“A Book Published the Year You Were Born” 2015 Challenge; THE ENDEARMENT by LaVyrle Spencer

There were so many books I could have read that were published in 1982, but I decided to read this one.  The concept sounded intriguing… a mail-order-bride that lied to get out of her current situation.  I mean, one of my favorite books by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss, A Rose in Winter, was published in 1982, but I’m reading all new books for this challenge.  Then there was “The Body”, a book that they based the epic movie Stand By Me on.  Even though I wanted to read it, I chose “The Endearment”. I’m disappointed, yet not.  Look below to see what I mean. 

 

THE ENDEARMENT by LaVyrle Spencer

 

BOOK DESCRIPTION

 

From the streets of 19th-century Boston to the harsh frontier--she wove a web of deception to ensnare her man!

Lovely, fiery-tempered Anna Reardon was forced to lie to get out of the street urchin's life that shamed her ... to become Karl Lindstrom's mail-order bride in the beautiful, treacherous Minnesota wilderness.

Karl forgave Anna for her deceptions--but there was still one shameful, burning secret that she had to hide from him, knowing its revelation would destroy the love that had become her very life!

 

 

MY REVIEW

2 out of 5 *Stars*

 

Honey… Baby… Loverboy… Studmuffin…

 

Oh wow.  This book was actually a struggle to get through.  Let me correct that…  The beginning was a struggle to get through.  Then after much treacherous reading, a fairly good ending came from it all.  Anna, the bride, didn’t know how to do anything when she got to the wilderness of Minnesota.  The first half of the book was spent explaining how to do everything to her, and the reader, with how detailed it got.  Yes there was a little bit of chemistry, but the first have was like a “How to Survive in the Wilderness with Only an Axe” guidebook. It was only after she had been taught everything at least once did the story start coming along.  However, by the end, even though it was entirely predictable, I was quickly flipping pages because it had finally grabbed my attention.

 

Along with the story, the writing was hard to get through.  I had to go back and re-read paragraphs to understand a few.  Example…

 

“…kneeling in the glow that limned their bodies in fireshine, that splashed a half of each with orange, that picked the radiance from one pair of eyes and set it dancing to another, eyes that wondered and worshipped, widened and wondered.”

 

Yes, it is beautiful, but… the whole book was like that when giving a description, and I found it too hard to follow most of the time.  Then, there was how Karl, our Minnesota Man, described things, especially when he talked about trees.

 

“See that one there?  Yellow locust. Splits as smooth and as true as the flight of an apple falling from a tree.  And that Chestnut there? Another smooth splitter, to make board as flat as milk on a plate.”

 

Or should we call him Metaphor Man instead of Minnesota Man?

 

Speaking of our main man, you hear the saying tall, dark, and handsome all the time in regards to the hero of a romance novel.  What if the man was honest, light, and perfect in every way?  That was Karl.  He was a man from Sweden that was perfect in every way, except for his ability to forgive, so perfect that it was almost nauseating.  Who is THAT perfect, I ask?  NOBODY!  He had all the answers, and knew how to do everything.  Then came this girl, I say girl because she was only 17, and she couldn’t do anything.  I almost felt sorry for her, if she wasn’t a fictional character and all. 

 

Yes, he was completely perfect, and a hopeless romantic.

 

“I have loved you when I did not know you existed, Anna.  I have loved the dream of you.  I have begun loving you before I left my mother’s arms.  I have loved you while I find this land to which I would bring you and while I cut its timbers to build this home for you and while I reap my grains for you and build my fire for you… I know all my life you are waiting somewhere for me.”

 

Awww… Yeah, that was pretty good!

 

Ok, time for my “Overall”.  Overall… Much to the dismay of my husband who's from Minnesota, I honestly feel that this book would be a waste of your time.  The first half was almost brutal to get through, and even though it ended well, there are many other romance books, even historical ones about mail-order brides, out there that are good all the way through.  I have seen a few reviews that said it was better the second time around, but I don’t think I’m going to find that one out.  Oh well, where one falls flat, another one soars. 

 

15 books down, 37 to go!!

Happy Reading, Everyone!

 

“A Book Published This Year” 2015 Challenge; DEAD OF WINTER by Kresley Cole

The moment I got the challenge, I knew this would be the book for this topic.  I’ve had it pre-reserved at the library since I finished the last book in the series.  Even though, this book could definitely be used for the “love triangle” topic, I’m sticking to my original placement.  Since this book was first published on January 6, 2015, it works perfectly for my “A book Published This Year” topic in the reading challenge.  Keep reading to see if it was worth it!

 

DEAD OF WINTER by Kresley Cole

Book 3 in the Arcana Chronicles

 

 

BOOK DESCRIPTION

 

Can Evie convince her rival loves to work together? Their survival depends on it in this third book of #1 New York Times bestselling author Kresley Cole’s Arcana Chronicles, a nonstop action tale of rescue, redemption, and a revenge most wicked.

Heartbreaking decisions
Evie was almost seduced by the life of comfort that Death offered her—until Jack was threatened by two of the most horrific Arcana, the Lovers. She will do anything to save him, even escape Death’s uncanny prison, full of beautiful objects, material comforts…and stolen glances from a former love.

Uncertain victory
Despite leaving a part of her heart behind with Death, Evie sets out into a perilous post-apocalyptic wasteland to meet up with her allies and launch an attack on the Lovers. Such formidable enemies require a battle plan, and the only way to kill them may mean Evie, Jack, and Death allying. Evie doesn’t know what will prove more impossible: surviving slavers, plague, Bagmen and other Arcana—or convincing Jack and Death to work together.

Two heroes returned
There’s a thin line between love and hate, and Evie just doesn’t know where she stands with either Jack or Death. Will this unlikely trio be able to defeat The Lovers without killing one another first...?

 

 

MY REVIEW

5 out of 5 *Stars*

 

You know, all this time I was kicking myself because I started to read a review for this book and its first sentence was that this book ended just like the previous one had.  All through the book, I was getting more and more into the storyline, but didn’t get too excited because I “knew how it would end”.  Boy, was I thrown for a curveball!  By the time it ended, I was slack jawed and practically pulling my hair out because I wanted more, and I knew I would be waiting over a year to find out what happened.  Yes, that means there is a mega cliffhanger, and not at all like the last book… BEWARE! 

 

This book was action packed with the basis of a love triangle throughout the whole book.  I see where Evie, the main female character, is coming from.  I‘m just an innocent bystander looking in, and it was even hard for me to choose. Personally, I LOVED the first book in the series.  It’s right up there with being one of my all-time favorites.  The next two books were good too, but there was nothing like reading about Jack and Evie’s start.  That was enough to push me over to “Team Jack”.  It was still hard though.

 

One of Jack’s pitches…

“I told you I couldn’t keep doing life after the Flash, not without you.  That’s changed.  I will go on – ‘cause I got a job to do now – but I will never be right.  I’ve got to feel you with my every step, Evangeline.”

 

One of Aric’s pitches…

 

“So beautiful.  I won’t stop until you’re mine.  I won’t ever rest.  Es tevi milu.”  (Which, of course, means “I love you”.) 

 

See what I mean?  Both yummy and swoon worthy.

 

Moving along…

 

I LOVE the whole concept of this series – Tarot card characters destined to kill each other off and gain immortality.  It’s amazing how much life comes from the pages when the Arcana group together.   Besides the love triangle, this book had fights, suspenseful encounters, and witty banter.  Evie herself made me laugh out loud a few different times.  Whether it be her sometimes quirky personality,

 

“I’d trusted him to steer me through a minefield (talk about a team building exercise).”

 

or when she referenced a classic.

 

“I went all Little Shop of Horrors with those vines.”

 

Wonderful job, Cole.  I was enthralled with the story, but couldn’t help to reflect back to the many times of watching that original movie. 

 

In this book, the Arcana have a plan to save Jack and stick it to The Lovers.  It’s a plan that you can’t help but get behind.  Throughout the book though, we also got the opportunity to get to know the other Arcana.  That was a treat in itself.  A character that you would be more than happy to see exterminated in the beginning, by the end you want to see them survive.  I wanted to be immersed inside of their world, fight zombies and slavers, okay… and maybe take over the discarded male Evie chose not to pick.  That would be my cross to bear.

 

Yes, I definitely recommend this book, but of course and as always, read the other books in the series first.  Ignore the goofy looking people on the cover and try it on for size.  Comment below and let me know what you thought. 

 

14 books down, 38 to go!!

Happy Reading, Everyone!

FIFTY SHADES OF GREY - THE MOVIE

 

I was so shocked when I heard that this was being made into a movie.  My first question was, “Is it going to be a porno?”  I just didn’t see how it was going to be possible otherwise.  Then I thought that it could possibly work if they combined all three books into one movie.  When I found out that wasn’t the case either, I was even more confused.  There was SO MUCH sex in the books, and when I say “so much”, I mean… an abundance! 

Let me start out by saying that in order to properly enjoy the movie, you NEED to read the book! Their whirlwind love affair will seem rushed and not make any sense without the extra details you get from the book; thoughts, feelings, etcetera.  I really liked the story that incorporated the whole trilogy, but it was as if the plot got drowned out by the numerous amount of loooong sex scenes.   After a while, I found myself skimming over those heated scenes – except for pausing at somewhat interesting parts – so I could get back to the story.  The story was good too, but it was as if it was one long story that they chopped into 3 parts to make three different books.  The first book doesn’t stand alone well at all, and that’s what people are left with for possibly a year until the next movie comes out. 

 

Now to the movie itself.  The beginning was somewhat strange.  It was as if they wanted no deviations from the script, and it felt very monotone as it moved its way through the storyline chapter by chapter.  There was no flow and the characters felt like two actors playing a part.  Neither one of them convinced me that they were truly the character they were playing.  It wasn’t until around the middle of the movie (yes, when the “intimate” scenes started), that I could finally start to see a connection.  And they were some heated scenes, let me tell you.  When they were in the Red Room of Pain, I found myself shifting in my seat and fidgeting with the neckline of my shirt.  After that, the movie started to flow a little easier.  Once again, reading the book helps fill in the blanks that come from watching the movie alone.

 

Then there is the part that I really don’t like about it.  The ending!  They ended the movie exactly how they ended the book, and I hated it both times.  It felt unfinished… incomplete, and it is because the other two books are needed to finish the storyline.  Except shouldn’t each book have a small obstacle to overcome, even in a continuing series?  The first book, and movie as well, started a conflict then ended in the middle of said conflict  No small resolve in the midst of a major conflict, nothing.  It’s not a cliffhanger to me, since I know how everything turns out, but it still pissed me off all the same.

 

Overall, I say that if you haven’t read the book, you would just be wasting your time to go see the movie.  You will walk out feeling confused and wonder what the purpose of it all was supposed to be.  If you have read the book, I’d say there’s no harm in going to see how Hollywood interpreted it for us.  It’s not a bad movie.  I can even go so far as to say that I liked it.  Except I strongly believe it’s because I had some semblance of what was really going on. After all the reading, aren’t you feeling a tad bit…

LATER'S BABY!

(FYI... this saying was so much sexier in the novel, but sounded a little strange coming from Movie Christian.)

 

“A Book You Were Supposed to Read in School, But Didn’t” 2015 Challenge; TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD by Harper Lee

I’m going to let you all in on a little secret.  Growing up… I hated reading books.  There, I said it! *shock* *gasp*.  Then – yes, I know, it’s a little cliché – I read the first Twilight book because others at my work were.  Then the one after that, and after that, until I had read all four.  I was amazed that I actually enjoyed reading.  This was uncharted territory for me.  Next thing I knew, my mom handed me another book by an author she liked, Kathleen E. Woodiwiss, and I was hooked for life.  That means that there were numerous books in school that I only skimmed through or never even read.  This was one of those books.

 

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD by Harper Lee

BOOK DESCRIPTION

 

Did you know that there is not a published synopsis anywhere for this book that I can find?  This is what I found.

 

"Compassionate, dramatic, and deeply moving, To Kill A Mockingbird takes readers to the roots of human behavior - to innocence and experience, kindness and cruelty, love and hatred, humor and pathos."

 

Not so much a summary, so here’s my go at it…

 

Reflecting on a time span of three years, this book centers on the life of a young girl named Jean Louise Finch, or as mostly everyone called her, Scout.  Between her and her older brother Jem, their imaginations stretch on forever.  That same imagination gave them much entertainment, but also got them into a few binds as well.

 

Life in the South in the 1930’s was simpler, slower paced, but the fear of the unknown could make people do crazy things.  Whether it be peering in windows at night to catch a glimpse of a recluse neighbor, or trying a black man in court with no evidence for presumably raping a young white girl.  Prejudices run deep, and while Scout keenly observes everything happening around her, with an open mind and being full of questions, she tries to understand the many different opinions of people around her.     

 

 

MY REVIEW

2.5 out of 5 *Stars*

 

“Shoot all the bluejays you want, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” – Atticus Finch

 

Ok, here’s the test.  How many loyal fans and followers am I going to lose after this review?  I did NOT like this book.  It took me months to read it, and finally the threat of library late fees made me finish it.  If it wasn’t for this challenge, I probably wouldn’t have, but I refuse to use a DNF for the challenge.  There’s a catch.  This book… There’s something about this book.  I started reading it, hated it, and thought I would be giving it a 1 star.  Then, as it progressed, I moved more to dislike the book rather than “hate” it, so I was going to give it 2 stars.  Then there was the ending that was somewhat appealing.  Appealing enough to bump it up to 2.5 stars.  Who knows, after I dwell on the book for a year, I might bump it up to a 4.  Yeah… That’s more than likely not going to happen. 

 

The reader spends countless pages going through the motions of everyday life.  It takes us through the children’s school days, evenings, and even summers when their best friend Dill comes to visit.  They have a fascination with their next door neighbor that never comes out and the majority of the book is focused on fueling their imaginations.  Then comes the trial, and the book turns a tad bit more interesting and starts to build up hope where there is an almost impossibility to have any.  This book shows the importance of treating innocent people with kindness, kind of like the importance not to harm a mockingbird that does nothing but “sing their hearts out for us”.  Are things clicking together for you yet?

 

Another thing…  Who is Atticus, really?  An alien?  Is he on drugs to keep him so calm and mellow all the time?  I understand it’s the south and back then life was slower and more relaxed, but COME ON!  Show me that you’re not a drone!  Nothing bothered him, and if it did, he hardly showed anything.  I understand chaos brings chaos and he was trying to instill peace so his children would become level headed people, but when push comes to shove, you are a single parent.  You are allowed to get mad and show it once in a while.  Finally!  Finally, at page 152 Atticus loses his cool… almost.  He “nearly” slammed a door!  Wow, I was in shock. <This is me rolling my eyes.>

 

I know this book has a powerful and important meaning that everyone should understand.  People are afraid of what they don’t know, and we should all do our best to be kind to the people that deserve it the most.  I get it, and understand the message, but the book was so boring that it was hard for me to finish.  I was waiting for a big climax. <Get your head out of the gutter.lol> Finally, at the end there was something small, but not enough for me to get excited about reading the book.  I hated that when I had a chance to read, I didn’t WANT to pick up the book.  Ever since I started reading books for fun, that had never happened, and I didn’t like it.

 

 

Here’s what I didn’t hate about the book.

 

The message.  I see why they have kids read this in schools.  The whole concept of learning from our past mistakes, and all…  Prejudice is shitty.  Pardon my language, but IT IS.  What Tom, the black man on trial for rape, had to go through was horrible, and the reader got to see it all from the point of view of a child.  The wise Atticus said it all when he claimed he wasn’t going to win defending Tom,

“Simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win.” 

 

That statement, to me, was so sad.  It was as if there was no hope, and it is gut wrenching to know that there wasn’t back then.     

 

Dill got sick from the mistreatment of a colored person, and then a man, Mr. Raymond, says something, and another reality check slams into you. 

“Let him get a little older and he won’t get sick and cry.  Maybe things will strike him as being- not quite right, say, but he won’t cry, not when he gets a few years on him.” 

 

It’s basically saying, “Oh, he’ll get used to “the simple hell people give other people – without thinking, about the hell white people give colored folks, without even stopping to think that they’re people too.””  What makes it so sad, is that it is completely true, then and sometimes now.    

 

Here’s the tricky part.  How do I recommend a book that was so hard for me to get through?  What’s that even say about me, that I disliked a Pulitzer Prize winning books that teachers have students read all over the country?  I’m not sure on that one.  This is what I’m going to do…  I can’t tell you to go out and read the book, but I can tell you that there is no harm in giving it a try.  I have talked to many people that enjoyed the book, so that just might be you as well.  Remember, I am only 1 opinion out of many.  Even though I like to think that I am right the majority of the time.  ;-)

 

13 book books down, 39 to go!!

Happy Reading, Everyone!!

 

 

“A Book That Became a Movie” 2015 Challenge; INSURGENT by Veronica Roth

How convenient that I had this book before the challenge started, I had just put off reading it.  I get the challenge and when I saw this topic, it was like the sound of a cash register going off.  “Cha-Ching!” I knew from the get-go that this book would be for that, but it took it being due back at the library for me to finally read it… like the last book I read… and now the one after this.  There’s nothing like the impending threat of $0.05 a day fines to get your butt in gear to read a book.

 

INSURGENT by Veronica Roth
Book 2 in the Divergent Trilogy

 

BOOK DESCRIPTION

 

One choice can transform you – or it can destroy you.  But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves – and herself – while grapping with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris’s initiation day should have been marked with celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors.  War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows.  And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable – and even more powerful.  Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing it. 

A CHOICE

BECOMES A SACRIFICE

A SACRIFICE

BECOMES A LOSS

A LOSS

BECOMES A BURDEN

A BURDEN

BECOMES A BATTLE

ONE CHOICE

CAN DESTROY YOU

 

 

 

 

MY REVIEW

5 OUT OF 5 *Stars*

 

Wow.  I did NOT see this one coming.  I had enjoyed the story line in the first book, Divergent, but it went really slow and I had a hard time staying focused.  That was not the case with this one, what so ever!  It’s a 525 page book and I finished it in 2 and a half days.  Taking into consideration that I am a mother of four and have a family and house to take care of as well, that is no small achievement. 

It started off exactly where Book 1 left off, with them on the train, and moved quickly on from there.  This was a fast paced, and action packed book. The reader, I, couldn’t decide what to focus on the most, whether it be the conflict around them, the strained love between Tris and Tobias, her relationship with family and friends, or trying to figure out the whole purpose of the war they found themselves in.

 

I love how this book wasn’t centered on only one or two factions, but all 5 of them instead.  When so much time was spent with each one, the reader finally got to see how the other half, or 1/5, lived, instead of just hearing about it.  We even get to learn a great deal more on the factionless, which was a whole new world in itself.  I found myself trying to categorize myself, but had a hard time doing so.  I guess I’m just too unique to stick into one specific bubble.  ;)

 

After finishing this book, I wasted no time putting Book 3 on order.  I have no idea where it will fit into the reading challenge, or if it even will, but I know it’s something I’m going to have to read.  On another note, I saw the first movie and thought it was good, if not a little slow… a lot like the book actually.  Now, after reading Book 2, I am almost bouncing in my seat to go see the second movie.  When I finally get to, there is no way I’m going to be able to keep my opinion to myself.  Expect to see a post on what I think about it, in regards to the book.  Stay tuned…

 

 

12 books down, 40 to go!!

 

Happy Reading, Everyone!