Red Queen (Red Queen Book #1)

It seems like I've actually had a reason to update my blog for the first time in a while... Reading time is difficult to come by nowadays, but I am looking forward to the Thanksgiving break so I can just stay at home and devour books. And especially have some kind of free time. That has been incredibly difficult to come by. With all of the craziness in my regular life, I'm thankful to have a few hours to just sit down and relax.
I still managed to finish this book even though I knew very clearly that I would not have the time to. And I am still managing to write this review and effectively procrastinate.

The cover-

The Reds are average, poverty-stricken people who fend for themselves and work until they die. Their lives consist of securing a menial labor job and fighting off conscription if they are unemployed. The Silver rule over them mercilessly, killing for sport in large arenas where Reds are forced to watch them rip each other to pieces. They are able to wield magic, each house being assigned a different power, from fire to magnetism.

The only thing that separates them is the color of their blood.

Mare Barrow is a regular seventeen year old Red who makes her living pick-pocketing and avoiding the frightening inevitability of conscription. Though she can't see it for herself, she dreams of a life better than the one she is cursed with, where she too will live in luxury and comfort.
That is, until she finds herself serving in a Silver palace, surrounded by the very people who made her and her peoples' lives so difficult.
Mare finds out through unsavory circumstances that she too holds a power and it is one that can disrupt the balance of power that holds the Silver families together. She is dubbed a long lost Silver princess and forced to live an even more torturous life where one misstep can get her killed.
Frustrated with the balance of power in her world, she turns to the insurgent group, Red Dawn and their dreams of finally putting an end to Silver rule. With a foot in both worlds, Mare tries to fight the very system she was forced to accept throughout her life in her world of betrayal and lies where she is pitted in a gladiator fight against her own heart.

My thoughts-

I feel as though the strong point for this book is in its descriptions and in the craftsmanship in setting up the scenery for the story to unfold. I really felt as though I was a part of Mare's world and that I was living through her.
This book literally kept me on the edge the whole time. Even though it was in a fantasy setting, I knew that I could feel the depth and hardship of the Stilts (the poor industrial community that Mare lives in). She did seem right for the role of the defiant kid who wants something more than what they've got. Her character is a little rebellious, mostly kind, a little cautious and very free. The range of characteristics enhances the depth that the story's events add to her character.
I also loved the fantasy elements of the story. The initial description of Mare's powers made me literally shudder as electricity crackled from her hands and wrecked the dining hall. Mare's first visit to the Silver palace with Gisa made it seem so grand and made the Silvers seem so elegant, despite the atrocities they committed against the Reds. Even still, Mare swears by this throughout that whole encounter. That they're too pretty and too strong. It's like the Reds have got nothing to beat them with.

Age Rating: 14+

I wouldn't say that this book is too provocative in any aspect. It is somewhat graphic at times, but that is hardly a reason to not read it. The characters do swear a little, but once again, it is all within the limits that YA novels tend to go by. I still say that it is an excellent read because of some of these factors. It adds the grit and the salt that regular straight talking characters would not have if they talked plainly.

(This book is the first in a trilogy that you should maybe check out if you enjoyed it! Till then, goodbye and happy reading!)

Afterworlds (Afterworlds Book #1)

((Wow it's been a long time. I'm terrible at updating regularly and I guess that's okay. Laziness took hold of me over the summer))

School started and that's wonderful and all (I finally get to see my friends again), but the amount of work is killing me. I started this book maybe two weeks before school started and I was not able to finish it until just a few days ago. That's how bad it's been for me. Usually I'm just so tired at the end of the day that I just fall asleep and don't read anything.

The cover-

Darcy Patel is finally going to live her dream. After successfully writing 50,000 words over the span of a month, she got a publishing deal on her novel and is now going to be writing full time in New York City. Being a teen writer is hard, with rewrites and edits and not to mention managing a budget and living on her own. That is until she meets Imogen Grey, the smart, outspoken author who might just be warming up to her. And when Darcy finds herself falling in love with a fellow writer, she begins to question just what she is doing and why it is so important to her.

In another world, Elizabeth is on her way home from visiting her father in New York City and finds herself stuck in the middle of a terrorist attack at the Dallas International Airport. Miraculously she survives, but finds herself in a place called the "Afterworld" where the spirits of the dead come to rest and are guided by mostly human psychopomps (grim reapers). There she meets and falls in love with the stunning Yama- the king of the dead.
Able to see ghosts, Elizabeth finds that they are everywhere and are easily tricked by the monsters that lurk in the Afterworld. She accidentally sets one free when she takes his help in killing the man who murdered her mother's best friend and has to pay the ultimate price. He wants the soul of every child in Yama's kingdom to compensate for the ones lost in his own world.

Both the author and main character find their way through difficult changes and try to make up for what has been lost. They both navigate the minefield of love and realize that sometimes the best people are worth letting go and to follow only what they feel within themselves.


My thoughts-

Every night that I actually could get to read, I wouldn't be able to put the book down. It's addicting to the point where I spent about three nights in a row reading until 2 AM. Three school nights when I probably should have gone to sleep.
I loved the idea of not only hearing about Darcy's novel, but getting to read it too. It suddenly made the story seem a lot more personal than just talking almost constantly about a story that the reader never gets to read. But it does significantly increase the length of the book, and puts it at about 600 pages, rather than a typical novel length. But it does feel like getting two novel-length stories for the price of one. Which would be a nicer scenario if I wasn't getting in bed at 10:30 every night.
I also liked the juxtaposition of every other chapter being from Darcy's book. Once her world gets a little more complex, her story does too, but switching between both was a bit of a headache for me. Even though the book was probably made to have each read side-by-side, I found myself skipping through parts of Darcy's novel to get to what was happening to her. When the plot got thicker, I found myself shifting towards the more realistic story than the fantasy.

I wonder if this was a sort of exposition on how the writing world is like. Making relations with fellow writers so they blurb your book, the crazy parties and most of all the shameless promotion. If this is really accurate, I'm not publishing a book until I'm settled in a job and living a decent life. Darcy realizes pretty early on that being an author doesn't really pay too well unless your book gets really popular.
It also feels a little like a traditional coming-of-age novel where a young character is put into a more mature setting than they are able to handle and have to change in order to fit their new environment. Even with someone like her sister Nisha to keep track of her expenses, Darcy ends up running out of money too quickly. She begins to realize that living on her own is hard and that at her age, she's not ready for it. When she visits her home for Christmas, she actually starts questioning whether or not it is worth selling her apartment in New York City and moving back home. At least she wouldn't have to pay the ridiculous rent and other bills.

Age Rating: 14+

The book has a very truthful, unashamed tone that can really make it or break it for readers. I myself am a fan of sarcasm and dry humor, but some people are not. Especially when it comes to its more explicit nature. Characters often use swear words and speak to each other in very casual and almost derogatory manner at times. But the subject itself is not as mature as the way it is presented. Still, I would think that young adults would get the most out of the humor and life lessons that it masks within the story.

((More reviews will be coming as I start actually reading books, but I promise that I will have at least one more by the end of the month. Till then, Happy Reading!))

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

((Summer has officially begun! That means I can actually read and not feel like I'm dying in school the next day because there is a significant difference between the amount I sleep when I find a good book compared to when I just sleep without reading.))

((I heard that this book had won very prestigious awards, so I naturally wanted to check it out. Plus a lot of my friends read it in school this year and told me it was interesting, so I did read it!))

The cover-

((My thought is that there is no accurate way for me to summarize this because I wrote at least three different summary paragraphs and deleted all of them because they sucked. Please just look up the summary somewhere online because I was more pumped to write the commentary than a summary....))

My thoughts-

Though it's not a very long book, I just could not put it down. I read all of it in about two nights! This book was written so well that I am not very surprised that it got so many awards.

It goes to show you how much poverty Native Americans in today's world live in, even after all this time. Arnold makes too many painful points about alcoholism in his community because he sees it all the time. His father himself is an alcoholic and sometimes Arnold and his mother have to walk miles to every pub they know of to drag their father back home. He also explains the root cause of his people turning to alcohol to solve their problems. They don't have hope for the future because of their situation. Because they are poor, there are few opportunities for jobs or even an education. This makes people feel unfulfilled in their lives, which makes them turn to alcohol as a way to cope with their frustration.
One particular example of the lack of hope that he and his community has that struck me the most was when basketball coach was praising him for his great shooting skills, saying that within a few years he could be playing in college basketball teams. The only point that Arnold is hung on is the word "college". He says that he's never heard the words "Indian" and "College" in the same sentence before. That is the nature of his situation.

Though what struck me more than Arnold's way of powering through the culture that he is surrounded with was his struggle to be both European and Native American at the same time. He says it as when he's on the reservation, he's "half white" and when he's in school, he's "half Indian". Like he's kind of a traitor on both sides.
I for one, know that feeling, to a lesser extent than Arnold, but I too have had to cope with it. I'm Indian (like the real India Indian) by heritage, but American by circumstance (I was born and brought up here). When I go to India, I feel a little "off", because from my walk and from my talk, anyone can tell that I'm not from anywhere near there. To them, I'm just "that kid from America". And here, when something happens that reminds me that I really don't know much about this country and its culture, I suddenly feel like I'm just "that Indian kid" and don't really belong here too. I guess I too am a traitor on both sides. But if I don't belong on either side, then where do I belong? That's the question that Arnold has to face throughout the book after he made the decision. Whether it is worth leaving his Native American roots for American culture or doing the opposite? Or is there even the possibility of a happy medium where he can be both at the same time? But with the silent animosity between both groups of people, he doesn't know what he should do.
Arnold's decision to go to Reardan High School has made the other teenagers on the reservation more wary of him, like he's a spy for the white people. They give him funny looks and generally stay away from him more than they did before. What really does it for him is the basketball game at the end of the book where the Reardan team has a rematch against the team from his old high school. Above everything, Arnold is most nervous for the game because he has to go up against Rowdy. The thought of having to beat the boy he spent years reading comic books with reminds him that even beyond this game, he is a Native American and the fact that he goes to a school off the reservation doesn't change that. Despite everything he has gone through, this thought helps him power through the game.

I would like to take some time to look at the ending of the book because I found that very interesting as well. (Those who haven't read it, turn away now... Don't blame me for spoilers...) Mostly that the book did not end with just the basketball game. I was very sure that the ultimate showdown would be the end of the book, but the ending was very mellow and less intense than everything else.
The book ended with the reconnecting of Arnold and Rowdy. It was a rather fitting ending. Arnold said sometime in the book that he could handle the others looking weirdly at him when he started going to Reardan, but what hurt him the most was when Rowdy wouldn't even look at him. Though he could not outwardly admit it, Arnold really did treasure Rowdy as his best friend, even if they were so different. I feel that it brought back the feeling of belonging and being back with one's people that Arnold had lost and regained throughout the book. It brought a calm closure to a whole storyline full of conflicting emotions.



Age Rating (14-16+)

It's not so much difficulty of the context or the language, but the content. There are very mature themes underlying the plot at all times. Once or twice the book touches upon topics that may be slightly uncomfortable for some people, but they do not take away from the plot. There is frequent use of curse words and is very explicit, but that simply adds to the raw feeling that is prevalent throughout.

On this topic I would like to say that this book has got a bad reputation because of the themes it possesses. In fact, the author has defended it multiple times saying that his intention was to describe every little thing that was usually going through a teenager's mind. Even if it was deemed too inappropriate for a book, it was true.
In fact this book made its home at the number one spot for the most challenged books of 2014 because of all this. I fully loved the story and the message beyond it, but I'm just saying this to remind anyone who wants to read it that this book is not for younger kids. Much more so than probably any other book that I've reviewed so far.

It's just a word of caution, not a red "X". I fully loved Arnold's sense of sarcasm that he weaves through the events in his life. The cartoons were beautiful and added lots of depth. This book was wonderful and probably made it on my list of favorites!

The Way We Fall

I don't even need to make excuses for why I disappeared this time. I'm back and that's as good as it gets. This book very heavily reminds me of a similar science fiction book I read a few years ago called No Safety in Numbers. Honestly this book is very light in comparison to that but the concept is similar.

The cover-

Kaelyn has enough things to occupy her mind. After their big fight, her best friend Leo moved to New York City and refuses to reply to any of her emails. High School hasn't been nearly as fun without him but Kaelyn manages to sleepwalk through. At home the tension isn't any higher. Her family hasn't been nearly as together as they used to be for a whole assortment of reasons.

A mysterious disease has been killing off people living on their small island off the coast of Canada and neither Canadian government nor American government is willing to help them. Left to their own devices, Kaelyn finds it hard to protect her young cousin from the sickness as her family is slowly being poisoned and left to die.
Being alone for so long makes her think, wondering about why it had to be her stuck in this situation watching many of the people she loves die suddenly because of a sickness they can't even cure.

My thoughts-

This book really was interesting. I particularly liked the format of it. Even though it was told from the first person point of view of Kaelyn, there were some parts of it that were told like a diary entry or a letter to a friend. In fact, that is what the whole book is. It is partway recounting the history of the epidemic and part way a letter to Leo, expressing Kaelyn's thankfulness that he moved just in time that he wouldn't have to suffer what the inhabitants of the island were. But the narration also holds the bittersweet memories of losing a friend. From time to time she remembers times when they were still friends and didn't have a care in the world. Before all of this started.
I think that Kaelyn's character is very dynamic for a main character in one of these almost clichéd apocalypse novels. She has a lot of insight into her situation and a curiosity that sometimes makes her throw away normal barriers to get what she wants. I was very happy with this kind of character that doesn't seem to either know everything or know nothing about her situation. It definitely made the book a lot more enjoyable to read.
I was especially interested in Quentin and the whole deal with the gang of boys that were hogging up supplies to sustain themselves instead of distributing them like everyone else or donating to the hospital. I feel that even though Quentin was insane, he knew something about what was going to happen. I think he acted the way he did because he was scared that they would all die eventually. It would just be very slow and painful.
On the subject of the gang, Garret's sudden change from "evil" to "good" was a slightly needed relief in the seriousness of the whole book. When he started teaching Kaelyn how to protect herself, I knew right away this would end up in love. From where he showed up, all throughout the middle of the book was the well-needed less dark and serious portion. There are so many things you can make a reader feel in a tense situation, but after a while it does get boring.

This book has a lot of character development which is essential for a book with very few main characters. It's not too much where it becomes overwhelming, but just enough to make it seem like Kaelyn has gained something throughout her experiences and hasn't stayed exactly the same as she was in the beginning of the book. And going through the things that she has, Kaelyn surely ended the book a lot stronger, but a lot more confused than she started.

Age Rating 14+

There are some probably mildly offensive references made, but they are sparingly used. There are graphic details of death and suffering related to the illness. Overall, this is a pretty safe book, not too heavy on the details about the sickness and not too heavy on the details of the teenage lifestyle. Just enough that it accents the book but doesn't define it.

((There are two more books in this series.))