Megan Likes (New) Books (29) / Reading Through My Bookshelf (27)

Megan Likes (New) Books 

Megan Likes (New) Books is a personalize weekly meme inspired by In My Mailbox, Stacking the Shelves and Book Haul where I show off the new books and bookish items I've received lately.

Review:
Demonic Dora by Claire Chilton
Sworn to Raise by Terah Edun

Thanks to Ragz Books and Netgalley


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Reading Through My Bookshelf

Last Weeks Status: 99
Incoming Books: 0
Books Completed: 1
Current Status: 98

Making surprisingly good progress during exams!

Review: The After Girls

Info:

Title: The After Girls
Author: Leah Konen
Publisher: Merit Press
Publication Date: April 18, 2013
Source: Supplied by publisher in exchange for an honest review

Blurb:

Ella, Astrid, and Sydney were planning the perfect summer after high school graduation. But when Astrid commits suicide in a lonely cabin, the other girls' worlds are shattered. How could their best friend have done this--to herself and to them? They knew everything about Astrid. Shouldn't they have seen this coming? Couldn't they have saved her?

As Ella hunts for the truth, and Sydney tries to dull the pain, a chilling message from Astrid leaves them wondering whether their beloved friend is communicating from the after life. The girls embark on a journey to uncover Astrid's dark secrets. The answers to those questions--questions they never dreamed of asking--will change their lives forever.

Review:

The After Girls marked my attempt to switch it up and try more contemporary, issue books, rather than my usual fantasy/scifi/dystopian/paranormal reads. So I may interpret things differently that someone who reads a lot of contemporaries (but I still get my opinion, dang it!).

I went into The After Girls expecting a who lot of feels. However, I didn't get nearly as many as I was hoping for. The problem: I didn't connect with the characters. I think it was a combination of the 3rd person writing combined with their actions and personalities. Neither of them were people I would want to be friends with.

The other major problem I had was the parenting (or lack there of). Maybe I was an exception to the rule, but I was very close with my parents in high school. Not that I didn't spend tons of time with friends, but my parents were always there. Ella and especially Sydney were always going to parties and getting drunk. I know that's a reality for a lot of high school kids (myself included), but there were zero consequences! Sydney would go out to a party, pass out at the party, come home the next morning, then still be in bed at 1 pm  with her mother not willing to wake her up because she was cranky. What? If I did that, I'd be grounded for ages and ages! Sydney's mom, step-dad and little sister make appearances in only one or two scenes and Ella's mother in probably only two as well. I just think parents would be a much larger part of these girls' lives after the loss of their best friend. I know mine would have been! I think this may have been done to focus the book more on friendship than family, but I found it a distraction.

However, it wasn't all doom and gloom! I liked the character of Jake, although towards the end he annoyed me a bit. I actually liked Ben a lot as well, although Ella pissed me off with the majority of her interactions with him (but I'll give her a bit of a pass considering what she was going through). Max made me so angry, which I really think he was supposed to. There were so many times I wanted to slap him and give Sydney a good shake! And Carter, he was my favourite. Although he's too good for Sydney in my opinion.

My favourite part of the book was definitely the eerie feeling Konen managed to portray. I was hooked to find out what was going on with the weird, supernatural-y occurrences. And the ending did surprise me, which I always enjoy! So hooray for a good ending!

Overall, The After Girls is an eerie read with a good ending, but my lack of connection with the characters kept it from reaching it's full potential.

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Megan Likes (New) Books (28) / Reading Through My Bookshelf (26)

Megan Likes (New) Books 

Megan Likes (New) Books is a personalize weekly meme inspired by In My Mailbox, Stacking the Shelves and Book Haul where I show off the new books and bookish items I've received lately.


Won:

The Obvious Game by Rita Arens

Thanks to Inkspell Publishing!



Freebie: 


Remembrance by Michelle Madow

Big thanks to Michelle Madow for sending out a smashwords code to her followers!





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Reading Through My Bookshelf

Last Weeks Status: 100
Incoming Books: 0
Books Completed: 1
Current Status: 99

Woo! Back into the 90's!

Review: Emilie and the Hollow World

Info:

Title: Emilie and the Hollow World
Author: Martha Wells
Series: Emilie #1
Publisher: Strange Chemistry
Publication Date: April 2, 2013
Source: ARC received from publisher in exchange for an honest review

Blurb:

While running away from home for reasons that are eminently defensible, Emilie’s plans to stow away on the steamship Merry Bell and reach her cousin in the big city go awry, landing her on the wrong ship and at the beginning of a fantastic adventure.

Taken under the protection of Lady Marlende, Emilie learns that the crew hopes to use the aether currents and an experimental engine, and with the assistance of Lord Engal, journey to the interior of the planet in search of Marlende’s missing father.

With the ship damaged on arrival, they attempt to traverse the strange lands on their quest. But when evidence points to sabotage and they encounter the treacherous Lord Ivers, along with the strange race of the sea-lands, Emilie has to make some challenging decisions and take daring action if they are ever to reach the surface world again.

Review:

Emilie and the Hollow World is a fun-filled adventure book full of (very) exotic locations and a loveable heroine. I was pretty excited to read this one after reading the blurb and it certainly didn't disappoint! Definitely recommended to young steampunk fans!

I honestly fell in love with Emilie right from the start. I loved how fearless, yet clueless she was. She ended up being extremely resourceful, which is something I always admire in my characters. The other characters were awesome as well, especially the ladies: Rani and Lady Marlende, who were both seriously kick-ass!

Emilie and the Hollow World is primarily an adventure book, there is nothing in the way of romance (although an opening is left for one to develop in future books). In fact, it could probably be considered as a middle grade read based on the writing style and lack of romance/questionable content. However, lovers of adventures and steampunk and great young heroines will definitely enjoy this one, regardless of their age!

The main negative for me is that once in a while the writing style would annoy me. Perhaps because it of the more middle-grade slant of the story, but some sentences were too short and actually distracted me from the story. For example, a sentence consisting of only: Uh oh. I think this may be more of a personal gripe, but none-the-less, there it is. The other negative for me was how readily everyone accepted Emilie, which felt a little unrealistic to me. However, it set the stage for a great story, so I won't complain too much!

Overall, Emilie and the Hollow World was a fun read full of adventure, with a very likeable heroine. I am definitely excited for the series to continue!

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Find the Author:

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