Annette's Book Spot

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Book Review: Forbidden by Kimberley Griffiths Little @KimberleyGLittl

Wow. I just loved Forbidden. It is just my kind of book.

Forbidden takes place in 1759 BC in the desserts of Mesopotamia. Jayden's tribe are nomadic, moving as the rain moves and barely subsisting. There is a lot going on in Jayden's life, so I'm resorting to bullets:

She's betrothed to the future leader of the tribe. Not only does she not love him, she doesn't even like him. She think's he's a louse (and he is.)
She suffers a great loss at the beginning of the book that changes her life.
Her tribe worships the God of Abraham, but her sister longs to worship the goddess in the temple in the city. (But don't worry. Forbidden is in no way a religious or preachy book.)
She's desperate to be reunited with a missing family member, who she feels responsible for.
She meets a dark, handsome, rich stranger from an unknown foreign land. The attraction is mutual and undeniable. He wants to take her away and surround her with riches. But she can't get out of her betrothal.
Dancing is a very important part of the women's lives. They dance to pray, worship, and to entertain their husbands.
Her father, while doing his best, is becoming poorer and more destitute with each passing season. He has lost many of their camels, which are necessary and a symbol of wealth.
Her grandmother is priceless.

So you can kind of see where this is going. Jayden is a resolute character who deals with each situation in the best way she can. You just know she will always land on her feet. She is the only important character in the book, leaving side characters more undefined. This story is all about Jayden. And that's not a complaint. She's awesome.

One of the marks of a good book for me is if I continue to think about the characters after I'm done reading. As if they are alive and I'm wondering what they are up to. Ms. Little, how am I supposed to wait for the next book? The situation you left Jayden in will haunt me until I get to read of her further adventures. So, WHEN IS THE NEXT BOOK GOING TO BE HERE?

I loved Cleopatra's Moon and The Dovekeepers so it is no surprise that Forbidden gets added to my list of favorite books about ancient history. If you like this type of book, make sure you add Forbidden to your list.

Published by HarperCollins, November 4, 2014
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
400 pages

Rating: 5/5

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Book Review: Bleed Like Me by C. Desir

Bleed Like Me, while well written, is just to painful to read. You have two teens who are totally dysfunctional and in a relationship that you must watch spiraling downhill faster than you can imagine.

Gannon comes from a family who adopted 3 brothers from Guatemala 5 years ago. Since then, her parents have been so wrapped up in these troubled youths that Gannon, their oldest and only biological child, has become invisible. The stress of her life has caused her to be a cutter.

Brooks is in foster care, and has spent time in juvenile detention. He's involved with some drug dealers too.

When these two meet sparks fly and nothing is going to keep them from disaster. And, as a reader, you must just sit back and watch it happen.

Gannon's parents are awful. They have no idea how to handle these three troubled boys, and don't seem to get any help, and are too stupid to see what has happened to their daughter.

Maybe my perspective as a parent made this one more difficult. I was so frustrated and uncomfortable reading Bleed Like Me. I just wanted to jump in the book and shake almost every character.

Even the ending, which gives a little hope, didn't do enough to erase the stress I felt while reading this book.

The writing and characterizations are great -- otherwise I wouldn't have felt the emotion that I did. I just don't enjoy putting myself through a novel like this. But that's a personal thing. And it is, thankfully, a pretty short novel.

Published by Simon Pulse, October 7, 2014
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
288 pages (qualifies for my Books You Can Read in a Day Challenge!)

Rating: 3/5

Monday, November 10, 2014

Book Review: The Doubt Factory, by Paolo Bacigalupi

The Doubt Factory is an exciting page turner, that also gets you thinking about our legal system and how it can be manipulated.

Alix leads a pretty normal life, for a rich teenager. She attends a private school, has some friends, and her home life is pretty normal even though her father is a work-a-holic.

Things fall apart when Alix realizes she is the target of a stalker. Strange things happen at school, but the same kid keeps appearing, and Alix is confused. All he says is, "ask your dad -- he knows what this is about." So, she asks her dad. But he doesn't know anything.

As things come to a head, the stalker tries to convince Alix that her dad is the president of a public relations company that has caused hundreds of people's deaths, because they keep the truth about dangerous products from the public He tries to get Alix to help them expose her father for what he truly is. He and his rag-tag crew have all been hurt by something her father has made millions of dollars on by covering up the dangers.

So, should she believe him? Does she believe all these horrible things about her dad? Alix begins to do some investigating herself, and what she finds puts her in a lot of danger.

I really loved this story. Bacigalupi really makes you feel for these characters. The gang of misfits who are highly intelligent come up with some creative ways to elude the authorities. I also loved Alix's brother, who is the trouble maker in the family, but ends up being an OK kid.

There's some romance, and I won't go into detail, but it's OK. I feel like since this is YA, it is a requirement, but I didn't feel it necessary.

The story is well paced and interesting. Although you think you may know what is going to happen, I think you will be surprised.

Recommend The Doubt Factory to those who like adventure, suspense, and survival stories, with a little spying mixed in.

Published by Little, Brown BFYR, October 14, 2014
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
496 pages

Rating: 4.5/5

Saturday, November 8, 2014

Stacking the Shelves: Daily Deal and Others

Hope you are enjoying your weekend, and your new books! Here's what I got this week:

For Review:

When, by Victoria Laurie from Netgalley

99 Days, by Katie Cotugno from Edelweiss

Purchased:

A Better World, by Marcus Sakey

Sequel to Brilliance. A Kindle Daily Deal!

From the Library:

Tiger's Curse, by Colleen Houck

I have been so swamped with review books, and I'm still behind, but sometimes you just gotta grab something random from the shelves. I've been wanting to read this series for a long time.

Please leave me a link so I can see what you got. Thanks for stopping by. Please visit our hosts, Team Tynga's Reviews. Enjoy!

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Book Review: My True Love Gave to Me - Twelve Holiday Stories

Twelve heartwarming holiday stories by some of today's best YA authors. What's not to like? My True Love Gave to Me really hit the spot.

All twelve stories have some romance, and some have a paranormal or dystopian element. There wasn't one story I didn't like. And, after all, they are short stories, so even if you don't like it, it's SHORT.

Sometimes short stories don't have enough for me. (I'm not usually a fan.) But each of these stories has enough character, setting, and plot elements to feel complete.

I'm not going to tell you about each story, but here are my three favorites:

It's a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown, by Stephanie Perkins (she also edited the book.)
What the Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth? by Gayle Forman
Star of Bethlehem, by Ally Carter

I probably chose those because they are the most heartwarming, and after all that's what I wanted in a holiday story. But I wouldn't recommend skipping any of the stories.

If you look at the list of authors for these stories, you can imagine the amount of creativity and beautiful writing contained in these pages. If (or when) you are in the mood for some holiday reading, put My True Love Gave to Me at the top of your list.

Published by St. Martin's Griffin, October 14, 2014
Copy obtained from the library
321 pages

Rating: 5/5

Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Audio Book Review: Confessions of a Murder Suspect by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro

I would classify Confessions of a Murder Suspect as "Mystery - Lite."

Tandy Angel is investigating the murder of her mother and father. They were found dead, in their bed, locked in their apartment. There's no sign of foul play and Tandy and her siblings, as well as her mother's personal assistant, are the only suspects.

Tandy's family is unique. All of them are highly intelligent or extremely talented -- or both. Their parents were rich, owning a big pharmaceutical company.

Tandy finds out secrets about her parents that cause her to think that maybe she or one of her siblings DID commit the murders. Tandy speaks directly to the reader (or listener, in this case) which I think can be used effectively, but was just too cute in this case.

I found Confessions of a Murder Suspect to be overly dramatic. This may have something to do with the way the audio narrator, Emma Galvin, read it.

My biggest problem was the huge plot hole. Well, there were several little ones, but the way the book ended was just lame. There was an autopsy, right? That's all I'll say because I don't want to give anything away. The epilogue was kind of just tacked on and didn't serve much of a purpose.

Confessions of a Murder Suspect is a very short, quick read. It has very short chapters (as Patterson is known for) and I'm sure a young newbie to the mystery genre would find it enjoyable, but I'm too old (or should I say "well read") to find much entertainment here.

Published by Little, Brown & Co, 2012, Audio: James Patterson-Young Readers
Audiobook obtained from Sync YA Literature
387 pages

Rating: 3/5

Monday, November 3, 2014

Book Review: A Thousand Pieces of You, by Claudia Gray @claudiagray

A Thousand Pieces of You has one of the most unique time travel scenarios I've ever read. Well, it's really not time travel. It's "place travel." Maybe that is why I found it so interesting.

Marguerite, her sister, and her mother are mourning the death of her father.Both her father and her mother are scientists who have been working on a very unique project called the Firebird. Her father has been murdered and one of his assistants, Paul, has been accused. Paul has deleted all of the pertinent data for the project and has taken the Firebird and disappeared. Both Paul and another assistant, Theo, have been like brothers to Marguerite.

The Firebird is a device that allows a person to travel to another parallel universe. The theory is that there are an infinite number of these dimensions that accounts for every possible outcome of every event. So when you jump to another universe, you take over your own body as it exists in that universe. If you don't have the Firebird to remind you, you can forget your real existence and actually become the person in that universe.

It turns out that Theo has two prototype Firebird devices that he has completed so that he and Marguerite can follow Paul and avenge her father's death. As they travel to the different universes, they encounter many different situations, but always manage to find each other, although sometimes it is difficult.

Marguerite finds out things are not as they seemed. There is also a bit of a romance, and what makes it interesting is that Marguerite must determine if she's in love with the person in just one universe, or does she love that person in her own universe as well.

I really enjoyed the premise of the different universes. It it an interesting topic to think about, and Gray handles it well. The characters were interesting, but really Marguerite is the only one fully developed. I wanted her to succeed but didn't really feel the emotion of the story. There were some conveniences in the plot to help everything move along, but these were few and unremarkable.

A Thousand Pieces of You is the first in a series but this episode thankfully has a conclusion. I am looking forward to another story about this world. I think many teens will enjoy this one too.

Published by HarperTeen, November 4, 2104
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
368 pages

Rating: 4/5

Sunday, November 2, 2014

Books You Can Read in a Day Challenge! - October Update

Wow. October flew by. I did manage to add a couple of books to my list! Here's the update:

Books read in one day in October:

17. Skink No Surrender, by Carl Hiaasen

18. The Cure for Dreaming, by Cat Winters

My goal is still 25, but it's going to be close! Wish me luck. How about you? Have you read any books in a day? Give me some recommendations.

If you are participating, please leave a link to your post, or just list your books in the comments. Hope you are having fun with these "little gems."

Saturday, November 1, 2014

Stacking the Shelves - A Holiday Book

I brought home a book for the holiday season this week.

From the Library:

My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories

What did you get this week? Leave me a link, and be sure to stop by Team Tynga's Reviews, our hosts. Thanks for visiting!

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Book Review: Mortal Heart, by Robin LaFevers

Mortal Heart tells Annith's story, one of His Fair Assassins. While a bit more mythological than Grave Mercy and Dark Triumph, it delivers on all fronts -- the world, the characters, and the plot.

Annith can't understand why the abbess doesn't send her out on a mission. She's been faithful to St. Mortain, and she's proven herself the most skilled assassin at the convent. She's horrified to find out the abbess has chosen her as the next Seeress, which means she will never leave the convent again. Annith thinks there's more to the abbess' decision. That it isn't really Mortain's wish that Annith become a seer.

The abbess has left the convent to travel to the Duchess of Breton, since Breton is on the brink of war. Annith decides to sneak away from the convent and confront the abbess. Her journey is assisted by some unusual beings, and the tension only gets worse after she arrives at the castle.

Sybella and Ismae are both serving the Duchess, so the three assassins are reunited to save the kingdom. It's dangerous and adventurous. And Annith gets her own romantic story line too. Mortal Heart contains some startling revelations for Annith--more so that the other two books, but it only serves to enhance her strength.

Mortal Hearts delves into the mythology of the 9 gods that exist in this world. I think this was probably necessary to understand the motivations of the different peoples, but it wasn't my favorite part.

I felt the build up was a bit slow, but I think I felt this way because I couldn't wait to get to the adventure. I mean, that's what His Fair Assassins is about, right? It took a while for Annith to really get into a dangerous situation. But really, this is just impatience on my part.

If you like bad ass female assassins, you will love this series. I suppose it isn't necessary to start at the beginning because each story stands on its own. But I think you will get much more out of these stories if you know the background. So start at the beginning with Grave Mercy, if you haven't already.

Can't wait to get this one in the library for my teens.

Published by HMH BFYR, November 4, 2014
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
450 pages

Rating: 4.5/5