5 Stars or Less in 5 Sentences or Less

4 star

Depression Era, Circus, Animals, Cruelty, Love, Relationships, Violence

When Jacob’s parents die he drops out of veterinary school and accidentally joins the circus where he becomes the vet—he learns a whole new inside lingo, lives on a train, and falls in love with the beautiful wife of the paranoid schizophrenic who terrorizes the animals and not a few of the staff. It is a fascinating look at the cruel and crazy circus world at the time, showing that while some things have greatly improved, others never change (like first love, forbidden romance, coming of age, compassion, the importance of finishing your final exams, you get the idea). The level of detail and insane anecdotes make this worth the read, and the fact that it is told retrospectively by a 90-something Jacob ads a level of maturity to the tale, as well as a fine ending that wouldn’t have been possible otherwise. Not for the squeamish but I highly recommend for most everyone.

(Source: ihopetheyhavebooksinhell)

4 star

Sci-Fi, Dystopian, Post-Apocalypse, Survival, Disease, Crazy Scientists

The Gladers’ trials are far from over as the W.I.C.K.E.D. scientists presiding over the tests continue to mercilessly push the limits of what the dwindling group can handle both physically and mentally. The grim reality of the state of the world after the sun flares is revealed and the race for a cure for the Flare is vital. More is explained about W.I.C.K.E.D. and their plans, but still not enough to fully appreciate their motives and plans beyond the lies and manipulation. The action is constant and it’s never obvious who will survive and what horrible experiment will begin next.

Previous: The Maze Runner

Next: The Death Cure

Prequel: The Kill Order

4 star

Vampires, Shapeshifters, Sex, True Blood, Murder, Louisiana

In the 13th and final installment of the Sookie Stackhouse mysteries, Sookie’s loose ends all tangle together in a messy, bloody knot that get tied up (or cut off) quite neatly. A number of old characters are trying to kill our saucy Southern heroine once and for all while she works to keep her job and her home in order even as her heart is breaking as Eric drifts further away and another man drifts closer. If you’ve been reading for the mystery and the world of Sookie you will love this volume, but if you are interested in just the vampires or the romance you will probably be disappointed (fair warning). I found it fun and fast-paced and a solid conclusion to a tempestuous series.

(Earlier books: Dead Until Dark, Living Dead in Dallas, Club Dead, Dead to the World, Dead as a Doornail, Definitely Dead, All Together Dead, from Dead to Worse, Dead and Gone, Dead in the Family, Dead Reckoning, Deadlocked)

2 star

Werewolves, Sex, Secret Societies, Suspense

I expected a lot from a story about the last werewolf on earth, 200-year-old Jake who is supposedly sexy and charming and worldly. I found him dry and misogynistic and kind of a dullard; he is super into having sex with prostitutes and not falling in love and he is resigned to his own death, but he completely changes when he finds out there is a werewolf lady and he falls in love with her. The story is told is diary format first by Jake and then by his lady werewolf love; the introduction is interesting but Duncan is trying so hard to make Jake into this epically cool figure that he comes out flat. The intrigue of the secret society of vampires aligned with humans who keep the population of mythical creatures down could have been great if it was fleshed out more, but overall the story was too self-involved to really make it work.

(Source: ihopetheyhavebooksinhell)

4 stars

Sci-Fi, Dystopian, Puzzles, Survival, Mind Control

Thomas wakes up with no memory before his arrival in the Glade. Now he joins a large group of other boys who have been working to survive and solve the maze they’re stuck in. Soon everything begins to change and their escape becomes desperate. It was frustrating to have so little explained in the beginning, but it made it much more exciting to slowly figure things out along with Thomas as the story went on. I am hugely intrigued by the world introduced at the very end though and I can’t wait to see what it will become in the next two books.

Sequels: The Scorch Trials, The Death Cure

Short story between books: Thomas’ First Memory of the Flare

Prequel: The Kill Order

(Source: ihopetheyhavebooksinhell)

2 star

Translators, Language, Canada, Cats, Writers, French

A story told by a translator about her relationship with the writer she works with—it was written in French but I read it in English which added a level of surreality as the translator migrates the author’s works from French into English. It is bland and just weird; lots of facts and tales that go nowhere, characters that are fleshed out and never used. The plot is ostensibly that they are trying to help the girl who abandoned her cat at the translator’s home, but it is fumblingly handled because the narrator is so obsessed with talking about language. Can’t think of who I would recommend this to other than perhaps a translation student.

(Source: ihopetheyhavebooksinhell)

4 star

Friendship, Fairy Tales, Elementary School, Family Problems, Self-Empowerment

In this modern day revamp of Andersen’s The Snow Queen, Hazel is a fifth-grader with divorced parents whose best friend, Jack, after his heart is pierced by the shard of mirror, leaves his depressed mother and floundering father to be with the ice-hearted witch. Hazel sets off on a true hero’s quest full of characters from classic fairy tales (as well as one of Andersen’s other characters) as she stands up to dangers both external and internal. There are loads of references to fantasy books that will delight anyone who has read one (or all!) of the books that Hazel enjoys. Breadcrumbs is a sweet and touching tale of friendship and growing up.

(Source: ihopetheyhavebooksinhell)

4 star

Non-fiction, Oceans, Marine Life, Pollution, Conservation

Earle’s eye-opening text is full of information about the ecosystems of the ocean, food chains, submersibles, and other fascinating facts. Her writing is crisp and honest and I was truly appalled to learn how many species have been fished to near extinction, and that less than one percent of the oceans are protected from commercial fishing and other forms of ecosystem destruction. Underlying the entire book is a plea for help, for your awareness, and for the world to stop taking advantage of the ocean and start protecting it. The text of her plea at TEDtalk was fascinating but I wish she had given more information about what a non-scientist, non-politician could do to help. Overall a great read for anyone who wants to know more about the world we live in.

(Source: ihopetheyhavebooksinhell)

5 stars

Drawing, Art Theft, Friendship, Albrecht Dürer

Marvin the beetle discovers that he has a talent for drawing tiny pictures that rivals the great Renaissance artist Albrecht Dürer in precision. Marvin and his new human friend James soon find themselves in the middle of a fake art heist at the Metropolitan Museum of Art intended to recover stolen drawings by Dürer. Marvin forges a Renaissance drawing, exposes the true art thief, and recovers lost art with help from James. The illustrations are adorable and the story of a beetle discovering the world of art and finding friendship is delightful.

(Source: ihopetheyhavebooksinhell)

5 stars

Fantasy, Magic, Ancient Evil Undead Enemies, War, Swords

The conclusion of the trilogy where everything finally comes together in a spectacular battle against the Norns and the Storm King for the land of Osten Ard. This book is crazy long and there is a lot of fighting, traveling, and dangerous questing. If you are a fan of high fantasy, this series is definitely something to check out.

Previous books: The Dragonbone Chair, Stone of Farewell

4 star

Divorce, Loss, Love, Letting Go, Marriage

Olds’ highly personal poems cover the slow unease of suspicion through divorce after thirty-two years to finally coming to terms with the loss of the love of her life. They are beautifully crafted. She writes with an unearthly honesty, opening up her experiences and pouring them into words. A wonderful, cohesive collection.

(Source: ihopetheyhavebooksinhell)

2 star

Short Biographies, Comics, Historical Women, Judgment, Morality

In this book for younger teens a number of famously naughty women from history are given brief bios that are then summed up by the authors (mother and daughter) in a one-page comic-style-blocked illustrated sheet. It’s as weird as it sounds, and I found Stemple’s judgments to be quite mean and none of their comments were particularly intelligent or thought-provoking. The biographies were too short to be truly intriguing, but the bibliography at the end is decently comprehensive. It could have been a great book about the bad rap that tough women have gotten in history but instead devolved into cattiness and short-changed the real people.

(Source: ihopetheyhavebooksinhell)

2 star

War, Honor, Trust, Heritage, Friendship

Karou has taken over Brimstone’s role and is creating bodies for the Chimaera army while Akiva is torn between earning back the trust of his siblings and saving Chimaera. This book would have been better at half the length: there are long scenes with characters that never come into play again as well as too many scenes with Mik and Zuzana that don’t move the story along. The bulk of the story is political drama as Karou tries to prove her worth and trustworthiness while being blocked by Thiago and Akiva plots the demise of the cruel leaders of the seraphim. There was a lot of discussion about rape and the fear of men and it almost dominated the topic of the actual war which I found very unnecessary and not in keeping with the themes of friendship and humanity in the first book. This volume definitely had some interesting parts and more is revealed about the world of Eretz, but overall it felt more like a transition into what should be a very dramatic third book.

First book: Daughter of Smoke and Bone

5 star

History, Whaling, Nantucket, Survival at Sea, Cannibalism

This is a shortened-for-youth version of Philbrick’s In the Heart of the Sea (I am a child; sorry): it briefly and agonizingly relates the incredible tale of the twenty-one men who survived a sperm whale destroying their ship to spend three months sailing in tiny whaleboats across the Pacific. The men could have found safety in about a week but were afraid of cannibals so they chose to sail back to South America, finding starvation, death, despair, and, yes, cannibalism on a journey that only eight of the men survived. Revenge of the Whale draws from two books written by survivors as well as medical information on the effects of dehydration and navigation information and illustrations to draw a more complete picture of what these men endured in 1820. An incredible tale of survival and the human spirit.

(Source: ihopetheyhavebooksinhell)

4 star

Dystopian Future, Uprising, Pandemic, Love, Choice

The final book in the trilogy succeeds where the first two did not: it spaces the story between Ky, Cassia, and Xander giving them enough room to develop without letting the repetitive flatness of Condie’s style slow down the story too much. Cassia finally finds the inner strength she needs as she works to save everyone. Much more history is revealed about the Rising and the Society as well as the characters’ pasts; many of the scenes are moving and each of the main characters grows up within the confines of their role. Condie’s treatment of the plague that sweeps the Society and the honesty with which she addresses the possibility of moving from one Society to another is refreshing and her resolutions and answers were truly earned.

Previous books: Matched, Crossed