Crazy Rich Asians

Author: Kevin Kwan
First Published: May 2014
Publisher: Anchor
Series: Crazy Rich Asians #1
527 pages (paperback)

Rachel Chu is an ordinary Chinese-American 30-something woman, a professor of economics at a New York University. For the past two years, she has been dating Nicholas Young, a fellow professor at her university. Their relationship has been fantastic. Now, Nick has invited her to attend the wedding of his best friend Colin in Singapore. Rachel is a tad hesitant at first, because traveling to Singapore certainly means meeting all of Nick's family as well -- but hey, maybe it's about time she did. And anyway, what could possibly happen, really?

Instead of an ordinary vacation, Rachel is wholly unprepared for the world of crazy rich Asian people. Turns out Nick comes from an extremely wealthy, multi-billionaire family. They are very old money and can trace their family tree back generations. Nick doesn't think it's a big deal, but Rachel is stunned. The wedding they're going to? The biggest, fanciest wedding in the Asian world, covered by magazines and newspapers! To make matters difficult, Nick's entire family, excluding a select few, are incredibly snobby towards Rachel. Rachel isn't rich and "doesn't come from a good family". The family plots to break up Nick and Rachel, while at the same time, Nick falls deeper in love with his girlfriend and plans to propose soon.

As an Asian person myself, it was so fun reading this book. I did not think any of it was offensive. Actually, it's clear the author really understands what very traditional Asian elders are like! This is not a book about "regular" rich Asian people. This is a book about the extremely, extremely wealthy, the kind who are just bordering on royalty; the old money types who look down on the nouveau riche. It's a crazy, humorous take on the super elite of the Asian world, with a culture that prizes sons and family names. If you've ever watched an Asian TV drama, this is sort of like that, with a lot of stinking rich people and brand names thrown around.

Though I found the story very entertaining, I did have a few qualms with the book. Now, I didn't expect any deep and profound characters or anything like that, especially since this book is classified as humor (?), but I really didn't feel much between Rachel and Nick. They're happy and in love, I am told, but I didn't feel like they were. Everybody else, I don't care, but since they are the main characters this story was revolving around, I did expect their love to feel more ... genuine? This may have something to do with the fact that for a lot of the story, the characters are not actually with one another (physically, not emotionally).

The thing I disliked the most was the ending. What kind of ending was that?! Absolutely nothing was resolved; in fact, there were several cliffhanger-type endings. It was all rather abrupt and left me very unsatisfied.

Regardless, I quite enjoyed this book and am glad that there is a sequel. Actually, that's probably why the ending was so sudden -- it'll all be continued in the next book, I bet.

My Rating: 4/5

The Girl Who Saved The King of Sweden

This post first published May 13, 2014.

Author: Jonas Jonasson
First Published: September 2013
In English: April 2014
Publisher: Harper Collins
384 pages (paperback)
 
I’ve been seeing this book in a lot of shops lately and decided to pick it up as it piqued my interest (what with my never ending fascination with royalty and all — and look, the word king is right in the title!). I didn’t know much when I dove in. What I did know about this book: I knew the author also wrote The 100 Year Old Man Who Climbed Out Of The Window And Disappeared, though I have not read that book yet; I knew the book was originally published in Swedish; and I knew the book had a South African girl as the main character. Oh, and based on the title, that said girl was probably going to somehow save the King of Sweden.

This book is a comedy that is mainly about the life of one young girl named Nombeko and how she becomes mixed up with international politics despite being of very low birth. She starts off with not much in the beginning of her life, having been born to a poor family in a shack in South Africa, during the apartheid time period. Nombeko works at the sanitization department for the City of Johannesburg, basically dealing with people’s shit, literally. Cleverly, Nombeko manages to become the boss of said department at the mere age of 14, as well as secretly obtain a fortune in diamonds. Unfortunately, she gets hit by a car, gets sued and winds up working as a cleaning lady for an incredibly lazy and stupid engineer.

From there, Nombeko’s life takes all sorts of twists and turns that I won’t delve too much into because that will just spoil the fun of the story, and she eventually winds up stuck with an atomic bomb in Sweden. Now she, and her new friends (though ‘friends’ is a term being used loosely here, haha) are desperately trying to contact either the Prime Minister of Sweden or the King of Sweden to let them know that, uh, hey, your nuclear-weapon-free country isn’t so nuclear-weapon-free, actually.
When I started this book, I really loved it. I didn’t know it was a humorous book, and it was actually a pleasant surprise after reading so many serious stories. The entire story is kind of like watching an old school cartoon show on television. A lot of improbable events and situations happen, some are downright silly, and the characters are one dimensional as well — which I think is absolutely fine in a comical story such as this. They were memorable and hilarious characters.

I went along for a fast paced and ridiculously fun ride, and before I was even at the halfway point of the book, I was already recommending this novel to my sisters to read. Sadly, around the halfway point was where my feelings towards the book started to change a little bit.

The fast paced plot slowed down — a lot. There were several years in the story’s timeline where Nombeko basically did nothing. She settled down for a while, so to speak, and the story really felt like it was paused or put on hold. As I kept reading, the plot just seemed to drag on and on. I found myself wondering when Nombeko is actually going to do something about that damn atomic bomb to move the story forward.

And you know the whole thing about the girl saving the king of Sweden? That was such a small, tiny part of the story. And I feel as if the title should have been The Girl Who Saved The King and Prime Minister of Sweden, really. Actually, the original Swedish title makes more sense to me — The Illiterate Who Could Count (or translated to something along those lines). Because this book is really about Nombeko’s life, and less so about that small part where she meets the Swedish king.

I still think this book is hilarious till the end, even though the plot kind of got lost or something after a while. Overall, I had a good time reading it and it’s a memorable, farfetched, silly, fun story. I would still recommend it, despite my lack of enthusiasm for the pacing of the latter half of the novel, and I think I have become very interested in this author’s works.

My Rating: 3.5/5

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe

This post first published June 11, 2013.


Author: Douglas Adams
First Published: June 1997
Publisher: Picador
Series: Hitchhiker’s Guide #2
200 pages (paperback)
 
I’m not sure what it was with this second book, but it didn’t quite catch my interest like the first book did. Maybe it’s because it’s the second book in the series, or maybe it’s because I’m reading this one a year after I read the first, or maaaybe it’s because book two was published almost twenty years after the first. I don’t know. I thought The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy was funny, witty and creative. I thought book two was immature, aimless and nonsensical. And I’m not sure why! Because, if you have read this series, you would know that being silly is kind of the whole point of the books. Yet I found the silliness in book one to be more understandable than book two! Strange …

I am not even too sure how to describe the plot of this book because it was kind of all over the place. Our main characters decide they need to eat some food after what happened in the last book, so they are looking for a place to eat when they end up at the restaurant at the end of the universe, Milliway’s. Of course, during their journey the gang ends up going through a series of wacky adventures, including meeting the man who runs the entire universe.

So from what I understand, a lot of people like book two and think it’s just as good, if not better, than the first. Apparently, I have a dissenting opinion, haha. Maybe I just don’t “get” this one, but I wasn’t very engaged with the story at all. It was all just very bizarre. And I know it’s supposed to be bizarre. I can’t really pinpoint why this book felt different from book one’s silliness. And to top it all off, I can’t even really remember what I just read, because the plot felt like it went all over the place. It was all kind of a blur, especially since the book is so short.

This is going to be one of my shorter reviews since I don’t really know what else to say about this book. It was “okay”. I will continue the series because I own all five in a box set so I’ll get around to it eventually. Book two hasn’t exactly made me excited for book three, though.

My Rating: 2/5

Soulless

This post first published September 6, 2012.

Author: Gail Carriger
First Published: 2009
Publisher: Orbit
Series: Parasol Protectorate #1
365 pages (mass market paperback)
 
I’ve seen this book appear on a number of Goodreads friends’ pages and was interested in it because 1) it took place in a steampunk Victorian period and 2) it’s a mish-mash of vampires, werewolves and ghosts. Essentially, I was under the impression it was a quirky book that would be fun to read and I’m happy to say, now that I finished reading it, that it is exactly that. Sometimes it’s nice to read something not serious, and Soulless was a great getaway. It was almost like fantasy chick-lit.

Soulless is about 26 year old spinster, Alexia Tarabotti. She is, if you haven’t guessed, soulless, which means she is “immune” to supernatural creatures. She can’t be bitten by them, for example, and they become human when touched by her. She lives in a steampunk Victorian era London, where werewolves, vampires and ghosts are real and integrated into society. Such supernatural creatures are registered with BUR (Bureau of Unnatural Registry) so they are all kept track of. At a ball one day, Alexia is attacked by an unregistered vampire, whom she accidentally kills. Lord Maccon, an alpha werewolf, a BUR worker and ridiculously gorgeous, is sent to investigate the killing. Nobody knows who this vampire is or where he came from. What’s worse is that registered supernaturals are disappearing and more unknown supernaturals are appearing. Even worse, everyone thinks Alexia may have something to do with this, being soulless and all.

The first thing I noticed was the writing style. It’s different from most novels, I think. I don’t really know how to describe it, other than that it’s quirky. I enjoyed the writing a lot and found it suited the humorous Victorian setting of this book. It’s witty, it’s funny and I was never bored at any time when reading this. I imagine this kind of writing style isn’t going to be for everyone, but I personally really liked it.

All the characters are very memorable and I love them all. Because of the type of story it is and the kind of atmosphere the book has, I’m not surprised that all the characters are kind of “cartoon-ish”; in fact, I loved it. Alexia is a bold, intellectual and independent woman who has resigned to the fact that she’ll probably never marry because frankly, no husband wants a wife this assertive in such a time period. That isn’t to say she doesn’t have her feminine moments. Alexia has resigned to being a spinster, but she does kind of wish she has a husband and a family and all that jazz. I loved her relationship with Lord Maccon, who becomes a love interest of her’s very early on in the story. They seem to irritate one another at first, but later it is revealed they both are quite fond of one another. Lord Maccon is so protective of Alexia, it is just adorable! I was a little surprised by how much romance was in this book (namely, all the kissing/making out scenes), but I found myself quite enjoying them bantering with one another. Even the characters that don’t speak much have wonderfully endearing qualities. For example, I really love Alexia’s family butler, Floote. He doesn’t say much, he doesn’t even appear much, but I just imagine him hovering around in the background, worrying over Alexia entertaining her adventurous spirit, and it just makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside.

I think this is a delightfully written book that’s fun to read if you’re yearning for something light and fun. I am looking forward to reading more about Alexia in the next books in this series (makes me happy to know there are at least four more books after this first one)!

My Rating: 4.5/5

Dexter In The Dark

This post first published August 19, 2012.

Author: Jeff Lindsay
Series: Dexter #3
First Published:  2007
Publisher: Vintage Crime/Black Lizard
303 pages (paperback)
 
This is the third installment of the Dexter series, and while overall I enjoyed it and liked it, the new paranormal/supernatural elements added in this book threw me off and lessened my liking of it. I’m not saying crime or mystery novels can’t have supernatural elements to it. Just in this series, it feels horribly off. The first two Dexter books have established a world, a universe, of certain set rules, and 3000 year old gods weren’t a part of it. Dexter’s Dark Passenger was (I thought) a metaphor for the killing urges Dexter has. I mean, there just really wasn’t anything to suggest it was anything more than that. I didn’t expect the Dark Passenger to suddenly become a real thing.

In Dexter In The Dark, Dexter is in the midst of wedding preparations, trying to become a mentor to young Cody and Astor and of course, his dark hobby. When he is called to investigate a crime scene, Dexter finds his Dark Passenger retreating inside of him, as if it was scared, until one day, it simply disappeared. Even worse, someone or something is stalking him — the Watcher, it is called, which turns out to be a 3000 year old god that goes from one human host to the next. The murders that started all this get worse as well, as victims keep turning up all being killed in the same manner. Dexter feels the murders must be somehow related to the disappearance of his Dark Passenger but he hasn’t a clue.

As I already mentioned, this book threw me off. I didn’t expect the 3000 year old god thing to be literal, yet it was. I mean, if this wasn’t a Dexter book, I think it would be a fine, solid book, but it’s a Dexter book and paranormal elements were not a part of the first two. The whole time I was reading, I kept thinking, “Nah, there’s going to be some logical explanation at the end of the book that will explain everything” but it turned out the fantastical explanation was the explanation. It also feels like it cheapened Dexter, the character. The idea that he’s just a guy under demonic possession and not a serial killer just cheapens the whole thing. “Dexter’s really quite human! He’s just possessed by this demon thing!” Well, that is not the reason why I enjoyed reading about Dexter in the first place.

I know I’m making it sound like this book is horrible or something, but it’s really not. It’s just my one complaint about the book turned out to be a rather huge complaint, so it comes off that way. It’s a good, solid book, with good, solid entertainment, though even minus the supernatural stuff, it’s a bit lackluster compared to the first two books. Dexter furthers his relationship development with Astor and Cody, which is a huge focus of this novel, I felt. They have Dark Passengers of their own and Dexter is trying to become a sort of mentor to them, but the two kids just don’t listen to Dexter too well. The mystery is a little lackluster because it’s so intertwined with the ancient god thing, but still, I enjoyed reading about Dexter and Deborah attempting to solve the case anyway.

I think overall, this book is fine. It’s not great and quite unexpected, but it’s okay. I hope the next few Dexter books are more like the first two though.

My Rating: 3/5

Dearly Devoted Dexter

This post first published May 10, 2012.

Author: Jeff Lindsay
Series: Dexter #2
Published: January 2005
Publisher: Vintage Crime/Black Lizard
292 pages
 
Reading this Dexter book was different from reading the first Dexter book, for me, because the second book (and all subsequent books in the series) are not the same as the TV show at all, which is what I am firmly acquainted with. So compared to the first book, I truly had no idea what to expect.

This second installment of the series has Dexter start off with trying to track down a nasty killer pedophile’s accomplice. Alas, it is very difficult being a serial killer when your intimidating work colleague suspects you’re up to no good and has begun stalking you 24/7. Thus, Dexter finds himself spending more and more time with his “disguise” — his girlfriend, Rita, in an attempt to show Sergeant Doakes that he’s really a very normal guy.

However, Dexter finds himself on the same side as Doakes when another serial killer has made his way into town. Deborah, Dexter’s sister, insists that Dexter help find this crazed killer. However, Dexter finds it difficult to keep up his end of the bargain when he realizes Doakes is on the killer’s list … and if Doakes is gone, Dexter would be free once again.

I definitely enjoyed this novel, particularly since I had no idea what to expect from my favourite serial killer (… that sounds so wrong, I know. He’s fictional though!) Once again, Dexter’s witty and clever remarks have won me over, and I thought the new main bad guy, that other serial killer, was quite interesting as well. I don’t want to reveal the ending, but when his motivations were revealed, I was like, “Ohhhh! It all makes sense now!” Really, I should have seen it sooner, but nonetheless, it was creative and great.

I found this novel moved a little slower than the first, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Just an observation. The first book flowed quickly, while this one takes its a time a little more, though it’s by no means a slow book. I think this allowed for more time for not only Dexter’s character to develop, but others such as Deborah and Doakes as well, who were really rather minor and flat characters from the first book.

There are two things that kind of bug me however. The first is a spoiler for the first book so skip this paragraph if you don’t want to know — in the first book, in the end, Deborah finds out that Dexter is a killer. I really dislike how this second book didn’t delve into this issue at all. Deborah is clearly a very law abiding cop who is determined to throw every criminal in jail. I just feel so dissatisfied that there was absolutely no discussion about Deborah knowing about Dexter’s dark side. The only time it was ever mentioned was when Deborah asked Dexter for help and kind of threatened him with, “I know what you are.” To me, I think she’s trying to ignore the fact she learned that her brother is a killer, but still, I would have thought something would have been talked about between the two. For example, Dexter could have said something like I tried to talk to Deborah about what she saw and heard that night but she pushes me away each time, so I conclude that she doesn’t want to talk about it, wants to ignore that part about me. That’s just a crude example, but you know … something.
The other thing I dislike was the epilogue. I also didn’t like the epilogue from the first book. I found them both too short and they don’t feel like they properly wrap up the loose ends. Almost like they’re hastily tacked onto the end.

All in all, I was really into this book, as much as I was into the first and I would be, of course, reading the rest of the series. Just can’t get enough of Dexter! I love the mysteries and it’s just such a neat angle to have a serial killer chasing down a serial killer. I do hope the epilogues improve though.

My Rating: 5/5

Darkly Dreaming Dexter

This post first published March 20, 2012.

Author: Jeff Lindsay
Series: Dexter #1
Published: July 2004
Publisher: Vintage Crime/Black Lizard
288 pages (paperback) 
 
Background: I’m a huge fan of the Dexter TV show. I have a large poster of Michael C. Hall portraying Dexter in my bedroom (a bloodless and not-creepy poster, which was a little difficult to find given the nature of the show). So obviously, since I love the show and I love to read, it was only a matter of time before I got my grubby little hands on the series. Which I recently did thanks to my mother, who gifted them to me as a birthday present. (Speaking of which, I really should do an IMM post soon). My point is — this review is probably a little bias, although I tried not to be.

With all that said, I did try to forget everything I know about the TV series while reading this book, although some comparisons will inevitably arise. Darkly Dreaming Dexter is about a guy named Dexter (duh). He’s a blood spatter pattern analyzer for the Miami Metro Police force on the outside … but on the inside, he’s a rather successful serial killer. But never fear, he only goes after bad guys; people who have killed other people.

Dexter’s life is going pretty okay. He’s kept up his cover as a normal human being for many years now. But there’s another serial killer in town and Dexter is, for once in his life, a bit frightened. Whoever this killer is, he’s copying Dexter’s killing style, and leaving some very strange messages for him. Friend? Or foe?

I swear I’m not intentionally being bias here, but this was a good book. It’s short, which obviously factors into the reason why I got through it in less than a day, but also, it is addictive and difficult to put down once you start.

It’s entirely in first person, so we’re inside Dexter’s head the whole time. Now, you might think it’s creepy being inside the head of a serial killer, but Dexter is a very interesting character, and for a serial killer, he really isn’t that creepy. He only kills bad people, and he recognizes that what he is doing is not socially acceptable so he isn’t psychotically trying to justify himself, which makes the reader feel a little less guilty about liking a serial killer character. And he’s very likeable. He’s got a wicked sense of black humour, and he (or the author, or both) loves alliteration. Oh, the alliteration! Dexter’s got some style there. I mean, come on, reading “very careful cold coiled creeping crackly cocked and ready …” is kind of cool. I think Dexter is what makes this book so interesting. I don’t read a lot of crime fiction (barely any) but I’ve always been under the impression characters in such books are usually the detectives chasing down the criminals. I like Dexter a lot because we’re inside the criminal’s head instead … though, being a part of the police force, he is still chasing down criminals. Criminals chasing criminals, who is going to come out on top? Love that.

Even if you’ve watched the TV show, you should try reading the book for sure. The first season was loosely based off of this first book (and subsequent seasons are not based off of any of the subsequent sequels, so this is the only one), so while there are similarities, some things are different enough that even I did not know what was going to happen, and thus, was glued to the pages. As a whole, the general plot is the same, but the TV show really expanded the book (which, like I said, is quite short) and changed a bunch of things. Some of the characters aren’t even in the same roles. I can’t really say which is better, the show or the book — I really love both of them.

Now, the ending of the book is considerably less conclusive, less well-done than the TV show. The ending is markedly different from how the first season of the TV show went, so everything that happened in the ending was a surprise to me. I liked the ending in general, but it was rather abrupt and I felt like it left way too many questions than answers. The epilogue also felt a bit rushed and too short.

I’m super excited to read the sequels though! Since they are completely different from the TV show at this point, I have no idea what to expect and I’m tremendously excited to find out ;P

My Rating: 5/5

The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy

This post first published March 7, 2012.

Author: Douglas Adams
Published: January 1979
Publisher: Picador
Series: Hitchhiker’s Guide #1
180 pages
 
I had heard of this book before I read it, but I had no idea what it was about. I never saw the movie either, so I walked into this experience truly not knowing what to expect at all.

It’s a regular day for Arthur Dent (well, sort of — he’s trying to stop the city from bulldozing his house to build a new highway). To his surprise, his best friend of fifteen years, Ford, reveals to him that he is actually an alien and has been hitchhiking around the galaxy — that is, until he got stuck here, on Earth, for the past fifteen years. Ford also lets Arthur know that Earth is about to become demolished for a new hyperspace bypass but no worries, he’s got a ride hooked up for the two of them before Earth explodes. The two of them eventually find their way onto the ship, the Heart of Gold, and through the use of its Improbability Drive, encounter all sorts of strange, bizarre coincidences …

First things first, this book is kind of plotless. I’ll totally admit that. It doesn’t really seem to have a point, a greater goal that the characters are striving towards. There’s some vague mysteries that don’t really seem too important, and the ending of the book was really not an ending at all, more like an abrupt stop. I’m not going to point out the bizarre coincidences though, just because those are meant to be in the story via Improbability Drive and in a strange way, made sense to me. Other readers may not feel the same way though.

With that said, I actually liked the book a lot. It was really funny and quirky to me, kind of like watching a cartoon show. There were some subtle digs and social commentary as well, which I always love, though admittedly they were overshadowed by the silliness of the entire story. Sure, things don’t make sense a lot, but it fits with the type of humor this book contains. Super intelligent mice, depressed robots, luxury planet building businesses … this book is like a pot where the author threw every crazy idea together just to see what happens. That, along with Douglas Adams’ witty writing style just hit the spot for me.

I also finally discovered where a lot of pop culture sayings come from now: this book! Like, “Don’t Panic” and how the answer to life, the universe and everything is 42, and some other ones. I heard of those sayings before and never knew where they came from. I just figured they were from some old TV show I never watched because I was too young or whatever. Feels kind of satisfying to discover the origin!

I can understand not every reader is going to like this book. If you are a “serious reader” who requires strict structure and whatnot in your books, this book is probably not for you. You definitely need a certain type of sense of humour to enjoy this book and have to be open to the idea that nothing’s going to make perfect sense. It’ll make some sense, but still, nonsense. This book is definitely one of those hit-or-miss types of books — you’re either gonna like it or dislike it for what it is. However, if it’s of any persuasion, most people seem to enjoy it and it is often considered one of the modern classics of literature.

My Rating: 4/5

Beauty Queens

This post first published on October 2, 2011.

Author: Libbra Bray
Published: May 2011
Publisher: Scholastic Press
390 pages (hardcover)
 
Some of my friends may know that I am pretty anti-beauty-pageant. So it may come as a surprise that I decided to go and read a book about, well, beauty pageants. The synopsis said that the book was about a group of beauty queens who find themselves trapped on a deserted island and must use their beauty supplies, equipment and knowledge to survive until rescue. I actually found the idea pretty interesting, which is why I decided to put it in my “Want To Read” list (and consequently, my sister got it for me).

Fifty Miss Teen Dream beauty pageants are traveling on a plane to a beach area to take some promotional pictures. Unfortunately, the plane crash lands on a deserted island, killing nearly everyone, except for thirteen beauty queens (I believe it was thirteen — it started with twelve, but then they found one more survivor). With only themselves to depend on, the Miss Teen Dreamers attempt to organize themselves and think of ingenious ways of survival.

Meanwhile, on the same island, the Corporation is aware the Teen Dreamers have crash landed on the island. This is not part of their plan, however, they plot a way to weave the bright and beautiful young ladies of America into their plan for world domination …

I walked into this story expecting a chick-lit type book. I won’t argue if you want to categorize this book as such, but it is also a lot more than that. This book, to me, is a completely hilarious satire of American culture and lifestyle (or, more broadly, North American).

The way many of the girls hold the beauty pageant in their minds shows how much emphasis everyone puts on appearances. The way the entire book is written with (fake) product placements shows how much corporations are taking over (for example, if I remember correctly, one of the characters comment on how a natural clay she finds on the island makes a great moisturizer. It was followed by a superscript, and in the footnotes, an “advertisement” for a Corporation product: “For skin that’s silky smooth, try The Corporation’s Pore It On mask.”  There were also references towards celebrities, TV shows (ex. Jersey Shore), Facebook, a variety of beauty products with silly names like Tan-So-Right. There were the beauty pageant application pages submitted by each contestant, with footnotes from The Corporation censoring certain parts or hinting that said contestant should change some of her words so that they are more Corporation friendly. And then there were the “commercial breaks”, which were my favourite: just straight-up silly, blatant satire of commercials and American lifestyle, telling you what you want, because the Corporation knows best.

There were all kinds of characters, and they were mostly one-dimensional, but given the nature of the book and the cartoon-y effect it was going for, there really was no need for “deep” characters at all. While there were some of the stereotypical “dumb blonde” type of beauty queen, I also encountered many different social issues that the characters explored in this story. We have some girls who are in the pageant because that is all they know how to do, and they are extremely determined to win. We have girls who are in the pageant only to win scholarship money to go to college. We have a Black girl and an Indian girl, who both know the odds are stacked against them because it is unspoken that there can only be one non-White beauty queen in the final round (racial issues). We even have an undercover feminist journalist who is trying to expose the beauty pageant world for what it “really is”. I know she may seem like the “beacon of hope” in a story such as this, but even she has her problems, because she’s the type of feminist who decries make-up and dressing up and fails to realize that sometimes, a girl just wants to pretty herself up, not necessarily for the sake of a boy.
This was a very fun book to read and I enjoyed it immensely. It really is laugh out loud funny and it was incredibly thrilling trying to catch all the pop culture references.

While I found the beginning of the book quite addictive, I found the last third of the book a bit eye-roll-worthy. I think the book crossed the line between satire and plain ridiculousness. The ending of the book was just a bit too cartoon-like, if you know what I mean. For example, the Corporation hanging its captives over a tank of piranha fish and  slowly lowering them in head first. I also wasn’t too crazy about the shipful of hot boy (actor) pirates who randomly crash land on the deserted island, and naturally, InstaLove was abound. Granted, it was satire and meant to be humourous, so I didn’t expect any deep meaningful relationships but … come on, really?

Despite my complaint about the ending, I think all in all, this was a great story and it was really addicting to read. Even if you don’t catch all the references or understand the satire going on in the background, I think anyone can enjoy this book and take something away from it.

My Rating: 4/5

Dash & Lily's Book Of Dares

This post first published September 18, 2011.

Author: Rachel Cohn & David Levithan
Published: October 2010
Publisher: Ember
272 pages (paperback)
 
Looking for a funny, flirty, feel-good kind of book to read? You should try Dash & Lily’s Book Of Dares, by the same authors as Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist (which I have unfortunately not have the pleasure of reading yet, but have been assured by friends-whose-opinions-I-trust that it is excellent … but I couldn’t find the book at the store, which is how I ended up with Dash & Lily in the first place).

Dash & Lily takes place around Christmas time in New York (making this a great read for the upcoming holidays as well *wink wink*) and is told in alternating perspectives of Dash (short for Dashiel) and Lily, two sixteen year old teens.

Dash is a bit of a cynic. He hates Christmas, he hates crowds. His parents are divorced and they hate one another. He can come off as a bit bitter, but he’s overall a nice guy. Lily, on the other hand, simply adores Christmas. She loves giving and receiving presents, baking and singing Christmas carols. She has a ginormous family and a pesky but loyal older brother. She’s upset that this Christmas, she doesn’t really have anyone — including her family — to spend it with. So how do two very different people end up meeting one another?

Dash is at his favourite bookstore browsing the shelves when he spots a red notebook tucked in the Salinger section. Curious, he opens it and reads it and finds the following message:

I’ve left some clues for you.
If you want them, turn the page.
If you don’t, put the book back on the shelf, please.

So begins a sort of scavenger hunt around the store, leaving Dash with a very strange collection of books to carry around. At the end, the owner of the notebook says if he is interested in meeting her, to please leave the notebook with the store clerk. Dash decides to leave Lily his own set of clues instead, for her to find him … and so begins this back-and-forth passing of the notebook, each one trying to one-up one another with the clues until it becomes a book of dares. As they do this, they come to know one another more and more.

I really adored this book! The premise sounded really interesting and I’m glad it didn’t fail to deliver on that point. It’s not simply a story of two teens flirting back and forth like a chick-lit kind of book though; it is quite a character-driven storyline.

Both Dash and Lily learning more about themselves, about love, about Christmas and their place in their own respective families. They often muse about such matters, go off on tangents and carry internal monologues with themselves — many of which are pretty humorous! And many of which are quite quotable and memorable, some even profound. Here is one of my favourites, from the character Sofia (Dash’s ex-girlfriend), offering Dash some advice when he isn’t sure whether or not he really wants to meet Lily:

“You see Dash, I was never the girl in your head. And you were never the boy in my head. I think we both knew that. It’s only when we try to make the girl or boy in our head real that the true trouble comes. I did that with Carlos, and it was a bad failure. Be careful what you’re doing, because no one is ever who you want them to be. And the less you really know them, the more likely you are to confuse them with the girl or boy in your head.”

I really liked Dash and Lily’s relationship. First of all, they kind of “met” in their shared favourite bookstore, which, as a book lover, is incredibly nerdy and romantic haha. Secondly, because Dash and Lily never actually meet one another for most of the novel, we don’t have any InstaLove™ nor do we have repetitive descriptions of how “hawt” each other are.

You know what? I don’t think Dash and Lily were ever adequately described in the book now that I think about it, but I actually don’t really care because Dash and Lily are such genuine and realistic characters that you don’t care what they look like. Their personalities are the characters’ features, not their attractive or unattractiveness.

The only thing I was not really that crazy about was the ending. The whole thing with Lily becoming famous for catching a baby mid-air (or ‘snatching’, as some cynical mothers labeled the action) went a little beyond my realm of realistic expectations, and though the final scene wrapping up Lily and Dash’s relationship was pretty cute, it was also a little, uhm, stereotypical? (Spoiler, highlight to read: Well, at least I think so. Getting trapped in the bookstore storage room overnight and really bonding over the experience is something I’ve read and watched in many stories now. Ok, not necessarily a bookstore storage room, but you know, some sort of small enclosed space, like an elevator. I don’t know, maybe I’m just jaded).

Overall, a really fantastic read and one I’d definitely recommend if you are interested in it! I really would love to read the rest of Cohn and Levithan’s collaborated works now; I think I’ve become a fan!

My Rating: 4/5

Past Perfect

This post first published September 10, 2011.

Author: Leila Sales
Published: October 4, 2011
Publisher: Simon Pulse
322 pages (galley)
 
What an unexpected gem! I’m so glad I came across this book (got it from the S&S Galley Grab, thank you!) It’s incredibly fun to read, a great book to read if you’re not looking for anything “heavy”.

The plot isn’t exactly wholly original — at first glance. It’s the story of a boy and a girl who end up falling in love with one another but cannot be together because their respective groups hate each other’s guts. This is the basic story of Romeo & Juliet, and probably a few dozen other stories that exist (if not more).
So you might be thinking, “Okay, what’s the unique factor?” It’s the context. Why can’t Chelsea, our main character, be together with Dan? Because Chelsea works at the Colonial Essex Village, a living history reenactment village whose employees constantly act out of the summer of 1774, and Dan works at the Civil War living history reenactment village across the street who act out the 1860’s. The two reenactment villages have a natural rivalry with one another that the more youthful employees take to extremes, convinced that their time period is the best time period of American history. So not only are Chelsea and Dan from rival reenactment villages, but also from reenactment villages of completely different time periods.

I bet you didn’t see that coming.

Chelsea has been working at the Colonial Essex Village ever since she can remember, because her parents work there, though Chelsea only works during the summers. This summer, however, Chelsea feels she’s finally had enough and would really rather have a normal mall job or something, but is talked into coming back to Essex by her best friend Fiona, and the lure of her ex-boyfriend Ezra, who has also found a job at Essex.

As usual, the teenage employees of Essex propose war against the teenage employees of the Civil War village across the street, to prove who’s got the better reenactment village and the better time period. Chelsea somehow finds herself elected Lieutenant of the war effort, and quickly gets “kidnapped” by some of the Civil War kids, one of whom is Dan, whom she develops a crush on pretty quickly. But the thing about Chelsea is that she’s very clingy to the past by nature, so on top of the fact that her friends would kill her if they knew she was into a Civil warrior, she’s not sure she’s able to drop Ezra completely yet.

This novel is sooo much fun to read. I think the best way to describe it is chick-lit for teens. I don’t really know much about historical reenactment (that’s not really a thing up here in Canada … I don’t think we really have any history exciting enough to reenact), but after reading this novel, I really want to visit one! How cool is it to feel like you’ve stepped back in history? Not to mention, who knew how awesome reenactors are?! I mean, yes, this is a novel, but this book makes historical reenacting seem like the coolest thing since sliced bread. I loved how Essex battled with the Civil War people, trying to prove that their historical village is from the best part of American history, hahaha!

Chelsea is the kind of girl I would love to be friends with. She really feels like any normal teenager you might come across in a high school. She’s a bit of a daydreamer, wants to be an ice-cream connoisseur, and has crushes on boys. The novel is in first person, so we are inside Chelsea’s head the entire time, and I love it! She’s such a funny person (without really intentionally trying to be one) and she’s got her parents who are absolutely obsessed with historical reenacting, which definitely made for more laughs.

As for the male interests, there is a teensy bit of a love triangle, but it’s never really full blown since Chelsea and Ezra have already broken up.  I quite liked Dan. I like how his relationship with Chelsea felt pretty natural. They did click together quickly, but I am glad Chelsea didn’t call it “true love” right away. It was a crush, and she acknowledges it as such. They did seem to move a tad fast — Dan just suddenly kisses Chelsea one day — but it was light and flirty and felt realistic for teenagers, none of that oh-so-serious eternal love stuff. The romance in this book is extremely adorable!

I really loved almost every aspect of this book. I think the only thing that disappointed me slightly was the ending. The entire book felt like a day out at the amusement park, but the ending felt like the car trip home — a bit boring. That’s not to say it was horrible, I just felt it could have been better.
Should you read this book? YES! I mean, how many YA books out there involve historical reenactment anyway?! You definitely don’t want to miss out on this one. I love this book! Oh, and you learn a lot of random historical facts in this book! :)

My Rating: 4.5/5

Paranormalcy

This post first published July 6, 2011.

Author: Kiersten White
Published: August 2010
Publisher: HarperTeen
Series: Paranormalcy #1
335 pages (hardcover)
 
The cover of this book is really misleading, in my opinion. We have a serious looking girl standing in what seems like a field with pussywillows, under a dark and foreboding sky. My initial thoughts about what the book was about was, you know, a paranormal story possibly involving lots of angst and a love triangle. Not that there’s anything wrong with that either, I’m just saying that’s the vibes this cover is giving off. The actual story is nothing like what the cover tries to express though. This book is actually very light hearted, doesn’t take itself too seriously, and full of humor. It’s one of those, “Hey, just kick back, relax and read” kind of books.

Sixteen year old Evie works for the International Paranormal Containment Agency. You see, paranormal creatures are actually everywhere in this world, and there are all sorts of paranormal creatures: vampires, faeries, werewolves, banshees, hags, trolls, goblins, and even things with no real names. It’s up the IPCA to track and control the creatures so they don’t get out of hand and wreak havoc on human beings. Evie is the best at her job because she has the unique ability of being able to see through a paranormal’s glamour and identify them for who they really are. Then it’s all a matter of a little tasing, clamping on a tracking anklet and job well done.

Life is pretty lonely for Evie because she’s the only kid working for the IPCA, and she’s an orphan so she has no family. She spends most of her time in her dorm room watching some sort of Gossip Girls-esque TV show and chatting with her best friend, Lish the mermaid. But even Lish doesn’t always have time for her because she’s an IPCA employee as well. Then she starts getting attached to one of the paranormals they captured breaking and entering not too long ago, a shapeshifter, but her boss/mother-figure doesn’t like the two of them spending time together. All Evie wants is to have a regular teenage life, but it’s pretty hard when you’re constantly getting calls to go deal with this vampire or that werewolf.

Evie begins to take her job a little more seriously when the IPCA catches news of paranormals dying all over the place, seemingly from nothing. Something out there is killing paranormal creatures, and Evie is worried about her own paranormal friends. What’s worse is that Evie isn’t all that sure she’s safe herself, not after realizing that she’s been categorized as a paranormal in the IPCA employee files.

I loved Evie. It’s so refreshing to have a YA female lead who isn’t made of cardboard. She’s sassy and funny, and seems so genuine. She actually acts like what I imagine a real sixteen year old would act like. I also really enjoyed her relationship with Lend, the paranormal caught doing some B&E, and is now stuck in a jail cell at the IPCA. A lot of YA paranormal stories these days (or at least, out of the ones I read) just can’t write a natural feeling relationship — they always feel forced and the two characters always decide they are so-in-love-that-their-lives-depend-on-it within a week. Half the time, I don’t even understand why the two characters like one another; it’s usually just full of, “He’s sooo hot!” or something like that.

However, with Evie and Lend, their relationship started off as friendly (albeit a bit wary because Lend did break and enter), then progressed to a real friendship, complete with bonding time and everything, THEN it progressed to the two of them liking one another, as crushes. Yes, just crushes. That’s really as far as it goes in this book. No proclamations of undying love here. And I like this, a lot, because it feels more real and definitely suits the mood of this book, which is light hearted.
The characters are, to me, the strong point of this novel. They are just plain fun. However, the rest of the book isn’t perfect though. The plot is so-so. Overall, I liked the plot but I know it could be much better. I wasn’t really feeling the shocking revelation of what is killing the paranormals and how Evie was related to the killer. It just didn’t feel very exciting, which kind of sucked because I had thought the IPCA was sort of like Interpol so maybe there’d be some awesome conspiracy case they need to crack or some mastermind criminal … Perhaps I had let my assumptions get in the way, but the overall plot felt mediocre, a bit uninspiring.

The writing was also pretty ordinary, nothing special. Sometimes it even felt like fan fiction writing. It’s written in first person from Evie’s point of view, and I get that she’s just a teenager so the way Evie talks isn’t going to be complicated prose or anything, but still, I kind of expected a little more. I think the book could get away with the writing if it was a book for middle-schoolers, but it’s not.
Paranormalcy is a fun book to read if you’re looking for something non-serious to dig into, but don’t expect to be seriously wow’d or anything like that. I, personally, liked the story, but whether or not you will, will depend on your own preferences and interests.

My Rating: 3/5

The Red Pyramid

This post first published May 25, 2011.

Author: Rick Riordan
Published: May 2010
Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children
Series: The Kane Chronicles #1
516 pages (hardcover)
 
If you’re a Rick Riordan fan, then you may have heard of this series already: The Kane Chronicles. At first glance, it seems to be Percy Jackson Meets Egypt! instead of the Greek/Roman gods, and while it does bear many similarities (the two series even take place within the same world), it’s also quite different: In Percy Jackson, we have a bunch of kids sent to a summer camp for half-god half-human children, who train in fighting and hone their magical abilities that are specific to their godly parent. In the Kane Chronicles, there are only two kids, siblings, who discover that they are from two ancient pharaoh bloodlines, and that their parents have unleashed ancient Egyptian gods into the world.

In The Red Pyramid, Carter Kane travels around with his famous Egyptologist father, Julius Kane, around the world. His mother died six years ago, and his sister, Sadie Kane, was taken in by his grandparents (of their mother’s side) who live in London. For some reason, the grandparents didn’t want to take Carter. Julius and Carter get to see Sadie twice a year, once every six months. On the day that Julius and Carter get to see Sadie, Julius takes them to a museum in London, where he tells them he needs to do some ‘work’. What he ends up doing is accidentally destroying the Rosetta Stone and unleashing five powerful Egyptian gods, before becoming trapped by the released Egyptian god, Set. Two of the other gods found their way to Carter and Sadie and use them as hosts. Carter and Sadie are hurried away from the scene with the help of their Uncle Amos who mysteriously appears, and are protected by the cat goddess Bast.

They are taken to the House of Life’s headquarters, an underground “town” of some sort where people practice ancient Egyptian magic. The House of Life doesn’t trust the Egyptian gods and are wary about the Kane siblings inhabiting gods in them, but the leader decides to train them. It is revealed that Carter and Sadie are the children of two ancient pharaoh bloodlines, and thus are extremely powerful, even without gods inhabiting their bodies. However, the leader dies rather suddenly, and the new leader decides that Carter and Sadie must be destroyed, prompting them to run for their lives.

Overall, I liked reading this book. With the Percy Jackson books, I was already somewhat familiar with many of the gods and goddesses and ancient stories, but I know next to nothing about ancient Egyptian mythology. So I really liked how, in addition to an adventurous story, I was also learning a lot too. Sounds kind of cheesy, but it’s true. Ancient Egyptian mythology is really fascinating, but also confusing … which I guess is why at times, I found the plot rather complex. Sometimes I had to really stop and think about everything that has happened so far and untangle the story in my head. I never got confused per se, but sometimes, I just had to slow down a bit and digest what is happening.
As with the Percy Jackson books, I love the funny, spunky and witty characters in The Red Pyramid as well. The two main characters, Carter and Sadie, are also biracial (half white, half black), which I really liked the idea of. You don’t often seen biracial main characters in books — unless the novel is about them dealing with being biracial or something where that is the focus — and I think Riordan handled it well. The kids sometimes encounter real world issues with being biracial, but it’s not the focus of the story. The thing about the characters I wasn’t too crazy about was how the first person narration switched back and forth between Carter and Sadie quite often, and they have rather similar voices, so I actually did become a little confused at times with who is speaking, but with this kind of story, it’s not really a big deal.

Though this story is a little too long in my opinion, I enjoyed it, do recommend it, and will most definitely be reading book two!

My Rating: 3.5/5

The Battle of the Labyrinth

This post first published May 5, 2011.

Author: Rick Riordan
Published: 2008
Publisher: Hyperion
Series: Percy Jackson & The Olympians #4
361 pages (paperback)
 
Percy Jackson once again manages to somehow blow up another school, and as usual, is grateful that it’s summer vacation so he can go hide out in Camp Half-Blood. Really, mortal troubles are the least of his problems when there’s possibly another war with the Titans approaching. During a game of Capture The Flag at camp, Percy and Annabeth stumble upon an entrance to the Labyrinth — an enormous underground maze that spans pretty much the entire country. Their worst fears are realized when they find out that Luke — their enemy — already knows about the Labyrinth and they worry that he will use it invade the camp with his army. The only thing probably stopping him is the fact that the Labyrinth is so complicated, people have gone mad trying to find their way out of it. Percy and his friends decide they still can’t take any risks, so they seek out Daedalus, the maker of the Labyrinth, to try to persuade him to not help Luke. Problem is, Daedalus lives inside the Labyrinth …

That’s pretty much the plot in a nutshell. Truth be told, I didn’t find this book that fun to read, unlike the previous ones in this series. I haven’t read book five yet, but I’m pretty sure The Battle of the Labyrinth is the weakest book in the series. For one, it was really long. I know what you’re thinking: “Uh, you’ve read thousand page books before, and you’re complaining about a 360 page book?” Um … yes. If you have enough of an interesting story, page number doesn’t matter, but for the story this book told, I feel it dragged on a little too long. Many parts felt sluggish and slow, and honestly, their adventure in the Labyrinth wasn’t as adventuresome as it could have been. I pretty much ho-hummed my way through.

Another reason I didn’t find this book as awesome as its predecessors is the fact that this book utilized a lot of visions and dreams on Percy’s part in order to tell events that happening to other characters elsewhere. It’s cool to use it once or twice, but I just felt like a lot of crucial background information scenes were being told through Percy having a dream, or being sent a vision by a mysterious benefactor, and it was all a little too convenient.

But of course, if you’re reading this series, you’re going to have to eventually read this book. It’s by no means terrible, but when the first three books are generally really awesome, you may find The Battle of the Labyrinth a bit underwhelming. On the bright side, the next — and final — book of the series is, according to my friend, really good and one of her favourites, so I am looking forward to reading it and finding out what happens between Olympus, the Titans, and Percy in the finale.

My Rating: 2.5/5

The Titan's Curse

This post first published May 4, 2011.

Author: Rick Riordan
Published: 2007
Publisher: Hyperion
Series: Percy Jackson & The Olympians #3
312 pages (paperback)
 
Books one and two were the beginnings of an epic adventure and were stepping stones to a larger story. In book three, The Titan’s Curse, the series’ plot really starts to unfold itself. This is, so far, my favourite book in the series. There was a real sense of saving-the-world, a real epic feeling involved in this book.

In book three, Percy, Annabeth and new companion Thalia are scouting out two possible new half-blood recruits, Nico and Bianca. With the help of Artemis, the Goddess of the Hunt, and her band of Hunters, they manage to temporarily ward off the dangerous servant of Kronos who tried to stop them. Afterwards, Artemis leaves on her own to hunt down a dangerous monster believed to have the power to destroy Mount Olympus, but to everybody’s horror, Artemis becomes kidnapped! Percy and his friends must find Artemis, and quickly, before the Winter Solstice, when the gods and goddesses of Mount Olympus gather together to decide on how they will deal with the impending second war with the Titans.

There’s definitely something different about this book compared to the first two. Oh, it is definitely just as funny and adventurous, but something about the plot made it not quite as light hearted as The Lightning Thief or The Sea of Monsters. Like I mentioned before, I think starting with this book, the series’ plot’s complexities are starting to be revealed; that Percy’s story is not as simple as going from Quest A to Quest B. The first two books dealt with minor adventures; this third book reveals that there is something way more sinister working in the background. Because of that, there is a greater sense of urgency and seriousness that the characters must take on. The climax of the story, in particular, was an incredibly epic battle. As usual, things happened in the fight that made me laugh or snicker, but I think overall, this has been one of the more serious scenes in the series thus far. I mean, there were real deaths in this book!

The characters certainly have matured, if only by a little bit. The characters are what, fourteen years old by now? Love and romance is definitely starting to poke its head through, to become a theme. More importantly though, loyalty and friendship shine through. Throughout the novel, Percy has to cope with thinking he has lost friends, and what he could have done, or can do now, to help them. Of course, he has always cared about his friends before, but there is something more mature in the way he is tackling the situation now. I think this is most exemplified when Percy is told that his fatal flaw as a hero are his loved ones.

The only thing that bothered me was Thalia’s introduction and to some extent, her role. In book two, it ended off on a cliffhanger — Thalia, daughter of Zeus, has been “brought back alive”. I guess I expected some sort of flashback at least that explained how Percy and Annabeth handled the whole situation initially now that the daughter of Zeus is among them, but The Titan’s Curse opened up in such a way that it felt like Thalia has been adventuring with Percy since book one, like she’s always been there and is not a new addition to Percy’s posse. Then, at the end of this book, Thalia basically decides she’s not going to adventure with Percy anymore. So I guess what bugged me was that Thalia was a main character for one book, possibly as a replacement for Annabeth, who was missing for the majority of the novel, and now that Annabeth has returned, Thalia conveniently finds a reason to remove herself from the main action. I guess I expected more from the daughter of Zeus.

Anyway, to sum it all up — The Titan’s Curse is definitely one of the best installments of this series :) If you are reading this series as well, I’m sure book three will rank somewhere in the top for you as well. I’m really excited to start on book four now!

My Rating: 4/5

The Sea Of Monsters

This post first published on May 4, 2011.

Author: Rick Riordan
Published: 2006
Publisher: Miramax
Series: Percy Jackson & The Olympians #2
279 pages (paperback)
 
Finally, finally, finally. These books are so popular at my library that I never even see them on the bookshelves, but on my last library trip, I finally saw them: books two through four. I would have grabbed all the way to book seven five (sorry, was thinking of Harry Potter) if they had it, but they didn’t, but still, I’m glad I’m finally able to continue reading this fun and cute story :)

In this second installment of the series, I am reintroduced to the lively and colourful world of the urbanized Greek gods and goddesses. And Percy Jackson, of course. It’s the last day of seventh grade for Percy and his new, misunderstood friend Tyson, and Percy hopes for the day to go smoothly so that he may go back to Camp Half-Blood for the summer. However, this is Percy, and of course, nothing ever goes smoothly for him. It turns out he may not get a chance to go back to the camp … possibly forever. Camp Half-Blood is in great danger: the magical tree of Thalia that protects the camp has been poisoned and is slowly but surely dying. Percy is determined to find a cure for the tree, or else the only place on earth where it is safe for a demigod to be — the only place where Percy has ever felt he belonged — will be gone.

The thing with the Percy Jackson books, that I feel like I must stress over and over again (because my friends give me the raised eyebrow whenever I say I’m reading the Percy Jackson books), is that it’s not “serious” at all like the movie portrayed it to be. These are humourous children’s (or tween) books that border on the silly side of things. So, my general thoughts about this book when I finished it were that it was fun and lighthearted, much like the first. I didn’t like it as much as the first book, but still a very enjoyable read!

In comparison to the first book, I felt the plot in this second installment was a bit less epic. From fighting the Titan lord Kronos in book one, to sailing in a ship to find the Golden Fleece to save Thalia’s tree in book two … well, you can see how one plot just seems more epic than the other. Not that the plot was in this book was bad or anything; I just mean, in relation. This book is probably just a stepping stone to the larger plot, maybe. I’m totally expecting a lot more from the next books in the series now! Considering how the book ended, I feel The Sea of Monsters is really acting as a bridge to connect book one to book three.

Anyway, if you have any sense of humour at all, I’m sure you’ll find this book hilarious. I mean, what do we have here? Cannibalistic giants with names like Joe Bob; the most adorable baby cyclops (who is also six feet three inches tall); a hippocampi (horse-fish hybrid animal) named Rainbow; a bunch of centaurs throwing a party and wearing T-shirts that say “Party Ponies”; a spa resort that turns men into guinea pigs (because actual pigs take up too much room) … I can go on and on, but you see what I mean about this book just being good fun, right? Some books I really need to concentrate when I read; others, like this book, I just have a blast.

The ending was interesting, actually. I didn’t expect a cliffhanger sort of ending because, if my memory serves me correctly, the first book didn’t end in a cliffhanger. I’m pretty sure it didn’t because I had no real desire to locate a copy of book two right away. But The Sea of Monsters ends in such a way that I am super curious to find out what happens next — and luckily, I have the third book sitting right next to me! I won’t spoil the ending, but let’s just say that the prophecy that involves Percy Jackson may or may not have become extra complicated due to recent events … haha. Actually, kind of reminds me of Harry Potter and his own prophecy. Ooooh, we’ll see what happens.

Expect a post about The Battle of the Labyrinth — HAHA oops, I meant The Titan’s Curse! — soon!

My Rating: 3/5

Sushi For Beginners

This post first published February 20, 2011.

Author: Marian Keyes
Published: 2003
Publisher: Penguin Books
426 pages (paperback)
 
This book took me forever to get through. It’s not that it was boring; it was alright, but just never quite interesting enough to hold onto my attention for longer than a few chapters.

If you’ve seen chick flicks such as Love, Actually or He’s Just Not That Into You, then you’ll understand the sort of structure this story has with its characters. There’s a bunch of main characters and they each have their own individual stories that somehow overlap with one another. Everyone is connected to everyone one way or another. Granted, this book has less characters than those movies I named, but you get the picture.
Anyway, because of this, it’s kind of hard to give a general plot overview but basically, there are three main female characters, and a whole bunch of secondary characters. The three main female characters — Ashling, Lisa and Clodagh — each are having different troubles in their romantic lives.

This book is about their troubles building up and eventually hitting a climax. Ashling — assistant editor of Colleen magazine — is a hard worker, but has trouble finding the right boyfriend for her. Lisa is Ashling’s boss (and therefore, editor of the magazine) and is more or less a complete bitch, encouraging her husband (whom she’s been separated for a year or so now) to divorce her, even though she is still madly in love with him. Lastly, Clodagh is Ashling’s friend and is married with two children. To everyone else she has the perfect family life, but Clodagh is horribly bored.

An issue I had with this book was that I never seemed to know where the plot was taking me. I mean, to be honest, I had a hard time putting my finger on what exactly the overall plot was, as I was reading. That’s not to say I found the book confusing or boring; it’s just that there’s nothing for me to anticipate and I had no expectations while reading the book, so I found it difficult to remain interested for long periods of time. I’d be mildly entertained for a few chapters, but found it incredibly easy to put the book down if I wanted to; this book had little addictiveness to me.

I personally didn’t find it that funny even though it’s categorized as humorous, though I admit it’s a little witty. Letting the story digest in my head for a few hours now, I think overall, this is a good, decent novel, but nothing really that special. It was a pleasant read, but nothing so amazing that you feel you just have to find out what happens next.

The characters were wonderful, I do have to say. Though I have probably nothing in common with most of the characters (them being thirty plus year old career women or married women and me … not), I think love and romance is one of those things nearly all women can easily relate to, as well as having to deal with crushes, unpleasant people, break-ups, etc. While I didn’t become attached to any of the characters, it was fun to read about their shenanigans, haha. Anyway, this was an alright book; I would try another book by this author.

PS. This book has very little to do with actual sushi, haha. Most of the characters are unfamiliar with sushi, actually. I think it’s used as a metaphor for trying new things in life :)

My Rating: 2.5/5

Shopaholic Takes Manhattan

This post first published February 6, 2011.

Author: Sophie Kinsella
Published: 2002
Publisher: Dial Press Trade Paperback
Series: Shopaholic #2
323 pages (paperback)
 
So, I’ve read the first book of the Shopaholic series (Confessions of a Shopaholic) and the 5th (Shopaholic and Baby). If you’ve read both my posts on those books, you’ll remember that I loved the first one but wasn’t too happy with the 5th one. Well, I decided to read all the books in between, and just finished book number two — Shopaholic Takes Manhattan (US title) or Shopaholic Abroad (UK title).

In this book, Becky Bloomwood has just started dating successful entrepreneur Luke Brandon (they got together near the end of book one), and is having a very successful career giving financial advice on the television show Morning Coffee (which is ironic, she knows). Last book, she’s paid off all her debts, but it seems Becky’s spending habits are just too hard to break, and she’s already in debt all over again. However, she’s convinced herself that everything will be okay and doesn’t really worry about it — though you’d think she’d learn her lesson from the first time she did that. However, it’s Becky, so it’s kind of expected of her, haha.

Anyway, Luke is looking to expand his PR company to America, specifically New York, and asks Becky if she would come with him. If the deal goes through, the two of them will likely end up living in New York. Becky agrees, and once she is in New York, she feels she has found her “homeland”. She visits all the most famous New York department stores, drools over all the brand name shops, freaks out over a street lined with nothing but shoe stores  … Becky has found the place where she belongs. As she gives her credit cards a mighty work out, she doesn’t realize how her spending is affecting her image back in London, and how that, in turn, is going to affect Luke’s business deal.
I’m so happy that this book is as great as the first one, and not as cliche and over-the-top as the fifth one. I mean, of course there is drama in this book. It’s chick-lit, there’s always crazy drama. But this book’s plot is more in tune with that of the first Shopaholic book, which I really loved, so I’m happy to say I really loved this book too. It’s funny and witty and I think one of my favourite lines is, “If the American economy can be billions of dollars in debt and still survive, you can survive too!” Not an exact quote, but you get the idea. Haha, I don’t know why but that’s my favourite line.

Spoilers alert! — The ending was a little meh for me. Luke tries to win Becky back as she boards the plane to America, planning to leave the UK (forever?) but Becky rejects him. Okay. But then we get this little epilogue-ish chapter at the end, where it’s two months later, and Luke appears at Becky’s new job and asks to get together with her again. This time she accepts. I mean, yeah, I know this is completely possible in real life and all, but it all came off a bit strange to me, to say no first during the climax of the plot, but then have her change her mind in the last chapter. Not a HUGE deal or anything, just my personal feelings towards the ending. — End spoilers!

Overall, a really funny and optimistic story that I think anyone could enjoy (though probably more women than men, heh). I’m excited to read the third book, in which Becky gets married, mainly because I think Luke and Becky make a cute couple, even if Luke seems strangely too perfect at times, but anyway, I hope it retains the same fun and quality that the first two books have!

My Rating: 5/5

The Sweetness At The Bottom Of The Pie

This post first published on September 28, 2010.

Author: Alan Bradley
Published: 2009
Publisher: Bantam
Series: ‘Flavia de Luce’ #1
373 pages (paperback)
 
So I’m reading this series a bit backwards since I already read the second book before I read this one, but lucky for me, this isn’t the kind of series where you must read them in order since each book can stand as its own story.

The Sweetness At The Bottom Of The Pie is the first novel with our dear protagonist Flavia, and if I’m not mistaken, the author’s first mystery novel. Flavia is a brilliant 11 year old girl, living in the 1950’s, with a passion for chemistry. Her mother, Harriet, died when she was a baby, and so it is just her, her two sisters Daphne and Ophelia (who seem to despise Flavia) and their stamp-collecting-obsessed father. On a seemingly ordinary day, their housekeeper finds a dead bird on their doorsteps, a stamp pierced through its beak. Next thing you know, Flavia is stumbling into a dead body in their cucumber garden! Rather than screaming her head off and running away like you would imagine an eleven year old girl to do, Flavia believes this moment to be the most exciting thing to ever have happened in her life. Curiosity getting the better of her, she sets out to determine who this stranger is and how he ended up dead on de Luce property.

Despite the protagonist being an 11 year old girl, this is not a children’s book. Not that there’s anything terribly ‘adult’ in the book (well, murder, for one …), but I’m just pointing that out. Anyway, I adore Flavia. I think she is really the ‘thing’ that makes this book (and the second one as well) work so well. She is quirky, clever and oh so slightly snobby since she knows she’s smarter than most people (especially her sisters), but in the charmingly arrogant way of children who think they know everything, not in a “Omg-she’s-so-cocky” way, if that makes any sense. She tends to run off on tangents when talking about matters, but it is almost always funny how she does so, then mentions how it was totally relevant to whatever she was talking about before.

For me, Flavia is the reason I kept reading this book. Not to say that the mystery isn’t good or anything because it is, it just wouldn’t be anywhere as good (though I liked the plot of this mystery more than the one in the second book). Ignoring the characters for a second, the basic plot is good, but there’s really nothing that amazing about it without Flavia. It’s my belief that Flavia’s eccentricty is what gives this novel its uniqueness.

A storytelling issue I had was when the characters would sit down with Flavia and explain huge backstories or divulge parts of the mystery to her that I feel she should be out solving, but instead she gets handed to on a silver platter. For example, she finds out the whole history between her father and the victim of the murder when her father explains it to her (which took a whole chapter to do). Being given an explanation to a part of the mystery isn’t as exciting as discovering it, I must say. I don’t remember this happening in book two, at least not to the extent it happened in this book. But none of that bothers me as much as this: in the book there is a little rhyme: “Unless some sweetness at the bottom lie / Who cares for all the crinkling of the pie?” that Flavia does not understand. It pops up a few times in the book and each time Flavia still doesn’t understand it, but at the end of the novel, it is never mentioned again and Flavia never figures it out, which kind of drove me crazy (I don’t understand it really either).

Regardless, I did enjoy this book very much and it is one I would recommend. Flavia, Flavia, Flavia. She is just such an amazing character and I would definitely continue reading more books in this series.

My Rating: 4/5

The Lightning Thief

This post originally published on September 13, 2010.

Author: Rick Riordan
Published: 2005
Publisher: Miramax
Series: Percy Jackson & the Olympians #1
375 pages (paperback)
 
Twelve year old Percy Jackson is about to be expelled from school again. Somehow he always gets in trouble at whichever boarding school his mom sends him to, and his ADHD and dyslexia doesn’t make things any easier. As hard as it is to believe, being expelled is the least of his worries. Lately the weather is acting strangely and creepy monsters seem to be following him. His best friend turns out to be a satyr, his mother disappears in a flash of light in a “car accident” and, oh by the way, he also finds out his father is Poseidon, the Greek god of the seas.

A lot of people compare this series to the Harry Potter series. There are definitely similarities, but the differences outweigh them greatly. For one, Harry Potter has a constant element of “seriousness” in it, whereas Percy Jackson & The Olympians is all humor and fun. The Lightning Thief stars an impulsive and somewhat cynical boy who gets thrown into a myriad of hilarious situations while trying to unfold a mystery: Someone has stolen Zeus’ master lightning bolt and is trying to frame Percy and Poseidon for it. In an effort to clear his own name, Percy embarks on a journey with his satyr best friend Grover and another demigod (or “half blood”), Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena, to the entrance of the Underworld (located in … Los Angelos!) to confront Hades, who they believe is the thief. Percy is a likable main character who almost always has something funny to say, although most of the time he isn’t trying to be intentionally funny. He’s extremely fluent in sarcasm.

A lot of places (such as my local library) have this book in the Young Adults section, but I seriously think it’s more of a children’s book (age 10+ maybe). I’ve never seen the movie, but the trailer makes the story appear to be “serious”. It’s not. The plot is charmingly juvenile in many ways; for example, the scene where Percy and his friends walk into a water-bed shop only to be captured by the crazy salesman who ties them to the water-beds and tries stretch their bodies to the exact length of the bed. It’s something a younger person would find funny (I found it amusing, probably because I’m a kid at heart but I know some people will probably just roll their eyes). Anyway, the plot is funny and is intended to be silly (at least, I think so) and moves at a decently brisk pace.

If you like Greek mythology, and don’t mind the idea of ‘modernizing’ them (think Ares on a motorcycle, or Poseidon dressed in a Hawaiian shirt and carrying a fishing pole), then you’ll probably like this book. Greek mythology isn’t all togas and white pillars and people sitting around on clouds in the sky in this series. I found this book to be a fun, fast read and I can’t wait to read the next one in the series.

My Rating: 3.5/5