Mini Reviews - Volume 1

Hey guys! I thought since I don't always have time to write full length reviews for every book I read and I have some books that I just didn't write enough notes on for a full length review, that I'd start a series on my blog where I post little mini reviews for books I've recently read. Here's volume one of my mini reviews--I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I was provided a copy of each of these books by their publishers through Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion.


Reincarnation Blues by Michael Poore

Synopsis: A magically inspiring tale of a man who is reincarnated through many lifetimes so that he can be with his one true love: Death herself.
What if you could live forever—but without your one true love? Reincarnation Blues is the story of a man who has been reincarnated nearly 10,000 times, in search of the secret to immortality so that he can be with his beloved, the incarnation of Death. Neil Gaiman meets Kurt Vonnegut in this darkly whimsical, hilariously profound, and wildly imaginative comedy of the secrets of life and love. Transporting us from ancient India to outer space to Renaissance Italy to the present day, is a journey through time, space, and the human heart.
My Thoughts: Just from reading the summary of Reincarnation Blues by Michael Poore, I could tell it was going to be a story unlike any other I'd read before, and it did not disappoint. We, the readers, get to experience all of Milo's 9,995 lives on his quest for perfections, and the variety of fuck ups that occur along the way. I especially loved how the stories of his lives weren't told in chronological order and differed in length, although I did find some to drag on longer then others. The book itself has a very unique sense of humor in the writing, and I think Poore does a fantastic job of expressing that humor through Milo and creating a character that every reader can come to love and feel sympathy for. I also thought that the romance between Milo and Death--I mean Suzie--was really unique in the way that they've been together for several thousand years, but are only able to be with each other in between Milo's lives. All in all I give Reincarnation Blues four out of five stars for being fun, quirky, and unique, but also slow at times. I highly recommend Reincarnation Blues to fans of sci-fi and fantasy who are looking for something fresh and new and exciting. (PS: Do you see how gorgeous that cover is?!)

The Big F by Maggie Ann Martin

Synopsis:Danielle effed up. Big time.
Danielle's plans for the future were all figured out... until she failed senior English and her single college acceptance was rescinded. Determined to get her life back on track, Danielle enrolls in her hometown community college with a plan: pass English and get back into Ohio State—and her mother’s good graces. Romance isn't on her radar... until she reconnects with her childhood crush and golden boy next door, Luke.Between family drama, first love and finding her own way, Danielle can't help but feel a little overwhelmed. Thankfully she has her friendship with the snarky and frustratingly attractive Porter, her coworker at the campus bookstore, to push her to experience new things and help keep her afloat. One thing's for sure: This time, failure's not an option.

My Thoughts: Maggie Ann Martin does a fantastic job of including all the the classic YA contemporary romance cliches that we've all come to know in love in The Big F, but altering them ever so slightly to give it a completely different feel from most other YA high school romances. The closest thing that I feel I can compare it to is Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell because both Daniella and Kath are college freshmen, but thats pretty much where the similarities end. It was such a fun, quick read that I highly enjoyed--I especially loved the theme of failure and how it doesn't mean the end of the world. 
            The story itself was intriguing, but it was the characters who truly brought the story to life for me. Dani being fresh out of high school instead of 16 or 17 was what really made this story unique for me. The way Martin wrote her was so realistic, and I found myself connecting to her trough out the story. Luke is the classic, adorable boy next door, and I loved him to pieces. I liked how the boy next door cliche wasn't the main focus of the story, but rather a tool used to push along the main plot. Zoe is one of the greatest best friends a girl can have, and I honestly wish that I could reach through the pages and pull her into my life to help me out during times of crisis. Porter reminds me so much of a lot of my guy friends who constantly like to push my buttons, but are always sweet and charming when they need to be--and I absolutely loved him! Martin did a fantastic job in writing relatable characters who develop well throughout the story, and find a special place in the reader's heart.
            Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed The Big F by Maggie Ann Martin, and give it four out of five stars. I recommend this book to any high school junior or senior who's worried about the future, or anyone who wants a fresh take on the classic YA romance.

Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu

Synopsis: Moxie girls fight back!
Vivian Carter is fed up. Fed up with her small-town Texas high school that thinks the football team can do no wrong. Fed up with sexist dress codes and hallway harassment. But most of all, Viv Carter is fed up with always following the rules.Viv’s mom was a punk rock Riot Grrrl in the ’90s, so now Viv takes a page from her mother’s past and creates a feminist zine that she distributes anonymously to her classmates. She’s just blowing off steam, but other girls respond. Pretty soon Viv is forging friendships with other young women across the divides of cliques and popularity rankings, and she realizes that what she has started is nothing short of a girl revolution.

My Thoughts: I will admit that going into Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu, I didn't really know what it was going to be about and I didn't think I would like it, but after finishing it I want to go up to every other girl in my high school and force them to read it so they can feel as empowered as I did directly after finishing it. Moxie is the story of a girl named Vivian who is done with the sexist way of thinking that her town runs on, so she creates a zine after being inspired by her mom's old things and basically starts a revolution. I absolutely love Vivian, and how realistic she is compared to other main characters of YA contemporaries. She's passionate and zealous and perfect to lead the feminist uprising at her high school. I liked her love interest, Seth, and I thought that the addition of romance was fun to read, but I don't believe it was necessary. It neither added nor took away from the plot as a whole. Moxie also rape/sexual assault which I feel like is seen as a taboo subject in YA literature, so I'm glad Mathieu included it. Overall I give Moxie 4.5 out of 5 stars for being full of such great and important messages such as fighting against injustice, girls helping girls, feminism, and so many more. I believe that this is such an important novel that women of all ages, but especially younger girls, should read to feel empowered and like a boss.

So these are all of my mini reviews I have for y'all at the moment. If you have any thoughts on these books or book suggestions please feel free to leave them in the comments--I'd love to talk about books with you!

-CG

One True Pairing by Cathy Yardley Review

Synopsis:

            They couldn't be more opposite, the Hollywood actor and the hometown girl, but all they need is a little convention magic to become the perfect ship in Cathy Yardley's One True Pairing.

            Jake Reese needs a decoy girlfriend. Fast. The lead actor of the popular TV show, Mystics, is tired of losing his shirt to overeager fans. Literally. Which is why a chance meeting with gothabilly bookworm-slash-barista Hailey Frost seems almost too perfect to be true. Hailey is not impressed with his TV fame and is desperate to save her family's bookstore. It's a match made in Hollywood, but as the two pretend to date, fan fiction becomes reality. Can this OTP become canon?

My Review:
            I am a huge sucker for cliche romances as well as a huge sucker for stories involving geek girls, so this book was basically my kryptonite. Cathy Yardley does a fantastic job coming up with relatable characters, interesting story lines, as well as some rather steamy moments. 
            Throughout the entire story, I found myself loving all of the characters. Hailey, the main female protagonist, is a strong heroine that truly needs no man, but manages to snag the heart of one Jake Reese. Now Jake, he's a sweetheart; he's just trying to work his hardest to make sure he stays on the show he loves. I thought that Hailey's sisters and Jake's cast mates actually added something to the story, and I found their little storylines very interesting--especially Cressida's. All in all, I found a majority of the characters fun and easy to understand.
            The main premise of the story is these two people fake dating to save a famous guy's career and a normal girl's shop. It's a very cliche plot that has been done before, but nevertheless I found it enjoyable. Of course there was a little bit of insta love in One True Pairing, but that was to be expected, and it didn't really bother me. I found the entire story engaging apart from this random stalker but that I thought was wildly unnecessary, and just a bit extra. It took away from the rest of the story, and I think the author could've found a better way to add in conflict.

            All in all I give One True Pairing by Cathy Yardley four out of five stars for the lovable characters and interesting plot, as well as the random story lines that interject the main plot and take away from the story overall. I suggest this book to anyone looking for a cute, geeky romance who isn't opposed to instalove. I received an ARC of this book off of Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

Amazon: www.amazon.com/dp/B071LDSRW2

B&N: www.barnesandnoble.com/w/one-true-pairing-cathy-yardley/1126399768

iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/isbn9781250170538

Kobo: www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/one-true-pairing

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=LRXhDgAAQBAJ

Author Bio

Cathy Yardley is the author of the Fandom Hearts series, starting with Level Up, and needs to get out more. When not writing, she's usually lurking on social media, playing Fallout 4, or watching D-list movies and adding to her unnatural mental store of character-actor trivia. She's a fangirl of Supernatural, Doctor Who, Sherlock, LOTR, and too many others to name. She lives with her family in Seattle. They are considering performing an intervention for her addiction to pop culture.

Author Links

Website: www.cathyyardley.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/Cathy-Yardley-12854466085

Twitter: https://twitter.com/cathyyardley

A Court of Wings and Ruin - Book Review

A Court of Wings and Ruin 

By Sarah J. Mass

DISCLAIMER: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS!

Details:

Title: A Court of Wings and Ruin

Author: Sarah J. Mass

Page Count: 699

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Publication Date: May 2nd, 2017

Synopsis:
      A nightmare, I’d told Tamlin. I was the nightmare.

Feyre has returned to the Spring Court, determined to gather information on Tamlin’s maneuverings and the invading king threatening to bring Prythian to its knees. But to do so she must play a deadly game of deceit—and one slip may spell doom not only for Feyre, but for her world as well. As war bears down upon them all, Feyre must decide who to trust amongst the dazzling and lethal High Lords—and hunt for allies in unexpected places.(Goodreads summary)

My Review:  
             I honestly went in to ACOWAR thinking that Mass was gonna try to rip out my heart, then repair it, then rip it out again, step on it, roll it in some broken glass, and then throw it into a bucket full of lemon juice--and boy was I right.
             The book begins with Feyre causing havoc in the spring court as revenge for Tamlin siding with the King. I personally loved seeing the manipulative side of Feyre--especially when she used it to make Ianthe look like an idiot. I also loved how Lucien teamed up with her and became more of an interesting character than he was in the first and second books.
             Nesta and Elain are two characters who also develop quite a bit in this novel as well. We readers got a glimpse of what they were like when they were thrown into the cauldron, but Mass did a fantastic job with them in ACOWAR. Elain begins the book as a frail little thing who doesn't do anything other than mope around, but by the end she's holding Azriel's dagger on the battle field (...I kind of ship Elain and Azriel more than Lucien and Elain DON'T KILL ME PLEASE). Nesta, on the other hand, was a spitfire even before she was thrown into the cauldron, and that just intensified afterwards. She and Cassian are my new favorite ship, and I especially love the scenes where they just bicker back and forth. Both girls play a key part in ACOWAR, and I really can't see the novel being as good as it is without them.
            Though the inner circle has gotten bigger by adding Nesta and Elain, the original members are still going strong. Amren continues to be one of my personal favorites, and the sacrifice she makes at the end was really touching, and I'm so glad that she's still with them. Cassian and Azriel are still the best Illyrian warriors ever, and I think that they got a little bit more 'air time' so to speak in this book and I loved it. Now, Mor....I had some issues with her in this novel, but that can wait for a later paragraph.
             I can't believe I've gone this long without talking about everyone's favorite High Lord, Rhysand. I think we all went through an emotional roller coaster ride with Rhys in this novel--especially when Sarah ripped out all of our hearts by telling us that he had died. Of course it was only a momentary death before all of the high lords (yes, even Tamlin....I now consider him less of a prick) helped to resurrect him and bring Amren back to her human form. Also, Feyre and Rhysand's relationship develops so much 
            Aside from the Characters, I believe that Mass did a fantastic job in concluding the series. I know that there are going to be more books in the ACOTAR world, but this is teh last book with Feyre and Rhys as the main characters, and Mass ended their story well. The past two books have been leading up to the epic battle between Hybern and Prythian, and the battle itself did not disapoint. Mass also did well in displaying the politics side of war with the discussions of alliance and battle tactics between all the high lords. Almost every scene throughout the novel had me fully invested, and I can't wait to see what the next books have to offer.
             I'm glad that everyone's story had a somewhat happy ending (well....besides Hybern), but here is also where all of my happy thoughts about the book ends and I have to talk about everything I didn't like. Before I dive in on the deeper issues I just want to discuss some of the smaller things. Starting off, I think that bringing in Feyre's father as some pirate like figure was completely unnecessary and random. I get that Sarah had to get a ton of other troops to the battle field to help the good guys win, but Feyre's father was such a small character. Plus, he was only there for a chapter or two before he got killed so I really think it was not needed. Another minor complaint I have is that I think the sex scenes were a bit blasé compared to those in ACOMAF--if not a bit redundant.
             Now onto the bigger issue that I think a lot of people have been talking about--the lack of diversity. Honestly, before all these people started complaining about it, I didn't find any issue with it. Looking back on great series like Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings there is a lack of diversity in those books as well, but it's not that big of a problem to me since it doesn't effect the content of the book itself. Don't get me wrong--I think it's important to have diversity and recognize different races, sexualities, etc. in literature, but I don't think it's good when it comes across as forced, and that's how I felt about it in ACOWAR. I think Mass was trying to overcompensate for the apparent lack of diversity in the other books by making Mor a lesbian and adding characters like Helion and co. She almost plays into the slutty bisexual stereotype with Helion, and if she had made Mor come out in the earlier books it could have made a stronger impact and would have felt much less forced. I just wish that Mass would've left her story alone and not let other people's criticisms effect her story as much, or that she could have at least waited to add some more diversity in the story in a smoother way.
           In conclusion, I give A Court of Wings and Ruin four out of five stars. I thought that despite some of the issues I had with the amount of diversity in the world and the way Mass addressed this, the story line, character development, and overall kick-ass-awesomeness that ensured outweigh the problems leaving the reading feeling completely satisfied. I highly suggest the ACOTAR series to anyone interested in fantasy at all as it is one of my absolute favorites.         

If you would like to purchase A Court of Wings and Ruin

Book Depository

Barnes and Nobles

Amazon

-CG