Title: The Elite (The Selection #2)
Author: Keira Cass
Published: April 23, 2013
Publisher: HarperCollinsChildren'sBooks
ISBN: 978-0007466702
Genre: Dystopian/Sci Fi
The Selection began with thirty-five girls.
Now with the group narrowed down to the six Elite, the competition to win Prince Maxon's heart is fiercer than ever—and America is still struggling to decide where her heart truly lies. Is it with Maxon, who could make her life a fairy tale? Or with her first love, Aspen?
America is desperate for more time. But the rest of the Elite know exactly what they want—and America's chance to choose is about to slip away
Rating: ★★★☆☆
There is something wrong with me when I'm more emotionally invested in the relationship between America and Maxon than I was in the relationship between Maise and Evan in Unteachable. I need psychiatric help.
On that note ...I can't deny that the Elite had me racing through to the end. I was emotionally invested. My heart pounded the whole way through the book and I was on edge over the growing distance between Maxon and America. Whatever Cass lacks in imagination and ideals, she makes up for in execution; I can give her that, at least.Even so, America is the biggest pain in the arse I have ever come across. She's "that girl" - the one who strings boys along to make herself feel good. She's a horrible MC. She wants re-assurance and affirmation from Maxon but refuses to give any of her own? And talk about fucking needy?!?And Maxon? He's nothing but a glorified fuckboy. Urgh.So can someone tell me why I couldn't put this book down?
Title: The Selection (The Selection #1)
Author: Keira Cass
Published: June 7, 2012
Publisher: HarperCollinsCholdren'sBooks
ISBN: 78-0007466696
Genre: Dystopian/Sci Fi
For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in a palace and compete for the heart of gorgeous Prince Maxon.
But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her.
Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.
Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself--and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined.
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Solid 3 stars.
I'll be honest, America is one of those character's that I'm never going to like. "Oh no, don't make me up in pretty dresses and send me off to a beautiful palace to be pampered and adored all so I can have the chance of being the future queen and, you know, actually having a chance to help change the debilitating caste system of our society which sees the majority of our country living in abject poverty and thus help raise everyone I love out of poverty. Oh, woe is me."
Seriously?
This idea that by forcing people to wear pretty clothes and make up and act like a "lady" somehow means that they're going to lose "who they are as a person." As if the clothes and make up and their appearance defines them? Yeah, not a great message to be throwing out there in a young adult novel.
If I wanted to be told that my appearance is the most important thing about me, I'd go pick up a fashion magazine.
But anyway, on to the actual book.
Fun read.
It was engaging and I read it in one day. The writing is of a high quality and the pacing is excellent. One thing I absolutely loved was the slow-burn of America's developing feelings. We get to the end of the book and she's still trying to come to terms with what her feelings actually are. This is realistic, not only for a one-month time frame, but, also, for a seventeen year old girl. It's a nice touch.
Over-descriptive. I don't need to know that her favourite jammies are "cute" or that they consist of "brown shorts and fitted white tee." Unnecessary embellishment makes it read like a 13 year old's first attempt at writing. But, that is few and far between and overall, as I have said, good quality writing.
Aspen? As we're only at the end of the first book and we still have another two to go, I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt here and hope there's still room for Cass to turn him into a lesson about how not to let men treat you instead of a valid love interest.
The naming conventions are ... embarrassing. I mean, America Singer? Really? And the caste's merely being numbers? Really? Cass couldn't think of anything better?
This book could have been a fantastic allegory for the way women are looked upon and demeaned in society, if Cass had actually moved past her complete hang-up on appearances. There is so much potential in a book like this if you're willing to take it forward and not just leave it at face value. I feel like, as a female reader, I've been done out of something potentially brilliant.
At the end of the day, there is a lot of things inherently wrong with this book but I couldn't, in good faith, give less than three stars to a book which kept me so entranced.
Disclaimer: This book was provided to me by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Title: The Winner's Curse
Author: Marie Rutkoski
Published: April 10, 2014
Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's
ISBN: 978-1408858202Genre: Sci-Fi and Fantasy
Kestrel lives the lavish lifestyle of a Valorian General's only daughter, and such riches come at a cost for Valoria's captives and for her. As the Herrani face death or slavery, Kestrel's destiny is shaped by her father. He gives her two choices: join his army or get married. Desperate to realise her own future and knowing that it will invite scandal, she pays a small fortune for a handsome Herrani blacksmith at a slave auction. Arin not only plays Kestrel's power games, he understands what she needs and soon she is torn between loyalty to her people and her feelings for him. But Arin is not all he seems and Kestrel will learn that the price she paid for him is much higher than she ever could have imagined.
The first novel in a stunning new trilogy, The Winner's Curse is a story of romance, rumours and rebellion, where dirty secrets and careless alliances can be deadly and everything is at stake.
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Okay, this has been a pretty controversial book from what I've seen of the reviews around the internet.
The writing and pacing and characters and plot are generally well liked.
The treatment of slavery is not.
I'm going on the record here to say: The only reason this book got 3 stars is because I am holding out hope that Kestrel can pull her head out of her arse in the next two books.
I can appreciate that most of the book is told from Kestrel's POV and that hers is the mindset that she is the daughter of the Empire's greatest general who was brought up around slavery and that while she doesn't readily agree with it, she realises that she would only cause more trouble for her and the slaves if she were to do something. I can also appreciate the villainising of the Slaves at the end because, again, we're seeing things from Kestrel's POV.
Just because I can appreciate and understand what has been done in the book does not mean I agree with it.
I don't.
I started this book thinking: Yes. We have our heroine. She's going to fall in love with a slave, find out about the uprising and help them to overcome their oppressors. As it should be. I went along quite happily in this book.
That is not what I got. I am not happy with what I got. The last 35% of this book did not make me happy.
The last 35% of this book insulted me.
And, err ...
Can we say Stockholm syndrome?
Also, that ending? No. Nope. All the nope.
I really, really hope The Winner's Crime can redeem this.
Title: Snow Like Ashes
Author: Sara Raasch
Publisher: Balzer+Bray
Published: October 14, 2014
ASIN: B00HYMBNUS
Genre: Fantasy
A heartbroken girl. A fierce warrior. A hero in the making.
Sixteen years ago the Kingdom of Winter was conquered and its citizens enslaved, leaving them without magic or a monarch. Now, the Winterians’ only hope for freedom is the eight survivors who managed to escape, and who have been waiting for the opportunity to steal back Winter’s magic and rebuild the kingdom ever since.
Orphaned as an infant during Winter’s defeat, Meira has lived her whole life as a refugee, raised by the Winterians’ general, Sir. Training to be a warrior—and desperately in love with her best friend, and future king, Mather — she would do anything to help her kingdom rise to power again.
So when scouts discover the location of the ancient locket that can restore Winter’s magic, Meira decides to go after it herself. Finally, she’s scaling towers, fighting enemy soldiers, and serving her kingdom just as she’s always dreamed she would. But the mission doesn’t go as planned, and Meira soon finds herself thrust into a world of evil magic and dangerous politics – and ultimately comes to realize that her destiny is not, never has been, her own.
Rating: ★★★☆☆
This book was really, really disappointing.
I had really high hopes after all of the reviews and it just sort of ... fell flat?
Don't get me wrong. It's a good book. I enjoyed it enough that I kept reading. I think I just got caught up in the hype and expected too much?
Overall, I thought the book just tried too hard. The world building is what I'd call 'meh' - I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it. At times, the naming could be a little cringe-worthy. There was absolutely nothing new in terms of characters. I've met them all a hundred times before in a hundred different books. This one was riddled with tropes that have been done better in other books.
And what is with the frickin' love-triangles? Is it law that all YA-Fantasy books featuring a female protagonist must feature a love triangle?
Meira, as a character, tries too hard. I love that writers are trying to make a point and take a feminist stand with their characters. But sometimes they fall short of the mark and, at times, can do more harm than good. Meira is your standard fantasy female MC: orphaned, tom-boy, can-do, I-dont-need-no-man, burn-anything-remotely-feminine but ends up being the specialest of special snowflakes. Again, there's nothing new here and for a recycled character, it's been done better in other books. Unfortunately, here's another one to add to the list of female characters I do not like. Mostly because, like a lot of female characters, Meira strays dangerously close to Misandry. Or, well, Raasch does.
By trying to maintain a feminine view-point and trying to project the message that women are just as capable as men, she goes to far and can, at times, err on the side of man-bashing. That's not feminism. It's, also, not cool.
Also, Meira is too much of a moaner to make it onto my list of likeable characters. For someone who spends so much of the book trying to convince us of her capability, she is way too much of a whiner.
This book is actually compared to Graceling, and I can fully support that because I had a nice little rant about feminist ideologies in that book, too.
But, overall, a pretty enjoyable read with enough good points that I am looking forward to the next book.
Title: The Maze Runner
Author: James Dashner
Publisher: Chicken House
Published: August 4, 2011
ISBN: 978-1908435132
Genre: Dystopian/Sci-Fi
If you ain’t scared, you ain’t human.
When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his name. He’s surrounded by strangers—boys whose memories are also gone.
Nice to meet ya, shank. Welcome to the Glade.
Outside the towering stone walls that surround the Glade is a limitless, ever-changing maze. It’s the only way out—and no one’s ever made it through alive.
Everything is going to change.
Then a girl arrives. The first girl ever. And the message she delivers is terrifying.
Remember. Survive. Run.
Rating: ★★★☆☆
This book was disappointing.
No.
Not disappointing.
Underwhelming.
This book could have easily been a five star read but fell woefully short.
The plot of this book is incredible: young boys have their memories wiped and are then forced to live in the middle of a mysterious maze and then have to work together to find their way out. It is original and exciting. Even the contrived slang used by the Gladers didn't bother me all that much.
The pacing and structure of the book is also good. It never felt like it was going too slow or too fast. There was never a lack of suspense or action. This wasn't a book that I couldn't put down but I did find myself going back to it a lot. I would read it in burst: read for an hour, leave it alone for twenty minutes. But I still always went back. It definitely has that going for it.
The characters. Oh! The characters. Thomas pissed me off. I've heard a lot of people say that his constant question asking pissed them off. I'm going to go against the grain and say that it actually felt completely natural and did not piss me off at all. The guy had his memory wiped and was then dumped into the middle of some big-ass mysterious maze; I'm pretty sure he's entitled to ask as many questions as he wants. I'd be concerned if he wasn't asking questions. What pissed me off about him was how much he let the others walk all over him. Every time Alby, Newt or Minho told him to shut up and bugger off, he did. I mean, seriously? You just woke up in a maze with amnesia and you're going to let people fob off your questions? As if.
Newt and Minho, however, are the lights of my life. I can't remember the last time I connected to characters in this way. By three-quarters of the way into the book I just wanted every scene to feature on or the other, or both. Actually, I wish they were the main characters of this series. Gah! Love them. I hope I get to see plenty of them in the remaining books.
This could have been truly brilliant but there is something fundamentally lacking in the execution. I couldn't justify more than three starts, as much as I wanted to give it more.
On that note, I will definitely be reading the other books in this series because Newt and Minho. That is all.
