Marcelo In The Real World by Francisco X. Stork...

Series: -
Published:  February 1st 2011 by Scholastic
Pages: 320
Rating: 4 stars
Age Recommendation: -

Synopsis:

Marcelo Sandoval hears music no one else can hear--part of the autism-like impairment no doctor has been able to identify--and he's always attended a special school where his differences have been protected. But the summer after his junior year, his father demands that Marcelo work in his law firm's mailroom in order to experience "the real world."

There Marcelo meets Jasmine, his beautiful and surprising coworker, and Wendell, the son of another partner in the firm. He learns about competition and jealousy, anger and desire. But it's a picture he finds in a file -- a picture of a girl with half a face -- that truly connects him with the real world: its suffering, its injustice, and what he can do to fight.

Review:

I really didn't know what to expect from this book as I have never read anything like this book before, but I did have pretty high expectations for this book just because of all the great things I've heard about it.

For me I found the plot to be very slow, but I think that this was because we were seeing the world through Marcelo's eyes and that he finds the world a difficult place to be in. I also thought that seeing the world through Marcelo's eyes really did enhance the story and made the story so much more memorable then if it was told from anyone else's point of view.

I thought that Marcelo's character was amazing, he was a very genuine person and you got to feel what it was like to be in his position and what it was like to see the world in a very literal way.

Overall I thought that this book was really good. I think that it really makes you look at your life and see how you can change it for the better. I thought that this was a really moving story and something that everyone should read.

Eon: Dragoneye Reborn by Alison Goodman...

Series: Eon (Book #1)
Published:  August 31st 2010 by Firebird
Pages: 576
Rating: 2 stars

Age Recommendation: -

 

Synopsis:

 

Eon--the award-winning crossover fantasy that soars!

Sixteen-year-old Eon has a dream, and a mission. For years, he's been studying sword-work and magic, toward one end. He and his master hope that he will be chosen as a Dragoneye-an apprentice to one of the twelve energy dragons of good fortune.

But Eon has a dangerous secret. He is actually Eona, a sixteen-year-old girl who has been masquerading as a twelve-year-old boy. Females are forbidden to use Dragon Magic; if anyone discovers she has been hiding in plain sight, her death is assured.

When Eon's secret threatens to come to light, she and her allies are plunged into grave danger and a deadly struggle for the Imperial throne. Eon must find the strength and inner power to battle those who want to take her magic...and her life.

 

Review:

 

I found myself really looking foward to reading this book, so I had quite high expectations for this book after reading really good reviews on this book and I was sad to say I was let down...

I only managed to get about halfway through this book and then I had to put it down, I thought that this book had a good idea behind it but I found that the pace of the book wasn't picking up and that nothing was really happening.

Now onto the characters. I found myself not being able to relate to any of the characters, I don't know if that is because of the customs that the book revolves around or just that the characters were not relatable. I also found that there were way too many side characters for this book (even though I'm sure that they will have a purpose throughout the book)snd I just found it all to be way to confusing and I couldn't really figure out who the side characters were.

Overall I thought that this book did show promise in the pages that I read but I just couldn't really get into the story of Eon. But if you are debating wheather or not to read this book, I would say that you should atleast give it a try, I have seen so many good reviews for this book so there must be something special about this book and I just must have missed it.

Twisted by Sara Shepard...

Series: Pretty Little Liars (Book #9)
Published:  July 5th 2011 by HarperTeen
Pages: 307
Rating: 5 stars

Age Recommendation: -

Synopsis:

It’s been a year since the torturous notes from A stopped and the mystery of Alison DiLaurentis’s disappearance was finally put to rest. Now seniors in high school, Aria, Spencer, Hanna and Emily are older, but they’re not any wiser. The Pretty Little Liars have more secrets than ever - twisted secrets that could destroy the perfect lives they’ve worked so hard to rebuild.

Aria’s jealous of her boyfriend’s new exchange student. Spencer’s getting a little too cozy with her soon-to-be-stepbrother. Hanna’s one scandalous photo away from ruining her dad’s Senate campaign. And Emily will do anything to get a swim scholarship.

Worst of all: Last spring break in Jamaica, they did something unforgivable. The girls are desperate to forget that fateful night, but they should know better than anyone that all secrets wash ashore … eventually.

Review:

To be honest I found myself not having very high expectations for this book as I found the last book really confusing and unrealistic. I also was really nervous about what Sara Shepard would do in this book as the series had really already concluded and we had already found out everything that there was to find out in the series. Boy, was I wrong, I was completley blown away.

Now onto the review...

Firstly, the plot. I thought that the plot was amazing and just as fast paced and exciting as the last 8 books, it was still filled with a wholle lot of twists and turns and mystery, and after not reading the series for about 6 months I found that you got caught up in the first chapters anyway. I found myself really liking what was happenin in the book and really liking the main storline, although it was definitley unrealistic I found myself enjoying it, and the ending of this book left you on a cliff hanger and difinitley wanting more.

Next, the characters. I found myself connecting with the charcters just like I did in the last 8 books and still being able to really relate to the charcters. I was also suprised to find that I really liked Spencer in this book. In the previous books I found myslf really liking Aria's character and I found that even though I felt sorry for Spencer, she really seemed to annoy me.
Now I find myself really liking Spencer's chacacter and Aria annouys me.

Overall I thought that this book showed just how great of a writer that Sara Shepard is and that she can still come up with a great book that continues on seemlessly with a series that had already come to an end. This book was a great editon to the series and definitley a great read, and anyone who is a fan of the series will love it and it will leave you wanting more. I know that I will definitley be pre-ordering the next book for when it comes out in December.

Cracked Up To Be by Courtney Summers...

Series: -
Published:  December 23rd 2008 by St. Martin's Griffin
Pages: 214
Rating: 5 stars
Age Recommendation: -

Synopsis:

Perfect Parker Fadley isn’t so perfect anymore. She’s quit the cheerleading squad, she’s dumped her perfect boyfriend, and she’s failing school. Her parents are on a constant suicide watch and her counselors think she’s playing games…but what they don’t know, the real reason for this whole mess, isn’t something she can say out loud. It isn’t even something she can say to herself. A horrible thing has happened and it just might be her fault. If she can just remove herself from everybody—be totally alone—then everything will be okay...The problem is, nobody will let her.

Review:

To be honest I wasn't expecting that much from this book I had tried to read it once before and I couldn't read it, but I guess that was because I wasn't in the mood for it, because when I picked it up this time I couldn't put it down. This book really left me speechless.

I loved the plot in this book I found myself wondering about what happened to make Parker so damaged all the way until the end. I also found that the story really made me apprectiate what I have, and appreciate the friends I have and just realise that nothing should be taken for granted.

I found that the character of Parker was really relatable and I found myself feeling sorry for her and really feeling her depression.

Overall I thought this book was absolutly AMAZING and this is definitley one of those books that every teenage girl needs to read.

Requiem For A Dream by Hubert Selby Jr.

Series: -
Published:  April 24th 2003 by Marion Boyars Publishers
Pages: 280
Rating: 5 stars

Age Recommendation: 16 years + (Graphic content, Constant use of Foul Language and Drug Use)

 

Synopsis:

 

In Coney Island, Brooklyn, Sara Goldfarb, a lonely widow, wants nothing more than to lose weight and appear on a television game show. She becomes addicted to diet pills in her obsessive quest, while her junkie son, Harry, along with his girlfriend, Marion, and his best friend, Tyrone, have devised an illicit shortcut to wealth and leisure by scoring a pound of uncut heroin. Entranced by the gleaming visions of their futures, these four convince themselves that unexpected setbacks are only temporary. Even as their lives slowly deteriorate around them, they cling to their delusions and become utterly consumed in the spiral of drugs and addiction, refusing to see that they have instead created their own worst nightmares.

 

Review:

 

I had sky high expectations for this book because the movie adaptation of this book would have to be my favourite movie, though I am not suprised because as we all know more times then not the book is better then the movie. The one critisisim I would have about the book is the constant stream of dialoug with no quotation marks or new lines which I found confusing when I started the book but I soon got used to it.

Even though I knew what to expect from this book because of watching the movie countless times before, I found myself sympathizing with the characters even more then before because you get to see a little bit more of the story about the character and you get to see what they are feeling and their reasoning behind their actions.

Overall I thought that the book was amazing and is definitley something that everyone should read in their lifetime, I find the story to be completley eye-opening and it makes you appreciate your life a whole lot more.

Across The Universe by Beth Revis...

Series: Across The Universe (Book #1)
Published:  March 3rd 2011 by Puffin
Pages: 398

Rating: 1 star

Age Recommendation: -

Synopsis:

Amy has left the life she loves for a world 300 years away.
Trapped in space and frozen in time, Amy is bound for a new planet. But fifty years before she's due to arrive, she is violently woken, the victim of an attempted murder. Now Amy's lost on board and nothing makes sense - she's never felt so alone.
Yet someone is waiting for her. He wants to protect her - and more if she'll let him.
But who can she trust amidst the secrets and lies? A killer is out there - and Amy has nowhere to hide...

Review:

Sadly I found myslf really not likeing this book and I was unable to finish it. I think that part of the reason for that was the sky high expectations I had for this book from all the raving reviews I heard, and from the little that I read of the book (I only got 200 pages in) I found that it was just a complete letdowm.

First of all the plot for me it didn't seem that there was much of a plot but i supose that that was because I didn't read that much of the book but within those 200 pages I found that there was really no interesting storline.

I also thought that the characters really lacked personality. Out of the three main characters the one that I liked the best was Elder because I felt that he was the most realistic character out of the three. I also found myself really not likeing the character of Amy, I found her character to be really winey and she seemed to just get on my nerves.

Overall for me I thought this book really fell flat but with me saying that I also feel that you dhould give this book a go stleast, I mean there a whole lot of poeple within the book blogging community that love this book so this book must have some promise in it.

Iron Crowned by Richelle Mead...

Series: Dark Swan (Book #3)
Published:  March 31st 2011 by Bantam Books Ltd

Pages: 378

Rating: 5 stars

Age Recommendation: 15+ (Graphic scenes)

Synopsis:

Shaman-for-hire Eugenie Markham is the best at banishing entities trespassing in the mortal realm. But as the Thorn Land’s queen, she’s fast running out of ways to end the brutal war devastating her kingdom. Her only hope: the Iron Crown, a legendary object even the most powerful gentry fear…

Who Eugenie can trust is the hardest part. Fairy king Dorian has his own agenda for aiding her search. And Kiyo, her shape-shifter ex-boyfriend, has every reason to betray her along the way. To control the Crown’s ever-consuming powers, Eugenie will have to confront an unimaginable temptation--one that will put her soul and the fate of two worlds in mortal peril...

Review:

Being that Richelle Mead is my favourite author I had to get the last two books in this series for my birthday, the first and second blew my mind and this one was no exception. Wow is all I can say this book has left me speechless. So many things happened in this book that I never would have expected. First off I thought that the plot was amazing and so many things happened that I was not expecting, and one HUGE thing that I never was expecting! The book was so fast paced and engaging that before I knew it I was done, and I can't believe I have to wait till next year to read what happens it's killing me alredy! Another thing about this book that suprised me was the characters and how they changed, especially Kiyo, towards the end of the book he was crazy! That I definitley wasn't expecting. And now I find myself liking Dorian again which I never thought would happen.

Overall I thought that this book was an amazing edition to the series and it shows you just how great Richelle Mead's writting is and really makes you wonder what's going to happen in the next book