The Sweet Relief of Missing Children

9/10 stars.

I fell in love with this book after going to one of Sarah's readings. She read the first chapter, and though I had arrived with the intent of purchasing the book, the read-aloud of the first chapter simply affirmed my original intent.

And so I bought the book.

The rest of the story is just as wonderful and even improves upon that first chapter.

I loved her description of characters. The writing was so powerful that I very nearly jumped and cried at points. The way some portions of the book were written are exactly the type of writing that I adore! I cannot fully explain both my adoration and admiration for this story- one that is so heart-breaking and at the same time so wonderfully and beautifully crafted.

Lenora (one of the main characters) has been added to an ever-growing list of my favorite fictional characters.

The cover is also GORGEOUS. I love how there is a photograph, but it is mysterious and intriguing rather than face-on. It adds another layer of mystery to the story.

Sweetly

8/10 stars.

Sweetly is a modern telling of Hansel and Gretel, yet it is also quite different from the classic story. I liked the development of the characters, especially Gretchen and Sophia. Gretchen even organizes her books the exact same way that I do (she organizes them by the color of the covers).  Hansel and Gretel was and still is one of my favorite fairy tales, and so I was elated when I saw how closely Sweetly resembled it. There were moments when this book caught me off-guard (in a good way!), and moments where events I couldn’t have predicted happened.

Books that mirror other classic works always intrigue me, and this one was done well. While there are parts that are almost identical to Hansel and Gretel,  Sweetly is a book all its own. It has love, mystery, and much more. Since it is in a first person point of view, told by Gretchen, we really understand everything she feels, including the guilt of her sister disappearing 12 years ago.

I would have been interested to hear some parts of the story from Sophia's point of view, and Ansel's as well. I think that it would be interesting to see what they were thinking at certain moments in the story, though Gretchen's narration was wonderful!

The description of the candies in the chocolatier shop were lovely as well, I could really imagine Sophia, Gretchen, and Ansel making all of the magical chocolates. 

If you like Hansel and Gretel, this book is a must read! If you don't, you ought to give it a try anyways, though I would recommend that the reader be at least 13 or 14.

Amaryllis in Blueberry

9/10 stars.

The main reaction I received while carrying Amaryllis in Blueberry around was "Well, isn't that just like The Poisonwood Bible? (another great book, by the way!!)
I'll say this: Yes, Amaryllis in Blueberry does share semblance to TPB, however they are each wonderful novels in their own right.

Amaryllis kept me going, and I was especially happy when I discovered [MINOR SPOILERS] that Amaryllis has synesthesia, a disease that I am utterly fascinated by.

Back to the review... the cover alone is worthy of nine stars, and the story behind the cover is well worth opening up that front flap. This novel is told through about seven points of view, but is done so in a way that the reader can still easily understand all of the goings-on. Each of the daughters had a distinct personality, even though three of the four had the same first name- Mary. However, each of these girls is known by her second name: Grace, Catherine/Catie, and Tessa (oldest to youngest). Amaryllis, also know as Yllis is different in both name and personality, and this the reader is easily drawn to her. She is also the only character to tell her story in first person.

Yllis is my favorite character in the novel, for her insightfulness, vivacity and simply how ALIVE she is. This story has mystery in it as well as being a family story, and one of life in the seventies, the story takes place during 1976, with one flashback to 1956.

After finishing Amaryllis in Blueberry, I wanted to know about what happens to everyone after. I fell so in love with these characters, as Christina Meldrum brings them all so alive, even the ones I did not like, I wanted to hear more about, to know what happened with their lives.

A great read, no matter whether or not you have read The Poisonwood Bible.


The two books are very different, and each wonderful in their own way.

From Bad to Cursed

9/10 stars!

I got this book as an ARC in a local bookstore of mine.

My reaction when I saw that they had it was quite literally "Oh. OH. Oh my gosh. Oh wow." Followed by excessive smiling and hugging of the book to my chest. 

HERE you can read my review of Bad Girls Don’t Die, the first book.

Alexis has run into the supernatural yet again, just when she thought everything was going to be okay. My dad's reaction when I read him the back-cover description was "What is up with her town?" I giggled in response to this, but it is funny how Alexis' (the main character) town seems to have some sort of magnetic appeal for the supernatural. 

There is something about Katie Alender's writing that causes me to stop breathing while I read her books. Unfailingly it happened once again with this book. Perhaps three times or more!

If one dislikes creepy books, then they ought to read this with caution, for there are moments of disturbing revelations and scary events. It is still a wonderful book though, and all who believe themselves to be in the appropriate age group should give it a shot.

So, in summary... 

What did I like about this book? I think the question ought to be phrased more along the lines of what didn’t I like? This book will keep you up, not wanting to put it down, wondering what would happen next. 

These Things Hidden

9/10 stars.

This book. OH MY GOD.

Here is another case of why I need to just buy books if I feel as though I want to read them. I must've looked at this book five different times before choosing to buy it. I'm so glad that I did decide to buy it. I've read her first novel, The Weight of Silence and enjoyed it quite a lot. This book was something completely new. It is a mystery, and one that turns and twists many times, so unexpectedly. I was reading it in the car while my dad and I were going to do driving lessons, and when we arrived I was so close to the ending and I did not want to put it down! Sadly, I had to. I finished it on the way home though.

These Things Hidden tells the story of a 21-year old named Allison who was convicted for a crime that the reader is unaware of at the beginning. The story is told from four points of view, and while I do not always like this style of writing, Gudenkauf did a good job of blending together the different perspectives, and all of the perspectives were extremely important in order to have the story be able to play out in the way that it did.

At times this book had be holding my breath, and at times I wanted to scream "NO!". I was entranced by the different characters, and I like how Gudenkauf has some of the characters talk in first person, whereas with others they are talked about in third person. I believe that this shifting is effective based on how they play into the story. The two sisters speak in first person, whereas the other two women are spoken of in the third person.

Well worth the read if you need a new and interesting mystery. Though this is not for those extremely faint of heart, as it does cover some disturbing topics.

I would also like to comment on the cover. I love this cover so much, and if you read the book you can see how symbolic the cover is as well.

Never Let Me Go

10/10 stars

I would have to say that Never Let Me Go is honestly one of the books that I adore most. There is nothing that I can critique about this book. Nothing. The story is woven together in such a beautiful way, and for reasons I cannot post here [spoilers], this book made me cry. The three main characters: Cathy H, Ruth, and Tommy are such unique individuals, and I truly feel as though I went through their lives with them. 

This book can best be categorized as Science Fiction, though that does not quite fit it. It does not take place in the far future, rather, it takes place in an alternate past. Never Let Me Go is a book that truly surprises the reader at many different places. It is anything but a simple tale, though it does have classic themes of love, loss, and friendship. 

The reader gets to see Cathy, Ruth, and Tommy grow up, from their early school-days at Hailsham to their adult lives. Though this book is "Sci-Fi" to some degree, it is very easy to imagine events like this happening, to the point where one takes extra time paying attention to people on the street, wondering exactly what their story is, wondering who they really are.

 

This is the movie's trailer.

(On a side note, I've also seen the movie and I must say, it was quite wonderful, I was so happy as to how well they kept with the book, and in my opinion the actors were chosen BRILLIANTLY).

So Shelly

9/10 stars!


So Shelly by Ty Roth is a fascinating work of literature. It takes authors John Keats, Lord Byron, and Mary Shelley and turns them into modern teenagers. This is not an easy task, however Roth turns their respective lives right into the lives of teens today. For anyone interested in the lives of these famous authors, So Shelly is a good read. For anyone who wants a clever romance, So Shelly is just that. Even if one has not read any of the works by these authors, he or she will still be able to enjoy So Shelly, for it stands on its own.

This book is out now,  and it is certainly worth the read! I for one do not always enjoy books aimed at teenagers now, as I tend to go through most all of them within two hours, however, So Shelly took me by surprise. I enjoyed it to the extent that, while writing this review, the thoughts going through my head are "Okay, I need to find a biography on these three authors/ read more of their stuff." and "I want to write a book that transplants historical figures into modern times."

This is the type of book that continuously holds your interest, until the very last page.

I read this book back in December. (Yes, I'm aware that I have been dead awful with writing reviews. I would promise to write more, but I don't know if I can. I will try my hardest to get at LEAST three reviews done a month. Goodness knows I read enough for that!)