Unearthly: Book Review

I picked up this book because one of the books in the series was in Sarah's top ten books that she wants to read next year. So, I thought, hey, I oughta see what those books are all about.

Description from Goodreads:
In the beginning, there's a boy standing in the trees...
Clara Gardner has recently learned that she's part angel. Having angel blood run through her veins not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than humans (a word, she realizes, that no longer applies to her), but it means she has a purpose, something she was put on this earth to do. Figuring out what that is, though, isn't easy.
Her visions of a raging forest fire and an alluring stranger lead her to a new school in a new town. When she meets Christian, who turns out to be the boy of her dreams (literally), everything seems to fall into place and out of place at the same time. Because there's another guy, Tucker, who appeals to Clara's less angelic side.


Review:
I really enjoyed this book. I liked the main character, which doesn't usually happen with YA books because YA authors seem to think main character girls need to be needy and weak and whiny and lame and dependent. But, the main character in this book, Clara, is strong and independent and interesting and actually likeable.

The idea of being part angel is not a new thing; I've read a few books that pose this idea. But, I liked the author's take on angels. Just like I read a lot of different vampire books even though I have read the concept before. One thing that I thought was interesting that I haven't seen before is the author had all the characters who have angel blood have wings. Every other demi angel book I have read, the character has supernatural powers, but no wings.

This author knows how to write romance. I loved how she described Clara's first kiss. She describes all the little things in the moment leading up to the kiss and all the emotions running through Clara so well that I feel like I'm there in the moment with her.

The author is just so good at describing things without getting too wordy that the book is a fast read. Which I love. I hate when a book drags and it takes me forever to finish just because I have reached a boring part in the book. This book didn't have any boring parts.

The only thing that I slightly didn't like was that the book was cliffhangery. Things were left unfinished. But, I suppose that just means that I need to read the next book. Which I definitely will. I love reading books that are easy to read and make me feel, but don't make me think too much.

Rating: 4 stars

Grave Mercy: Book Review

I read this book because I thought it had a cool cover and a cool premise.

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

Description: Ismae is the result of an affair between her mother and Death. Ismae, despised by her mortal father, is put into an abusive arranged marriage, but then saved by a convent of nuns who are also daughters of Death. The nuns train her to be an assassin who serves the purposes of saint Mortain (Death). Now, she is a hand maiden of Death, killing those who threaten Death's plans for the throne.

Review: Sounds like a great thesis right? Handmaiden of death; awesome. Except, this book was hard to get through. The first part of the book seemed intriguing when Ismae got to the convent and I found out she was going to be trained to kill and poison. And then, the author skipped over what could have been one of the most interesting parts of the story, assassin school and jumped right to post training. Ismae has a conflicting personality and her motives are not always clear. She thinks one thing, but does another and it is confusing. Additionally, many of the characters that are presented are not fully developed so it was hard to care about any of the characters because they just don't get enough scene time. The whole thing seemed rushed, as if the author was trying to get this giant plot line into one book when it really should have been split into three books. It felt like I was cheated out of important scenes and character development because it was forced into one book. It was a good idea, but poorly executed.

Rating: 2 Stars

The Hobbit: Book Review

With the upcoming Hobbit movie coming out, I decided to reread The Hobbit in preparation for the film. I hadn't read the book since high school and remembered very little of it as it had been over 10 years since my last read.

Description: The Hobbit follows Bilbo Baggins in his youth (60 years). Bilbo is living comfortably in his hobbit hole in Hobbiton when he is approached by Gandalf the wizard and 12 dwarves to be the burglar addition in a great adventure. The dwarves seek to regain a treasure stolen from their fathers by the great dragon Smaug. Bilbo embraces his Tookish side and goes on the adventure with the dwarves and discovers a side to himself the he never knew that he had.

Review: I had forgotten how much I love Tolkien's writing. His writing has a playfulness, a beauty, and a depth that you just don't see in most authors. His descriptions of Middle Earth are lush and his development of characters is always enjoyable. I don't know how he takes a cast of 14 and makes each of them lovable, but he is just masterful at it.

The Hobbit is not that long a book, but Bilbo seems to go on 12 different adventures in the book and it spans a whole year. How does Tolkien do it? How does he fit so much into so few pages? Now that I have reread the book, I know how they are going to split it into three movies. There is so much in this little book, there is no way they could fit it into one movie.

Normally, I don't like a book unless there is some sort of love story in the book, but Tolkien is the exception. He writes about comradery and friendship in a way that I don't miss the romance of the books. I'm not even sure if the book had a female in it at all, and I just didn't miss it.

I loved this book, it reminded me of why I love fantasy books and I can't wait for the movie. I'm going to an advanced screening of the movie the day before it comes out and I will review it in comparison to the book when it comes out.

Rating: 5 stars (can I give Tolkien anything less?)