Review - FOREVER

Forever (Wolves of Mercy Falls, #3) - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: YA Paranormal
# of pages:
Recommended for: HS & Beyond
Source: ARC from BEA

The thrilling conclusion to #1 bestselling Shiver trilogy from Maggie Stievater

In Maggie Stiefvater's SHIVER, Grace and Sam found each other. In LINGER, they fought to be together. Now, in FOREVER, the stakes are even higher than before. Wolves are being hunted. Lives are being threatened. And love is harder and harder to hold on to as death comes closing in.

Before I wrote this review, I wanted to give myself time to really think about my reading experiences. Kind of like Mockingjay, I had to sit around and let my thoughts congeal a bit. Since the book's been out for a few days now and several diverse reviews are up and about, I figured it's time to weigh in. First and foremost, "thrilling" is not a word that I would use to describe the fist 250 pages...

Basically, I did not like this installment. More often than not it, was either a bore and a chore to get through. And I hate typing that! Shiver is still one of my favorite novels ever, and I did enjoy Linger, though not quite as much. This whole series and its progression really got me wondering at why it is that nearly EVERY non-contemp YA book is being turned into a trilogy/series, because with each book I felt a little less magic. A little less pizazz.

Why specifically did Forever not work for me? Well, first of all, it seemed overly dramatic in a way that - I thought - Shiver and Linger were not. If you are someone who thought that any of the first two books were slow or prone to melodrama (as I know that others have said), then in my opinion, you may find Forever challenging. Unlike most finale books in a series, it is not more fast-paced. In my opinion, it actually seemed slower. There were several periods throughout most of the chapters when the characters - especially Sam - would have these really long, drawn out personal reflections. Flashbacks would occur randomly, and I'd say for about the first 200 pages, the plot just kind of meandered along. Characters would drift in and out of contact, and oh the angst. Yeah, the series has always been dramatic, emotional too, but I never thought the angst was overdone until now. Sam - whom I absolutely adored in Shiver - just kind of moped around and really didn't do much of anything but feel sorry for himself. Cole sat around thinking about how his life used to be. Grace kept shifting and bolting. One or two times and it's dramatic, but four times? Then it just gets downright annoying, I'm sorry to say. In my playbook, that's repetition, not suspense or excitement.

For me, though, I could have forgotten the slow start and the aggravating parts but for the ending. Guys, when you hear the word "forever," what do you think of? Maybe if you're like me, you hear Squints from The Sandlot pulling out the word like "foooooorrreeeevvveeeerrrr" over and over (haha). But you think of something that has closure, right? Maybe? For me, it's a little close to false advertising when you've got the final book in a series titled something permanent sounding like Forever, and the said ending doesn't have a whole lot of closure. I get it, really I do. I get that it's bad to give teen characters any kind of "permanent closure," because after all, they're only 18, right? For me, though, it does not work to feed me a story, a fictional story (that really is not in the least bit obligated to reflect, endorse, or champion "reality") in which characters have this serious, mature, real-deal love...and then turn around and leave the ending open-ended. Did I expect the kind of ending that was found in the epilogue of Deathly Hallows? Well, maybe. And really, who knows better how to end a [modern] YA series than JK Rowing?
I also kind of took issue with the last chapter in general, really. Grace, to me, made a decision that seemed extremely out-of-character for her, given her relationship and previous history with Sam. All I'm wanting is for a series ending to accurately reflect the series as a whole, and here, it was my perception that the author pulled back a little and went with a more "realistic" ending. And that just didn't work for me in a series like this.

I realize that was a really long, lengthy (and highly opinionated) explanation, but I do feel like I need to explain what it was that left me disappointed.

As always, though, I enjoyed reading Maggie's beautiful, stylistic prose. Being a storyteller doesn't automatically mean being gifted with words, per see, but Maggie is definitely talented in both departments. I wish Forever had turned out differently, but I still regard Shiver as one of my favorite Young Adult novels. And I absolutely refuse to give this rating any lower than 3 1/2 because of the high quality of writing. It is still my belief that the content (specifically brief strong language and sexual content) in this series, as well as the overall maturity and age level of the main characters, makes The Wolves of Mercy Falls ideal for high school and beyond readers.

Final Rating

more than one kind of "love"?

This post is about luuurrrvve.
(Love)

Forgive me for the spazzy post because this has way more to do with writing than with reading, and for the past few days I've been wrestling some reading-to-writing feelings and whether or not I should even express them.

Basically, what happened is a friend of mine read this book - the whole purpose of the book is to be a love story - and we were talking about it the other day. Specifically, she and I had kind of a problem with the love presented in the book. A little bit of context may be necessary, so pretty much, it's one of those books where two kids meet, and you know that it's like a 'true love from childhood' thing, like they're destined to be together and whatnot. But they go their separate ways, and...here's where it got hard for my pal to go along with the story...supposedly the guy's still in love with the childhood crush, always has been, and yet he still manages to get a new girlfriend to crush on (and etc.) in the process. For us, love...as in fictional story, can't-quite-cut-it-in-real-life-so-that's-why-we-read- "true love"...is pretty exclusive. Can't quite get on board with the character's declarations if he's gettin with someone else.
*shrug*

The point is, lately I've really been wondering how much of what I take in, as a reader, influences what I create as a writer. I've read some pretty amazing stories in the last couple years, but for every genuinely magical story, every sweet, endearing, my-definition-of-romantic love story, there have been at least 2 or 3 that were not so endearing. Believe me, I totally understand that every writer feels drawn and inspired in their own way, and I'm counting on that. But what's a little unsettling to me, from a writing point of view, is how I'm starting to second-guess my own ability as a storyteller because my love stories don't match up with the "usual treatment."
Almost every author I've read in the last 2 years has written a love story (considering that it's even a part of the plot in the first place) that's different - somehow - from my own. And that's fine for them, because those are their stories, not mine, and if they have the freedom to write what they want, so should I, theoretically. But then I was talking with my friend about this latest book of hers, and it made me wonder,
If everybody's doing it differently...maybe I am the one who's wrong. If my picture of "love" is obviously so different from most authors out there, that means that I've got it wrong, right?
But is there even a "right" and a "wrong" when it comes to creating a love story?
Can there be more than one kind of 'love' (and just to clarify, I'm not talking about sibling love, parental love, platonic love...I'm talking about, like, romantic and beyond kind).

Whoever says there's power in books knows what they're talking about. But for me, sometimes that power is unsettling, because it only reminds me how different my stories are and how counter-cultural my characters' personalities are. And lately that's made me really wonder...

Though this post is just meant to throw my thoughts out into the void, I want to also appeal to both the writers and the avid readers out there and ask if you've ever come up against this same issue before, or if you have any thoughts on what is, in all likelihood, a very abstract-leaning and rambling post :)

my mailbox! 12]

Got two books this week that I'm really excited about, and one more is still in transit.

Trade
Ashes, Ashes - Jo Treggiari
^^thank you Briana @ The Book Pixie!

Bought
The Queen of Attolia (Queen's Thief, #2) - Megan Whalen Turner

Waiting on...
The Thief - Megan Whalen Turner

--
Okay, for some odd reason, it's taken me THIS LONG to read Megan's uber-popular series. I've heard about them for awhile now, and I know people both in this community and in real life who absolutely swear by them.
Question, though: I'm already diving into Queen of Attolia, even though I haven't read book one yet, then I was planning on going back and reading it as a sort of 'prequel' read. And do I need to continue on with The King of Attolia? Some of my friends say that Megan changes her POV style in every book and that the perspective is a little weird in King...but I don't know.
Has anybody read any of these who can comment?

And in the spirit of random jollity:
It's honey badger time!
In case you haven't seen this yet, this is only the best "documentary" on the web!

(except for the language, geez!)

hurray for [YA!] ILLUSTRATORS, pt. 1

Illustrators aren't just for children's picture-books, yall.
More and more, I'm seeing bona fide young adult novels (especially series on the younger, preteen end of the spectrum) featuring some pretty legit art, both on the cover and within the books themselves.

One of the best examples of beautiful, amazing literary art is the work of illustrator David Frankland.

Frankland's illustrative credits are immense, but some of his most well-known work are the illustrations he made for Joseph Delaney's The Wardstone Chronicles series, as well as Marie Rutkoski's Kronos Chronicles. Falkland's art is also featured on the cover of Dianna Wynne Jones' Spellbound, as well as a new edition of Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island.

What initially made me notice Frankland's work is the strong resemblance to character art in some Disney films, particularly Hercules (1997). What also seems to make Falkland's art unique is his immense talent for complexly detailed silhouetted figures.

Gallery







Art from the Wardstone series


Art from the Kronos Chronicles


Index of David Frankland's work
& here

Next time I'll feature another illustrator!

Review - ENTWINED

Entwined - Heather Dixon
Genre: YA Fantasy/Fairytale Retelling
Publisher: Greenwillow
Recommended for: MS & Beyond

Azalea is trapped. Just when she should feel that everything is before her . . . beautiful gowns, dashing suitors, balls filled with dancing . . . it's taken away. All of it.

The Keeper understands. He's trapped, too, held for centuries within the walls of the palace. And so he extends an invitation.

Every night, Azalea and her eleven sisters may step through the enchanted passage in their room to dance in his silver forest.

But there is a cost.

The Keeper likes to keep things.

Azalea may not realize how tangled she is in his web until it is too late.

Entwined is an adaptation of the "Twelve Dancing Princess" fairytale, and as such it really reminded me of both Wildwood Dancing, and especially Princess of the Midnight Ball, two other books that are adapted from the same story. In fact, if you've read Jessica Day George's Princess of the Midnight Ball, you will almost certainly enjoy this novel as well. They're both incredibly similar in format and in the execution of the story.
For me at least, it's essential for a book to have a likable main character in order for there to be a good reading experience. I think that Azalea was a fleshed-out, well-written character. She's certainly easy to like - incredibly responsible, for one thing. Like in the original tale, there are 12 sisters in all, and I have to commend Heather Dixon for creating so many distinct personalities. This was one aspect that I thought Entwined handled better than POTMB.

First and foremost, though, this novel is about family. I actually got way more of a Sound of Music vibe than anything else. The way the girls relate to their cold, distant father is like a spot-on rendition of the von Trapps. In all honesty, I wasn't expecting the novel to focus so heavily on Azalea's family dynamics. There's nothing wrong with it, except that I was expecting more of a paranormal read, just because of the nature of the original tale.
I will say that the "supernatural elements" (for lack of a better phrase) were a bit lackluster. Contrary to what Aprilynne Pike blurbed, this book hardly has any magical elements at all, and I do feel just the tiniest bit misled about this story's premise because of it. The above synopsis, in my opinion, sounds way more sinister than the book actually is.
Also, this book is just so long, clocking in at over 400 pages, and I'd say that less than 100 pages dealt with any magic, mayhem, or mischief. Compare this with Wildwood Dancing, where the supernatural elements were rather pronounced.

In terms of the romance...it was practically nonexistent. For some of you, that's going to sound pretty promising. For others, not so much. Hey, I actually prefer it when romance isn't the main factor in a novel, BUT I do want something! There is a love interest, but even I (with my tendency to love 'nice guy' characters) will admit that he was pretty lukewarm.
The other movie that Entwined eventually reminded me of was Labyrinth, mainly due to the interactions between Azalea and the Keeper. 'Kay, here's where I ended up being really surprised by the direction the story took. I guess the synopsis had me anticipating the Keeper to be some dark, tortured soul who's ultimately the victim of circumstances...but no, he's just a downright creepy dude. His revelation was also lackluster, in addition to disappointing. When I realized the full extent of his characterization, I was bummed, to say the least. Is that a spoiler? Well, I don't particularly think so. I'm not giving away any specifics or anything.

Entwined is a decent, clean read that I think is certainly worth your time, if you like fairytale adaptations, period settings, or if you're looking for a light summer read. I do want to say that the author's extensive details about various world dances is what made the book for me. I had youtube popped up the whole time I was reading, and any time she'd mention a dance, I'd type it in to see what it looked like. I was definitely fascinated by that.

Final Grade

interested in Book Tours?

I've been seeing a lot of blogs putting up tours for ARCs they have without having to start a totally different site. This seems like a really cool idea, because instead of 1 person reviewing 1 book, it enables, say, 10+ people to review the same book.

I'm getting ready to start a new job in the fall and I may not be able to review every book in a timely manner, so I wanted to give these books the chance to get read and publicized by other lit lovers out there!

But first I need to know if this will be a worth-it venture. Would you guys be interested in participating in a tour from this site? I know that there are other sites out there with way more books to choose from... Why go with this tour? Because it'll almost certainly be smaller, and you won't have to wait as long to read the book you want! :D

Here are some of the ones I have

If you guys are interested, I can write an "information" post later!
:D

bookish notes from an ACTUAL teen reader

The other day I had a conversation (through email, mind you, but no less authentic) with a teen reader (16, to be exact) and since she and I have very similar tastes, I often consult with her about books, trends, hits and misses, and so forth.
But she said something that really surprised me.
She'd just finished a book (Unearthly, in the spirit of full-disclosure), and the book she'd read just before that was Sapphique (the sequel to Incarceron). And what she said was probably just hyperbole, but no less intriguing.
She told me, "I am so done with girl-lead books."
I asked her to clarify, and she said, "From now on, if the girl is the main character, I'm not going to read it. I'm only going to read books where the guy is the narrator or main character."
It was all I could do not to point out that Incarceron & Sapphique's "main character" was a dude, but...
While I'm not going to copy and paste what she said, her reasoning in pretty interesting. She felt like YA girl protagonists hit two ends of the spectrum: uber-bitchy and self-centered (read: Claudia from Sapphique, Katniss, Katsa, etc.) or guy-crazy brainless wonders (read: Unearthly). And while I liked Unearthly slightly more than she did, I see where she's coming from.
It does seem like many girl characters are very...heavy. Heavy on the personality. And for one teenager, that heaviness is kinda hard to stomach. She said that it didn't really echo the complexity of being a young-adult female. She also raised a good point concerning romance.
It's like characters want to have it both ways, was her point. They want a guy they can hang on and kiss and stuff, but don't want them getting too close, because at the end of the day, it's all about the girl and what she wants (forecast reads: Hunger Games rant).

My favorite comment of hers? This is a quote: "It's like modern authors are afraid to let their characters really fall in love, because they think that having a girl care about a guy, and putting his feelings before hers, makes her some trapped 50s housewife. And a guy protecting a girl is some sort of crime, when really, I think it's sweet! It shows that he cares. That's selfless."

I told her that she may not be reading that many books in the future, as most YA authors seem to be women, and their main characters seem to be girls. But I just thought that was an interesting thing for a 16-year-old girl to say. Just an hour ago she emailed me with a "petition" in which her entire reading group vowed to take a 6-month hiatus from girl-narrated books... her book group has 87 young people, ranging from 14-23.
While part of me thinks that this decision is a little on the drastic side, the other part thinks that it's really cool that she and her friends decided to do something about their dissatisfaction. They're not abandoning the genre. They're not giving up reading. They're trying to make decisions that will better fit their needs. And really, I'm impressed that "normal American girls" are conscientious of things that I also happen to notice. There are a great many characters who are either limp noodles or she-wolves.
Where's the happy medium?
And my hot-shot-"I read ___ books a year!"-self attempts to answer that question by actually listing the "happy medium of girls" books**: Nevermore, The Looking Glass Wars series, The Books of Bayern, for the most part, the Wondrous Strange series, Wildwood Dancing, Chaos Walking (sans the last book), Percy Jackson series, eventually Divergent, Shiver, and lawd-o-mercy the classic authors do it best - The Chronicles of Prydain... but that's only a handful. And truly, when I think about it, most of the time when I compliment books in reviews, it's in regards to the creativity of the storyworld, or the action/excitement, or the pacing, or whatever. Usually it isn't in the characters, because I realize that my friend has a point. There's so much forcefulness in the average YA girl's personality. Forcefulness, snark, it starts off as fun, upbeat, but eventually...it just turns into mean bitchiness. As my friend said, "Like Katherine from The Taming of the Shrew, only without Petruchio to spank her."
Hmm...not sure about the spanking part, but she has a point.

But what do you all think? Does she have a point, or is it bring on more snarky/googley-eyed gals?
And what about the resolution?

I will say that I absolutely LOVE having conversations with teen readers because as much as I (22yearold) enjoy YA, it's really written for them. So it's cool to get their perspective and see what exactly they think of certain things.
& when you've got reader-cousins, it's like free consulting work! :D



**and because of the subjectivity involved, my opinion-based-list may be different from others'.