love_booksforlife's reviews
511 reviews

The Captive by L.J. Smith

4.0

The Secret Circle series got a little better in the second installment. It was interesting to watch how Cassie dealt with Faye's torture but still, unconsciously, found herself becoming friends with the whole circle. The ending came along a little too quickly, however. Cassie's grandmother being the "storyteller" at the end was interesting but I wanted Cassie to find out on her own what happened to the generation before her.

The Power by L.J. Smith

4.0

As a series, the Secret Circle books are lacking in some areas. While the books take place over a couple of months it moves slowly and then very fast. The characters, or at least some of them, develop but there are relationships that move very fast, way too fast for some of them (namely Cassie and Adam). The ending of this novel also moved way too fast. I wanted the book to be longer so that there was more of a pay off at the end. I liked how Cassie stepped up at the end but I wanted to see more of a journey to get there. I also wanted Cassie and Adam to have a more natural relationship (some good awkward I'm falling for you moments in stead of love at first sight/we are meant to be together moments.). All in all, I did like the series, although I think that may be more out of loyalty to when I read it in my youth.

The Divide by L.J. Smith, Aubrey Clark

1.0

If I could give this zero starts I would. I loved the original Secret Circle novels and wanted to give this new set a chance...which I did. I finished this volume and tried to go into the second book but I just couldn't do it anymore. The original novels had a very young feel to them and this set felt even younger. Also, the characters were nothing like the original books. Diana was mean and Faye was weak. The introduction of Scarlet was probably one of the worst things Clark could have done to the series. It took Cassie's uniqueness away from her and made her boring. You can very much tell that LJ Smith did not write these books and that the books without her did not do well without her touch.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Long Way Home by Joss Whedon

4.0

I am not usually a graphic novel fan but I do like The Walking Dead so I decided to give Buffy season 8 a chance. I loved the show (it will always be my favorite) and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked this book. The characters were the same as the show, yet grown which was nice. I did get lost a little when they switched into a dream scene but I was able to follow it fairly easily. I would recommend it to any fan of the show!

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Wolves at the Gate by Joss Whedon, Drew Goddard

4.0

I liked this issue. I could give or take Dracula. I wasn’t a fan of his episode so I found the scenes with him a bit boring. His relationship with Xander was interesting, but that’s about it. I will say that this issue had a tear-jerker section

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: No Future for You by Joss Whedon, Brian K. Vaughan

5.0

The second volume of season 8 did not disappoint. I liked the progression of the characters. It was interesting to see the new slayers in action. I loved that Faith was a central figure and that she finally embraced her destiny.

Spike Omnibus by Zach Howard, Peter David, Brian Lynch, Nicola Scott, Fernando Goni, Mike Ratera, Scott Tipton, Joe Corroney, Franco Urru

4.0

This was a good collection of spike stories for any die hard fan. The only one I was thrilled with was "Spike vs.Dracula". The story felt forced to me, almost as if it was just a fun history story with Spike added in. I really liked the art in "Lost and Found" and "Old Wounds" the best and the story in "Asylum" the best. Happy I was able to read these!

Spike: After the Fall by Brian Lynch

4.0

This was an interesting story I'm not sure j liked all of it, some of the Illyria stuff confused me, but j love Spike enough to keep reading. Moving onto the Angel series to see where all of my favorite characters have gone.

Angel: After the Fall, Volume 1 by Brian Lynch

4.0

This picks up already in the action after the series end. I was a little confused at first but the story was good and easy to follow.

Angel: After the Fall, Volume 2: First Night by Brian Lynch

5.0

This is the best if the comics I've read. It connects the end of the series to the rest of the after the fall story line. I really liked seeing some old characters that I really love.