Suzanne Selfors – Coffeehouse Angel (2/5)

Cover:

Genre: YA Paranormal Romance

This is the book for you if you like:

- Superficial romance stories
- Angel mythology

Summary: (from author’s website)

When Katrina spots a homeless guy sleeping in the alley behind her grandmother's coffee shop, she leaves him a cup of coffee, a bag of chocolate-covered coffee beans, and some pastries to tide him over, never expecting this random act of kindness to turn her life upside down. The adorable vagrant, Malcolm, is actually a guardian angel on a break between missions, and now he won't leave until he can reward Katrina's selflessness by fulfilling her deepest desire. Fame and fortune seem like the obvious requests, but after two botched wishes, Malcolm knows Katrina is hiding something from him. But how can she tell him the truth, when her heart's desire has become Malcolm himself?

Thoughts on covers:
Hardcover edition, paperback edition, French edition

I really dislike the hardcover edition, but I think the angel coffee cup one is pretty cute.

Title:

I think the title covers both of the important aspects of the story, so it’s fitting. It’s also different enough to attract attention.

Characters:

I don’t have any real feelings towards the characters in this book. Katrina, the protagonist, is annoying in many ways, though she gets better ‘til the end. Vincent and Elizabeth are presences that don’t have much of a personality. The ones I loved the most were Malcolm – for his strange ways, his outsider status, his unintentional wit – and Irmgaard, who had the most interesting story of all and who I really wanted to get to know better.

Setting:

The story is set in Nordby, which, in this story, is an American town that has both people with Norwegian roots as with Native American roots. It took me a while to get where exactly it was located, because there’s a Nordby in Denmark too, which at first seemed like the more logical location (the only question then was, why on earth would an American writer write a story set in Denmark?). I don’t think the setting does much to the story; had it just been an average town in America, with an average mix of people, the story would have remained the same. I wonder why Selfors took so much effort in describing the Old Ways, as they are called quite often in the book, without actually having them influence the story.

General story:

I feel like this story was trying to be three stories at once, with each story just out of reach of being good.

At first glance, based on the summary and the designated genre, you expect a love story. And it partly is; there is this whole flirtation going on between Katrina and Malcolm, but for three third of the book I wondered whether maybe Vincent was supposed to be the love interest. And it’s not even like it’s set up as a love triangle either; the ending of the book makes it perfectly clear that Vincent and Katrina really see each other as friends. I don’t feel like Malcolm is enough of a presence in Katrina’s life to make this a romance story; there isn’t much of a relationship at all, actually, just attraction on her side and intrigue on his side.

Then, it is a story about friendship and what friends should do for each other. Katrina is very focussed on what others should do for her because of their friendship, but in the entire book we don’t once see her do something for either Elizabeth or Vincent. She only complains; about Vincent dating Heidi and betraying her, and about Elizabeth having so much money that she’d never understand.

Then, this story seems to want to give us a lesson in everyone has a talent and be careful what you wish for. It seems weird to put the first lesson in a story that has magic beans, and the second one is weird because the story ends with a wish that made everything perfect. Also, the moralising paragraphs were weirdly intertwined with the dialogue/action ones. The transitions were a bit jarring.

Mind you, I liked some of it. Actually, I liked every part that was about Malcolm’s life as a messenger. The envelope that kept getting heavier, his black notebook, his life that isn’t a life but just an existence… I feel like Selfors could have done so much with the mythology she built around him, and instead she had him around for what seemed like only half the book and spent the rest on a coffeehouse rivalry that just seemed ridiculous. The same goes for Irmgaard; she’s such an interesting character, and her story is really great, but she’s handled as an aside. I would have loved it if this story had been told from Malcolm’s perspective; that’d have been great.

Will I read other books from this author?

I probably won’t.

Overall rating: 2/5

Suzanne Collins – Mockingjay (3/5)

Series: Hunger Games #3

Cover:

Genre: YA Dystopian

This is the book for you if you like:

- The first two books in the series

- Well written action

Summary: (from author’s website)

Katniss Everdeen, girl on fire, has survived, even though her home has been destroyed. There are rebels. There are new leaders. A revolution is unfolding.

Thoughts on covers:

As with the first two books, I’m in love with the German cover. They are so gripping!

Title:

I think Mockingjay is the only fitting title for this book, not only referencing the previous books but also Katniss’ role in this story. The German title, Burning anger, seems a bit misplaced to me.

Characters:

Katniss, who was so great in the first book, is so, so annoying. The first couple of chapters I just wanted to scream at her. I also feel like she’s written inconsistently. Most of the time, she’s just so self-centred; she doesn’t care about other people, not really. And then there are moments like this:

[Gale] strokes my face as the pain ebbs. “You’ve got to stop running straight into trouble.”

“I know. But someone blew up a mountain,” I answer.

That is the Katniss I want to see! But most of the time she’s whining about how everybody is using her, while simultaneously whining that she doesn’t get to actually fight. The whole book people keep telling her that she has this air about her that makes people follow her lead, but I, as a reader, don’t feel it. I wanted her to take control, as she did in the first book – she was so kickass in the first book! – but at no point did she decide that this was her war to fight too.

This book did introduce the one Hunger Games character I actually care about: Boggs. He was awesome, he stood by Katniss every step of the way, no matter how awful she treated him. He’s the best. I also started really liking Finnick; I would have loved to read the story of Finnick and Annie.

Setting:

The beginning of this story is set at Rebel Headquarters, and it ends at the Capitol.

General story:

Like usual, Collins’ action scenes where the best. I loved the middle of the book, I loved people trying to figure out how to overthrow the Capitol. But when it wasn’t about the main rebel plot, it was about the love triangle, and not at one point did I care – mainly because I was convinced Katniss didn’t love either of them, so her choice would never be about love and would inevitably end up hurting both Peeta and Gale.

I thought the best part of this book was the middle, setting it apart from the first two that were best at its endings. Here, the first part had too much focus on a whining Katniss, and the third part had all this deaths that didn’t make me tear up so much as annoy me. I get that people die, but these felt more unnecessary than war casualties.

I thought the ending seemed rushed a bit. I would’ve preferred to spend more time with these characters in the aftermath of the win of the rebels, instead of getting these meagre plot points. Then again, Collins’ character work has never been stellar, so maybe it isn’t that bad that she didn’t get around to it. What I did like about the ending was that it wasn’t an entirely happy ending; it held some reality.

Will I read other books from this author?

I might, but I won’t go looking for them.

Overall rating: 3/5

Kelley Armstrong – The Summoning (2/5)

Series: Darkest Powers Trilogy #1

Cover:

Genre: YA Fantasy

This is the book for you if you like:

- Characters discovering their gifts for the first time

Summary: (from author’s website)

Chloe Saunders sees dead people. Yes, like in the films. The problem is, in real life saying you see ghosts gets you a one-way ticket to the psych ward. And at 15, all Chloe wants to do is fit in at school and maybe get a boy to notice her. But when a particularly violent ghost haunts her, she gets noticed for all the wrong reasons. Her seemingly crazed behaviour earns her a trip to Lyle House, a centre for disturbed teens.

At first Chloe is determined to keep her head down. But then her room mate disappears after confessing she has a poltergeist, and some of the other patients also seem to be manifesting paranormal behaviour. Could that be a coincidence? Or is Lyle House not quite what it seems…? Chloe realizes that if she doesn’t uncover the truth, she could be destined for a lifetime in a psychiatric hospital. Or could her fate be even worse…? Can she trust her fellow students, and does she dare reveal her dark secret?

Thoughts on covers:

I’m not a big fan of any of the covers. The first suggest the necklace is a central plot point, while it’s just something that’s mentioned in two scenes and the third one is so generic I would never pick it up. I almost like the middle cover, the German one, because I love the colouring, but I feel like the fact on that cover is weird. I don’t know.

Title:

The title does a pretty good job of describing the focal point of the story, so it’s an okay title.

Characters:

Where do I start? I felt like none of these characters had actual personalities, not even Chloe – and the book is written in the first POV. Chloe is just there; this story is happening to her and she’s trying to react to it, but she’s not really doing anything. I still don’t really know what her characteristics are; I would have no idea how to describe her.

The other people at Lyle House are, if possible, even worse; they all seem to have one characteristic – Derek is blunt, Simon is protective, Tori is a bitch, Rae is childishly excited – without any other signs of having a personality.

Setting:

The story is mostly set at Lyle House, the centre for disturbed teens where Chloe ends up after she starts seeing ghosts. The building is a pretty generic one; a creepy basement, a creepy attic and rooms for the kids in between, boys and girls divided. It’s nothing special.

General story:

One day, Chloe suddenly starts seeing ghosts; she freaks out at school and gets send away. Diagnosis: schizophrenia. It would have been interesting to see how she handles the diagnosis, or the confusion about whether she’s seeing ghosts or hallucinating, but we don’t get to see any of Chloe’s inner turmoil.

Instead, it immediately turns into a story about how Derek knew what Chloe could do and he – not very subtly – urges her to find out about her powers. Again, this could be an interesting story, but suddenly there is this conspiracy about Lyle House and its caretakers. There is little development about Chloe getting used to her powers or what she can do; she’s suddenly swooped up in the story of Simon and Derek, a story that wasn’t that interesting to begin with.

Chloe and Derek develop a plan for Chloe and Simon to escape Lyle House and find Derek and Simon’s father. I wish we had known more about their father and how he could help before they escaped, because now it just felt like a useless exercise – especially with the way this book ended.

There could be this great story here. Unfortunately, instead of focussing on the characters and their feelings, Armstrong focuses on the plot – which is, to be honest, quite predictable and thus loses most of its impact.

Will I read the other instalments in this series? Nope

Overall rating: 2/5

Kate Brian – Private (4/5)

Series: Private #1

Cover:

Genre: YA Chick-lit

This is the book for you if you like:

- Boarding school stories

- Stories about popularity

Summary: (from author’s website)

Tradition, Honor, Excellence...and secrets so dark they're almost invisible
Fifteen-year-old Reed Brennan wins a scholarship to Easton Academy -- the golden ticket away from her pill-popping mother and run-of-the-mill suburban life. But when she arrives on the beautiful, tradition-steeped campus of Easton, everyone is just a bit more sophisticated, a bit more gorgeous, and a lot wealthier than she ever thought possible. Reed realizes that even though she has been accepted to Easton, Easton has not accepted her. She feels like she's on the outside, looking in.
Until she meets the Billings Girls.
They are the most beautiful, intelligent, and intensely confident girls on campus. And they know it. They hold all the power in a world where power is fleeting but means everything. Reed vows to do whatever it takes to be accepted into their inner circle.
Reed uses every part of herself -- the good, the bad, the beautiful -- to get closer to the Billings Girls. She quickly discovers that inside their secret parties and mountains of attitude, hanging in their designer clothing-packed closets the Billings Girls have skeletons. And they'll do anything to keep their secrets private.

Thoughts on covers:

I’m actually not a big fan of any of these covers (Dutch, original cover, new cover). The new, golden cover is definitely wrong for this book. It speaks of glamour and self-confidence, and those things are not what this book is about. I think if I had to chose, I’d pick the Dutch cover.

Title:

Same goes for the title; not a big fan. It’s too generic. I didn’t pick this up because of either the title or the cover (it was with my recommendations), and I don’t think I would’ve given this another glance if I wasn’t looking for it.

Characters:

I like Reed. I hadn’t expected to like her, because she’s the prototype of the I want to be popular girl. I think what makes her different is that Reed, no matter how much she wants to be a Billings girl, has lines that she just won’t cross.

The Billings girl are all pretty mysterious and they all kinda look alike to me. It’s hard to pick someone out to like.

I really didn’t like Thomas, though I guess that was the point.

Setting:

Private is set at private school Easton Academy, a big campus with different buildings for the students. Every building has its own reputation.

General story:

(I read this book in Dutch translation)

What attracted me most to this story was Brian’s writing style. Her description are vivid – I’m not even a very visual person, but it was fantastically easy to see the world Brian has painted.

This is a popularity story. While I’m a fan of boarding school stories, I usually can’t stand the idea that not being popular is the worst thing that can happen to someone. But what makes this popularity story different was that, to me, this group of girls isn’t all bad. Yes, they can be mean and cruel, but I can see why Reed is attracted to them. Brian does a really good job of describing the atmosphere that they carry with them. It makes it easy to see why Reed is sucked into this spiral of desperately wanting to impress them, while keeping her own identity.

Will I read the other instalments in this series?

Yes.

Overall rating: 4/5

Suzanne Collins – Catching fire (4/5)

Series: Hunger Games #2

Cover:

Genre: Post-apocalyptic

This is the book for you if you like:

- The first book of the series

- Stories focussed on slowly overthrowing the system

Summary: (from author’s website)

Much to her shock, Katniss has fuelled an unrest she's afraid she cannot stop. And what scares her more is that she's not entirely convinced she should try. As time draws near for Katniss and Peeta to visit the districts on the Capitol's cruel Victory Tour, the stakes are higher than ever. If they can't prove, without a shadow of a doubt, that they are lost in their love for each other, the consequences will be horrifying.

Thoughts on covers:

Again, I prefer the German cover. I just think these covers tell a story, they’re so pretty.

Title:

I love the title. It has such multiple meanings, being both a literal and a figurative expression about what’s happening in the book. Though it probably helps that the title reminds me of one of my very favourite scenes from the book.

I’m very confused why the German translation changed the title to “Dangerous love” – it just sounds so… boring.

Characters:

While I loved Katniss after the Hunger Games, in this book she started to annoy me. She’s a bit too naïve, a bit too… I’m not sure how to describe it. In book one she was a real heroine, strong, a fighter. In Catching Fire, she’s more of a reactive presence in everything that’s happening. She doesn’t really do anything, and that made her much less of the strong character she was in the first book.

As in the first book, it’s hard to give a real impression of the other characters. Most of them are so fleetingly described that it’s hard to forge any connection to them. I liked Cinna, I’m starting to like Haymitch. I also really like Gale.

Setting:

The first and second part are set in the districts. Both in District 12 and in the other ones during the victory tour. The third part is, again, set in the Hunger Games arena.

General story:

I actively disliked the first part of this book. It was boring, it didn’t give me any reason to care about the story and I was ready to give up on it. But then, halfway, the story gets back its pace and sense of urgency. I was afraid that Katniss going back into the arena would make this book a repeat of the first one, but it turned out that was the strongest part of the book.

Contrary to the first book, which worked just as well as a standalone, this book definitely leads up to the third part. The ending is very open and cliffhangery.

Will I read the other instalments in this series?

Yes! I now can’t wait to read the final part.

Overall rating: 4/5

Firefly: The official companion, volume one (5/5)

Series: Firefly companions, #1

Cover:

Genre: Series companions

This is the book for you if you like:

Firefly and reading scripts

Summary: (from book)

Exclusive new intereviews with Joss Whedon, the cast, executive producer Tim Minear and many other writers and crewmembers.

Full, uncut shooting scripts for the episodes ‘Serenity’, ‘The Train Job’, ‘Bushwacked’, ‘Shindig’, ‘Safe’ and ‘Our Mrs. Reynolds’, annotated with comments from the cast and crew.

Scores of rare and previously unpublished images, including behind-the-scenes shots, production art, and original Firefly props and costumes photographed especially for this book.

Thoughts on covers:

It’s Firefly!

Title:

It’s Firefly!

Characters & Setting:

N/A

General opinion:

I’ve read a lot of companions and every one of them is different. I really, really like this one. It’s informative and also really, really pretty.

This is basically the shooting scripts of the first seven episodes. If you don’t like reading scripts, this is not the book for you. Of the 175 pages, 129 pages are scripts. I really liked reading these. For one, the book includes the original shooting scripts, so there are scenes in there that have never made it to the screen. Secondly, every script is littered with comments from cast and crew about things that happened during filming.

If you’re intrigued by the costume and props department, this book is awesome. Most of the non-script pages focus on this aspect of the series, as do quite a lot of the comments on the scripts.

There are also one-page interviews with everyone of the main cast and an eight-page interview with Joss Whedon.

This companion is definitely worth your time!

Will I read the other instalments in this series?

I’ve got the next one lined up!

Overall rating: 5/5

Cath Crowley – Graffiti Moon (5/5)

Cover:

Genre: YA Romance

This is the book for you if you like:

- Graffiti as art

- Books with switching POV’s

Summary: (from author’s website)

It’s the end of Year 12. Lucy’s looking for Shadow, the graffiti artist everyone talks about.

His work is all over the city, but he is nowhere.

Ed, the last guy she wants to see at the moment, says he knows where to find him. He takes Lucy on an all-night search to places where Shadow’s thoughts about heartbreak and escape echo around the city walls.

But the one thing Lucy can’t see is the one thing that’s right before her eyes.

Thoughts on covers:

The covers are, in order, the Australian cover, the American cover, the Dutch cover. I like all of them for different reasons. I like the Australian cover for the tag-line-y addition of “an artist, a dreamer, a long, mean, night”. I like the American cover because it’s just so pretty. I like the Dutch cover because it emphasizes the differences between Lucy and Ed. If I had to chose, I’d pick the American, though.

Title:

I like the title. It grabbed my attention at first, and, moreover, it’s also a perfect rendition of the book: after all, it describes one night in which graffiti is the central point.

Characters:

I liked the characters. Because it’s in alternating first person POV, you learn a lot about both Ed and Lucy. Lucy is a dreamer; she’s got this whole image of who Shadow is and who he could be for her. Ed is the more realistic – pessimistic – one; life has been hard on him.

Setting:

One of the things that’s pretty special about this book is that all its events take place in one night. While there are a lot of flashbacks to earlier events, the book starts at late midday and ends at dawn.

General story:

(I read this book in Dutch translation)

Graffiti Moon is a love story. It’s a story about two people connecting against their own expectations. Lucy wants to find Shadow and finds Ed. Ed wants to reconcile with Beth and finds Lucy. It’s this intricate pull that makes the story so special; it’s in their love for art and the way they connect in their feelings about it. I love the way the book is written. While it’s based on a misunderstanding of some sorts (Lucy doesn’t know Ed is Shadow and Ed is too afraid to tell her), the situation never becomes annoying. It’s a very natural progress, no doubt partly due to the fact that it’s only one night until it is resolved.

This book has won several awards and it really deserves all of them.

Will I read other books from this author?

I’ll definitely try and find some more books by her!

Overall rating: 5/5