Book Review: Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick

Title: Black Ice
Author: Becca Fitzpatrick
Publication Date: October 7, 2014
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Pages: 392
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Sometimes danger is hard to see... until it’s too late.

Britt Pfeiffer has trained to backpack the Teton Range, but she isn't prepared when her ex-boyfriend, who still haunts her every thought, wants to join her. Before Britt can explore her feelings for Calvin, an unexpected blizzard forces her to seek shelter in a remote cabin, accepting the hospitality of its two very handsome occupants—but these men are fugitives, and they take her hostage.

In exchange for her life, Britt agrees to guide the men off the mountain. As they set off, Britt knows she must stay alive long enough for Calvin to find her. The task is made even more complicated when Britt finds chilling evidence of a series of murders that have taken place there... and in uncovering this, she may become the killer’s next target.

But nothing is as it seems in the mountains, and everyone is keeping secrets, including Mason, one of her kidnappers. His kindness is confusing Britt. Is he an enemy? Or an ally?

BLACK ICE is New York Times bestselling author Becca Fitzpatrick’s riveting romantic thriller set against the treacherous backdrop of the mountains of Wyoming. Falling in love should never be this dangerous…

I will readily admit that I'm not a regular reader of contemporary fiction - it just isn't my genre. That being said, I completely adore survival stories, regardless of the setting. Black Ice promised to be a riveting survival story set in the mountains during a snowstorm with some romance thrown in for good measure (okay, it promises a lot of romance). I had high hopes for this one. I've rarely met a survival story I haven't loved!

Britt and Korbie are best friends (apparently) and Britt has recently had her heart broken by Calvin, Korbie's brother. Normal enough so far, right? Well, that's where the normalcy kind of ends. Calvin dumped Britt via text EIGHT months ago, but she isn't over him even a little bit. While all of their friends are going off to Hawaii for Spring Break, Britt decides to drag her BFF on a 40 mile hiking trip in the off chance they'll run into her ex. Because that's a normal thing that people do.

As you can see from the blurb, she never quite makes it, instead finding herself stranded. That's where the REALLY stupid part begins. These girls are utterly clueless about life in general. Britt goes on and on and on throughout the book about how she has depended on the men around her to save her for her entire life, and I didn't doubt her for a second. When they're snowed into their car, they decide to leave it. They leave the car. The car with a heater and blankets and supplies and food. They.Leave.The.Car. And it gets better! They stomp around in a blizzard until they find a couple strange men and just hop on into their cabin. Because that's a normal thing people do.

Totally surprisingly, they're taken hostage. Korbie runs her mouth a lot and almost gets herself killed because she's a genius and thinks the entire world revolves around her. Thankfully, Korbie isn't a huge part of the story and instead we get to focus on the romance. Oh, joy. I'm going to be honest, the romance made me a little uncomfortable. It's total Stockholm Syndrome (but maybe not because he was nice that one time). Britt does her darndest to convince herself that it isn't, but it is. And it's annoying to watch her bounce back and forth between Calvin and Mason through the entire book.

The story itself is... interesting. There were some really good thrilling moments where I truly had to hold my breath. The setting is pretty great. I actually felt cold at times and had to bring myself back to the present! There was even a pretty good twist near the end that I kind of but not really saw coming. But ultimately the big reveal and all the convenient explanations fell flat for me. I didn't sympathize with Britt at all. She was helpless and stupid and constantly made excuses for everyone. I didn't think Mason was all that intelligent, despite being hit over the head with what a genius he was on every other page.

Black Ice was just not what I'd hoped for at all. I've read some really amazing YA and NA survival stories that included romance and this one just didn't work. Sometimes Stockholm Syndrome works (hey, I love Beauty and the Beast!) but in this case it was just uncomfortable. I hated almost every single character, with the exception of Mason, who I only mildly disliked. Still, it did have a few good moments and some pretty amazing world building to have been set in the middle of the woods. All in all I don't think I could recommend it unless you love totally unrealistic and cheesy Stockholm Syndrome romance novels.

ARC Review: The Rig by Joe Ducie

Title: The Rig (The Rig #1)
Author: Joe Ducie
Publication Date: October 6, 2015
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers 
Pages: 320
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//I received this book through Goodreads First Reads  in exchange for an honest review//

Fifteen-year-old Will Drake has made a career of breaking out from high-security prisons. His talents have landed him at The Rig, a specialist juvenile holding facility in the middle of the Arctic Ocean. No one can escape from The Rig. No one except for Drake...

After making some escape plans and meeting the first real friends of his life, Drake quickly realises that all is not as it seems on The Rig. The Warden is obsessed with the mysterious Crystal-X - a blue, glowing substance that appears to give superpowers to the teens exposed to it. Drake, Tristan and Irene are banking on a bid for freedom - but can they survive long enough to make it?

Drake is an action hero to rival Jason Bourne and the CHERUB team in this debut author's fantastically imagined sci‐fi nightmare. 

The Rig caught my attention right away based on its title and the cover. I'm married to a Merchant Marine, so I have a little familiarity with oil rigs. Then I read the description and was totally sold! I love stories about survival and escape. The idea of being stuck on an oil rig in the Arctic Ocean totally freaks me out. Not to mention the bit about things not being as they seem. All that to say I was really excited to read this book!

Right away, this book pulled me in with its descriptions of the rig and its inner workings as a prison. Joe Ducie has done a fantastic job of creating an amazing setting out of a structure that could certainly have come across as boring. I also did a lot of fact-checking with my husband and overall the setting seems to hold up. I definitely felt like I could see each level and platform of the rig! It seems like an urban explorer's dream!

The characters were mostly enjoyable. This story is about Will Drake, a guy who just happened to find himself in a bad situation that landed him in jail. But Will is great at escaping, it seems. I wish a little more had been revealed at exactly -why- Will was so skilled at escapes. His backstory didn't make him seem like anything special, so I had kind of a hard time accepting him as a character worthy of comparison to Jason Bourne. The bad guys of The Rig were probably a little more believable than Will, in my opinion, although I did have a lot of questions about their motives once the book had ended.

My major problem with The Rig was the magic element. I somehow overlooked this part of the synopsis, so it caught me off guard. That isn't the issue, though. The magical substance, Crystal-X, is mysterious from the beginning of the book until it ends. Not much is ever explained about it. The book never goes into the why's and how's of this magical mineral and it's not clear why it affects different people in different ways. I'm okay with some questions being left over at the end of a book, but I feel like nothing at all was answered in this one. More than that, though, is that I don't even feel like the magic was necessary. The Rig was shaping up to be an awesome survival/escape story before Crystal-X was introduced.

Overall, I The Rig was just okay. I loved the world and the set up of the plot. I just wish it had strayed into weird, magic territory.

Audiobook Review: The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

Title: The Handmaid's Tale
Author: Margaret Atwood
Narrator: Claire Danes
Publication Date: January 1, 1985
Publisher: McClelland & Stewart
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Offred is a Handmaid in the Republic of Gilead. She may leave the home of the Commander and his wife once a day to walk to food markets whose signs are now pictures instead of words because women are no longer allowed to read. She must lie on her back once a month and pray that the Commander makes her pregnant, because in an age of declining births, Offred and the other Handmaids are valued only if their ovaries are viable. Offred can remember the years before, when she lived and made love with her husband, Luke; when she played with and protected her daughter; when she had a job, money of her own, and access to knowledge. But all of that is gone now...

I have heard about this book for years, but never actually felt compelled to read it. When I found an audiobook and discovered that it was narrated by Claire Danes, I decided it was finally time to take the plunge! I had no real idea of what to expect, only that it was supposed to be pretty shocking. I came away extremely confused.

This is probably the hardest book ever to review and rate because it seems like everyone loves it. I didn't. Maybe because it's 2015 and it takes a lot to shock me? I don't know. This book was just a big confusing mess that was honestly kind of painful to get through. There were times when I had no idea what was going on, when the narrator would jump back and forth in time or go off on some random tangent. It was difficult to keep up and, honestly, really hard to believe. I know this is fiction and I know there has to be a level of suspension of disbelief, but this book asked for more than I could give.

Since everything that could possibly be said about this book is already out there, I'm just going to focus on a couple things. My biggest issue with The Handmaid's Tale is the idea that this society even exists. I think the biggest strike against this book is that Margaret Atwood set it in a recognizable time and place. If this had been a dystopian novel set in the distant future, it would have been a lot easier to accept. But asking me to believe that Offred lived in both "normal" America and in this completely insane dystopian society? I just can't.

Could something like this ever happen? I really doubt it. But IF it did, it would not happen in a matter of five years or so. People would never accept it. Husbands would not just roll over and allow their wives to be taken and used. And even more obviously, women would NOT allow themselves to be used in this way. I've read other dystopian fiction where children were raised in a cult-like setting and grew to accept completely insane lifestyles. But society as a whole could not be taken from modern America and thrown into this. The Handmaid's Tale doesn't do nearly enough to justify these circumstances. The fact is, society is not nearly as terrible as the author seems to imply. We are actually living in the most peaceful times in history. Certainly, we will not end up like this, at least in the very near future.

I wanted to love this book so much! Most of you probably know that I'm a huge fan of dystopian fiction. But The Handmaid's Tale was just ridiculous. Maybe in the 80s people were shocked by this. And if Margaret Atwood was aiming solely for shock value, perhaps she hit her mark. But as a cautionary tale, this really fell short for me. I'm not down with books that only exist to scare people, and I feel like that was this one's main goal.

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°o°  Notes on the Audiobook  °o°

It's Claire Danes. Does anything else really need to be said? Claire Danes is a fantastic actor and she's a great voice actor as well! I'd love to listen to anything else that she narrates!

Audiobook Review: Daughter of Deep Silence by Carrie Ryan

Title: Daughter of Deep Silence
Author: Carrie Ryan
Narrator: Karissa Vacker
Publication Date: May 26, 2015
Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers 
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I’m the daughter of murdered parents.
I’m the friend of a dead girl.
I’m the lover of my enemy.
And I will have my revenge.

In the wake of the devastating destruction of the luxury yacht Persephone, just three souls remain to tell its story—and two of them are lying. Only Frances Mace knows the terrifying truth, and she’ll stop at nothing to avenge the murders of everyone she held dear. Even if it means taking down the boy she loves and possibly losing herself in the process.

Sharp and incisive, Daughter of Deep Silence by bestselling author Carrie Ryan is a deliciously smart revenge thriller that examines perceptions of identity, love, and the lengths to which one girl is willing to go when she thinks she has nothing to lose.

There's a certain connection I think I have with authors I've loved previously that makes me assume I'll love them forever and always and everything they write will be gold. Because of this I've found myself more than a little disappointed with a few books this year alone. Some examples that come immediately to mind are The Cage by Megan Shepherd and Mortal Danger by Ann Aguirre. Carrie Ryan's The Forest of Hands and Teeth was one of the first YA books I read when I really started getting into the genre. I was blown away by the entire series and fell in love with her as a writer. So when I saw this book for the first time I had no doubt that I would love it just as much. But it wasn't meant to be.

Immediately I was sold on the synopsis for this book. I can definitely get on board with a good revenge plot, even in a contemporary setting. Frances sounded like a total badass and I was really excited to get to know her! Maybe my expectations were just too high for this book. I expected Emily Thorne but I got a whiney 18 year old with a crush.

Let me tell you about Frances (a.k.a. Libby) and why I didn't buy her character. From the very beginning of this book all she tells us is that she's angry and wants revenge and has this big, amazing plan laid out to make everyone PAY. But that's all she does. She tells us. In reality, she forgets all of her "plans" from the moment she sees Gray, the guy who she (apparently) fell in love with four years ago, when she was 14 and knew him for a couple days on a cruise. Maybe I was just way behind all the other 14 year olds, but I never fell in love. I literally saved gum wrappers from when my crush gave me some gum at church. I wish I was kidding. But I wasn't falling in love and I surely was not making it to whatever base Frances and Gray got to in their make out sessions. What I'm trying to say is, the romance is totally unbelievable.

In case you haven't caught on, this is a romance novel, not a revenge novel. Every single thing that happens in Frances' "revenge plot" is totally by chance. Literally the wrong person showing up at the right time. I also didn't understand how she intended to pull off this supposed plot. On the one hand, Emily Thorne spent YEARS of her life training with a revenge -master- to avenge her father. On the other hand, Frances spent four years in boarding school and is supposed to be some kind of master of deception. Yeah, okay.

There were just SO many things in this story that I just couldn't buy. I understand that there's a level of suspension of disbelief that has to happen when reading fiction, but this just went above and beyond.

Frances is not a badass and she has no skills. She's 18. She's a rich, spoiled, boarding school kid who is in love with her sworn enemy (or so she says). Sure, Emily Thorne pretends to be in love with Daniel Grayson (is it a coincidence that the love interest in this novel is named Gray?), but it's just pretend and it's all part of her plan.

Spoilery problems I have with the plot of this book:

1. The reason behind the attack on the Persephone is ridiculous. I'm supposed to believe that an entire cruise ship of people was slaughtered to kill off a few people in an environmentalist group? Give me a break. 
2. If Tom wanted Frances dead, she would have been dead. He literally had her throat against a stair cutting off her air. He could have snapped her neck without any effort. He could have choked her to death with no effort. He was a trained assassin. She was literally defenseless. The fact that she didn't die is deus ex machina at its finest. 
3. The cop. Oh my god, the cop. First of all, if Frances was going to spill every single thing that happened, why the heck didn't she do it from the beginning?? And even more importantly, NO cop in the world (or at least no good one, which we're supposed to believe this one is) would go along with letting a guy go to jail for a crime he didn't commit, even if he was a scumbag. 
4. Gray. Frances supposedly pulls off her master plan and escapes to her new life with no strings attached. WHY would she then sabotage the whole thing by sending Gray tons of evidence against her along with her address? I mean, really?? 

This book is Revenge for young adults, but where Revenge is amazing in almost every way, Daughter of Deep Silence falls apart. Perhaps this is where the fact that I am -not- a young adult really comes through? I am a YA junkie, but I think that maybe someone younger would be able to forgive all these faults or overlook them altogether. I enjoyed the survival aspects of the book, and some of the minor characters were really well-done. There was also enough mystery to keep me coming back. It just wasn't enough. I wanted to love this so freaking much, but I just can't get past the ridiculousness of the plot and the main character.

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°o°  Notes on the Audiobook  °o°

Karissa Vacker was a fantastic narrator and probably the reason I stuck through to the ending of this one! She did a great job of distinguishing between the different characters and making their emotions believable. I'd definitely pick up another book by her! 

Audiobook Review: We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach

Title: We All Looked Up
Author: Tommy Wallach
Narrator: Hannah Dunne, Sarah Steele, Seth Numrich, Peter Vack
Publication Date: March 24, 2015
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
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Before the asteroid we let ourselves be defined by labels:
The athlete, the outcast, the slacker, the overachiever.

But then we all looked up and everything changed.

They said it would be here in two months. That gave us two months to leave our labels behind. Two months to become something bigger than what we'd been, something that would last even after the end.

Two months to really live. 

We All Looked Up immediately caught my eye, not only with it's really unique cover, but also with its pre-apocalyptic setting, which I don't think I've ever actually seen. Sure, I've read tons of post-apocalyptic books, but one set in the days before the actual apocalypse when everyone knows what's coming? Wow! This book had so much potential and I really expected to be completely blown away.

The story is told from the perspectives of four different characters who all go to the same high school and represent several stereotypes. Each character is definitely unique and I can appreciate the attempt at diversity here. Unfortunately the stereotypes weren't dispelled. In fact, kind of the opposite happens. The "slut" has sex with random men to make them feel better (really) and Peter, the "good guy" is ridiculously good to the point of not being believable. Still, the characters were decent and I felt like I got to know a good deal about all of them.

My main problem with We All Looked Up is the events themselves. I'm pretty sure the whole purpose of this book (in addition to its failed attempt at dispelling stereotypes) is basically "you only live once," or some variation of that. When these characters find out that they have a 66.6% of being hit by an asteroid, they all make comments about wanting to live to the fullest in their last few weeks on earth. Despite that, they all make some really weird decisions.

Anita decides to run away from home and live with her slacker friend, Andy, for whatever reason. Eliza decides to start a blog. Peter... breaks up with his girlfriend and hangs out with his sister? I just don't know. The gangsters do gang things, the hippies do hippie things. Lots of kids get thrown in jail for no good reason... It was just a big, weird mess.

Obviously, I can't be sure what I'd do if I found out I was probably going to die in a few weeks, but I really think I'd do something a lot more fun. I think there would be a lot of impromptu mega-vacations and I really don't think the majority of the world would be sitting on their thumbs waiting for it to happen. I also don't believe that basically everyone would be thrown in jail for no reason.

One thing I can confidently say is that Tommy Wallach is a beautiful writer, and I think this is probably where his background in songwriting pays off. His prose is lyrical and I really enjoyed listening to it being read by the narrator. I did feel like there was probably a little bit more profanity than was needed, though. I also really loved the mood of this book. I could feel the dread of the impending (possible) doom from the moment they first noticed the "star" in the distance. I liked that some of humanity sort of came together before the end of the world.

My last problem with this is the ending. At about 50% through this book I suddenly realized that I knew how this book would probably end and I hoped against all odds that I was wrong, but I wasn't. I understand why the author might have ended it this way, but I didn't care for it. I just wanted more.

Overall, this book did have a few things that I liked, but ultimately the bad outweighed the good. Stereotypical characters and unrealistic actions left a little too much to be desired. The concept itself had a lot of potential and I was really hoping for more. I heard that the rights for a film had been purchased and I'd definitely give this one another chance on the big screen!

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°o°  Notes on the Audiobook  °o°

I loved the narration style this book used! It's not all that common to have a different voice actor for each character so I really appreciated how much work went into making each of them unique. I loved all of the narrators for this book and would definitely pick up another audiobook by any of them! 

Book Review: Reawakened by Colleen Houck

Title: Reawakened
Author: Colleen Houck
Publication Date: August 11, 2015
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Pages: 400
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When seventeen-year-old Lilliana Young enters the Metropolitan Museum of Art one morning during spring break, the last thing she expects to find is a live Egyptian prince with godlike powers, who has been reawakened after a thousand years of mummification.

And she really can't imagine being chosen to aid him in an epic quest that will lead them across the globe to find his brothers and complete a grand ceremony that will save mankind.

But fate has taken hold of Lily, and she, along with her sun prince, Amon, must travel to the Valley of the Kings, raise his brothers, and stop an evil, shape-shifting god named Seth from taking over the world.

From New York Times bestselling author Colleen Houck comes an epic adventure about two star-crossed teens who must battle mythical forces and ancient curses on a journey with more twists and turns than the Nile itself.

I LOVE Ancient Egyptian mythology. In fact, I love all mythology. I'm a classics minor. But Egyptian mythology was my first love. I started studying it on my own in middle school and still enjoy reading Egyptian myths today. So when I found out about Reawakened I was ecstatic! I'd never read anything by Colleen Houck, but I've heard a lot of praise for her Tiger's Curse series. I knew I'd have to read this one as soon as I could get my hands on a copy, and that's what I did. Unfortunately...

Welcome to my first one star review of the year! I'm going to be honest. I was totally shocked I didn't like this book. I went into it expecting to completely love it because everyone I know has loved it! In reality it was painful to read. It took me five days to get 263 pages in. Five agonizingly slow days in which I had to literally force myself to read this while gazing longingly at Harry Potter. After that I admitted defeat and skimmed the rest.

I like action. I like adventure. I like romance. I like mythology. So what did I not like about this book? Well, for starters I didn't like the characters. Lily is a privileged rich girl from New York City who complains about the box she's confined to. She complains about how she got into every college and now has to pick one (the horror!), complains about her big fancy house (the agony!), and basically just complains about everything. I can't stand it, guys. I can't handle filthy rich characters who complain about their privilege. Then we have Amon. I get it, he's old and has godlike powers and he's really, REALLY gorgeous.

The romance between these two is Stockholme Syndrome at its finest and made zero sense to me. They knew each other for all of five minutes before Lily was whining to herself about how Amon wouldn't kiss her (while also reminding us that she does not suffer from lack of confidence). All of this while she laments the way he uses his god powers to control her will. Um... yeah, so there's that. Literally the entire book is them darting from location to location while Lily whines about how Amon won't kiss her. Never mind that he's trying to save the world and all.

Which brings me to the "action." I think the problem is I can't stand the writing style. It's basically, "We went to this place and there was lots of sand and then a bad guy came and then we beat it and then I felt sick and then Amon wouldn't kiss me and then we went to another place and..." You get the idea. The best way I can think to describe it is that the author inserted YA plot points in a middle grade book. The world building also left a lot to be desired because it is basically what I've just laid out. I didn't feel like I was actually in any of the locations described. There was a lot of telling and not a lot of showing, if that makes sense.

Not only that, but my god, the info dumps. I really love mythology retellings. I do. But this one was like a mythology textbook (in serious need of fact checking) and a YA romance met and had a baby. The stories about the gods and goddesses could have been fun, but it they way it was done ripped me out of the story every single time.

I could really go on and on about the issues I had with this book. The cover was gorgeous and the premise was fantastic and I would love to read this idea written in a better way. A lot of the mythology was off and the Big Bad was predictable and ridiculous. The romance was unbelievable and the ending made me roll my eyes so hard I got a headache. I've read that the writing in this book is actually a step up from The Tiger's Curse Saga (although the story is apparently a near-carbon copy), which is really sad because I have that one on my shelf, but now I doubt I'll read it. I really couldn't recommend this to anyone, but I know that I'm in the minority on this one!

Audiobook Review: The Mirk and Midnight Hour by Jane Nickerson

Title: The Mirk and Midnight Hour
Author: Jane Nickerson
Narrator: Dorothy Dillingham Blue
Publication Date: March 11, 2014
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers 
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A Southern girl. A wounded soldier. A chilling force deep in the forest. All collide at night’s darkest hour.

Seventeen-year-old Violet Dancey has been left at home in Mississippi with a laudanum-addicted stepmother and love-crazed stepsister while her father fights in the war—a war that has already claimed her twin brother.

When she comes across a severely injured Union soldier lying in an abandoned lodge deep in the woods, things begin to change. Thomas is the enemy—one of the men who might have killed her own brother—and yet she's drawn to him. But Violet isn't Thomas's only visitor; someone has been tending to his wounds—keeping him alive—and it becomes chillingly clear that this care hasn't been out of compassion.

Against the dangers of war and ominous powers of voodoo, Violet must fight to protect her home and the people she loves.

From the author of Strands of Bronze and Gold comes a haunting love story and suspenseful thriller based on the ancient fairy tale of “Tam Lin.”

I don't remember exactly when I first took notice of The Mirk and Midnight Hour. But you know how you see a car you really like and then you see it everywhere? That's what happened with this book. I wasn't sold on the description because I'm not big on historical fiction... It's also a retelling, which is one of my favorite things ever, but I'd never heard of the fairy tale it's based on. But once I saw the cover I kept seeing it EVERYWHERE! Finally, I just gave in and decided to give it a listen.

This is the story of Violet Dancey and her Union soldier, Thomas... and it's a slow one. In fact, the soldier doesn't even come into the picture until halfway through the (really long) book! Despite that, these two characters were very enjoyable, as was the romance.

Violet has grown up in the South and has lost her brother to the war already when her father also goes off to fight. She is left with her new stepmother and stepsister, Sunny, along with her cousins unexpected houseguests. Violet is a strong protagonist who stands up for what she believes in and, even more importantly, is not afraid to change her opinions with new information. Thomas is an injured soldier when Violet first meets him and is completely at her mercy. Over a long enough period of time that it doesn't seem unbelievable, they get to know each other and eventually fall in love.

Then there are other characters... Sunny is a dimwitted moron who lets people walk all over her while simultaneously being a bully. She is such a doormat that she commits a huge offense against her loved ones that really made me want to slap her in her dumb, blonde face. Dorian is the smooth-talking cousin who you kind of know is no good from the very moment he's introduced. His character is convincingly despicable and he works well within the story as a big bad. The relationship between Sunny and Dorian is infuriating, but it's realistic enough.

I felt like the world building in this novel was sufficient, but it definitely could have been better. There was a lot of potential for amazing descriptions with all the different settings within the book. While I was able to picture some of them based on the description provided, there were other things (like the main house) that I never got a clear image of.

The story itself was interesting, but it didn't WOW me at all. Like I've already said, it was very slow. Most audiobooks are very quick to listen to, but this one seemed to drag. Honestly, though, I'd say it read about the same as some other historical romance novels I've tried. The voodoo, which I'm guessing somehow tied into the fairy tale this retelling, seemed very strange and never quite explained all the way. I'd actually say that this might have been an even better story without that added element. It honestly just seemed a little strange within what was basically a civil war historical forbidden romance story.

I do think that this was still a pretty enjoyable read. Despite being very slow to start, I did like the story. I just think that it could have been better as an original historical romance. This obviously isn't my genre and I was probably just the wrong person to read this in the first place. I'd definitely recommend it to fans of historical romance and (probably) fans of the fairy tale of Tam Lin.

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°o°  Notes on the Audiobook  °o°

Dorothy Dillingham Blue was a very enjoyable narrator! She did a great job with the southern accents, although it was obvious at times that she was not from Mississippi herself. It's hard to get that accent right without sounding ridiculous, so two thumbs up! I'd definitely listen to another book with her as the reader!

Book Review: The Crossing by Mandy Hager

Title: The Crossing
Author: Mandy Hager
Publication Date: January 8, 2013
Publisher: Pyr
Pages: 280
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The Crossing is the first book in a stunning new trilogy that follows the fate of Maryam and her unlikely companions - Joseph, Ruth and Lazarus. This is fast, suspenseful drama underpinned by a powerful and moving story about love and loss.

The people of Onewere, a small island in the Pacific, know that they are special - chosen to survive the deadly event that consumed the Earth.

Now, from the rotting cruise ship Star of the Sea, the elite control the population - manipulating old texts to set themselves up as living 'gods'. But what the people of Onewere don't know is this: the leaders will stop at nothing to meet their own blood-thirsty needs.

When Maryam crosses from child to woman, she must leave everything she has ever known and make a crossing of another kind. But life inside the ship is not as she had dreamed, and she is faced with the unthinkable: obey the leaders and very likely die, or turn her back on every belief she once held dear.

I was browsing my library recently when I cam across a book spine on the "new" shelf with some really eye-catching font! If you don't already know this about me, I'm a sucker for a good cover. In fact, I will basically never pick up an ugly book, which may go against THE most important lesson of my childhood. What can I say? I'm a rebel. Regardless, I picked up this book (originally published in New Zealand), which led me on the hunt to find the first book in the series. Lucky me, it was available!

The Crossing is the story of Maryam, a teenage girl who has grown up on a remote island with the knowledge that she's one day go to live with the Chosen in the Holy City. Apart from knowing this is a special honor, Maryam knows next to nothing about what all this entails. But upon "becoming a woman" she is finally able to leave to join those who have gone before her!

Maryam is an interesting character and I was never entirely sure how to feel about her. As most are, Maryam was a strong heroine. At the same time, I was frustrated with her overwhelming need to help everyone else instead of taking care of herself. Perhaps this is a desirable trait to most, but in a situation such as that described here, it seems to me that getting oneself away from danger might be the top priority. Despite this, Maryam nearly gets herself killed because of her inability to help herself. Still, I found myself sympathizing with her and did enjoy her overall as a character.

I also really liked Joseph and could really understand his guilt over not understanding everything that had been going on around him. I thought he was a good character, but I didn't really completely buy the romance. This is a classic case of instalove, which happens far too often in YA literature. All of the bad guys (Lazarus, his father, and the other Chosen) were exactly what they were supposed to be - despicable. Ruth, though, I couldn't stand. Her along with most of the other women in this book. While I can appreciate that they were raised to have a certain meek attitude and do exactly as the Chosen commanded (cult life), it infuriated me to no end that they were totally unable to do anything to better their situation. Then again, this really worked to further the feeling of a brainwashed society, which brings me to the story itself.

There were things I really enjoyed about the plot of The Crossing. I love a good post-apocalyptic story! I love all the different ways that authors have come up with for how the world will end (I might have a problem...) and what comes next. This one was just awesome! I loved the idea that a cruise ship was the Holy City and that the crew of the ship brainwashed the entire island into believing their nonsense. However, I wish that a little more background had been given to establish how exactly this happened. I also would have liked more information on the disease that has been plaguing the population. Those answers will probably come in subsequent books, though.

Despite the problems with the background given for the story, I felt like the world building of their little island was really great! I can't pinpoint any particular thing that Mandy Hager did to make it excellent, but I feel like I can imagine the islands and the cruise ship pretty much perfectly. The smaller island where the girls were raised was different from the main island, which had multiple villages. The author did a great job making all of it authentic and memorable.

My main problem with The Crossing was the writing. It felt very strange and that could be to establish how weird this cultish island setting is. It just really didn't work for me. I felt very disconnected from the characters because of the odd dialogue and the way the entire book was written.

Overall, I felt like this was a great story with fantastic world building and characters that I mostly enjoyed. I really am dying to know what happens next - to know if the world really DID end or not! But the really weird writing has put me off from continuing the story right away. I actually did read a bit of the next book, but put it aside for now. It's almost like I can only take it in small doses... I definitely would recommend this book and definitely plan to continue it! Just be prepared for the odd writing style.

Audiobook Review: After the End by Amy Plum

Title: After the End
Author: Amy Plum
Narrator: Emily Rankin & Graham Hamilton
Publication Date: May 6, 2014
Publisher: HarperTeen
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She’s searching for answers to her past. They’re hunting her to save their future.

World War III has left the world ravaged by nuclear radiation. A lucky few escaped to the Alaskan wilderness. They've survived for the last thirty years by living off the land, being one with nature, and hiding from whoever else might still be out there.

At least, this is what Juneau has been told her entire life.

When Juneau returns from a hunting trip to discover that everyone in her clan has vanished, she sets off to find them. Leaving the boundaries of their land for the very first time, she learns something horrifying: There never was a war. Cities were never destroyed. The world is intact. Everything was a lie.

Now Juneau is adrift in a modern-day world she never knew existed. But while she's trying to find a way to rescue her friends and family, someone else is looking for her. Someone who knows the extraordinary truth about the secrets of her past.

Little known fact: I spent four years of my life in Alaska while stationed at Elmendorf Air Force Base. I didn't get to explore very much of it, but I did see some pretty cool things and meet a lot of awesome people while I was there, and I worked with a lot of people who had spent time in "The Bush," better known as the place where all the remote villages are. I've heard really interesting stories, but I never got to go myself.

I say all that to say that this book immediately caught my interest. A book about a post-apocalyptic village cult and its aftermath? Yes, please!

The main characters in After the End are Juneau (named after Alaska's capitol) and Miles, the son of the rich head of a drug company. What can I say about Juneau? Well, she's kind of a bitch. Really a lot, actually, and I just didn't care much for her. I tried to take into account that she had been raised in an environment that was very hostile to outsiders, but the way she treated Miles was totally unacceptable. She was rude and demanding and generally thought very highly of herself. I can appreciate that she was tough and resourceful too, but I feel like the cons outweigh the pros where Juneau is concerned.

Miles, on the other hand, I liked. And pitied. I could understand why he made the decisions he did (for the most part). However, I thought that he was way too gung-ho at times, almost unrealistically. I know he was on a mission, but there were so many times when I think a normal person would have just gone home. The worst part was I didn't get the romance.

Pro: No love triangle.
Con: Some serious instalove.

Juneau and Miles were together all of five minutes before they were suddenly making out and in love or whatever and... come on! When are YA authors going to stop with this trope?

The big bad(s) in After the End aren't as diabolical as some, but were actually perhaps the most realistic thing in the entire book. More than one group is after Juneau throughout the book and for legitimate reasons. They weren't super terrifying, but they did drive up the tension in all the right places.

This book was pretty much one big road trip that had a lot of ground to cover settings-wise. I loved the descriptions given of the Alaskan wilderness! While I've never been out in the middle of nowhere, I feel like it could be really easy to describe it as "white and flat with some mountains." Amy Plum did a great job of putting their surroundings onto paper. The author did an equally awesome job with every other setting. The world building was a high point of this book!

The storyline of After the End was truly unique and exhilarating! I LOVE Village-esque stories like this one where the main character discovers her tiny home isn't the only thing left. It's really one of my weaknesses and Amy Plum did a fantastic job of handling Juneau's discovery of modern society. I loved it! I also loved her insane evasion of the bad guys who were following her!

My problem is with the mythology of the book. The Yara (mystical, magicy, Mother-Earthy thing) was just too ridiculous for me. You mean to tell me that some guy read some books on some random religions and managed to piece one together that gives people magical powers? Um... nah. I don't buy that. I will say that I liked the partial de-mystification that happened, but I'm just really having a hard time suspending my disbelief far enough to accept the whole Yara business.

I liked After the End, I did. But I didn't love it. There were too many problems between the characterizations and the really weird magical elements that just didn't work for me for this to be a five star book. I feel like if it had all come out in the end that the Yara was a load of hooey, I might have felt differently about this one. Still, a unique premise and halfway great plot makes this two and a half stars and still (possibly) worth reading!

---

°o°  Notes on the Audiobook  °o°

Emily Rankin and Graham Hamilton were some of the better voice actors I've come across! I have a tendency to be really annoyed by whiney girl voices, but Emily did a great job of sounding like a normal human being while reading this book! I'd definitely check out more books recorded by either of these narrators!

Paper to Popcorn #1: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

//DISCLAIMER: JK Rowling is no longer reviewed or promoted by Cornerfolds.com following her repeated transphobia//

Welcome to a brand new Cornerfolds feature! Paper to Popcorn will not be your typical book vs. movie comparison, or at least that is not all it will be. Each featured book/movie combo will battle it out in a showdown to prove which one is the best (at least in my obviously humble opinion).

Each will feature what are essentially mini-reviews of both the film and book in question, a brief outline of differences between the book and film adaptation, will rate the two on the basic (but important) aspects of setting, plot, and characters, and ultimately a victor will be chosen.

The Book

Title: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Author: JK Rowling
Publication Date: June 26, 1997
Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books
Pages: 332
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When a letter arrives for unhappy but ordinary Harry Potter, a decade-old secret is revealed to him that apparently he's the last to know. His parents were wizards, killed by a Dark Lord's curse when Harry was just a baby, and which he somehow survived. Leaving his unsympathetic aunt and uncle for Hogwarts, a wizarding school brimming with ghosts and enchantments, Harry stumbles upon a sinister mystery when he finds a three-headed dog guarding a room on the third floor. Then he hears of a missing stone with astonishing powers which could be valuable, dangerous - or both. An incredible adventure is about to begin!

These new editions of the classic and internationally bestselling, multi-award-winning series feature instantly pick-up-able new jackets with huge child appeal, to bring Harry Potter to the next generation of readers. It's time to PASS THE MAGIC ON .

There is something magical about Harry Potter that I really can't understand. I never got to read it as a child for... reasons. But I did FINALLY get to watch the movies starting in late 2006. Then, in 2011, something amazing happened... I read the series for the first time and fell in love. I've never quite understood re-reads though and I never thought I'd give Harry another glance other than having as many gorgeous editions as possible lining my shelves. But then something worked itself loose in my noggin and I changed my mind. Thus began the great Harry Potter re-read of 2015.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone is magic. I know that's pretty cheesy to say about a book that's literally about magic, but I don't know any other way to describe it. As I was reading this book I thought to myself (on several occasions), "How did J.K. Rowling think this stuff up?!" And reading it for the second time is even better because you can see how intertwined everything really is all the way through book seven.

I cannot think of one thing to complain about in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and you can rest assured it isn't nostalgia talking. This is just good storytelling, plain and simple. The characters are sympathetic (even Hermione later on, although she starts as a nightmare), the world building is spectacular, and I was totally sucked back into the world of Harry Potter from page one. And can we take a second to appreciate these awesome new UK covers? The artwork is absolutely gorgeous!

Knowing now how amazing these books are makes me really sad that I never got to experience them from a child's perspective. Despite that, I am so glad I DID get to read them as an adult and I have finally discovered what everyone loves so much about re-reads! I can't wait to pick up book two!

Characters	Terrible	Just okay	Pretty good	Really good	Amazing!
Setting	Terrible	Just okay	Pretty good	Really good	Amazing!
Writing	Terrible	Just okay	Pretty good	Really good	Amazing!
Storyline	Terrible	Just okay	Pretty good	Really good	Amazing!
Cover	Terrible	Just okay	Pretty good	Really good	Amazing!
Overall Rating	1/5	2/5	3/5	4/5	5/5

The Movie

Title: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
Director: Chris Columbus
Actors: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint
Release Date: November 16, 2001
Runtime: 152 minutes
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The best-selling novel by J.K. Rowling (titled Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in England, as was this film adaptation) becomes this hotly anticipated fantasy adventure from Chris Columbus, the winner of a high-stakes search for a director to bring the first in a hoped-for franchise of Potter films to the screen by Warner Bros. Upon his 11th birthday, Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe), who lives in misery with an aunt and uncle that don't want him, learns from a giant named Hagrid (Robbie Coltrane) that he is the orphaned son of powerful wizards. Harry is offered a place at prestigious Hogwarts, a boarding school for wizards that exists in a realm of magic and fantasy outside the dreary existence of normal humans or "Muggles." At Hogwarts, Harry quickly makes new friends and begins piecing together the mystery of his parents' deaths, which appear not to have been accidental after all. The film features alternate-version scenes for every mention of the titular rock. Richard Harris, Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, John Cleese, and Fiona Shaw co-star.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is nearly as magical as it's book counterpart. Nearly. It has all the elements that make the book so magical and it's obvious that J.K. Rowling had a hand in the development of the film adaptation. While there were changes from the book, there were none that really changed the story or struck me as really major. Overall, this is a fantastic book to movie success!

Unfortunately, while it is a great movie, it is one that really has not aged well at all. There are two main things that took this movie down a notch.

The first is the cast. Let me get this out of the way first: the actors who were chosen to play each of these characters are absolutely perfect! Because I know it gets better, I can confidently say the casting was perfect while the acting sucked. Daniel Radcliffe (Harry) and Emma Watson (Hermione) are completely terrible! I can't even say which was worst because they were both so bad. Rupert Grint (Ron) and Tom Felton (Draco) were the best of the first years, in my opinion! On the other hand, every single one of the older actors was fantastic! Maggie Smith (Professor McGonagall) and Alan Rickman (Snape) were the highlights of the movie!

The other major issue with this film is the CGI. It's abysmal. I know this movie was made nearly 14 years ago, but I can't imagine that people back then didn't notice how fake certain scenes looked, especially on the big screen. Examples that come to mind are the troll, the quidditch match, Fluffy, the centaur, Voldemort's face... Basically everything that was a creature or in the air.

The Sorcerer's Stone soundtrack, however, is just amazing! I'd say it's almost as good as the soundtrack for The Lord of the Rings trilogy... almost. The music works perfectly in each scene and the songs get stuck in my head for days every time I watch this!

Overall (as I've said already) this is a great book to film adaptation! I'm sure I would have loved it if I had seen it when I was 13, when this movie came out. Despite its flaws, this movie is the must see first film in a must see series!

Cast	Terrible	Just okay	Pretty good	Really good	Amazing!
Cinematography	Terrible	Just okay	Pretty good	Really good	Amazing!
Screenplay	Terrible	Just okay	Pretty good	Really good	Amazing!
Performances	Terrible	Just okay	Pretty good	Really good	Amazing!
Music	Terrible	Just okay	Pretty good	Really good	Amazing!
Overall Rating	1/5	2/5	3/5	4/5	5/5

Noteable Differences

• Harry goes straight to school after meeting Hagrid in the movie, but in the book he goes back home with the Dursleys for awhile first. 
• In the book Dumbledore is portrayed as a really eccentric (honestly really strange) man, but in the movie he's shown as a much more serious professor. 
• Conversely, the Bloody Baron is terrifying in the book and everyone is afraid of him, but the brief glimpse of him in the movie makes him seem really goofy. 
• Peeves, the castle poltergeist, is absent. 
• In the movie it's only Harry's parents in the Mirror of Erised rather than his whole family. 
• In the book Harry, Ron, and Hermione take Hagrid's dragon up a tower to be rescued by friends of Charlie Weasley, but this is left out of the movie.
• Ron goes to detention with Harry, Hermione, and Draco instead of Neville. 
• In the movie there's only one centaur (Firenze) instead of including Bane and Ronan. This happens to be the one centaur from the book who is friendly rather than cynical. 
• In the movie Harry, Ron, and Hermione fall through the Devil's Snare instead of climbing out of it and Hermione defeats the plant with sunlight instead of fire. 
• Quirrell's skin blisters in the book when Harry touches him, but in the movie he turns to stone. 

The Bottom Line

Though not by much, the winner of this competition is clearly the book! The movie is excellent, but seems to take on a much lighter tone than the already light tone of the book. I love that the books (and the movies) get darker as they go on, but I'm not sure why the filmmakers felt that they had to change the personalities of Dumbledore, the ghosts, and leave out the less savory characters of Peeves and the rest of the centaurs in the Forbidden/Dark Forest. Perhaps by leaving out these darker elements a larger audience was reached by the film. While the movie is a great representation of the book, both are excellent on their own as well. 

Book Review: The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes

Title: The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly
Author: Stephanie Oakes
Publication Date: June 9, 2015
Publisher: Dial Books
Pages: 400
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A hard-hitting and hopeful story about the dangers of blind faith—and the power of having faith in yourself

The Kevinian cult has taken everything from seventeen-year-old Minnow: twelve years of her life, her family, her ability to trust. And when she rebelled, they took away her hands, too.

Now their Prophet has been murdered and their camp set aflame, and it's clear that Minnow knows something—but she's not talking. As she languishes in juvenile detention, she struggles to un-learn everything she has been taught to believe, adjusting to a life behind bars and recounting the events that led up to her incarceration. But when an FBI detective approaches her about making a deal, Minnow sees she can have the freedom she always dreamed of—if she’s willing to part with the terrible secrets of her past.

Gorgeously written, breathlessly page-turning and sprinkled with moments of unexpected humor, this harrowing debut is perfect for readers of Emily Murdoch's If You Find Me  and Nova Ren Suma's The Walls Around Us , as well as for fans of Orange is the New Black.

In the famous words of Bartok the Magnificent, "Wow! I tell you what, wow!" The synopsis of this book made it pretty clear what the book would be about, but there was still no way I could have known what I was in for. I usually hate contemporary fiction, but I think there's a pretty reasonable explanation for why I enjoyed this one. Here's a little-known fact: I have a degree in religious studies. I'm fascinated by different religions and even more so by cults and this is one of the best cult fiction pieces I've read. Suffice it to say The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly totally and completely blew me away!

Obviously, Minnow Bly is the center of this incredible story. Minnow has been a part of the Kevinians, a cult that lives in the middle of the woods, for the last twelve years of her life, from the age of five until seventeen, when she finally manages to escape. Amazingly, she is the only person who wanted to escape the cult, the rest of the characters following their leader blindly. This makes Minnow an incredibly strong character, in my opinion. Well, this and many other things. Minnow is written in such a way that I felt like I could really identify with her. I felt almost like I was inside her head with her, which isn't something I've been able to say about many fictional characters. Her head was a really confusing and oftentimes frightening place.

Having been raised in a cult, Minnow knows very little about the real world and, most worrisome to her, she knows next to nothing about science. She has been taught that the sky is a canvas, the stars are God's eyes, and meteors are missiles. Throughout this book, Minnow strives to learn more about the natural world and make sense of all the nonsense she's been fed for her entire life. But she isn't happy taking anyone at their word. Instead Minnow makes it her mission to learn to read in order to learn - to find answers. I loved this about her!

Possibly my favorite character in this book is Angel, Minnow's murderer cell mate in juvie, who just happens to be a huge science buff and takes it upon herself to help Minnow learn. While she does share her opinions on the world quite often, I liked that even more often she offered resources to help Minnow find answers for herself. This is how everyone should find answers, I think, rather than accepting anything on the word of anyone else.

The love interest (there's no triangle, thank goodness) in The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly is Jude, a boy who has also been raised in the woods, but not as part of a cult. The book stretches many years and tells their story in bits and pieces, allowing the reader to watch their relationship grow from childhood friendship to something more as time passes. My feelings towards Jude changed over the course of the book, but I felt like he was an overall positive character and a very believable love interest, which is not often the case in YA fiction.

I could say so much more about the many other characters that made up this book, but I could honestly go on for pages! The Prophet is completely despicable, Minnow's family made me want to pull my hair out, and Dr. Wilson is incredibly complex. In case you haven't picked up on it, the characters in this book are amazingly well-written.

There are really two settings in this book - The Community and the jail that Minnow is sentenced to. The jail could really be any other jail. It was well-written but how much can you really say about jail that hasn't been said somewhere else? But The Community was just... it was like I was there. I'm really not sure how Stephanie Oakes did it, but she made me feel like I was watching through a TV screen. I can picture the entire Community almost in detail. I can see the buildings and the surrounding woods and the pond and the animals. There was a contradictory air of serene trepidation surrounding the Community that I could almost feel when I was reading about it. Minnow's unease and need to get away was so real based on the way all of her surroundings were described!

My point is the world building was also completely amazing.

Have you guessed yet what I'm going to say about this story? Um... yes, it was amazing. I'm sorry I don't have better words to describe it. I'm going to be honest here: I have an anxiety problem. The entire time I was reading this (and even in between the times I was actually reading) I had a constant feeling of unease. That's how good Stephanie Oakes is at setting the tone. This book made me feel for Minnow Bly even when I wasn't reading it!

This book paints such an amazing picture of a cult that is so terrible it should be unbelievable, but really isn't. From the beginning I was thinking that nothing like this could ever happen. Then I thought about Jonestown and even the story of Irene Spencer and I knew that it absolutely could, which makes it even more horrendous.

One of my favorite parts of this book (one of my favorite parts...) was that I really didn't know what happened! It was kind of a whodunit throughout and it wasn't until the very end that the truth about who killed the Prophet came to light.

The only thing I didn't absolutely love was the ending. I wish there had been more of a resolution to the story. Instead, it just kind of ended a little vaguely. It would be really awesome if Stephanie Oakes would release a novella so that I could find out what actually happened to Minnow!

I've already said way too much about this book. I could probably go on for a lot longer about everything I loved, but I won't. I really think everyone should read this book! I don't usually include quotes in my reviews, but this was so beautifully written (the author has a degree in poetry) that I can't end this review without leaving you with at least a couple.

Jude taught me what love was: to be willing to hold on to another person's pain. That's it. 

I nod. "You know one thing the Prophet never answered? That nobody ever wondered about but me? People. What made us. Where we came from."

"But you know that already," Angel says. "From the stars."  

Book Review: A Cold Legacy by Megan Shepherd

Title: A Cold Legacy (The Madman's Daughter #3)
Author: Megan Shepherd
Publication Date: January 27, 2015
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Pages: 390
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Reviews for books 1 & 2

After killing the men who tried to steal her father’s research, Juliet—along with Montgomery, Lucy, Balthazar, and a deathly ill Edward—has escaped to a remote estate on the Scottish moors. Owned by the enigmatic Elizabeth von Stein, the mansion is full of mysteries and unexplained oddities: dead bodies in the basement, secret passages, and fortune-tellers who seem to know Juliet’s secrets. Though it appears to be a safe haven, Juliet fears new dangers may be present within the manor’s own walls.

Then Juliet uncovers the truth about the manor’s long history of scientific experimentation—and her own intended role in it—forcing her to determine where the line falls between right and wrong, life and death, magic and science, and promises and secrets. And she must decide if she’ll follow her father’s dark footsteps or her mother’s tragic ones, or whether she’ll make her own.

With inspiration from Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, this breathless conclusion to the Madman’s Daughter trilogy is about the things we’ll sacrifice to save those we love—even our own humanity.

After I finished Her Dark Curiosity earlier this year and found myself with a severe book hangover, I subconsciously made the decision to put off reading the last installment of The Madman's Daughter trilogy for awhile. You know when you are in love with a series and you really don't want it to end so you drag it out for as long as possible? Yeah... But then I kept finding myself completely unable to read anything else! And so I ended up driving to an overpriced bookstore to buy A Cold Legacy minutes before the shop closed. It was the right decision. This was a pretty great end to a pretty great series!

A Cold Legacy picks up right where the last book left off - with Juliet, Lucy, Montgomery, Edward, and Balthazar on the run to Scotland where they will (hopefully) be safe. It's hard to say much about characters that are already so well established in a series other than how much I continued to love them!

I loved Juliet's twisted and dark inclinations and how she tries to use them in only the best possible way. She is constantly trying to come to terms with who she is and how she fits into her family. My favorite part of this book is that the love triangle has been completely obliterated! While Juliet still considers Edward to be a dear friend, her devotion to Montgomery is solid in this final book, although there are still struggles there as well as both continue to keep huge secrets from each other.

The romance between Edward and Lucy is more fully realized in A Cold Legacy, something the last book only touched on briefly. Edward is honestly the most interesting part of this whole series. He continues to struggle with the beast inside him, trying to do the right thing and keep his loved ones safe. There were some very real feels in this book, mostly owing to the characters and the things they're going through.

The minor characters were wonderful also. I loved Balthazar's loyalty to his friends and admired the lengths he'd go to to save those he cared about. The newly introduced staff of Elizabeth's estate were all interesting and most had depth that added to the story, rather than being just a name on the page to fulfill a purpose. Megan Shepherd definitely has a talent for creating sympathetic and REALY characters!

The setting of each book in The Madman's Daughter series is different. The first was set on an island, the second in London, and now the characters have found themselves in Scotland. This definitely keeps each book interesting and this one is no exception. I greatly enjoyed exploring the Frankenstein home and learning of each new secret passage! I loved the idea of the booby trapped tunnels and hallways that were not fully known and thereby always a little dangerous. But most of all I thought the (crazy scientist) lab was great! Although almost the entire story is set in the same house, all of these elements made it plenty interesting.

Finally, the story itself was decently interesting. It was a "retelling" of Frankenstein, but not really. The other two books in the series were retellings of The Island of Doctor Moreau and Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and I felt like each of those did a fantastic job of reimagining the original story while keeping some original elements. This one, however, was basically a continuation of Frankenstein rather than an actual retelling. The Frankenstein we know and love has come and gone and his creature is off somewhere doing creature things while Elizabeth has taken over the family home. It was certainly interesting, I just don't feel like it was a true retelling.

There were also some aspects that seemed maybe a little unrealistic. Nothing I can really point out without possible spoilers, but suffice it to say there were times when the characters did things that I don't know would have happened in real life.

The only thing I truly didn't like was the ending. It seemed very unresolved and I wish there was more to clear up what happens next. Even just a novella or something!

Overall I really enjoyed the conclusion to this series! Although not every book was a five star book in my opinion, I still HIGHLY recommend this series for anyone who enjoys classics or books with a darker feel.

Book Review: Sweet by Emmy Laybourne

Title: Sweet
Author: Emmy Laybourne
Publication Date: June 2, 2015
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Pages: 288
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Emmy Laybourne, author of the Monument 14 trilogy, takes readers on a dream vacation that goes first comically, then tragically, then horrifyingly wrong!

The luxurious celebrity cruise launching the trendy new diet sweetener Solu should be the vacation of a lifetime. But Laurel is starting to regret accepting her friend Viv’s invitation. She's already completely embarrassed herself in front of celebrity host Tom Forelli—the hottest guy ever!—and she's too sick to even try the sweetener. And that's before Viv and all the other passengers start acting really strange.

Tom knows that he should be grateful for this job and the chance to shed his former-child-star image. His publicists have even set up a 'romance' with a sexy reality star. But as things on the ship start to get wild, he finds himself drawn to a different girl. And when the hosting gig turns into an expose on the shocking side effects of Solu, it's Laurel that he's determined to save.

I knew I had to have this book as soon as I read the synopsis months ago when I featured it for Waiting on Wednesday! Sweet sounds like a totally original YA horror at sea and I am a total sucker for ship horror stories (note: The Last Ship - not that great). Sweet definitely delivered on originality and horror, but it really did not WOW me like I'd hoped it would.

I'm going to be completely honest here. I finished reading this about two hours ago and I had already forgotten the main character's name. I had to look back at the synopsis. (Off to a bad start.)

Anyway, Laurel is the main character on this weight loss cruise. She really doesn't want to be there at all, what with all the rich and famous people (I mean, really, who would want to hang out with famous people? Amirite?!), but she was roped into it by her rich best friend, Viv. Unfortunately for all involved, Laurel is very prone to motion sickness (and I guess they don't have meds for that onboard... rich people don't get seasick), and is totally unable to eat for the first few days of their voyage. Because of this, she is unable to eat any of the mystical new sweetener, Solu (which is also what makes people lose weight).

Laurel is also the only overweight person on the entire ship who's totally cool with being overweight because she's perfect the way she is. While I'm all for people being happy and comfortable with their bodies, one thing (one thing) that bothered me about Laurel is how she constantly tells Viv not to lose weight because she's also perfect. Like I said, loving yourself is fine and dandy, but why try to dissuade someone who admits to a binge eating problem and really seems to want to better herself? It's fine to be happy with your body, but it's also fine to want to lose weight. So it kind of bugged me that Laurel was all over Viv (before Solu even happened) about staying the way she is. I almost got the feeling that Laurel wasn't actually as secure as she tried to act and wanted Viv to remain her size 12 twin...

Funny enough, there's a second person on board who refuses to eat Solu, but he's not seasick. Nope, he's a big hunk of MANLY MANESS (she tells us this like, a thousand times) and works out HARD in every other chapter (often until he pukes, which he tells us often). Tom is a former child star and now he's a TV host and Ryan Seacrest's competition. He also hates his job and has never spoken to a normal person who wasn't famous (apparently).

Obviously, Tom and Laurel must fall in love. Instantly. In the span of about three days (seriously, the day of the voyage is shown on every page). I didn't buy it. I didn't buy the romance at all. I swear on my honor that if I ever publish a book, there will be no instalove.

This was one of the better parts of Sweet, although even the cruise ship setting was a little lacking. (Having just come off a cruise myself, I have the idea of a luxury cruise ship pretty fresh in the ol' thinking cap.) The atrium of the ship was really richly described and I thought I would be in for similar world building (ship building?) throughout the book, but no such luck. There was so much opportunity for vivid detail in Sweet! (It's a top of the line cruise ship!) But I could see the luxury at all.

Like I've already said, the plot was totally original, but maybe it was too original... The pace was breakneck, which I actually did enjoy a lot because it kept me turning pages and made this a really quick read! That being said, everything in the plot was underdeveloped. The symptoms of Solu were introduced way too quickly to be believable, for one thing. BUT I did enjoy the story. A lot. This was actually going to be a three star book for me (liked it). Then I hit maybe the last 30-40 pages and I just couldn't.

First of all, things just started getting ridiculous. Solu was terrifying enough before things started taking a zombie-vampire turn... my suspension of disbelief can only be taken so far.

And then near the end, when the whole cause behind things gets explained, I literally started ranting out loud in an empty room. I kid you not, the words "bull crap" actually came from my mouth as I started squinty-eyed at the page. Things are explained, but they make absolutely no sense at all. None. I'm a "why" person, and I asked, "but why?" probably 20 times (out loud).

And then there's Laurel (again). Remember when I said she was a maniac? She makes freaking idiot decisions.

Highlight for spoilery rant:

Picture it: You're on a boat where people are losing their freaking minds and killing each other. This product (Solu) is about to be released to the general public. In three hours. Your options are:

A) get on a lifeboat, head for land (which could be maybe 6 hours away) with a huge group of people who can corroborate your story or
B) go back with your now-crippled boyfriend into the throng of psychos and BLOW UP THE FREAKING SHIP!

Option B, obviously. Right? (nobody?) Um... DUH. Not to mention, she blew up EVERY OTHER FREAKING PERSON ON THE SHIP! Seriously? WHAT THE HELL, LAUREL?! And guess what? Solu is still being released. Because your dumb self has been unconscious in a hospital for who knows how long because you BLEW YOURSELF UP YOU IDIOT!

I just seriously can't with this girl.

I haven't read anything else by Emmy Laybourne. Her Monument 14 series has been on my TBR list for so long and now I'm seriously reconsidering ever picking it up. And one last thing. Her writing. Notice the fifty thousand parenthesis throughout this review? That's basically the whole book. I guess it's not a huge deal, but it was annoying. I'm not giving this one star because I didn't completely hate it and one star is reserved for books I completely hate. This did have a unique premise and it was totally creepy and fast paced and I liked it okay. Until the end. And then it was dumb. Really though, this is more like a one-and-a-half star book, I just don't do halvesies on my blog. So take from that what you will, I guess.