I might be crazy...

I always get my most well-thought out blog post material when I'm taking a shower.  It's a strange thing that happens one time too often wherein my thoughts will start to stray sporadically until I get hooked on a specific subject.

Say, for instance, I was thinking about the Asian television I've been watching recently... and POOF!  Now I've got a possible blog post to write about to end the long hiatus over in dramaland's blog.  (See the linkies on the side panel, as I am too lazy to hyperlink in the post right now.)  I even came up with a title for that blog post:  Drama Bites.  My plan had been to detail several drama series I've been watching lately and how the Asian drama world has been picking up (finally!).  But, of course, as soon as I get out of the shower, those thoughts are gone and my next line of thought started at the top of this particular post entry.

This happens a lot.  A few days ago, I think I had an idea to write about what kinds of books draw me in as a reader.  I even had an entire paragraph thought up as an introductory.  Something about genres and character interaction and witty humor and how even though I'm a hopeless romantic, a lot of my favorite books happen to put the romances in a back seat light... and other stuff like that.  And then the moment I sat down, I got distracted (ooh, something shiny!) and ended up playing Candy Crush on Facebook or something like that (my memory might be a little worse than goldfish level sometimes when it comes to mundane and boring activities).

Anyway, this brings me to something I said to myself aloud only moments ago.  "I wonder if I should start recording my thoughts aloud... like with a voice recorder..."  I honestly really thought about that.  And as suggestive as the entire scenario sounds (recording my shower sessions), it's really not as exciting and more about my own OCD when it comes to writing material.  If I dictated all of my thought aloud and had them recorded, would that help me remember my thoughts better and plan blog posts more accordingly?

Because, to be totally honest, I've already had two different revelations of how I wanted to write up my Raven Boys review, and yet both times, those perfectly formulated thoughts would disappear as soon as I get to my desk.  It's a little annoying since that review is long overdue and the next book will be released in about a month (give or take), and I would hate to be scrambling for a half-assed review two nights before I start reading The Dream Thieves.

Sigh...  Me and my first world problems would make everyone out there laugh, right?

Yeah, I might just be a little crazy.

Review: After Math

After Math by Denise Grover Swank

My rating: 2 of 5 stars



I finished this book pretty quickly since it was fairly short. But it didn't really do much for me other than re-hash a lot of typical melodramatic romance stories in a different setting with different characters.

Good girl meets bad boy, they fall in love and change each other's lives after going through a shit-ton of personal demons and obstacles since everyone has a broken life.

It was sweet at some points and moving at others, and the story was written well. But nothing really stands out. At least there's a happily ever after which usually works for me. I know that life isn't all peaches and sunshine and bunnies, but that doesn't stop me from enjoying a good happily ever after and liking them.



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Review: Wallbanger

Wallbanger by Alice Clayton

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Edit: 7/24/2013

Hmm... So this book was based on Twilight fanfic... Suffice to say, now I'm conflicted (in fair honesty, I probably wouldn't have read it if I'd know its origins since I'm not a Twilight fan) and kind of wishing that the author had published this work as a stand-alone rather than as a piece of fanfiction first since I never connected the two at all. I still found it witty and fun, even for a standard, stereotypical romantic comedy.

Then again, I DNFed Twilight and never got into the fandom, so maybe I don't have enough cred to do much of a comparison.

I guess you like what you like. *sigh*


Original Review: 7/21/2013

This book gives good banter.

There's nothing I love more than character interaction and good banter by witty people. And I have to admit that the style of narration given in the POV of Caroline Reynolds was pretty humorous and random and all around strange. And I liked it. A LOT.

A love a good group of characters and this book happened to have a GREAT group of characters. Sure, it falls into that inevitable stereotype of beautiful women falling in love with beautiful men, and their only downfalls are their own dramatic woes and insecurities. You can find this kind of fluff and easy read anywhere in romances and movies, so it's not like its a stand-out hit. But it's enjoyable to me, and that's all that matters, really.

I might add that I love a good rom-com and Wallbanger was right up that alley. And this book was every bit the erotica that its cover, title and summary suggests. But this book also encompasses more than just a PWP premise. I'm not saying its inspirational and that we should take it more seriously than its description allows us. I'm just saying that it has its moments of insightful thought in some of the exchanges and some of the narration that Caroline gives us.

While it's a story of a woman's love life and her agenda in retrieving her "lost O", and while it's every part and parcel a typical romantic comedy, it's still highly enjoyable.

On top of that, it's cute and it's funny. Did I mention witty banter? It actually made me giggle a few times. And I laughed out lot lots of other times.

This book doesn't try to be something other than what we expect it to be. It's a straight up romance. It reminds me of those romantic comedies I love to watch (and yes, this one happens to contain some explicit sex scenes -- well, as explicit as you can get on paper). It's got a fairly blunt and standard happily every after.

It's cute and sweet and very light and lots of fun.

But mostly, I enjoyed the witty dialogue and Caroline's strange sense of humor.



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Review: Wallbanger

Wallbanger by Alice Clayton

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



This book gives good banter.

There's nothing I love more than character interaction and good banter by witty people. And I have to admit that the style of narration given in the POV of Caroline Reynolds was pretty humorous and random and all around strange. And I liked it. A LOT.

A love a good group of characters and this book happened to have a GREAT group of characters. Sure, it falls into that inevitable stereotype of beautiful women falling in love with beautiful men, and their only downfalls are their own dramatic woes and insecurities. But it's enjoyable to me, and that's all that matters, really.

I might add that I love a good rom-com and Wallbanger was right up that alley. And this book was every bit the erotica that its cover, title and summary suggests. But this book also encompasses more than just a PWP premise. I'm not saying its inspirational and that we should take it more seriously than its description allows us. I'm just saying that it has its moments of insightful thought in some of the exchanges and some of the narration that Caroline gives us.

While it's a story of a woman's love life and her agenda in retrieving her "lost O", and while it's every part and parcel a typical romantic comedy, it's still highly enjoyable.

On top of that, it's cute and it's funny. Did I mention witty banter? It actually made me giggle a few times. And I laughed out lot lots of other times.

This book doesn't try to be something other than what we expect it to be. It's a straight up romance. It reminds me of those romantic comedies I love to watch (and yes, this one happens to contain some explicit sex scenes -- well, as explicit as you can get on paper). It's got a fairly blunt happily every after.

It's cute and sweet and very light and lots of fun.

But mostly, I enjoyed the witty dialogue and Caroline's strange sense of humor.



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Review: The Restorer

The Restorer by Amanda Stevens

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



As much as I'm a weeny when it comes to anything that has to do with horror or ghosts or the like, I really enjoyed The Restorer. A woman who can see ghosts choosing to live her life as a graveyard restorer is interesting. A murder mystery that she gets roped into when she's got so much to worry about concerning the ghostly visitors she's surrounded by and the danger that they impose on her life... Even more intriguing is the history and lore that goes into a story like this. How much of it is true and how much of it is only part of this fictional world doesn't really matter to me in the least; but it's always enticing to me when the elements are combined like this: a murder mystery, a ghost story, and tales of history and ghost lore to connect everything together.

On top of that, mysterious characters to propel the story line into progression.

What I liked mostly about this book would have to be that creepy vibe in connection with the ghostly appearances and the murder mystery.

The only thing I'm not too overjoyed about would be the characters. Amelia is interesting as are some of the supporting characters, but to be honest, no one really stands out in much of a unique way. In fact, Devlin is stock-trade main male character with his broody, mysterious, dark past and tragedy. It's a shame he's not more interesting, since I can sense that it would be nice if he weren't so standardized.

Nonetheless, this was a very good read and I'm off to ruin my reading list by jumping into the next book of the series. So many questions and so many curiosities...



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Review: The Gift

The Gift by James Patterson

My rating: 2 of 5 stars



I don't quite have words. I'm not quite sure I'm sure I know what was going on in this book. There was a lot of attacking and there was a lot of strange analogies and a lot of strange things happen. But in the end, what exactly was going on? I'm not quite sure. Rather than being a fast-paced read (which it sort of was) that I enjoyed like I had the first book, this one, I constantly found myself loathe to continue. And when I DID continue, I found myself eager to get to the end.

Because in the end, we get back to square one, with no new developments really, with a lot of the same stuff happening that happened in the first book. Of course, there's a whole new mysterious occurrence that bugs me, because it makes me curious. But, honestly, I think I could live without knowing right away what happens next in this somewhat saga.

And the humor that I had found funny from the first book -- a lot of it just seemed rather cheesy this time around. And a lot of happenings just seemed nonsensical.

The best thing about this book: it was a fast-paced read and slightly entertaining.



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Review: Breaking Point

Breaking Point by Pamela Clare

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



7/11/13

4.5 stars

This was an intense, action and suspense filled story from page one. After giving myself a much needed break from the overwhelming overdose of reading four I-Team novels in a row, I'm glad to say that Book #5 does not disappoint, and I will definitely be looking forward to the next book in this series.

Since I'm in a bit of an "ehhh, I'm not sure what to say" point right now due to lack of sleep, I'm going to try and gather my thoughts before I write anything since I feel like this book deserves a little more than just a simple one paragraph: "OMG, this book was amazing!" review.

And on that note, review to come sometime soon.



7/12/13

It's at the tip of my mind, what I want to say about Breaking Point, but I just can't seem to conjure up anything coherent. Maybe it's lack of sleep, or maybe I'm just plain out of synonymous paragraphs for how exciting and intense and awesome yet another I-Team series book had been. It was certainly a riveting experience, and much different than the first few books in the series.

The action begins all too quickly from page one when we meet Natalie Benoit who's convention bus in Mexico is attacked and she is taken prisoner. Then we meet Zach McBride who is already a prisoner of a drug cartel and living out a torturous hell. From there, it only seems to get better as we follow these two through their interactions, their escape, and their dangerous and arduous trek back across the border to home and safety.

The only words I could find to describe this: Intense! Oh, so, so intense!

It's one thing to go into hiding from criminal masterminds who have your name on their hit list and you're in a city full of protection. It's a whole other thing when the same thing happens, but now you're stranded in a different country with no one to trust but the one man who seems like another dangerous criminal. And then add a nice big dose of sweltering, deathly hot desert to the mix and the adventure seems like it's just an eternity away from conclusion.

Not that I'm psychotic or anything, but I really did enjoy those first few chapters of the survival story arc. There wasn't a doubt in my mind that Zach and Natalie would make out alive and safe, but that didn't make the entire story line any less intense.

And the characters? I liked them. Both Zach and Natalie had that perfect dose of makeshift kinship that you sometimes can only find when people are forced together to face off danger. The trust and the bonding that comes into play is amazing (well, once Natalie actually started trusting Zach a little more). Both strong individuals who were able to work together to get home... I like adventures. This was definitely a nice one.

My only complaint is that the second half of the book seemed a little disjointed from the first half. I didn't see it coming, and the connections got made, but didn't quite make much sense until the final conclusion that tied the first half together with the second half: when the truth came out. It's not a bad thing, but I guess it DOES put some plot points into perspective.

Still... the mid-point didn't seem to transition as smoothly as I would have liked and it felt like two separate story arcs in one book... Like a "Part 1" and a "Part 2", but without the physical separators.

Nonetheless, Breaking Point was pretty amazing.

And Zach McBride has taken his position on my list of sexy, dangerous, awesome, "OMG I love you" heroes in the I-Team world. He's sitting right there, right after Marc Hunter whom I still adore A LOT, but whom is still trailing short after Julian Darcangelo (whom, by the way, I am so ecstatic to get to see him as his freakin' badass self).


Another thing I've seemed to notice about the I-Team series (which isn't a complaint, but just an observation) is that the dialogue and certain parts of the narration tends to get a little... well... wordy? There's a bit too much "telling", in the sense that, when characters talk to each other, they say too much. As a reader, I'm perceiving these parts as a character telling his or her story as a narrator recounting events like a true storyteller. Not so much as an individual recounting events in simple, brief fashion that seems more natural.

Or maybe I'm just reading into it too much. But there seems to be a lot of emphasis placed on certain truths that we already know and understand and can see for ourselves without the narration kicking in to tell us about the situation. From a long line of actions and bantering, for instance, I can already see that Marc Hunter and Julian Darcangelo have become practically best friends, like brothers. I don't need several different thoughts from different characters to confirm this truth several times.

There's also no need to pound into my head how badass our male characters are. I can see that already, if all of their back stories aren't indication enough.


Nonetheless, I still love the world of the I-Team series. Intense and fast-paced reading is something that gets me through pages quickly. Great characters and character dynamics is what gets me hooked to a particular book or series. It's amazing how a bunch of well crafted characters can do for a book, even if it IS fairly standard crime suspense with romance.

And now I must go and figure out what kind of nickname to give Zach McBride.



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Review: Breaking Point

Breaking Point by Pamela Clare

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



4.5 stars

This was an intense, action and suspense filled story from page one. After giving myself a much needed break from the overwhelming overdose of reading four I-Team novels in a row, I'm glad to say that Book #5 does not disappoint, and I will definitely be looking forward to the next book in this series.

Since I'm in a bit of an "ehhh, I'm not sure what to say" point right now due to lack of sleep, I'm going to try and gather my thoughts before I write anything since I feel like this book deserves a little more than just a simple one paragraph: "OMG, this book was amazing!" review.

And on that note, review to come sometime soon.



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Review: The Nightmare Dilemma

The Nightmare Dilemma by Mindee Arnett

My rating: n/a



Looks like there's a cover now. It looks cute. And the premise is another random mystery with new characters being introduced next to our main characters. Although the summary sounds kind of bland, but I'm hoping it good because this series has enough potential to hit it off if handled properly.

Looking forward to it.



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Review: Something About You

Something About You by Julie James

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



This was a cute and fast-paced crime thriller romance with sizzle (which I've been enjoying a few of lately), and took me a whole of eight hours to finish reading, with some breaks for bathroom and food and sleep. Considering my track record, this means that I highly enjoyed the book and that it had my attention from beginning until the end.

It helps when the story has a good dose of romance, action, crime thrill and the like included. It helps a lot when you really like the characters because they are created quite beautifully and have that lovely spark, even if it's just on paper.

Of course, I walked into this book looking for a mystery and a little bit more of a thrilling ride than I got; the book itself was a little more tame than I had been expecting, both plot-wise and character-wise. But I must say, I DO enjoy a good witty banter every so often between characters, and witty banter I got LOTS of from both Cameron and Jack, as well as the rest of the supporting characters. All of the characters I loved, especially the friendship between Cameron, Collin, and Amy.

The writing style could have been a little smoother, and the story progression was predictable and not so much a mystery like I would have preferred, but nonetheless, I enjoyed this book quite a bit. I will definitely move onto the next one if the characters continue to be sassy badasses and witty charmers. Characters created wonderfully, of course, is something that stands out among others in any book I thoroughly enjoy.



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Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



I started writing down thoughts when I was halfway through the book. There were a lot of details and the new plot-arc that had my mind reeling. I wanted to be able to have my thoughts down while I could still remember them. And I wanted to be able to word them properly since my feelings about Daughter of Smoke and Bone was all I really had. But after a few sentences, an entire review manifested almost immediately.

I’m conflicted about this book. On the one hand, it’s written very well with great prose and style, excellent dialogue, and an undertone of dry humor that I love. The ideas are creative, the world is unique; there’s an almost mythical legend-feel to the storytelling. And I really, really like it.

Karou makes for an awesome, kickass, strong heroine amidst a dangerous world hidden in modern society. A paranormal or fantastical world hidden within the modern world with our heroine harboring a big secret and living a double life -- this is the type of world creation I adore. The rest of the world is created in such detail that I can actually see a different adventure unfolding with different main characters if given the chance. The progression of the story is very smooth and paced in a way that I can accept without fault. In fact, I really DO love the way that the entire book was written, the way the characters were introduced, the subtle humor and witty dialogue... I even enjoy the underlying main conflict of the war between seraphs and chimaera -- it’s pretty epic, actually.

In all honesty, I enjoyed all of that.

But then there’s that SOMETHING that I barely put my finger on that makes Daughter of Smoke and Bone not work for me. I don’t know if it has to do with the Angel and Demon motifs or maybe it’s the “Fated to Be” true love device. Was it the over-emphasis of a lot of truths that we, as the readers, already knew to be true? Was it even the slight tangent into the past that I didn’t really care to read about over four (?) chapters that could have just as easily been a short two chapter flashback?

I’ve never been one to dismiss paranormal just because of a particular theme I don’t care for (vampires, werewolves, demons... the like). And I’m DO like slight detours into the history of our characters if it means I understand their lives a little better. So maybe it’s the whole “Fated to Be” true love device that’s getting to me. Oh yes, and also the continued, pounding into our heads of certain truths: Akiva and Karou are beautiful beings, Akiva and Karou were meant to be lovers, Akiva and Karou are mortal enemies, Akiva and Karou are meant for no other.

Is it too harsh of me to say, in a very exasperated tone that: Yea, I get it already, so stop mentioning it every other chapter.

As for the grand romance: I get the scenario and it’s written beautifully; however, I just can’t seem to get behind the idea. And maybe this is just a case of “It’s not you, it’s me” when it comes to this book. Because the story itself isn’t bad, the writing is excellent, and I love the characters from Karou, to Brimstone, to Zuzana. They’re great. I’m even not too repulsed by Akiva despite the many, many, many, many references to his beauty, which... I get it, he’s an angel and he’s molded as perfection and he’s beautiful. And Karou is beautiful and, in spite of all of her scars, she is also akin to perfection. There’s no need to pound that into my brain; once or twice is enough, and thank GOD Akiva doesn’t sparkle. Or does he? In his own angelic way? Aside from his perfection, there’s also something about Akiva that doesn’t sit right with me, and THIS time I can’t seem to pinpoint what exactly it is that I don’t like about him.

The conflictive emotions coming in a “‘Fated to Be’ so I can’t kill you and am instead just going to stalk you” scenario bugs me. Maybe that’s why I don’t like Akiva. Fortunately, the book itself is written well and the heroine is pretty badass. And I love Zuzana because she’s wicked funny and a little crazy (but in a good way). The chimaera are interesting creatures and I can’t wait to see more of them. The lore and the world created in Daughter of Smoke and Bone is nothing short of excellent; I can’t stop loving every time I come across a book that has such a complete world that I can, as I mentioned above, imagine other characters taking on an adventure all their own.

But back to Akiva... he worries me BECAUSE he’s been watching Karou like a stalking peeping tom and that turns my stomach just a little bit.

And then I’m losing track of how many times these two continue to question why they’re drawn to each other like some supernatural force, which pretty much means “we were meant to be true loves in this lifetime” type of Fate or that they’re just physically attracted to each other via pheromones, but they’re trying to deny it for obvious reasons. To be blunt, they are both described (over and over again) as unearthly beautiful beings. I’d chance to say that an immediate attraction is evident. Once again, I got it the first time and I don’t need to be told over and over again that Karou has this strange compulsion to touch Akiva and Akiva has this unknown desire to stay by Karou’s side. But for all the lust they have for each other (because I haven’t seen either of them bond over anything other than this compulsory physical attraction), they can’t be together for obvious reason, which, once again, I don’t need to be reminded about a thousand times that they’re enemies.

And to top things off... Yes, I figured out the ”BIG SECRET” about Karou way earlier in the game than Akiva did. The scenario and direction of this particular telling was just plain obvious. And so I already saw why they were “drawn to each other”, in which case made me even more disturbed by the big romance. When and where do we cross the wrong lines in a lifetime where a grand love is anchored on this type of basis? I’m still a little conflicted about it.

Of course, I get it. It’s supposed to be some sort of grand Romance with a capital ‘R’. And to an extent, it probably is to a lot of romantics out there. Except, I’m a hopeless romantic on many different levels as well, but I don’t really buy this kind of romance... it doesn’t sit with me and it doesn’t touch me the way it might touch other romantics. I don’t feel anything seeing the two of them together. Two people drawn to each other “just because”... I don’t see it.

To the point (and I reinforce that I am a HUGE hopeless romantic), I found myself enjoying parts of the book that had nothing to do with the grand romance. Sad, really...

Anyway...

It’s a good read and I enjoyed it.

I let it sit for a while to let the feeling of obligatory reading fade, but I was almost reluctant to pick it up again. But when I DID pick it up again, at least the writing kept me grounded enough to finish the book. There's still that sense of "need" that I had to move on from one chapter to the next because the story was unfolding some sense of excitement in me. But there was also that need to just finish the darn book and be over it.

As you can tell, I was and am still extremely conflicted about this book.

I mean, I really DID enjoy it and have an itching to pick out the next book. But I’m not sure if I’ll be in much of an awful hurry to read the rest of the series or not. If that even makes any sense... It’s written extremely well, and that, at least has me hopeful that maybe I’ll enjoy the rest of it now that the initial “meet and greet” of our lovers is out of the way. Had it been a different kind of story with a different type of emphasis (not the “eternal fated romance between unearthly beautiful beings” persuasion), I might have enjoyed it a whole lot more. For all it’s worth (at the risk of being repetitive... like this book’s romance), I really DID like the book a lot up until the fated official meeting where Akiva and Karou choose to defy all instinctual “you’re my enemy” logic and hang together, while at the same time keeping their “you’re my enemy” logic hanging like a giant elephant in the room as a verbal barrier... and then they make eyes at each other and flirt like lovers.

But who am I to judge two people in love, right? The concept takes all forms even IF it escalates rather quickly from physical attraction.

For what it’s worth, I totally loved all the side characters from Zuzana to Brimstone... and maybe even Kaz for his predictable comic of assholery.



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Review: The Darkest Minds

The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Review edited and rewritten/reposted on 10/03/2013


I love a story with great characters and character interactions.

The Darkest Minds had a very awesome makeshift little family of four as we follow Ruby through her short adventure with Liam, Chubs, and Zu, and frankly, there is nothing I love more in any kind of novel. And to be totally honest, it really had been the characters who made this book the wonderful experience it had been for me. Ruby was a good heroine to follow, although her character description was rather standard as the kickbutt, strong, heart-of-gold, female main character who leads her friends into the heart of our dystopian controversy. The rest of the characters were pretty quirky in their ways as well (especially Chubs), and to be frank, if not for the character relationships, this probably would have been just another YA dystopia trilogy that you end up liking while you're reading it, but that you would forget about after it's over.

Liam, especially, was a personal favorite for reasons that I may not understand at the moment. He's gentlemanly and caring and unsure of himself, and has so many flaws as a leader... but for some reason, that makes me want to cuddle him and make him feel better. The bonds between each of the four were pretty awesome: Liam and Ruby were sweet, Zu and Liam were adorable... etc., etc.... But I especially loved Ruby and Chubs together as friends, though they started off as a pair of perfect strangers who didn't really care about each other and Chubs was annoyed by Ruby's inclusion in their group. I loved how each of them bonded in their own ways; and I loved the sweet friendship to romance development that took place between Ruby and Liam (not just because it wasn't instalove, I promise).

Outside of my love for the characters, this book had all the typical, fast-paced and suspenseful dealings as all the trendy dystopians now-a-days; so while the ideas unique to this book were intriguing (kids either died or turned into super humans with strange powers and the world broke into pieces after that), and some of the interesting twists were... well, rather interesting, the concept was still a predictable one. I hate to say that "it's just another trendy YA dystopia", but to be honest, it kind of is.

I must say, I DID enjoy the plot devices from the "concentration camp" type scenarios at the beginning, to the adventure that Ruby joined to find a place where they could belong safely.

In spite of all that though, I still found this story to be highly addictive and easy to fall right into; I found myself reciting my standard "One more chapter, then I'll sleep" mantra. And to top it off, I am undoubtedly looking forward to the next book in this series and will be pining in agony as I toss Never Fade into my ever-growing pile of "OMG! I physically need this book, like, RIGHT NOW!"

Something about The Darkest Minds just happened to grab me. I don't know what it is, but I'm not arguing with it.



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