[review] Just One Day (Just One Day, #1) by Gayle Forman (2013)

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book, book review, eighties, france, Paris, romance, travel, young adult, young adult fiction

Just One Day (2013)
by Gayle Forman
Hardcover Edition
Publication Date: January 8th, 2013
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Buy a copy via Amazon.
Synopsis from Goodreads.

When sheltered American good girl Allyson “LuLu” Healey first meets laid-back Dutch actor Willem De Ruiter at an underground performance of Twelfth Night in England, there’s an undeniable spark. After just one day together, that spark bursts into a flame, or so it seems to Allyson, until the following morning, when she wakes up after a whirlwind day in Paris to discover that Willem has left. Over the next year, Allyson embarks on a journey to come to terms with the narrow confines of her life, and through Shakespeare, travel, and a quest for her almost-true-love, to break free of those confines.

My Thoughts:
Just One Day is a surprising book, it’s warm and charming, but also unexpectedly powerful. From the title, I thought I knew what the entire book would be about: a girl falls in love in a day, and the couple triumphs amongst naysayers who claim you can’t love someone without “knowing” them. But Gayle Forman’s Just One Day is so much more than that. Just One Day isn’t about romance (don’t worry, there’s a bunch of that too) so much as about a reserved girl learning who she is, and who she wants to be. And the growth you see in Allyson, aka Lulu is what makes Just One Day shine brightly.

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[review] Slated by Teri Terry (2013)

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book, book review, brainwashing, dystopia, dystopian, future, London, mind control, romance, sci-fi, United Kingdom, young adult, young adult fiction

Slated (2013)
by Teri Terry
US Hardcover Edition
Publication Date: January 24th, 2013
Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books (Imprint of Penguin)
Buy a copy via Amazon.
Synopsis from Goodreads.

Kyla has been Slated—her memory and personality erased as punishment for committing a crime she can’t remember. The government has taught her how to walk and talk again, given her a new identity and a new family, and told her to be grateful for this second chance that she doesn’t deserve. It’s also her last chance—because they’ll be watching to make sure she plays by their rules.

As Kyla adjusts to her new life, she’s plagued by fear. Who is she, really? And if only criminals are slated, why are so many innocent people disappearing? Kyla is torn between the need to know more and her instinct for self-preservation. She knows a dangerous game is being played with her life, and she can’t let anyone see her make the wrong move . . . but who can she trust when everyone is a stranger?

My Thoughts:
Finally! A book that is actually a dystopian novel in the classic sense of the word (in which society tries to be an utopia, but with a major flaw,) and not another one of those “let’s just call it dystopian and claim its the next Hunger Games while we’re at it” novels. In Slated, children under sixteen that are deemed detrimental to society (e.g. criminals, terrorists, rebels) will be given a second chance by having their memories wiped and living with a new adoptive family. Slaters are then required to wear a Levo, a bracelet that monitors happiness and negativity. When the user drops too low, the bracelet shocks the user before they can harm society. At first it seems that all is good, until more and more citizens disappear for trivial misconduct and citizens fear government is abusing their power.

Slated reminded me of why I love the dystopian genre: its speculative nature is thought-provoking and a great starting point for ethical discussions. However, as much as this futuristic dystopia excited me, the novel as a whole did not. It’s not that Slated by Teri Terry had many faults, but just that it didn’t stand out and felt slightly heavy-handed at times. The slow pace also failed to hold my attention. However, I still think it succeeded in raising important questions like self-identity (without memories, who are you?) and the nature vs. nuture debate.

[review] The Fault in Our Stars by John Green (2012)

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book, book review, cancer, romance, young adult, young adult fiction

The Fault in Our Stars (2012)
by John Green
Hardcover Edition
Publication Date: February 10th, 2012
Publisher: Dutton Books (Imprint of Penguin Books)
Buy a copy via Amazon.
Synopsis from Goodreads.

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten./em>

My Thoughts:
I…don’t know. The Fault in Our Stars is my first John Green book, and I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY wanted to love it. And I didn’t. It was very well-written, the prose is just beautiful, but not something I was eager to pick up again after I put it down. I blame in partly to my expectations. When you pick up the TIME magazine, #1 BEST book, you expect it to me the best book you’ve EVER read. This is the YA Bible of 2012 here! It MUST be jaw-droppingly AMAZING. And I liked the guy, I subscribe to ALL his youtube channels. I eat up his Crash Course episodes like candy. He has a great personality, witty and “funny without ever being mean” (of course he could be a Van Houten behind the scenes, but I would never know that.) I expected myself to run around shoving this book into everyone’s faces and bawling my eyes out (not that me crying is a sign of whether the book is good or not.) But I didn’t.

[review] Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell (2013)

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asia, asian culture, book, book review, eighties, pop culture, romance, young adult, young adult fiction

Eleanor and Park (2013)
by Rainbow Rowell
Hardcover Edition
Publication Date: February 26th, 2013
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Buy a copy via Amazon.
Synopsis from Goodreads.

Set over the course of one school year in 1986, ELEANOR AND PARK is the story of two star-crossed misfits – smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. When Eleanor meets Park, you’ll remember your own first love – and just how hard it pulled you under

My Thoughts:
I very much enjoyed Eleanor And Park. It was a warm and charming love story that started on a school bus. I loved watching their story unfold through comic books and music. Although at times the love story felt a bit too angsty and saccharine at parts, it also felt realistic. It felt like teenage love, where you everything seems infinitely more important. And it was okay to be unsure of yourself. I am usually not one for romances filled with endless love proclamations, but Eleanor and Park is so much more than that. Although I had gripes with character development, I still wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this novel. Definitely one of the best I’ve read so far this year.

Misfits? Who?
The blurb calls Eleanor and Park, “two star-crossed misfits.” But I have to disagree with that. I didn’t feel either of them were “misfits,” other than their physical appearances. They were not exactly misfits because everyone shunned them, but because they were so enamored with each other, everyone else was an annoyance to them. Or they never try to make friends in the first place, especially Eleanor. And then she blames it on her appearance. All of the “friend” characters had to approach them. Eleanor and Park were supposed to be these funny, “cool” people–but I didn’t want to be their friend.

[review] Shards & Ashes, Short Story Collection Editted by Kelley Armstrong and Melissa Marr (2013)

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android, apocalypse, apocalyptic, asia, asian culture, book, book review, china, dystopian, romance, sci-fi, technology, young adult, young adult fiction

Shards and Ashes (2013)
by Melissa Marr (Editor), Kelley Armstrong (Editor), Veronica Roth, Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl, Rachel Caine, Nancy Holder, Beth Revis, Carrie Ryan
Paperback ARC
Publication Date: February 19th, 2013
Publisher: HarperTeen
Buy a copy via Amazon.
Synopsis from Goodreads.

The world is gone, destroyed by human, ecological, or supernatural causes. Survivors dodge chemical warfare and cruel gods; they travel the reaches of space and inhabit underground caverns. Their enemies are disease, corrupt corporations, and one another; their resources are few, and their courage is tested.

Powerful original dystopian tales from nine bestselling authors offer bleak insight, prophetic visions, and precious glimmers of light among the shards and ashes of a ruined world.

My Thoughts:
I’m obsessed with dystopians, so coming across Shard and Ashes was like Christmas for me (despite the weird cover that made me think it was a paranormal anthology instead.) But I find that short stories can be hit or miss for me. On one hand they allow me to explore many different worlds, but on another hand sixty pages is sometimes not enough to develop a world or to make me invested in the characters (which explains why it took me a week to finish this one.) There were also moments were I felt some of these short stories were just leftover scraps, as if they were not fully fleshed out ideas. This made evident in the abrupt way some of these stories ended, as if the author had a host of great ideas, but ran out of steam halfway through. Of course, not ALL of the stories in this collection were like that. And despite the my disappointment in plot, all these different dystopian imaginings kept me turning pages.

[review] Scarlet (Lunar Chronicles #2) by Marissa Meyer (2013)

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android, asia, asian culture, book, book review, china, cinderella, cyborg, droids, fairytale, fairytales, france, japan, prince, princess, re-telling, red riding hood, romance, salior moon, sci-fi, technology, travel, young adult, young adult fiction

Scarlet (2013)
by Marissa Meyer
Hardcover Edition
Publication Date: February 5th, 2012
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Buy a copy via Amazon.
Synopsis from Goodreads.

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.

My Thoughts:
This book has NO “negative” reviews! Now I have to be the weirdo. This review will have spoilers about Cinder, so don’t read on if you don’t want to know.
I hoped Scarlet would redeem the series for me since I was one of the few people who wasn’t a fan of Cinder. While I know why Marissa Meyer set Cinder in China (because the tale of Cinderella originated there,) the way she handled the culture was a complete mess, and greatly hindered my enjoyment throughout the novel. Thank goodness, I only had to bear Meyer’s misuse of Chinese honorifics in one scene in Scarlet. Scarlet, on the other hand, is largely set in France–a country I have no experience/associations with and therefore would not notice if there were cultural discrepancies. I was right, Scarlet annoyed me a lot less than Cinder did, but still a book I would hesitate to wholeheartedly recommend.

[review] Cinder (Lunar Chronicles #1) by Marissa Meyer (2012)

Tags

android, asia, asian culture, book, book review, china, cinderella, cyborg, droids, japan, prince, princess, re-telling, romance, salior moon, sci-fi, technology, young adult, young adult fiction

Cinder (2012)
by Marissa Meyer
Hardcover Edition
Publication Date: January 3rd 2012
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Buy a copy via Amazon.
Synopsis from Goodreads.

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . .

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

My Thoughts:
I love sci-fi and fairytale re-telling. With all the praise surrounding Cinder, I was certain this would be my book. It wasn’t. I enjoyed Meyer’s futuristic interpretation of Cinderella, she had an interesting concept–unfortunately the execution was lacking, especially the clumsy world building. Perhaps I’m Chinese that I am particularly critical of how my culture is being portrayed, and Cinder irritated me on that front. It was also on the predictable side, where we all knew the plot-twist before page 100–yet I was still eager to keep exploring Cinder’s eccentric characters.

[review] The Death of Bees by Lisa O’Donnell (2013)

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book, book review, crime, family, novel, romance, TLC book tours

The Death of Bees (2013)
by Lisa O’Donnell (Twitter.)
Publication Date: January 2nd, 2013
Publisher: Harper
Edition Read: Finished Hardcover, Read for TLC Book Tours

Buy a copy via Amazon.
Goodreads.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Lisa O’Donnell won the Orange Screenwriting Prize in 2000 for The Wedding Gift and, in the same year, was nominated for the Dennis Potter New Screenwriters Award. A native of Scotland, she is now a full-time writer and lives in Los Angeles with her two children. The Death of Bees is her first novel.

Today is Christmas Eve. Today is my birthday. Today I am fifteen. Today I buried my parents in the backyard. Neither of them were beloved.

Marnie and her little sister Nelly are on their own now. Only they know what happened to their parents, Izzy and Gene, and they aren’t telling. While life in Glasgow’s Hazlehurst housing estate isn’t grand, they do have each other. Besides, it’s only one year until Marnie will be considered an adult and can legally take care of them both.

Written with fierce sympathy and beautiful precision, told in alternating voices, The Death of Bees is an enchanting, grimly comic tale of three lost souls who, unable to answer for themselves, can answer only for each other.

My Thoughts:
Well, this was a pleasant surprise. Despite it’s twisted, morbid plotline of two sisters burying their parents in their backyard (and a dog that has an uncanny knack of digging up body parts from flowerbeds,) The Death of Bees filled me up with warmth and made me smile. Built with a unique cast of memorable characters, with their own fears and quirks, O’ Donnell crafts a brilliant tale about family ties. Sometimes real families aren’t formed by blood ties. Perhaps Marnie and Nelly are by far not the most innocent girls, but I still found myself cheering them on every one of those three hundred pages.

Characters:
I love multiple perspectives, and O’Donnell does it exceptionally well. We unravel the story with Marnie and Nelly (the two sisters) and Lennie (their 70 year old gay, misunderstood “sex offender” neighbor.) What usually happens in books with multiple perspectives is that the voices blend together and don’t sound like two different people. Perhaps because each character is so distinct from each other that there was never a problem differentiating between them. Marnie has a dark, rebellious edge, while Nelly autistic eloquence sounds like the Queen of England (with a bit of swearing). Nelly reminds me of Becky of Glee’s inner voice.

[review] The Goddaughter by Melodie Campbell (2012)

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book, book review, ebook, humor, novel, novell, romance, TLC book tours

The Goddaughter by Melodie Campbell (2012)
by Melodie Campbell (Twitter.)
Publication Date: September 1st, 2012
Publisher: Raven Books (Imprint of Orca Books)
Edition Read: E-book gifted by author for TLC Book Tours

Buy a copy via Amazon.
Goodreads.

Stolen jewels, a cross-country chase, and a reluctant mob goddaughter make for a whole lot of laughs!

Despite her best efforts to lead a law-abiding life, Gina Gallo cannot quite escape her mob family. Since she’s a certified gemologist, Gina has become a key player in the family’s gem-smuggling operations. Now she has met a great guy, a reporter named Pete, and she’ll do almost anything to keep him from discovering her shady side. But when a gem delivery goes awry, Gina has to take Pete along for the ride.

My Thoughts:
The Goddaughter was surely a rapid read at 134 pages and seemed like the perfect light, funny read to balance out the pile of post-apocalyptic reads I’ve been devouring lately–unfortunately, I didn’t enjoy The Goddaughter as much as I hoped. I’m afraid the short length might have ruined the book for me. For much of the book I was thrown in an unrelenting whirlwind of action and not quite enough character development to make me invested the the story.

I already knew that The Goddaughter was supposed to be short, and wasn’t expecting a deep story or complex characters, but I wanted more than just two gorgeous, sexy people jumping from one random place to the next. The story moves FAST, I was at chapter two before I began to grasp what was happening. Eventually I gave up and just believed whatever the author threw at me: Toronto? okay. Wait, they are back in the states now? If you say so.

I know Gina, the protagonist, was supposed to be snarky and funny, but I found her too impulsive. She easily steals the spotlight from Pete, which became just a guy that Gina dragged along. He was cute, but that was there was no depth. I’m not even sure what his background is, except he’s supposed to be the perfect guy. The only time that might’ve been funny was when she compared on Pete’s scent to yummy bread. I hope it was a joke and she wasn’t serious. Overall, if you are looking for a no-brainer, pick The Goddaughter up. There was a lot of action, so if you are looking for a fun read, this might be your thing. But for me, the story fell short as unmemorable.

Rating: C++

Want more of Melodie Campbell’s The Goddaughter? Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TLC tour stops!

[review] Isolation (Partials 0.5) by Dan Wells (2012)

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book, book review, dan wells, dystopia, dystopian, ebook, fiction, novella, romance, sci-fi, utopia, YA, young adult

Isolation (2012)
by Dan Wells (blog.)
Edition Read: E-book (Novella)
Publication Date: August 28th, 2012
Publisher: Balzer + Bray (Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers)
buy a copy via Amazon.
synopsis via Goodreads.

Two decades before the events of Partials, the world was locked in a different battle for survival: a global war for the last remaining oil reserves on the planet. It was for the Isolation War that the American government contracted the ParaGen Corporation to manufacture the Partials—our last hope in reclaiming energy independence from China. And it was on these fields of battle that the seeds of humanity’s eventual destruction were sown.

A powerful take of our world on the brink, Isolation gives readers a glimpse into the history from which Partials was born—as well as clues to where the Partials Sequence is heading next.

My Thoughts:
Isolation is a prequel novella in Dan Well’s Partials series. Although it is technically a prequel and can be read alone, I still recommend reading it after the first book, Partials, because there is a bit of jargon, but more importantly, it’s clearly a supplement to the series and it’s just not very strong story by itself. The story is from the point of view of Heron, an assassin Partial created to infiltrate Chinese headquarters.

I admit I might be a bit biased since this novella is set in China, and me being Chinese is especially keen to how my culture is depicted, especially when they are supposed to be the “enemy.” Which brings me to this:

Why Do All The Chinese People Have Awkward Dialogue That Sounds Like Poor Movie Subtitles?