Review: Scarlet

Title: Scarlet (Lunar Chronicles #2)
Author: Marissa Meyer
Publication date: February 5, 2013
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Source: bought

Rating: 5 stars

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Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She's trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she'll be the Commonwealth's most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn't know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother's whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.

It’s no secret that Scarlet has been one of my most anticipated reads of 2013. I bought this book the week it came out but forced myself to wait because I didn't want to plow through and then face the agonizing one-year wait before the next one.

Ye-ah that self-imposed wait did not last very long.

And now that I’ve finished Scarlet, you have NO idea how hard it is to write a coherent review when all I want to do is flail my arms and fangirl about the book. Because it. Was. SO GOOD.

Sorry, couldn't resist some flailing...

In this retelling, Scarlet (our Little Red) has traded in her cape for a functional hoodie and her basket of goodies for a handgun. One that she is not afraid to use, I might add. This girl is a badass. Not to mention tough and stubbornly determined to find her grandmother, no matter who stood in her way. I found Scarlet to be a tougher and more fiery character than Cinder, and I ended up loving her just as much.

 And speaking of characters that I loved....
Wolf. What can I say about Wolf except

He's definitely not what I expected of a Big Bad Wolf incarnation. He was... shy. And quiet. And very adorable. Well. When he's not being an deadly fighter, that is. I can't even find the words to describe him because all I want to do when I think about Wolf is

I'm sorry. I just have a thing for fictional characters...

(I'd highly recommend reading The Queen's Army before Scarlet because it's going to provide a lot more back story to Wolf's character.)

Cinder's adventure is continued in this book and picks up soon after her arrest at the Ball. She manages to escape from prison with the unlikely help from a fellow prisoner, one Captain Carswell Thorne, flirtatious American pilot. Thorne provided some much appreciated comic relief throughout the story, and OH MY GOODNESS, you guys, I am 95% sure he's going to be the love interest featured in the next book! *Squeeeeeee*  >___<

As interested as I was by Scarlet's story, I was still riveted by Cinder's journey. Slowly, she is learning more about her newfound Lunar abilities as well as her past as Princess Selene. Watching Cinder explore her Lunar gift was awesome. I think it'll only be a matter of time before Queen Levana should head for the hills! (Fingers crossed).

Kai's story is continued in Scarlet as well. There weren't enough scenes to fully satisfy my Kai cravings (and don't even get me started on how much it's killing me that he and Cinder are not together!!) but there were just enough moments to keep me appeased. In the glimpses throughout the book, you see him dealing with Levana in the aftermath of Cinder's escape and his own conflicting emotions towards New Beijing's best mechanic.... Basically the result is me in utter agony. Especially after the way this book ended! I swear, Marissa Meyer is trying to kill me with all this anxiety. Evil, evil author.....(just kidding).

If I thought Cinder was amazing (and it totally was) then Scarlet basically took all the awesomesauce that went into writing Cinder and upped the ante, taking readers from the sweet innocence of the Cinderella retelling to a darker and grittier story. The alternating POVs in this story were handled incredibly well, and the way in which Cinder and Scarlet's arcs converged was flawless. Like a puzzle whose pieces are falling together, I'm starting to see how all these different fairytales are interconnected and it is kind of blowing my mind!

All in all:

For the love of all that is good and holy, I need that next book. I can't even bring myself to start another book because my head is still wrapped up in the world of the Lunar Chronicles, yearning to know what happens next. MARISSA MEYER, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME?

Review: Speechless

 Title: Speechless
Author: Hannah Harrington
Publication Date: August 28th, 2012
Publisher: HarlequinTeen

Everyone knows that Chelsea Knot can't keep a secret

Until now. Because the last secret she shared turned her into a social outcast—and nearly got someone killed.

Now Chelsea has taken a vow of silence—to learn to keep her mouth shut, and to stop hurting anyone else. And if she thinks keeping secrets is hard, not speaking up when she's ignored, ridiculed and even attacked is worse.

But there's strength in silence, and in the new friends who are, shockingly, coming her way—people she never noticed before; a boy she might even fall for. If only her new friends can forgive what she's done. If only she can forgive herself.

Fact #1: Clichés in YA are annoying to read about.

Fact #2: Hannah Harrington is an amazing author and can make the most overused clichés work.

Speechless is a unique blend of commonly-used themes, such as high school and bullying, and a very refreshing, new idea: a vow of silence.

The high school environment in Speechless is a huge cliché: the popular kids rule and there's a gorgeous queen bee that can make your life miserable if she chooses. Seriously though, whose high school is actually like that?! I know mine's not. This is a cliché used time and time again in YA, and while I wasn't crazy about it in this book, Harrington still managed to win me over with her magnificent characters. 

Chelsea Knot starts off as the typical popular mean girl--the gossiper, the follower. In the beginning, she's the type of character you love to hate. However, as the novel progressed, I fell more and more in love with Chelsea's character. This girl is funny, sassy, and tough as nails. Yes, she made a bad decision, but she chose to do the right thing, despite what it would cost her, and in the face of all the bullying she endured, she kept her head high and she never let it break her. 

Despite the fact that she doesn't actually talk to anyone for most of the novel--vow of silence, remember?--I loved her voice. It's so distinct and utterly relatable and very realistic. Chelsea underwent so much character growth throughout the novel and I loved seeing the inner Chelsea overcome the years of social conforming she did to please her so-called best friend.

The side characters were also fantastic. Chelsea's new friends were super cool people that I wished I could meet in real life and while the romance was a bit slow, I liked the development between Chelsea and Sam.  
But guys. More importantly... HARPER AND JAKE MAKE A CAMEO APPEARANCE!! 
That one little excerpt literally made my day as I read this.  :D

My Rating: 4.5 stars*
This is a powerful and emotional book and even inspirational book, with interspersed moments of utter hilariousness and garnished with sparkling wit. Hannah Harrington had such a strong debut novel that I worried Speechless wouldn't be able to live up to, but she did it. She's crafted an another spectacular must-read novel that I can't wait to add to my shelf!

*I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in return for an honest review

Review: Cinder

Cinder (Lunar Chronicles #1)
by Marissa Meyer

Published January 3rd 2012 by Feiwel & Friends

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . .

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future. 

-goodreads


Rating: 5/5
Review:
Oh. My. Goodness. Gracious. 

Let me start off by saying that there are quite a few Cinderella retellings out there. The story of Cinderella is one fairytale that is often retold  and given some new twist.

But NEVER, and I mean never ever, have I read a Cinderella retelling where the girl in question was a cyborg. Can we just pause for a moment and give Marissa Meyer a moment of appreciation, because to think up a fairytale like this takes some serious creativity.

I started this book with some trepidation because, seriously? Cyborgs? Cinderella is a mechanic??? A high-tech society setting in Beijing? Ye-ah, I was not so sure I was going to like this book, but boy was I wrong because I freakin' LOVED it. The more I read, the more the story pulled me in, the more I became invested in the characters and the plot, and the more I became addicted. I was originally going to give thie book 4 stars, but upon finishing, it would've been positively criminal to not give it a 5!

Cinder was totally not what I expected--in the best possible way! She had such spunk and I loved her sarcastic humor! She's also one of the strongest heroines I've seen in quite a while. She knows that being cyborg technically makes her "inferior," but she doesn't sit around moping or lamenting her fate. Even with her stepmother and sister's awful treatment, she stays tough and true to herself. And she's also a great friend and pretty darn selfless.

Prince Kai was also a great surprise. As I kind of detest instalove relationships, and, let's face it, Cinderella was the original instalove love story, I was worried that Kai and Cinder would have one of those love-at-first-sight kind of things, but thank goodness, Marissa Meyer, you have given me a wonderful fairytale, but still realistic romance.

The world of Cinder is so original and wonderfully crafted, that even though it's so different from our, I had no trouble imagining it. I loved that Meyer blended culture by making the story take place in New Beijing and also how eloquently she explained the technicalities of being a cyborg and how it made Cinder's life different from a human's. This book is so darn hard to categorize. It's party fairytale, part dystopian, part supernatural, part technological....trust me when I say that it's in a category all of its own.

HIGHLY HIGHLY RECOMMEND!
Warning: beware the signs of crushing disappointment, impatience, and furious shock upon finishing this book and realizing the sequel doesn't come out until 2013.

What. The. Frak.

Review: Sloppy Firsts (Jessica Darling book 1)

Sloppy Firsts (Jessica Darling #1)
by Megan McCafferty
Published August 28, 2001 by Crown Publishing Group


When her best friend, Hope Weaver, moves away from Pineville, New Jersey, hyperobservant sixteen-year-old Jessica Darling is devastated. A fish out of water at school and a stranger at home, Jessica feels more lost than ever now that the only person with whom she could really communicate has gone. How is she supposed to deal with the boy- and shopping-crazy girls at school, her dad’s obsession with her track meets, her mother salivating over big sister Bethany’s lavish wedding, and her nonexistent love life?    -goodreads



Rating: 4/5

Review: 
If at one point in the future and you come across this book, please please please don't judge it by its blurb. Does the blurb make the book sound extremely....bland? Typical? Clichéd? Just not good in general? HECK YES. But in reality, this book is extremely witty and utterly unforgettable!    

This book is written in a kind of journal format--but really it's more of a 1st-person narrative--and that means No. Holds. Barred. You get extreme insight into the mind of Jessica Darling: aka one of my all-time new favorite narrators. You guys. Seriously. Jessica Darling is like the person we all wish we could think like--smart, insightful, wickedly hilarious, and extremely cynical.This might not be making sense, but once you've read this book, you'll understand why one (like me!) would be a little envious of the way Jessica Darling's brain works. Not only that, but if Jessica was a real person, I would SO want to be friends with her (but not the kind of friend like the Clueless Crew)! 

The plot itself.... hmm.... yeah, pretty clichéd, but the way that Jessica narrates it (and also some events regarding a Marcus Flutie) make it surprisingly refreshing read, despite it's overused storyline. The interesting thing is there's no real climax--or more accurately, you know those plot maps you learn in school? The ones with intro, rising action, climax, falling action, and conclusion? There's none of that in this book which was...new. But made the book a much more real depiction of teenage life.

And as for Marcus Flutie... Oh Marcus...*smiles stupidly* I loved his character. He starts out as a dreg, but is actually kind of a genius, and often challenges Jessica intellectually (which, let me tell you, is not easy). You could argue that his background/character is rather clichéd or incredibly refreshing from other YA guys. Like I said, I personally like him, and especially all his conversations with Jessica. The only thing I didn't like was how he was practically MIA for a big chunk of the book! Also, there's no real "relationship development" between him and Jessica until the last quarter of the book! Which was quite unfortunate for me when I was reading the middle, but had me gobbling up the end and pining away for the next book...

 OH! Haha and on a totally random note, can I just say that I LOVED Pepe/Pierre?! He was hands down my favorite character, after Jessica and (eek!) possibly rivaling Marcus??!


Overall, this book was unexpectedly amazing! Again, I have learned to not judge a book by its blurb. (Now if only I could stop doing that for covers...) I highly recommend this to people who are in high school and heck even people who aren't just so they can get a hilarious kick out of a great narration of those special 4 years. :)


~Quotes 
This is my new hobby. I watch my life depart minute by minute. I anticipate the end of everything and anything -- a conversation, a class, track practice, darkness -- only to be left with more clock-watching to take its place. I'm continually waiting for something better that never comes. Maybe it would help if I knew what I wanted.

All subjects are the same. I memorize notes for a test, spew it, ace it, then forget it. What makes this scary for the future of our country is that I'm in the tip-top percentile on every standardized test. I'm a model student with a very crappy attitude about learning.

The higher my GPA gets the more I realize high school is useless.

"This wasn't Pepe Le Pew. No, this was a different guy altogether. One who had grown four inches and twenty-five pounds of muscle in less than three months."
This was Pepe Lew Puberty.

Review: Lola and the Boy Next Door

Lola and the Boy Next Door
by Stephanie Perkins 
Published September 29th, 2011 by Dutton Books



"Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn’t believe in fashion . . . she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit -- more sparkly, more fun, more wild -- the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood.

When Cricket -- a gifted inventor -- steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door."
                                                                                                           ~blurb from goodreads.com


Review:
Stephanie Perkins is officially my new favorite author. I don't know how she does it, but she just has a way of crafting a story that practically pulls the reader right into the it, right into the protagonist's head! Oh, and her characters! She has an absolute talent for thinking up great, memorable characters. 
       I just finished Anna and the French Kiss and immediately got my hands on Lola and the Boy Next Door. I went in with some very high expectations, which, of course, always puts tremendous pressure on a book. BUT THIS BOOK DID NOT DISAPPOINT. AT ALL!

      Once again, Perkins has worked her magic on me and made me fall in love with another book. I completely agree with the raving reviews out there on how great this book is, though I ended up liking Anna and the French Kiss a bit more. Lola had a little to much relationship...angst for me. However, the characters in this book were absolutely amazing. The word amazing can't even do the characters justice; I was absolutely in love with Lola, Nathan, Andy, and of course, Cricket. Lola was such an admirable and likeable character (even if there were some things she did that kinda annoyed me) and Cricket was just so gosh-darned sweet! Be on the lookout for a My Book Boyfriend on him soon...  
     I think Perkins does a great job tackling many controversial issues such as the age-difference dating and having gay parents, but she does it in a way that's believable and not offensive at all.           
      OH! And of course, lovers of Anna and the French Kiss will be in for a real treat because she and St.Clair (!!!) are in this book too! Part of my love from this book come from the fact that you get to find out more about their story and they actually end up being pretty important supporting characters! 


This book gets 4. 5 stars from me!


And now, some of my fave quotes...


“What just happened?"
"Your father invited the former love of your life in for pie."
"Yeah, that's what I thought.” 

“Perfect is overrated. Perfect is boring."
I smile. "You don't think I'm perfect?"
"No. You're delightfully screwy, and I wouldn't have you any other way.” 

“Anna prods St. Clair's shoulder. "Come on. Weren't you gonna show me that thing?"
"What thing?"
She stares at him. He stares back. She cocks her head toward Cricket and me.
"Ah, yes." St. Clair stands. "That thing."
They rush out. The door shuts, and St. Clair shouts, "Lola, Cricket wants to show you his thing, too-oo!” 

“I don't believe in fashion. I believe in costume. Life is too short to be same person every day.” 

“Why didn't you guys dress up?" Lindsey asks.
"We did." Calliope cracks her first smile. "we're dressed as twins."
Lindsey grins back. "Hmm, I see it now. Fraternal or identical?"
"You'd be surprised how many people ask," Cricket says.
"What do you tell them?" Lindsey asks.
"That I have a penis."
Oh God. My cheeks burn as they all burst into laughter. Think about something else, Dolores. ANYTHING else. Cucumbers, Bananas, Zucchini. AHHHH! NO NO NO NO NO NO NO. I turn my face away from them as Calliope fakes a yakking sound.” 

  “I told him your loins were clearly burning, and he should man up and make a move."
"You did not!"
"I did. And if he doesn't, then I suggest you jump his bones."