Superheroes for the Uninitiated

Superheroes for the Uninitiated

Revolution

Jennifer Donelly's Blog (The author)

"Two girls, two centuries apart. One never knowing the other. But when Andi finds Alexandrine’s diary, she recognizes something in her words and is moved to the point of obsession. There’s comfort and distraction for Andi in the journal’s antique pages—until, on a midnight journey through the catacombs of Paris, Alexandrine’s words transcend paper and time, and the past becomes suddenly, terrifyingly present."

A very long book, and I loved it that way! It was really good.I'm almost done. I was taken inside the book almost instantly. She describes depression and loss perfectly. She puts in scientists, french history, teen confusion of where they stand in live and love.

 I thought that since in was in Teen Vogue and Seventeen in ads everywhere I looked that it wouldn't be the greatest French History Fiction ever ; But it is. It's seriously good. My best friend almost stole the whole dang thing out of my hands while I was reading it.

The author is Jennifer Donelly has other books and she's won a few major awards. She has a wonderful imagination. She won a award for "A Gathering Light" which I have not read yet but plan to.

The Passage (The Passage, #1) by Justin Cronin

The Passage (The Passage, #1) by Justin Cronin

Hardcover, 766 pages

Published June 8th 2010 by Ballantine Books

“It happened fast. Thirty-two minutes for one world to die, another to be born.”
First, the unthinkable: a security breach at a secret U.S. government facility unleashes the monstrous product of a chilling military experiment. Then, the unspeakable: a night of chaos and carnage gives way to sunrise on a nation, and ultimately a world, forever altered. All that remains for the stunned survivors is the long fight ahead and a future ruled by fear—of darkness, of death, of a fate far worse.
As civilization swiftly crumbles into a primal landscape of predators and prey, two people flee in search of sanctuary. FBI agent Brad Wolgast is a good man haunted by what he’s done in the line of duty. Six-year-old orphan Amy Harper Bellafonte is a refugee from the doomed scientific project that has triggered apocalypse. He is determined to protect her from the horror set loose by her captors. But for Amy, escaping the bloody fallout is only the beginning of a much longer odyssey—spanning miles and decades—towards the time and place where she must finish what should never have begun.
With The Passage, award-winning author Justin Cronin has written both a relentlessly suspenseful adventure and an epic chronicle of human endurance in the face of unprecedented catastrophe and unimaginable danger. Its inventive storytelling, masterful prose, and depth of human insight mark it as a crucial and transcendent work of modern fiction. – Goodreads

My Opinion: I think that this book is definitely something that takes time because of how long it is. Even if you listen to it on CD like I did.  The plot was something to be reckoned with. The book starts with Amy’s mother and ends with massacre. There are many locations  and it multiple perspectives. We see the perspective of Amy’s mother, Lesley, Peter, Amy, and many others. I thought that added to the story because we see more things of the setting and we see things that other characters don’t see.I also like the unique view of how the monsters were created.

Some of the character were really awesome. I think my favorite was Amy. Even though she doesn’t talk in almost 99% of the novel, she observe everyone and makes  a decision for them. Plus the whole because of who she is she can save everyone. Lisha is also really awesome. I love female protagonists that are self sufficient and reliable and can protect and handle themselves.

Something that I didn’t like about the audiobook was that sometimes it was difficult to distinguish when a new location/ character’s perspective started. in the book there are probably spaces or other paragraphs that distinguish it but in the audiobook… there was nothing.

This was a great novel and I can’t wait for the next one to come out. I would definitely recommend it.

Overall: 4 out of 5

The second novel in the series called The Twelve and it will come out on in 2012

Here Lies Bridget by Paige Harbison

Here Lies Bridget by Paige Harbison

Paperback, 208 pages

Expected publication: February 1st 2011 by Harlequin

“Heroine, Bridget Duke, rules her high school, but when she crashes her car and ends up in limbo, she must confront the people she has wronged, all of whom want her to go to hell. The outcome of these meetings will decide her final destination.” – Goodreads

My Opinion: Wow. Okay  the novel starts off right away with Bridget thinking about committing suicide and she is driving erratically and crying, and thinking about how everyone would be super sorry about how they acted towards her and how they would blame themselves for her death. And then she gets into a car accident. It was a great start, I was feeling the adrenaline that Bridget was experiencing.

I think that a theme in this book is that our actions have consequences and that Bridget looks back on her actions and tries to change the way things are in her life and the lives of those closest to her. I thought that she was a great person because she realized when she was wrong and tried to fix things.

I totally understand where she is coming from. But it felt as though all she cared about was herself until she “saw the light” and fixed it all. I loved the effect the flashbacks had on the novel and saw how she changed because of them in the process.

Something else that I really liked that was that the story only takes place in a manner of one to half a day. And I loved that because the novel’s time was so short we see a drastic change in Bridget’s personality because of the event that she goes through. And in real life, its the same. People need only a single moment to make them change.

Overall: 4 out of 5

Hunger (Horsemen of the Apocalypse #1) by Jackie Morse Kessler

Hunger (Horsemen of the Apocalypse #1) by Jackie Morse Kessler

Paperback, 180 pages

Published October 18th 2010 by Harcourt Graphia

“Thou art the Black Rider. Go thee out unto the world.”  Lisabeth Lewis has a black steed, a set of scales, and a new job: she’s been appointed Famine. How will an anorexic seventeen-year-old girl from the suburbs fare as one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse?
Traveling the world on her steed gives Lisa freedom from her troubles at home: her constant battle with hunger, and her struggle to hide it from the people who care about her. But being Famine forces her to go places where hunger is a painful part of everyday life, and to face the horrifying effects of her phenomenal power. Can Lisa find a way to harness that power — and the courage to battle her own inner demons? – Goodreads

My Opinion: This was an interesting and unique concept. I think that its interesting how the Horsemen are selected. I loved that the characters understood the what their roles were. I loved that because Lisabeth was anorexic she became Famine and I love that she actually understood food.

I really liked how the Lisa grew as a character and how she was willing to fight for herself and how she realized what it means to be hungry because she saw all the people that lived without food. I also really loved that she figures out how to use her power to help.

The plot is just awesome. The book starts with Lisa trying to kill herself and Death stopping her. from there we meet a lot of other characters, her friends who are healthy and trying to help her to a friend who is bulimic and trying to manipulate her. This was a good book and I would definitely recommend reading it because of the unique concept.

Overall: 4 out of 5

The second book in the series is called Rage and a review is coming soon.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Hardcover, 372 pages

Published December 2nd 2010 by Dutton

“Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris—until she meets Étienne St. Claire: perfect, Parisian (and English and American, which makes for a swoon-worthy accent), and utterly irresistible. The only problem is that he’s taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her almost-relationship back home.
As winter melts into spring, will a year of romantic near-misses end with the French kiss Anna—and readers—have long awaited?” – Goodreads

My Opinion: I have to say that I was surprised. I think that from all the reviews that I had read about this and how much buzz has been happen for the book that I automatically assumed it must have been really good. However, the book seemed to be a little superficial. But it was a cute book.

Anna seem very oblivious to her friends and it seemed as though she was trying to help her friends always resulted with her losing them and alienating her self. Especially with her friends. She also appears to be naive, especially with her relationships with Toph and Bridgette.

The Plot: I liked France, I also loved the St. Claire knew all these little facts about it and that there were certain French historical buildings in the scenes, instead of just at the boarding school. I also loved the drama between everyone. What I didn’t like about the drama was that it was only about love.

Overall: 4 out of 5

The Mockingbirds (The Mockingbirds #1) by Daisy Whitney

The Mockingbirds (The Mockingbirds, #1) by Daisy Whitney

Hardcover, 332 pages

Published November 2nd 2010 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

“Some schools have honor codes.
Others have handbooks.
Themis Academy has the Mockingbirds.Themis Academy is a quiet boarding school with an exceptional student body that the administration trusts to always behave the honorable way–the Themis Way. So when Alex is date raped during her junior year, she has two options: stay silent and hope someone helps her, or enlist the Mockingbirds–a secret society of students dedicated to righting the wrongs of their fellow peers.
In this honest, page-turning account of a teen girl’s struggle to stand up for herself, debut author Daisy Whitney reminds readers that if you love something or someone–especially yourself–you fight for it.” – Goodreads

My Opinion: Wow. This book was wow. I remember feeling like this when I first read Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson. Both of these books talk about the effects of being raped. And what I really liked about the book was that the author actually experienced this. She was raped. I love it when authors write about their experiences because if it is something bad, for them its a healing process. However, for the reader, it makes the story so much better because we get to experience what she went through. We can feel what she went through. Alex was REAL. I laughed, I cried, I smiled. The book just connects with you.

Alex is a girl that experiences being raped and she goes through this whole process of remember little things and on top of that she knows the rapist and sees him everyday in her class. She decided to talk to the Mockingbirds. Now, I find that what the Mockingbirds represent is something that the school, Themis Academy, should have been responsible for. The school bugged me because of their inability to comprehend human behavior. Just be you expect it to be always good, doesn’t mean that it is. The should have been on top of things like this. I hope that an actual school doesn’t exist that is like Themis Academy in the real world.

I loved that Alex stood up for herself and talked about it even though it pained her, and I love that she was able to move on. I find it amazing that the only consequence though it that the thing you love gets taken away. What is to stop a person from continuing after the academy? I really loved that you can see what Alex’s mind goes through when she thinks that it could have been her fault, it just goes to show the genuineness of the feelings of a person that has been raped.

Thank you Daisy Whitney for writing such a  great novel. I can’t wait for the second one which comes out in the fall of 2011. I wonder what the new case will be.

Overall: 5+ out of 5