Free to Fall's Concept: 5 Stars Character Development: 5 Stars Engrossing: 5 Stars Ending: 4.5 stars Free to Fall's Writing: 5 Stars RomanceWow. Just wow.
Free to Fall's Concept: 5 Stars Character Development: 5 Stars Engrossing: 5 Stars Ending: 4.5 stars Free to Fall's Writing: 5 Stars Romance: 5 Stars Fast-paced: 4.5 stars
This isn't just your typical romance between teenagers, it's a romance of humanity. Honestly, Free to Fall is such a realistic science fiction that effectively uses today's society to project the near future, and that's the best thing about this book. The crazy thing about it? It could happen. Take a look at the world around you, observe the younger generation and see where their eyes fall.
They never look up.
Their eyes stay glued to their phone and tablet screens with their earphones blasting away their thoughts. Is it all of them? Of course not, just like in Free to Fall. Not everyone becomes a slave to mere reason, and those that don't are the ones who are guided by the Doubt.
I can't really explain this book without going on and on about the greatness of it. Just heed my advice: read. this. book. To be quite frank, I hate the synopsis because it makes Free to Fall sound like some sappy romance in the midst of technical difficulties, but this book is so much more than that...
The analytical approach to society. The realism. The fast-paced writing. The Biblical, Greek, and classical references mixed with scientific and mathematical facts to further enhance the concept of this book (can't ignore the basic foundations of humanity and its frenemy). The well-developed characters. The anticipation and frequent twists. There may be some things that you can guess, but not everything unless you're the type that can. But...considering that this is something new, something fresh, I doubt you'd be wholly detached.
Free to Fall literally had me hanging off the edge of my seat and making small outbursts even in public....more
Illusive's Concept: 4 Stars Character Development: 5 Stars Engrossing: 4.5 Stars Ending: 4 stars Illusive's Writing: 4 Stars Romance: 5 Stars (Really, therIllusive's Concept: 4 Stars Character Development: 5 Stars Engrossing: 4.5 Stars Ending: 4 stars Illusive's Writing: 4 Stars Romance: 5 Stars (Really, there's not much. So I love it like that.) Fast-paced: 5 stars
Actual Rating: 4.5 stars
They are young. They are criminals. They are immune.
What a great debut novel. Illusive is undoubtedly action-packed and descriptive, which helps build the pace of the book without giving the feeling of a story merely dragging on. Emily Lloyd-Jones creates a thrilling experience for her readers, and her regular dose of humor and banter makes it impossible to not love the characters, especially Devon. He reminds me so much of myself because he doesn't have a filter and tends to lighten up situations with his uncalled-for sarcasm. And we all know that the ability to connect with characters is important not only for their development, but for a strong relationship between the reader and a story's characters. Lloyd-Jones definitely provides that.
The "romance" barely scrapes the surface of the story and doesn't pollute the entire premise of this book. Really, it begins to show near the end but it's not overwhelming, and I love it that way. I'm the reader that loathes when a book revolves around insta-love and love-triangles if the genre is meant to be sci-fi or fantasy or adventure. However, I do expect a bit more romance in the sequel not based on my preference, but because Lloyd-Jones basically hints at it in Illusive.
This book puts everyone's powers to use, but it feels like it wasn't to the full extent. Perhaps this was just an introduction. Either way, I have a feeling the second book will include even more action and will have the readers fighting to choose sides since the lines between good and bad are definitely blurred. I mean, I can't even choose sides right now.
Illusive is such a fun ride and I am so eager to read the next installment....more
My God. I just finished this less than a minute ago.
This is so perfect. So, so perfect. A book has never captured my heart as much as this did. Just My God. I just finished this less than a minute ago.
This is so perfect. So, so perfect. A book has never captured my heart as much as this did. Just typing this on my phone right now and thinking about it makes me cry even harder. Everything. I love everything about Hopeless.
Ugh, shit. I'm a complete mess right now. I need to go to my bathroom.
More to come.
But for now, this is my only song for Hopeless. Now let me go cry all night waiting to review this when I have the time to.
Everyone seems to think this book was okay, but I honestly loved it! Amanda Sun re-sparked my interest and love for Japan. It never completely [image]
Everyone seems to think this book was okay, but I honestly loved it! Amanda Sun re-sparked my interest and love for Japan. It never completely died, I just gave up on that dream. When I was a great deal younger, around 11-13 years old, I wanted to go to the University of Tokyo. I tried to learn Japanese on my own, but I failed miserably because I didn't know where to start and I was using GOOGLE TRANSLATE. *palms forehead* Of course I wouldn't learn Japanese that way; I was too young and naïve. Now that I'm a few years older it's like, "Really?!?" So here I am, learning Japanese on my own, and to be honest, I don't think I'll ever stop. The culture, the geography, the language—everything; I'm in love all over again and I will most likely move to Japan when I'm older. So sankyu, Amanda Sun!
Anyway, on to my review.
There is no denying the carefully crafted plot, and the intriguingly mystical and ethereal writing. You'd have to have a great imagination to picture the events clearly. You'd have to know how to dive and dwell into a book to actually experience the magic created. Amanda captured the ancient and modern culture of Japan quite well. Her descriptive writing should pull you into Katie Greene's world in Japan as a gaijin. If it doesn't, then I don't know what will. Don't read to read, read to live and experience; that's my advice to you before you decide to pick up this book.
Ink's plot has a lot of originality woven into it, as well as a couple of cliché points, but it's not really a bother if you're not reading to read. Usually I can predict upcoming events, and I succeeded in only a couple (I still overreacted anyway), but I was surprised to find out how wrong I was. I don't know if I'm losing my touch or what. Amanda Sun stuck to the plot and never drove away from it, so that's another reason I stayed engaged in Katie's world; the synopsis is nowhere near misleading. As you near the ending, you can notice how deep Katie Greene is getting into the "Ink" world, and there is no doubt that book 2 of the Paper Gods is going to completely focus on the Kami. I'm so ready for this.
The characters are rather realistic, and some of them I built a relationship with. I love you Tanaka, Yuki, Tomo, and Jun! The protagonist, Katie Greene, though. I like her, but some of her characteristics erk me so much. She's a bit stubborn and quite rude to her own aunt. Even if Diane was a polite stranger, how could she just swear as if she's speaking to a teenager? Da fuqing. Nerve. However, I admire Katie for being brave and somewhat strong in a country with an extremely different culture and language than what she was used to. Katie is also funny at times, so I have to give it to her for that. Yuuto Tomohiro is a complicated character at first, but you start knowing him more towards the middle-end. Still, I loved Tomo since the beginning, even though he was a such a jerk. But he was a funnyand beautiful jerk. *thumbs up* Now Jun is such a funny gentleman, but I'm torn when it comes to his mysterious and somewhat creepy ways. Tanaka and Yuki are absolutely amazing and add some of the fun in Ink.
So even though Katie's character can be annoying sometimes, and the "hot-boys-falls-for-the-odd-man-out" cliché point kicks in, there's a reason for it. It's not like it's "oh she's the 'ugly' girl, but I think I'm going to like her," because Katie seems quite pretty, and guys are usually drawn to foreign girls. But it's not even that, it's who she is that makes her captivating. Not her personality (kinda), but her roots. So a guy like Tomo would obviously be attracted to her in ways he doesn't even understand—it's like an actual link or bondage, not merely "she understands me boo-hoo." That's pretty much the only "cliché" thing about Ink.
To wrap things up, I don't recommend reading this if you're not into Japanese culture or at least interested, because you'll most likely not even like it, as the framework wholeheartedly focuses on modern and ancient Japan. I also don't recommend this if you just want to read...to read like, "Ooh! Japanese! That seems cool! I want to read this," because you'll most likely give up or become disinterested. It's like learning the Japanese language. Learning Japanese takes full-on dedication and understanding. You have to be truly interested to understand everything this book is based on.
Five stars and all my love to Ink, and Amanda Sun for rebuilding my love for Japan and creating an awesome book....more
You know how a reviewer rates a book 1 star, but wish they could rate it zero? Not in this case because I liked Eli, Selene, Lance, and the dog. Okay I wouldn't say the dog, but I did enjoy the dog's presence. Other than that, The Nightmare Affair was so silly to me.
The Nightmare Affair started off enjoyable; I laughed several times in the beginning because of Destiny "Dusty" Everhart's—the protagonist—witty personality. I gained high hopes for this, but as I progressed through the story I couldn't help but think, these "plot twists" are too funny to be considered an actual plot twist. Not only that, the ideas behind this book was a little...pushed. Not revealing anything about the plot, just an idea behind it: (view spoiler)[Merlin actually being an evil wizard aka the Red Warlock? I know Harry Potter mentioned Merlin too, but this story dwelt on just that idea which was just too much for me. (hide spoiler)] With everything going on in The Nightmare Affair, things were too easy to predict. I feel that all of Dusty's suspects were meant to disguise the true culprit, however failed at doing so, what with the major doubts on specified people or thoughtless accusations on others.
As much as I tried to get into the story, I just couldn't. This book has that Hex Hall atmosphere and Harry Potter inspiration, with lots of magic and jinxes thrown around, but The Nightmare Affair really didn't give me that magical feeling like all of the other books have. In fact, I don't think it that original. I'm not trying to discourage Mindee Arnett—the writing is very much satisfying—it's just a great amount of ideas in the story reminded me too much of Hex Hall and Harry Potter.
The characters exceeds expectations. The only thing that bothered me was how distant I felt from the characters, apart from the few I stated above. Dusty was somewhat an enjoyable character, but she was just too blind for me. She was actually very, very stubborn. Eli, the handsome non-magickind, was introduced in the first few pages of The Nightmare Affair and I was already attracted to him. Maybe because he was labeled as a hottie. As I read on, his character vastly improved. Selene was awesome from the start, from her rebellious act against sirens' beauty to her loyalty and reassurance to Dusty. Lance was actually a fun character. He was made out to be the jerk, but I think if anyone read this book, they would like him. Paul was a hot mess. Moving on.
During the last chapter I wanted the story to end. It was way too slow for me. When she walked in the cafeteria at the end—and received applause from everyone—I thought too much of Harry Potter and just skimmed the rest, feeling unsatisfied.
My rating on The Nightmare Affair shouldn't affect anyone's desire to read it because of course, I'm the black sheep when it comes to reviewing this. Everyone seemed to like or think this story was ok, but it was just too silly for me. So maybe you would like it, maybe not. Just read it and see for yourself. After all, it did have its nice share of comedy and enjoyable characters....more
Paper Valentine started off as an excruciating read for me. I'm used to stories building up within the first 30 pages, but the protagRating:3.5 stars
Paper Valentine started off as an excruciating read for me. I'm used to stories building up within the first 30 pages, but the protagonist Hannah was such a cut-off character. Other characters in the book spoke to her, but she barely replied to any of them for pages—I was starting to think she was a wall observing its surroundings. Honestly! The synopsis is the only reason I continued to read, with high hopes for Paper Valentine to start some type of action or suspense. Hannah wasn't the only character that I didn't feel any connection to. I can pretty much say I liked Lillian more than anyone else since she was the only person who seemed to have some ounce of sense. Even Finny Boone the delinquent didn't give much action for me, and he's supposed to be a bad boy. The characters, however, are not the only reason for my rating.
The synopsis of Paper Valentine makes the story seem ridiculously haunting, but only left me reading the ENTIRE book like this:
[image]
Okay, maybe I cracked a teensy smile on a couple of parts, but I don't even remember what it was about, which goes to show it wasn't even good enough for me to remember. Paper Valentine seemed to be an eerie, spine-chilling ghost story with a psycho killer, but boy was I wrong. Still, it left me somewhat shocked, although still confused as to what happened at the end end. You know, there's always something to let you know, "Hey, this book is actually finished. Everything has already been explained so now you can put the book down," but there wasn't. If things were clearly explained and little more action-packed, then maybe this would have been 4 stars because I did enjoy this. But honestly, most of the action was near the end of the book while first 70% was Hannah running around without a clue.
Finny Boone and Hannah were just a boring mess. Usually I wear that stupid smirk on my face during a romance scene, but I just wanted Finny to be, I don't know, outgoing? Funny? But it's okay because this was a calm, refreshing relationship instead of the protagonist being confused about what she wants while the boy willingly stays by her side and tries to squeeze the feelings out of her.
Although slow-paced and not thoroughly explained, I enjoyed Paper Valentine and it's decent plot. Add a little more action, life and of course, haunting ghosts, and this will be a great novel.
Extended review to come on my upcoming blog... soon....more
I couldn't put this book down. I wish I could write a full-on review but I have school so this is a rushed review. But honestly, this is just... such I couldn't put this book down. I wish I could write a full-on review but I have school so this is a rushed review. But honestly, this is just... such a beautiful piece of writing. So much better than the first and second novels. I've waited MONTHS to get my hands on this and book 2 and it was well-worth the wait. I'm sobbing right now bc BEAUTIFUL....more
No matter how much I try to dislike Perception, I always find myself somewhat pleased by this book. That still doesn't cut the fact that the plot is iNo matter how much I try to dislike Perception, I always find myself somewhat pleased by this book. That still doesn't cut the fact that the plot is indubitably predictable. I'll be surprised if anyone was actually like, "OMG. How/Why???" throughout the book because I remained indifferent to everything except the last two pages.
Nothing else improved; Harrington still possesses her inability to form full sentences when they are necessary. One thing was new for sure: her wording. I was absolutely incredulous at her regression of 1st grade English.
This is what got to me the most: On Saturday, Mom—like a woman possessed—went shopping for even more decorations.
Don't get me wrong, it's not that big of a deal, but it's also not difficult to rearrange the two words. Is it really that hard to say, like a possessed woman?
Then she goes on with: Normal teens do their homework on Sunday nights. I realize this. I am not normal. I hate procrastinating, so much so that I often do my homework on Friday so it won’t be hanging over my head all weekend long.
There are a couple of things wrong with this. 1) Rewording is mandatory for the first three sentences, perhaps the last. 2) This situation is ridiculous and unnecessary. Clare talks about it being a Saturday and that she wants to spend her Saturday not doing homework, but says she often does it on Fridays, then turns around and insists on writing her paper on the causes of World War II... [image]
Perception...this title is great for my reaction to what's supposed to be suspenseful. No, really. It's way too predictable. Usually it would take a lot of thinking to predict something in a book, but after reading a situation at hand, what would happen right afterwards would come to mind so quickly you'd want to close the book and tell the rest of the story without even reading the words.
After each chapter, I was getting sick of the so-called suspense Harrington tried to accomplish for the readers. After every chapter, there was something that had to end off with something like: I knew just what color my socks were. Green. It gets really irritating. Why couldn't Harrington just end a chapter like a normal author with occasional suspense added to it?
There are also a lot of situations that weren't even cleared up in this book. Clare's father's whereabouts, Perry's dilemma, etc.
There are many flaws in Perception that has to do with the plot, but I don't want to go overboard and spoil the entire book. Therefore, I am ending this review with huge disappointment, but slight satisfaction.
P.S. This is the second worst love-triangle next to Twilight's Bella: Edward or Jacob? Not even kidding. (Probably the worst, to be quite honest.)...more
To start off, I'm feeling irresolute about my rating this book 3 stars because I feel like it deserves 2, although I did enjoy the read. Clarity had mTo start off, I'm feeling irresolute about my rating this book 3 stars because I feel like it deserves 2, although I did enjoy the read. Clarity had many errors in both Harrington's writing style and the plot. A few errors here and there are nothing and I could pass that, but my rereading the sentences and trying to put the two, or three, together was insistent and soon became spontaneous. I mean, the book was just like (example):
I looked out the window. I saw a bird. It was sitting on a tree. I thought it looked beautiful with its vibrant colors.
So I was just like, NO! NO! NO! I LITERALLY wanted to rip my hair out of my head.
Then there is the predictable, DUH moments. I just can't even describe it, but it's so obvious.
*****THIS REVIEW WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS.*****
Here comes the love triangle dilemma. I have to say, this is the second worst love triangle known to man—or vampire. Ha. Get it? I don't know about you, but I LOL'ed.
Apparently, Justin is Clare's ex-boyfriend who got HAMMERED and had sex with a girl, named Tiffany, who treats Clare like dog shit. He obviously didn't mean to and tried damn hard to get Clare back, but Clare insisted on hurting Justin by treating him like dog shit, even though she still recalls their past together. Mind you, I loathe people like that. Then there is this wreck called Gabriel. He has a problem with her being a psychic and yet Clare feels for both Gabriel and Justin? (view spoiler)[Even at the end of the book when Justin and Gabriel are together with Clare around, she's all like, "Oh. I can't be in this room. I'm having too many butterflies." Bitch, Justin risked his life for you and all Gabriel did was believe you, yet you still have feelings for the both of them? Lord have mercy on me for my thoughts are inappropriate. (hide spoiler)] [image]
The reviewer, Vinaya, has the same problem that I have: Clare has her doubts about her own brother—who she grew up with—being innocent when it comes to Victoria's death while one of her love interest is also accused, yet she's so quick to be like, "No. No, it can't be him." There's like, ZERO doubts about him being innocent.
Other than that, I actually enjoyed Clarity. There were some twists in the story that kept me guessing who the murderer of Victoria was. I actually believe that that was the only reason why I continued to read the book what with all the plot and grammatical errors. Clarity was a bit of a fast-paced story, but that's good enough for me; I couldn't take Clare's stupidity.
I noticed I have so many bad things to say about this book (some I didn't even mention), so I'm rating it 2 stars. It was ok....more
*****THIS REVIEW WILL CONTAIN deadly serious ( but hidden(: ) SPOILERS AND HONEST OPINIONS*****
As much as I wanted to rate this 5 stars, just thinking*****THIS REVIEW WILL CONTAIN deadly serious ( but hidden(: ) SPOILERS AND HONEST OPINIONS*****
As much as I wanted to rate this 5 stars, just thinking about the entire book overall really made me rate this 4 stars instead. I know, I know. As much as I actually enjoyed it, being attached to the book and all, I am a little disappointed.
PROS: ----- There is a lot of drama taken place in Spell Bound that I felt very much satisfied. Without them, I pretty much feel like the book wouldn't have that many high points. ----- This isn't so much as a PRO, but Since I'm with the Choose Archer, Sophie!! side, I found myself literally crying at how much I love Archer. He has more character than he did in Hex Hall (book 1) and Demonglass (book 2). Archer's also funnier and has feelings. [image] However, I was having my doubts about whose side he was really on, (view spoiler)[what with Cal being around, [not literally] forcing Sophie to somewhat have feelings for him. (hide spoiler)] So apparently, near the middle-somewhat end of the book, I found myself indecisive about whether I like Cal or Archer. ----- I felt all of the characters shaped up and loosened up since Hex Hall and Demonglass. That includes Jenna's tiny (and cute butt that I kinda disliked in Demonglass. Cal definitely loosened up a bit, which made me develop a true-friend love for him. In my Demonglass review, I actually disliked Cal with a passion. ----- The humour! The humour lives on! It had to with this book. Spell Bound would just be a serious, boring book. And it's not just Sophie's sarcastic, witty humour. Some of the characters, like I mentioned, loosened up and finally made me chuckle or laugh out loud. once again, the humour was placed at the right times and Hawkins didn't overdo it! [image] ----- When Sophie was too chicken enough to handle something (or just couldn't), Elodie was there. I actually grew a liking loving for Elodie. ----- Happy ending (well, sort of). That's all.
CONS sweet mother, the cons. I probably might cry mentioning them: ----- Sophie felt powerless throughout most of the book, so it resulted in her chickening out in most situations. Her character felt somewhat flat and I was sick of reading how her powers always went insane in her stomach whenever she wanted/needed to use them. ----- Cal was misused, sort of like a sad puppet, throughout the book and it made me feel so sorry for him. I didn't really think about this until the end of the book. (view spoiler)[Cal died. THE ONLY ONE THAT DIED. So I cried like I lost a family member and couldn't stop. I still feel that depressing feeling sulking around me because I actually started to like Cal. If only the book was longer, I just know that I would've fell in love with Cal. (hide spoiler)] ----- The ending happened all too fast, was rushed and jumbled up. ((view spoiler)[Which left me all shocked and even more depressed how Cal's death was so sudden (hide spoiler)]) No matter how much I try to like the ending, I can't. That's how rushed it was. When shocking events occurred, it hit me hard in the face and I was just like, OW. It left me mind-boggled. Even after I finished and started having a conversation with my sister, I just burst out crying (view spoiler)[because of Cal's death being too sudden and just happening PERIOD (hide spoiler)]. ----- DAMN IT. THIS BOOK WAS TOO SHORT FOR THE ENDING. It should have been 400+ pages. I'm sure Hawkins could have thought up some things to put in between certain events. ----- Once again, The love triangle. It's so damn bothersome. But the main reason why this is a CON for me is because I found myself in the middle of it, deciding between Archer and Cal. Yes, I admit. I'm usually not like this, but Cal and Archer's character have developed so much that I just couldn't bypass the fact that I actually have to choose myself.
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I know that I have to turn this book back in, but I just can't let it go. It feels like it's apart of me. I've been through so much crying and laughing that it's hard to keep this book away from me. I've left so many placemarks and notes between these pages that looking back on them, I feel like I'm leaving a home I grew up in and loved dearly.
If you've given this book 3+ stars, I'm sure you'll feel the same way. With Demonglass and Spell Bound, I grew so attached to the characters.
I feel like keeping this book, reporting it as lost, and paying the fine like I did for Anna and the French Kiss. It's not stealing because I'm paying for it...right?
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Overall, Spell Bound is a joyride and will leave you feeling satisfied, but speechless. No matter what may happen that you may dislike, there will be a place somewhere in your heart where you admittedly like the book....more
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