Book Review: Illusionarium by Heather Dixon

Illusionarium by Heather Dixon
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Publication date: May 2015
Pages: 368
Source: e-book ARC from Edelweiss
For: Review

Summary (from goodreads):

Jonathan is perfectly ordinary. But then—as every good adventure begins—the king swoops into port, and Jonathan and his father are enlisted to find the cure to a deadly plague. Jonathan discovers that he's a prodigy at working with a new chemical called fantillium, which creates shared hallucinations—or illusions. And just like that, Jonathan is knocked off his path.

Things I Liked:
This had a really unique idea and concept and I thought the world building was really awesome.  I loved how mind-bending it got near the end.  The characters weren't amazing, but I think they took a back seat to the story and it's unique intriguing ideas.  It was a complex story and I felt like I never quite grasped it all.

Things I Didn't Like:
As I said, characters were a bit flat and it felt like she took on something really big and didn't quite know what to do with it.  It felt really long in places as well.

Read-alikes:
Nothing comes to mind...

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: none

mrg-factor: none

v-factor: ->
some fighting, no gore really

Overall rating: ***

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff

Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Publication date: April 2013
Pages: 272
Source: e-book from library
For: Fun!

Summary (from goodreads):

In a magic kingdom where your name is your destiny, 12-year-old Rump is the butt of everyone's joke. But when he finds an old spinning wheel, his luck seems to change. Rump discovers he has a gift for spinning straw into gold. His best friend, Red Riding Hood, warns him that magic is dangerous, and she’s right. With each thread he spins, he weaves himself deeper into a curse.
To break the spell, Rump must go on a perilous quest, fighting off pixies, trolls, poison apples, and a wickedly foolish queen. The odds are against him, but with courage and friendship—and a cheeky sense of humor—he just might triumph in the end.

Things I Liked:
Yes! This is everything a fractured fairy tale should be. I will never look at Rumpelstiltskin another way.  This is the best retelling of that crazy weird story I've ever heard.  I loved Rump and found his struggle with the way things were and his own weaknesses quite good.  It was interesting how he was both good and bad and who the "villains" were and just everything. The trolls! The aunties! Pretty much the whole thing. Red! Need more of her.

Things I Didn't Like:
Um, can't think of anything

Read-alikes:
Reminded me of the League of Princes series by Christopher Healy

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: none

mrg-factor: none

v-factor: none

Overall rating: *****

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai and Christina Lamb

I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai and Christina Lamb
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Publication date: October 2013
Pages: 352
Source: Library
For: Fun

Summary (from goodreads):

I come from a country that was created at midnight. When I almost died it was just after midday.

When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education.

On Tuesday, October 9, 2012, when she was fifteen, she almost paid the ultimate price. She was shot in the head at point-blank range while riding the bus home from school, and few expected her to survive.

Instead, Malala's miraculous recovery has taken her on an extraordinary journey from a remote valley in northern Pakistan to the halls of the United Nations in New York. At sixteen, she has become a global symbol of peaceful protest and the youngest-ever Nobel Peace Prize laureate.

Things I Liked:
What a beautiful story! I love how down to earth Malala and her father sound, yet they are making an extraordinary difference in their country.  Her story makes you think you could stand up and make a difference too.  She is inspiring in her tireless efforts to not back down when told to stop going to school.  I'm amazed at her courage and strength, especially for one so young.

Things I Didn't Like:
It wasn't the most well-written book, but I think that is part of what makes you feel like you connect well with her.

Read-alikes:
Nothing I can think of...

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: none 

mrg-factor: none

v-factor: ->->
she kind of lives with violence in her part of the world

Overall rating: *****

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork

Marcelo In The Real World by Francisco X. Stork
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books
Publication date: March 2009
Pages: 320
Source: I think I won it in a contest several years ago...
For: Fun

Summary (from goodreads):

Marcelo Sandoval hears music no one else can hear--part of the autism-like impairment no doctor has been able to identify--and he's always attended a special school where his differences have been protected. But the summer after his junior year, his father demands that Marcelo work in his law firm's mailroom in order to experience "the real world." There Marcelo meets Jasmine, his beautiful and surprising coworker, and Wendell, the son of another partner in the firm.

He learns about competition and jealousy, anger and desire. But it's a picture he finds in a file -- a picture of a girl with half a face -- that truly connects him with the real world: its suffering, its injustice, and what he can do to fight.

Things I Liked:
I really fell in love with this one from the start.  I find books told from the perspectives of those with Aspergers or similar (Marcelo doesn't identify with that entirely) are very fascinating.  I think this one was exceptional.  It was interesting to see Marcelo do things he didn't want to and to grow in ways he didn't expect.  I loved the dilemmas he faced and often the fact that he would hear something someone said, recogize he didn't quite understand, but get the gist of it anyway.  Kind of like visiting a foreign country where you sort of speak the language.  I loved Marcelo and Jasmine!

Things I Didn't Like:
I got really tired of Wendell and pretty much every other male that had to throw in something about sex every other word.  There was a lot of swearing too, which turned me off, especially when we met Jasmine's dad.  I could definitely have done without that. 

Read-alikes:
Reminded me of Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine (but with waaaaay more swearing)

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !@#
plenty, a number of f-bombs

mrg-factor: XXX
nothing on page, just a LOT of crude talk

v-factor: none

Overall rating: ****

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: Packing for Mars by Mary Roach

Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void by Mary Roach
Publisher: W.W. Norton and Company
Publication date: August 2010
Pages: 336
Source: Library
For: Book Group

Summary (from goodreads):

Space is a world devoid of the things we need to live and thrive: air, gravity, hot showers, fresh produce, privacy, beer. Space exploration is in some ways an exploration of what it means to be human. How much can a person give up? How much weirdness can they take? What happens to you when you can’t walk for a year? have sex? smell flowers? What happens if you vomit in your helmet during a space walk? Is it possible for the human body to survive a bailout at 17,000 miles per hour?

To answer these questions, space agencies set up all manner of quizzical and startlingly bizarre space simulations. As Mary Roach discovers, it’s possible to preview space without ever leaving Earth. From the space shuttle training toilet to a crash test of NASA’s new space capsule (cadaver filling in for astronaut), Roach takes us on a surreally entertaining trip into the science of life in space and space on Earth.

Things I Liked:
Mary Roach, where have you been all my life? Just kidding, but I really love the way she writes interesting nonfiction. I struggle to want to read NF a lot, but this book made me love it.  I love space, and pretty much would have loved a dry, boring book about all the crazy stuff that zero-g does to humans, but Roach made this book awesome by just basically being funny the whole time.  Seriously, if you have to write about puke and poop on space shuttles, you may as well make it fun.  I could pull quotes from pretty much every page that made me laugh.  She's witty, she's good at what she does.  Interesting stuff.

Things I Didn't Like:
She has a serious potty mouth and everything has something to do with sex.  And sometimes, I was a tad bored, but I still loved it.

Read-alikes:
Stiff by Mary Roach

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !@#
quite a few, several f-bombs

mrg-factor: XXX
plenty of talk about sex, a bit of it crude

v-factor: none

Overall rating: *****

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: Crimson Bound by Rosamund Hodge

Crimson Bound by Rosamund Hodge
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Publication date: May 2015
Pages: 448
Source: e-ARC from Edelweiss
For: Review

Summary (from goodreads):

When Rachelle was fifteen, she was good—apprenticed to her aunt and in training to protect her village from dark magic. But she was also reckless—straying from the forest path in search of a way to free her world from the threat of eternal darkness. After an illicit meeting goes dreadfully wrong, Rachelle is forced to make a terrible choice that binds her to the very evil she had hoped to defeat.

Three years later, Rachelle has given her life to serving the realm, fighting deadly creatures in an effort to atone. When the king orders her to guard his son Armand—the man she hates most—Rachelle forces Armand to help her hunt for the legendary sword that might save their world. Together, they navigate the opulent world of the courtly elite, where beauty and power reign and no one can be trusted. And as they become unexpected allies, they discover far-reaching conspiracies, hidden magic, and a love that may be their undoing. In a palace built on unbelievable wealth and dangerous secrets, can Rachelle discover the truth and stop the fall of endless night?

Things I Liked:
I wanted to love this so much more.  I was not as thrilled as I was with her last book.  It took me so much longer to get into it and to care about the characters - and I'm still not sure about Rachelle.   I loved the Red Riding Hood themes and how small bits of that story made its way into here.  I thought the ending was intriguing and good, if a bit strange in its execution.  Loved the Zisa and Tyr story too.  A bit of Hansel and Gretel, I thought.  Anyway, good but I was kind of expecting to adore it like I did Cruel Beauty.
 
Things I Didn't Like:
I was a bit too confused about Bloodbound and Forestborn and all that.  It was a bit too vague for me to really get what they were, etc. I thought the setting was good, but I wasn't as enthralled as I was with the setting from Cruel Beauty.  I suppose it's terrible to compare the two, but I can't seem to help it. It was still a very good book.

Read-alikes:
Read Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge instead :)

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !@
a few

mrg-factor: XX
some, mostly not described

v-factor: ->->->
rather a lot of monsters in this book

Overall rating: ***

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Publication date: May 2014
Pages: 240
Source: e-book from library
For: Fun

Summary (from goodreads):

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.

We Were Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from National Book Award finalist and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart.

Read it.
And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.

Things I Liked:
It is very readable, I pretty much pounded through this fast.  I was sucked into the story and completely compelled to read and find out just what happened to make Cady so changed.  I loved hearing about the summers with her cousins - it reminds me of my own family.  But I also loved seeing the depths and watching them start to grow up and see the world a little more realistically (if obviously not completely).  An interesting and intriguing look at a privileged family.

Things I Didn't Like:
I was annoyed that the Liars title never really seemed to make any sense. Also, I found that I was not too surprised at the ending, despite having been told and expecting some serious gasping and stuff at the end. I don't know. I guess I just found it sad. So much wasted in these youth!

Read-alikes:
Hm, can't think of anything

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !@#$
not tons in number, but like 10 f-bombs

mrg-factor: none
some kissing

v-factor: ->
a bit of intense action

Overall rating: ****

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: The Distant Hours by Kate Morton

The Distant Hours by Kate Morton
Publisher: Atria Books
Publication date: November 2010
Pages: 576
Source: Library
For: Book Group

Summary (from goodreads):

A long lost letter arrives in the post and Edie Burchill finds herself on a journey to Milderhurst Castle, a great but moldering old house, where the Blythe spinsters live and where her mother was billeted 50 years before as a 13 year old child during WWII. The elder Blythe sisters are twins and have spent most of their lives looking after the third and youngest sister, Juniper, who hasn’t been the same since her fiance jilted her in 1941.

Inside the decaying castle, Edie begins to unravel her mother’s past. But there are other secrets hidden in the stones of Milderhurst, and Edie is about to learn more than she expected. The truth of what happened in ‘the distant hours’ of the past has been waiting a long time for someone to find it.

Things I Liked:
Yes! I loved this deep and twisty and complicated story about family and secrets and what really happened and all that history stuff.  This was very well plotted and written and I couldn't put it down.  I first thought I had things figured out and then I changed my mind (three or four times).  Really, it kept me guessing right down to the final chapters.  I really enjoyed it.

Things I Didn't Like:
I have to admit, the ending, despite being quite surprising was a little bit too much.  Stretched a bit too far?  It felt very different from the rest of the book, in that it was a bit unbelievable, if quite a good fit for the story.  Still, I enjoyed it very much and need to get myself more Kate Morton right away!

Read-alikes:
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !@
a few

mrg-factor: none
on page, anyway

v-factor: ->
some kind of implied

Overall rating: ****

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: Princess Academy: The Forgotten Sisters by Shannon Hale

Princess Academy: The Forgotten Sisters by Shannon Hale
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA
Publication date: February 2015
Pages: 336
Source: Library
For: Fun
Series: Princess Academy, Book 3

Summary (from goodreads): *Spoilers for the first two books are quite likely*

After a year at the king’s palace, Miri has learned all about being a proper princess. But the tables turn when the student must become the teacher!

Instead of returning to her beloved Mount Eskel, Miri is ordered to journey to a distant swamp and start a princess academy for three sisters, cousins of the royal family. Unfortunately, Astrid, Felissa, and Sus are more interested in hunting and fishing than becoming princesses.

As Miri spends more time with the sisters, she realizes the king and queen’s interest in them hides a long-buried secret. She must rely on her own strength and intelligence to unravel the mystery, protect the girls, complete her assignment, and finally make her way home.

Things I Liked:
Shannon Hale, how I love thee.  This is such a wonderful book!  Sometimes I worry that I will not enjoy every Hale book I read, but she continues to astound me.  I adore the sisters - I really love where she takes this book.  Shannon doesn't hesitate to put her characters in really tricky situations, ones that you think can only have certain conseqauesnces, but she makes them think hard and find solutions that aren't easy or immediate.  An interesting and unique setting as well.  Just plain good writing and good storytelling.  Plus, I love the power given to girls and women, even subtly.

Things I Didn't Like:
Hm, not sure I can think of anything. Would have liked more Peder?

Read-alikes:
Most things Shannon Hale

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: none

mrg-factor: none

v-factor: none

Overall rating: *****

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: Perfect Lies by Kiersten White

Perfect Lies by Kiersten White
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication date: February 2014
Pages: 240
Source: e-book from Library
For: Fun
Series: Mind Games, Book 2

Summary (from goodreads): *Spoilers from the first book are inevitable*

Annie and Fia are ready to fight back.

The sisters have been manipulated and controlled by the Keane Foundation for years, trapped in a never ending battle for survival. Now they have found allies who can help them truly escape. After faking her own death, Annie has joined a group that is plotting to destroy the Foundation. And Fia is working with James Keane to bring his father down from the inside.

But Annie's visions of the future can't show her who to trust in the present. And though James is Fia's first love, Fia knows he's hiding something. The sisters can rely only on each other - but that may not be enough to save them.

Things I Liked:
I'm pretty sure I started this book previously and only read half of it, because it was really familiar in the beginning.  This is an intense and really strange book.  I love the way the characters seem to be inevitable in the choices they make, but they aren't really.  Fia is such a crazy and difficult to understand person.  I don't know how to describe this book or how I felt while reading.  It was intense and even though I had a hard time getting into it at first, I thought it was good. 

Things I Didn't Like:
Yeah, second time through and I still thought it was hard to get into.  There were times when I was just tired of them going around and around the same things.  The jumping back and forth in time and perspective was also annoying at times, but quite clever too.  I figured out the ending before it happened, which made me feel all kinds of awesome. 

Read-alikes:
Well, I recommend more Kiersten White books, but they are all SO different!

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !@
a few

mrg-factor: X
some rather intense emotions

v-factor: ->->
definitely some crazy stuff happening

Overall rating: ***

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: In the Age of Love and Chocolate by Gabrielle Zevin

In the Age of Love and Chocolate by Gabrielle Zevin
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Publication date: October 2013
Length: 8 hrs 28 min
Source: Audiobook from Library
For: Fun
Series: Birthright, Book 3

Summary (from goodreads): *Spoilers are inevitable for the first two books*

All These Things I’ve Done, the first novel in the Birthright series, introduced us to timeless heroine Anya Balanchine, a plucky sixteen year old with the heart of a girl and the responsibilities of a grown woman. Now eighteen, life has been more bitter than sweet for Anya. She has lost her parents and her grandmother, and has spent the better part of her high school years in trouble with the law. Perhaps hardest of all, her decision to open a nightclub with her old nemesis Charles Delacroix has cost Anya her relationship with Win.

Still, it is Anya’s nature to soldier on. She puts the loss of Win behind her and focuses on her work. Against the odds, the nightclub becomes an enormous success, and Anya feels like she is on her way and that nothing will ever go wrong for her again. But after a terrible misjudgment leaves Anya fighting for her life, she is forced to reckon with her choices and to let people help her for the first time in her life. 

Things I Liked:
I really enjoyed this series, though it's been so long since I read the other two I couldn't remember much of what happened, just broad stuff.  Still, this one seemed very different than the other two. I still really like Anya and how tough and unyielding she can be (which is also annoying at times).  This one covered a lot more time - several years.  I liked seeing her change her family and defy what she was supposed to have been.  Good story. Glad I finally got some endings for these characters.

Things I Didn't Like:
The more I think about banned chocolate, the more horrified I become.  Actually, I was thinking how implausible that idea is, even with the sort of legit explanations I recall from the first book.  Still, the story was good, even if I was a bit bored in places.  I listened on audio and Ilyana Kadushin's voice was quite good for Anya. 

Read-alikes:
Not really sure...maybe Curse Workers series by Holly Black?
Start with All These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !
maybe a few

mrg-factor: none

v-factor: ->
a bit

Overall rating: ***

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage