shadowhunter Valentine, who is probably insane, certainly evil - and also her father.
To complicate matters, someone in New York City is murdering Downworlder children. Is Valentine behind the killings - and if he is, what is he trying to do? When the second of the Mortal Instruments, the Soul-Sword, is stolen, the terrifying Inquisitor arrives to investigate and zooms right in on Jace. How can Clary stop Valentine if Jace is willing to betray everything he believes in to help their father?
I went back and forth between giving it 3,5 or 4 stars. I ended up choosing 4 stars.
Reading this second book I felt more connected with the characters. Jace's conflict with being Valentine's son felt realistic. Adding on his feelings for Clary (who for him now is his sister) and feeling rejected by his foster mom, there was a lot of emotional turmoil for Jace in this book. I like that because it did add another dimension to his character for me. I rooted for him. I am still very neutral to Clary and Simon. Changing Simon to a vampire was certainly not needed for me but it was okay. It is a cheap/east way to keep him connected to Clary besides their friendship. One thing that mostly bothered me was the scene at the faerie court and how Jace and Clary were forced to kiss. The story did not need that at all and there was enough tension between the two without that
Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles 2) by Marissa Meyer
3,5 out of 5 stars
Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She's trying to break out of prison--even though if she succeeds, she'll be the Commonwealth's most wanted fugitive. Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn't know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother's whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.
To be fair I am not as taken with this second book as I was with Cinder. Don't get me wrong, I still like it or I wouldn't have rated it 3,5 stars still. But it did not grab me as Cinder did.
For me it might be the addition of Scarlet and Wolf, especially Wolf I think. I also have very little interest in their relationship compared to Cinder-Kai. I also feel that Scarlet is too quick to open her arms to him at the end. I know I wouldn't have. He has given her very little to trust and with his nature the rational mind of her should be telling her to stay far away from him. I saw none of this at the end though.
As for Thorne, I was very iffy on his addition at the start but as a character he grew on me and his interactions with Cinder (and everyone else for that matter) do lighten moments or make me smile. And of course Iko <3.
The Golem and the Djinni by Helene Wecker
3 out of 5 stars
Chava is a golem, a creature made of clay, brought to life by a disgraced rabbi who dabbles in dark Kabbalistic magic. When her master, the husband who commissioned her, dies at sea on the voyage from Poland, she is unmoored and adrift as the ship arrives in New York in 1899.
Ahmad is a djinni, a being of fire, born in the ancient Syrian desert. Trapped in an old copper flask by a Bedouin wizard centuries ago, he is released accidentally by a tinsmith in a Lower Manhattan shop. Though he is no longer imprisoned, Ahmad is not entirely free - an unbreakable band of iron binds him to the physical world.
The Golem and the Djinni is their magical, unforgettable story; unlikely friends whose tenuous attachment challenges their opposing natures - until the night a terrifying incident drives them back into their separate worlds. But a powerful threat will soon bring Chava and Ahmad together again, challenging their existence and forcing them to make a fateful choice.
I thought about this book for a while, how I felt about it and such and what to rate it.
It certainly was an entertaining read. It was well written, the characters were flawed but there were still enough aspects to like and there was a good world building. But as I think of the characters I feel very little more than neutrality. There were no character that I have taken an immense liking to and there were characters I disliked at first but were so developed that at the end I held no dislike for them as I could understand their motives (like Schaalman). Each character was developed very well, from Sophia to Schaalman. At points early in the story I wondered why they would get the attention they did but that all fell into place as the story continued. This I liked. But still I felt no real excitement or a big curiosity as I read on.
In parts scenes felt long-winded (which reminded me of the Night Circus). Still I think this book has many good points going for it
The Little Andriod (The Lunar Chronicles 0.6) by Marissa Meyer
3 out of 5 stars
When android Mech6.0, saves the life of a handsome hardware engineer, her body is destroyed and her mechanics discover a glitch in her programing. Androids aren’t not meant to develop unpractical reasoning or near-emotional responses…let alone fall in love.
An interesting retelling of the Little Mermaid set in the world of the Lunar Chronicles. More than that it certainly was not.
Again a free short story you can find online. :)
2014 Goodreads Challenge - 17/30
1. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern - 4 stars
2. xxxHolic: Rei volume 1 by Clamp - 4 stars
3. In Extremis (Crime Scene Investigation 9) by Ken Goddard - 3 stars
4. The Titan's Curse (Percy Jackson 3) by Rick Riordan - 3 stars
5. Among the Nameless Stars (For Darkness Shows the Stars 0,5) by Diana Peterfreund - 3 stars
6. Castle in the Air (Howl's Moving Castle 2) by Diana Wynne Jones - 4 stars
7. Glass Houses (The Morganville Vampires 1) by Rachel Caine - 3 stars
8. The Demon King (Seven Realms 1) by Cinda Williams Chima - 5 stars (reread)
9. The Witch of Duva (The Grisha 0,5) by Leigh Bardugo - 4 stars
10. The Exiled Queen (Seven Realms 2) by Cinda Williams Chima - 4 stars
11. City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments 1) by Cassandra Clare - 3,5 stars
12. The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games 1) by Suzanne Collins - 2,5 stars
13. First Day of the Rest of your Lives (The Morganville Vampires 0,5) by Rachel Caine - 3 stars
14. City of Ashes (The Mortal Instruments 2) by Cassandra Clare - 4 stars
15. Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles 2) by Marissa Meyer - 3,5 stars
16. The Golem and the Djinni by Helene Wecker - 3 stars
17. The Little Andriod (The Lunar Chronicles 0,6) by Marissa Meyer - 3 stars
Goodreads Profile Feel free to add me on there. :)
Bookpost January/February
Bookpost March
Day 57 - How often do you skim a book before reading it?
Never
Day 58 - Do you like to keep your books organized?
Yes! My books are organized per author in alphabetical order in my book case. When it gets full I move the books I did not like upstairs.
Day 59 - Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them?
I have never given a book away. I am considering giving away the books I disliked though or selling them for a small price.
Day 60 - Are there any books you’ve been avoiding?
The cuckoo's calling, Lemony Snicket (too many books X_X), Fifty Shades of Grey, The Original Shannara Trilogy, Ranger's Apprentice (too many books!)