Laura
I never thought I'd ever pick up The Great Gatsby until my coworker (and former high school English teacher) yelled at me to read it. I didn't think I'd like it, but it was okay. My biggest issue was with Fitzgerald's writing style, which annoyed me to no end. Like, he would change scenes and I'd totally miss the transition, or there was no transition at all. I found myself spacing out while reading, and I had to reread whole pages, which is why I took me a month to read. The story itself was alright, but I grew annoyed with most of the characters, especially Daisy and Tom.
I think I'll stay away from classics and stick to my YA fantasy from now on lol.
Listening to the audiobook of this novel was the best decision. Tim Curry narrating is pleasurable to the ears! Plus I feel accomplished after listening to the entire book in one evening. Ive read this book before, but I wanted to listen to it to refresh my memory of it. I cant wait to listen to the rest!
I was pleasantly surprised by this comic. I don't read a lot of Marvel, but when I had heard that they were making a female Thor, I was very intrigued. The rise of feminism in comic books has made me more and more enthusiastic to read them. Before I started reading it I thought it was going to be a gender swap, or alternate reality like Spider-Gwen. But when I realized that it was an entirely new character in the same universe, it made me very happy. I'm excited to read volume two and hopefully find out who the new Thor actually is.
I was terrified to read this book. Id heard very mixed reviews. But I figured I'd give it a shot, and I'm glad I did. And even though the format was a little weird, I got used to it, and it felt too short so I sped through it. I actually really enjoyed the story. I wish I could see it on stage. The multiple twists were amazing and the writing itself was great, even if it felt like fanfiction sometimes.
I had such high hopes for this book. I freaking LOVED Red Queen. But Glass Sword was so freaking slow!!! It took me two freaking months to get through it! All of the important parts felt really anticlimactic. Mare annoyed me to no end. Make up your damn mind, girl! Glad to be done with this thing. Ugh.
Oh, Victoria... Why do you do these things to my feelings?! My favorite thing about this book is how UNPREDICTABLE it was. At certain points I had no idea what direction the story was going in, and I liked that a LOT! I find so many stories that are predictable from the very beginning, or have too much foreshadowing. And while AGOS did have foreshadowing, it was the perfect amount. I loved the character development of Lila especially, and I absolutely love Alucard! I need more of him in the third book! Also needs more hot kisses between Kell and Lila, but that's just me.
My friend won this book from a goodreads giveaway and she let me read it first! This book was so different from any other dystopian novel I've ever read... And I've read a bunch. I loved the premise of a nuclear apocalypse that results in a mutation where everyone is born in a set of twins, one prefect and the other flawed. The first quarter of the book went by a little slower than the rest, just because Cass was locked up for literally years. Once she escapes though, the book picked up some. It took me longer to read than I expected, but it had an okay rhythm to it. The big twist near the end was lightly hinted at in certain points throughout the book, but I figured it out about 10 chapters before it was revealed. I'm definitely looking forward to the sequel!
When I read Fangirl, I CRAVED the Simon Snow story. When I heard that Rainbow was writing it, I just about peed my pants. It wasn't anything that I expected, but so much more. It took me a while to actually get into the story, because my dumb brain kept comparing it to Harry Potter. Once I got past that though, I really started to love it. Simon annoyed me for the first third of the book, but he got better, thankfully. I am hopelessly in love with Baz. He's my favorite character by far. Agatha was kind of a useless, one dimensional character, and her selfishness annoyed me. Penny is brilliant, obviously, but I wish she was just a little more developed.
The only thing I'm left wanting from this book is the PREQUELS. I want to read about Simon and Baz in their first seven years at Watford!!!
I am really loving this new Harley Quinn! Even though she keeps getting into trouble, she always has good intentions. Whether it's helping a stranger, a fellow bad guy, a little girl on Christmas, or cute little puppies, she always tries to do the right thing (even if it's the wrong way). She wants so badly to be a do-gooder, and that makes her lovable. I also loved the variations of art styles throughout volume 3. The only thing missing from this volume is more ROLLER DERBY! Derby Harley is my favorite cuz she can be her lovely violent self because that's the whole point of derby. Her quirky and sarcastic personality just keeps growing in these volumes, and it makes me love her even more.
Sigh. I almost gave up on this one. Classics are just not my genre. They bore the daylights outta me. I tried reading Pride and Prejudice a few years ago and gave up a third of the way in because I couldn't stay awake. Honestly I only got Pride and Prejudice and Zombies - The Graphic Novel - from the library because I'm too lazy to read the actual novel before the movie comes out.
However, I really enjoyed the illustrations in this graphic novel... It was just the dialogue that had me yawning.
I wanted to like Hold Me Closer, the Tiny Cooper Story. Tiny was my favorite character in Will Grayson, Will Grayson. I think it was the fact that it was written in play/script format kinda threw me off and couldn't keep me interested. I got about 50% through before I sighed and thought, “Do I really wanna finish this? I'm so bored!” DNF at page 102.
I was super happy to see that Mr Westerfeld was coming out with a new book. Unfortunately, his last book, Afterworlds, was really disappointing and sits unfinished on my DNF pile. Zeroes, however, did not disappoint. It introduced a rag tag team of teenagers with unconventional superpowers. Just my kind of story! The characters are relatable and well described, the writing was easy to read and engaging, and the story was relatively fast-paced and not like anything I've read before. Suffice to say, I can't wait until the sequel! 4/5 stars
Like the podcast, this book was strange. But what else can you expect from Night Vale? The flip flop of perspectives was jarring at first, but once they came together it all made sense (well, as much sense as Night Vale can make). The only thing I wanted more of was Cecil. Other than that, this book was fantastic.
I wanted to love this book, as I have loved all of Victoria's other books. But it took me a while to really get into it. It was a relatively slow read for me. Not a bad story, and I know this was her first book but it felt like her writing was still undeveloped. Of course, I'm comparing this one to the Archived and A Darker Shade of Magic. My favorite thing about this story was the imagery.
I really wanted to like this book. I love everything I've ever read from Scott Westerfeld, so I had high hopes. By the time I quit, on page 255, I just wanted to be reading the story about Lizzie. that story would be awesome on its own, and I don't think it needed the author's (Darcy's) story along with it. I may give it another chance in the future, but this one may stay a DNF.
holy fucktarts. this comic has just skyrocketed to the top of my favorites list. I'd seen a few friends on Instagram buy it and the cover intrigued me, so when I saw my library had it, I was so excited. this comic is everything I'd hoped for and much MUCH more. strong female leads (more female than male characters in the whole book, actually) are my favorite. the writing is witty, hilarious, and full of beautiful new curse words that I'm gonna steal. the art is AMAZING, it's so gory and just plain perfect.
I. LOVE. THIS. SERIES.
Oh, how do I describe my thoughts on this book? I knew I had to read it the first time I'd heard about it. I found it in a used book store and was ecstatic. It sat on my bookshelf for a few months while I was distracted by other books, but I'm so glad I picked it up.
This is story is both beautiful and heartbreaking, with a hint of mystery. Hannah's story is so relatable, as is Clay's. With each tape, I felt more connected to both of them. Hannah's isolation is something that I struggled with for years, and even though it never got to the point of suicide, the thoughts were still there. Clay's fear of rejection is something everyone can relate to.
Jay Asher did one hell of a job with this one, folks.
Ugh this book. this was recommended by my best friend, and I trust her judgment when it comes to books, usually. this is actually the second Jodi Picoult book she's made me read, the first being My Sister's Keeper, which I loved. but Handle With Care was honestly so frustrating. the change of voice every chapter was jarring at first, and Charlotte annoyed the crap out of me. I did identify with Amelia though, since I struggled with some of the things she did when I was younger. it was beautifully written, of course, but once I was halfway through I just wanted it to be over.... and once it was, I was just pissed off. the ending was just AAAARRRGGHHH. Jodi Picoults endings have now made me swear to never read her books again. I just can't do it again.
wow... just wow. this book was pretty incredible. it made me wish I could have had a teenage experience of love like Eleanor and Park's. I teared up a little at the ending, which means I got really invested in the characters. yet again, Rainbow Rowell writes such a relatable, touching, beautiful story.