Zombie books are all the rage right now, so I was looking forward to reading The Infected. According to the book jacket, The Infected is supposed to be a witty and satirical look at current horror genre trends. I could tell the author wanted his book to be commentary on society, but I had no idea what point he was trying to make. The characters had little to no development and were merely engines to move the plot along. I did like the Rules of the Zombie Apocalypse that were scattered throughout the novel and think that was a nice touch. It's true that every book or movie in this genre follows a similar formula, which is part of The Infected's message. All in all, I think some people will really enjoy The Infected - the writing by itself is pretty good and there are some twists and turns in the plot - but I am just not one of them.
Sunday, February 09, 2014
A new student review of The Infects by Sean Beaudoin
A new student review of Boy on the Edge
The author has a wonderful story plot that shows a troubled boy trying to find a place that accepts him. Fridirik's writing was effective; it made me feel like I was in the book. This book moved me; it showed that people would discriminate against people that look or talk different. I would recommend this book to anybody that likes intriguing books about mistreated children. Readers are sure to be considerate of people after reading Henry’s story.
A new student review of My Date From Hell (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy Book Two) by Tellulah Darling
The book was amazing, with new additions to the Sophie crew making life even more interesting and funny for Sophie. And the major twists the author throws in kept me reading even after I was ready to go to bed. However there were some key points that I thought needed work. The ending of the book seemed rushed. Sophie finds out Fiona is really Demeter; Demeter, who was known to adore her daughter and ended up killing her. I wish there had been more time for that to sink in for Sophie and the reader before moving on to the next big shocker. And when Kai decides to leave her, that came out of the blue. Within the space of a couple chapters, he professes his love, says he knows the difference between Sophie and Persephone, and then proceeds to dump her when he learns that Persephone had betrayed him, meanwhile lumping Sophie in the same boat as Persephone. That didn't sit right. And the big change in Bethany at the end was confusing. I'm sure that it hadn't been two days, and the way Bethany is described sounds like something that would happen with more time. Overall I was greatly pleased with the book.
Saturday, February 08, 2014
A new student review of Risking Exposure by Jeanne Moran
I personally loved the book, but some things about it scared me. An example is you have no freedom of speech. If any of Sophia’s letters had been incriminating, she would have been detained like the rest of her family. I could never imagine living in that fear; the fact that if the party wanted you gone you would be gone makes me question how Sophia felt? The book made my heart race from beginning to end; there was never a dull moment. Sometimes I felt such sorrow for the characters I wanted to stop reading, and wish I could come back to a happier story. If you are looking for a meaningful and realistic story (by that I mean not overly happy), then this is a book for you!
A new student review of Scared Stiff: Everything You Need to Know About 50 Famous Phobias by Latta Sara
Though it includes all this, this book has its down sides. In some parts of the book it did not provide enough detail. For example, the section on dolls did not have a way to overcome the fear. This dissapionted me. Also, some parts were not explained. There were some parts that just didn't make sense. Honestly, I thought this book was really boring. The author could have done a better job grabing the reader's attention, and I found the art to be a little sloppy.
Friday, February 07, 2014
A new student review of Firebolt (The Dragonian Series) by Adrienne Woods
This book is amazing and adventurous. I hope that teachers, students, and parents will hopefully agree with me. This book will surprise you at some times, be obvious at other times but the overall story, plots, and traits fit together well and make this astounding. If you want to know how great this book is don’t just read this review; go read the book for yourself and I promise you, you won’t regret it! Amazing! Adventurous! Suspenseful! Anyone who enjoys these kinds of books will love this.
Thursday, February 06, 2014
A new student review of Teardrop
I enjoyed this book, but it was not a page turner. I found I put it down often and came back to it. However, it was a very imaginative and creative story. I was pleasantly surprised because it was a new take on fiction and romance. The author did a great job creating the legend that the story is centered around. I did find the story was a little slow in the beginning. There weren't many conflicts that the character had to face besides emotional instability. Once the plot thickened there was more action. Even though there wasn't a lot of action, there were many emotional ups and downs that the author portrayed very well, especially since she had to do this without making the charactrer cry. Overall, it was a good read.
A new student review of Willow
This book was a disappointment for me, personally. I feel like Hegamin can and has capitalized on the potential to become a great author before, but this book was a novice work of hers for sure. Awkward sentences, underdeveloped characters, below-par vocabulary. I felt like most of the book was exposition and building tension toward the climax, which turned out to be utterly predictable and rushed. You knew within the first ten pages what was going to happen in the end—the other 350 pages were just pomp and circumstance, some parts completely irrelevant to the story. And once the climax came, it was resolved in 5 pages or less—plotlines either tied off or severed within a sentence. The characters were hard to connect with—I could barely stand Willow at all! She seems self-centered and horribly wishy-washy and immature. And her whirlwind romance with the elusive Cato—bah. They fall in love within a couple of one-line sentences betwixt each other in a hidden journal, and when they finally meet, they are willing to give up anything to be with each other, no matter whose head they have to step on. Revolting, really. All in all, an unsatisfactory and dispassionate book that I felt could have been better.
“The man shook Cato’s hand; it took the rest of Cato’s strength before his vision was once again consumed with darkness.”
I would recommend this book for ages seven and up, as it is a clean read and only has a very mild expletive or two. The vocab, as I said above, is very easy to understand, also.
When Cato begs Willow’s help and offers her freedom, she is faced with a choice—will she accept his offer, or stay rooted to her home in Knotwild, always wondering what could have been? Tonya Cherie Hegamin has the answers in her new novel, Willow!
A new student review of OUT
Out is a thrilling novel that leads the reader through a harrowing, heart-pounding tale. Interesting and mind provoking, I enjoyed this tale; however, I do wish that the author had let us get to know the characters and their lives more before he started chunking conflicts. At the end of the story, I really wasn’t emotionally bound to any of the characters. Frankly, I didn’t care who died or who lived. I enjoyed the book because I chose to. I would recommend this book to any reader who needs a book to read out of boredom, but not a book I would rush to my library to grab.
Wednesday, February 05, 2014
A new student review of Firebolt (The Dragonian Series) by Adrienne Woods
I honestly could not have loved this book more. It was like a breath of fresh air after being crushed by dystopian novel after dystopian novel. My favorite character has to be Blake Leaf! I mean he might have attitude problems and his priorities aren't really in the right place, however I think that just makes him more realistic. I don't know if I’m the only one, but: GO TEAM BLAKE! I don't even know if thats a thing....Anyways, I find Elena really relatable and I think most people will too. She was the shy quiet girl who had her world turned upside down. I really want to hug the author right now and thank her for coming up with this brilliant novel, and am sad I cannot. I’m also impatient because there is absolutely no news on the next book and I don't even know if I can wait a week for it....