Review: College of Magics by Caroline Stevermeyer

Title: A College of Magics

Author: Caroline Stevermer

Rating:

Who Should Read It? Lovers of cutesy fantasy!

What I Have to Say:
I liked this book. It was a super cute, super fast read involving everything from English tea to huge rifts in the balance of the world.

That said, let's start with the things I didn't like so much. While the characters very obviously developed throughout the course of the story, it was really hard to actually see that development happening, and I found myself wondering if they were actually like that all along, and I just didn't see it at the beginning. One characters in particular, Jane, changed so much that I actually started to dislike her, when she was supposed to be one of the ones I was rooting for. And if Farris, the main character, actually matured, I had trouble seeing it.

Then I also found it really difficult to imagine where the story was taking place. There just wasn't enough information for my imagination to go into overdrive, and my overactive imagination is one of the reasons I love fantasy so much.

Lastly, the entire story felt somewhat emotionally detached. Death, for example, didn't seem to exact any emotion at all. Since the emotion was lacking within the story, it was also hard for me to get emotionally involved.

Despite all of this, I really enjoyed the book. I liked the subtle way in which the students at Greenlaw learned magic without ever actually being able to learn it hands on. I liked the way the good guys slowly separated themselves from the bad guys. I liked the dreamlike qualities of the plot and the way new plot lines just sort of presented themselves with no real explanation but were just understood (I didn't like, though, how some of them, including the most important, the functions of the wardens of the world) never got explained. I liked the way it progressed smoothly and easily, thus making it a book that I ultimately enjoyed despite all the problems I had with it.

So would I recommend it whole-heartedly? Probably not? But if you've got a little bit of free time and are looking for a quick, fun, cutesy fantasy, I say go for it! I'll be reading the second one only if I find myself in that situation.

Summary:Teenager Faris Nallaneen is the heir to the small northern dukedom of Galazon. Too young still to claim her title, her despotic Uncle Brinker has ruled in her place. Now he demands she be sent to Greenlaw College. For her benefit he insists. To keep me out of the way, more like it!

But Greenlaw is not just any school-as Faris and her new best friend Jane discover. At Greenlaw students major in . . . magic.

But it's not all fun and games. When Faris makes an enemy of classmate Menary of Aravill, life could get downright . . . deadly.

Cover Story: While I get the point of this cover, I'm just not a fan. It feels too 1960's for me - not enough magic.

Review: Queen of Babble in the Big City by Meg Cabot

Title: Queen of Babble in the Big City

Author: Meg Cabot

Rating:

Who Should Read It?
Meg Cabot fans, of course! Anyone interested in that perfect fluff book that exists solely to brighten up their day.

What I Have to Say:
Um, yes. That's what I have to say. I don't know how to write reviews for Meg Cabot's books. Reason being that they're all the same to me. I don't say that in a bad way, though. I adore Meg Cabot. So much so that I genuinely believe that, if you've ever liked a Meg Cabot book, you're going to like all other Meg Cabot books, and so all that really needs to be said about a Meg Cabot book in a review is that it is a Meg Cabot book. Did that make sense?
This is a Meg Cabot book.
And I loved it. Naturally. Yes, Lizzie Nichols, the Queen of Babble herself, is slightly annoying. And yes, it is slightly perturbing that she seems to lack any common sense. No, I don't get what Lizzie Nichols sees in her supposedly wonderful boyfriend, Luke. And no, I don't get how oblivious she seems to so many obvious things. But I also wouldn't have expected anything other than that, and in a weird way, I sort-of love it for that. Because the characters are annoying in totally real ways, in almost lovable ways. And I do love them all, in the end.
It's fun, it's fluff, it's bubble gum. It's not going to make you think, it's not going to leave you awed, and it's certainly not going to teach you anything (except maybe a little bit of social protocol), but you're also not going to be able to put it down. It will make you smile, it will probably make you laugh, and it will make everything in your life feel all better for the short period of time in which you're reading it.
So, yeah, like I said, it's a Meg Cabot book. And it's wonderful.

Summary: Lizzie Nichols is back, pounding the New York City pavement and looking for a job, a place to live, and her proper place in the universe (not necessarily in that order).

"Summer Fling" Luke's use of the "L" (Living Together) word has her happily abandoning plans to share a one-room walk-up with best friend Shari in exchange for cohabitation with the love of her life in his mom's ritzy Fifth Avenue pied-à-terre. Lizzie's landed a non-paying gig in her chosen field—vintage wedding gown rehab—and a paying one as a receptionist at Shari's boyfriend's father's posh law firm. So life is good . . . for the moment.

But almost immediately her notoriously big mouth is getting her into trouble. At work she's becoming too chummy with society bride-to-be Jill Higgins, inflaming the ire of Jill's troublesome future mother-in-law. At home she's made the grievous error of bringing up the "M" (Marriage) word to commitment-shy Luke. Once again joblessness and homelessness are looming large for hapless blabbermouth Liz—unless she can figure out some way to babble her way to a happily ever after.

Cover Story: Totally Lizzie Nichols! BUT, maybe it's just me, but I'm really over all these YA covers with girls who have their heads cut off. . .
And thus I prefer the cover on which she is just covered by boxes (or is it a cake?)

Review: the Mortal Instruments, City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Title: the Mortal Instruments Book One: City of Bones

Author: Cassandra Clare

Rating: 1/2

Who Should Read It? If you don't mind watered down derivatives of YA urban fantasy books you love, this book could be for you. I think this book might appeal more to true fans of URBAN fantasy than it did to me.

What I Have to Say:
I'm sad to say that I was disappointed with this book. It was good, and I liked it, but I was expecting to extraordinarily love it, and the sad fact of the matter is that there is really nothing extraordinary about it.

In City of Bones, Clary, a normal girl finds herself thrown unexpectedly into the world of shadowhunters, unseen people who have dedicated their lives to hunting the evil of the world - the vampires and werewolves and other things that would prefer to kill humans than live with them. Supposedly.

We'll start with things I liked about the book. Cassandra Clare has a vivid way of explaining herself and describing things. She has an evident love of adjectives that translates well into writing (if you like to be hit in the face with clear, to the point descriptions, that is. I guess I occasionally do). It almost seems like she had FUN writing, and that made the reading fun. At the same time, I occasionally felt like she was having too much fun. There was the occasional point in which I felt like she needed to remember that she was writing for a general audience and not just her inner circle.

And the dialogue - if there is one thing that Clare should be known for, it is her ability to write engaging, believable dialogue. The conversations between the characters were real and emotional and, well, satisfying. I was especially impressed with some of the conversations between Clary and Jace, a shadowhunter. While I occasionally found the dialogue between Clary and her best human friend, Simon, to be forced and awkward, Clary and Jace had deep yet believable conversations that made me think and made me love them together. This is a book that makes you feel like you have to pick teams, and I am totally Team Jace. All the way. I liked the way that she used conversation to have aspects of the Shadow world explained to Clary. It seems like it could have been hard to bring her up to date, but I liked that most of her knowledge came through talking to Jace. It was much more real than, say, if she had just picked up a book and suddenly known everything (this happened, too, for the record, and it sort-of rubbed me the wrong way).

The PROBLEM with the book, though, was it's overwhelming lack of originality. Clary, while well-developed, was a well-developed character that I have read a million times over. And while reading through some of the situations that she managed to get herself into, I couldn't help but feel that I was reading a slightly more adult, slightly more feminine Harry Potter.
I'm serious. I sometimes thought I was reading Harry Potter minus all of the characters and places that I have grown to know and love. And as such, it was frustrating to read. I feel like I already knew not only what was going to happen but HOW before the initial storyline was even set-up.
It was so derivative wasn't fresh, it wasn't unique, and as such, it wasn't engaging. I always finish books, but if I hadn't been sitting for several hours in an airplane followed by a train followed by a bus, I think it would have been hard for me to finish this one. Simply because it was so hard for me to care about anything happening, because it felt like a watered down version of something I'd already read a thousand times over.

That said, I feel oddly compelled to pick up City of Ashes, the second book in the series. And I guess that means I was slightly more engaged than I thought I was. I'm sort of curious to see what happens between Clary and Simon and Jace. And then there's the expectations thing - I had such HIGH expectations of this book, and I can't wonder if that plays some minor role in my disappointment. I will start the second one with lower expectations. I also feel that Clare has the potential to be a truly good author, and I am curious to see if she will grow is an author.

Summary: When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder - much less a murder commi...more When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder - much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing - not even a smear of blood - to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know....

Exotic and gritty, exhilarating and utterly gripping, Cassandra Clare's ferociously entertaining fantasy takes readers on a wild ride that they will never want to end.

Cover Story: This cover is stunning! It was actually more for this cover that I wanted to read the book than for all of the raving reviews!

Review: Looking for Alaska by John Green

Title: Looking for Alaska

Author: John Green

Rating: 1/2

Who Should Read It? Teenagers of all shapes and sizes and adults who remember being teenagers!

What I Have to Say: This book begins with a boy who goes off to boarding school and starts smoking; I really thought there was no way I could like it. It was so immensely real and powerful, though, that disliking it was just an impossibility. Even with all the high school smoking.

before: Boarding school. If you've ever wondered what it's like to attend a merit-based boarding school, read this book. This is it. This is what my junior and senior years of high school would have been like if we had had as much freedom at my boarding school as they had at Culver Creek. The bond so immediately formed between Pudge, Alaska, and the Colonel is something that can only exist between high schoolers living in such close proximity; who spend all of their time together by default, by circumstance. It doesn't matter if they have anything in common. They are basically obliged to grow to know everything about each other so that their lives are literally cemented together. What happens to one happens to all; what matters to one grows to matter to all.

I was shocked and impressed by just how right on John Green's descriptions of their boarding schools lives and their relationships were. Reading, I almost felt like I was in boarding school all over again. Pudge, the Colonel, Takumi, Alaska, and Lara were all just so right, so real, so emotional and deel and intense and screwed up and wonderful. Discovering them and their lives and the bond they formed was like making friends. Alaska is practically bipolar, and it's exciting to guess what she might do next. Pudge, with his obsession with last words; the Colonel with his no BS attitude, Takumi with his raps - they all brought something to the group which, in a way, was more important than the individuals themselves.

after: I sobbed. And most likely, you will, too. Like it says in the summary "nothing will ever be the same." It won't. Not just in the book, but in your life. Because what happens and the way of dealing with it WILL affect you in a deep and profound way. It's edgy and gritty, and from it you'll learn a new way of coping, which in one sense is universal and in another sense is something that could only exist in a boarding school setting. After, the individual becomes key while still stressing the importance of the group.

Days after reading this book, I once again find myself crying while writing and re-thinking about what happened. I think it moved me so deeply because of my boarding school experiences, but I don't want to downplay the power of this book. I think if it doesn't move you in some way, you must be unmovable.

This was my first experience reading John Green, and let me assure you, it won't be my last. Read this book. Now!

Summary: Sixteen-year-old Miles Halter's adolescence has been one long nonevent - no challenge, no girls, no mischief, and no real friends. Seeking what Rabelais called the "Great Perhaps," he leaves Florida for a boarding school in Birmingham, AL. His roommate, Chip, is a dirt-poor genius scholarship student with a Napoleon complex who lives to one-up the school's rich preppies. Chip's best friend is Alaska Young, with whom Miles and every other male in her orbit falls instantly in love. She is literate, articulate, and beautiful, and she exhibits a reckless combination of adventurous and self-destructive behavior. She and Chip teach Miles to drink, smoke, and plot elaborate pranks. Alaska's story unfolds in all-night bull sessions, and the depth of her unhappiness becomes obvious. Green's dialogue is crisp, especially between Miles and Chip. His descriptions and Miles's inner monologues can be philosophically dense, but are well within the comprehension of sensitive teen readers. The chapters of the novel are headed by a number of days "before" and "after" what readers surmise is Alaska's suicide. These placeholders sustain the mood of possibility and foreboding, and the story moves methodically to its ambiguous climax. The language and sexual situations are aptly and realistically drawn, but sophisticated in nature. Miles's narration is alive with sweet, self-deprecating humor, and his obvious struggle to tell the story truthfully adds to his believability. Like Phineas in John Knowles's A Separate Peace(S & S, 1960), Green draws Alaska so lovingly, in self-loathing darkness as well as energetic light, that readers mourn her loss along with her friends. - Johanna Lewis, New York Public Library

Cover Story: I find this cover intriguing and slightly beautiful, and it actually took me a little while to figure out how it tied in with the book, which of course made me love it even more.

Review: The Dresskeeper by Mary Naylus

Title: The Dresskeeper

Author: Mary Naylus

Rating:

Who Should Read It: Anyone and everyone, really, as long as they are over the age of 12. It's great for its target audience, middle age girls, but I can also see it having a HUGE appeal in the YA or even adult market.

What I Have to Say: This creative, quirky story was an absolute JOY to read! Penelope aka Picky is absolutely HILARIOUS! She has no shame. She's a fat (or, as is said in the book, hefty), acne covered thirteen year old who doesn't even know what a Nazi is (I personally would have been embarrassed at 13 to not know about Nazis), and she is totally okay with it. More than okay with it. I couldn't help but laugh basically every time she reflected on something. And her brother, Ollie, whose role is very small, is also hilarious.

The premise of this book was fantastic. Picky tries on colorful, smelly, poofy (and hideous in her mind) old dresses and is miraculously transported back to the 17th century as the girl who wore the dresses. While there, she has to try to solve (and possibly stop) a murder. Naylus plays the time travel aspect expertly, and it is fun learning about the 17th century through the eyes of our shameless protagonist. The poo-covered streets, the people dying of smallpox, the hot slave boys,. . . Through Picky's eyes, we were able to see humour while at the same time understand the tragedy that was life back then. I was also kept guessing up until the very end; when the reveal came about, I was actually surprised, and that very rarely happens for me!

My only real problem with this book was all of the "Britishisms." I can't help but wonder if some of that will be changed for when the book is released in the US. There were times when I had trouble understanding some things because the expressions were totally foreign to me.

Naylus' approach to a time-traveling murder mystery was unique and fun, and the narrative itself was completely absorbing. I couldn't put this book down, and I actually had FUN reading it!

Summary (from GoodReads): This title is suitable for children of ages 12 years & over. When 13-year-old Picky's Mum forces her to look after Gran, who has dementia, she is accidentally locked in Gran's dusty old attic. There she finds a chest full of old clothes, and tomboy Picky is forced to don what appears to be a ball-gown when the freezing night temperatures hit. As soon as the dress is pinned together, Picky is transported back to the year 1700, where a man who appears to know her as Amelia is trying to kill her. Managing to get the dress off just in time, Picky returns to the present with the dress covered in blood. Did the man kill the girl called Amelia? Will wearing the other dresses in the chest take her back in time too? And will she be in danger again should she try it? "The Dresskeeper" uses a contemporary 13-year-old viewpoint to explore this murder mystery, set in the early 18th Century.

Cover Story: I like it. It's cool and creepy with the black and then the colorful poofy dresses sweeping across it. I feel like it fits the story well.

Review: Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

Title: Hush, Hush

Author: Becca Fitzpatrick

Rating:

Who Should Read It? EVERYONE!!! Especially those who love YA supernatural!

What I Have to Say: Um, can I just say WOW! It is so awesome when a book lives up to the high expectations I have for it, and Hush, Hush absolutely did! After all the non-stop raving reviews I had read, I was almost afraid to read it. I shouldn't have been.

Becca Fitzpatrick easily pulled me into the world of Nora and Patch, and within the first few pages, I was hooked. Even after just the very first page, I felt like I couldn't put the book down (and I didn't!). When Patch finally made the scene, I actually felt a frisson of anticipation, of excitement.

I was afraid I wouldn't like him, as I'm not really a huge fan of the "bad boy" persona, but Patch is more than just a bad boy. He has the look and the front, for sure, but he's also sweet and sexy to the core. Really, he's mostly a good guy. And he and Nora are perfect for each other. They absolutely complement each other perfectly. The way they sort-of repel each other while at the same time being unable to stay away from each other, and Fitzpatrick's splendid descriptions of their attraction, are really what make this book. The story itself is intriguing and enrapturing, and the fact that it's about Patch and Nora and their relationship just makes it all that much more impossible to dislike this book.

The dark, scary fog that Fitzpatrick writes over their world is so creepy that the reader will experience a shiver that lasts the whole book.
While I admire Nora for her strength and presence, there was one small thing that annoyed me about this book. It was so hard to know things that she didn't. Sometimes, it seemed like things should just be so evident to her, and it was hard for me to sit back and watch when they weren't.
I can't wait for the sequel! For serious!

Summary (from Amazon.com):For Nora Grey, romance was not part of the plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how much her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch came along.

With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Nora is drawn to him against her better judgment.

But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure who to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is, and to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.

For Nora is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen - and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost her life.

Cover Story: Just look at it in all its awesomeness! Need I say more?

This book was purchased by me.

Review: Maureen Johnson's 13 Little Blue Envelopes

I've been having a little bit of trouble getting through the book I am presently reading. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a book of short stories (I should really do at least a LITTLE research on a book before I decide to read it), and since I'm not that into short stories, two books of short stories in a row is a little hard for me. So yesterday I decided to pick up a copy of this book that I had lying around and reread it. I loved it the first time around, and I was pleased to love it again. So here you go.

Title:13 Little Blue Envelopes

Author:Maureen Johnson

Rating:

Recommended?ABSOLUTELY!

What I Have to Say:This book is an absolute pleasure to read. Ginny is a fun and likable yet shy character. Following her on her quest to self-realization and self-actualization is a whirlwind ride to places you've never been and some places you've been but might not want to remember.
I feel like this book gets a bad rap, and I can understand what the critics are saying, but I still feel like the bad rap is undeserved.
This book is NOT about the final destination but instead about the trip there and the lessons learned along the way. It's true that several times throughout the book, subjects are touched upon and made to seem important only to never been seen again. Just dropped.
Normally, this would annoy me, but in this book, it almost seems necessary. Through Maureen Johnson's writing style, we really understand one of the lessons that Ginny learns - that sometimes in life, things might seem important, but they are not. Sometimes in life, you just have to let things go.
In "13 Little Blue Envelopes," Ginny travels through Europe on a voyage that her favorite dead aunt has prepared for her. She sees some amazing places, meets some very cute boys, and has some ridiculous experiences. The focus, though, is on GINNY herself, and what she learns, not on what she sees in these amazing places. There is very little spotlight on the places that she goes. Some say this is because Maureen Johnson has never been to those places and thus cannot write about them.
While I have no doubt that this is true (is there actually a subway in Rome? I don't remember noticing one. . .), it didn't seem important to me.
The experiences that Ginny has and the lessons that she learns are important - the places that she goes are only important insomuch as they show Ginny learning how to step out of her comfort zone. They are teaching her to break out of her shy shell and to learn to be brave. In a sense, the countries in which she finds herself could be a metaphor for the places and the person that she finds within herself.
In the beginning, Ginny has trouble taking things into her control, instead blindly following instructions. I have read some say that this makes her an annoying and hard to follow or believe character. I think this makes her a teenager. I remember being that way. And in the end, the instructions that she blindly follows teach her how to step back, be brave and take control of things herself, take control of her life.
Maybe Maureen Johnson didn't do it on purpose, but I thought that her lack of clarity on so many things and her fairly regular lack of follow up on certain subjects added to the experiences that Ginny was supposed to be having and helped the reader to really understand what she must have been feeling.
And of course, Maureen Johnson's quirkiness can't help but have the reader laughing and smiling for the entirety of the book.
Conclusion: A well thought out, fun to read book full of deliciousness and fluff and the occasional metaphor and perhaps a slight attempt at depth.

Summary (thank you Good Reads):Inside little blue envelope 1 are $1,000 and instructions to buy a plane ticket.

In envelope 2 are directions to a specific London flat.

The note in envelope 3 tells Ginny: Find a starving artist.

Because of envelope 4, Ginny and a playwright/thief/ bloke–about–town called Keith go to Scotland together, with somewhat disastrous–though utterly romantic–results. But will she ever see him again?

Everything about Ginny will change this summer, and it’s all because of the 13 little blue envelopes.