Actual Rating: 4.5
This book is similar to The Giver by Lois Lowry, but it is a love story. This book stars a 17 year old girl named Cassia and her love journey with many risks and restrictions. I picked this book because it was recommended by sister when she was doing a school project. I liked this book because it gives you a different perspective on the things we have today and the challenges we face versus the challenges that Cassia faces. Though, this book, even though it is a trilogy, left some loose ends. This book has many twists and turns you would not expect. All in all, this book is by far the best book I have read this year. If you like this book, then read the next two books in this trilogy, Crossed, and Reached.
Reviewer Grade: 6
While a line isn’t all that extraordinary, a line that divides a country, separates the known from the unknown, and has people fearing to go near it is. To end a war, a line crossed out part of the country, dooming those still on its other side to either death or a fate worse than it. Rachel likes to sit in a broken, mysterious told greenhouse, just gazing out, imagining what lies beyond the line. Many people say mutated humans or monsters, but Rachel can only find beauty in its lush forests. Until, that is, she receives a message asking for help, which she can only assume comes from the other side of the line. Naturally, an adventure then is embarked upon.. I liked this book because of its slow moving, mystery-building pace, and its “chaos in the midst of the clam” sort of setting. a must-read for those who enjoy both reading between the lines, and a story that, not the author, but the reader, deciphers.
Reviewer Grade:9
Set in a world where warfare is the top priority, all school systems are adapted to better shape children into viable subjects for the training program-Battle School. This program’s main goal is to shape perfect soldiers for the war against an alien race threatening humanity, or what’s left of it, as it is. While being the youngest student there by far, he advances far past the other students in warfare, academics, and strategy training very quickly. But, unknown to Ender, he is being used as a weapon in training and after to accomplish a goal that goes against all of his morals. I enjoyed this book because it was a new twist on an old idea-special treatment for the geniuses, but this time, it was not with their well-being in mind. From the cover to the synopsis, this book entices the reader to dive into this dystopian world. Besides the story, this book also has many thought-provoking moral lessons-do what’s right or serve the common good? This space centered tactic game is one the reader can play right along side Ender.
Reviewer Grade: 9
I loved this book so much! Its written in a series of IM's, secret documents, emails, the mind of the AI and more! Its the most unique book ever. It is full of twist and turns and it made me cry and laugh and feel frustrated and more! I could not put it down!
This is a steampunky, military sci-fi novel that takes place in the 25th century and chronicles the life of Sir Robert Mayfair Bruce, an military engineer working for the United Yukon Confederacy, a vast empire that controls all of North America and large parts of the rest of the world. The book is written as a historical memoir/biography that has come under scrutiny for supposedly lying about the life of one the Confederacy's greatest leaders, an Alexander the Great-like young man named Fitzpatrick who is viewed as a hero many years after the events in Robert Bruce's publication. The novel is made even more intriguing by the fact that it is "annotated" by a fictional scholar who frequently refutes the facts described by Bruce. This begs the question "Do we want the 'nice' version of history, or the truth?"
Bruce is as excellent narrator, generally engaging and observant, and it is easy to see why he is so charmed by Fitzpatrick. His motivations are clear and his interactions with other characters are authentic and believable. That said, it is occasionally annoying that he lets his love interest, Charlotte, boss him around so much, but other than that, he is likable and real. (If you like Nick Carraway from The Great Gatsby, you'll probably like Bruce.) Speaking of Charlotte, I think she was one of this book's only major weaknesses. She seems unrealistically perfect -- intelligent, witty, independent, defiant, feisty, and not much else. She has an unhealthy amount of control over Bruce to the point that the reader questions his abilities as a leader since he seems to have no backbone when it comes to Charlotte's manipulation and he does everything she tells him without question, in spite of the fact that she isn't terribly likable. Fitzpatrick himself was well-done. His charismatic, megalomaniacal character develops subtly over the course of the book, and his rise and fall, involving a descent into moral depravity and possibly madness, is fascinating. Likewise, secondary characters are also well-developed.
This book moves rather slowly (the "War" of the title takes about 300 pages to begin), and occasionally the author gives excessive detail to things that don't need it while omitting other details that could have fleshed out the world, so suspension of disbelief is required to enjoy some things. Otherwise, the alternate reality is well-developed and appropriately detailed, with an intriguing history, society, and politics. If you don't like long books with minimal action, don't read this. But if you enjoy an intellectual steampunk adventure with good characters that raises interesting points concerning how history should be portrayed, I recommend trying Fitzpatrick's War.
Reviewer Grade: 12
Actual Rating: 3.5
Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins did not live up to the hype in my opinion. It's not that it was a bad book, it just didn't grab me as well as I expected. I might be judging it because the "outstanding" reviews but the characters seemed to grim and lifeless also super depressing I understand it's not meant to be happy but it seemed gloomy. I Didn't read the sequels because lack of interest.
Reviewer Grade: 11
Delirium, a dystopian novel written by Lauren Oliver, follows a girl's thoughts and actions in a world where love is deemed a disease and where she meets a boy who changes her whole perspective on life. In the world of Delirium there is a cure for love which Lena can't wait to get when she turns 18, the age required to be given the disease. But after she meets a boy, named Alex, she can't help but question the cure and question herself as she as to decide whether to let love consume her, or stay with what she has been taught. It had action, conflict, suspense, and romance. Throughout the book you learn a lot about Lena and the world she lives in, and see her change dramatically from a naive girl waiting to be cured of the "disease" love to being more independent and wanting more of this love she had never experienced before. Over all, Delirium is a great book that kept me wanting more and I would suggest it to anyone that is interested in finding something new to read.
Reviewer Grade: 8
Blackout changes perspectives throughout the story. It does get kind of annoying because it leaves you at a cliffhanger but other then that is a great book. I really hated how it didn't make sense before but then you see the entire story for what it is. I chose this because it's a Battle of the Books book and the cover looks really interesting. I wish that I had more details.
Reviewer Grade: 7
UnWholly by Neil Shusterman, the sequel to Unwind, begins where the last book ended and it's held its own against the first book unwind but with a twist. The last book was shown from different povs but there is a new main character that opens a new storyline and adds more mystery to the plot. If you thought you would get more answers about the heartland war you would be very disappointed as there are now more questions then you started off with. Great read would recommend if you have read books like Maze Runner and Hunger Games.
Reviewer Grade: 11
Fahrenheit 451 is a story about a future where people have become dull and lifeless. I liked the authors prediction of technology and how it takes over in the modern age. If you have to read it for school or if just for fun it shows the decent of peoples individuality when they are enamored by distraction all day long. Science fiction highly recommend.
Reviewer Grade: 11
Unwind is science fiction and takes place in a future built up of new science and terrifying new age laws. I ended up reading about this book from a recommendation from a friend and I couldn't put the book down because of the intertwined story's between the characters. It is hard to relate to these characters because they seem to do things we would like to think we would do but in the moment wouldn't think of but it think that's why I like them so much because they are almost like Hero's that are so close to being anyone of us. I would love this author and highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys action and adventure.
Similar to the old tale, Cinderella, Cinder follows a cyborg with a mysterious past. Living with a horrible family, much like Cinderella, in the midst of the blue fever, she works as a mechanic and considers herself as useless as her family accuses her of being. That is, until she meets Prince Kai and the Lunar people. What follows is a love story of unbelievable proportions, with action and climax, and every chapter a cliff hanger. A must read for the lovers of the old Cinderella and anyone who wants to experience the story coming back to life in a way that is wholly unexpected.
Reviewer Grade: 12
Actual Rating: 3.5
There will always be those stories that manage to completely transport our existence into their pages, and “Airborn” by acclaimed author Kenneth Oppel is one of those page leaping stories. Jump onboard the luxury passenger airship Aurora with young cabin boy Matt Cruse and experience an adventure unlike any other with the most surprising encounters. Experience the freedom that comes with the speeding wind and the mystery of the strange creatures that fly on them.
Reviewer Grade: 10
Any fan of adventure, aliens, sci-fi, Australia, daring innovations, zombie-like creatures, characters some could easily relate to, flying ships, and an interesting plot is sure to love this book. I randomly checked out this book for the summer and was surprised to enjoy it; unlike other books where it takes a few chapters to get to the point and books with boring dialogue, this book can take any reader to another world which, in a couple of decades and some imagination, a reader can understand happening for real.
Who knew that theater greats Willy and George were meant to be together???
Fans of Shakespeare will recognize both passages ripped from his major plays and the similarities of Lucas' characters to greats like Hamlet.
Wanna make it better? Get the audio version performed by Danny Davis, Jonathan Davis, Ian Doescher, Jeff Gurner, January LaVoy, and Marc Thompson.
The drama of C3PO's delivery alone makes it worthwhile.
Doescher's iambic pentameter treatment of Star Wars doth make me merry! Also, check out the Empire Striketh Back and the Jedi Doth Return.
If you can suffer through the prose, the story is quite fascinating. Scott Card's psychological storyline is very interesting, and the ending was unexpected. It's worth trekking through the poor word choices and mucky muck of what is supposed to be "adult conversation" just to see how it all ends.
Well, of course, since one of the Mars rovers plays a significant part in the story! Mark Watney is marooned on Mars, the victim of a violent sand storm that sent his astronaut colleagues scrambling back to Earth, convinced that he was dead. Now it's all about survival, getting back home, and not going crazy when the only music available is one of the other astronaut's disco collection! Mark is one resourceful guy - kind of a Macgyver on Mars - and he's pretty good with a one-liner as well. He'll need all his skills, because Mars is a very dangerous place. Most of the book is in the form of log entries and they can be kind of technical. Just go with the flow and enjoy the twists and turns. Weir is obviously very conversant with space jargon and procedures and has produced a really authentic description of what could be a fanciful situation. Here's hoping that someone who reads this will be inspired to actually take us there!
I finished 3 of the 5 books. Books 1 and 2 were AWESOME, 5 stars for sure, but Book 3 got a bit convoluted. But I love Hitchhikers, especially the bizarre jokes that manifest themselves throughout the book. Great bits include the bovine animal at the Restaurant at the End of the Universe that tries to tempt Dent and friends with various parts of its body for dinner; Slartibartfast and his award-winning fjords; The planet that tricked its mid-level personnel to leave it for Earth; The fact that Earth is actually a giant computer made by mice to determine the Question to the Answer of Life, the Universe, and Everything. Good stuff. Very, very funny.
This dark, fast-paced thriller captures you on page one and doesn't let go until the end. The book is well-written, and one of the best dystopia novels I've ever read. The main character is a strong female lead, and the love interest actually seems real and interesting unlike other books. The book is about a girl who chooses to become a Huntress. This job entails hunting food, and slaying these zombie things called freaks. The setting is underground, and Deuce finds out secrets that are dangerous to the population. I recommend for 13 years and up, due to very graphic and dark scenes. I wouldn't call it scary though. This is a must-read for Fans of Divergent and Hunger Games It's the first in a trilogy, and the other two books are just as amazing as this one!
While some may despise this terrific sci-fi novel, I absolutely loved it.
Sure it is a bit mature, but it is really for a understanding audience. I enjoyed the battle games and Ender's resourcefulness. This is perhaps one of the best sci-fi novel I have ever read