Review: Divergent

Title:  Divergent
Author:  Veronica Roth
Series:  Divergent [1]
Rating:  5/5

Summary:

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

Debut author Veronica Roth bursts onto the literary scene with the first book in the Divergent series—dystopian thrillers filled with electrifying decisions, heartbreaking betrayals, stunning consequences, and unexpected romance.

Review:

I loved this book more than I expected to.  I may have loved it more than The Hunger Games, but that's only a maybe.  More likely I think they're equal.  The dystopian ya fiction genre is a favorite of mine right now and I think this was particularly well thought out.

It was fast paced, but didn't cover a lot of time, and left plenty of time to know Tris's thoughts.  I'm not sure what I can constructively say without simply gushing over the plot and the characters.

So far I like the series (and I'm currently in the middle of reading the second book), but I'm not sure it can ultimately stand up to The Hunger Games, but it far surppases the Matched Trilogy in my rankings.

Recommended to all!  But especially to those who enjoy this genre and who want something along the same vein of The Hunger Games.

Review: Never Eighteen

Title:  Never Eighteen

Author:  Megan Bostic

Rating:  4.5/5

Summary:

Austin Parker is on a journey to bring truth, beauty, and meaning to his life. Austin Parker is never going to see his eighteenth birthday. At the rate he’s going, he probably won’t even see the end of the year. The doctors say his chances of surviving are slim to none even with treatment, so he’s decided it’s time to let go. But before he goes, Austin wants to mend the broken fences in his life. So with the help of his best friend, Kaylee, Austin visits every person in his life who touched him in a special way. He journeys to places he’s loved and those he’s never seen. And what starts as a way to say goodbye turns into a personal journey that brings love, acceptance, and meaning to Austin’s life.

Review:

I read this probably a year ago now so I don't remember the exact story line, or any particular points I liked (which makes it hard to write this review).

I do remember though that it only took me like 2 hours to read, and by the end I was in tears.  It was very powerful, and yet simple at the same time.  And you never quite know what's going on at some points, but since it's a short book things are revealed before it becomes to frustrated.

Recommended to those who like young adult, realistic, and emotional.

Dystopian Cover Love

I find that the new covers on dystopian young adult fiction are amazing, so here are ten of my favorites so far.

10.  Reached - Ally Condie

9.  When We Wake - Karen Healey

8.  Defect - Ryann Kerekes

7.  Pure - Julianna Baggott

6.  Shatter Me - Tahereh Mafi

5.  Silent Changes - Melissa Murphy

4.  Insurgent - Veronica Roth

3.  Divergent - Veronica Roth

2.  Altered - Jennifer Rush

1.  The Selection by Kiera Cass

Review: After the Fall, Before the Fall, During the Fall

Title:  After the Fall, Before the Fall, During the Fall
Author:  Nancy Kress
Rating:  1/5

Summary:

The year is 2035. After ecological disasters nearly destroyed the Earth, 26 survivors—the last of humanity—are trapped by an alien race in a sterile enclosure known as the Shell. Fifteen-year-old Pete is one of the Six—children who were born deformed or sterile and raised in the Shell. As, one by one, the survivors grow sick and die, Pete and the Six struggle to put aside their anger at the alien Tesslies in order to find the means to rebuild the earth together. Their only hope lies within brief time-portals into the recent past, where they bring back children to replenish their disappearing gene pool. 

Meanwhile, in 2013, brilliant mathematician Julie Kahn works with the FBI to solve a series of inexplicable kidnappings. Suddenly her predictive algorithms begin to reveal more than just criminal activity. As she begins to realize her role in the impending catastrophe, simultaneously affecting the Earth and the Shell, Julie closes in on the truth. She and Pete are converging in time upon the future of humanity—a future which might never unfold. Weaving three consecutive time lines to unravel both the mystery of the Earth's destruction and the key to its salvation, this taut adventure offers a topical message with a satisfying twist.

Review:

Let me start by saying I didn't even finish this book.  I got about halfway through before I couldn't take it anymore.

Usually I like the dystopian genre, and the concept wasn't that bad.  The story line was really hard to follow however, and the book just never seemed to be progressing.  After a while I was done.  Maybe some day I'll try again, but for now I just don't see anything good about it.

Recommended to... I have no idea, if you're bored and can follow it?

Review: Freak of Nature

Title:  Freak of Nature
Author:  Julia Crane
Series:  IFICS [1]
Rating:  3.5/5

Summary:

Donate Body to Science. Check.
When seventeen-year-old Kaitlyn checked the box, she never suspected she’d have her life–and her body–stolen from her. She awakens one day in a secret laboratory to discover that her body is now half-robot and is forced to hide her own secret: that she still has human emotions and a human mind. If the scientists who made her find out, they’ll erase what remains of who she was.

Kaitlyn finds an unlikely ally in Lucas, a handsome, brilliant scientist who can’t get over the guilt he feels knowing she was once a vibrant, beautiful young woman. He never expected a science project to affect him the way she does. As he tries to help her rediscover her past, he finds himself falling for the brave girl struggling to find her place and acceptance between the human and computer worlds.

Review:

*POTENTIAL SPOILERS*

I think I'm overly harsh with my numerical rating of this book, but there were enough points I didn't like enough to bring down my like of the story.

What I didn't like:

• Mistakes in the ebook format - this is a simple thing like a missing quotation mark at the beginning of a speech passage, but it drives me crazy.
• The little robots - the first one at the end of the chapter was cute, then they became annoying, like I was reading a book meant for 8-year-olds
• Lucas - I hate him as much as I like him.  I hate that Kaitlyn sees him as this perfect guy when he's just as horrible as the rest of IFICS
• Random sex - Really?  I thought this was supposed to be a ya book, and after getting her memories back how does that translate to I need to have sex now.
• How it ended - Tied up every loose end so quick and yet it's book one of a series?

What I did like:

• The storyline - enough that I finished reading despite my list of things I didn't like, and enough that I plan to read more by the author
• Quess - she interjects some humanity into this story!
• Action scenes - especially the paintball fight (but I would have liked more detail there)
• Kaitlyn - I'm glad it's from her point of view and we could see how she felt about everything.

Overall could have been done far better, but not bad.

Recommended to those who like young adult, slightly scifi books and doesn't mind loose character personalities.