Monday, August 31, 2015

Book Review: The Diviners

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             The Diviners by Libba Bray

Release date: September 8, 2012

Read: February 2015
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Format: Hardcover, 529 pages

Description from Goodreads:

   Evie O’Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City—and she is pos-i-tute-ly ecstatic. It’s 1926, and New York is filled with speakeasies, Ziegfeld girls, and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is that she has to live with her uncle Will and his unhealthy obsession with the occult.
   Evie worries he’ll discover her darkest secret: a supernatural power that has only brought her trouble so far. But when the police find a murdered girl branded with a cryptic symbol and Will is called to the scene, Evie realizes her gift could help catch a serial killer.
   As Evie jumps headlong into a dance with a murderer, other stories unfold in the city that never sleeps. A young man named Memphis is caught between two worlds. A chorus girl named Theta is running from her past. A student named Jericho hides a shocking secret. And unknown to all, something dark and evil has awakened.




Review: Normally, I don't go for the really creepy, and paranormal books. Add the fact that it's set in the 1920's, and you are in for a really scary ride.

Now I don't want to scare you away from the book, however it's not for the faint of heart. I think I first realized this during the introduction. It begins at a party with a Ouija board. A OUIJA BOARD! I think any normal person would see that it's only going to go downhill from there.

Like I said before, I'm not the creepy book type of gal. But this book kept me hooked. I literally couldn't stop reading. It took a while to hit the action, as Bray did a lot of character building on Evie (the main character). Once it hit, it was awesome. Every twisty turn was refreshingly original, and I never felt bored.

Although, I wish that we could have seen a little more of New York City in the 20's. The whole story stayed in one area, so I think had we traveled a little further, the story would have had even more depth to it. All in all, it was a great book, and I can't wait to read the next one!


Favorite Quote: “Naughty John, Naughty John, does his work with his apron on. Cuts your throat and takes your bones, sells 'em off for a coupla stones.” ― Libba Bray, The Diviners


(Not gonna lie, this was one of the creepiest parts of the book)

Rating: 4/5 Stars

Recommended to people who like: horror, paranormal, supernatural, YA, romance, exciting, thriller, mystery




Happy Reading,


Mari

Monday, August 24, 2015

Book Review: The Sea of Monsters

Percy Jackson and the Olympians the Sea of Monsters, by Rick Riordan

Release date: April 1, 2006
Read: Mid-July, 2015 and many times before that
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Format: Paperback, 279 pages
Series: Book #2 in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series

Description from Goodreads: 
   The heroic son of Poseidon makes an action-packed comeback in the second must-read installment of Rick Riordan's amazing young readers series. Starring Percy Jackson, a "half blood" whose mother is human and whose father is the God of the Sea, Riordan's series combines cliffhanger adventure and Greek mythology lessons that results in true page-turners that get better with each installment. In this episode, The Sea of Monsters, Percy sets out to retrieve the Golden Fleece before his summer camp is destroyed, surpassing the first book's drama and setting the stage for more thrills to come.

Review: Eventful, enticing, and downright funny. These are the first three words that come to mind when I think about this book. The none-stop rolling plot, the hidden meanings, the otherworldly places they visit. It all fits together perfectly. The first time I read the Sea of Monsters, I have to admit, I kind of hated Tyson. He seemed so needy, but the more I read about him, the more I realized that he was okay. My favourite scene is tied between Circe's island and Annabeth swimming to the Sirens. Both involve great sorcery: Circe herself, and the veil the Siren's put over people when they hear their music. The Son of Neptune, also by Rick Riordan, references the Island, which intrigues me, and I have always heard about evil mermaids, Sirens, who control their victims with their powerful voices. But to read about them with great detail in a more realistic perspective is a whole 'nother story.

Favourite Quotes:

  • "THAT Perseus always won. That's why my mom had named me after him, even if he was a son of Zeus and I was a son of Poseidon. The original Perseus was one of the only heroes in greek myths that got a happy ending. The others died- betrayed, mauled, mutilated, poisoned or cursed by the gods. My mom hoped I would inherit Perseus's luck. Judging by how my life was going so far, I wasn't too optimistic." -Rick Riordan
  • "Mythologically speaking, if there's anything I hate worse than trios of old ladies, it's bulls. Last summer, I fought the Minotaur on top of Half-Blood Hill. This time what I saw up there was even worse: two bulls. And not just regular bulls- bronze ones the size of elephants. And even that wasn't bad enough. Naturally they had to breath fire, too." -Rick Riordan
  • "Annabeth: My fatal flaw. That's what the Sirens showed me. My fatal flaw is hubris. Percy: The brown stuff they spread on veggie sandwiches? Annabeth: No, Seaweed Brain. That's HUMMUS. Hubris is worse. Percy: What could be worse than hummus? Annabeth: Hubris means deadly pride, Percy. Thinking you can do things better than anyone else... even the gods." -Rick Riordan


Rating: 8/10

Recommended if you like: constant adventure, travel, fantasy, mythology, destiny, fate, short reads, kid novels

A recipe for disaster,

Lauren





Sunday, August 23, 2015

Book Review: The Princess Diaries


Taken from www.megcabot.com


The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot


Release Date: June 26, 2001

Read: June of 2010 (for the first time)
Publisher: Turtleback Books: A Division of Sanval
Format: Paperback, 283 pages

Description from Goodreads

Mia Thermopolis is pretty sure there's nothing worse than being a five-foor-nine, flat-chested freshman, who also happens to be flunking Algebra.
Is she ever in for a surprise.
First Mom announces that she's dating Mia's Algebra teacher. Then Dad has to go and reveal that he is the crown prince of Genovia. And guess who still doesn't have a date for the Cultural Diversity Dance?


Review: I first picked this book up five years ago. It might be hard to believe, but no, I hadn't seen the movie first. In 2010, I was at a clearance sale at Chapters and saw a three volume set of the first three books. Obviously I bought it. After reading the synopsis on the back, I knew that this was the book for me. Mia is the princess that no one expected to be. She is crazy and neurotic, but it comes off as endearing, and somehow cute.It's funny, in a zany and quirky way. One of my favorite parts of the first book, is all the pop culture references in the early 2000's. Of course, if you don't know very much about this time, it may be a little hard to follow. When I first read this, all I wanted was to be exactly like her best friend- Lilly Moscovitz. She is one of the best parts of the entire series, because she is the wild child rebel that causes trouble where ever she goes. She inspired me to listen to the news, and to not flinch away from expressing my opinion. If you still aren't sold, and are thinking "I'll just watch the movie," here's one more thing. Grandmere, is one of the biggest character changes, book to movie. In the books she is one mean, and crafty old gal. She smokes and drinks CONSTANTLY, which adds to the charm.  If you really aren't sure about reading them, Anne Hathaway read the first three books, and Clea Louis the rest. They are great, and I've listed to them about a million times. This is on of my favorite book series ever, and I recommend it to anyone who needs a long and funny series.  


Favorite Quotes: “What kind of name is Paolo, anyway? I mean, this is America, for Pete’s sake! YOUR NAME IS PAUL!!!” 

― Meg CabotThe Princess Diaries
“You know in sixth grade, when they made all of us girls go into this other room and watch a video about getting our periods and stuff? I bet while we were gone, the boys were watching a video about how to look at each other in that infuriating way.”
― Meg CabotThe Princess Diaries

Rating: 4/5 Stars

Recommended for People Who Enjoy: YA fiction, feminist characters, funny dialogue, princess stories

Happy reading, 
Mari