Review: Eleanor & Park

Eleanor & Park, by Rainbow Rowell. The GoodReads summary:

"Bono met his wife in high school," Park says.
"So did Jerry Lee Lewis," Eleanor answers.
"I’m not kidding," he says.
"You should be," she says, "we’re sixteen."
"What about Romeo and Juliet?"
"Shallow, confused, then dead."
''I love you," Park says.
"Wherefore art thou," Eleanor answers.
"I’m not kidding," he says.
"You should be."

Set over the course of one school year in 1986, ELEANOR AND PARK is the story of two star-crossed misfits – smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. When Eleanor meets Park, you’ll remember your own first love – and just how hard it pulled you under.

Don’t get me wrong—this was a good book. Really. It’s just that it was kind of depressing. And by “kind of,” I mean “totally.” Not depressing in the “people die” kind of way, but depressing in the “wow, her life really, really sucks and the author doesn’t try to let you down easy” kind of way. In the Sara Zarr kind of way. And I didn’t realize that going in, and I wasn’t exactly in the mood for it either. So I’ll just admit up front that I didn’t totally love this book, but I’ll also acknowledge that it was an “it’s not you, it’s me” situation. Because, it was really well-written. Truly. I just wanted something happier at that particular moment.

Anyway, contrary to what you may expect from my explanations above, I actually had a hard time putting this book down. I ended up staying up waaay longer than planned because I HAD to keep reading. Part of it was because I wanted to know what was going to happen next. Part of it was because I admired the way the author told the story. But mostly it was because I couldn’t bear to leave Eleanor alone. Her life is SO hard, and I didn’t want Eleanor to have to bear it on her own, you know? I wanted to be there for her in the only way I could.

Speaking of Eleanor, she wasn’t what I expected. I’m not sure exactly what I was expecting, but it wasn’t her strange clothes, crazy hair, prickly attitude, or insecurities. But neither was it her ability to endure, her lack of complaints about her horrible situation, or her tentative joy at falling in love. And really, watching Eleanor fall in love was one of the best things about this book. She’s not used to happiness, and when she finds it, she wears it like an ill-fitting coat at first. Well, more than just at first. She never even gets close to comfortable with finally getting something good. She struggles to not feel as happy and in love as she is because she’s confident it won’t last. But she can’t help herself. And I loved that.

Park is the opposite of Eleanor. After a bumpy start, he jumps head first into loving her. He has his own issues, but he’s not worn down by life like Eleanor, so he’s able to approach their relationship with enough openness and eagerness for them both. And while his belief that nothing can ever come between them is naive, it's a naivete I wanted to protect. I didn't want him to have to grow out that beautifully optimistic conviction the hard way.

You see? Plenty of things to like about this book. I just wasn’t really in the mood for it, especially since I was expecting something different. But now you’ve been forewarned and forearmed, and you can read it and appreciate it more than I did.

Rating: Um . . . no idea. I guess 4 in terms of quality, but 3.5 in terms of how much I enjoyed it.

Review: Sabriel

Sabriel, by Garth Nix. The GoodReads summary:

Sent to a boarding school in Ancelstierre as a young child, Sabriel has had little experience with the random power of Free Magic or the Dead who refuse to stay dead in the Old Kingdom. But during her final semester, her father, the Abhorsen, goes missing, and Sabriel knows she must enter the Old Kingdom to find him. She soon finds companions in Mogget, a cat whose aloof manner barely conceals its malevolent spirit, and Touchstone, a young Charter Mage long imprisoned by magic, now free in body but still trapped by painful memories. As the three travel deep into the Old Kingdom, threats mount on all sides. And every step brings them closer to a battle that will pit them against the true forces of life and death—and bring Sabriel face-to-face with her own destiny.

This book has sat on the bookshelf at my parents’ house for I don’t know how long, and I always thought about picking it up, but the cover inevitably turned me off. So when “Sabriel” came up as the book club selection for this month, I was pretty excited since it gave me a reason to finally buckle down and read it. And now I’ve been reminded for roughly the thousandth time that I shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.

One of the first things that drew me into the story was the world building. It’s just really well done. See, the country’s divided into two parts: Ancelstierre, which in my mind is like a 1930s England, and the Old Kingdom, which is across the Wall and has the typical fantasy Middle Ages-y feel. So the combination of those two places already had me fascinated, and when you add to that dead creatures that don't stay dead and a necromancer who puts the dead to rest rather than bringing them back to life, I was hooked. And really, those things are just the tip of the iceberg of the world building the author does. Because there are also all these other aspects, like Charter Magic and Free Magic and the world of the dead, that I just don’t have time to go into.

Sabriel as a main character is truly awesome. She’s not sure what’s going on half the time, but she soldiers on anyway and faces challenges and freaky dead creatures with a courage, determination, and levelheadedness not often found in YA. And I loved that even after she meets Touchstone, a royal guard with a secret, Sabriel remains focused and clear-headed. She doesn’t get sappy or dreamy or whatnot—she keeps her eye on her goal.

Actually, in retrospect, I’m not sure if I’m convinced Touchstone is a strong enough character to be Sabriel’s match. I understand why he’s a bit unsure of himself, but I definitely felt like Sabriel was his superior rather than him being her equal. Plus, I didn’t feel like there was enough emotion written into the book for me to really understand Sabriel and Touchstone’s relationship. I kinda want to just blame that on the fact that the book’s written by a male author, but that’s probably not entirely fair. Either way, though, I could've done with a few more feelings to go along with all the action. Though I guess the way its written makes it a more bracing story than it would've been with teenage emotions and hormones tempering the action.

Besides the whole Touchstone issue, my only other problem with the book is the ending. There was absolutely no post-climax resolution. There wasn’t any time for me to catch my breath. It just went from a super suspenseful scene directly into a short epilogue. And I could understand that method if it was supposed to be a cliffhanger for the next book, but I’m under the impression that the second book changes main characters and has a different focus than “Sabriel.” So I was left feeling like the resolution was a bit lacking.

And before I finish up this review, I just have to say, MOGGET. I’m a cat person, so maybe I’m a little biased, but he’s seriously the best.

Overall, a well-written fantasy that kept me turning the pages. There were a few things I wish were done differently, but generally I liked it a lot and will most likely be reading the rest of the series.

Rating: 4 / 5

Review: The Indigo Spell

The Indigo Spell (Bloodlines #3), by Richelle Mead. The GoodReads summary:

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.

I’m sure you’ve heard me say this before, but I’m not very good at reviewing subsequent books in a series. I always feel like I’ve already said everything I have to say about the series in the previous reviews, and unless the newest installment is either much better or much worse than the others, I always struggle to find anything different to say. So I’m going to do my best, but no promises.

Basically, yep, I still like this series. I still like the characters, and I appreciate how Sydney and Adrian both continue to develop, though Sydney has to struggle more to make her strides than Adrian does in this book. I felt like Adrian was actually rather un-Adrian-like this time around—no tantrums, no spirit-user craziness, not much drinking or smoking—and that’s a good thing, but at the same time, I feel a little like, “When did that happen?” I don’t remember him being quite so mature at the end of the last book, so I wasn’t quite sure where this new and improved Adrian came from. Still, I admired his patience and unselfishness (two words I never thought I’d use to describe him) with Sydney, and how they both support and understand each other.

As in the second book, this one started off a little slow as the author tried to catch us up on what had been happening in the previous two books. But again like the second book, once the story got going, I got sucked in. I don’t know what it is about Mead’s books, but something in them makes me inhale them in giant gulps. Anyway, the story in “The Indigo Spell” was more focused on the Alchemists than the previous two books were. In those, obviously the Alchemists played a major part, but the main problems and conflicts of the stories involved the Moroi. Here, there was actually very little about the Moroi—Jill, Eddie, and Angeline barely show up at all, in fact. Rather, it’s all about Sydney discovering additional information about the Alchemists, beginning to seriously explore the world of witch’s magic, and figuring out what to do about Adrian. As a result, the plot isn’t super pulse pounding or anything, but it still manages to be intriguing.

Overall, I’m not sure that these Bloodlines books are quite as addicting as The Vampire Academy series, but still, I like them a lot. So far, each new installment has been consistently good, though “The Indigo Spell” is probably the slowest so far since it centers almost entirely on finding out new information rather than action. Nevertheless, it was totally enjoyable, and I definitely intend to read this series through to the end (however many books that ends up being).

Rating: 4 / 5

Other Bloodlines books:
Bloodlines
The Golden Lily

Review: Everneath

Everneath, by Brodi Ashton. The GoodReads summary:

Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished, sucked into an underworld known as the Everneath. Now she's returned--to her old life, her family, her boyfriend--before she's banished back to the underworld . . . this time forever. She has six months before the Everneath comes to claim her, six months for good-byes she can't find the words for, six months to find redemption, if it exists.

Nikki longs to spend these precious months forgetting the Everneath and trying to reconnect with her boyfriend, Jack, the person most devastated by her disappearance--and the one person she loves more than anything. But there's just one problem: Cole, the smoldering immortal who enticed her to the Everneath in the first place, has followed Nikki home. Cole wants to take over the throne in the underworld and is convinced Nikki is the key to making it happen. And he'll do whatever it takes to bring her back, this time as his queen.

As Nikki's time on the Surface draws to a close and her relationships begin slipping from her grasp, she is forced to make the hardest decision of her life: find a way to cheat fate and remain on the Surface with Jack or return to the Everneath and become Cole's queen.

I’m not necessarily the biggest fan of YA paranormal, but I thought “Everneath” was actually pretty decent. It’s a take on the Greek myth of Persephone, and while I had a few issues with it, I generally enjoyed it.

The thing I thought this book did best was alternating between the past and present. Sometimes that structure doesn’t work in books, as it can get confusing if not done right, but I thought Brodi Ashton did a good job at it. It heightened the tension in the story quite nicely and gave me just enough information at a time to make me want to keep reading.

Nikki was a likeable enough main character. I appreciated how she came back from the Everneath empty and a broken but slowly found her footing again. But . . . she didn’t have quite enough depth for me. Like, she goes to the Everneath because she’s in so much emotional pain, but when she comes back, she doesn’t seem to really ever deal with those issues. She does make the decision not to take the easy way out again, but I wanted more from her than that. Like an actual conversation with her father, maybe. Or with her brother. Or with her former best friend. Or with anyone besides Jack and Cole.

I enjoyed Nikki and Jake’s relationship. I thought it had a really good balance of uncertainty and gratification. I especially liked that since they dated before the story starts, they have a history together, so the author could explore other aspects of their relationship rather than the usual YA “meet and fall in love.” Although, I did think Jake was a *little* on the obsessive side regarding Nikki. Not in an abusive way, but in a “you’re 17, why are you so convinced she’s the only person you’ll ever love” kind of way. I appreciated, however, that although the story skated perilously close to having a love triangle, it never actually crossed that line.

Still, I did find the story rather predictable, and I saw the ending coming a mile away. I also got a bit confused and frustrated towards the end because *spoiler* I couldn’t figure out why Nikki and Jake got so fixated on killing Cole. I mean, Nikki already knows that Cole has nothing to do with the tunnels coming for her, so I didn’t understand why they decided that would solve all their problems. *end spoiler*

Overall, there were things I liked and things I didn’t, but generally I enjoyed it. I’m not quite sold on reading the sequel, but never say never, I guess.

Rating: 3.5 / 5

Book Light Confessional: Hallelujah, I've had a breakthrough!

You guys! I've had a breakthrough! Ever since I started reading YA, I've vastly, VASTLY preferred contemporary over paranormal or dystopian. I like some fantasy here and there, and there are the occasional dystopian or paranormal I really enjoy ("Divergent," the Vampire Academy series), but by and large, contemporary is where it's at for me. But I could never quite put my finger on why I like contemporary better than the other genres. When trying to explain this preference to others, I always fumbled for a response and settled for 1) I feel like I can relate to the characters more, and 2) There's less insta-love. Which are both very true for me, but I never felt like I was getting at the heart of the matter.

So flash forward to now. Last night I finished reading a paranormal YA/myth retelling, and as I was mulling over my thoughts on the book, trying to pin down my feelings about it, I finally hit on just what it is I prefer about contemporary YA: They take time to explore the relevant issues.

I'd been getting frustrated with more and more YA dystopians/paranormals recently without quite being able to express why I was dissatisfied. But now I've realized that it's because I feel like they pass up so many chances to more deeply explore the underlying issues or make a character more layered, all in favor of going after the more exciting plot twist. And I realize that not all dystopians/paranormals are this way (why hello, "This Is Not a Test" and "The Scorpio Races") and that there are plenty of contemporary YAs that only skate over the surface. But as a generalization, I find that contemporaries are more often willing to dig deeper in to motivation and character growth and all that jazz, where as dystopians and paranormals are more about being exciting and throwing plot twists at you and having everything be super dramatic and life changing. And that's fine. That's the genre. But it's not what I prefer.

I'm not trying to knock dystopians or paranomals here. Everyone has their opinions and preferences, and they're welcome to them. But when I read, I want to come out of the book with a sense of emotional satisfaction, and I find I get that much more often with contemporaries than I do with the other two genres. I mean, do I need to say anything more than "Jellicoe Road" to prove my point?

Any thoughts about why you prefer one YA genre above the others? Or think I'm totally off base here and have got tons of YA dystopians and paranormals that prove me wrong? 

Review: Seraphina

Seraphina, by Rachel Hartman. The GoodReads summary:

Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend court as ambassadors, and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty's anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high.

Seraphina Dombegh has reason to fear both sides. An unusually gifted musician, she joins the court just as a member of the royal family is murdered—in suspiciously draconian fashion. Seraphina is drawn into the investigation, partnering with the captain of the Queen's Guard, the dangerously perceptive Prince Lucian Kiggs. While they begin to uncover hints of a sinister plot to destroy the peace, Seraphina struggles to protect her own secret, the secret behind her musical gift, one so terrible that its discovery could mean her very life.

So for some reason (the cover, maybe?), I was expecting this book to be more of a middle grade. But it wasn’t. Which admittedly made me happy since I prefer YA to middle grade any day of the week. The reason I bring this up is to illustrate one of the many ways this book was better than I expected. I really have no idea where I got such low expectations of this book from, though I suspect a lot of it came from the fact that the book sounded like something I would really like, so I just went ahead and braced myself for disappointment. Maybe not the best way to approach books, but I’ve found myself doing it more and more often recently. Anyway, back to “Seraphina.”

There are so many things that tag this book as my kind of book. First of all, dragons. I mean, come on, let’s just go ahead and admit that dragons are awesome. I’ve loved them ever since way back in the way back when I read Patricia C. Wrede’s Enchanted Forest Chronicles. And the dragons in “Seraphina” are fascinating. The book begins at the 40th anniversary of a peace treaty between dragons and humans. These dragons can take human form, but they’re definitely still not accepted by humans despite having representation in the palace. And the dragons in human form are supposed to conform to this philosophy that essentially makes them emotionless, but some of them slip . . . It just makes for some really interesting dynamics is what I’m saying, and I really enjoyed the world that Hartman created.

So we’ve got the dragons, which is a point in the book’s favor, and then on top of that we’ve got palace intrigue, which is another way to guarantee my liking of a book. Seraphina’s just the assistant court composer, but with her special insight into dragons, she quickly gets caught up in the difficult relationship at court between the dragons and the humans, which has been made even shakier since it appears a dragon has killed the prince.

While none of the main characters particularly grabbed me, they were all adequate enough to keep me interested. Though actually, I feel like there were quite a few periphery characters that would’ve grabbed me if I only could’ve gotten to know them a little better, characters like Seraphina’s father and mother, the queen, and Seraphina’s tutor. All these had so much potential, but since the book was about Seraphina and her friends, these older-generation characters didn’t get much page time. So would it be too much to ask for a prequel? Especially about the queen in her younger years?

Although as I reader I tend to be oblivious to plot holes and inconsistencies, upon finishing this book I was left with a slight nagging feeling that some things didn’t quite add up. Like why the prince was really killed. And how exactly some of Seraphina’s powers work. And why, despite living in a world that has sufficient technology to have long distance transmitters, they still use outhouses. I just wasn’t clear on some things.

Overall, a much better book than I was expecting, and one I enjoyed quite a bit. I’m not usually big on series, but I’m pretty sure I’ll be reading this one.

Rating: 4 / 5

Review: Sweethearts

Sweethearts, by Sara Zarr. The GoodReads summary:

As children, Jennifer Harris and Cameron Quick were both social outcasts. They were also one another's only friend. So when Cameron disappears without warning, Jennifer thinks she's lost the only person who will ever understand her. Now in high school, Jennifer has been transformed. Known as Jenna, she's popular, happy, and dating, everything "Jennifer" couldn't be---but she still can't shake the memory of her long-lost friend.

When Cameron suddenly reappears, they are both confronted with memories of their shared past and the drastically different paths their lives have taken.

From the National Book Award nominated author of Story of a Girl, Sweethearts is a story about the power of memory, the bond of friendship, and the quiet resilience of our childhood hearts.

This is a reread for me. I picked it up again because it’s the book my book club is discussing this month and I didn’t remember anything about it besides that I didn’t like it. So I was more than a little wary going into it, especially since Sara Zarr doesn’t tend to be an author I connect to much.

The big reason I didn’t like the book the first time around was the ending—it was too realistic and sad and didn’t have the amount of resolution I needed to be happy with it. But this time I went in prepared for the ending—I knew what to expect. And as a result, I appreciated it more. I’m not saying I’m a fan of the ending now, but now I can see how it fits the story. Cameron and Jenna’s relationship is multilayered and complex, and a straightforward, happy ending wouldn’t do them justice. They both have a lot of growing to do, and the ending that Zarr’s written for them allows them to do that.

Something I noticed this time that I didn’t before, is how consummately readable this book is. Yes, it’s a short book (only 217 pages), but the way the story flies by has less to do with its length than with how well-written it is. I think rereading this book has sold me on Sara Zarr as a writer. Her stories are always a little too bittersweet for me to totally fall in love with, but “Sweethearts” made me realize that, despite the bittersweet, I can’t argue with her writing and storytelling skills. They’re both exceptional in this book.

Overall, I’m glad I reread “Sweethearts.” It still isn’t one of my favorites, but this time around I could appreciate how well-done and well-thought out it all was. The first time I finished it, I just felt let down and frustrated, but this time I feel . . . pensive and thoughtful, I guess. Which I’m okay with.

Rating: 3 / 5

The quote that's summing up my life right now...

Do you ever have those days (/weeks/months/years) when you just want everyone to leave you alone and all your responsibilities to go away so you can hole up in your bedroom and read for 48 hours straight? That's the point I'm at right now. Man, am I at that point. Whenever I'm feeling this way, I think of this quote, which is one of my favorites about reading:

"Most things people do seem to me to be rather dull and silly. In my ideal life I'd be left alone to read." 

-Dreamhunter, by Elizabeth Knox

Story of my life right there. 

Review: The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making, by Catherynne M. Valente. The GoodReads summary:

Twelve-year-old September lives in Omaha, and used to have an ordinary life, until her father went to war and her mother went to work. One day, September is met at her kitchen window by a Green Wind (taking the form of a gentleman in a green jacket), who invites her on an adventure, implying that her help is needed in Fairyland. The new Marquess is unpredictable and fickle, and also not much older than September. Only September can retrieve a talisman the Marquess wants from the enchanted woods, and if she doesn’t . . . then the Marquess will make life impossible for the inhabitants of Fairyland. September is already making new friends, including a book-loving Wyvern and a mysterious boy named Saturday.

I’m feeling very a bit on the lazy side, so I’m just going with the good ol’ bullet-point format for this review:

-This book was definitely quirky. It kinda reminded me of a mixture of Alice in Wonderland, The Phantom Tollbooth, and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.

-It seemed more like a children’s book for adults rather than a children’s book for children. Like, it was trying so hard to be unique and clever that I feel like a lot of it would go over a kid’s head or just be unappreciated by that age group.

-The book has a lot of description, as well as frequent interpolations by the narrator. Which is part of what makes me think this book would go less appreciated by children than by adults. But I generally felt that while the descriptions, etc., were witty and observant, they also made the book drag a little.

-I wasn’t that fond of September as a main character at first, but she did grow on me and I came to like her for her courage and pluck. Similarly, it took me about half the book to really get into the story, but once I did, it was all smooth sailing from there.

-I really loved the resolution with the evil Marquess. It was probably my favorite part of the book, actually. I was totally not expecting it to work out the way it did, and I just love it when a story works itself out much more skillfully and sensitively than I was anticipating.

Overall, a unique and quirky book that felt more geared for older readers who are young at heart than for actual children.

Rating: 3.5 / 5

Review: Let’s Get Lost

Let’s Get Lost, by Sarra Manning. The GoodReads summary:

Isabel is the girl who rules the school with an iron fist and a gang of minions who do her bidding. Her friends are scared of her, her teachers can't get through to her, and that's just the way she likes it. With her razor-sharp edges and tall walls, nothing gets to Isabel and no one, but no one, is ever going to discover her dark, sad secrets. Then she meets Smith. And Isabel learns that sometimes when all the expectations and pressures are too much, you just need someone to help you get lost.

So here’s the thing. Isabel isn’t really a likeable character. Like, at all. She’s sarcastic and bitchy and closed off and frustrating. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. But the thing is, despite all that, I cared about her. Even when I was at the point where I was going to chuck the book across the room if she did one more selfish or self-destructive thing, I sympathized with her. Her emotional pain was so obvious, and while that didn’t make her any less frustrating of a character, it made me want to read through to the end to make sure that poor girl got some resolution. And man, does the author make you work for that resolution. Isabel doesn’t budge an inch or let go of one ounce of her steely control for, like, 98 percent of the book. So when she finally does, oh my goodness does it feel worth it. I felt like a giant weight was taken off my shoulders as well as Isabel’s.

Isabel’s relationship with Smith I’m a little meh about. I appreciated that he was the one person Isabel felt safe around and the one person willing to call out Isabel on all her crap, but Smith remained a little too one dimensional for my taste. I think the book was so centered on the development and slow revelation of Isabel’s character that Smith’s character development fell by the wayside. As a result, I never felt like I truly got to know him.

Overall, though Isabel pushed my patience almost to the breaking point, I just couldn’t give up on her and her story. I didn’t want to. Which is the thing that I kinda really adore about Sarra Manning’s books. That ability to keep me invested in characters I don’t relate to much at all.

Rating: 3.5 / 5