The Princess Bride, An Ember in the Ashes, & A Court of Thorns and Roses

HALF WAY THERE! 

Today being July 1st, we are half way through the year and I am now half way through my 50 books! It's nice to know I'm right on track.

The Princess Bride - William Goldman - 398 Pages

2) A classic romance

I know every cultured creature on God's green earth has seen The Princess Bride movie and loves it, but I must now say that it should be a requirement to also read the book. I almost felt like this book was written for me personally. It truly has it all. Sword fights, chases, death, proclamations of love, revenge, speech impediments, heros, poison, asides, rodents of unusual size, murder plots, miracles, and humor. So much humor. I don't remember the last time I read a book where I laughed out loud so often. You get all the main characters in the movie with more back story and more witty dialogue. 

The Princess Bride feels so timeless, I recommend everyone read it.

I myself have been meaning to read this book for years but honestly got confused quite often since all the copies say they are abridged. It is supposedly the "good parts" version of the story abridged by Goldman, he also adds in little bits as witty asides.

This book really is a classic and I pity the fool who chooses not to read it.

An Ember in the Ashes - Sabaa Tahir - 446 Pages

47) A Goodreads suggestion

Goodreads has been trying to get me to read this book since I joined which, I might add, was also months before it was even released. They seem to think I enjoy books with strong female characters, harsh odds, a little fantasy, and awesome action sequences. 

Where did they get that impression?

I've said it before and I'll say it again, Goodreads is heaven sent. 

I'm disappointed in myself for not writing this review before I gave the book back to the library because there were SUCH good quotes I wanted to include and now all I have are page numbers.

This book is pretty brutal. It's not graphic, but there is a lot of violence. These people live in a society that feels spartan, where physical ability and ruthlessness is praised. But it didn't always used to be like that. The land used to be one of learning and art, but those people were subjugated and oppressed by the warriors who now rule the land.

I was hooked from page one. Tahir doesn't give you much time to relax or much time for her characters to be out of danger so it makes those moments all the more special.

This story bounces back and forth between two characters who are in very opposite situations and yet eventually come together.

Honestly, I don't want to give too much away since I think anyone looking for a good, fast paced summer read with action and a little bit of magic should pick this book up.

A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J. Maas - 416 Pages

13) A book you haven't read yet from an author you love

Hmmm. How do I go about this...

Sarah J. Maas writes an INCREDIBLE action sequence. I love her Throne of Glass series for it's originality and action, she made me care for her characters quickly and deeply which can be hard. So I thought, "This means I love Sarah J. Maas. I've read four of her books and enjoyed them all. I can't wait to read her new series and look forward to having a whole new SJM world to explore."

But.

I didn't.

I didn't fall for these characters. I didn't even CARE about their problems. I didn't like the writing style or the plot devises or the dialogue (especially the dialogue). I didn't like the main character.

I didn't intend on finishing this book.

This book is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast with fairies. Maas has done her research, she knows about fairy lore and had a wonderful opportunity to make it shine. To me, she fell drastically short of expectation. The story is weak and SLOW (so very painfully slow) and if it weren't for my sister and being on vacation with no other book I would have put this book down and never finished it.

The saddest part is that it picks up rather nicely, but far too late for me. I like the villains much better than the heros because they actually DID THINGS. The action sequences were good, but they weren't enough to save this book.

If you're thinking of reading ACoTaR here's a heads-up (that I wish I had), Maas intended this book for  the "New Adult" category instead of "Young Adult". For that reason, she's included some pretty graphic romantic scenes. They're easy enough to skip since they in no part impact the story, but I'd recommend you skip this book all together and pick up An Ember in the Ashes if you're looking for a good summer read.

Read on,

Jamie

The Winner's Crime, Fairest, & The Well of Ascension

Three books because All The Light We Cannot See NEEDED it's own post. Bonus book for you, yay.

The Winner's Crime - Marie Rutkoski - 402 pgs
16) A book at the bottom of your to-read list


Honestly, I should have kept it there. It was at the bottom of my list because I kind of enjoyed the first one and this one has just been released, but didn't know when I would get to it when I had such a long list of books I wanted to read first.
This book is not long. Sure, it's listed as 402 pages, but the print is large and the pages are small. So why did it take me a MONTH to finish it??? Because I simply couldn't make myself pick it up and continue reading even when I was at work with nothing to do and I was at the climax. Now you see why I didn't want to blog this one with ATLWCS? This book was so painful for me. I hated the characters left to carry the story, I didn't care about their problems or their stupid complaining. The setting for this book has moved to the capital city in the palace since Kestrel is now engaged to the Prince, who is kind despite having a terrible father yet she at best thinks he's unimpressive. She becomes a "spy" (she basically does nothing) against the King who is terribly one sided and hates just about everyone except Kestrel's father. Why does the king even really want her to become Queen? Well, I'm rambling now, but basically Kestrel makes dumb choice after dumb choice. I mean seriously. Kestrel was supposed to be smart, right? Well she's probably the most shallow and unthoughtful character I've read this year. I'm supposed to like her? Yeah...No. If you recall, I chose the first book as my "Book with bad reviews" and was impressed. Winner's Crime has more positive reviews than the first one (Winner's Curse), even the blogger who said she didn't get why the first one was so popular liked the second one. WHAT??? Now I'm the one that doesn't get it.
I don't think I ever will.

Fairest - Marissa Meyer - 220 pgs
4) A book published this year

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles series by Meyer (Cinder, Scarlet, etc.) I address you directly now. Read this book. It's easy to overlook since it's small, it's a prequel, and the line for it at the library is some 400+ people long, but it's worth it.
If you're unfamiliar with the Lunar Chronicles, think all your favorite fairytales set in a science fiction setting. It's innovative and unlike any other retelling of classic fairytales you've read. Fairest was released January 27th 2015 after the first three books of the series, but it takes place before all of them. It tells the tale of the Evil Queen, Levana, and how she came to be the controlling ruler of the moon. It's a slippery slope from oppressed character to villain and we get to see every heartbreaking, shocking choice Levana makes on her way to the throne. She's crazy people. In stories like this, you tend to feel sorry for the character and their choices make sense, but not here. Sure, you understand why she makes her choices, but you never agree with them and you certainly don't want to see her succeed.I love this series and I'm excited for the last book coming out later this year. I would suggest it to all fairytale and sci-fi lovers out there, you could even start with Fairest and go to Cinder from there. 


The Well of Ascension - Brandon Sanderson - 590 pgs
40) A book with non-human characters

Can you tell I'm running out of open ended requirements to fit these books in? This could've been my trilogy, but I had already started another one first. Anyway...
Goodness, these books are good. This is the sequel to Mistborn, which I read earlier in the year. Brandon Sanderson has a gift people. He's able to write a bunch of believable characters and keep them all interesting and distinctly individual. I can never smell his plot twists before he reveals them. I wrote that the first book reminded me of the Harry Potter books because they are lengthy and have an overarching storyline that makes everything important and involved in that overarching story. It answers it's questions, even if it takes time to do so. I don't have to worry about a storyline not being completed and that's a blessing.
This sequel deals with the consequences of the first book. They over threw a large and powerful government, there are going to be consequences of that. I feel like I haven't read very many books that have made me realize that fact. I mean, overthrowing and oppressive government is wonderful (Uh-meri-kah) and usually takes the whole series to do anyway, so why worry, right? Wrong. Suddenly their hopes for making Luthadel an equal and thriving city are being destroyed not just by the armies coming to take over, but also the citizens inside who don't believe their freedom is more important than living. This book has it all. Substantial character progression, plot twists, war, death, love, betrayal, exciting new characters, humor. In short, this series continues to be one of the best things I've ever had the pleasure of stumbling across. If you like high fantasy or a good long summer read with memorable characters (like the good old days when Harry Potter was released every summer) I highly recommend this series.

Read on,

Jamie

All The Light We Cannot See

All The Light We Cannot See - Anthony Doerr - 530 Pages
15) A Pulitzer-Prize winning book

I've now had quite a while to mull over my thoughts for this book and my love has not lessened.
When I was nearing the climax I was literally unable to turn the pages fast enough. I'm pretty sure it's a miracle I didn't completely tear out some of the pages I was trying to flip faster. The Pulitzer-Prize was very well deserved and this is one of the best books I've ever read.
The book tells the story about two young people who grow up during the second World War. One is a Marie-Laure, a blind french girl with a loving father who makes a miniature of their neighborhood so that she can navigate Paris. The other is Werner, a german orphan who is incredibly bright but because of his social status will seemingly die in the mines like his father. Anthony Doerr intertwines their stories perfectly and shows us just what it may have been like to grow up in such a time. All The Light We Cannot See is not completely a reference to Marie-Laure being blind, it's also about the literal light our brain cannot see. But it's also about all the stories and lives we cannot possibly know. It's about how others touch our lives is such significant ways but we will never know. It's about all the goodness that seems a miracle but has some meaning we cannot understand.
My love for WWII Historical Fiction was enough to make me want to read this book and the writing style was more than enough to hook me for the whole 530 pages. The chapters are short so it felt like I flew through this book in four days.
I don't know guys, sometimes a book is just so beautiful that I'm left speachless. That's why I put off writing this review, in hopes that some coherent thoughts and meditations would manifest themselves. All The Light We Cannot See is that book.
At risk of sounding juvenile I want to point out something. There are a lot of young adult books now a days that center on a group of people being oppressed because they are slightly different. I've read a lot this year already. I think we have a tendency to say, "That could never happen in our world. We would never make slaves out of people with red blood if we had silver or gold (Red Queen and Golden Son) THIS IS NOT A FANTASY. This happened, this STILL happens.

"Entropy is the degree of randomness or disorder in a system, Doctor."
His eyes fix on Werner's for a heartbeat, a glance both warm and chilling. "Disorder. You hear the commandant say it. You hear your bunk masters say it. There must be order. Life is chaos, gentleman. And what we represent is an ordering to that chaos. Even sown to the genes. We are ordering the evolution of the species. Winnowing out the inferior, the unruly, the chaff. This is the great project of the Reich, the greatest project human beings have ever embarked on."
Hauptmann writes on the blackboard. The cadets inscribe the words into their composition books. The entropy of a closed system never decreases.
(Page 240)

The Book Thief has been my favorite book for years and years now, but I think All The Light We Cannot See may be my new favorite book. Well done Mr. Doerr, well done.

"Do you think, Madame, that in heaven we will really get to see God face-to-face?"
"We might."
"What if you're blind?"
"I'd expect that if God wants us to see something, we'll see it."
(Page 292)

Read on,

Jamie

Red Queen & The Fault in our Stars

Red Queen - Victoria Aveyard - 383 pages
19) A book you choose based entirely on it's cover

I mean, come on, just look at it.

I choose this book with one look at the cover. Between the picture and the tag line they had me hook line and sinker. I won't lie though, I thought it was going to be historical fiction. Like, one of the powerful and scary queens of history. Buuuuut it was fantasy. That's okay though, just not at all what I was expecting. I didn't even read the flap or any kind of synopsis until I was almost finished, which was good because it pretty much gives half the book away.

This is going to be hard for me personally to review this book without giving out spoilers. So, I'll settle for some comparisons.
But first, I've found a very profound similarity in some of the books I've read this year. It basically comes down to slavery and oppression. One group is thought to be superior because they have magic or different colored blood and the other (which is usually just like us now-a-days) are their slaves. The Winner's Curse, Red Rising, and Mistborn are all like this. (AND a historical fiction book I just finished but is getting it's own post because it was that good)
When it comes down to it, Red Queen is like a Young Adult version of Red Rising/Golden Son with the powers of the X-men. The upper class is basically made out of mutants with silver blood instead of red. Besides that, they look the exact same.
I struggle with how much to give away since I knew NOTHING. But I do have to get something off my chest. The "plot twist" in this book was more obvious than Voldemort's missing nose. I mean, come on, that was supposed to shock me? (Tilt your screen to see the spoiler (((We've all seen Thor. We've all seen this play out before. You could've replaced "Cal" and "Maven" with "Thor" and "Loki" and you'd have a slight retelling of the comics. No duh the younger always overlooked brother with the evil mother betrayed you. And yet, since I love Loki, I tried to like Maven...didn't quite work out.)))) End spoiler.
This book has gotten a lot of flack for being too much like Red Rising. You know, I don't think they're THAT much alike. I get it. The blood color, the oppression of Reds, the infiltration of the upper class by an impostor, heck, even Darrow and Barrow sound the same. But ya know what? I was able to look past that and see them as different things.
My real problem was looking past some of the improbable escapes and whiney characters. There were a couple times I had to roll my eyes or shrug off things that just didn't make sense.
I think this book was a good start. The middle tended to drag, but the end picked up nicely and was a nice set up for another the sequel (my favorites). If nothing else, I hope the cover is as attractive as this one.

The Fault in our Stars - John Green - 313 pages
36) A book everybody has read but me

Okay, I'm kind of scared to review tFioS. As is mentioned above, just about everyone I know who reads has read this book and loves it fiercely. It shocked my friends when I finally told them I haven't read it (or seen the movie). This story is protected by fanatics of all sorts so I'm scared to share my opinion. Honestly though, it just felt like being stabbed. It was so painful. My uncle died from brain cancer a couple of years ago and his loss is still very real. So it didn't help when it felt like certain lines were written to force you to cry. I mean, it's enough to say "The new CD of so-and-so's favorite band was leaked early", you don't have to continue with "So-and-so will never get to hear this now because they're dead", we're smart enough to put that together...When this book was witty and clever, it was amazing. I finally connected to the characters a couple of chapters before the end. At it's heart, this book is a love story. It's about two characters who fall in love even though they know it won't last. The title is a reference to Romeo and Juliet. Green contends that Shakespeare was wrong when he wrote that the fault is not in our stars but in ourselves. According to the characters of this book the fault is indeed, in our stars. Sorry, but I've got to stand with the bard on this one.
I've read John Green a couple of times before, but every time I get a slight feeling that I just don't get it. His writing is clever and I love that and his blog is very entertaining, but his stories leave me wanting. In the end, I thought it was a good book, better than Paper Towns, but I still don't understand the need to wear the quotes on your clothes.
Don't kill me.

Read on,

Jamie

Half the World & Mistborn

Half the World - Joe Abercrombie - 363 pgs
23) A Trilogy (Second Book)

Dang this series is good. It really hasn't relied on magic or any kind of fantasy yet though, so I'm left wondering what kind of role it will play in the third book which doesn't come out till July.
Remember that thing I said about sequels? Yeah, they are almost always my favorites (in books, not movies). This was no exception. I was already in the action from the first page, I got super excited when characters I already knew returned, and it gives the story and world building so much more depth.
I always feel weird writing about sequels and such because I'm scared to give anything away. I guess I can just liken it to things instead of giving a real synopsis (more on this later). This trilogy is turning out to be like a PG-13 version of Game of Thrones with less characters (that's not a completely bad thing).
Yup, well... I'm excited for the last book needless to say.

Mistborn - Brandon Sanderson - 659 pgs
14) A book your friend recommends
Sazed shook his head, walking over to stand beside her. "Belief isn't simply a thing for fair times and bright days, I think. What is belief - what is faith - if you don't continue in it after failure?"
Vin frowned.
"Anyone can believe in someone, or something, that always succeeds, Mistress. But failure...ah, now, that is hard to believe in, certainly and truly."

You know, I think Goodreads is heaven sent. I mean, seriously. It's like Facebook for books, authors, and bookworms. I've been able to connect with others who like the same books I do and can even recommend books to me that I may have turned my nose up at otherwise.
Take Mistborn for example.
If I had read the synopsis I may have been a bit interested, but once I got to the part about Allomancy (using metals as a source of power) I probably would've put the book down. I like fantasy, but not if it interferes with the human element of the story and I was a bit afraid this book would fall into that trap. But with a friend to put the book (metaphorically) in my hands, I decided it was worth a try.
All of my preconceived notions were wrong. That's what I'm finding out this time around, books that I wouldn't normally read are becoming my favorites.
One of my favorite things to do is try to compare books to other stories I know, kind of like a giant mashup. This book had me recalling Oceans Eleven, Lord of the Rings, Oliver Twist, and a Jane Austen novel. Don't know how that's possible? Well neither do I, but it's magic.
I fell in love with these characters (you have plenty of time to do so in the 659 pages) and I didn't want to let them go when the book ended. There are more of course, but this book had it's own perfect arc which was so nice in a world where I keep receiving 300 page trilogies. It makes me miss the days of new Harry Potter books coming out.
Ya know, I don't even think I ever got a chance to get bored with this book. The writing style captivated me from the start.
The friend who recommended this to me actually had read the trilogy that comes much later in time but in the same world as the trilogy I read. He liked it a lot though and suggested I start at the beginning. I'm so very glad I did.

As a side note, I picked out a book today based completely on it's cover (number 19 on the list) and I'm pretty excited to start it. You'll have to stay tuned to see what I chose!

Read on,

Jamie

The Winner's Curse & Code Name Verity

The Winner's Curse - Marie Rutkoski - 355 Pgs
39) A book with bad reviews

I chose The Winner's Curse not because it has poor rating on Goodreads (it actually has an impressive 4.07 average). I chose this book for my bad review book because of a specific bad review I read. It included one of my favorite gifs of one of my favorite characters from one of my favorite shows of all time. Basically, the reader was expressing that she didn't get the positive reviews and all the fans AT ALL. And you know what? Every reason she listed was legitimate, I even agreed with them without reading the book. If I had found this book on the shelf at the library, I would have picked it up (because the cover is very interesting), read the synopsis, and promptly put it back. I NEVER would have read this book if not for this specific challenge. Let me tell you why.
At it's heart, this book is a romance not an adventure. Don't get me wrong, there are battles of wit and knifes, there are deaths, but all of it kind of hinges on the love of the characters. Or should I say, character, singular. I don't usually go for romances unless it's Austen and I avoid angst-y teenaged romances like the plague. I certainly avoid romances that involve a slave and a master, it's too sketchy territory for me, there are too many things (like Stalkholm syndrome) that can happen.
The book is the beginning of a series about Kestrel (daughter of a powerful wealthy general) and Arin (whose people were enslaved by Kestrels) and I suppose how they are going to move heaven and earth to be together. That's the synopsis I would snort at and get away from. The redeeming factor of this story and why I really enjoyed it (4/5 stars) is because Arin's people are finally rising up from enslavement from these petty people. I won't even pretend I was sad when they revolted and killed people, I was cheering them on. I'll continue reading this series because I care what happens to them.
Another thing I appreciated in this story is that the girl isn't the rough and tumble, best fighter around. She practices, but she isn't physically talented. She is, however, the smartest cookie around (weeeelllll... kinda). It was nice to see a dynamic change where the girl didn't have to be able to kill 30 men on her own with a sword but she could outsmart them. GIRLS ARE SMART. And that brings me to my next book...


Code Name Verity - Elizabeth Wein - 332 pgs
11) A book set in a different country
"It's like being in love, discovering your best friend"

This book took me on a roller coaster. I have to say, I almost didn't finish this book. A good portion of the first half is all about airplanes. Yeah, I discovered I don't really love airplanes. I DO love historical fiction set during the world wars though, so I stuck with it by clenching my jaw and skim reading the plane bits. Once it got good though, I couldn't put it down. It just took a LONG time for it to get good. I wanted so badly to give it 3 or 4 stars because the beginning was SO boring to me, but by the end, I just couldn't do it. I gave it 5 stars. Once we stopped talking about airplanes and actually started talking about people, I was entranced.
The story is about two friends who meet while supporting the Allied cause. The story takes place in the United Kingdom and France. It's told in a very interesting fashion though because Verity is captured and giving up information to the Gestapo, but she tells the story through the eyes of her friend Maddie and then it will switch to her talking about her capturers and her current life as a prisoner after being tortured.
I can't say why, but I didn't cry during this book. I was shocked, angry, even "over it", but I never cried. It is a sad book, at times it's completely heart-wrenching, but no tears were shed. I think this may be because I was too surprised and angry to cry (or maybe I'm heartless...no, it's not that because I cried too many times when I read A Thousand Splendid Suns).
I don't even get why I love this book, because all signs point to me not really enjoying it. That poetry though. I included a quote from the book that I felt fit best when I think back. I marked others to share, but once I reached the end, none of them seemed to tie it all together so well as the one I put up top.
If you choose to start this book I plead with you to finish it. I'm so happy I finished the story and hope people don't give up like I almost did because it truly is a beautiful story of friendship.

Okay then. Two more down, thirty-six to go!

Read on,

Jamie

12/50

Here they are! The first 12 reads of the year and what items they complete on my list. (In no real particular order.)

Allegiant - Veronica Roth - 526 pgs
10) A book with a one word title

A few of these books will seem very oddly placed for what item they complete, most of the time this is because I already knew I wanted to read this book and just placed it in a requirement it just happened to fit. Allegiant could fit a large number of the requirements (written by a female, made me cry, stared but never finished, etc.) but I'm just going to file it under one word title. I don't know how I feel about this book being the end to the Divergent series; there seems to be so much left unresolved. Not to mention I feel like some choices were made to deliberately hurt me, not because they were necessary. The beginning seemed slow compared to the other two books, which is probably why I didn't finish it the first time I checked it out from the library. I won't lie, I didn't fully understand the premise either. It wasn't horrible though, just not what I expected/wanted. But hey, it wasn't worse than the end to the Series of Unfortunate Events books...

Four: A Divergent Collection - Veronica Roth - 285 pgs
5) A book with a number in the title

Does this count? Is it a number, or is it a name? Does it matter? I don't know, but this is my blog so I'm saying it counts.
Remember years back when Stephanie Meyer was going to publish Twilight from Edward's point of view? (Then people stole it and put it on the internet so she changed her mind) This is similar but completely different. Veronica Roth took Tobias/Four's backstory and wrote short stories as well as putting in some scenes in Divergent from Four's point of view. That was a confusing sentence, sorry. Basically, Veronica was writing the Divergent series from Four's POV, but as she wrote she discovered that Tris would be the better narrator. That made it so she had enough material to publish this little book. It's a quick read and really interesting. If you're a Divergent fan, don't miss out on this little treasure.

The Assassin's Blade - Sarah J. Maas - 435 pgs
6) A book written by an author under 30

Throne of Glass - Sarah J. Maas - 404 pgs
25) A book with a love triangle

Crown of Midnight - Sarah J. Maas - 420 pgs
45) A book told from multiple points of view

Heir of Fire - Sarah J. Maas - 562 pgs
29)  A book with magic in it

My goodness. I put the four Sarah J. Maas books in a row next since they're all one story. As much as I wish I could share all my feelings for this series with you, there wouldn't be enough time and you wouldn't have enough patience. I will say this. Many people need educating in the geometry department. A triangle has THREE SIDES. Everyone knows this, yes? So WHY do we call almost every relationship part of a love triangle??? A REAL love triangle should include three people who have some kind of relationship/feelings with the other two people, NOT one person loved by two people or one person who loves two people. Does that make sense? I feel like I should draw a picture. This series is an example of a real love triangle (The infernal devices is the best example though). Two boys who love each other and are like brothers who love the same girl and one girl who loves both the boys. That is what a triangle looks like. Rant done.
If you love high fantasy, you'll love these books. Celaena is one of the best written female characters around. She can hang with Katniss any day of the week. I will say that Throne of Glass is not perfect nor my favorite, but Crown of Midnight is. The Assassin's Blade is a prequel written after the first two books, but can be read first. I will say that I was a little crushed when I found out this isn't a trilogy and I have to wait quite a long time to get the whole story, but that means more adventures with Celaena, so... I'm good.

Red Rising - Pierce Brown - 382 pgs
27) A book with a color in the title

Just when I thought I'd found my new favorite series in Throne of Glass, something very unexpected happens. This is one of the first books I picked up because it fit the description of one of the books on my list. I saw it all over my library website and Goodreads (probably because the second book was about to come out) and thought, "I like Hunger Games and Game of Thrones" (the books it's being compared to) "I'll give it a try". Now, I don't hate them, but I don't particularly enjoy sci-fi books. I don't know why but too much talk of space and futuristic things I don't understand just turn me off to the story so picking this up was a leap of faith. I'm very glad I made that leap. And you know what? It IS a mix of Hunger Games and Game of Thrones. Just let that sink in. Now, this book is REALLY GOOD (the set up takes a while), but the sequel was AMAZING.

Golden Son - Pierce Brown - 442 pgs
26) A book set in the future

Why did I have to discover this book over a year before the last one comes out? This cliffhanger is the most brutal cliffhanger I've had to endure. I NEED to know what's going to happen. YOU HEAR ME PIERCE? I NEED TO KNOW NOW. My first thought after finishing this book was, "I've run right into Pierce Brown's torture chamber and I can't leave." UGH. This book broke me. Obviously I have a hard time making real sentences about it. READ THESE BOOKS. If for no other reason than I'll finally have someone to vent with.

A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khaled Hosseini - 370 pgs
28) A book that made you cry

Or as I like to call it A Thousand Splendid Sobs. If you were to look up Khaled Hosseini's books on Amazon, you'd probably find crates of tissues in the "Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought" section. Those of you who read Kite Runner know what I'm talking about. I was still breaking out in tears a week after I finished this book. But not just because sad things happen, because I learned so much from this book. I know some people feel that reading one of Hosseini's books is reading all of them, but that's not how I see it. While Kite Runner was about childhood creativity and friendship, TSS is about women. Females everywhere take note, A Thousand Splendid Suns is an education definitely worth sobbing for.

The Kiss of Deception - Mary E. Pearson - 486 pgs
8) A book written by a female author

This book isn't terrible. This book isn't profound. In fact, it felt quite strange to read it after TSS, like it was superficial and shallow. Perhaps it really is. Honestly, I found this on Goodreads and just went for it. Apparently I missed the fact that you're not supposed to know who is the Prince and who is the Assassin until the official reveal a little past the halfway point. That went right over my head. Somewhere along the line I just made an assumption. And I was wrong. I had to look back through the book to get the plot twist through my head. That was exciting. The sequel will be at the bottom of my reading list when it comes out later this year. I hate becoming THAT guy, but I feel like I'm too old for this sort of writing.

We Were Liars - E. Lockhart - 225 pgs
20) A book you can read in one day

Kiss of Deception is going to look so dumb sandwiched between TSS and We Were Liars. I ranted to my mom about this book. I told her the whole story just so someone could sympathize with me. When that wasn't enough, I told my dad, and my sister, and my brother. I'm tempted to tell you. You'll find little information of what exactly We Were Liars is about. It's better to just read it and freak out about it later I suppose. The only thing I'm going to comment on is the description of emotional and physical pain being very poetic in this book. The main character suffers migraines, a pain I know all too well and have struggled with my whole life. The descriptions may seem like too much and overly poetic, but I can tell you first hand, that is EXACTLY what it feels like. It's a quick and enjoyable read.

Half a King - Joe Abercrombie - 333 pgs
22) A trilogy (This is the first book)

Lucky me, the last two books of this series both come out this year. If only Pierce Brown could do that...
I have a rule in which I require myself to read 100 pages before I give up on a book. Not going to lie, this book took 130. It's not that the beginning wasn't interesting and action-packed, but, I didn't really CARE. I already knew that stuff was going to happen, you told me on the cover and inside flap! But dude. Once this book got rolling, it REALLY got moving. The characters finally got interesting and I finally cared. I'm excited to read the next two.
I touched on this earlier when talking about the Throne of Glass series, but trilogies are funny things to me. I get to spend more time with the characters, but I have to wait years for the whole story.
Usually, the second book is my favorite. You are familiar with the characters and (hopefully) care about them, more questions are being answered but you don't feel the impending end lurking over you, and the author can just jump right into the action without too much set up. Win, win, win.
It'll be interesting to see how this trilogy plays out.

Well, hopefully I'll have a book tomorrow!

Read on,

Jamie