Thursday, January 31, 2013

Book Review: Hopeless by Colleen Hoover

I really want to talk about this book I've just finished. It's called "Hopeless" and it's by Colleen Hoover.

Basically it's supposed to be a YA romance.
Let me tell you the only thing YA about this book is the fact that the main characters are 17 and 18 years old. Apart from that there's NOTHING really YA about it. It has swearing and a lot sex in it without it being inappropriate.
I LOVED this book. So much. I'm trying to wrap my mind around the fact that it's over.

Plot:

Source: Goodreads
It's about Sky who's 17 years old. She's been home schooled by her adoptive mother until she decides to spend her senior year at a public school. She's having a hard time in school because her best friend, Six, isn't spending senior year with her in Texas, but in Italy. Also, Sky kind of has the reputation of a slut because she's made out with so many guys. But nobody, not even Sky herself knows the reason why she never feels attracted to any of the guys she makes out with.
Until one day she meets Holder (that's his last name BTW) at the grocery store, and Sky develops feelings for him.


 

My Thoughts:

It sounds like a cheesy love story. It's not. The further I read, the more complicated and intense the story got. And the more I read, the more I fell in love with Holder as well. He's too good to be true, but he still has his flaws. He's no Edward Cullen who's more of a parent than a boyfriend to Bella. Holder has a temper and a secret, and he and Sky were just meant to be together.

I seriously encourage you to pick this book up, I'm sure it won't disappoint you.
I'm giving this book a 5 out of 5 because everything was perfect. I loved the characters. I loved the unpredictable plot (although I knew what had happened to Sky when she was a little girl from the beginning).
I don't know if I've ever read a book that has made me laugh out loud and cry on the same page. It was a roller-coaster ride full of emotions. I don't have enough words to express how much this book impressed me.

THANK YOU COLLEEN HOOVER! (And thanks for the sleepless night last night, and for keeping me from studying for my business law final tomorrow. Haha. It was worth it!)

I'm glad I found out Colleen Hoover has two other books out (not "Hopeless" related books), that are supposed to be really good as well. Now I know what I'll be doing when my finals are over in two weeks. Read, read, read....
Check out Colleen Hover's website for more information, news and all that good stuff!


25 books challenge: 4/25 (January 31)

Monday, January 28, 2013

A Wish After Midnight by Zetta Elliott

It's me again! Today I want to talk about a book I finished a couple of weeks ago, but couldn't find the time to write about it because of finals. It's "A Wish After Midnight" by Zetta Elliott, which I discovered because it was only 99 cents on the Kindle Store the day I purchased it. 

Source: Goodreads

Plot:


The book is about 15-year-old Gemma who lives in a tiny apartment in Brooklyn with her mother and her siblings. She's not happy with the situation she's in because she wants to go to college, but her mother doesn't have enough money to send her, her siblings sell drugs and get in trouble, she thinks she's not pretty enough to ever have a boyfriend (ugh!) because she's "too black" ... and so on. Basically she wishes for a better life but nothing really happens... until one night she time travels back to the Civil War era Brooklyn and gets to know how hard life can really be.

My Thoughts: (Spoiler Alert!)


What I thought was missing in this book was an explanation. It might just me be but I didn't get the purpose of the time travel. Why did she travel back to 1864? To realize that 2001 has many more opportunities for her? How did the time travel thing happen? How long was she over there? What did Judah do to travel back in time? Many things were left without explanation. What happened to the family she worked for? The doctor, his wife, their little son, Nannie, the Irish girl, the black woman with her three children? And most important of all: What happened to Judah?

Judah's and Genna's "romance" didn't really feel real to me. It seemed like the author wanted to add that relationship aspect to the book. I didn't even like Judah, maybe because we didn't get to know him at all.

I felt like the book skipped over some exciting parts (like how the two got together) and focused on Genna's ongoing pessimist monologue. What she thinks of her mom, her Dad, her siblings, the white guy she met at the botanic garden…
Genna really could have traveled back in time earlier on in the book, because nothing really happened at all in the first part of the book.

But I don't only have negative things to say about "A Wish After Midnight". I really liked Genna as a character. At first her first person narration really went on my nerves because she repeated everything over and over, but Genna is a clever and likable girl. She's determined, fresh, educated… I have to admit I found myself somewhere in her, my self confidence isn't the best, either :)

All in all the book was a quick read, and I enjoyed reading it, but the ending and some parts in the middle of the book didn't satisfy me. 

I'm giving it a 3,5 out of 5.


Oh - I almost forgot something:

25 Books Challenge: 3/25!!!


Friday, January 4, 2013

Angelfall by Susan Ee

When I picked up "Angelfall" by Susan Ee this morning (at 11am to be precise :D ), I didn't expect to finish it at 9 pm. I downloaded the book because it was on sale for just 99 cents in the Kindle Store. The reviews were mainly positive, so I thought I'd give it a try. But I definitely wasn't expecting THIS.


Source: Amazon

  • Paperback: 290 pages
  • Publisher: Amazon Children's Publishing; First Edition edition (August 28, 2012)
  • Available as: Paperback, Kindle eBook
  • Get it on Amazon.com











Plot:


The book is another YA dystopian novel (I know. I can't help it). Penryn is 17, her mother is schizophrenic, and her little sister sits in a wheelchair. Penryn's sister is captured by angels who have brought  apocalypse to the world. Penryn finds an angel (Raffe) who has lost his wings, saves his life, and takes him captive because she hopes to retrieve her sister with his help.  So the two of them embark on a journey to get his wings back and rescue the young girl.

My thoughts:


I just couldn't put this book down. The world Susan Ee created is so dangerous but real, and the characters so relatable that I HAD TO find out what happens next. There really was no point where I thought the book was boring. 

There's one thing I dislike about many dystopian YA books: Very often protagonists try to save the whole society and forget about what's good for themselves and their families. This wasn't the case in Angelfall, and I'm so glad about that. Penryn doesn't try to save the human world from angels, all she does is trying to save her sister. She's no super hero, she's just a normal person, and she acts the way a normal person would act in that situation. But still, Penryn is pretty badass. (And Raffe is probably one of the most awesome guys in YA fiction. Tobias aka Four (from Divergent), watch out! :D )


Angelfall is the first book in a series. I don't know how many books will be in the series, but hopefully the second book will be released soon (since Susan Ee finished the book with quite a cliffhanger)... 

 Rating:


I'm giving this book a 4,5 out of 5 because it was kind of short for my taste. But compared to ASoS by GRRM (a 1100 page book) which I finished yesterday any book seems short, I guess. 


So, keeping score:


25 Books Challenge: 8% completed (January 4, 2013)

  

 

Thursday, January 3, 2013

25 Books Challenge!

Long time no see! I hope everyone who reads this has had a Merry Christmas and a good start into the New Year.

I'm trying to read 25 books in 2013. I know a lot of people do the 50 books challenge (or even a hundred), but I don't have that much time... Last year I only read 22, let's hope I'll do better this year.

I've already finished my first book of 2013, A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin, so only 24 to go!!! From now on, every time I finish a book I will post a short message on this blog to keep score.

 25 Books Challenge: 4% completed (January 3, 2013)



How many books do you usually read in a year? Have a great 2013 everybody!