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renatasnacks's reviews
2410 reviews
The Future of Us by Carolyn Mackler, Jay Asher
4.0
Aww, a cute teen romance. Probably more appealing to actual adults than to young adults, due to all the mid-90s nostalgia. Remember Windows 95?! Remember it!? Teenagers do not.
The Clique by Lisi Harrison
1.0
Gross!! This book made Gossip Girl look like Shakespeare! At least Gossip Girl felt at least vaguely satirical and had actually funny mean girls. This was pretty much just expensive fashion porn and almost-unadulterated bitchiness.
Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi
3.0
Hmm. I wanted to read this because it was this year's Printz winner, but it didn't really sound like my kind of book. My fondness for the Hunger Games aside, I'm generally not a huge fan of dystopias, especially ones where children have impossibly grim hopeless lives. The kids in Ship Breaker climb through the ducts and stuff of shipwrecks, stripping them of copper wire and stuff, until they get too big (around age 15 or so) and then either get a bigger job, become a prostitute, or starve to death basically. WOO HOO.
That said, I got more into it than I expected. Especially once they left the beach (and things got a little less hopeless). The characters are good, the action is exciting and page-turning, and the world is well-built. It's just pretty grim.
I notice this is Ship Breaker #1 and I have to say I would probably read the sequel--I like where the story ended and I'm very interested to know more about Tool. It seemed like Bacigalupi was hinting at a much bigger story for him--I'll be very disappointed if he's not in the sequel.
That said, I got more into it than I expected. Especially once they left the beach (and things got a little less hopeless). The characters are good, the action is exciting and page-turning, and the world is well-built. It's just pretty grim.
I notice this is Ship Breaker #1 and I have to say I would probably read the sequel--I like where the story ended and I'm very interested to know more about Tool. It seemed like Bacigalupi was hinting at a much bigger story for him--I'll be very disappointed if he's not in the sequel.
Putting Makeup on Dead People by Jen Violi
4.0
CRYINGGGG. I just read this all in one sitting. I thought Violi's portrayal of Donna, whose dad died when she was 14 and who now wants to go to college to become a funeral director, was intense and awesome. Violi was so so good at showing, not telling, and you could totally see how everything Donna was doing made sense to her but how much it was hurting her mom, and, and... :(
But also it was very funny in places and very wisely contemplative about death.
But also it was very funny in places and very wisely contemplative about death.
Fat Vampire: A Never Coming of Age Story by Adam Rex
3.0
Hmm. This was funny but a bit messy--partly a send-up of vampire novels but partly, well, not. I loved the idea of a very un-Edward Cullen vampire but frankly Doug was a really annoying character (intentionally so, but I'm not sure that I'm on board with reading so much about such an irritating vampire).
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
5.0
OK. I admit it. I was a little nervous that John Green's newest book was about cancer kids. It seems like a topic that's highly likely to veer into the maudlin. And, the cover blurb is from Jodi Picault. But I wanted to give it a go anyway, because I like John Green. Last night I figured I'd read a few chapters before bed. Instead I stayed up for three hours reading it cover to cover. It's good, guys. Not maudlin (though I cried, obviously). Very funny. Very smart. Okay, John Green, okay. You can write about cancer kids.
Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld
4.0
I was hesitant to pick this up because I'm not really into steampunk or alt history, but I decided to give it a go because a) I didn't really like the sounds of the Uglies series either but it turns out I loved it and b) Alan Cumming reads the audiobook and I love him. Anyway, Scott Westerfeld knows what he's doing. I got totally sucked into this and loved it. Can't wait to read the rest of the trilogy! Such great worldbuilding and fun characters, especially Deryn <3
It ended very abruptly though! I actually checked to make sure my audiobook wasn't missing a disc or something. [b:Behemoth|7826116|Behemoth (Leviathan, #2)|Scott Westerfeld|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1301790691s/7826116.jpg|7245151], I NEED YOU NOW.
It ended very abruptly though! I actually checked to make sure my audiobook wasn't missing a disc or something. [b:Behemoth|7826116|Behemoth (Leviathan, #2)|Scott Westerfeld|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1301790691s/7826116.jpg|7245151], I NEED YOU NOW.
Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride
4.0
Really smart, fun urban fantasy! Great characters and has a unique feel to it--very droll and funny but not at the expense of character development or plot.
Blink & Caution by Tim Wynne-Jones
3.0
I got really sucked into this while I was reading it--definite couldn't-put-it-down factor. But after I finished it, I was kind of like, wait, what? Possibly I read it too fast. IDK. Anyway, I enjoyed the characters and I really got caught up in the mystery and everything, but after I finished it, it all felt a little anti-climactic I guess.