I am the ultimate loser.
Yes, it has been about two months since I last posted. I have excuses!
1: NaNoWriMo. I participated in Camp NaNo last month and it basically took up all of my writing brain.
2: Reading slumps. I honestly just have not read much. I did not finish a single book last month and it's tragic.
3: Sickness. School. Life??
But I have returned. I have two shiny books to review. I have started about 5 other books and once school ends...well I will be reading obsessively. Stay tuned for that!
These three books aren't as "short" as the last set of shorties I reviewed, but they all were very quick reads I read in about a day. Sadly, all three of them I was pretty disappointed by, and today I am going to share why.
The Ghost in the Glass House by Carey Wallace
Clare's intense interest in these visitors was a source of gratification to Bridget's mother and a point of content with Bridget, who though about ghosts, very much the same way that most people thought about God: Despite the fact they were probably real, it was unforgivably impolite to talk about them.
Growing up, the roaring twenties were my life. Lately, because of my dear friend Emma, has made me rediscover how much I love the twenties.
So, naturally I went on a rampage to find 1920's books. I was so freaking excited when I found this. Ghosts??? 1920's?? How about yes?
Sadly...it was not quite a "yes" book for me.
Stats:
Genre: Like...I can't say paranormal. But. Ghost-ish middle grade historical?
Feelings: No
Happiness: The writing was fun to read, but other than that...not much
Cuteness: No .-.
Fast
pacing: Nopety nope.
Series: Nopeeee
Read if
you like: Middle grade books, and really quirky old fashioned type prose.
Content: Other than a bunch of 12 year old's talking about being in love and kissing people? Nope.
In one
sentence... Clara finds a glass house in her yard. There is a ghost. They fall in love. She is 12 years old. That was not one sentence but shhhhhh
Thoughts: A cave, filled with old furniture.
Messages: Not really any heavy messages in this book? Very....very....middle grade.
Overall:
Rating: 3/5
This review is SPOILER FREE
The Lovely Bits:
I really wanted to love this book. It had all the components of a book I would love. And I didn't enjoy it, just....not enough.
I can't really do my normal -Characters-Plot-Messages- layout, because none of these things I actually liked in this book. So I will switch it around some.
I did like the prose in this book. It had that really fun old fashioned feel that I love to read in books. The setting was very vibrant and real to me, and when I read it, I did feel caught up in this little world.
Jack was a likable ghost. He was mischievous and fun, though juvenile. I honestly think he was the only character I actually liked in this book.
I feel bad that there's not enough to say about this book that I liked. Because it was not awful. The only reason I didn't like it, was because I didn't realize it was middle grade. When I read ghosts, I want dark ghosts. I want scary ghosts. I didn't expect this tiny book to be full of so much 12 year old drama and...nothing scary.
So, basically, this book was not for me.
The Less Lovely Bits:
Clare. Bridgit. Whatever those two other boys were named. They really just weren't likable. Simply because, they were 12, and caught up in their 12 year old drama. Bridget constantly talking about boys and asking Clare who she is in love with really got on my nerves. I mean, yeah it's 1920 and they're 12. But I am a 16 year old teen living in the 21st century, and that was not the type of story I wanted.
Clare I felt like I wanted to like? Because she was the main character, because she wanted what was best, because she was stubborn and went about stealing keys to get her way and have fun. But she was...(again, bringing this up,) 12, so her priorities were way out of wack. So I really didn't connect with her at all.
And Bridget. Ah, Bridget. Bridget I think is one of those characters that if she grew up, I'd love. She's spirited and determined, and she seems like a fun character. But she came across annoying. So, so annoying.
There's not a whole lot to say about this? It was a very simplistic book. There was no heavy plot, no suspense. It was a very quick, simple book that I think a lot of younger readers will love. Not teens.
Even for younger readers, the messages seemed a little off. It's honestly always bugged me when young people in books are obsessed with romance. I understand that life for a young kid in the 20's was very different, but any type of book with that bothers me.
Why?
Because right now everywhere you look 12 and 11 year old's are pulling out their smart phones and getting boyfriends and...it bugs me. What happened to being a carefree kid? Being 12 is right on the brink of being a teen, and getting closer to high school. Childhood is so short, and I know I am only 16, but I wish so much I could go back in time and give 12-year-old-me a shake and yell "Stop obsessing over boys and makeup! There will be enough drama in two years! Go have fun"
Yes, books should be historically accurate. Yes, it's okay for books to have these things. I still wish there was less of it. Childhood books should be about childhood, not things that they will have plenty to deal with in high school.
Overall, it was a fun book and I want to have younger kids read it because ghosts are awesome. But, it really wasn't for me. And a lot of it's little messages irked me.
Playlist for the Dead by Michelle Falkoff
..., and I went back to my old habit of walking the halls looking down most of the time. It was different now, though—before I’d done it without thinking, because I didn't know another way. Now I was actively avoiding a life I knew might be out there. But it was my choice.
Ah. This book. It was small, it was cute, it had a killer cover. And the concept? Someone using music and playlists to figure out a friends suicide? And each chapter had one of the songs??
I needed it. I even made the playlist so I could listen while I read.
Gods, was I disappointed.
Stats:
Genre: Contemporary
Feelings: There should have been more
Happiness: There should have been MORE
Cuteness: No
Fast
pacing: Not realllyyy?
Series: Nope
Read if
you like: Music? Mediocre characters? Pretty covers?
Content: Not much, I think just some swearing. And, it deals with suicide, so.
In one
sentence... Hayden is dead, and all he has left behind is a playlist for Sam to listen to, and try and figure out the truth.
Thoughts: Nothing. I'm really sorry, but I seriously got nothing from this book.
Messages: Honestly....not much.
Overall:
Rating: Like...1.5-2/5, maybe?
This review has PLOT SPOILERS but really. They are so obvious it hurts
The Lovely Bits:
Uh. I liked the cover? I liked the concept?
Honestly, this book is so concept driven. I've read a lot of books about suicide and depression, and this concept seemed so intriguing and unique to me. But everything else was so mediocre, and it bothers me because this book could have been great.
The Less Lovely Bits:
There's nothing to really say about Sam. He was...nothing. He was kind of pathetic and annoying and I wanted to like him because of what he went through but he was so... I don't know, man. He wasn't anything special.
Then there's Astrid! The tough girl! With piercing! There to put his life back together! It was. No.
The problem was all of the characters were molds. They had no unique aspects that set them apart. They were archetypes on a page, basically.
There are two things I really need to love a book. Emotions, and good characters. This book had neither when it should have had both.
Was there any? Unless I was so fed up by the end I missed it, I don't remember any actual solution to the whole "what does the playlist mean" question. The plot was weak. So weak.
And then the end came and gasp! You discover that Astrid is the one hurting those who hurt Hayden, Astrid is the one messaging Sam with Hayden's account. Even though....Astrid told Sam she knew the password to Hayden's account and constantly dropped hints through the whole book.
Yeah. Big reveal.
Suicide books are a big deal. They're very important books to be written, and I really wanted so much more from this. I wanted a beautiful friendship story, with music and sadness.
Instead I got some guy-girl drama, with some muggings in the background and the music as some...plot thing that never even gets figure out. And Hayden's suicide? It felt like a plot device and that really bugged me.
Suicide books are a big deal. When an author writes a book about this, I expect messages. Authors needs to use suicide in books to raise awareness, not to attract teens to their books, not to make the plot "work."
Overall, this book just didn't work. At all. Weak characters and plot aside, it really didn't have enough seriousness about the subject matter. Suicide is such a fragile subject and it really wasn't handled well here. Luckily, it was not heavily triggering like Thirteen Reasons Why, or I would be a raging monster right now.
When my Heart was Wicked by Tricia Stirling
"We are rare birds with sharp teeth and gilded wings," she would tell me. "We soar above roofs and treetops, shooting through clouds and tickling the moon. The stars are our nightclubs where we dress in silver bangles and eat men whole before spitting them out. People tell us we have our head in the clouds and we laugh, ferociously baring our teeth. We don't like the be pulled down to earth."
This book's cover grabbed me as soon as I walked into the store. And it was so tiny and cute, it immediately caught my attention. And then I read the synopsis. It sounded just like my type of story! Witches, and darkness, and facing inner wickedness.
Ah, yeah, no it didn't work.
Stats:
Genre: Paranormal-ish?
Feelings: Not really
Happiness: I had a weird uncomfortable feeling during this whole book
Cuteness: Ew no
Fast
pacing: Slow? But not painfully
Series: Nope.
Read if
you like: Ah....choppy but pretty prose, and weird witchy stuff
Content: A uncomfortable sex scene thing. Like, not graphic but it was just...no. Some dark magic stuff, and swearing.
In one
sentence... Lacy used to be bad, but she got better. Now? She's not so sure
Thoughts: Dirt under your nails and black boots
Messages: Ah...I honestly am not even sure. People are bad but people can get better?
Overall:
Rating:
This review is SPOILER FREE
The Lovely Bits:
During the first bits of this book, I really did like it. The prose was choppy, yes, but very pretty and fun to read. The character voice was strong, and the plot really neat.
It had just a very unique feel and atmosphere that I was really liking. The elements of the black birds and things like that was so intriguing. I loved the way things were described, and how dark and twisted everything felt.
But as it progressed, it got...not as intriguing and pretty.
The Less Lovely Bits:
Lacy was...frustrating. I thought she was a cool character at first, but after a while her character ARC and motivation feel flat and I was so confused and I wanted to give her a good shake. And yell at her a lot.
If this book hadn't been so short, I doubt I would have finished. I kept waiting for some redeeming factor. As it went on it just got worse and worse.
The prose that was pretty started to get repetitive, weird. It felt a little try-hard. After the first 100 pages, everything felt too forced. And the dialogue started getting so stilted.
Really, I don't remember much of this book. I remember it left me feeling very weird and uncomfortable. Like a lot.
So, I would still maybe give it a try if you feel up to it. Because it was pretty. It may be another case where it wasn't for me.
And that's it! Those are the three shorties I've read the past two months. Let me know if you read them, and what you think!
And I will try and post more. Seriously. I swear.
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