2015 book: Island Shifters
Island Shifters by Valerie Zambito
Rating: Okay (Hated-Disliked-Okay-Liked-Loved)
Based on the title and cover image, I had thought Island Shifters would be about shapeshifters. Unfortunately it wasn't. Instead it was the most generic fantasy book you could find. Every fantasy race was represented in it (elf, dwarf, troll, cyclops, etc). 'Shifting' was the book's word for magic. Four teens were the 'chosen ones' who had to save the world from blah blah evil *yawn*.
The book never even came close to hooking me, but I didn't hate it, so I kept reading. Around 20% in I was thinking about giving up on it, and asked myself if I was enjoying reading it. "I'm not not-enjoying it..." That turned out to be the theme of the book: Was it bad? No, but it wasn't not-bad either. Did I like it? No, but I didn't not-like it...
By the 30% point, the writing (which had never been close to good) became even worse. There was a line like "[Bad guy] laughed and it was the most evil sound [main character] had ever heard in her life" (paraphrased, don't have my Kindle with me). The bad guys were just so unreasonably, unrealistically bad.
The one positive the book had was that it was well-edited (for a self-published book). While there were some clunky sentences, I saw no typos or misspellings -- what a sad time when "no typos or misspellings" counts as a positive and not just a basic expectation!
I gave up on it at the 30% point. Another book I wasted hours on that doesn't count towards my 50/year goal... I'm only up to 18 books this year, so no way will I make it.
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I was offered a book for review, and almost accepted it before I dodged the bullet. The blurb:
Phaet Theta has lived her whole life in a colony on the Moon. She’s barely spoken since her father died in an accident nine years ago. She cultivates the plants in Greenhouse 22, lets her best friend talk for her, and stays off the government’s radar.
Then her mother is arrested.
The only way to save her younger siblings from the degrading Shelter is by enlisting in the Militia, the faceless army that polices the Lunar bases and protects them from attacks by desperate Earth dwellers. Training is brutal, but...
Look at the character's first name. Phaet. Fate. UGH! I'm so glad I spotted that before accepting it, that would have made me tear my hair out! Strike two is that the section I cut off leads to a typical stupid YA romance subplot. Two strikes and you're out.
Rating: Okay (Hated-Disliked-Okay-Liked-Loved)
Based on the title and cover image, I had thought Island Shifters would be about shapeshifters. Unfortunately it wasn't. Instead it was the most generic fantasy book you could find. Every fantasy race was represented in it (elf, dwarf, troll, cyclops, etc). 'Shifting' was the book's word for magic. Four teens were the 'chosen ones' who had to save the world from blah blah evil *yawn*.
The book never even came close to hooking me, but I didn't hate it, so I kept reading. Around 20% in I was thinking about giving up on it, and asked myself if I was enjoying reading it. "I'm not not-enjoying it..." That turned out to be the theme of the book: Was it bad? No, but it wasn't not-bad either. Did I like it? No, but I didn't not-like it...
By the 30% point, the writing (which had never been close to good) became even worse. There was a line like "[Bad guy] laughed and it was the most evil sound [main character] had ever heard in her life" (paraphrased, don't have my Kindle with me). The bad guys were just so unreasonably, unrealistically bad.
The one positive the book had was that it was well-edited (for a self-published book). While there were some clunky sentences, I saw no typos or misspellings -- what a sad time when "no typos or misspellings" counts as a positive and not just a basic expectation!
I gave up on it at the 30% point. Another book I wasted hours on that doesn't count towards my 50/year goal... I'm only up to 18 books this year, so no way will I make it.
---
I was offered a book for review, and almost accepted it before I dodged the bullet. The blurb:
Phaet Theta has lived her whole life in a colony on the Moon. She’s barely spoken since her father died in an accident nine years ago. She cultivates the plants in Greenhouse 22, lets her best friend talk for her, and stays off the government’s radar.
Then her mother is arrested.
The only way to save her younger siblings from the degrading Shelter is by enlisting in the Militia, the faceless army that polices the Lunar bases and protects them from attacks by desperate Earth dwellers. Training is brutal, but...
Look at the character's first name. Phaet. Fate. UGH! I'm so glad I spotted that before accepting it, that would have made me tear my hair out! Strike two is that the section I cut off leads to a typical stupid YA romance subplot. Two strikes and you're out.