Review: Crash by Lisa McMann

Review: Crash by Lisa McMann (is it just me, or are there a lot of books with this title?)
Rating: An intense and fast-paced ride that ends with a BANG.



If what you see is what you get, Jules is in serious trouble. The suspenseful first of four books from the New York Times bestselling author of the Wake trilogy.

Jules lives with her family above their restaurant, which means she smells like pizza most of the time and drives their double-meatball-shaped food truck to school. It’s not a recipe for popularity, but she can handle that.

What she can’t handle is the recurring vision that haunts her. Over and over, Jules sees a careening truck hit a building and explode...and nine body bags in the snow.

The vision is everywhere—on billboards, television screens, windows—and she’s the only one who sees it. And the more she sees it, the more she sees. The vision is giving her clues, and soon Jules knows what she has to do. Because now she can see the face in one of the body bags, and it’s someone she knows. Someone she has been in love with for as long as she can remember.

In this riveting start to a gripping series from New York Times bestselling author Lisa McMann, Jules has to act—and act fast—to keep her vision from becoming reality.

I'm going to do a new thing where I judge a book by its cover before I judge it by its insides, because judging is fun, right? Plus, I love this cover. I wish you could see it in person. It is all shiny and metallic, and the fire glows all creepily, and the spine is gold and OH YEAH my copy is autographed. And that is why, as I was walking through a bookstore the other day, I stopped, stared at this book for a second, and then immediately picked it up. Basically, the cover sold it to me. As did the kickass synopsis.

Obviously, the insides are even more important in determining whether or not a book is fully worth buying. To fully butcher a metaphor, do you care more about the bread in a sandwich, or the actual sandwich? If you say the bread, you are not eating sandwiches correctly. And Crash is one delicious little sandwich.



It's short, zippy, and powerful. This book packs a punch. Jules is a girl whose whole life is her highly dysfunctional family, and that's not really by choice. Her father owns a pizza joint, and every day she and her siblings help out at the restaurant with deliveries and in the kitchen. I simply ADORED Jules' relationships with her brother and sister, particularly with her delightful older brother Trey. They really are her best friends, and it's so refreshing to read about such great sibling relationships in YA.

Things are tough for the DeMarco sibs, though, because not only do they spend all their free time elbow deep in tomato sauce, not only do they have to drive to school in a food truck with two giant meatballs on top, but they also have a father with deep psychological issues. And I mean deep. Their father is a severely depressed hoarder, and their grandfather killed himself after his war with a rival Italian restaurant got personal.

With all that wonderfully stable family history, it's no wonder Jules freaks out when she suddenly starts having violent visions.

I loved McMann's depiction of mental health. Loved, loved, loved. It's a topic that's close to my heart, and it's a tricky thing to deal with. I get really angry when books are too lenient with those who are mentally ill, but I also don't like it when books are too fast to condemn. McMann struck the right balance in Julia, an awesome, funny character whose bravery is commendable. Jules is a hoot even when she's totally nutso (actually I liked her best when she was like I DON'T GIVE A SHIT IF I'M CRAZY ANYMORE, Imma do what I want for once get the FUCK out of my way bitches).





She's mildly pathetic at times-- she is ridiculously in love with a boy who hasn't spoken to her in years, and she has no friends besides her siblings-- but you get why those things are true. And like I said, I loved her voice, except, perhaps, for all the "oh my dogs" and "honest to dog". That one little joke got old after the fifteenth time, but seriously. Nit pick.

So Jules is seeing this one vision of a horrible crash. She sees it everywhere. It's basically screaming at her from every reflective surface. She can't escape it. It's not till she realizes that the boy she's loved since first grade, Sawyer Angotti, will die if her vision becomes reality that she decides to do something about it. But Sawyer isn't just the boy she loves. He's also... wait for it... the son of the guy who owns Angotti's, the rival Italian restaurant that drove Jules' grandpa to suicide and pushed Jules' dad into his current bitter, mentally unstable state. Draaaamaaaa.

(Also: this book made me so hungry. I've been craving pizza like mad since I read it. It isn't even about pizza, or anything, but pizza is always there, in the background, and there was always a part of my mind going, "Hey, you know what would be great to have while I'm reading? A piece of pizza. Just for research's sake.")



Jules and Sawyer are forbidden to speak or interact in anyway, but Jules is determined to stop the vision, even if it means surrendering to the crazy. And oh, I loved when she surrendered to the crazy. The pacing of this book is truly brilliant. I love me some super long epics, but it was utterly refreshing to pick up a slender volume and blaze right through it in a matter of hours. And yet it didn't feel rushed. There was time to breathe and time for Jules to think. I probably could have used a few more Sawyer scenes, because I never really felt I got to know him very well, and his personality isn't the type that really pops. I would have loved one or two flashback scenes where we really got to see Jules and Sawyer interacting. But he's appropriately dreamy, and I cared about him because of how much Jules did.

You know, sometimes I can be really dense (I have shocked you, I'm sure). I spent a long time staring at the front cover going "OOH SHINY *touchtouchtouch*". Do me a favor and scroll back up to take a look at it. See the part where it says Visions: Book One? And yet, after all that staring and poking, I didn't. See it, I mean. Till I got to the very end of the book, where I thought it was all about to wrap up, not perfectly nicely or anything, as there is still major family drama and Jules' dad is still, you know, sucky, but then there is a MAJOR MAJOR cliffhanger/shocker/DUN DUN DUNNNN moment and I was like:



Seriously. Book Two. Come to me. NOW.

ESPECIALLY SINCE THIS IS THE COVER AND
IT'S EVEN BETTER THAN THE FIRST

Yes, that's a bullet hole though an eyeball. It's AWESOME.

Note for people who like notes about these things: There's language in here (and in my review... sorry about that) and one surprisingly mature scene, but just the one. There's also violence (hence the fire on the cover) and portrayal of mental illness. Just so's you know.

Enjoy your pizza.

Friday Links

 

Because that's just the way I operate, my busiest week ever in terms of blog traffic was also one of my laziest in terms of actual, you know, BLOGGING. I've got a ton of reviews coming up, though, so stay tuned. But for now, it's the weekend! Let's procrastinate!





Here's a roundup of what I posted this week:

I finally read Divergent!

I listed ten of the amazing 2013 debuts I'm most looking forward to.

I read and reviewed Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally.


Bookish and non-bookish articles I thought you might procrastinate with enjoy:

Vote for your favorite Teen Book at Teenreads.com! (via Teenreads)

The Ten Most Anticipated Book Adaptations of 2013 (I plan to see them all) (via Publisher's Weekly)

15 Perfect Tea and Book Pairings! (via Epic Reads)

Ten Literary Board Games for Book Nerds, who I can safely assume includes all of you (via Flavorwire)

Were YOU at the Evening for Awesome with Hank and John Green? If so, don't even look at me, because I am way too jealous for polite conversation. (via the Atlantic Wire)

The New York Times did a profile on Lois Lowry, one of my favorite childhood authors (via NYT)

You know that horrible feeling where you can't quite find the right word, and it's just on the tip of your tongue, but for the LIFE OF YOU you just can't grasp it? THERE'S A WEBSITE FOR THAT.

Yes, this is an old link, but fabulous author Gwenda Bond does semi-weekly link roundups as well, and I was perusing hers when I saw... well... see if you can't spot a certain link to a certain blog (via Gwenda Bond and my shameless bragging)

Fifteen Undeniable Truths about Book Nerds (via Epic Reads)

And finally, a blog that teaches you how to make drinks found in Dickens novels. Punch! Hot toddies! Caudle? In which the main ingredient is... gruel? Still sounds fun! (via Drink like the Dickens!)


A few of the giveaways floating around the blogosphere:

Mine! I'm giving away a mystery box of awesome, any 2013 release you want, and any book I reviewed in 2012!

Making the Grade is having so many enormous giveaways that I'm weak with book lust.

And here are just LINKS. Straight up LINKS to fabulous prizes. So follow them!

http://www.nawandafiles.com/2013/01/one-year-blogoversary-giveaway.html

http://www.katiesbookblog.com/2013/01/giveaway-pulse-arc.html

http://www.thereaderbee.com/2013/01/happy-2nd-blogoversary-thereaderbee.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+thereaderbeeblog+%28The+Reader+Bee%29

http://thebookcellarx.com/2013/01/giveaway-what-the-spell-by-brittany-geragotelis.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheBookCellar+%28The+Book+Cellar%29

http://www.flyleafreview.com/2013/01/its-my-one-year-blogoversary.html

http://www.themidnightgarden.net/2013/01/january-2013-prize-pack.html?spref=tw

Have a good weekend, everybody!

Review: Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally

Review: Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally

Rating: Fun football, non-traditional protagonist, being friends with boys, romaaaance, some characters you just love and some you want to shake very roughly in the hope that the merest trickle of common sense permeates their very thick skulls. All in all, an adorable and fun read with only minor issues.

 

 

ONE OF THE BOYS

What girl doesn't want to be surrounded by gorgeous jocks day in and day out? Jordan Woods isn't just surrounded by hot guys, though-she leads them as the captain and quarterback of her high school football team. They all see her as one of the guys and that's just fine. As long as she gets her athletic scholarship to a powerhouse university.

But everything she's ever worked for is threatened when Ty Green moves to her school. Not only is he an amazing QB, but he's also amazingly hot. And for the first time, Jordan's feeling vulnerable. Can she keep her head in the game while her heart's on the line?

 

I was completely sold on the premise of a female quarterback who only hangs out with a bunch of guys. I LOVE football, and though I'm not remotely tomboy-ish, I've got a twin brother and all my cousins are boys, and as kids all we did was climb things and throw things and beat each other up, so I love reading books about boys and girls as friends. In those respects, Catching Jordan didn't disappoint. The plot and prose are uncluttered, unflowery, and flow with ease.

 

With eeeeease

 

In which Gillian takes a politically correct detour your are most definitely allowed to skip

(However, in some instances, the sexual politics of Jordan's high school made me a little… well, wary, I guess? Don’t get me wrong, the book wasn’t offensive in anyway, and obviously it’s dealing with the very traditionally-gendered culture of Southern high school football, but I pursed my lips a couple of times. Don’t worry, I’m not putting on my rant-y pants or anything. (I always give warning when I put on my rant-y pants.) I’m only mentioning it because I noticed it, and I always mention the things that bother me. But I’m sensitive to that kind of thing— the usage/definition of the word “slut” and the casual employment of a derogatory term for lesbian. While the slut thing is dealt with somewhat by tomboy Jordan, who grows to be pretty comfortable with herself in that regard, the homophobia thing wasn’t. Which, you know, gets under my skin. Again, this book is NOT HOMOPHOBIC. Neither is Jordan, nor is the author, I'm sure. And it may be realistic for Tennessean cheerleaders to toss those words around pejoratively (um… no offense, you lovely, open-minded Tennesseans out there, I’ve been to  your state and it’s swell), but I would have liked one moment where Jordan was like, “Whoa, not cool.”)

 

Okay. Back to our regularly scheduled reviewing. Especially since Jordan is pretty kickass about putting misogynists in their place when it comes to her playing football. She’s a bit too judgmental of other girls, which is understandable, though, considering a couple of the cliché cheerleaders are MEGA HEINOUS BITCHES.

 

 

Jordan is driven and passionate. She wants to play college ball at Alabama, even though her NFL QB Dad doesn't approve, but football is her life, and she's going to make it happen no matter what. That's kind of determination is really easy to admire. I rooted for Jordan from the get-go. Hanging out with a bunch of emotionally stunted boys, though, makes it hard for her to express her feelings, which is why she takes up journaling. I loooved Jordan's little poems, which show up at the end of nearly every chapter. They were blunt and beautiful and made me love her more. Well, except when she said this:

 

“Still, writing’s a weak thing to be doing. At least compared to playing quarterback. Or eating those scalding 911 wings that made me and Ty cry at the Titans game.”

Jordan, girl, I’m really starting to become fond of you. Don’t make me punch you.

But it’s okay, I never had to punch her because Jordan's way cool. Her love of writing grows, and she becomes more comfortable with who she is, both by herself and in all of her relationships. Watching Jordan blossom was one of the best things about Catching Jordan. I loved seeing her come into her own and find her place in the world. All in all, there were three things I absolutely loved in Catching Jordan: Jordan’s journey, the football, and Sam Henry.

 

I was raised in a family of football fanatics. My brother, dad, and I scream vicious obscenities at our TV every Sunday. My mom openly wept one year the Patriots lost the Super Bowl. And you will not utter the word “Packers” in my presence for at least six months if you know what’s good for you. So naturally, I loved being in the mind of a quarterback and being a part of a fictional team. If you’re not remotely interested in football, then honestly, you might not get this book. The love of the game is a big part of it. But then again, there are hot boys and romantic misunderstandings, so I say give it a try regardless.

 

Jordan’s teammates are another highlight. I loved the sense of camaraderie amongst all the boys and “Woods”, as they call Jordan. She’s their quarterback, captain, and friend. She’s a highly respected member of the pack. It was honestly pretty sweet. But none were as sweet as one Sam Henry, Jordan’s adorable and funny best friend, even though he was the one I wanted to shake the most, and rather violently. People in this book are astoundingly oblivious about very obvious things, Henry and Jordan in particular, and to some extent Jordan's dad. Most of the drama centered around their ability to perceive things clearly, and they were all in desperate need of a good get a grip friend. But I really loved all three of those characters, so I gave them the benefit of the doubt. Plus, Henry and Jordan's friendship was really beautiful, with a lot of hilarious, affectionate banter and a lot of history. He's totally the hot guy friend/brother combo thing you wish you had.

 

That character that didn't work for me at all was Ty. I just couldn't grasp him. I didn't really see him in my head. I never felt what he was feeling, like he wasn't real. It was like reading him through a veil, or something. He just fell flat.

 

He butt fumbled, if you will (SORRY JETS FANS)

 

And since I was pretty much shipping Henry and Jordan from page one, even though he wasn't even a love interest, no matter how hot and sweet and swoony Ty was, I was pretty much just like, "Go awaaaaaay, please, I have shipping to do." Ty and Jordan's relationship escalates pretty quickly, which I didn't have a problem with, but some people might, so, fair warning. Also, there's some language, if that bothers you.

 

Which I guess leads me to the few things that didn't work for me. A lot of the dialogue was pretty on the nose, and all in all just lacked a little bit of that magic that's impossible to define. I was very interested in the plot, the football, and Jordan's relationships (with the huge exception of her and Ty's), but some of the secondary characters lacked personality. I also didn't like how people assumed Jordan was stupid, because she was a jock, and worst of all, I didn't like the moments where Kinneally made her seem dumb on purpose. I mean, she wasn't stupid, clearly-- she was actually pretty intelligent, particularly in her journal-- but little moments were put in just to prove her scholastic ignorance. Like so:

 

JJ: She’s a good lay. What’s a four-letter word for a past Russian leader?

Jordan: How the hell should I know, man?

Me: Tsar! TSAR! It’s tsar, you fools. Effing dumb jocks.

 

 

Of course I'm being unreasonable, because not everyone has the same knowledge base as everyone else, and yes, this has NOTHING to do with the quality of the story. But I just want to say, not all jocks are dumb, and if Kenneally hadn't included those moments, the thought wouldn't have even crossed my mind.

 

And just to thoroughly pick some nits, I did not appreciate the fact that Marie and Carrie were the names chosen for Jordan's two female almost-friends, simply because putting them back to back on the page like that is like a tongue twister. Marie and Carrie? Marrie and Carie? Marie Curie? BRAIN HURTS. (Tangent: I once critiqued an MS where someone had a character named "Mel" and another named "Meg". I lasted ten pages until I was like, "I CANNOT. YOU HAVE DEFEATED MY EYES".)

 

In the end, this book was refreshing and super fun. I just adored Jordan's football team, her determination, and her adorable best friend. The ending of this book is so flipping cute I just about died. If you're a football fan, I highly recommend this one. And I'm pleased that there's a bunch of semi sequels, as I will surely be checking them out, despite my nits.

 

No, I have no idea what this is either, BUT I LIKE IT.

 

Top Ten 2013 Debuts I'm Looking Forward To

hosted by The Broke and Bookish

This list was probably the hardest Top Ten I've ever done. My TBR list has scores of 2013 debuts on it. So many amazing, brand new authors are joining the literary ranks this year. Here are just a tiny few of the books that I'm itching to get my hands on.

DEBUTS ARE SO EXCIIIITINGGG

Also, if you want to get some inside scoop on some of the authors debuting in 2013, you should check out The Lucky 13s, a blog for and about a whole bunch of 2013 debut authors, so you don't miss a single one.

1.
 
Publish Date: January 29th
In the darkest places, even love is deadly.

Sixteen-year-old Juliet Moreau has built a life for herself in London—working as a maid, attending church on Sundays, and trying not to think about the scandal that ruined her life. After all, no one ever proved the rumors about her father's gruesome experiments. But when she learns he is alive and continuing his work on a remote tropical island, she is determined to find out if the accusations are true.

Accompanied by her father's handsome young assistant, Montgomery, and an enigmatic castaway, Edward—both of whom she is deeply drawn to—Juliet travels to the island, only to discover the depths of her father's madness: He has experimented on animals so that they resemble, speak, and behave as humans. And worse, one of the creatures has turned violent and is killing the island's inhabitants. Torn between horror and scientific curiosity, Juliet knows she must end her father's dangerous experiments and escape her jungle prison before it's too late. Yet as the island falls into chaos, she discovers the extent of her father's genius—and madness—in her own blood.

Inspired by H. G. Wells's classic The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Madman's Daughter is a dark and breathless Gothic thriller about the secrets we'll do anything to know and the truths we'll go to any lengths to protect.

2.

Publish Date: February 5th
NOTE: This isn't a debut. I was fully aware of this before I put it on this list, but the brain farts, they happen to the best of us. This is what you get when you write your posts at two in the morning.  I'm leaving it on here anyway because I AM really looking forward too it and I'm too lazy to look up any other books. My bad, though.

It's one thing to learn to curtsy properly. It's quite another to learn to curtsy and throw a knife at the same time. Welcome to finishing school.

Fourteen-year-old Sophronia is the bane of her mother's existence. Sophronia is more interested in dismantling clocks and climbing trees than proper etiquette at tea--and god forbid anyone see her atrocious curtsy. Mrs. Temminnick is desperate for her daughter to become a proper lady. She enrolls Sophronia in Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality.

But little do Sophronia or her mother know that this is a school where ingenious young girls learn to finish, all right--but it's a different kind of finishing. Mademoiselle Geraldine's certainly trains young ladies in the finer arts of dance, dress, and etiquette, but also in the other kinds of finishing: the fine arts of death, diversion, deceit, espionage, and the modern weaponries. Sophronia and her friends are going to have a rousing first year at school.

 

3.

 

Publish Date: March 12th

Mila was never meant to learn the truth about her identity. She was a girl living with her mother in a small Minnesota town. She was supposed to forget her past —that she was built in a secret computer science lab and programmed to do things real people would never do.

 

Now she has no choice but to run—from the dangerous operatives who want her terminated because she knows too much and from a mysterious group that wants to capture her alive and unlock her advanced technology. However, what Mila’s becoming is beyond anyone’s imagination, including her own, and it just might save her life.

 

4.

Publish Date: August 20th

You stop fearing the devil when you’re holding his hand…

Nothing much exciting rolls through Violet White’s sleepy, seaside town…until River West comes along. River rents the guesthouse behind Violet’s crumbling estate, and as eerie, grim things start to happen, Violet begins to wonder about the boy living in her backyard. Is River just a crooked-smiling liar with pretty eyes and a mysterious past? Or could he be something more? Violet’s grandmother always warned her about the Devil, but she never said he could be a dark-haired boy who takes naps in the sun, who likes coffee, who kisses you in a cemetery…who makes you want to kiss back. Violet’s already so knee-deep in love, she can’t see straight. And that’s just how River likes it.

5.

 

Publish Date: June 11th

Elissa used to have it all: looks, popularity, and a bright future. But for the last three years, she’s been struggling with terrifying visions, phantom pains, and mysterious bruises that appear out of nowhere.

 

Finally, she’s promised a cure: minor surgery to burn out the overactive area of her brain. But on the eve of the procedure, she discovers the shocking truth behind her hallucinations: she’s been seeing the world through another girl’s eyes.

 

Elissa follows her visions, and finds a battered, broken girl on the run. A girl—Lin—who looks exactly like Elissa, down to the matching bruises. The twin sister she never knew existed.

 

Now, Elissa and Lin are on the run from a government who will stop at nothing to reclaim Lin and

protect the dangerous secrets she could expose—secrets that would shake the very foundation of their world.

 

 

6.

 

Publish Date: June 25th

On the heels of a family tragedy, the last thing Katie Greene wants to do is move halfway across the world. Stuck with her aunt in Shizuoka, Japan, Katie feels lost. Alone. She doesn’t know the language, she can barely hold a pair of chopsticks, and she can’t seem to get the hang of taking her shoes off whenever she enters a building.

 

Then there’s gorgeous but aloof Tomohiro, star of the school’s kendo team. How did he really get the scar on his arm? Katie isn’t prepared for the answer. But when she sees the things he draws start moving, there’s no denying the truth: Tomo has a connection to the ancient gods of Japan, and being near Katie is causing his abilities to spiral out of control. If the wrong people notice, they’ll both be targets.

 

Katie never wanted to move to Japan—now she may not make it out of the country alive.

 

7.

Publish Date: February 5th

 

Nisha was abandoned at the gates of the City of a Thousand Dolls when she was just a child. Now sixteen, she lives on the grounds of the isolated estate, where orphan girls apprentice as musicians, healers, courtesans, and, if the rumors are true, assassins. Nisha makes her way as Matron’s assistant, her closest companions the mysterious cats that trail her shadow. Only when she begins a forbidden flirtation with the city’s handsome young courier does she let herself imagine a life outside the walls. Until one by one, girls around her start to die.

 

Before she becomes the next victim, Nisha decides to uncover the secrets that surround the girls’ deaths. But by getting involved, Nisha jeopardizes not only her own future in the City of a Thousand Dolls—but her own life.

 

8.

 

Publish Date: February 26th 

Dualed (Dualed, #1Expected publication: February 26th 2013Pubp

The city of Kersh is a safe haven, but the price of safety is high. Everyone has a genetic Alternate—a twin raised by another family—and citizens must prove their worth by eliminating their Alts before their twentieth birthday. Survival means advanced schooling, a good job, marriage—life.

Fifteen-year-old West Grayer has trained as a fighter, preparing for the day when her assignment arrives and she will have one month to hunt down and kill her Alt. But then a tragic misstep shakes West’s confidence. Stricken with grief and guilt, she’s no longer certain that she’s the best version of herself, the version worthy of a future. If she is to have any chance of winning, she must stop running not only from her Alt, but also from love . . . though both have the power to destroy her.

Elsie Chapman's suspenseful YA debut weaves unexpected romance into a novel full of fast-paced action and thought-provoking philosophy. When the story ends, discussions will begin about this future society where every adult is a murderer and every child knows there is another out there who just might be better.

 

9.

 

 Publish Date: March 5th

Sixteen-year-old Dusty Everhart breaks into houses late at night, but not because she’s a criminal. No, she’s a Nightmare.

Literally.

Being the only Nightmare at Arkwell Academy, a boarding school for magickind, and living in the shadow of her mother’s infamy, is hard enough. But when Dusty sneaks into Eli Booker’s house, things get a whole lot more complicated. He’s hot, wh...more Sixteen-year-old Dusty Everhart breaks into houses late at night, but not because she’s a criminal. No, she’s a Nightmare.

Literally.

Being the only Nightmare at Arkwell Academy, a boarding school for magickind, and living in the shadow of her mother’s infamy, is hard enough. But when Dusty sneaks into Eli Booker’s house, things get a whole lot more complicated. He’s hot, which means sitting on his chest and invading his dreams couldn’t get much more embarrassing. But it does. Eli is dreaming of a murder.

Then Eli’s dream comes true.

Now Dusty has to follow the clues—both within Eli’s dreams and out of them—to stop the killer before more people turn up dead. And before the killer learns what she’s up to and marks her as the next target.

 

10.

 

Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen never should have met. She’s the socialite daughter of the richest man in the galaxy, and he’s a decorated soldier fighting back rebellions on newly terraformed planets. But when the vast luxury spaceliner they’re both traveling on crashes, they find themselves thrown together as the two sole survivors on an unknown planet.

As they survive...more Publish Date: not sure
Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen never should have met. She’s the socialite daughter of the richest man in the galaxy, and he’s a decorated soldier fighting back rebellions on newly terraformed planets. But when the vast luxury spaceliner they’re both traveling on crashes, they find themselves thrown together as the two sole survivors on an unknown planet.

As they survive harsh conditions and dwindling supplies—not to mention each other—the two begin to uncover a mystery surrounding the abandoned planet that neither of them could have guessed.

The first in a trilogy, THESE BROKEN STARS sets into motion a series of timeless, standalone love stories that span galaxies—and are linked by their shared worlds and one mysterious enemy.

 

 What books are you looking forward to? Any of the ones on my list? Leave your links so I can come visit!

Review: Divergent by Veronica Roth

 

Review: Divergent by Veronica Roth

Rating: YES, I finally read it, and YES, I loved it just as much as you said I would. I'm not sure I would even dare criticize this book if I didn't, though, since you all would probably eat me.



In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue--Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is--she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are--and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

I'm not sure how to write a review for a book most of you have read and almost all of you have heard of. If you haven't heard of it, yay! Welcome to Earth! That thing up there is sky and those down there are rocks. Don't eat them. (Just kidding. I have a friend who only just found out there was MORE THAN ONE LORD OF THE RINGS MOVIE, and I'm still on speaking terms with her, so clearly I don't judge.) Also I'm feeling particularly lazy today, so I'm just going to put a bunch of gifs in here to tide you over as if I don't already do that.

I will admit, I had such a hard time starting this book. Because it came with EXPECTATIONS, you know? So many people told me I was going to love it that I almost became sure I wouldn't. Because there was no way it could be as good as everyone said it would, and who wants to read things that are popular, I mean ew and it's becoming a movie how mainstream, blah blah hipster. And when I read the first couple of pages, I thought my fears were being confirmed. I didn't get it. I thought Beatrice was flat and her parents didn't have personality. I thought I might be dystopia-ed out. I was... unsure.

And then Beatrice hopped a train.

Beatrice makes the choice that will change the rest of her life. She throws over Abnegation to become Dauntless, changes her name to Tris, and leaps off a building into a whole new life. And that, my friends, is when I got why everyone was talking about this book. Here was the action. Here was the drama. Here was Tris being a completely awesome and brilliant YA heroine on par with Katniss and Katsa. And it was here, in the dangerous and dramatic underground Dauntless compound, that I met Four. Oh, Four.

 

I mean, I don't dare say much about him, lest I spoil it for the six people who haven't read it yet, but I'll take one in every color, please. He's strong. He's handsome. He's complicated. And he sees more in Tris than anybody ever has. I was just in awe with how deeply he got her, especially when it came to understanding how powerful and resilient she was. Not once did he think of her as a victim, or weak, or vulnerable, even when truly awful things were happening to her.

 

Tris decided to be Dauntless, which means she's basically training to join the Marines. And it's the worst. It's a dog-eat-dog world in the Dauntless compound, since only a handful of the initiates will make it, and those who don't will be Factionless, a fate worse than death in Tris' world. Which is handy, as it's likely a bunch of the initiates will die. No pressure, or anything. Tris' journey in Dauntless is basically her learning how to be the total brilliant badass she's meant to be. She really comes into her own, going from:

 

Ummm I'm from Abnegation so I don't really know how to
OH MY GOD you want me to jump off a building are you high

 to:

Let's go kick some HUNNY ERUDITE BUNS!

To say she's strong is an understatement. This is a girl that never breaks, no matter how far she's pushed. She's always the agent of her own story, meaning it's her choices that drive the narrative. Tris is never a passenger in her own story, never merely reacting to what goes on around her. She's the smallest in her initiate class and no one thinks much of her, but the beauty of Tris is that she thinks a lot of herself. She knows she can beat them. She knows she will.

 

Of course there are all the usual ingredients of a dystopian. Big Bad Trouble is Brewing amongst the factions, there's political blah blah and tension and villains and so. I was nervous about how all that was going to be pulled off, considering Roth had to balance all that with Tris' training, her romance with Four, her developing badassery, her dealings with the eeeeevil Peter, and her competitive friendships. High concept dystopians are so tricky. I really connect with the characters, but I'm sold by the execution. I don't care how good your concept is if  you can't execute it. Thankfully, Roth's execution is pretty much:

The ending is so satisfyingly climax-y, and even though I think I saw it coming, certain aspects of it DEFINITELY stunned me. Also, I'm totally glad I own Insurgent and was able to transition into it immediately, because if I'd had to wait a year, there would have been blood. I gobbled this book up in about a day. It wasn't perfect, but it was so bloody entertaining, well-written, emotional, and fast-paced that I literally couldn't put it down. If you're not on the bandwagon of this particular YA phenomenon, by choice or by ignorance, I'd say get on it, at least so you'll know why I think Shailene Woodley is beyond awesome casting for the movie, despite the fact she's too tall to be the Tris in my head.






What say you? Do you see Tris?

For the record, I would most decidedly NOT be Dauntless, because I'm not particularly fond of beating the life out of people and I tend to cry when I get too high off the ground. Seriously, I get dizzy and panicky on escalators. I'm convinced that falling off one is how I'm going to die. No way would I be Abnegation, because I'm a selfish brat who's quite fond of mirrors. Candor would be THE WORST because I'm a lying liar who lies and no way would I want to know what everybody else is thinking all the time. Erudite I could do in theory, since I'm a fan of all the booking and the learning and the science-ing, except they're kind of all complete assholes over there and I have a little issue with that. Which leaves me with Amity, the Hufflepuff of the Divergent world (Cedric: Hufflepuff are particularly good finders! Dumbledore: What the hell is a Hufflepuff?). I guess I could see myself being okay with Amity, singing kumbaya and playing the banjo and eating cupcakes for the rest of my days. Or at least until I snapped and punched someone just for something to do.

Which I guess is part of the point of the world Roth has created. Human nature is so vast and varied that it's impossible to conform to one archetype. The Divergent society is lovely on paper as a kind of utopian intellectual exercise, but it falls apart in practice because it fails to take human nature into account. And it fails to recognize that the strongest among us are the ones who can be brave, selfless, truthful, intelligent, and kind, sometimes all at once, sometimes only at the right times.

So tell me: if you lived in Tris' world, meaning you had to squish yourself into one of the metaphorical Faction boxes on your sixteenth birthday, which would it be? Dauntless, Abnegation, Candor, Erudite, or Amity?

Friday Links

Finally, the end of the week. The very long week. But it was also my blog's BEST WEEK EVER, so thank you everyone who visited or commented or joined! You guys are rock stars! But I am very glad it's the weekend, because I finally get to see Les Miserables and cry my little heart out.



In case you missed it, this is the roundup of what I posted this week:

I read, reviewed, and ranted about Undeadly by Michele Vail and the use of Teen Speak in YA.

I helped celebrate Making the Grade's birthday by giving away a mystery box of books (still open! No, not the box, the giveaway)!

I outlined my Top Ten Bookish Goals for 2013, which are totally different than my Reading Resolutions, I promise.

And lastly, I read and gushed about For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund.


Bookish articles I read that you might enjoy:

I'm going to shamelessly brag about the fact that Diana Peterfreund said she liked my blog. And my review. AND MY GIFS (via Diana Peterfreund's website).

Obligatory celebration gif

I get a little skeptical when people say, "Here's a list of ALL the essential science fiction and fantasy books coming out in 2013", but this article does have some books you'll want to look out for (via iO9).

Fifty Shades of Dorian Gray and other fun literary mashups (via Huffington Books).

A GANDALF PROBLEM-SOLVING FLOWCHART. YOU'RE WELCOME (via LOTR Project).

The science behind what happens to your brain while listening to a story (via Buffer).

They're turning Peter Pan into a WWII-era comic book whaaaa? (via Huffington Books)

At Home in Fantasy's Nerd-Built Worlds (via NPR).

Title Trend: Numbers! (via Stacked)

GORGEOUS cover redesigns. This is so my weak spot. I want them ALLLLL (via Flavorwire).

Yes, the print is small and grey and hard to read, BUT this is just an amazing little piece of writing about how Ariel from The Little Mermaid and other Disney princesses are actually great feminist examples (via Tumblr).


And now, a few of the giveaways floating around the blogosphere:

I'm still giving away one copy of a book I read and reviewed in 2012 and one copy of any 2013 release (preorders included), so hop on over and enter!

Making the Grade is giving away a DOZEN signed books for her birthday Bookapalooza!

Win a book of your choice from Paper Riot!

Young Adult Faeries & Fantasy Giveaway Hop!

Me, My Shelf, and I is celebrating it's 2nd birthday with a TON of giveaways, and this is just one of them.

Stuck in Books is ALSO two years old and ALSO giving away prizes!

Review: For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund

Review: For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund
Rating: Heart-wrenching, heart-soaring, intensely romantic, so beautiful, oh God the pain, holy crap this world building, what even are sentences.



It's been several generations since a genetic experiment gone wrong caused the Reduction, decimating humanity and giving rise to a Luddite nobility who outlawed most technology.

Elliot North has always known her place in this world. Four years ago Elliot refused to run away with her childhood sweetheart, the servant Kai, choosing duty to her family's estate over love. Since then the world has changed: a new class of Post-Reductionists is jumpstarting the wheel of progress, and Elliot's estate is foundering, forcing her to rent land to the mysterious Cloud Fleet, a group of shipbuilders that includes renowned explorer Captain Malakai Wentforth--an almost unrecognizable Kai. And while Elliot wonders if this could be their second chance, Kai seems determined to show Elliot exactly what she gave up when she let him go.

But Elliot soon discovers her old friend carries a secret--one that could change their society . . . or bring it to its knees. And again, she's faced with a choice: cling to what she's been raised to believe, or cast her lot with the only boy she's ever loved, even if she's lost him forever.

Inspired by Jane Austen's persuasion, For Darkness Shows the Stars is a breathtaking romance about opening your mind to the future and your heart to the one person you know can break it.

I need to take a moment to calm myself. Simply put, I loved this. This is the kind of book that drowns you in feels. Right now I'm kind of a bit like:



BUT IN THE BEST WAY. Because the true strength of For Darkness Shows the Stars, beside the tremendous world building and the gorgeous themes of progress and the fear it inspires, is Elliot's perfectly nuanced and detailed emotional journey. I felt every moment of her pain. I wanted to reach through the page and hug her and tell her you is kind, you is smart, you is important, because she's amazing, and she suffers so. And I loved it. I cared so much about Elliot, because she cares so much.

 

Full disclosure: I'm a Jane Austen nut. As in, I just counted, and I own over twenty copies of her books even though she only wrote six full length novels, plus a Jane Austen cookbook, three biographies, What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens knew, a Lizzy Bennet action figure, and a purse with Jane's face on it. Needless to say, I've read Persuasion many a time, and basically have it memorized. I'm not sure how much this influenced my adoration for this book or my understanding of the plot, but I'm sure it did. Obviously I recommend reading Persuasion, because it's awesome. I can only write a review from the point of view of someone who has the original story deeply internalized, even though FDStS is such a quality novel I'm certain it can stand on its own. It's not necessary to have read Persuasion to read FDStS.
Also, I would just like to say, I realized halfway through that this book is set in NEW ZEALAND, though it's never explicitly stated, and it was a massive light bulb moment that I think is worth knowing beforehand. So there you go.

Anyway, here's the deal. Centuries ago, scientists decided to play God and do experiments on themselves, making themselves superior creatures by cheating death, illness, and human frailty with something called the ERV vaccine. The aptly named Luddites are all:

 

and want no part of these shenanigans. So they don't take the vaccine, which turns out to be a good move, since all this war and apocalyptic-ness transpires because of it. The Luddites seek refuge in the caves, and when they come out, the world is completely devastated, and the children of the enhanced have become Reduced-- lesser versions of humans, nearly incapable of speech, and far less intelligent. The Luddites think God has punished the scientists and their ilk for striving to outdo Him. So they rebuild their cut off, technology-free world into a feudal society where all progressive thinking is banned.

Our story starts generations later. These two battling concepts of moving forward and holding back are perfectly embodied in cautious Luddite Elliot and bold Children of the Reduced Kai. The complex world building unfolded slowly, and in the beginning I was frustrated, because I didn't know what was going on,  but once I found out, I was glad for the pace. It led me to understand it better. Reading this book made me feel like I've been living in Elliot's unjust society myself.

Oh Wentworth. Don't be like that.

Strong, loyal Elliot is the only reason her family's farm hasn't completely disintegrated. All the Posts and Reduced on her estate adore her and see her as their friend. Except for Kai. He's a Post. He's descended from the Reduced, and should therefore be almost mute and mentally impaired, yet he and many others are completely normal. And they all strive for more. They all look to the stars and the future. Which the Luddite lords do NOT like. He and Elliot were besties growing up, and eventually fell in love, and Kai was all, "Run away with me! We'll see the world! Invent things!" and Elliot was all... "I cannot." Because of her duties, because she's a Luddite, because SUFFERING SUFFERING SUFFERING.

And when these two come together... Oh sweet lord. There is such Unresolved Sexual Tension. Kai is grand, important, and clearly furious at Elliot's betrayal. Elliot has missed him like crazy and her heart is  one big open wound. They just keep hurting each other, even though they're both trying to do the right things, even though they both think they're right. And I just wanted to cry and smush their faces together and go "PLEASE JUST LOVE EACH OTHER! PLEASE!" But there are romantical misunderstandings galore. And the rest of the narrative does not disappoint. There's mean nasty Baron North, Elliot's utterly heinous father, lovely complex side characters, and pain. Lots and lots of pain.



I knew the general structure of the narrative because of how well I know Persuasion. But I did not know exactly how everything would transpire, or how brilliantly Peterfreund would portray this crazy world where it's illegal to change things for the better. Where it's verboten to change, period, despite the fact that the world always does. And Elliot is an incredible heroine. She's so strong and intelligent it just boggles my mind. She deserves everything. And KAI. I loved him. Despite the fact that he's cold and horribly cruel to Elliot, you know it's just because he's all hurt. He appears on the outside like this:

You have broken my heart I will destroy you how dare you arrrrrgh
(...or something)

But really he wants to be like this:

You're preeeeetty.

We get to know how much they mean to each other through the letters they exchanged in childhood. And their slow, beautiful journey back to each other is just magnificent. I teared up. I clutched my heart. I had to stop reading to do a little dance around my apartment because of the feels.



 Obviously I recommend this book. This is a true, deep romance between two minds, not two bodies. I'm totally bereft that this isn't a series, not because the book feels unfinished, but only because I want more of this world. Elliot and Kai's story is both perfect and perfectly contained. This is the kind of book where you sigh upon finishing and just sort of stare dreamily into space because you're so happy and contented and clutch the book to your chest because it will live there forever.