The Millenium Trilogy (The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played With Fire, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest) By Stieg Larsson

Hey, sorry it took so long for me to finish this series, but school has been tough. But in any case, I'm back, and here's my review on Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy (The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played With Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest).

The story follows Lisbeth Salander, an odd woman with an interesting life. We start the series off by learning of another fascinating character, Mikael Blomkvist. He has just been charged with slander, but despite that, he is being hired by a major business mogul as a private detective (even though he is a journalist) to investigate the family's biggest mystery. Blomkvist hires Salander as a research partner, and together they solve a mystery that's been haunting a family for more than 40 years.

In The Girl Who Played With Fire, Salander is away from Sweeden and is trying to get away from it all. Blomkvist, however is helping someone on one of the most shocking storties ever seen. Upon Salander's return, the journalist working on the jaw-dropping article is murdered, and the police all suspect Salander. The book follows her and Blomkvist's search for the truth and revenge.

In the last book of the trilogy, Salander is finally captured, but with a bullet in her head. Safe at the hospital, she awaits the trial that will determine the rest of her life. Blomkvist, along with many others are attempting to free our heroine, but will they succeed?

This series was good, I'll admit. I went in with high expectations, but sadly, I left with a lowered opinion of the series. To put it frankly, this series was downright BORING. Sure, there were some exciting parts (mostly near the end), but you had to get through four excruciating hours to get there. The story was awesome and well written, the plot was excellent and perfectly planned out, but I'm sad to say that the Boredom Banshee barely let me concentrate on all the good stuff. I would recommend this book only to people who can handle more boredom than my science class.

Taryn



P.S.  I'm really sorry it took so long to get this review down, and if weren't for semester finals, it would have taken another 3 weeks. I'm going to re-read I Am Not A Serial Killer, then read it's sequel, Mr.Monster! It should be done soon, since I have to go on a road trip tomorrow. I'm super excited!

P.P.S.  I wrote this review on my iPod, I just thought I'd let you know.

BACK IN THE US OF A (not a review, although there are comments)

Yoo hoo,
I'm back in the United States.  Now, I mentioned in the last post that I would check out Gullivers Travels when I arrived on this land, however, the library was out of copies.  So I went to Borders.  There I found some promising titles, including my next book, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.  That is what I shall be reviewing next.  I might return to Gullivers Travels at a latter time, but that is unknown at the moment.  But for now, I'm glad to be back in my own country, where all the signs are in English and there is nature abound.

Taryn.

P.S.  I shall be starting school on Wednesday, therefore, my reading time shall be a minuscule amount shorter, so I begeth of thee, forgiveth me if I am unable to read a book very fast-eth.

The Maggie Quinn Girl V. Evil Series by Rosemary Clement-Moore

Okay, I know this is the third time I've reviewed this book, so I'm going to write a whole new review for you!!! (maybe only one !, it all depends on how many people actually read my blog.  It's only going to be a period if no one does.)

Maggie Quinn is a normal high school student, well except for her psychic powers.  See, Maggie inherited the Sight from her grandmother, that means she has a freakishly good intuition and sometimes dreams of the supernatural going-ons near her.  She has ignored her Sight for much of her life, but when a demon shows up and starts attacking the popular crowd, she can't ignore it any longer.  With the help of her two friends, Justin and Lisa, she goes on a mission to save her town and her senior prom.

When Maggie goes to her local college, she hopes everything will be normal, even after she is forced to accept her Sight after battling the Forces of Evil.  However, when she decides to go undercover during the Greek Rows Rush for a newspaper article she discovers that one of the sororities made a deal with the devil.  In order to save the new and old Greeks from the demon in their society, she must become one of them completely.

Maggie and her best friend/sorceress Lisa are on a road trip to South Padre Island for spring break when they run over a cow in the night and get stuck in a little town called Dulcina.  They hope that their Jeep will get fixed soon and then they'll be on their way, but when they find out about mysterious livestock killings and an urban legend by the name of El Chupacabra they decide to help the town.  Are they smart enough to beat an unbeatable monster?

Holy cow, these books are good.  And not just good, really really awesomesauce good.  I like the humor and sarcasm mixed with the action and mystery and great, well developed, three-dimensional characters.  This is really the only book I've read that can combine all of those successfully.  For the most part, you just get one or two of those traits.  It's well written, and everything comes together perfectly.  This book is great and you should definitely read it.

Taryn

P.S.  This is unfortunately the last book I have on hand.  I will be moving in five days and then I will have access to a library.  I plan to check out Gulliver's Travels immediately.  Wish me luck on my relocation to the U.S. of A.

P.P.S.  Also, in case moving works like theater, tell me to break a leg.  You know, for safety.

I Am Not A Serial Killer by Dan Wells (sorry it's a re-read, I ran out of books)

Yeah, so this is a re-read, I ran out of books.  Until I get to the states, I'll be re-reading.  Not to fear, I only have 18 days until I fly, so I shouldn't have to re-read many books.  But anyways, here's a new review for I Am Not A Serial Killer.

John Wayne Cleaver, aged 15, male, clinical sociopath.  John is scared of becoming a serial killer, therefore, he makes rules.  Rules to keep him out of trouble, rules to keep the community safe, rules to keep him normal.  But one day, a real live serial killer moves into town and John is the only one who can stop him.  But in order to do that, John must break his rules.  Break them, and kill a killer.

There is only one way to describe this book.  Awesome, awesome, awesome....awesome, awesome on an awesome cracker with awesome sauce.  I said this in my first review of this book, this book is so creepy it's awesome and so awesome it's creepy.  I know I'm using the word 'awesome' a little excessively, but this book deserves it.  It's not everyday you find a book that deserves nine awesomes.  The writing is wonderful, the character is wonderful, everything is wonderful.  This book makes for a great character study, there's so much in it that you would never think.  I kind of want to take this book to a sociopathic serial killer and ask if that's what it's like.  You just really like this book.  And do you know what really tells me this is a good book, I still felt the same suspense at the same scene even though I knew what was going to happen.  I leave you with these words, you have not lived a full and complete life unless you have read this book.

Taryn.

Marie, Dancing by Carolyn Meyer (and a commentary on my vacation to Paris)

Marie Van Goethem lives in poverty.  Her mother hasn't really been sober since her father died, her younger sister aches with hunger, and her older sister's only worry is to find a suitable mister.  But there's one shining light in Marie's life, dancing.  In world full of despair, dancing is her hope.  But will it all be taken away?

This is a great book.  Hopeful, and heartbreaking, and awesome.  The way Meyer writes is great, so pretty.  I also love the way she sticks in some French here and there.  Everything seemed so real (that was probably also helped along by the fact that I was in PARIS), the characters, the setting, the situations.  I love this book, and you will too.



COMMENTARY ON MY TRIP-
Paris was great.  Everything was so pretty.  The best part, being surrounded by French for two days, it was awesome.  I saw the Palais Garnier (only from the outside, but still...), where many scenes from the book take place.  I got to walk the streets of Paris, where the upper parts of buildings still look like they did in the late 1800's.  The food was great, the people were great.  Go there.

So You Want To Be a Wizard by Diane Duane and Leaving for Paris!

Nita Callahan gets beat up on an almost daily basis, but not today.  When bullies are chasing her, she takes refuge in the kids' section of the library.  There she finds a peculiar book.  So You Want To Be a Wizard contains an oath that Nita takes, making her a wizard.  She finds out that immediately after a wizard takes an oath, they have to go through their Ordeal.  Will she make it with the help of her friend and fellow wizard Kit?

This book = Awesome.  It's a simple formula, easy as 2+2=4.  I love it, it's well written and compelling.  Pretty much everything about it is wonderful.  However, there is one problem, the catalyst.  Almost every book has a catalyst, the thing that sets off the main chain of events.  In this book, the catalyst is Nita's space pen (a pen that astronauts use and can write on anything).  I admit that the pen is kind of cool, but it doesn't seem worth the lengths the characters go through to get it back.  Also, the paragraphs are long.  But other than those two things, awesomeness in abundance. It's also funny.

Taryn.

P.S. It's part of a series (with like, ten books).  So when I get back to the States (August 19th will be my first full day) I'll have to finish it.




SIDE NOTE
I'm leaving for Paris tonight, and in honor of the occasion, I'll be reading Marie, Dancing by Carolyn Meyer.  It takes place in Paris, so it's perfect!  I'll be in Europe for a week, therefore, although the book is fairly short, I probably won't finish it until I get back to Qatar.

Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr

When Dianna was thirteen, she was caught in the back of a Buick with her brother's seventeen-year-old friend.  By her father.  She was instantly labeled the school slut, and her father has never looked at her the same way since.  Now Dianna is sixteen, still trying to redeem herself.  But it's hard.  The jocks of the school consider her public property, to be used at will because she doesn't care.  Her father wouldn't be surprised if she slept with her boss.  This summer, she's trying to make things different.

*silence*

*silence*

*silence*

I LOVE THIS BOOK!!!!!!  I really did.  It was hard to read, but it was great.  I really felt sorry for Dianna.  There are so many things that normal, unlabeled 'til high school teens get to do, that she never got to even seriously think about.  And it really hurts to read about how she thinks.  Honestly, I felt my heart tearing inside.  It was hard to read, but the truths this book sent out needed to be heard.  I didn't really cry when I read it, but the pages were blurred more than a few times.

Taryn



P.S.  I've noticed how I never really comment about how well the book was written, but according to my philosophy, that's not the most important thing.  How does that work, you ask.  Well, anybody can write, all it takes to write well is honing, and, if you're published, you've probably already honed your craft well.  Of course there are exceptions, aka Twilight  some books that never should have been published, and forced upon our eyes (Twilight these books tend to be over publicized, turned into sucky movies, with sucky actors and always make whatever medium they are thrust upon disintegrate more than they already are in our modern days).  What I consider the most important thing about writing is if your book made somebody feel something.  If the things you were writing jump of the page and became more than words and ink and paper.  If it made somebody think, and sit quietly for a couple minutes after they turned the last page.  If it talked about something real, something new or not-so-new.  A book that talked about a subject that needed to be talked about.  It's books like that, that make a difference.

Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston

Kelley Winslow is an actress, performing the part of Titania in the upcoming presentation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream.  Sonny Flannery is a changeling, a mortal taken by Faeries to live in Otherworld, the land of the Fae.  Central Park is a portal from Kelley's world to Sonny's.  When they meet, the after effects cause Kelley's world to turn on it's side and her eyes to open to who she really is.  She realizes her destiny all because of a Kelpie and a changeling on the first night of the Nine.

This book is pretty good, not great, but good.  I've always been a fan of fairies, although I've never really read any books about them, so this was a change.  I liked it and finished the book pretty quickly, but it wasn't one of the best books I've ever read.  One of the biggest flaws for me was the way the relationship forms.  Here's my take on it (from Kelley's point-of-view)-

God, that dude's annoying, but kinda cute.

God, that dude is still kinda annoying, but I think I like him.
*five seconds later*

(to Sonny) I love thee. (Direct quote)

Another odd thing I found was that changelings are fairy children left in the place of a mortal child, not a mortal child taken to live with fairies.  At least, that's what I always thought, maybe I'm wrong.  If so, please leave a comment. Anyway, for all it's mistakes, this book was actually okay.  I think I'll buy and review it's sequel when I get back to the States.

Taryn

P.S. HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!!!

Live long and prosper.

Firespell by Chloe Neill

Firespell by Chloe Neill tells the story of Lily Parker.  Lily's parents are going on a research trip to Germany, and Lily is left in St. Sophia's, an all girls' boarding school.  She thinks the worst she has to deal with are the mega rich brat-packers of St. Sophia's, but when she follows her friend Scout into the labyrinth under the school, she realizes snobby blonds are the least of her problems.

This book was good, not great nor awesome, just good.  I liked the book and found it quite interesting, but it wasn't literary excellence. (Even though most of the books I review aren't literary awesomeness, this one seems to be even more afflicted with non-literary excellence syndrome.)  The characters were nice, but seemed little more than sarcastic blobs thrust upon the pages of this book.  However, even for all its faults, this book was a fun read, and I think others should read it too.

Taryn.

P.S. There are so many sequels coming out to books I've reviewed (Beautiful Darkness to Beautiful Creatures, Linger to Shiver, Mr. Monster, to I Am Not A Serial Killer, and now Hexbound to this book, Firespell).  I'm thinking of saving them all up and a having a month where I review all of the books, the Beautiful books, the "      "er books, the Killer books, and the "Single-Word-Even-Though-They-Shouldn't-Be" books.  What do you guys think?

P.P.S. Seriously, are there any readers of my blog?  Please, if there are, post a comment and say something like "Hi, my name is so-and-so, I read your blog."  I want you guys to do this because on some days (like today) I don't feel like there's any use in my blog.  I like saying "blog".  It's fun.

How Not To Be Popular by Jennifer Zeigler

Sugar Magnolia Dempsey, A.K.A. Maggie, is the daughter of some of the biggest hippies you can find.  Not only are they kind of embarrassing, but they move her around all the time.  When Maggie was younger she found her life adventurous, now that she's older, she finds is cumbersome, to the extreme.  When she moved from Portland to Austin, she left behind her group of friends and her boyfriend.  She knows better this time, she will NOT make friends, she will not get attached, so when she moves again, it won't hurt, and she goes to extremes to achieve this.  However, things go worse than she could have ever imagined.

This book was completely and totally, without a doubt in this world,  awesome.  I downed this book in two sittings.  It was laugh out loud funny, I read the first 2/3rds at one in the morning, and I'm pretty sure I woke someone up (I'm sure some of it can be chocked up to my shriek like laughter, but my laugh has to be induced, does it not?).  It was all very real and believable (I have yet to enter high school, and have been out of a normal school for three years, so I wouldn't know how true the social hierarchy is, but if it's really an exaggerated version of the kind of torture I received in third grade, then my God, she got it completely right.).  Everything worked out as I would imagine it would if the events in the book were to unfold in real life.  I love this book and it really helped take me out of my pre-move depression.

Taryn

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arther Golden

Memoirs of a Geisha is the fictional story of Chiyo Sakamoto/Sayuri Nitta and is set in the 1920 to after World War II.  Chiyo's mother is dying and as a last resort, her father sells Chiyo and her sister Satsu to different places in Gion, Chiyo to an okiya, where geisha in training live, and Satsu to whore-house.  Chiyo makes a new friend in the other geisha in training in the okiya, Pumpkin, as she is so fondly nicknamed, but also makes a new enemy in Hatsumomo, the resident geisha of the okiya.  Hatsumomo makes life terrible for Chiyo in hopes of keeping her down with so much debt and making her make so many mistakes that she will have to remain a maid for the rest of her life.  However, one day Chiyo breaks down on the bridge and a nice man who goes by Chairman, as he is the chairman of Iwamura Electric, and the Chairman helps Chiyo by giving her reassurance and a coin to by a snow cone.  That day Chiyo makes a promise to herself that she will one day become a geisha in hopes of getting closer to the Chairman (she even prays to the gods).  During the aftermath of the death of one of Chiyo's okiya's owners, Granny, one of the most prominent geisha of the day, Mameha, comes and sees Chiyo, then asks the other owner of the okiya to put Chiyo back in the geisha school, and offers to become her "big sister", as the mentors of the soon to be geisha are called.  Mameha devises a devious plan to get rid of Hatsumomo and help Chiyo become a geisha.  Chiyo succeeds in becoming a geisha, and her name is changed to Sayuri Sakamoto.  The devious plan succeeds and Sayuri gets adopted by Mother, and her name is changed once more to Sayuri Nita.  Hatsumomo looses it and is banished by Mother from Gion.  Sayuri rises to become a very prominent geisha and wins the heart of the Chairman.

I love this book.  Period.  No questions asked.  It's awesome and the writing is wonderful.  The use of similes and metaphors is masterful.  Sometimes, the use of similes and metaphors can be overpowering and it becomes superfluous, but in this case, it adds to the magic of the book.  There is one major con of this book- the slow pace of the novel.  The book is read as if it really were a memoir, and as with most biographies, that type of writing causes the novel to slow down in pace.  This book won't make you tear through the pages, but you will love it, treasure it, and hold it close to your heart.

Slight warning and some big news (not a review)

Hello readers of my blog (if there are any),
I thought I should just let you guys know in advance some changes that are happening right now.  I'm currently in the process of relocating to Colorado Springs, and I had to send 98% of my books today (95 books total, although I hoped it would be 100 or more).  That may not seem like such a big deal, but it will take eight weeks to get to the States (they have to go by sea freight), I have only seven books I haven't reviewed yet with me, and I'm leaving on a jet plane (song reference) in about a month, and knowing me, seven books shouldn't last a month (considering there all pretty short, also assuming they would be captivating and I can remain on my stay-up-'til-four-AM routine).  Therefore, I'm sorry if I should have to re-read and re-review some previous books.  However, a month from now, when I am happily living in the barren, yet beautiful, snowy wasteland that is Colorado, I will be within 45 minutes from a bookstore, so, books galore any time I want.  (Laughs delightedly, jumps up and down, and does a lame happy dance!)

Again, sorry if should, God forbid (but not really), have to re-read a book or two for this blog, please exercise mercy and spareth my life, for I am but a humble blogger, who wishes nothing more than to please readers with my words, practically nonexistent wit, and out-of-date Shakespearean speaking.

Farewell, wherever you fare, and may your eyries receive you at your journey's end, and
May the wind under your wings bear you where the sun sails and the moon walks
(book reference)


P.S. Sorry for my excessive use of parentheses.

Reread of the month- Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

Ok, I decided I would write a brand new review instead of reposting the old one.  I decided to do this because I wrote the first review for the series during my "Mid-Blog Crisis", therefore, it was kind of sucky.  So here's a new one, hopefully better than the last.  (I would like to stress that this will be much shorter and less detailed than the old review, by that I mean I going to give you a background story, ect., ect., trials and tribulations, *mystery*, so if you want more details, even if the writing is sucky, read the old one, but I would like it if you read this one too.)

Harry Potter is a wizard, though he doesn't know it, at least, not until his elevinth birthday.  Harry's parents died at the hands of the most feared wizard of the time (possibly of all time), although his aunt and uncle (who Harry has been living with ever since the night his parents were murdered) always said it was a car crash.  But when Harry turns elevin, the web of lies Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon have built falls down with a loud crash disporportionite to its size and weight.  Throughout the entire series we follow Harry's journey that he takes with all the people who love him.  Througout the series he goes through heartache and trials as we follow along peering into the world J.K. Rowling has created.

There's not much to say about this book other than AWESOME.  Rowling's writing is great.  It can be funny sad, sweet, and heartbreakingly wonderful all at the same time.  You really get sucked into her world (and love it too).  This is a wonderful tale for the ages.


Taryn.


P.S. I found a new vice (not that I had one before, but...), Harry Potter fan fiction.  You should really go over to Mugglenets fan fiction site (here- http://fanfiction.mugglenet.com/).  Many of the stories are awesome, though some aren't.  WARNING- don't go to the Hermione/Snape section of the the romance fics category (unless you're one to go for that), because you will have the image of Snape kissing Hermione burned into your mind for an entire day (and that day will be full of gagging and wincing and serious meditation trying to get that image out of your head), and then, whenever you think about that moment, you gag, for up to a week.  So, don't go there (again, unless you're one for that).  Also, I will give no reasons as to why I was in the romance fics category.

Reread of the month

This month's reread of the month is Harry Potter.  When I'm done with all of the books, I will repost the review I did this month.

Taryn

Runemarks By Joanne Harris

Maddy Smith, the village witch, is left to deal with the goblins-in-the-cellar-problem five hundred years after the end of the world. Maddy Smith was born with a ‘ruinmark’, as the villagers call it, but when Maddy is seven and meets the mysterious traveler One-Eye, he tells her it’s a runemark. One-Eye teaches Maddy everything about runes, their meanings, how to cast them, and their fingerings. And, when she is fourteen, One-Eye tells her that they need to open Red Horse Hill to get to an item called the Whisperer inside. Maddy enters and sets off an amazing chain of events circling around the ancient Norse myths.


I completely and totally love this book. Harris’ writing is incredible, the pages are filled with suspense and wit, and the story is extremely well thought out. I love each and every one of the characters, even the ones I’m not really supposed to like. Some of the characters you see from the Norse myths are Odin (of course), Loki, Thor, Freyja, and Skadi. I would also like to point out that even though Harris gets much of the important information right, this book is based on the Norse myths and there have been changes made. (I think it’s important to note here, that I love the Norse myths, and I normally don’t tolerate fact changing, Harris’ story is so darn good, I just don’t care.) I didn’t give very much information here because to list every important event would have made this a very long post, it’s five hundred and thirty something pages!

Taryn



P.S. If you’re interested in learning more about runes and runecasting, I created this document. All of the information is either paraphrased or copied from this site- http://www.sunnyway.com/runes/- it is very informative and even has some Norse myths on it. Harris also used different names for the runes than the ones on this site, just a heads up.  Also, because the rune meanings got messed up in the document, here is the link to the rune meanings section of the site, which has graphics of the runes- http://www.sunnyway.com/runes/meanings.html

P.P.S. Here is a link from Harris’ website on the actual rune fingerings used in the book- http://joanne-harris.co.uk/v3site/books/runemarks/fingerings.html

P.P.P.S. (there are a lot of post-scripts in this post) Here are two books I recommend to read about the original Norse myths. The first is a large one, kind of like a children’s book, but the writing is not for little kids, but it’s a good Norse Mythology 101 book. The second is much more detailed and adult-like (it also looks like a regular non-kids’ book).

D’Aulaires’ Book of Norse Myths- http://www.amazon.com/DAulaires-Norse-Myths-Ingri-DAulaire/dp/159017125X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1275076619&sr=1-1

The Norse Myths- http://www.amazon.com/Norse-Myths-Pantheon-Folklore-Library/dp/0394748468/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1275076672&sr=1-1

Thirteen Reasons Why By Jay Asher

Hannah Baker committed suicide; Clay received a box of cassette tapes on his front porch after the death. Hannah Baker was Clay’s crush, so it is immensely shocking to hear her voice coming out of the speaker when he plays the tapes. Hannah tells the listeners that she made these tapes to tell each of them that they are one of the thirteen reasons for her death, so Clay had a hand in her suicide. Hannah explains everything from her freshman year to now, and Clay gets crushed with each word. He goes to all the places Hannah tells him to go, trying to find out why she did this to herself. In the end he finds out that it was only a matter of recognizing the signs and helping her.


I found this book to be very heartbreaking. When Clay’s thoughts interrupt Hannah’s narrative, every word is filled with misery, and I felt it. Asher’s writing is incredible. The story line was well thought out and detailed. But alas, the cryptic ending hath taken its hold on this book and its final pages are filled with questions and moments of “huh?” I really did like this book, although it’s not one of my favorites. I would recommend though (but not to anyone really emotional).



Taryn



P.S. I will be reviewing Runemarks by Joanne Harris next. I have read it before, however, but have developed a craving for it, so I will be reviewing it.

P.P.S. Have you noticed I made this review considerably shorter in comparison to my recent reviews. I had a mid-blog crisis where I thought, “no one’s reading this, so why should I care,” but then I thought, if I don’t care no one will ever read it, so, mid-blog crisis solved.

I Am Not a Serial Killer by Dan Wells

I Am Not a Serial Killer by Dan Wells is the story of John Wayne Cleaver. John is a sociopath and is terrified he’s going to end up being a serial killer. He has always been fascinated by the dead bodies that enter his mom’s mortuary, fire, and serial killers. A year ago he wrote a chilling report for school about Jeffery Dahmer, a notorious American serial killer, cannibal, and necrophiliac, which gave him a therapist. The therapist diagnosed him with APD or ASPD, Antisocial Personality Disorder, which means that he is a psychopath, and therefore incapable of feeling emotion. I would like to make it clear however that even though is incapable of empathy, he understands right and wrong, and even goes so far as to have written rules for himself that help him not kill anybody. When a serial killer moves into town, first killing a local auto mechanic, gutting him, and leaving the guts in a pile for people to find, John gets very excited to study the serial killer’s methods, motives, and to do a psych profile. He realizes that doing any of these things will bring him dangerously close to breaking his rules, but when he finds someone who he thinks is the killer, he can’t help it and he follows him. The drifter, who he suspects is the killer, gets one of John’s neighbors to take him ice fishing, and when the drifter tries to kill John’s neighbor, the neighbor turns on the drifter and kills him. The neighbor turns out to be a demon. John tails his neighbor, and he continues to kill, until one night John makes an anonymous tip to the police and they dispatch two policemen to try and arrest the killer. When this goes horribly wrong, John decides that the only way to stop the demon is to kill him, and to kill a serial killer, you need to think like a serial killer, so who better to kill a serial killer, than a serial killer, or in this case a not!serial killer. John knows that he’s going to have to break all his rules to do this, but he does it anyway. He gets very close to murdering and/or stalking some people besides demon-neighbor, but eventually succeeds in killing the demon.


When I was describing this book to my mom, I used the words, which I decided I’d use here, this book is so creepy it’s awesome, and so awesome it’s creepy. I totally and completely love it. It gives a very interesting look into the mind of a sociopath (although I’m not sure if it really is an accurate description, as I’m not a sociopath, although I do have an intense love of fire, but I’m not a pyromaniac, one of the traits of the Macdonald triad, three traits 95 percent of serial killers have). It was full of dark humor, that wouldn’t really be all that funny in real life, but sound pretty funny (at least to me) on paper, case in point, this passage-

“How’s Brooke?” Mom asked, muting the TV. I kept my eyes focused on the screen.

She’s great, I thought. She has a birthday coming up, and I found the complete guest list for her slumber party crumpled up in her family’s garbage can. She likes horses, manga, and eighties music, and she’s always just late enough for the bust that she has to run to catch up. I know her class schedule, her GPA, her social-security number, and the password to her Gmail account.

“I don’t know,” I said. “She’s fine I guess. I don’t see her all that often.”

Well’s writing style is wonderful. I kept thinking all throughout the book how certain scenes would look awesome, and great, and scary, and awesome, and did I mention awesome, in a movie. Anyway, you can tell I’m in love with this book. Thank you for reading.

Taryn.

P.S. I will be reviewing the New York Times bestseller, “Thirteen Reasons Why” by Jay Asher next.

P.P.S. I heard somewhere that this book (I Am Not a Serial Killer) would be turned into a trio, (squee!), if this information is true; I will review those books as close as possible to the release date.

Before I Fall By Lauren Oliver

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver is the story of Samantha Kingston, the picture of popularity. Sam has everything, until February 12, the day she dies. After a party, Lindsey, Sam’s best friend, runs the car off the road after something jumps in front of it. The next day, after Sam wakes up, it’s February 12 again. At first she thinks that her death was just a dream, then she realizes it isn’t. The first day, she lives the day almost the same way. She dies again. The next day, February 12, she tries to avoid death, avoid the party, but instead of dying, Juliet Sykes, the freak of the school, shoots herself. When she falls asleep, she wakes again on February 12. On the fourth February 12, she decides she doesn’t care. She dresses like a prostitute, fights with Lindsey, makes out with her math teacher, smokes pot in the bathroom with the school’s resident slut, steals her parents credit card, spends a thousand or so dollars on a dress for the party, goes to the party, avoids death. At the party, she almost sleeps with her boyfriend, but instead ends up crying in a room. The boy throwing the party, Kent, finds her, and they talk, not very much, but he gives her a guest bedroom to sleep in, kisses her on the cheek, and that’s the day that things start to change a little bit. On the fourth day, Sam stays home and does some things with her little sister, Izzy, and hangs out with her family. Sam knows that if she doesn’t die, that Juliet will commit suicide, so she goes over to her house and tries to stop her. When Juliet isn’t there, Sam goes to the Kent’s party, decked out in sweats. Someone tells her that Juliet locked herself in the bathroom, when she gets there the door is locked and she starts getting crazy ideas about razors, and pills, and cutting, and blood, and death, so she barks at one of the people in the line to use the bathroom and tells them to get Kent. He comes and opens the door, Juliet isn’t there, but they find the window open. Sam follows her footprints into the woods and finds her curled up on the ground next to the road. When Sam finds her she gets up, Sam tries to convince her not to jump, but she jumps in from of Lindsey’s car, and this time, Elody, Sam’s other friend, dies. Kent takes her back to his house and she freaks out from the combined shock and grief. Kent gives her some clothes and lets her sleep on his bed. Before she falls asleep, however, Kent shares a story she almost forgot, about how when his grandfather died, he started crying in the cafeteria and Phil Howell called him a faggot and threw his food tray on the ground. Sam picked up the mashed potatoes, shoved them in Phil’s face, stuffed the turkey burger down his shirt and threw a nice insult at him. Kent said to Sam, “You’re my hero,” and swore to himself that he would be her hero too, no matter how long it took. Kent gives her a fleeting kiss. Sam wakes up in a great mood the sixth February, 12. That day she really starts to see the beauty in her life (and is a little head-over-heels smitten with Kent). She does some weird-in-a-good-way things that day. She breaks up with her boyfriend, tries to find Kent to tell him how she feels, but she has to stop Juliet from killing herself again. Juliet reveals some interesting things about Lindsey. She steals Lindsey’s keys thinking that Juliet wanted to jump in front of her car, specifically, although it was just coincidence that it happened to be Lindsey’s car that killed Juliet. Juliet kills herself again. When Sam drops Lindsey of at her house, Kent drives her back. And then, when they reach Sam’s house, kissing, and love, and I’ve never been much of a romantic, but right then and there I’m smiling, and giggling and awing, happiness. The last day, the seventh day, February, 12 to the seventh power, Sam says goodbye. She gives her sister her necklace. She tells her math teacher off for hitting on high school girls. She breaks up with her boyfriend. She’s nice to people. Kent picks her up and they kiss yet again in the driveway, and although Kent thinks it’s the first time, it’s really the fifth time they’ve kissed (I know the math seems wrong, but some of the info that I’ve left out contains an additional two kisses). She saves Juliet, and dies in the attempt.
Now I know I left out a bunch of info, but the necessary stuff is long, so the not-so-necessary stuff would make things even longer. Now the review.

Oliver’s writing is pretty good, and I’m sure it will get better with time. The conversations seem natural, yet cheesy at the same time. The characters are well developed and as likable as they can be. I found when reading it however, that I wasn’t rooting for Sam, I was rooting for the Sam-Kent relationship. And I thought when I figured this out, well, that’s not supposed to happen. At least, I should be rooting for Sam too, but I wasn’t. However, it seems like I should say that I rooted for that relationship more than anything else I have ever rooted for. I really wanted that relationship to happen. I would also like to point out that on Sam’s last day, everything is so quick. I mean, I know that she’s done these things multiple times, but to other peoples knowledge, this is the first, so, isn’t kind of cruel that she just goes, “Hi, I love you, goodbye, I’m going to die now.” Other than that, I was really satisfied with the ending for once. The books pretty great and I definitely recommend.

Taryn.
P.S. I will be review “I Am Not a Serial Killer” by Dan Wells next. I can’t wait for a break from gushy YA novels and get to some blood and guts, horror movie in written form. At least, I hope so.

The Harry Potter Series By J.K. Rowling

Alas, the end I meet again. Alas, the pain in my heart comes into being once more.


Anyway, I should probably say before the review that even though my header states that I'm unbiased, I never thought that I would consciously decide to review the books that taught me to revere all books. So, in this case, I am slightly biased, but I did try my hardest while reading to be critical of the books. Now for a note on how this review will be done, I will give a summary of the story throughout the series, then I will go over some major plot points in each of the books, followed by my review. So, without further ado, the review of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter (and the *insert the remainder of the title here*)

Harry Potter (series) is the story of Harry Potter (character), an orphaned wizard sent to live with his Muggle (non-magic) aunt, uncle and cousin. When he is eleven, he gets a letter from Hogwarts, a school for witches and wizards. Hagird, gamekeeper at Hogwarts explains that his parents died at the hands of the evil wizard Lord Voldemort (referred to by the wizarding world as He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, You-Know-Who, or the Dark Lord by his supporters), not by the car crash his aunt and uncle have been telling him. Harry goes to Hogwarts and meets two friends Ron and Hermione, faces multiple troubles, both trivial and not, tests, enemies, and various other things. The series progress through to Harry's second year (Chamber of Secrets), when a house elf (a race of enslaved creatures who are forced to do their master's bidding until presented with proper clothing) by the name of Dobby comes to warn Harry of a danger at Hogwarts. Dobby tries to thwart Harry’s attempts to get to Hogwarts and fails multiple times. Harry finds out about the danger, a monster in the mythical Chamber of Secrets. Hermione finds out what the monster is, and Ron and Harry enter the Chamber to kill the monster, and rescue a girl who has been taken into the Chamber (I won't say who the girl is, but you probably already know from either the book or the movie). In Harry, Ron, and Hermione's third year (Prisoner of Azkaban), mass murder Sirius Black has escaped Azkaban and is hell-bent on murdering Harry. There have been Dementors (faceless creatures that cause you to relive your worst memories, or if you've been really bad, will kiss you and suck your soul out through your mouth) wandering around to try and catch Black. Harry's Defense Against the Dark Arts teach, Remus Lupin, long time friend of Harry's dad, teaches him how to produce a Patronus (the only defense against Dementors) because the Dementors affect him more than anybody because he's had so many horrible experiences in his life. In the end he meets up with Sirius Black, and he finds out some things, including the fact that Ron's rat, Scabbers, is really Peter Pettigrew, friend of Harry's dad, Sirius, and Lupin. Pettigrew ultimately betrayed Harry's parents by telling Voldemort of their whereabouts. And unless you've been living under a rock for the past decade, you already know what happens next, if not from the book, the movie. In the next book (Goblet of Fire), the Triwizard tournament is taking place at Hogwarts, and Harry would be perfectly content with watching three other students from Hogwarts, Beaxbattons, Drumstrang fight for their lives, but no, it is essential that everything happens to him, therefore, someone placed his name in the Goblet of Fire (which chose the champions) under the name of a fourth school, so he has to play. So of course he survives the tasks, all the while trying to find out who put his name in the Goblet (and dealing with a crush). In the final task, he finds the cup and ties with the other Hogwarts Champion, Cedric Diggory, but when they grab the Triwizard cup, it transports them to an old graveyard, for the cup was a Portkey (a magical object that transports people touching it at a prearranged date and time to a prearranged location). There they find Peter Pettigrew holding what remains of Voldemort. Voldemort orders the death of Cedric, and Harry is forced to watch as Pettigrew concocts a potion that brings back his master. Voldemort summons his followers and he and Harry duel. Harry escapes bringing Cedric's body. Dumbledore says at the end of term feast that Voldemort is back; we then cut off and enter into the fifth book. In this book (Order of the Phoenix) the Daily Prophet (the wizarding newspaper) and the Ministry of Magic have been saying that Harry and Dumbledore have been lying about Voldemort, and when two Dementors attack Harry and his cousin Duddly and Harry has to use magic to get them out with their souls intact, the Ministry calls a hearing to make the final decision on his expulsion from Hogwarts. He gets off, but back at Hogwarts, they find that Fudge, the Minister of Magic, made Dumbledore hire a Ministry official as their Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, and she refuses to teach them any defense. Eventually this pushes Harry, Ron, and Hermione to the point where they form an illicit D.A.T.D.A. club, by the name of Dumbledore's Army. Throughout the novel, Harry has been getting flashes of what Voldemort's seeing, so when he gets a vision of Voldemort torturing Sirius in the place Harry has been dreaming of for months, he goes to rescue him. It was a trap and a fight ensues, eventually ending with Voldemort's failed attempt to posses Harry. In the sixth year at Hogwarts (Half-Blood Prince), Harry takes many private lessons with Dumbledore in which Dumbledore shows Harry memories which feature moments in Voldemort's past. They find out that Voldemort made six Horcruxes (objects in which a person hides a piece of their soul), and that they have to destroy them to kill Voldemort. Meanwhile, Harry has been excelling at potions because of a book with helpful tips and tricks written in the margins. While Harry, Ron, and Hermione are dealing with romance, Draco Malfoy has been doing some mysterious things. When Harry and Dumbledore return from finding a Horcrux, they find out that Malfoy has been ordered by Voldemort to kill Dumbledore. Malfoy fails, but someone else succeeds. In the final book (Deathly Hallows), Harry, Ron, and Hermione go on a hunt for Horcruxes (hunt for Horcruxes sounds cool [the words, not the actual event]) while on the run from Death Eaters. They are forced to camp out in the woods, are placed under constant fear and worry, and take many detours and deal with resulting disaster before finally coming back to Hogwarts to finish it all. There they destroy the second to last Horcrux, Neville destroys the final, and a very epic battle takes place. I will stop here as to not give away anything I haven't already given away.

Now I know that was probably not very detailed in the way of explaining, but I trust that those who haven't already read the book will have seen the movies or at the very least understand many essential terms used here (mostly in the way of characters and their roles) .

I'd like to start by saying that Rowling's writing is beautiful, and I would expect no less from someone who has been penning stories from the age of six. The story line is excellent, and when you look, there are things leading up to things in the final book from the start, which is impressive. There are however loopholes, but if I were to say, I would risk spoiling an important part. I love the last book, it was awesome in my opinion. The writing dwarfs that of earlier books, the story line is again great, the dialogue is natural and unforced, everything just fell into place. My least favorites were the Chamber of Secrets and the Order of the Phoenix. I didn't like Chamber of Secrets because the plot never seemed to appeal to me that much. I didn't like Order of the Phoenix because of the whole teen angst thing. When someone writes about teen angst you're supposed to feel sympathetic to the character and relate, no matter your age, with this book, it just seemed very annoying, I kept saying, "Just shut up already, we get it, you're angry, now please be quit!" I assume Rowling forgot what it's like to be a teenager, or otherwise had trouble putting it in words. I love the story, and I always have, but I don't think it's normal to sob over the pages of a book, especially when you've already read it three times before. I leave you with a very Shakespearean take on my feelings upon leaving this series.
O, woe! my troubles hath taken over mine heart! Mine insides curl with pain, and mine eyes stingeth with tears of cruel departure! How fast it hath ended! How fast it hath leaveth me! Lo and behold my suffering! I faceth the unknown now, and may I be granted the pleasure of conquering it. Sad is my face as I turn my back on that which I love.

Beautiful Creatures By Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Let me start off by saying, if you did not know this was written by two women, you would never know. This was a pretty darn good book altogether, but honestly, the only thing that kept me reading through the 200 page mark was the fact that I can't leave a mystery unsolved and I had to write this book review, that and sự lãng mạn (that's one of my reasons for sticking with the book in a language I'm not telling you). But in the end, I'm glad I stuck with it for whatever reason in whatever language.


The book is about Ethan and Lena (as Leena, I didn't figure that out until around a hundred pages in, so here it is from the start). Ethan is a normal human being, a Mortal, and Lena is a Caster, like a witch but less evil-sounding. Caster's, at their sixteenth birthday, go Dark or Light, A.K.A. they choose when they're sixteen and full of teenage hormones whether they want to spend the rest of their life on Team Good or Team Bad. But Lena's family is different, the women in Lena's family are cursed to have their fate chosen for them, and Lena's scared she's going to get picked for Team Bad. Ethan has been having dreams of Lena, and Lena's been having the same dreams. When Lena moves to Gatlin (the town in which the story takes place), Ethan doesn't recognize her immediately like he should because he can never remember the girl's face. But what he does remember is her scent. So when he almost runs Lena over, and gives her a ride home, he recognizes her through her smell, lemons and rosemary. The rest of the story basically goes on with these aspects mixed together-
1. Ethan finds out Lena is a Caster
2. Ethan copes with Lena being a Caster
3. Lena's weird relatives
4. The Cheerleaders from Hell
5. Information that I kept thinking was meant to fill up time, but really does turn out to be helpful in the end.
Now on to the review.
I found it really refreshing to have a YA novel almost completely narrated by a dude (I say this because there are a couple pages near the end that are narrated by Lena). The book was good, long though. I kept whining to my friend and my mom that there were a hundred pages for less than 24 hours. The book kept me thinking, but I think this was only because I have a hard time putting my thoughts into words. It was written beautifully, but I'm not sure it had the best plot to back it up. This is the opposite of the problem with the last book I reviewed, Shiver, that had a good plot with not so good writing, and you need both to make for an excellent novel. Let me just say that I think the cover is awesome, but really hard to read if you stare at it too long. Besides that, I have nothing more to say. I bid you good bye!
Taryn.
P.S. I will now embark upon the journey that is Harry Potter *crossingmyself*, may God help me look at this critically. Help.