The question for this week is: How many blogs do you follow? I actually follow quite a lot. When I say "hi, I'm a new follower!" I mean I'm a new follower - I've clicked the button and everything. :) Right now I'm following 144, but I'm off to check out more blogs so that number will go up, most definitely! I have a google reader, but I actually like to visit the blog so I can leave comments. Because you don't know that I've seen your post unless I comment, right? And vice versa. Of course I don't check every single blog every day, but I do the best I can, because I'm betting most of you don't work your butts off just for giggles!
If you're new to my blog, welcome! Please be sure to leave a link so I can check you out and follow too. But if you do follow, please try and check back, and I promise I'll do the same :)
**This is only a partial review. I will post a longer, more in-depth review in September when this title releases. For now, this is more of a preview review.
I absolutely adored the originality of The Replacement. A lot of time and effort went into creating this story, and that level of detail was very noticeable. I think the fact that this is the author's first published book is phenomenal. Brenna Yovanoff writes like she's been a published pro for years - she has a knack for making the foggy, chilly town of Gentry vaporize to life in your mind. Okay, so that sentence sounds weird, but whatever. The story's major strength was in its imagery and attention to detail. The eerie town of Gentry and the House of Mayhem under the slag heap were so detailed, so vividly imaginative, that it turned Replacement from a fun book to an edge-of-the-seat thrill ride.
The characters were also fleshed out very well and very creepily, I might add. The Morrigan and the "creatures" of her court were so hideously delightful, I know I'll never forget them. Coupled with the strong imagery, these strange characters seemed even stronger and more engrossing. I liked how they were portrayed, too. They weren't evil, and yet they were so creepy and so not-quite-right that you couldn't help but feel apprehensive. And though the story deals with 'changelings' I liked how The Replacement seemed to have its own original, tailor-made folklore. Never once did the word 'faerie' get attached to any of the characters, therefore I didn't feel like I was reading the same old story over and over. I'm almost positive you haven't read anything like this before.
And props to Brenna Yovanoff for doing what seems to perplex most (women) authors: create a male narrative that sounds authentic but is still likable. Guys usually either sound like girls, or they're TOO overboard on the so-called "guy" traits: vulgar, nasty and sex-obsessed. Mackie Doyle is one of the most endearing, likable and heroic guys I've seen in YA fiction in a loooooooong time. You could not find a better guy to root for in a story like this.
The Replacement is a highly imaginative, creepy-awesome thrill ride that you surely do not want to miss out on! Be advised, though, that this is a story that will probably be better suited for older teens. But keep your eyes and your ears alert for September 21, the day The Replacement releases into stores. Or you could always preorder it :)
Thank you so much to Razorbill for sending me this awesome ARC! I've been anxious to read The Replacement since I first blogged about it on March 5! Thank you again!
I'm really excited about this post! I have with me the awesome Kirby W who is about to be a freshman. I asked him to think about the best books he read in middle school and recommend 10 here on my blog. He's got 11 recommendations (I asked him to recommend 10, but I got 11) and it was really cool to hear the perspective of a 14-year-old (former) middle school reader. I may 'yea' or 'nay' a YA book, but I'm 21 years old and in college; what are the kids in actual target audience saying? So let me introduce Kirby the almost-freshman, and he's going to give his recommendations for the best YA books out there!
Just keep in mind that these are the thoughts of a 14-year-old dude: they have not been edited or altered!
1. The Looking Glass Wars, Frank Beddor
SERIES: followed by Seeing Redd, ArchEnemy Kirby says: This is probably my new favorite series. The last book came out last year. The take on Alice in Wonderland was awesome. I really liked the series villain, Queen Redd. She was evil and funny, which yeah is a weird combo, but she was really entertaining. And this story’s version of the white rabbit is pretty cool, too. I didn’t mind that the main character’s a girl, cause she’s cool and smart and not whiny like girls I know. And I liked the battle scenes. Battle scenes are cool.
2. The Warrior Heir, Cinda Williams Chima
SERIES: followed by The Wizard Heir, The Dragon Heir Kirby says: This was a really cool take on magic. The second book has more to do with magic and wizards and all that stuff, and the first one was more action-packed and battles and whatnot. I did like that even though the book was about magic and wizards and stuff like that, it didn't feel like I was reading the same story over and over. There were enough cool concepts. And the main character was likable, like he was a real kid. These were both quick reads: not too long and wordy. I get bored if books are too long. And hungry.
3. The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins
SERIES: followed by Catching Fire, Mockingjay (not released)
Kirby says: BEST SERIES EVER! Better than Harry Potter! For real, Harry’s got that wand and all, but he wouldn’t make it five feet past that cornucopia. I’d like to see him “expelliarmus!” those Careers.I loved reading about that futuristic society, but it was kind of scary too, because I got the feeling that maybe this stuff could happen. Dude. Anyway, this series was cool. I don’t care about those “teams” though. That’s girl stuff. I totally think Peeta’s going to die.
4. The Maze Runner, James Dashner SERIES: followed by The Scorch Trials (not released), The Death Cure (not released)
Kirby says: Really awesome story idea. Most of my friends read this one too. I’d definitely recommend this to all the guys. Lots of action and suspense. The ending was a little weird, but the next book in the series is coming out soon. TMR reminded me of Percy Jackson for some reason – the characters were funny, cool, and easy to relate to, like the characters from that series. I’d definitely recommend TMR to any PJ fans.
5. Artemis Fowl, Eoin Colfer
SERIES: followed by The Arctic Incident, The Eternity Code, The Opal Deception, The Lost Colony, The Time Paradox, The Atlantis Complex
Kirby says: One of my all-time favorite series. Elves here aren’t all old and naturey and all Lord of the Ringsy – they’re really advanced and high-tech. The cool story and many details made reading AF a fun experience. The rest of the books in the series are cool, too, and I’d recommend reading all of them. Plus it’s cool to have a main character like Artemis. He’s like a child-criminal genius, but he’s not like really bad or anything.
6. Skulduggery Pleasant, Derek Landy SERIES: followed by Playing with Fire, The Faceless Ones, Dark Days, Mortal Coin (not released)
Kirby says: Oh my freaking gosh this book is incredible. You MUST read this. Skulduggery is the awesomest character in fiction. He's a wizard, but a wizard with a twist: not old and not a schoolboy either. When I was reading the first book, I kept thinking of a comic book or a graphic novel for some reason. It just reads that way, which is really cool, cause it's visual in this graphic-novel sense. I don't know how many books will be in the series, but I will read every single one of them.
7. The Alchemyst, Michael Scott (not the boss from 'The Office')
SERIES: followed by The Magician, The Sorceress, The Necromancer, The Warlock (not published), The Enchantress (not published)
Kirby says: I like this book a lot, but it’s kind of advanced. Like, I probably would have understood it better if I’d been in high school. But I like history so it was really cool to have historical people and events blended together with fantasy magic. It was our school's Recommended Book of the Year a few years ago. I think grownups like it because they think all that historical stuff is educational. It is, but it's cool too.
8. Gone, Michael Grant SERIES: followed by Hunger, Lies, Plague (not published), Darkness (not published), Light (not published)
Kirby says: It sounds like a cheesy idea, right? All the adults are gone, and a bunch of kids and teenagers are left? Party time, right? Actually, Gone showed how crappy and horrible that situation would really be. I liked this book because it was interesting and fun, but also because it had this realistic feel to it too, like this is actually how kids would behave if something like this really happened. I liked how the author seemed to know about how kids really act and how they really feel. This is one of the best series I’ve ever read. It’s got lots of action, and I like action.
9. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone , JK Rowling
SERIES: followed by Chamber of Secrets, Prisoner of Azkaban, The Goblet of Fire, The Order of the Phoenix, The Half Blood Prince, The Deathly Hallows Kirby says: I’m not even going to say anything. It’s Harry freaking Potter. Ya know.
10. The Lightning Thief, Rick Riordan
SERIES: followed by The Sea of Monsters, The Titan's Curse, The Battle of the Labyrinth, The Last Olympian Kirby says: Harry Potter may be a classic, but Percy Jackson's going to take over. I would definitely recommend the Percy Jackson series to everyone. Adults will like it, because they’ll get a kick out of the way the myths are incorporated into the story. And teachers will find Mr. D really funny, and probably a little autobiographical. Percy's pretty cool, Grover's hilarious, and Annabeth is hot.
11. Eragon, Christopher Paolini SERIES: Eldest, Brisingr, untitled 4th book (not released)
Kirby says: Dragons and swords and fighting and not a lot of that romance stuff. Really cool story and pretty exciting all the way through. I didn’t mind that it’s so freaking long. The rest of the books are cool, but the first is the best. Galbatorix is one of the best villains I've ever read.
As always, Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB @ Should be Reading. Here's how it works: Grab the current book you're reading- Open up to a random page- share a little "teaser" from somewhere on that page.***Make sure your section is spoiler free!! I finished this book last week, but just in the spirit of getting folks pumped for its 9/21 release, I'm going to do The Replacement for my teaser. This will be a little longer than usual teasers, but hey, it's to get you really hooked!
"What do you mean, 'need you'? I don't need anything." "Oh, darling," she said, smiling and reaching for my hand. "Don't be silly. Of course you need us. You're becoming so frail, and it's only going to get worse. This really is the best solution for all of us. You'll help me, and in return, I'll make sure you're supplied with all the remedies you need and you won't have to live out the rest of your days..in agony." I watched her, trying to see the reason behind why I was even here. "What do you want?" I said, sounding more nervous than I would have liked." - The Replacement, (ARC) page 108
I hope to have my non-spoiler review of The Replacement up by Thursday or Friday.
Maybe I shouldn't post this, but I am so giddy and crazy-happy! I'm still pretty new to the world of ARC-reviewing, and last week I wrote my review of Kiersten White's Paranormalcy. Well, she and her agent really liked my review, and said so on twitter! I just about fainted when I saw these tweets:
I think one of the most rewarding things about being a book reviewer is getting great feedback. It's incredible to know that for a few minutes, major publisher Harper Teen was thinking of me and my review. Wow. Insanely awesome. This is the first time this has happened for me. Thank you, Harper Teen and Wolfson Literary! You made a girl in a humid Texas town smile!
Oh, and please pre-order Paranormalcy by Kiersten White. Or buy it on August 31. Please! You won't regret it. If you're a student, it's just the thing you need to ease those back-to-school blues.
A strong spirit.A desire to do right.A sense of humor. - Juju, Tales of Whimsy
What are the qualities you look for in a main character? Do words like "strong," "funny," "relatable," "sweet," "smart," "sexy" and "well-developed" come to mind? A word that I use a lot in my reviews is well-rounded. That's not to say that well-rounded characters go from one end of the spectrum to the other behaviorally, but it does mean that the characters seem to have enough development to make them real. Likewise, characters that are predominantly good and sweet are not necessarily flat. I was just thinking about it right now, that in all 5 books, I do not remember one time that titular character Percy Jackson did or said anything intentionally mean, hurtful, or selfish. Does that make him a flat, Gary-Stu character? NO FREAKING WAY! But he has enough personality to make him jump off the pages, to make him seem like he could be real. And that's what a well-rounded character is to me. They don't always have to undergo a character change, but they do have enough personality to allow them a wide range of emotional depth.
Who likes to laugh? It's my thought that humor is not only a great quality, it's necessary to a story. Not every character needs to be a clown, but the best books or series employ clowns. Although they are supporting characters, I am glad that Rowling created Fred and George Weasley. The HP stories just wouldn't be the same without them. And to those who have read the Mortal Instruments - I think that as entertaining as the series is, it would be missing something without Magnus Bane. This reviewer just loves to laugh - how about you?
When it comes to love interests (uh-oh, here we go!) I prefer the sweet, "gentle-warrior" guys who can be both sweet and affectionate and tough as nails if called to be. I'm glad there is a place in young adult literature for kindhearted, sweet boys as the love interest. Perhaps this is why Peeta is so lovable and has legions of devoted fans? You just don't get much more adorable than Peeta. Wait, I'm being unfair! You know, while Gale gives off somewhat more of a tough-guy vibe, he too is kindhearted. Yay, Gale! AND YAY FOR EIGHT DAYS LEFT! Here's what some of you said about characters:
Jillian from Reading Labyrinth: "If I don’t like the main character/narrator, I will almost always be disengaged from the story" - I agree with this wholeheartedly because I have disliked novels because of the main character/narrator before. One good example: Tally from the Uglies trilogy. While I liked her in the first book, she went downhill in the second and third books where I felt she wasn't learning enough from her mistakes (and her personality went downhill as well).
Like Jillian, I love it when characters seem to grow, either over the course of the single book or over the course of the series (if there is one). The protagonist of a story may not be real, but he or she still has the power to influence and inspire, and I love being inspired.
Jillian continued: Also, there are times when I don't know why I like a character. I think, though, that we're all inherently drawn to things we see in ourselves -- such as humor/wit, intelligence, compassion, etc. -- and our favorite characters lists somehow reflect that (even if *we ourselves* may not always see 'the why')
Shy from The Bibliophile's Journal: I totally need to be able to relate to the main character (especially) in the book and I'd totally feel not satisfied with the book if I feel like the character is too foreign to me.
It's cute and fun to read about characters who are different from ourselves, but if the character is too over-the-top or too bad or too good or too anything, those differences start working against them. Relatability is a necessity in reading, or at least that's the message I'm getting. Great point, Shy!
Darlyn from Darlyn & Books: I find that relatable and smart characters always work for me.
Jenny from Jenny Loves to Read: For me a great character depends on the story as well as the characters qualities. The character could be great but if the story is a stinker, I don't care how much I like the character, I'm outta there.So my "ideal" character would be brave, funny, sarcastic, thoughtful of others....someone I would have a cup of coffee or a beer with. I think that answers the question :)
No books this week, still sticking to my book ban!
Just finished and now on AND THEN AFTER THAT... ohhh, y'betcha! It'll be 1 week on Tuesday. I know you all are just PUMPED.
Okay everyone please help me out: I just finished The Replacement, but the book isn't scheduled to be released until September 21, which is over a month away. Should I go ahead and post a review this week or wait until closer to the release date?
Here's what some of you said about Gone:
"Gone is good, not AMAZING but good, there's A LOT of gore though, let me warn you. and there's twice as much gore in Hunger." - The Critic
"A fast-paced thriller with intriguing characters and some kick ass fight sequences." - Cara, Chasing Words
"A modern take on Lord of the Flies. At turns it creeped me out, made me tense and even made me angry but definitely kept me intrigued." - Lesa, Cozy Book Nook
