Page to Screen: The Host by Stephenie Meyer

March 28, 2013 by 3 Comments

The Book
After having loved the Twilight books so much, I was actually a little hesitant to read The Host back in 2008. As a matter of fact, the only reason I even bought a copy was to be able to attend Stephenie Meyer’s signing and I didn’t plan to read it for a while. I don’t know what compelled me to open it up, but I soon found myself completely immersed in the book. I love alien stuff, and though admittedly these aren’t the aliens I usually want to read about (gimme the creepy!), I came to truly love Stephenie Meyer’s story. I can tell you now that I have re-read this book so many times that the spine is actually falling apart.

Though the first few chapters were a little slow moving for me, once Wanderer got to the desert I was all in. I loved the conflict between Wanderer and Melanie because they were so different and it was interesting to read how they handled being in one body. While Wanderer is so peaceful and such a pacifist, Melanie is more fiery and rash — mainly because she’s doing all she can to protect Jared and Jamie. Melanie’s presence is (almost) always there, but Wanderer is the central focus and I enjoyed falling in love with Earth and the humans along with her. Another highlight was learning about her past lives. Other readers may be disappointed by how light the sci-fi elements are in The Host, but I personally enjoyed how accessible it was and there were enough details about the other worlds to allow a vivid picture.

Since this is a Stephenie Meyer story, yes, there is plenty of romance to go around. From the summary I went into the book expecting a love triangle between Melanie/Jared/Wanderer and that was true. Kind of. Yes, having access to all of Melanie’s memories, Wanderer did grow to have feelings for Jared and, yes, Jared did have all sorts of conflict due to having Melanie’s body in close proximity. Plus, you know, Melanie is still in there and she has plenty to say about what Wanderer is feeling, mixed in with her own turmoil of Jared being out of reach to her. OH THE DRAMA. That was all great and dandy, but then came the unexpected in the shape of a human: Ian O’Shea. The book has been out for years, and he’s popped up enough in the movie promotional material, but I still feel kind of spoilery even mentioning him so I will just say the following: he is one of my absolute favorite characters and he completely took me by surprise.

Stephenie Meyer gets a lot of criticism for this and that, but I love how she tells a story. She had me hooked with both Twilight and The Host and I know I’ll be reading any of her books in the future.

The Movie
I was able to see the movie at an early screening a few weeks back, and now that I’ve had time to sit on my thoughts, I have to say that I’m not too in love with it. It wasn’t bad in any way, and I do think it was better than the Twilight films, but it didn’t excite me in the way that I hoped it would. The cast was great, and I loved the final scene with Melanie and Wanderer, but I feel that certain parts and character growth were rushed. I know they can’t include ALL THE THINGS in a film adaptation (dammit!) but I do wish there had been more heart to the story, like in the book. Would I recommend it? Yeah, probably, especially if you’re a fan of the book, but overall I think it was rather forgettable. (Still, Stephenie Meyer needs to write the sequel asap so I can have more of Ian in the books and see more of Max Irons’s face in the movies, thanks.)

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Book Review: The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead

March 4, 2013 by 4 Comments

Title by Author The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead
Release Date: February 12, 2013
Publisher: Razorbill
Source: Purchased
Rating: ★★★★★ 
Buy It: Amazon | Book Depository

In the aftermath of a forbidden moment that rocked Sydney to her core, she finds herself struggling to draw the line between her Alchemist teachings and what her heart is urging her to do. Then she meets alluring, rebellious Marcus Finch–a former Alchemist who escaped against all odds, and is now on the run. Marcus wants to teach Sydney the secrets he claims the Alchemists are hiding from her. But as he pushes her to rebel against the people who raised her, Sydney finds that breaking free is harder than she thought. There is an old and mysterious magic rooted deeply within her. And as she searches for an evil magic user targeting powerful young witches, she realizes that her only hope is to embrace her magical blood–or else she might be next.
– Goodreads

Review:
Hello everyone, this review is from me as a ghost because I DIED when reading The Indigo Spell. While Richelle Mead is no stranger to evoking strong feelings from me (seriously, have you read Shadow Kiss?!), this latest installment of the Bloodlines series was a different type of monster. Don’t be surprised if this review is even more of rambling mess than usual because where to even start?! Paragraphs won’t suffice so here are some bullet points:

• Richelle Mead wasted no time in delivering the fun. I certainly did not expect to be grinning from ear to ear, as big as I was, within the first thirty pages, but there I was. This was a recurring theme throughout the rest of the book, too. Although Richelle Mead definitely knows how to write drama, what I love the most about her books is how she effortlessly infuses humor into them. I’ve felt sucker punched while reading her books, so I always go in with some trepidation, but I was basically a giddy mess reading The Indigo Spell.

• FAMILIAR FACES. As brief as their scenes may have been, I LOVED seeing favorites from Vampire Academy make a cameo. I love the current cast of characters so much, but the VA group definitely brings the fuzzy feeling of nostalgia.

• The mystery storyline had my suspicions all over the place. While some things played out like I thought they would, other directions took me by surprise. I must admit that the mysteries aren’t usually a highlight for me, but I actually enjoyed this one a lot because Sydney stepped up to the plate and is becoming quite the bad ass in her own way.

• Sydney’s character has grown so much and I love her more with each book. Beliefs that were once deeply rooted in her have evolved and, though she continues to struggle with what she was taught versus what she knows now, Sydney has become her own person away from the Alchemist teachings. At this point I fear re-education SO much, but I guess I’ll freak out more when (and if) that happens.

• The swoon! THE SWOON. I’ve been known to slam books shut when they fill me with rage, but Richelle Mead had me doing that with the tension between Adrian and Sydney. TOO HOT TO HANDLE. They make such a fantastic team, their banter was ridiculously good, and…THE KISSING. It was the stuff dreams are made of (for sure in Adrian’s case). They are the reason I am dead.

The Indigo Spell has it all AND THEN SOME. Drama, romance, mystery, the usual, and then also: new fraternities, dragons, pie, the return of the pirate skeleton and much, much more. This is my new favorite from Richelle Mead and I can’t wait to see how she tops this one when The Fiery Heart is released.

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Book Review: If I Lie by Corrine Jackson

February 19, 2013 by 8 Comments

If I Lie by Corrine Jackson If I Lie by Corrine Jackson
Release Date: August 28, 2012
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Source: Purchased
Rating: ★★★★★ 
Buy It: Amazon | Book Depository

Quinn’s done the unthinkable: she kissed a guy who is not Carey, her boyfriend. And she got caught. Being branded a cheater would be bad enough, but Quinn is deemed a traitor, and shunned by all of her friends. Because Carey’s not just any guy—he’s serving in Afghanistan and revered by everyone in their small, military town.

Quinn could clear her name, but that would mean revealing secrets that she’s vowed to keep—secrets that aren’t hers to share. And when Carey goes MIA, Quinn must decide how far she’ll go to protect her boyfriend…and her promise. – Goodreads

Review:
I have to admit that I struggled with parts of Corrine Jackson’s If I Lie. No, it wasn’t because it was dull or badly written in any way, but it was very hard to not feel an overwhelming sadness for the main character, Quinn. She’s stuck in a difficult situation, caught between loyalty and the truth, and I am not exaggerating when I say that this book HURT.

When If I Lie opens up, Quinn has already been ostracized and horribly bullied by her school peers for cheating on her boyfriend, Carey. Her friends have turned their backs on her and then Carey goes MIA, which only makes things harder for her. If this had been any other book I would have expected Quinn to go crying into some guy’s shoulder and for the book’s pages to be filled with their love story, blah blah blah. It goes to show that I always expect the worst from a lot of contemporary reads, but Corrine Jackson pleasantly surprised me by not losing sight of Quinn’s individual journey. Quinn’s home life isn’t very easy, either. Her mother walked out on her family several years before and her father is closed off, almost seeming to hate Quinn for her mother’s mistakes. Between her family and friends, Quinn is very much alone and I cried for all that she had to endure. I don’t know if I could have withheld the truth like Quinn did, but I definitely admired her selflessness.

If I Lie doesn’t have a happily ever after ending, but it does have an honest conclusion. The pain doesn’t magically go away, there’s a loss of trust, and all ties aren’t mended, but there’s growth and the opportunity to find the strength to move on. Corrine Jackson’s If I Lie is raw and often painful, but it will get under your skin and have you thinking about it for days after.

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Book Review: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

February 4, 2013 by 5 Comments

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
Release Date: February 5, 2013
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Source: ALA 2012
Rating: ★★★★★ 
Buy It: Amazon | Book Depository

Cinder returns in the second thrilling installment of the New York Times-bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She’s trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she’ll be the Commonwealth’s most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit’s grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn’t know about her grandmother and the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother’s whereabouts, she has no choice but to trust him, though he clearly has a few dark secrets of his own.

As Scarlet and Wolf work to unravel one mystery, they find another when they cross paths with Cinder. Together, they must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen who will do anything to make Prince Kai her husband, her king, her prisoner. – Goodreads

Review:
After having loved Cinder so much, I was left with grabby hands for the rest of the books in the Lunar Chronicles series. It should be no surprise that Marissa Meyer did it again: just like with her twists to the original Cinderella fairytale in Cinder, she made Red Riding Hood her own in Scarlet and, hell, she made this installment even BETTER than the last. Seriously, Marissa Meyer stepped up her game and made Scarlet such a thrilling ride to experience.

Initially I was a little worried about reading Scarlet because I had grown attached to Cinder, Kai, and everyone else in the first book, so much. Would I be able to invest myself the same way with a new cast of characters? By the first chapter Marissa Meyer had me going, “Yes, I can!” Scarlet is different from Cinder, but she’s equally awesome.. As she unraveled the mystery of her grandmother’s disappearance, she displayed just how capable and strong she was; I completely admired her loyalty and tenacity.

And the boys! Wolf and Thorne are such a contrast to the other, but I fell in love with them both. How do you do it, Marissa Meyer? WHO ELSE DO YOU HAVE UP YOUR SLEEVE? I WANT TO MEET THEM. Really, though, Wolf was so mysterious and, as hard as it was for him, I loved the conflict he experienced. The uncertainty between him and Scarlet was so, so good and I loved their progression in the book. As for Thorne, I was sold on him immediately. He’s such a vibrant character, has so much swagger, and I found myself completely delighted by him and his humor. MORE THORNE.

I didn’t have to worry about missing Cinder, Kai, Iko, etc, so much because Marissa Meyer included them in Scarlet. Woohoo! With Cinder, she’s the second main POV in the book so it was great to not be left in the dark about what was going on with her. The bigger picture is coming into focus and I’m so excited for it!

Scarlet was pretty much a perfect sequel because it had everything I loved about the first book and THEN SOME. The stakes were higher, there was energy on every page, Marissa Meyer infused humor effortlessly, and she had my heart racing through several scenes. Those grabby hands after Cinder? They’ve made a return after the end of Scarlet and I’m so sad that Cress and Winter seem forever away.

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Book Review: Prodigy by Marie Lu

January 28, 2013 by 4 Comments

Prodigy by Marie Lu Prodigy by Marie Lu
Release Date: January 29, 2013
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Source: BEA 2012
Rating: ★★★★★ 
Buy It: Amazon | Book Depository

June and Day arrive in Vegas just as the unthinkable happens: the Elector Primo dies, and his son Anden takes his place. With the Republic edging closer to chaos, the two join a group of Patriot rebels eager to help Day rescue his brother and offer passage to the Colonies. They have only one request—June and Day must assassinate the new Elector.

It’s their chance to change the nation, to give voice to a people silenced for too long.

But as June realizes this Elector is nothing like his father, she’s haunted by the choice ahead. What if Anden is a new beginning? What if revolution must be more than loss and vengeance, anger and blood—what if the Patriots are wrong?

In this highly-anticipated sequel, Lu delivers a breathtaking thriller with high stakes and cinematic action – Goodreads

Review:
Alright, so while I think I preferred Legend to this one, Prodigy wasn’t lacking in any way. Marie Lu easily allowed me to slip back into June and Day’s world and, wow, it was such a journey with them as they had to make difficult decisions and reaffirm their trust for one another.

June and Day are apart for most of the book, but it didn’t really feel that way to me because they have such a strong presence in each other’s lives that they always think about the other in a team mentality (and as more, too, of course). Their separate journeys are meant to lead to the common goal of assassinating the new Elector, Anden, but they couldn’t be more different. While June finds herself in the familiarity of the Republic, Day learns more about the ins and outs of the Patriots and their rebel operations.

Marie Lu continued to effortlessly switch between Day and June’s POVs and did a great job keeping me invested in both characters. While I’m usually so against POV changes, it actually works well for this series. In Prodigy, the narration switch moved the story forward and added urgency because they were both experiencing very different situations. Not only were the political aspects a contrast to each other, but it allowed me to be privy to what the other character wasn’t which, in turn, had me going “!!!!!!!” inside.

The romantic developments in Prodigy are…interesting. As mentioned, Day and June spend a lot of the book separated, but their scenes together had me loving them all over again. However, they did have other people step into the picture. I won’t get into specific spoilers, but I will say this: I could understand the romantic interest that June had, but Day’s? Ehhh, not into it and seemed to come out of nowhere for me.

Overall, Prodigy is a must-read and the ending had me going, “WOAHHH.” I fear Marie Lu will break my heart in the final installment of the series, but I’m sure I’ll love every word of it.

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